11 years....

Dawson turned 11 years old yesterday. It is so hard to believe that he is already 11!!! He is such a joy to our family. He is a very thoughtful, kind boy who loves his family!!! We are so glad he is part of our family and we feel very lucky!!! Dawson diggin into his Strawberry Shortcake!! It was so good!!!

Everyone is testing each others flexibility!! It was pretty funny!! We had a good time and Dawson was a happy boy!!

December 2010 in pictures

This has been a busy end of the year for us. Not many pics taken but this is what I got. I put the pictures in the wrong order. So the go from Christmas and then to the beginning of December!! Oh well!! I hope you had a great Christmas with your family. I know we did!! We got lots of new games for the Wii and PS3!! Wipeout was a Christmas day favorite!!

Dawson, Mary Ann, Taelor and my dad telling stories on the Love Sac. We got this big boy from my in laws for Christmas!! It is a beast, and a comfy one at that!!

My dad and Dawson doing one of many puzzles together!!

Braedon scratching his lottery tickets from his stocking!! His winnings didn't pay out to good though.... but he is a little richer!!

Taelor in ALOT of new clothes!! She put this whole outfit on and said, " I don't care if I don't match, I like it!!" The kid loves clothes!!

Dawson got a dart board for Christmas along with many other things. He said he got everything he wanted!!

Taking in a ping pong game!!

My dad came to visit from Wisconsin and bought the kids a ping pong table for Christmas!! They are getting really good at it too!!

So this is our little bitty Christmas tree!!! We were supposed to go cut one down but I had a terrible pain in my side and got to go to the clinic and have a CT scan instead. So my mother in law came and took the kids to the local tree stand and got stubby instead. It was a perfect size for them!!

Dawson carving it out!!

Braedon giving his best shot at sled-boarding in the front yard on a huge hill of snow!!

Taelor trying her hand at sled- snowboarding in the backyard on a kid made hill.

Shane and Taelor making sugar cookies. Boys did too they were just out of the picture!!!

Kids playing in the snow storm we had before Thanksgiving. They had a blast!!

Being Thankful...

I am thankful for so many things. I am so thankful for Shane and the wonderful husband and father he is. He works hard for our family and never complains about doing it. He has an amazing work ethic I only hope our kids one day possess. He is so much fun to be with and is always doing something to make the kids laugh. I love him and I can't imagine our life without him. Taelor is a very special girl. What would we ever do without Taelor!! She loves her brothers, me every now and then and adores her Daddy!! I am thankful she is part of our family. She is always willing to help or doing some kind of service for someone in the house. She loves to cook and do whatever she can to make people happy! I love you!!!

Dawson, I am thankful for your sweet kind spirit and for the laughter you bring into our home. You laugh all the time, even when you probably shouldn't (that is genetic though!). Everyone loves you and it seems as though everyone wants to be doing something with you all the time. I am so glad you are part of our family and I thank our Heavenly Father for each of you everyday!! I love you!!

Braedon you are a great kid. You love your family and are not embarrassed of us quite yet which I think is great!! You love to tease but are quick to defend anyone teasing your brother or sister. They look up to you a great deal. I am glad you are part of our family everyday!! I love you!!

My mom..... I am thankful for her friendship. She has always been there for me no matter what and I know she always will. I love to spend time with her and I am glad we live so close so that my kids can learn of her wisdom and greatness. I am thankful you have always been my stability in life and that you are always there when I need you!! I love you!!

My dad.... our relationship is not that of a conventional one because I only saw him for a couple of weeks in the summertime. We have had our ups and downs together but right now I am SO incredibly grateful for him and his continuing friendship to me. He has gone through some tough times lately and I am so glad I was able to be his listening ear even though we were 7 states away. Our relationship has gotten so much stronger this last year. I only hope it continues to grow. I love him alot!!

My in-laws are great. They are a lot of fun to be with. They are our vacation buddies. I am glad we have them to lean on should we ever need them. I am grateful she raised my husband with the knowledge of things he knows. Without him and his talents our life would be much different and for that I am thankful for her and her on going love and encouragement to Shane. Thanks for all you do!! I love you both!!

Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful, but isn't it funny how we never realize what we are thankful for until Thanksgiving rolls around. We think of certain things through the year as things happen to us but we don't take the time to really appreciate them until now. I am going to try and be more thankful through the year. I am also thankful to those friends that read this blog. Without each of you, whether we talk or haven't seen each other since high school you have made a difference in my life somehow. I am thankful that our paths crossed and I met you!! Happy Thanksgiving!!

Moving on.....

Football season has come to a close. Despite all our best efforts we came up short again. We even got all dressed up....... all I have to say is BOOOOO!!! This was a harder year for our team. Not playing football but within the team itself. Hopefully some changes will be made and we can come back next fall and show them who we are!! The boys did a good job and tried their best despite what was going on around them. I am proud of them.

Braedon made this sweet one handed catch but of course I did not get it on film. Oh well, I know what he did and he knows what he did!!

So since our season was over we decided to go and have some fun of our own. So the next weekend we went to Yellowstone with my mother and father in law. We all had a great time. We nearly froze to death but it was still alot of fun. First we stopped in Jackson for a little sight seeing.

Then off into the park we went. We were very much like tourists, stopping at nearly every spot. Shane even quickly pulled over a couple of times and pointed out the window to see how many cars behind us would stop. Quite a few did!!!

The kids were fascinated with the geysers and how many colors there are in them. We were all amazed at how those are formed and just how deep are they?

Old Faithful

We saw only two large animals. Buffalo was one.

Elk the other. There were not many out and about but it was still fun!!

The kids will tell you the best part was the water slide in the hotel!!

Another fun family outing!!

That time of year again...

The Family (after many tries......everyone finally smiles!!) The girls!!

Mom and her grandkids

Dawson being all serious like!

There's that smile!!

They are so cute. I love that Taelor poses herself!

Braedon giving out that smile!

He hates this picture but I think it is cute!! He says," Mom I look gay!!" I say no it is a sexy look!! He then rolled his eyes at me!! How Rude!! :0)

I like this one

I love his freckles!

Pretty little girl!

I love how the wind is blowing her dress!!

We went on Sunday to take some family photos. This year no one and I mean no one wanted to go but me. So needless to say I am lucky I even got some good ones. I would almost have rather had wisdom teeth pulled without sedation!!! Next year they better be ready beacuse I am going to hire someone to take these.... I know they wont give someone else crap!!! Anyone there are some good ones!! Just wish there were more!!