The Magic Poop Machine

I've wanted to write this post ever since I started my blog but I've never had the guts to do it. One thing I love to do is look to the past, usually back one year, and say to myself "one year ago I was doing this or that and now look where I am." The past couple weeks I've been looking back to one year ago at this time when Jason and I were in Cincinnati for 17 days while Jack and Lily had colorectal surgery at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. This isn't a pleasant memory but it is a MAJOR event in our lives and it leads me to this post.

I've mentioned before that Lily and Jack were both born with a medical condition called imperforate anus. Simply explained, in-utero the anus isn't fully formed and there is no opening. Both kids had a colostomy at birth and then later had surgery in China to correct the condition. After we adopted Jack it was determined that both kids needed an additional surgery by a specialist in Cincinnati.

After Jack had his surgery we discovered that the surgery in China was a "surgical catastrophe" according to our surgeon. He suffered irreparable damage to his rectum making it so he would never have normal bowel movements. When I found this out I was devastated both for Jack and for myself. But thanks to an AMAZING medical team in Cincinnati Jack is able to live a normal life thanks to a device we refer to as the Magic Poop Machine.

In June we went back to Cincinnati where we learned all about the magic poop machine (as our family calls it). Every morning Jack needs an enema which completely cleans him out for 24 hours. He has to eat a somewhat restricted diet because certain foods cause his colon to move resulting in unwanted bowel movements. He has handled this so well. It is an unpleasant experience to give a 3 year old a daily enema but it has turned into a blessing in an unexpected way for our family. In December I was going through a really hard time with Jack as he was giving up his naps and very cranky as a result. This made our daily magic poop machine all the more a trying experience for me. I decided to start reading the Book of Mormon and relating every scripture to dealing with my frustrations. I would read out loud to Jack while he was laying on my bed having his enema. Very quickly my heart was softened and I began to see the blessings of this trial. I realized that Jack, who is extremely active, would actually lay there and listen while I read the Book of Mormon to him. I realized that the 10 minutes of our morning was the perfect time for our family to do Scripture Power. We have sturggled so much with scripture study but our weaknesses have truly been made our strengths as we take advantage of this time each morning when Jack must be still and quiet to study the scriptures as a family. We are now blazing through the Book of Mormon and Jack loves to hear stories of Nephi.

A year ago at this time I wept in sorrow for our family. Now I weep tears of JOY that we have been deeply blessed in a way that may have never happened without this trial. I am humbled.

Three Ring Circus

Let me begin two nights ago. We had just finished another awesome night at our Financial Peace University class and were getting ready to leave when our facilitator said he had some prizes to hand out. As soon as he said prizes I knew it had to be tickets to the US Figure Skating Championships. I was dying to go but hadn't even thought about making it a reality. First he asked: Who is free tomorrow night?

I can always make sure I'm free for something good so up shot my hand, along with nearly everyone else in the class. Then he asked: Who is doing their zero based budget? Affirmative again. The next qualifying question was: Who is using cash and categorizing it into envelopes?

At this point I'm so excited because I'm still in it! I'm loving the envelope system. I love it so much that sometimes I break open my wallet and count all my money in my different categories. So Yes, Yes, Yes!

The final qualifying question was: Who is selling things?
Here it the proof. This mess in my dining room confirms that I am selling things. Well, the prize was in fact tickets to the US Figure Skating Championships. Jason subbed for our facilitator last week while he was out of town so he said we got one set of tickets and then it was between Lucy and the Sanderson's for the other set. I just handed one of my tickets to Lucy and our teacher gave the other set to the Sanderson's. Then he brought another ticket over to Jason, or so we thought it was another ticket. It was only after we MAJORLY embarassed ourselves offering it to one of my friends that we realized that the ticket was in fact for VIP parking. Jason was so embarassed and sick about it all day.

Lucy and I both had swimming lessons for our kids the night of the skating so we rushed home and managed to fit in a quick dinner at Red Robin. We arrived just in time for the opening skate of the night. We got to sit in a luxury box and were tickled pink that we got FREE drinks! We're so easy to please. I love ice skating and Jason dislikes it so much that he can't even tolerate letting me watch it. My favorite part was the costumes and hearing the blades cut into the ice as the skater flew past us. It is amazing what these skaters can do with their bodies and how strong they are.

We got home late and I had some stuff to do to get ready for today. I ended up going to bed fairly early, but still ended up paying for it this morning. It seemed like all the kids were not functioning as I felt they should be and I found myself screaming like a woman who had lost her mind. My poor kids didn't know what had hit them and I spent the day feeling so much regret. Today was laundry day so Lisa arrived at 9:30 then at 10:00 I had a hair appointment. The girl who cuts my hair comes to my house which is so convenient and I thought it would work out great since Lisa was there. Then at noon my niece Cherise arrived to iron the rest of my stuff for ebay. It ended up taking all four adults to make this haircut happen. Jack has a hard time when I lose it and becomes very clingy. He did not want to leave my side for the whole haircut and color. He knew I was stuck in that chair with foil wraps poking out of my head like an alien and he took full advantage. Jack has a bad habit of saying stupid when things don't go his way. It used to be poo poo but he's moved on to stupid. He will say it over and over again. He loves to get a rise out of me so I ignore him and show little emotion. This is very hard to do when we are in public. He literally said it 50 times before he realized I wasn't going to make eye contact. I could tell that the girl (new mom) cutting my hair was swearing her child would never act like this. Hey, I used to swear that too. Lisa had to drag him downstairs several times and when Cherise arrived I sent her straight downstairs with the kids. It was comical. I now know why I have inches of gray at my roots and wear my hair in a ponytail everyday (something else I swore I would never do). It's just too much work to make it all happen.

New Blog I Love

I just added a link on my sidebar to my sister Amy's blog. I am so excited she started one because she has just embarked on a huge journey and is documenting it on her blog. She has decided to shed 100 pounds. This is a huge undertaking and I'm so proud of her. She has already lost 30+ pounds! If anyone wants to be inspired check it out.

A Moment of Solitude

Today we woke up to a winter wonderland. It snowed all night and the trees were all covered with snow. I had to go out early and take Jonah to a friends house and there were hardly any tracks in the snow. It was a wonderful experience driving on fresh snow. It only lasts for a moment then it is all black and grungy from traffic.

The kids all wanted to go sledding so I bundled everyone up and out they went. I totally lost it when literally 10 minutes later half of them were back in the house. The snow was very powdery so it didn't make for good sledding on our hill. They kept getting stuck. So Jason decided to give me a break and take them all to the YMCA. I needed it so much. I have all my stuff to list on ebay and it's impossible to do with my kids around. I am determined to get it all listed and out of my house so it was great to have a few hours to myself. I just uploaded all of my big girl sizes. My friend Rebecca came over and I helped her list some cute things as well. In return she ironed a bunch of stuff for me which was so helpful!! Thanks Rebecca. I can't believe how much I can get done in a quiet house with no interruptions. It was so great that when they came back I was energized and ready to spend time with the kids. It was even fun to cook dinner with Jack by my side. Since it's so cold and snowy I made a big pot of cheesy potato soup and some warm breadsticks.

Tonight Jason and I are getting together with some friends we don't see very often to play games. Tomorrow I have ward conference to attend and I have to visit two wards before their ward conference next week. I am going to be so tired by tomorrow night.

Out of Control Busy!

This week has been so busy and I've been grateful to have all day yesterday and today at home getting stuff done. I had one of my best days yesterday. I woke up ready to go and got so much accomplished. Lisa couldn't come yesterday to help with the laundry so I did it all by myself and didn't quite finish. I also started going through my ebay stuff. I am always suprised at how much I accumulate over the year. I am excited because this is when children's clothing sales start picking up on ebay for spring/summer clothing. I have several bins ready to iron, photograph and list. Lisa came today and since the laundry was done she helped me start to iron all the clothes. My goal is to get everything listed over the next 7-10 days.

Last night I did a relief society enrichment group at my house. I think it turned out well and that everyone who came enjoyed themselves. I am picky and prefer my close-knit book group but I think over time I will get to know some of these ladies better and enjoy them just as much. There are two young married girls who came that I just love. They are young moms and remind me of myself 10 years ago.

I feel like I'm coming to a point in my life where I'm just starting to relax. Lucy gave me a sign for Christmas that says, "cleaning a house while children are growing is like shoveling snow while it's still snowing." I looked at that sign all day yesterday and decided not to stress while getting ready for the enrichment group. Of course it helped that my friend Lara took my kids the day before so I could clean my house. I can get so much done when I have 90 minutes without kids.

This weekend will be low key. I plan to get lots done tomorrow while Jason is home. Jonah has a sleepover birthday party tonight. We usually don't let our kids sleepover and I was so proud of Jonah when he got the invitation. He didn't even ask even though it is his best friend. He just wanted to know if he could go back in the morning.

Good times, Good friends

One thing I am extremely grateful for is good friends. We are really blessed to know so many good people that we have a lot in common with. This weekend we went skiing with our friends Chad and Kari Ann. Jason has been taking the boys for years but this was the first time I ventured up with them. I didn't ski but plan to in the future, as soon as we get the little kids independent. Schweitzer is so beautiful because it has a breathtaking view of the lake down below. It was SO cold that we almost didn't go. I think it was 3 degrees when we arrived but it was sunny with no wind and we (except for Lily and Jack) never felt chilled. We bundled the kids up and headed out. Jason took Eli, Jonah and Emma and I took the three little kids to their lessons. They all did great. Lily and Anna quickly picked it up and Jack preferred to ski holding onto the pole his instructor was holding. Everyone had a great time and I was suprised how flawless the day was. Lily did get extremely cold at the very end of the day and freaked out crying which got Jack going but eventually they both calmed down after we got in the lodge. Luckily KariAnn (she's 8 months pregnant) carried all my ski stuff for me so I could help the sad Lily and Jack.

This trip gave me hope that I am coming out of the hard part of having my kids so close together. It was nice that the three youngest could all learn to ski together on the same day, it wasn't so nice for our pocketbook though. That is the way it will always be with them. Expenses times three.

After our fun ski day we headed back to Chad and KariAnn's new cabin. I have been dying to see it and it is so cute. It is so rustic and cozy and I loved it. The kids were all so tired and everyone grabbed a cozy blanket and snuggled up for a movie while we made pizza for dinner. afterwards Jason and Chad played a game of rummikub with Eli , Jonah and Reese while the girls played LIttlest Pet Shop up in the loft. KariAnn and I got the little boys down for the night. After all the kids went to bed we had a great time playing cards and talking.

We were up early the next morning and got the kids outside to play. Again it was very cold but we were all bundled up and stayed warm. I tried snowshoeing for the first time and I loved it. Eli and Jonah had a great time too and I want to invest in snowshoes for our whole family. I think we could have a lot of fun going up to the mountains and hiking around.

It's so nice to have a getaway from the distractions of the world and enjoy nature, family and friends. It was a great weekend.

Speaking of great friends we ended the three day weekend by watching both nights of the 24 premiere with our friends Jay and Lucy. We are all huge 24 fans and it was so much fun to watch it with people who are as into it as we are. Lucy spoiled us with great snacks which made it even more fun.

On a completely random note I tried something new today. I went shopping for all of the kids' lunch stuff. I fight a constant battle with the little kids who want to eat it for snacks making us come up short in lunch supplies resulting in more trips to costco and more money spent. Today I decided to bag up everything I bought so the kids can just grab a bag every morning and make a sandwich. Here's what it looked like when we were all done.

The Lost Keys

One year ago today I gave a talk in Stake Conference titled, "The Lost Coin." The entire talk was based on the parable of the lost coin and I began my talk with a personal experience about losing my keys, praying to find them and then finding them in the same spot I had searched several times.

Fast forward to today and it is again stake conference. Because I have a stake calling stake conference Sunday is one of my busiest church days of the year. In our stake we do an "Eight is Great" meeting for all 8 year olds to help prepare them for their baptism. Since they have to come an hour early to stake conference we serve a light breakfast. None of this is that big of a deal but I do have to leave my house by 8:15 to get everything ready and I also have to set up the night before. That means Jason is on his own to get all 6 kids fed, dressed and to the stake center on time. We had planned for him to arrive by 9:30 so that we could sit in seats in the chapel. Our stake requires everyone in their seats by 9:45 so that people aren't saving seats until the last minute. Jason wasn't there by 9:45 and I was paniced because I knew something was wrong. He is usually so good about getting places on time when he knows he needs to. At 9:55 this girl from my ward tells me that Jason is on the phone in the foyer and he can't find the keys to our car. He was so frustrated. I grabbed my coat and left the chapel directing a family in my ward to the comfy chapel seats.

We had gone skiing this weekend and I drove the last half home because Jason was so tired. The keys were in my pocket but they had fallen out and he couldn't find them anywhere. Our kids were sitting in the car in the garage with no heat (it was 11 degrees this morning) for over 30 minutes. I decided to just go home and pick them up but by the time I got there Jason had found them. Jonah said 3 prayers and he was the one who found them.

I jumped in the car with the fam and Jason told me that they hadn't been able to find Eli's church pants anywhere so Jason told him to find some other pants in the closet. I looked back and realized that Eli was wearing MY capris!!! I had seen them in his closet earlier this week but hadn't grabbed them. Sometimes Lisa (she does my landry for me) gets confused with my clothes and puts them in the boys' closet.

So our family arrived to stake conference 20 minutes late, sat in an overflow room, and hoped no one noticed the capri pants. I think Heavenly Father is trying to keep our family humble.

My Great Discovery

So one thing I forgot to mention on my "100 things" list is that I hate to grocery shop and I mean really hate it. It takes so much time and energy. It's so hard to take my kids because there just isn't enough room in the cool kid carts. If I do go without the kids I seem to venture out at odd hours when I'd rather be cozy in my pj's relaxing at home. Recently I started taking my kids to a drop-in childcare service at our local Fred Meyer and I thought it was life changing. I could walk around the store, do my shopping and browsing, all without kids. But still it was a chunk of time out of my day and a lot of work pushing a heavy cart around the store looking for that one item I couldn't find.

Well, yesterday my life changed forever. I was reading a back issue in "O" magazine when an article caught my eye. It was about Oprah's debt diet and it mentioned that one woman spent so much on groceries because she was always throwing extra items in the cart. I can definitely relate to that. They advised that she shop online so she could stick to her list. Forget sticking to the list: grocery shopping without leaving my home sounded wonderful. I started thinking about this and getting really excited. As soon as my kids went to bed I typed in my favorite grocery store's name in google and found out that they do in fact deliver (am I living in the dark ages, or what?) Sign me up! In less than 15 minutes I had signed up and filled my online cart with every item on my list. I scheduled it to be delivered between 9:00 and 11:00 this morning.
What I loved is that I could pick what brands I wanted, even the store brands. You can also view their add online and see what the specials are for the week. The best part is they only charge $10.00 to deliver, which I think is worth every penny when you factor in convenience, gas, and most importantly MY TIME.

Does anybody else grocery shop online?

100 things about me

I have been working on this list for several days and I finally finished it. I don't know why I had such a hard time doing it but it ended up being very therapeutic. Here it is:

1. My middle name is Traci, after my great-grandfather Tracy Y. Cannon, because I was born on his birthday.

2. I grew up in SLC.

3. My favorite color is blue and always has been.

4. I have a bowl of ice cream almost every night after my kids get in bed.

5. I have to take a HOT bath every night or else I can’t sleep well.

6. I have 6 kids, 3 boys, 3 girls

7. One daughter and one son are adopted from China

8. My last three kids are only 15 months apart.

9. I love Little House on the Prairie. It was my favorite book and tv series when I was a kid.

10. I broke my arm on a trampoline when I was 12. My son broke his arm on a trampoline when he was 9.

11. I still think the trampoline is the best babysitter in the world.

12. I majored in English at BYU.

13. I would have loved to be a pioneer.

14. I went to the BYU Jerusalem Center in 1993. It changed my life.

15. I learned how to waterski on one last summer (after many summers of trying)

16. I graduated from BYU on April 28, 1995 but missed it because I was in the hospital giving birth to my oldest son.

17. I am very impatient. I have a hard time waiting for things. I believe in seizing the moment even though it may bring some hardship (see number 8)

18. I am completely gray underneath my hair color.

19. I haven’t had my hair colored in 2.5 months, I keep redying my roots.

20. I have a deep testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

21. I wear socks to bed. This drives my husband crazy.

22. I love to travel but only enjoy being gone for a few days. I prefer to take several quick trips instead of a two week vacation.

23. I am very social.

24. I am bossy.

25. I am the oldest of 7 kids (see above)

26. I love to sell things on ebay.

27. I have a scar on my eyebrow from playing duck, duck, goose when I was 7.

28. I have served in primary for 9 straight years

29. I love quilts. I made my first quilt ten years ago and used to go to a quilt group with a bunch of “wise” (older) women from church.

30. I scrapbooked until child number 4

31. I want to start digital scrapbooking. I think it sounds easier than dragging out all my supplies

32. I subconsciously named my youngest son “Jack” after Jack Bauer

33. My guilty pleasure is “24.” I know I shouldn’t watch that show but I love it.

34. I’ve been to China three times.

35. I spent one week in a Chinese orphanage as part of a medical mission correcting cleft lips and palates.

36. I have no medical experience, I went as a baby rocker.

37. I have no desire to work outside the home.

38. I always wanted a large family, but large to me meant 4 kids.

39. I am having a hard time making this list.

40. I can’t sing but I love music.

41. When I was a kid my dream car was a TransAm

42. I love country music.

43. I used to be in love with Michael Jackson. I was too young to want to marry him so I wanted him to adopt me instead. Knowing what I know now that was SICK!

44. I’m a conformist.

45. I’m not very organized but strive to improve daily in this area.

46. My life motto is “No Regrets.”

47. This became my motto in 1990 when I was a freshman at BYU.

48. I loved every minute of BYU and every fall I have a small yearning to return.

49. I loved growing up in the 80’s and love every bit of pop culture associated with the 80’s.

50. I took five semesters of Hebrew at BYU.

51. I have never been to New York City! It is a dream of mine to go but other destinations keep getting in the way.

52. After my kids are raised I want to live in China.

53. I am a direct descendant of Brigham Young and John Taylor.

54. My two closest friends are long distance friends. We get together at least four times a year.

55. This blog is the most consistent journal I have kept in years.

56. I like to decorate my house.

57. I love children.

58. My heart breaks for children throughout the world who are growing up without a family.

59. I cry whenever I watch Extreme Makeover, Home Edition.

60. I am generous. One of my dreams is to pay for another family to adopt a child.

61. I have become more generous by watching my VERY generous father-in-law.

62. I have a difficult time reconciling my materialistic self with my generous self.

63. I love holidays and try to make each holiday memorable for my family.

64. I also love birthdays.

65. I prefer the lake to the ocean.

66. I have had two c-sections. They were very difficult for me.

67. I love to teach, although it doesn’t come naturally to me.

68. I love temple square. I have great memories of going there as a child. My heart skips a beat everytime I fly into SLC and see the temple.

69. One of my most vivid memories is watching our neighbor’s house burn to the ground when I was about six.

70. My husband is good at keeping in touch with long-distance friends. He makes me do the same.

71. I have always had one close friend and prefer that to a big group of friends. As I’ve become an adult my circle of friends has expanded.

72. I love Les Miserables.

73. I think the internet is the best.

74. I like to eat out.

75. I enjoy cooking more than baking.

76. I love strawberry homemade ice-cream.

77. I love living where there are four seasons.

78. I would rather be with my husband than my girlfriends, except for book group nights.

79. I was chair of an art auction that raised close to $40,000 for Chinese orphans needing heart surgery.

80. It was one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life. I will hopefully do it again when my kids are a little older.

81. I’ve had many trials but feel I live a charmed life.

82. I love people magazine. I also love the Ensign.

83. I often internalize other people’s problems as if they are happening to me.

84. I have blue/grey eyes.

85. I love the Office.

86. I watch too much TV.

87. I have always loved to read. My dad taught me to speed read when I was a kid and my best childhood memories are riding my bike to the library and checking out stacks of books.

88. The only way I get through the day is chocolate. It soothes my soul.

89. My dad lives in Brazil.

90. I’m not good at returning messages.

91. I love the blogging world.

92. Thai food is my favorite, followed by Mexican.

93. I almost always just drink water.

94. I have an unhealthy addiction to cheese. I just discovered Havarti with dill and it’s so yummy.

95. I haven’t had a drop of milk since I was five or 6. I had a bad milk experience. My kids unfortunately have picked up on this and rarely drink milk. My husband loves milk.

96. Elder Bednar is my favorite apostle.

97. The best part of my day is when all the kids are tucked in their beds sleeping soundly.

98. My two napping kids have completely given up their naps. This was a big adjustment for me.

99. I always see the silver lining in situations.

100. I am so glad I finally finished this list!

Jesus Wants Me for A Sunbeam

Today was a milestone moment for our family as our youngest, Jack, went to his first day of primary. I have been so nervous because our ward hasn't brought any of the nursery kids into primary to break them in slowly. So today was truly a first. It was so sweet because his primary teacher met us when we walked into Sacrament meeting and gave him a little sun with his name on it. He held onto it all through sacrament meeting. I had Jason take him to sharing time because I was afraid if I went in he wouldn't want me to leave. I was actually doing an official visit to our ward primary with the stake primary presidency so I opted to go visit some senior primary classes during jr. primary. I told the rest of the presidency to keep their eye on Jack and they all reported that he did great. When I picked him up from class he was wearing his "I am a Child of God" crown and was so proud of it. He wore it most of the day.

Church has been our biggest struggle with him as he really has a hard time sitting through sacrament meeting. I have such a hard time with him and am literally exhausted after an hour of wrestling. Today we switched to church at 8:30 and I think that helped his behavior.

After church we came home and were able to get our three youngest to take naps. That meant a nap for Jason and I and I feel so rejuvenated. It was so nice to come home and have the day to relax and recover from our week. I think no matter what time we have church it's always nice for the change in January.

A Series of Unfortunate Events

That is the best way to sum up my day. Today found us with a clogged toilet (the big boys bathroom), a clogged bathtub (a whole roll of toilet paper thrown in the girls bathroom), and a container of yogurt hurled down the stairs. It exploded everywhere. Jack threw it in a state of excitement and even before I looked I knew it would be bad. I sent Jason on a mission to rent a carpet cleaner and all is well. The only disaster we haven't resolved is the bathtub. We may have to call Action Drain for the third time in about 6 months! Never a dull moment around our house.

The Budget

The very word budget seems to hit a nerve with almost everyone I know so I hestitate to bring it up on my blog.

Our bishop, who I think is very innovative and pretty bold, decided to bring Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University to our ward and set it up for 10+ couples to take the class.

I know not everybody agrees with Dave Ramsey, but I've been a Dave fan since I first read his book Financial Peace about 6 years ago. It was recommended to me at the time by a previous bishop and his wife. I found the principles to be in harmony with what the church teaches about staying out of debt. I also really like how Dave Ramsey says that the first step to financial peace is to pay tithing which of course I agree with. For the past several years we have used cash for everything. This has worked great for us because I like to spend money and I know once my wad of cash is gone it's gone.

But we've never really been great about the budget. Like I said, every two weeks when Jason gets paid I withdraw my predetermined sum of cash from the bank, but I never allocate exactly where it's going. After attending our first Financial Peace class I am determined (and it's required) to create a working budget for us. It's been great to sit down with my little piece of paper and plan out the month. For example, I know that I have gymbucks at Gymboree and the redemption period is in a week so I need money for that. I know that we need a babysitter every week to attend our financial peace class, etc.

It's making me think about my wants vs. my needs and I like that. It's also making me think about the reasons I spend money, a lot of times simply out of boredom or because I'm unprepared. I'm also finding that it's giving more than it's taking away. Today my niece who I love and who is the best babysitter called to say she is wanting to earn some extra money. I have been thinking I need a little extra help with the kids so I just worked her right into my budget!

Back to the Grind

So today, after two weeks of sleeping in and having no schedule the kids went back to school. It was extra harsh because Jason had to go out of town for work today so I was on my own getting the kids off to school. He is so much help to me. In my quest to eat better I decided to make breakfast last night. It made this morning go by so smooth and we even had enough time to read scriptures before school. I made whole wheat blueberry muffins and the kids who are used to grabbing a yogurt from the fridge or a bowl of cereal were grateful for the change.

Lily also went back to speech therapy. I was so happy to see her therapist. We've definitely noticed some regression after two weeks off. It made me realize how important it is to work with her daily on her language. Usually I take the kids out to lunch during speech but since I am determined to eat better we went to the park instead. I took the kids to the duck pond and I've never seen so many ducks. We couldn't get out of the car because there was so much ice so I gave them bread to throw from the windows. Here is a picture of the ducks surrounding our car.

Goodbye 2006, Hello 2007

2006 has been such an eventful year for us. I am hoping that 2007 is a little more quiet and that we can spend more time as a family and more time at home.

Our good friends Tony and Kelly live in a town about an hour away with a population of less than 1000. We love going to their house because it is truly like stepping back in time. Everything in the town is within walking distance from their home and they have the cutest grocery store, gas station, hotel, etc. We love it there but usually they come to us. When we were together right before Christmas Kelly suggested that we spend New Year's together. We decided it would be way more fun to spend the night so we loaded up all our stuff and headed to their house right after church. Our kids were so excited to see their "cousins" that they had their bags packed on Saturday morning. Tony and Kelly are truly some of the most fun people we know and they didn't disappoint us for New Year's. When we arrived Kelly had an awesome Thai dinner waiting for us. We quickly ate and then moved on to a fun dessert. They had baked a cake and in the center of the cake they had wrapped fortunes for 2007 in foil with a ribbon attached. It was a two layer cake and the foil pieces were stuck in the middle of the layers with the ribbons sticking out. When you pulled on a ribbon the fortune came out. There was a fortune for everyone. Tony made some really funny ones and we were all laughing. We vacation at least twice a year with Tony and Kelly and one of our traditions is to do a Family Home Evening together. Kelly gave the lesson and it was on the twelve virgins. I was so proud of my kids when they told Kelly that they knew all about it because this was the topic of our Sacrament meeting talks. I was so shocked that they are actually getting something out of Sacrament Meeting. I think our move to the front of the chapel is paying off big time.

We were able to get all the little kids in bed early and stayed up playing games with the big kids. They introduced us to a version of scrabble called "take two" that Eli and Jonah loved. We ate and ate and talked and talked and finally went to bed by 1:30 am. I think it is the latest Eli and Jonah have every stayed up. It was great to be together and discuss our goals for 2007.

This morning we lazed around until about noon and then all drove back to Spokane to see a movie downtown. The big kids saw Eragon and Kelly and I took the little kids to see Happy Feet. I thought it was a cute movie with a political message that kind of bugged. We came home and had all the kids make their goals for 2007. It was fun to listen to what they said. I typed them all up for everyone so that we can review them in family council (one of my goals for 2007, he he he!) We were all so tired that the little kids were asleep by 6:00 and the big kids by 7:30. I hope to go to bed early as well.

I am so excited for 2007. Yesterday in church we had the best combined RS/Priesthood lesson and the bishop talked about having a personal ministry. I was so touched by what he said because this is the direction I have been leaning for the past several weeks as I've thought about 2007. With our adoptions I have spent the past few years very focused on myself. I haven't been able to do much for others. One of my goals for 2007 is to serve others more and to be more connected to people in my ward.

My goals honestly aren't very lofty and I hestitate to publish them in my blog but I think I will hold myself more accountable if I write them here:

1. Consistent family scripture study
2. Do one project for Christmas a month
3. Be friends with people who are outside my comfort zone.
4. Consistent Exercise
5. Cook more from scratch/eat healthier
6. Spend more time with the older kids
7. Blog at least 5 times a week.