Monster Jam

 Santa brought the kids tickets to the Monster Jam this year.  Finally, after months of waiting, the day of the big show finally arrived.  We drove to Sandy where we hopped on Trax to ride into the city.  It was Isaac's first time on Trax and you would have thought it was a ride at Disneyland.  He loved it.  The boys are making their fierce Monster Jam faces in this shot.

 The girls decided against fierce Monster Jam faces, but it is clear that now I have made the transition into the over 30 category I need to make a serious investment in wrinkle therapy.  Sad true story.

 The Trax map kept the kids thoroughly entertained.  It was like we were on a treasure hunt.

 From the minute we walked into the arena Isaac was covering his ears.  You could tell by looking around that we were not experienced monster truck rally fans since we were the only ones without earplugs or headphones.  Ooops.  Thankfully a nice monster truck fan sitting behind us passed up an extra pair that Levi used.

 We had great (and cheap!) seats.

 Wolverine was Levi's favorite monster truck.

 Isaac said, "I wuv 'em, mom.  I wuv monster trucks!"

 I never really figured out how the whole thing worked, but the trucks took turns, received scores, and some were declared winners.

 The crowd favorite was Grave Digger.  I guess this is it's 30th anniversary.  Hmmm...Grave Digger and I have something in common, and it's not wrinkles.

Thankfully we got out of there without the $30 plastic Grave Digger hat...whew!  The kids said that now we are going to Monster Jam "every year."  Yikes!

All Things Testify

Brisk dawn
North wind, high and chill
Whispers of snow lift at mountain peaks
"When I in awesome wonder."

Heart accelerates
Muscles, bones, joints, organs
Breathe to the rhythm of my feet
"Thy power throughout the universe displayed."

I pray
Amid creation. Tabernacle of clay
Gratitude, guidance, humility, love
"Then sings my soul, my Savior, God, to thee."

Eight is Great!

 We've been looking forward to celebrating this big birthday with Daisy for a looooong time.  The days-long partying began the Saturday before her birthday.

 Grandpa and Grandma Jones, and Jamie and Jade drove up to have birthday dinner and open presents with Daisy.  It is a long drive for them and we are so happy when they come.

 Daisy wanted biscuits and gravy, her favorite, but mom didn't want to make them so we went out for some purchased birthday dinner and opened presents there.  Grandpa and Grandma gave Daisy a special baptism necklace and money to pick out a baptism dress.  Jamie and Rian gave her a CD case and the new Taylor Swift CD.

 The next day we had birthday dinner and opened presents with Grandpa and Grandma Dansie and the cousins.  For birthday dinner this time around, Daisy chose mashed potatoes and gravy (what is it with this girl and gravy?  Oh, I know, she is a CLONE of her father.)  Grandpa and Grandma gave Daisy some new dance clothes, a 'peace' hoodie, a doll, and a fashionista necklace.  It was great!

 After dinner, we Skyped with our cousins in Ohio.  It is always so fun to see them.  The kids sing songs together and show each other their latest greatest toys and creations.  It makes it feel like they're not so far away.

 On the morning of her birthday, Daisy requested Cream of Wheat and scrambled eggs for breakfast (now that's more like it!) 

 She opened her gifts at the breakfast table.  She got new DC shoes (which is the only thing she asked for) and a new karaoke CD (since she is a blossoming rock star.)  She was ecstatic and put them on right there at the table.

Right after school we geared up for Daisy's first birthday party ever.  We always give the kids a choice between a family activity (Jazz game, trip to the zoo, etc.) or a friend party.  Until now, they have always chosen a family activity (or my convincing powers have been very persuasive.)  This year Daisy wanted to have a Rockstar Birthday Party...so we did! 

 With the help of our super creative and extra generous friend Jessie, Daisy had the PERFECT hot pink and zebra stripe invitations.  We played games and sang karaoke before eating birthday cake and opening presents.  Turns out that having a friend party wasn't quite as bad as mom expected.  We had a lot of fun.

 One of the best parts about being the birthday girl was being Star of the Week.  Each day was something very special.  On Monday Daisy shared her very special Star poster that she worked so hard to create.  We're just glad Grandma let us borrow her Cricut or we may have been in trouble.  I went and joined Daisy for school lunch, which was fun because she was so surprised.  And just as a side note, you don't need to worry about our kids consuming too much red meat at school because I have no idea what that cheeseburger I ate was made out of, but it was not beef.  On Tuesday it was Daisy's Star of the Week sharing day.  She, of course, wanted to share the puppies.  And they, of course, were a hit with the whole second grade class.  On Wednesday it was Star Story day so I went to her class to read her favorite book, which is her Shutterfly photo book of the year she was 6.  It was fun to share with her class.  Thursday was Star Cafe where she got to eat lunch in her classroom with her teacher, and Friday was Star Snack day which had me flying off to the bakery at 7:00 AM to buy fresh hot doughnuts for the entire class, which I'm sure they completely appreciated.  Oh well, I know Daisy did.

One of Daisy's favorite gifts was from Aunt Chelsea.  Chelsea lives in Korea, so she sent a digital gift.  It included a host of Chelsea's friends and coworkers wishing Daisy a happy birthday in their native languages, which was fun for all of us to see and hear.  It also included Chelsea's memories of Daisy's birth, her testimony of baptism, and her expressions of love for our girl.  It really is a priceless gift and I'm so glad that we have a digital version of it so we can watch it over and over again (which Daisy has done!)

We've already learned that eight is great.  Next up for Daisy: baptism.

Puppies

 Our perfect, innocent family dog, Star, had an instinctive encounter with the neighbor dog turning her into a mom.  Needless to say, the kids are thrilled with our 6 new puppies.

 They are suddenly much more enthusiastic about helping with the chores, for which we are thankful. I must confess, the puppies are simply irresistible.

 They are super chubby, which only makes them cuter.  I can't believe how fast they are growing and how roly poly they are.

 We even hauled them to the school when it was Daisy's turn for sharing.  She was proud as punch to show off her little prize puppies.

The good news for you is that all six are still available to good homes!  Surprise!  My kids will be so sad when we finally have to say goodbye to these cuties.