The Watkins

Updates on the Family

2011-08-09T08:47:00.000-07:00

My time flies! Important milestones for my kiddos are:

Tanner- graduated high school! We are so proud of him and honestly.....didn't think he would make it, but he made us proud and completed. In the fall he's going to go to CSN to take some core classes. He's interested in criminal justice and wants to be a police officer. Maybe in January I'll send him to UNR which is where he wants to go. For now, he is trying to get a job and will FINALLY get his drivers license when he turns 18 August 13. Yes, people....they grow up way to fast!

Madison-will be going into the 8th grade next year. She was able to go to YW camp this year, yet due to high winds, they were sent home after two days. She still loved it and we get the pleasure of hearing her sing her camp songs nonstop! Madison also had her dance recital at the end of June. She did really good. We've also changed dance studios which I'm really excited about. It's closer to home and more focused on actually "dancing" than competitions. She loves YW's and has started babysitting.She also is now wearing braces which look really cute!

Camryn- will be going into 2nd grade and is sad that school is out. She loves school and I'm shocked by her awesome ability at reading. She uses expression and loves picking out hard chapter books to read. She reads every night to me and Jaxon. Camryn has also started taking piano lessons. She LOVES going and tries really hard to practice all the time.

Jaxon- my feisty 4 year old. Still skinny as a rail, yet loves to eat! He finished pre-school and speech for the year which he loved. Jaxon loves to swim, play with dinosaurs, legos and batman cars. He loves to watch Spongebob and Family Guy (I know) with his dad.

Paul and I are doing really good. Paul was fitted with really good hearing aids so now he can hear! Work has be picking up and we've been spending all of our "free" time at Disneyland. We have annual passes so it's actually a pretty cheap trip when we go. I'm enjoying the last few weeks of summer. It seems I was on the go my entire vacation, yet love having a break.

I'm Coming Back!!

2011-08-04T09:48:00.000-07:00

I really do like to blog...really I do, yet it frustrates me when I get so behind that I choose to just not do it. Plus, it seems like it takes forever for my pictures to download which aggravates me even more. Eventually, I'll be back to share our fun happenings for the year.

Kris

Disneyland....Again!

2011-03-25T18:22:00.000-07:00

I am a Disney fanatic! Paul and I want to quit our jobs here in Vegas and go live in CA just so I can get a job at Disneyland. Seriously! Why oh why can't Jaxon love Disney? We took most of the kids a couple weeks ago for 3 days and Jaxon was Miserable! He cried pretty much the entire trip and really put a damper on things. Everything scared him and even though we forced him on a lot of rides he still cried so nope, he doesn't get to go again for awhile.

Yes, we ARE that couple!!!

This was Jaxon's look ALL the time! He hated the rides!!

My Pretty Little Teenager

2011-03-16T21:04:00.000-07:00

My pretty little girl is now a full fledged teenager. Yep, Maddie is now 13 and yep, we can ALL tell!! Watch out...moods are occurring in this household on a daily basis. Nah, I love this pretty thing tons and enjoy our conversations, going to the movies, and sharing our love of shopping together. I look forward to many more years with this wonderful daughter of mine. Happy birthday Madison Patsy!!!

Sad Post, But Crying Can Heal?!

2011-03-08T21:15:00.000-08:00

It's amazing to sit back and recall the setbacks that can occur in your life. I have a pretty amazing life...wonderful kids, awesome hubby, a good job that I love, friends that I LOVE, family who loves me unconditionally, and pretty OK health. It takes a loved one to pass away where you really start to put life into perspective and vow to do things a bit different even though you think your life is going along fabulously.
My dad died last week. I knew it was coming, yet as I write this two weeks later, I'm feeling more distraught about his death than I thought I would be. Dad was diagnosed with throat cancer December 17. Smoking heavily for over 65 years will do that to you. Because I'm the only child that lives in Vegas I became the sole caregiver for my dad and really didn't mind doing what I had to do to help him. For 5weeks my dad did radiation daily and chemo once a week. I was amazed that he seemed to be OK after doing these treatments. He never got sick and after 2 weeks he was able to drive himself to his treatments.
I could tell at the beginning of February that these treatments were taking a toll on my dad. His weight was plummeting. He lived on Ensure that was fed thru a feeding tube because he couldn't' swallow. Having at least 6-8 Ensure's a day is beneficial to a human being, yet my dad insisted on only having 4-6. Soon he also lost his voice and could barely whisper or resorted to writing notes.
On February 15 he drove himself to the hospital due to his oxygen levels being low. His chemo doctor had requested that he go and be checked in. I was called because my dad needed to have a tube put down his throat which he was refusing. Yep, he had a DNR and I was the lucky one that had to sign off on it. Hardest day of my life!
Like me, my dad is very stubborn as I tried to tell him that I didn't have to sign this form and having a tube put in would prolong his life. He still chose not to. Four days later my dad passed away due to respiratory failure brought on by tonsillar cancer. As each day went on his health worsened and his brain just wasn't getting enough oxygen. On the day that he died my mom and I were able to tell him goodbye and let him know that we loved him. I could tell that death was near. Hospice nurses see this all the time and all of the signs were there. An hour after we left he peacefully passed away to play in heaven with his daughter Patsy and his mom/dad.
The past two weeks have been so surreal to me since you really don't plan on burying a parent. It's expected, yet who really thinks about it? My dad had a beautiful service in Kanab, UT and is buried in Mt. Carmel, UT next to his beloved mom and dad. My sis Patsy is resting peacefully 18 miles south. I planned the entire funeral (with a little bit of help from my prec...;)) and buried my dad with dignity and letting people know that MY dad was loved by many. Yes, he had his addictions and didn't have the greatest relationship with some of his sons. He even has grand kids that have never met him. Sad, I know. I loved my dad for who he was, the example he set for me whether good or bad, and am so grateful for the relationship that he had with my kids. They loved their poppa and he loved them hard. I love you dad and will always be your Krissy!!
So am I going to try and live my life differently? Yep, life is too short and I plan to take advantage of life a little bit more. Hope you can to! I'll post pictures of my dad and his awesome funeral shortly.

Disneyland Birthday

2011-02-05T16:02:00.000-08:00

My birthday month rocked! Paul and I escaped to Disneyland by ourselves for my birthday. It was the best weekend ever! Love going with my kiddos, yet we were amazed by how much fun we actually had without them. In fact, I would definitely recommend it! Love my hubby!

We probably rode Space Mountain 100 times. It was called Ghost Galaxy and had a burning ghost chasing after you. Loved it!! Loved the girl in front of me. She looks like she's going to puke!!
Nightmare Before Christmas is my favorite set up at DLand. Love everything about it!

Mom gave me the best gift by taking care of my kiddos, yet I came home to roses and more presents from my kiddos. Maddie even made me a cake....if you want to call it that!

I'mmmmm Back!!

2010-12-27T19:02:00.000-08:00

WOW! 2010 is gone. Can't say I'm that upset to see it leave since it's been a pretty crappy year economically. Yet, we've survived and made it, but definitely had to change our lifestyle of living and STAY on a budget. Everyone is healthy and well and I can report no serious issues with my family.
I changed my blog to private because someone hacked into my all of my accounts online and literally was making my life yucky! They stole and erased all of my contacts in my google mail accounts and were sending unwanted emails in my name to people on my email lists. Pretty sucky, but I feel confident that my blog is now safe and no more issues will occur. I'll backtrack to play catch up of what we've done since September when I last wrote a blog. I do have lots of pictures and we have done some fun things.

I wrote this in Sept. Better post it! Pics to follow!!!

2010-09-20T21:23:00.000-07:00

Summer is gone and the fall season will be happening in less than two days. We had a great summer of doing nothing! Actually, a lot of swimming. I still can't believe how fast it went by, but it was relaxing and so nice to spend much needed quality time as a family.

Yep, I have a 17 year old child. Crazy to think that 17 years ago this 9 pound baby was born. We truly love this kid and are looking forward to the life choices he will be making soon. Scary, I know. Does he drive? NO!....you can ask him why!!!

The first week of school was HECTIC!! I have 4 kids who all go to 4 different schools. They all love their teachers and so far everything is going smoothly. Here they are on their first day!!

Tanner is a senior at Shadow Ridge HS. WOW!!

Madison is a 7th grader at Saville MS. Loves it!!

Camryn is a 1st grader at Betsy Rhodes. Yep, she's at moms school so I can keep an eye on her. ;)

Jaxon is in pre-k with Mrs. Robyn. He also goes to Heckethorn 3 times a week for speech. He is loving it.

I have a wonderful group of students this year and as much as I love to be home I also love the sweet little spirits that I get to teach for 9 months. I don't think parents realize how important their children are to their teachers. We have your kids for majority of the day, we get to mold them to what we want them to be, and we get to hear so many many funny stories. Maybe a bit more personal than what should be said, but love love my job!!

Cabin for Adults Only!!

2010-08-04T09:13:00.001-07:00

Paul and I were able to get a weekend away from the kids. Paul's brother David has a friend who "urges" him to use his awesome cabin in Duck Creek, UT. So Paul's sister Pam and her hubby Ray, David and Ronda, and Paul and I all met up at the cabin and spent the weekend together. We had a great weekend of doing nothing. We drove up there Friday night stopping in Cedar City to eat at Sizzler. Paul's favorite. Then I saw a snow cone shack and thought I was in heaven!! Love those. I did have a scare that night when I heard something rolling around in my closet. Woke Paul up to see what it was and apparently it was an animal that had pushed open the access panel and went through the insulation to get in. We couldn't find the animal so Paul blocked up the hole. I could hear it scratching and trying to get in. Stress!
On Saturday us girls just hung out. Watched movies all day, talked, ate, and didn't even get dressed! The boys went out fishing. That evening we had a great BBQ and ate it sitting on the patio overlooking the valley. The weather was perfect maybe 75 degrees. That night we stayed up late playing Scattegories which is now my new favorite game. Was so fun. Sunday afternoon we had to go home which made me very sad. I wasn't ready to leave, but I knew I had to. We did stop at Cracker Barrel in St. George and I LOVE that place. Food was great and I loved the little store. I can't wait to go back. View from the cabin
Paul, Pam, and David
Me and my hunny.
Ronda, Pam and me
We did a whole of this....nothing!

View of the cabin. We thought it resembled Amytiville Horror!

4th of July

2010-08-04T08:42:00.000-07:00

What a great holiday weekend! My two nieces from WA were here and we had a great time. We swam all day, went to the park, and ate a lot of food. I love a good eating holiday!
Cute little rugrats!!!
Always have to make my flag cake!

Waiting on the balcony for the Aliante fireworks to go off. Best seats in the house!!

Aunt Karah was Here!

2010-07-11T10:01:00.000-07:00

Actually, my niece Karah, but all of my kids refer to her as Aunt Karah. Karah drove from Seattle, WA with her 3 kids(plus, being prego) to spend a week with us. We always have such a great time and are always on the go. Here are some fun things we all did:

Summer Fun

2010-07-08T11:20:00.000-07:00

I signed my kiddos up for swimming lessons at the beginning of summer. Camryn already knows how to swim, yet I wanted her to learn the basic strokes and get some good exercise. Since I signed up Cam and knew I had to sign up Jaxon who doesn't know how to swim and relies on his frog float...which is fine by me. $300 for four week lessons seemed a bit high, but it actually turned out to be the best thing. Jaxon went from this....

to this. Yep, in 4 weeks time he gained enough confidence to take off the frog float and swim on his own. He's still learning how to keep afloat so his frog is only off when Paul and I are in the pool with him. I'm just amazed at how quick he learned.

Parade
Madison's dance group was asked to perform in the Summerlin 4th of July parade. I've never been to this so was a bit excited, plus watching your child perform in it made it an awesome adventure. The only rough thing was not having another adult around to help me with the little ones. I had a hard time finding where Maddie was supposed to go and then trying to get a good spot to sit was a bit difficult.

Maddie is a bit stressed since we had a hard time finding where she was supposed to go. Her teacher ended up picking her up in a golf cart. Stress!!
Performing in the parade.
Jaxon's favorite part of the parade.

Now we are happy the parade is over and all turned out great!

Summertime

2010-06-26T15:59:00.000-07:00

I love summer!!! Especially now that I'm on a 9 month school schedule and have 3 months off to play. LOVES!!!

Top reasons as to why I love the summer:

1. Hello, I don't have to work! What's even better is laying by the pool and knowing my paycheck just was desposited into my bank account. Love it!
2. Lots and lots of BBQ's. Yum, my favorite.
3. Swimming time. Love having a pool and we swim everyday. My favorite time is when Paul comes home from work and we all jump back in the pool with daddy. We have a lot of shade in the late afternoon since our house faces west so Paul will always turn on the pool heater since I can't stand the pool to be cold when there is no sun. Got my gas bill yesterday and I don't think I'll be accepting this luxury much longer.
4. All of my kids are home and we really spend a lot of quality family time together. When you have little ones going swimming is the greatest treat ever and they are excited everyday to know that they are going swimming.
5. Paul and I celebrated our 18th year anniversary in June. No trip this year, but we had an awesome dinner at one of our favorite restraunt and then brought dessert home to eat in bed, drinking a glass of milk, and watching a movie. Love it!
6. It seems I have more "me" time than when I'm working. Maybe because my kids are older and I have more freedom, but I love to get up at 5 AM and go running/walking. Home by 6 and quietness until at least 7:30 when my kids get up or Anna comes in to bug me.
7. I love the HEAT! The hotter the better. Add a bit of humidity to the air and then I'm miserable and grouchy.Plus, I hate the wind.
8. A group of my friends come over every Wednesday for our weekly pool party. I love visiting with my peeps.
9. Madison finishes up her season in dance in June. It's a very busy and a crazy time, but well worth it watching your baby dance her heart out. She was supposed to go to girls camp this year, but unfortunately camp time fell during dance production week. If she didn't attend dance week she wouldn't be able to perform in the recital. With all the money I paid all year for this recital....yep, that's the choice I made. I'm hoping it will be a different date for next year. If not, girls camp will come first.
10. Finally, I love summer because lots of family come to visit me! My awesome neice Karah drives her pregnant self and 3 kids all the way from Seattle, WA to stay with us for 10 days. Her sister Jenni will be flying in for a week also. Then my sister always comes for a week along with her kids.

I do have some reasons as to why I hate summer:
1. The amount of food that is eaten during the summer is crazy! Especially when you're trying to work out and shed some pounds I have to try this new dessert that I heard about or yum, Anna is making cinnamon rolls. Sucks!
2. You can get a really bad burn in the summer. Like a dummy I stayed in the sun too long one day and had the worst sunburn I have ever had in my life. I was blistered, scabbed, sores that were bleeding, and peeling galore. It lasted for about 3 weeks and I can tell I do have some major sun damage. The worst was on top of my ta-ta's so I didn't get a picture of that, but I did take one of my leg 2 weeks after I was burned. I think I learned my lesson.
3. Having two air units on your house makes for a hefty power bill. Our first summer in this house we received a $1000 power bill! Yep, that's right. In July or August we can always expect to pay at least $500 for power. I even set both units to 79 degrees and still have those high bills. Yucky!
4. The days are so long! Since I get up early I want to go to bed early, yet my little ones refuse to settle down before 9:30 pm. Drives me insane on a daily basis.
5. I tend to not go places in the afternoon because it takes my black vehicle a long time to cool down. My kids are dying from the heat.
6. Can't stand that there aren't many good shows on the tube to watch. Netflix is my new best friend during the summer. Big Brother starts in July and that makes me excited!
7. I really don't like the knocks on my door everyday for Maddie to play and especially get tired of having to say no to sleepovers.
8. I hate that my house gets so messy maybe 2 hours after I've cleaned it.
9. I try to make doctor and dentist appointments during the summer and those days always seem to be wasted days, but it has to be done.
10. I get really depressed knowing that summer is only 3 months long and then it's back to reality. I do love the fall season, but LOVE my summertime.

A Camping We Will Go!

2010-06-14T14:41:00.000-07:00

So every year before Memorial Day we like to go to Cave Lake to fish and camp. The lake is stocked with trout and we always have a great time. Unfortunately, we chose a bad weekend to go. We had checked the weather forecast for the weekend and knew that the high would be in the 60's and the lows would be around the 40's. Thank goodness I packed winter clothes because we FROZE our booties off! Our first day there was okay. The weather was mild, kinda chilly, but we could handle it. I think Paul actually wore shorts all day.
That night we froze! We woke up to wind and clouds high on the mountain top. The high for the entire day was around 30 degrees with 20-25 mph winds. We tried to make the best of it and go fishing. Once it started snowing and hailing on us we realized we weren't going to fish a lot that day. My little ones were having a really hard time with the cold. Hey, they're desert rats! By later afternoon the weather was still cold, but the wind stopped so we all bundled up again and went fishing. All of us caught fish and just enjoyed the rest of the day.
That evening we froze again all night and watched as the tent almost blew away as another storm hit the mountain that evening. We were up by 5:30 that morning packing and getting out of that coldness.

One evening Ranger Steve asked us to join him and watch a cannon go off. I was the lucky one to light the fuse. I'm smiling because hmmmm...Ranger Steve... Nice eye candy!!

We were told that the blast from a cannon would make your clothes shift and you might wet your pants. Which is why I'm running away. The blast was just like a loud firecracker.

Camryn by the cannon and freezing. I think the temp was about 25 degrees!!

Jaxon's first time taking a leak in the trees. I know...important milestone!!

We have a tree that has our name carved into it from last year so we had to go and vandalize the tree again and etch 2010.

Jaxon helping daddy clean the fish that we caught.

Even in cold weather Paul still wears his shorts.

Maddie is a Tween!

2010-06-14T14:30:00.000-07:00

Maddie turned 12 in March. Yep, I have a tweenie. Love her...hate the moods, but most of the time Madison is a pretty happy girl. She helps me by entertaining her siblings and always has such a sweet spirit about her. Maddie is very caring and is not afraid to show her emotions. She was extremely excited to go to Young Womens. Love you girl!

For her birthday Maddie received her own bedroom with a new bedroom set. I also broke down and let her have a birthday party at Crystal Palace. She had about 20 kids show up, ate pizza, roller skated, had some cake, and pretty much had a great birthday.

Happy Birthday Camryn!

2010-06-06T19:16:00.000-07:00

Yes, I've been MIA for the past three months. Life has definitely gone on, but I am celebrating today because it is summertime! Meaning..no school for 3 months!! I'm looking forward to staying at home a lot, enjoying our pool, spending time with family that will come to visit, and cleaning my house. I love it!

Highlights: Camryn turned 6! We celebrated by me taking off that day and going to Build a Bear. We never go there because it's so expensive so this was definitely a treat. Then Camryn got to choose what she wanted to eat for lunch. Of course she chose McDonalds. That evening we went to Red Robin to celebrate her day. The funniest (and saddest) thing occurred. After we ordered our waitress went to the computer to punch in our order. While she was there she started having a seizure and fell banging her head on the computer. They had to call an ambulance to come and take her to the hospital. Pretty sad, but what was funny that immediately after this happened Camryn started crying uncontrollably and we couldn't figure out why. Of course, I thought she was traumatized due to what we just witnessed. Finally, we calmed her down and she said, "Now who's going to sing happy birthday to me?" It was so funny!! Of course, another waitress saved the day and we all sang to Camryn. At home we opened gifts and had some cake. It was a great day for my baby girl.
***6 things that I love about Camryn**
*She carries around a stuffed animal dog that she calls "Little Tiger."
*She doesn't eat meat. Ever.
*Camryn loves to love people. She gives the best hugs ever.
*Camryn loves to swim and will swim in freezing water.
*She refuses to wear pants that have snaps, zippers, or buttons.
*Camryn always carries around a notepad and pencil.

Ho Hum

2010-03-07T18:56:00.000-08:00

I feel out of the loop a bit so I thought I'd give a brief rundown on what my family has been up to. Life is busy is all I can say!

Paul- Unfortunately, we have been seeing the signs of the recession. As an electrician in a town, where not many jobs are taking place, finding work is very difficult. He still has a job, yet his hours have been cut. We've been doing okay and learning how to really budget a bit better. Last week his company picked up a bunch of jobs so things are looking a tad bit better.

Kris- I've still been dealing with gosh darn stomach issues which is hugely depressing and pretty crappy. After many tests I was finally diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome. I'm on a strict diet of no dairy, caffeine, spicy foods, chocolate, and the list goes on of all foods that I love. Plus, pills I have to take 4 times a day for a total of 14 pills a day. It's been a good three days so I'm hoping the medicine is helping and my choice of foods is working. Who would've have thought that food would be my enemy!

Tanner- Thinks he's going to play football in high school next year so he goes to weight training every evening. He's put his guitar playing on hold. Crazy to think that he will be a senior next year.

Madison- Competition season has begun! Dancing every day to prepare for competitions. She's doing a solo this year and has been working hard. She's turning 12 this week and is looking forward to going to Young Women's.

Camryn- Still feisty and bubbly. She lost one of her front teeth and tries daily to pull the other one out. Loves kindergarten and is doing her best learning her letters and sounds

Jaxon- Still can't believe he's 3! I had him tested for speech back in December and he qualified so he will be attending speech at Heckethorn starting soon. I was hoping for Early Childhood, but he didn't qualify for that. Nothing like free preschool.
That's us in a nutshell. Hope everyone is doing well and I'll post pictures soon. Because YES!!!! I'M GETTING AN AWESOME NEW CAMERA!!!! YEA ME!!!

Love Day!!

2010-02-15T12:09:00.000-08:00

Yes, I'm a loser and don't take my camera everywhere I go.

What a great Valentine's Day weekend! We were all busy the week leading up to the day of love with school parties galore. So our house was filled with tons of boxes of chocolate which is what we always need.
On Saturday night we had plans to go to dinner at Hugo's Cellar with Pam and Ray. This place is our all time favorite place to go and eat at. It's in the Four Queens hotel and totally old school, yet the ambiance about the place is superb and we love it. After dinner Paul and I went and checked into the Imperial Palace hotel and stayed the night in a room that we happened to stay in 18 years ago on our wedding night. Such a ghetto hotel, yet we had a great time just kicking back and not dealing with kids. The hotel room had mirrors over the bed and above the huge bathtub.
After we checked into the hotel we walked the strip a bit and watched in amazement at all of the crazy people that were also out walking. We had to dodge people puking at least twice and had a great time laughing at the girls dressed up to go clubbing. Need I say more about that? I'm sure you can see the visual.
After sleeping in we went and had breakfast at Hash Hash a Go Go. Not a place I would want to go to again since it wasn't that great. It was featured on Man vs. Food so we had to try it.
To top off Valentine's Day I took my mom to dinner at The Outback while Paul ordered pizza for everyone else. We ended our day with sugar cookies, strawberry-lemon cake and cherry limeades. I love Valentine's Day and enjoy watching the kids get all excited about this fun day.

Jaxon's Three!

2010-01-16T23:21:00.001-08:00

I wanted to do a nice picture montage of my baby, but my computer crashed. Luckily, I was able to save the thousands of pictures onto an online account but I can't figure out how to copy and paste them so all I have are pictures of Jaxon's birthday. We got him a jump house and celebrated with a Thomas the Train cake which he loved. He received lots of fun toys including a toy horse, lots of trains, puzzles, and cars. I think he had a great day!

My baby is three...such a sad day for mom...yet it should be such a joyous time. I've realized that when your last child is growing up the reality is there that you will never experience these moments again and these are things I'm really struggling with. My hubby says I'm selfish for wanting more. God gave us 4 perfect, normal and beautiful kids. We really are happy with what we have and I think that longing for another child will always be there. Nope, we will never have another child...we knew we had our family complete after Jaxon was born and I accept that. One day I'll have grandchildren to love, but not too soon. My top favorite things about Jaxon:
* We call you Boo and have been since you were a baby. No reason why, yet it fits you. Aunt Pam calls you "Bootsie" which you still respond to.
* Breaking you from your pacifiers was the easiest thing I've ever had to do and I thought it would be a nightmare. You had to have 2-4 "baabaa's" with you every time you went to bed. You loved them. At one time you had at least 10 and they slowly started to disappear which wasn't from mom, but from you setting them down or burying them in your toys. Eventually they all disappeared and you were fine with me telling you they were all gone. You never cried, nor every asked for them and just went on with your happy life.
*Thomas the Train is by the far your best friend. You will stand at your train set for hours lining up all of the trains, playing with the track or fixing up the parts that go with the train. You're not very kind to Camryn who always wants to play with the trains too.
*I love that you're still in a crib and never try to climb out of it. One day you'll get a big boy bed!
* I love that when you want chocolate milk you ask for "numb". Even though you can say milk you still call it numb.
*Riding your scooter daily is a must for you. Thanks goodness for all the tile in our house that allows you to ride it daily.
*Potty training you was a breeze!
*Maddie is still sissy and Tanner is still bubba.
*You LOVE Camryn and does everything that she does. She's your best friend and you do everything that she does.
*Why oh why aren't you a Disney lover? Maybe one day.
*I love the big hugs you like to give and always laugh when I ask you for a kiss and you bend your head down for me to only kiss the top of your head.
*I love the sweet spirit you have while at church and the prayers you attempt to give before we eat.

I will forever be blessed to have this awesome child in our household and look forward to many more fun times with this happy boy. Love you Boo!

December Wrap Up

2010-01-06T18:02:00.000-08:00

The month of December was tons of fun and went very quick. Maybe because I had two weeks off which always makes time fly by. Christmas was awesome. Paul and I were extremely spoiled as were all of my kids. Christmas Eve our tradition is to eat Chinese food with Aunt Pam and Uncle Ray, go look at holiday lights, exchange gifts with our aunt and uncle then open pj's. Of course, I wasn't that great with the camera....I actually didn't take any photos.....yet, we all had a great time spending time with the family.
We didn't go and look at lights since we had gone a couple days before to the Gift of Lights which is a drive thru of sparkling lights. I wasn't very impressed and won't do it again, but the kids loved it.

We had a great time decorating cookies. Love the mess!

Santa always brings one big gift (unwrapped for the little ones and wrapped for the older ones.) Here's the loot my family received:

Tanner- Very excited to get an Ipod touch, a new cell phone, Rock Band, cologne, Itunes cards, clothes, shoes, and lots of game stuff.

Maddie- Santa brought her a new laptop, lots of clothes, boots, shoes, Pink perfume, games, and Tanner's old cell phone.

Camryn- Santa brought her a new dollhouse with all the different rooms to go with it, a DS lite, games, clothes, and a karoake machine that will soon say hello to the trash.

Jaxon- Santa brought a huge train set for Jaxon with lots of different trains. We had to bribe him to unwrap gifts since he didn't want to leave his new toy. Literally all day on Christmas Jaxon was attached to this train set...still is. He also received clothes, trucks, a leap tag reader, trains, and lots of books.

Momma and daddy were very spoiled by Santa. My favorite gift being a nice day at the spa. Loves! Santa also brought our family a ping pong table. Mom and Dad especially enjoy that gift.

Notice Jaxon in the other room while we open gifts. He couldn't bare to be away from his brand new train set.

Aren't the kiddos cute with their Christmas clothes?

Maddie also had a Christmas dance spectacular that we attended. Loads of fun.

Camryn has a new job in the house. She sets the table for dinner every night. As soon as I start making dinner she begins to set the table. I loved how she had to include her favorite animals at the table also. I wish I would've taken a picture of the size of napkins she set out. She literally took one paper towel and tore it into 6 pieces. Love her. Also love her toothless mouth since losing a top tooth.

Watkins' Family Photos 2009

2009-12-28T17:01:00.000-08:00

When we went to SLC for Thanksgiving my beautiful and talented niece graciously took my kids' photos for me. She did an awesome job considering my little ones were HORRIBLE!! It was a great day with many memories to laugh about later in life about this silly photo shoot. Thanks Heid!

Trying to get everyone to smile in a family photo is a joke. This one we used for our Christmas card.

Madison....my 11 1/2 year old child who thinks she's 21. 6th grade...Dances 4 nights a week...Sings in the school choir...Loves life.

Camryn...my 5 year old child who is full of life. Goes to kindergarten...Dances too...loves her hamsters....the most precocious child I've ever had.

Jaxon...will be 3 in two weeks...potty trained and no pacifiers in one week...loves Thomas the Train...will always be our baby.

Tanner...my 16 year old who is still not driving (YAHOO)...plays the electric guitar..has tried hard to find a job...Good kid!

Notice the dirt on Tanner's sweater? We weren't even at the park for 10 minutes and he biffed it on the dirt while chasing ducks. I almost peed my pants from laughing so hard.

SLC

2009-12-22T08:07:00.000-08:00

November was the month of traveling. For Thanksgiving we travelled to SLC to spend time with my sister and her family. We had a great time and love spending time at her house. One of the highlights of our trip was going to see the lights at temple square. Probably my most favorite place to go to. Even if it's freezing and there is a mass of people (it was opening night) you still feel the spirit of the Lord and realize that this house is so sacred. My sister made us ride the Trax up to the temple which is like a subway type thing.

We also did lots of shopping and saw some great movies, plus ate some really good food. It was a quick trip, but one that my family and myself love to do.

The Polar Express

2009-12-13T21:17:00.000-08:00

I've always wanted to take my kids to the Polar Express so I finally did it and we drove to Williams, AZ. to ride on the train. LOVED it and I'm wanting to make it a yearly tradition. The kids and myself (Paul was a wuss) wore our pj's and boarded the train around 8:00. They served hot cocoa and cookies and then read the story The Polar Express. Santa surprised everyone by boarding the train and passing out huge silver bells to all the kids. Christmas carols were sung and enjoyed by all. Jaxon was even a trooper, yet he did cry a bit while we waited to board the train. Once he realized that it wasn't a scary ride he was fine. Although dad did tell him to "put his hands up!"

On the way home we stopped at Hoover Dam and took a tour. It's really sad to see how low Lake Mead is and extremely scary to look over the dam and then look up to see the daunting huge bridge.

Disney for the Last Time

2009-12-05T15:10:00.001-08:00

We said goodbye to Disneyland. Our annual passes expired in the middle of November so we wanted to visit our favorite place one last time. It was a great time to go to Disneyland since it was between holidays and the lines weren't bad at all. We even got a bench for the parade!! When does that ever happen. Unfortunately, Jaxon does not have the Disney blood in him since he cried on almost every ride. He loved the train and the carousal. Probably didn't help that we made him go on Space Mountain. Good times and I am already having withdrawals from my favorite place in the world. See you again in the future sometime Mickey!

Halloween 09

2009-11-22T19:10:00.001-08:00

I love Halloween and all the fun fall things that come with it. It just seems that it's finally time to make the hot cider, bake some pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, and eat yummy soup. It seemed too that my kids were at endless dress up parties, as myself also, which made Halloween so fun.

Camryn decided to be Batgirl for Halloween. She loved posing and playing the part. How excited she was to be able to wear her costume to school and march in the school parade. Unfortunately, mom didn't get to see her, but I'm sure it was fun. She loved going house to house, but after one block she was tired and done.

I bought Jaxon a batman costume so he would match his sister...but it was too short. He loves pirates (is always saying arrrrgh to his dad's tattoo)so I bought him a cute pirate outfit. Nope, he refused to put it on. Finally, on Halloween I went and bought him a Thomas the Train outfit since he loves that cartoon. Yes, he wore it trick or treating finally. After 1/2 a block he insisted that someone held him so he was pretty much done really soon. Darn!

Maddie was off with her friends strolling the neighborhood and I didn't get a glimpse of her costume. Maybe a punk rock ballerina?

We also went to Track a Treat to get free candy. Camryn wore her costume, but Jaxon refused. Such a happy, fun, party type child!

We carved pumpkins...yes, I make my mother do the things I don't like to do!

Yes, I too dressed up for endless parties. Unfortunately, these are the only ones I can find of "Alice in Wonderland." My tights were way cute!

A New Month is Here!! Yay!!

2009-11-01T13:46:00.000-08:00

Buh bye October. This month sucked...was horrible and I am glad to see it leave. It's crazy to sit here and try to type as the main reason as to why the month was yucky, yet it's difficult to do when you really don't know. I'll try...in a nutshell.
It all started a month ago on my birthday (Sept. 17) when I was sick and nauseated all day. After a couple of days of this I assumed I had a stomach bug, yet after a week of feeling sick every time I ate anything I went to the doctor. My doc thought maybe it was pancreatisis (sp?) and gave me medication to try to help, plus drink lots of water and take an antacid pill every morning. More time went by and still no results and now I got to deal with a horrible pain on my right side.
I then went to a gastroenterologist who ordered me to undergo an upper and lower GI to see what those tests showed. In the meantime I'm told to take pain meds and try to go on my merry way while not able to eat and now in excruciating pain. Twice I made trips to the ER since I just knew my appendix or something was going to burst in my side, but I was informed that the cat scans show nothing is wrong with my inner organs. Frustrating to know end!!!
I finally have my upper and lower tests (loads of fun...did I mention that I asked the doctor if I had a cute a** while groggy from medicine? I know...nice!) and they finally revealed what possibly could be wrong. Due to lack of fiber in my system I've developed diverticulitis and suffer from gastritis. It was nice to be told what could be wrong, yet extremely disappointing when my Dr. says, see you in two weeks to go over test results. Continue with pain meds and increase your fiber is all that he said. This I did and after five days I FINALLY became pain free and feel much better. Not perfect, but better.

Camping Again

2009-10-03T13:56:00.000-07:00

We made another trip to Cave Lake which is now my favorite camping place to go. The weather was mild, yet no fish were biting at all. But we enjoyed the serenity of camp life and just being together as a family. Until mom found out that there was a hole in the air mattress. Then I wasn't happy!! All in all...good times!

Sitting with daddy trying to catch a fish.

But, all we came up was SEAWEED! Run, Jaxon, run!

An entire field of cat tails. I was amazed to see them and just as amazed to see Paul cross into the swamp to get me some. Thanks babe!

The rare moment when Jaxon is sitting holding his pole.

Yes, I'm allowing my daughter to vandalize a tree.

WATKINS permanently etched in a tree. Handcuff me now....I know.

Tanner was really happy. Really, he was!

At nighttime getting ready for bed and everyone in one stall.

Fairytales and Tutus

2009-09-27T18:19:00.001-07:00

Camryn is now taking a dance class at the cutest place in the world, Fairy tales and Tutus. She goes once a week for 45 minutes and each week it is a different theme. One week it was Beauty and the Beast. First, they do stretches and ballet moves then a teacher reads a story to them about the theme. At the end all of the girls get to dress up in an outfit that correlates with the story. She LOVES this class and looks forward to going. The door to go into the studio has another little pink door that the kids walk into when entering. So cute!

This was Mary Poppins day.

So I had to jump on the bandwagon like everyone else and show what I saved at the store. Yes, I was proud and do I really think I need 4 bottles of Tabasco sauce? Nope, but it was a great deal and I loved saving $100!!

I'm back!

2009-08-31T21:38:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm finally back! I lost my camera at Disneyland (actually left it on the train, but it makes me feel better to say I lost it!)and since I seem to go through cameras like water the hubby insisted I try to get some of my old ones working. Tried it, but it didn't work so I ended up buying a new one which so far so good.

The summer flew by! Here are some highlights:

My kids love to pose in the oddest places. This one is in front of the new Target.

This one is in front of Big Dog's which we didn't eat at since it was an hour wait.

We LIVED at the pool this summer!

Yogurtland was one of our favorite treats.

Hmmm...Serendipity!!

Tanner turned 16! Yep, my big baby boy is now driving age. We took him to Disneyland for his birthday and had a really good time. I don't have that many pictures since I "lost" my camera, but the memories are still there.

Camryn started kindergarten! She loves it and is very excited to go to mommy's school. She thanks me everyday for letting her go to my awesome school. She's so funny!

Maddie started middle school and LOVES it! She's also back in dance, yet her schedule is a lot lighter this year.

Jaxon in on the verge of being potty trained. Wish me luck!

I've joined Las Vegas Boot Camp which is an exercise hell time for an hour every morning. It's pretty intense, but you get a really good workout and I love it.

Well, that's the past month in a nutshell. I'll do better....promise.

4th of July

2009-07-15T21:30:00.000-07:00

Our 4Th of July was extremely mellow and enjoyable which is what I wanted. We swam the entire day and then feasted on hamburgers, hot dogs, and chicken wings. Then topped it off with a yummy chocolate cake.

We did our fireworks (might as well just light up a $100 bill) which the kids really enjoyed. Even Jaxon joined in on the fun.

Off of my bedroom we have a balcony so at 9:30 PM we were able to watch the fireworks go off from the Aliante Casino. It was a wonderful view and as we were enjoying the beautiness of the evening we realized Jaxon and Camryn had gone inside the house and LOCKED the screen door so all of us were locked out! After Paul had a bit of a freak out he yanked on the door, breaking the lock, so we could get into the house. Pretty funny! Happy 4th of July!

For your viewing pleasure...a day in the life of Jaxon!

Summer in Vegas

2009-07-08T12:53:00.000-07:00

During my time off my niece from Washington (she's been to Forks!) and her 3 kids came for a week long visit. We had a great time doing fun stuff around Vegas that I hadn't done for awhile. The kids all played well together and we were really sad to see them go. Next year I'm hoping to drive up to WA to spend time with my Karah and then follow her down to Vegas.

We took the kids to the drive-in to see Up. Had a great time until I lost my wallet.

Tommy and Camryn

We checked out the Lied Children's Museum which was fun. Really expensive, though.

Jaxon, Camryn, Angel, and Tommy

We swam at least 3 times a day.

We went to the Dinosaur Park to play in the water, sand, and feed the ducks. Notice that we were actually feeding pigeons instead.

We went and ate at the Rain forest Cafe. Wooo don't get me started on those prices!

We saw lots of fish at the Shark Reef! And yes, we were all dressed alike. We're dorks!

Jaxon was freaked out by the sharks. Can you tell?

Karah, Tristan, Angel, Maddie and Camryn

Girls night out to see the Bellagio fountain, FroHo at Serendipity, and pictures with those darn parrots.

It was sad to see Karah leave, but now I'm broke and I'm glad she's gone. Haha...love you Karah!

The Family

2009-06-18T15:17:00.001-07:00

Here's a quick update on my family:

Kris is on track break for 3 1/2 weeks and loves being home. I'm having lots of family come to visit while I'm on vacation so that will keep me busy.
Paul is a happy guy since he drew a deer tag this year. He hasn't drawn one for the past two years which means he'll be gone hunting a lot this year. We celebrated our 17 year wedding anniversary. Crazy!

Tanner has been playing the electric guitar for about a month and really enjoys it. He can actually play us a song! He finished his sophomore year of high school and has been trying to find a job, but no luck so far. We've also been trying to get a learner's permit, yet I don't think he realizes that he must STUDY the handbook!

Madison is finishing up 5Th grade and is looking forward to middle school. She's been in many dance competitions this year and had her dance recital at the end of June. She went to Sea Camp in San Diego last month and had such a great time.

Camryn started gymnastics at the YMCA and seems to be enjoying it. Poor thing towers over all of the other kiddos. She finished pre-school this year and will start kindergarten in the fall. She will be going to my school which I'm really excited about.

Jaxon is 2 1/2 now and is attempting to be potty trained, but it's not going so good. He freaks out when he has to wear underwear so I bought the pull-ups but what's the point of those if he can still wet in them. He loves to swim and looks forward to it everyday.

Anna is glad to be off for three weeks. Her brother passed away a couple of weeks ago and I drove her to Flagstaff, AZ for the funeral. She joined the YMCA and is taking a arthritis swim class three days a week. She loves it! (Can you tell her picture is "the do not take my picture photo?")

I can't believe we are already 6 months into 2009. Before you know it Christmas will be here again!

17 Years and Counting....

2009-06-17T10:52:00.001-07:00

WOW! It's amazing to think that Paul and I have been married for 17 years, yet I have known him for 20. Time flies for sure. I can honestly look back on our many years together and realize that I love my husband more now than I did so many years ago. Don't get me wrong...I always loved my hubby, but I think once you get older you realize what you have and cherish it more. We've come along way together and I could get all mushy, yet Paul doesn't read this blog so it doesn't matter what I say. I found some old photos to highlight our life together and thought I would make a list (seems everyone is doing that) of 17 things that Paul and I like or don't like.

1. We love to travel. Selfish as it seems we already have an itinerary planned of where we travel to once our last kid is raised. Planning trips to our latest destinations is something we always do together.

2. We both despise onions and peas. Therefore, our kids don't eat these foods.

3. Disneyland is the one place we always plan to go to. We're there when it opens and stay until closes. Every ride has to be rode on at least once or it wasn't a good day at the park. We've gone every year since we've been married twice or more. You can do the math!

4. Our kids can stress us out, yet spending time together as a family is one of our favorite things to do. Each month we let a child pick an activity that they would like the whole family to do no matter what the expense. We've been lucky and the activities planned have been reasonable.

5. We can spend money like it's water.

6. We love our kids and agree that we made some pretty good looking kiddos.

7. Looking for a new restaurant to try is something we do at least once a month and enjoy immensely.

8. We are hard core carnivores!

9. Dealing with death and funerals make us extremely sad and depressed.

10. Watching a scary movie in bed is one of our favorite pastimes.

11. We enjoy watching the travel channel...with Andrew Zimmerman being our favorite.

12. We enjoy grocery shopping together. Every Saturday you can catch Paul and I at the grocery store.

13. We dislike any type of bug.

14. Our pizza always has ham, mushrooms, and pork sausage on it. Yum!

15. We both are very hesitant to try new foods.

16. We love pedicures!

17. Finally...(this post was really hard)... eating breakfast for dinner is one of our favorite meals.

Cave Lake

2009-06-10T20:48:00.000-07:00

Yes, Paul finally talked me into going camping. I only relented because I've been putting it off forever, but I knew my kids would enjoy going. Seriously, I'm not a camper. The whole woods and fishing thing just isn't my idea of fun, but I braved it and was ready to go. Aunt Pam and Uncle Ray were going with us so we were taking two vehicles. Paul, Jaxon, Ray, and Tanner in one car. Pam, me, Camryn, and Maddie in another.
We left on a Friday evening headed toward Cave Lake which is on the outskirts of Ely, Nevada. It's about a 4-5 hour drive from Vegas. Our plan was to make it to the campsite in the evening and set up camp, but our plans didn't quite turn out that way. Jaxon hadn't been feeling well (remember I had the flu, then Camryn got it, and then Anna had her turn). We were a half hour from Vegas when Paul pulled over because Jaxon was puking in his truck. Nice! Paul cleaned him up the best he could and we got back on our way. We kept on going until we realized that the highway was closed due to an accident so we had to turn around and go another way.
Now, I'm thinking maybe this is a sign and we should just go home because then Madison starts complaining about her stomach hurting so we stop again to take restroom breaks. While stopped Paul informed me that he left Jaxon's shoes on the side of the road while he was cleaning up the puke so now I'm searching the hick town store looking for a pair of shoes since I only packed one pair. I finally found some fluorescent green Crocs that fit him perfect.

We get on the road and soon Maddie starts complaining again so we pull over. I end up giving her to Paul to deal with and he gave me puke child Jaxon (who smelled oh so fragrant!) Soon Jaxon starts puking again so Pam has to pull over again so I can clean him up. A half hour later Paul pulls over again because Maddie is now puking. It's now 9:00 PM...we left Vegas at 4:00 PM and we're still not in Ely. We've pulled over who knows how many times and I'm done! Paul made the wonderful decision to stay the night in a hotel so we can do some wash, clean Jaxon's car seat, and have a good night sleep. Oh happy day! Jaxon puked again before the night was over, but it was nice to sleep in a real bed and not be traveling.
The next day we made it to camp, fished all day, made some great meals, laughed when Pam fell down, and just enjoyed ourselves being out in the woods and being together as a family. I slept great and actually had a really good time. The highlight of the trip was definitely the toliets and hot shower that they had at the campsite. No one was sick the rest of the trip and we made it home quick, safe, and sound.

Spending almost two days in the woods with family....somewhat enjoyable.
Dealing with pukey kids just to make my hardworking hubby happy...valuable moments.
Watching Pam trip and fall on her face....hilarious.
Catching a fish, degutting it, and watching the blood ooze down my arm...a rare feat.

Finding Jaxon's shoes on the side of the highway on our way home....PRICELESS!!!

My Mother's Day Fun (Sorry No Pictures)

2009-06-03T21:21:00.000-07:00

The month of May wasn't a great month for me. I was a good girl and had my flu shot last October, I take a multi-vitamin daily, and I have really tried (notice I say really try) to exercise at least four times a week. Plus, I cut out soda and only drink water. This probably helps since I haven't had a head cold or anything else in way over a year and I'm surrounded by kids daily, yet May was the month for other fun things.

It started when we took Camryn to Disneyland and on our second day there I got food poisoning from eating at Denny's. Imagine being at the happiest place on earth sicker than a dog! I kept guzzling water and walking until finally poor Paul bought me some liquid Imodium AD since that was all the park really had for sickness. I think I swallowed half the bottle. I felt much better by the afternoon, but how sad to ruin my pleasant thoughts of Disneyland with horrific nauseating ones of me running to the bathroom every 15 minutes. Big thanks to my fam who waited patiently for my many trips to the john.

Then, big weekend for Madison since she's been preparing for a dance competition and it was Mother's Day weekend. My back started feeling achy, yet I associated it with that time of the month until the big pain hit and after three hours of pure torture I finally went to the ER to get some pain medication to help relieve the pain of a kidney stone that was stuck. If you've never had a kidney stone attack, be grateful. I would never wish that trauma on anybody. It is excruciating, mind blowing, and the type of pain where you kinda go into a state of shock. Let me tell you, the feeling of a knife coming out of your hoo-ha is probably the worst thing I've ever had to experience. The pain is so intense it literally makes you vomit and you can't sit because of the pain. Finally, I was given morphine which immediately relieved the pain. So I told the nurse I loved her and she was my new b/f. At that moment she was! I was told that my stone was stuck in my urethrae tube, yet it was almost to my bladder which was a great thing. Yea, right! Plus, it was too small to be surgically removed so I had to wait for it to pass. It must have since I've been pain free since.

During this time Paul had to take Maddie to her dance competition. Now, Paul usually is just a spectator and supporter with her dance so actually trying to get her ready with full makeup, hair, and costume and then getting her to the location was very trying for him. While I'm dying in the hospital he gets to play Super Dad! He did great and Maddie did pretty good.

The Doctor at the ER gave me some pain meds and other stuff to help with the stone and sent me on my way. The next day was Mother's Day. Yea for me! I layed on the couch all day while Paul made all of my favorite foods: salsa and chips, steak and corn, and watermelon with fruit dip. What a great day. Until 2:00 AM when I started puking my guts out and continued to do so until 9:00 AM. Every 15 minutes I was up puking. So everything I loved on Mother's Day I'll never eat again. I went to my family doctor to see what was up and he determined I had an allergic reaction to the morphine,I think he was wrong since throughout the rest of the week four other members of my family had the stomach flu so on top of dealing with kidney stones I get the stomach flu.

So now it's June and finally everyone is well. I'm doing great and actually went and saw a urologist about my frequent kidney stone attacks. I'll be having a bunch of tests done to see why my body keeps forming them, plus making some changes in my diet to not offset any stones since the doc informed that there is a 90% chance that I'll have them again. Why me?

San Clemente

2009-05-20T22:10:00.000-07:00

It seems I'm getting so behind on my postings and that's a big pet peeve for me. I'll try and catch up.

Yea me! I was able to go to San Clemente, CA for the weekend and share the wedding festivities of my darling niece Heather and her new handsome hubby Taylor. I flew there on a Friday and came home on Sunday with no kids AND no hubby. Pure bliss!
On Friday evening I attended the rehearsal dinner that was held at a cute little Italian restaurant. It was hilarious because the windows of the restaurant were facing a Metro link train track and it came right in front of us with only about 3 feet between the train and the window so it looked like the train was coming toward you. It was so fun to meet up with family, especially my brother in law Gary who was married to my sister Patsy. I haven't seen him for years.

Heather and Taylor were married in the Newport Beach Temple on Saturday morning which was so gorgeous. That evening their reception was held at her parents backyard. It was beautiful and their backyard looked amazing.

I went home on Sunday which was with great sadness since I was returning back to reality, but I'm so glad I went and was able to share such a fun weekend with my family.

Me, my brother Curtis, and my sister Laurie. I'm standing in front of the window where the Metro link train came rushing toward me and scared the crap out of all of us.

My brother in law Gary, Anna, and Laurie. Who knows what's so funny.

Gary and Carol

Anna, Laurie, and Randy.

Laurie, Curtis, and I again. Curtis is Stake President in San Clemente, California so it was funny to hear people call him "President Reese"

Yes, that's Anna acting crazy with Gary. We love him sooo much. He was married to my sister Patsy and is still such a huge part of our family. They were holding sparklers while the bride and groom rushed to their awaiting car.

Again, my favorite people acting silly.

My darling niece Heather and her new husband Taylor. It was a beautiful wedding and I was so fortunate to be able to go and be a part of such a wonderful weekend. Thanks Heath!

More of Camryn

2009-05-19T16:38:00.000-07:00

For Camryn's 5th birthday Paul and I took her to Disneyland. Yea, pretty cheap on our part since we have annual passes. Camryn's Aunt Pam and cousin Jen joined us for two fun days at our favorite place in the world.

My new favorite place is the Celebration BBQ that they now have in the back of the park by Big Thunder Mountain. It's pricey and you have to pay before you can see Woody, but the food was yummy and tons of it. All the BBQ you want to eat and the characters come up to your table to see the kids. Woody's horse (I call him Pokey) loved Camryn and took a lot of time with her. For dessert they bring out this concoction holding waffle cones with cupcakes baked in them. So so delicious and something I plan to do each time I go.

Camryn is a daredevil and the fuzzy picture shows her riding Tower of Terror which her mother will never get on again. The picture where she is frowning is because she was told she still wasn't tall enough to ride California Screamin.' Poor girl!

Camryn Turns 5

2009-05-06T22:03:00.000-07:00

Maddie holding Camryn for the first time.

Camryn 6 weeks old.

Going to her first princess party. (2008)

My favorite picture ever of Camryn! (2007)

One year old!

How many messes can this child possibly get into?

Camryn and Jaxon (2007)

Kissing a dolphin in Puerto Vallarta (2008)

My baby girl is now 5 years old!
Five years ago on April 28 Camryn came into our lives and we've been kept on our toes ever since. She was a month early and my water actually broke while I was sitting on the couch watching The Baby Story (eating a plateful of brownies too, but..) I actually thought I was peeing my pants and after changing my pants three times realized that it wasn't urine. Stress began to set in when I realized that Paul was working in Yuma, Arizona and was a good 6 hours away. Luckily, my doctor was able to stop the labor until the next morning so Paul could be there to see his baby girl born. Our tiny 7 pound bundle of joy was perfect and we were elated.
Camryn has the funniest personality and is a bundle of energy. She also has a heart of gold and when she hugs you she really hugs you. Camryn loves roller coasters and is always disappointed when she hasn't grown tall enough yet to ride California Screamin' at Disneyland. Her favorite line is, "put your hands up" whenever anyone rides a ride with her.
Camryn has gone to preschool for the past two years and loves it. Everyday she asks if she has school. Camryn also enjoys swimming and learned to swim without floaties when she was three. We call her our little fish. We tried to make Camryn a dancer, but she only lasted two weeks. She informed us she wants to be a baker instead.

We love our little girl and constantly crack up at the things she says.

Meeting her new brother for the first time.

Love this child!

Cuties

2009-04-23T21:39:00.000-07:00

Since we didn't get to wear our cute new Easter clothes on Easter the kids wore their outfits on the following Sunday. They looked so cute and bright. Jaxon and Tanner were just thrilled to get their pictures taken. Of course, Maddie is never not smiling for the camera.

Jaxon REFUSED to get in the photos. Can you tell?

Easter

2009-04-18T21:46:00.000-07:00

This year at Easter it was really relaxed and fun. We colored eggs which I very much HATE to do because of the smell, mess, and stains galore on little bodies and furniture. Yet, the kids do enjoy it so we always do it. I even thought I was increasing my load by buying 2 dozen eggs for them to color. My friend Kim outdid me by saying that her family dyes 8 dozen eggs! So much for that...I think 2 is all I can stomach without tossing them in the trash as soon as we are done! Yes, it was a horrible mess and we were all stained green, plus we had many broken eggs, but the kids loved it which is what counts...right?

The Easter Bunny found our house and left his paw prints. I was informed by Camryn that I forgot to leave out a carrot for the Easter Bunny and he probably took some of her candy. I guess my 4 year old realized that the baskets were a little small. I decided to not go all out for my kids this year and only bought some candy and a swimsuit for their baskets. I felt it was getting extremely commercialized in my household when certain children are wanting to write a list of what they want for Easter!For some reason Tanner was never around when I had my camera out, but yes I do have a 4th child!

We played hookie from church and took the kids to breakfast. On holidays it's very important to me that my children spend a lot of time with their dad and we do things together as a family. Madison was miserable at breakfast (tonsils) so we made a mad dash to get back home. We did drive around our old stomping grounds and showed the kids where mom and dad grew up and where our first homes were. It was such a reflective moment for Paul and I to see where we started so many years ago and to now see what our life has become. I was almost sad to view my old neighborhood and remember how I couldn't wait to leave the 'hood, yet I never ever thought that I would so desperately want to go back and live that way again. I was actually homesick for old neighborhoods! I've really had some good years and am quite blessed for what I have. I guess just seeing how you lived really puts things into perspective of how your life has become.

Anyhoo...Later that afternoon Paul taught Camryn how to ride her bike without any training wheels! She was so proud of herself and I was surprised by how quick she learned. Jaxon was loving every minute of riding his scooter and always made an effort to give her a high five every time she fell. Of course, he won't touch his bike.

Sometime during the day the Easter Bunny hid eggs in our backyard. The kids loved it which made me feel better since I had major guilt for not taking them to any community hunts which I always do, but this they loved.

I did no cooking for the day and we all snacked and ate pizza leftovers from the night before so it was a great day. I'm so grateful for my family, friends, and life. As Camryn would say, "This Easter was the best Easter Day I've ever had." Thanks mom!!

Tonsil Drama

2009-04-11T21:38:00.000-07:00

Madison had her tonsils out! It all began many years ago when I was told by every dentist I went to that she had major gag reflex and that her tonsils were huge. I ignored it until about 3 months ago I realized that Maddie had a nasal twang to her voice whenever she spoke and she seemed to always make a swishing sound. Reminded me of friends who had braces and were always full of spit!
I took her to our doctor for her 11 year old check up and had her throat looked at. My doctor agreed that yes, her tonsils were huge and sent us to a ENT doctor. This doctor took one look at her throat and was astonished to see that they were so big. He even had me look at them and I was shocked. They were as big as golf balls! The good parent award goes to me when he told me that Madison was probably a restless sleeper due to her brain waking her up at night due to the lack of oxygen she was receiving because of her enormous tonsils. Nice!
Maddie had surgery 5 days later to remove her tonsils and her adenoids which happened to fall over spring break. This worked out great since she has dance competitions coming up, Sea Camp, and still school so she didn't miss that many days.
Here's a rundown of our week:
Monday-Nerves are setting in for Maddie. She had to get blood drawn so that kinda freaked her out. I had two super neat men from my ward come over and give her an awesome blessing which she requested to have before surgery. It's amazing to realize how much an 11 year old really understands and believes in the power of the priesthood. She felt much calmer and had a good night.
Tuesday- Surgery day. We have to be at the surgical center by 11:00 AM so no eating or drinking. Maddie is good until we get to the parking lot and she breaks down crying due to being scared. We said another quick prayer and she called her dad which always seems to relax her. She's prepped for surgery and given her wristband, gown, hat, and booties. We both got a good laugh during this time.
Then oooh the dreaded IV. Super nice nurse pricked the top of her hand to numb the area before they put in the big needle and she freaked. IV got in and once again everything was smooth. We met the anesthesiologist and then Dr. Foggia arrived at 12:00PM to talk to me and help soothe Maddie. At 12:10 she was wheeled in and the surgery began.

12:45PM-Dr. Foggia finds me in the waiting room to tell me surgery went well and Maddie did great. Huge tonsils removed.(I'm sick since I wish I could have kept them!)
1:00PM-I get to sit with Maddie during recovery watching Finding Nemo. Nurses are so nice to her and Maddie is still kind of out of it from the anesthesia. We get to go home by 2:00pm. She sleeps the whole way home and pretty much the rest of the day. She's not in too much pain and I've gotten her drugs so she's pretty comfy.
I'm so proud of Madison that she was able to get through this and not once complain about anything. She had a good night's sleep which was good for me.
Wednesday- I'm keeping a schedule of what times to give her medicine since she can have pain medicine every 4 hours and has to take an antibiotic 3x's a day, plus she has to have a specific fluid amount each day otherwise she can get dehydrated and develop a fever. Pudding, applesauce, and soup is her food of choice right now.Dr. Foggia called today to see how she was doing.
All of her medicine minus one bottle that's already been used.
Thursday-Today Maddie had a shower and tried to eat some solid food which she really wanted, yet it seemed to hurt too much. Slurpee's and a cupcake make us all very happy!
Friday-A lot of pain today. Nothing seems to help her today and she's getting tired of all of the soft foods. She's doing good about staying in bed and resting. Watching TV and reading a lot. The surgical center called today to see how she was doing. They told me that the third day is usually the hardest and I would have to agree with that. Her voice is already so different and I can't wait to hear it when she is healed.
Saturday-Not a good day for my little girl. She was in a lot of pain today and asking me before the 4 hours were up for more pain meds. Very emotional today. I told her she wouldn't be going back to school until next Thursday and that made her cry. She also found out that she wouldn't be going to church on Sunday for Easter and that made her cry. We had pizza for dinner and because it's acidic (tomatoes) she couldn't have any so that sent her for another good cry. I'm hoping tomorrow will be much better.

Yea....She's happy!!
Sunday-Easter bunny finds us. We spent the day together as a family by taking Maddie to breakfast (not a good idea) and then driving around town showing our kids where mom and dad grew up and where we lived when we were first married.
It's been a very tiring Spring Break yet I'm proud of Maddie for being such a trooper and getting through this. Just a couple more days of pain and she will be all healed. No school for 10 days and medicine every 4 hours for 10 days. It's been fun!!!

Our life for the past three weeks:

2009-04-06T13:21:00.001-07:00

We were busy one weekend laying seed in the grass, painting the house trim, and other yard stuff. Jaxon broke out with this huge rash all over his body and I think it was either from the grass or the fertilizer. It looked like I beat him! Zyrtec (allergy medicine) made it disappear by the next day. What a mess a 2 and 4 year old can make when not being watched like a hawk. I thought I had put all of the markers, crayons, and pencils out of reach but this is what they were caught doing on different days. Stinkers! Because of the cold and wind (yeah, I know it's not that cold) I resort to letting my kids ride their scooters in the house. We have a lot of tile so they get their exercise, plus gives them something to do. Jaxon is hilarious when he rides his bike. For some reason he hoists his leg up the entire time he's riding. Funny kid. I'm hoping the video will show him in all his glory.

For family night we took the kids bowling. Now those that know me well know that I don't go to many places with my little ones. Too hard to deal with so this was their first real outing in a loooong time. Of course, Tanner wasn't thrilled that he had to go, but the kids all loved bowling and especially got a hoot when their dad fell down. Too bad I didn't have my camera ready! Camryn decided she never wants to bowl again either once she fell down on her bottom too. Who knows why Jaxon was on the floor crying. Probably because it wasn't his turn to bowl. Paul and I took advantage of going on a date. We went to a restaurant that he'd heard about from a friend so we thought we'd give it a try. It was called Texas de Brazil and it was yummy! Men are walking around with different cuts of meat on a big skewer that you get to choose from and eat as much as you want. It was pure carnivore heaven!

Madison had her tonsils out! The doctor was so concerned with them being so large that she had surgery 4 days later. That post will come soon

Maddie Turns 11

2009-03-12T21:51:00.000-07:00

Happy 11Th Birthday to my first born daughter Madison Patsy, who was named after my oldest sister who died six weeks after she was born. Madison came into the world with a BANG. My easiest pregnancy, but by far the worst delivery. Weighing in at a honking 9 lbs. 10 oz. I was given morphine for three days to help the pain. I was put to sleep for her birth and I awoke when they were wheeling me to recovery. Yes, imagine no epidural to numb the area and nurses frantically injecting me with needles to numb the fire pain of my gut. I went into shock due to the pain and didn't get to or even want to see Madison until the next day.
Any hoo, Madison is 11 years old and such a joy in our lives. When she was younger she was a show off and loved to perform for other people. She started dance when she was 8 and now is professionally trained in jazz, ballet, tap, and others. She has placed first in many competitions and enjoys the excitement of performing and winning.
Here are 11 funny or interesting things about Maddie that maybe you didn't know about:
1. At Thanksgiving she always has to have the turkey leg to eat, that's her tradition.
2. She's never had to taken an antibiotic for sickness since she's never sick. Except for the common cold or the stomach flu, she's been extremely healthy. Although we just found out she may be getting her tonsils out due them being abnormally large and blocking her airway. Yea, no more snoring!!
3. Madison was climbing a slide while at a swimming pool and slipped from the middle rung. She landed on her bum and cried for hours. The bruise that surfaced covered her entire bum cheek.(OK, not funny or interesting, but something that came to mind!)
4. Maddie loves roller coasters and will scream the entire time out of excitement.
5. Madison received a welcome announcement from President Bill Clinton when she was born.
6. She will try any type of food and once tried frog legs, yet did have a melt down once she knew what they were.
7. Madison's mom was her 4Th grade teacher at Betsy Rhodes ES.
8. Madison is terrified of the ocean and refuses to ever go swim in it. She tried snorkeling last year, but didn't last because she was so terrified.
9. Madison is a Great American and just received that prestigious award for it. She earned it memorizing the 50 states/capitals, Declaration of Independence,and other stuff that I went crazy having to listen to her repeat non stop.
10. Madison loves to cook and is always helping me in the kitchen. She makes really good pancakes.
11. Finally, Maddie LOVES to karaoke and does a mean "Livin on a Prayer."

We love you monkey butt and you will always be our little girl.

To celebrate Maddie's birthday I took her to Disneyland for the day since her aunt and cousin were also going to be there. We had a BLAST and I look forward to going again with Jen and Pam. No men, no little kids, and we could pretty much do whatever we wanted. It was fantastic.

Mom, cousin Jen, Maddie, Aunt Pam

For Maddie's birthday we ate at Blue Bayou which is her favorite restaurant. They gave her a yummy cupcake.

We were all on California Screamin'. We all loved the ride except Jen who cried each time we went on it. Notice my right arm...it's stuck between the bars of the arm strap!

There's my Woody! I'm really obsessed with Woody. Really!

Me and my girl. Love her!!!

Maddie blowing out the candles on her cake. Notice Jaxon's head in the background watching Oswald..his favorite show.

That is one good looking and yummy cake. If I do say so myself!!

A Sick Lil' Girl

2009-03-09T15:27:00.001-07:00

Last week I had a sick little girl. A really sick little girl that I probably should have taken to the ER, but didn't.
Last Tuesday night Camryn climbed into our bed in the middle of the night burning with fever and coughing like she had the croup. When she coughs she pukes so Paul and I were jumping up all night taking her to the toilet. The next morning I took her temp which read 104. This is what it stayed for the entire day even with Motrin. She slept the entire day and would only wake up when I gave her medicine or forced her to drink some water.
That evening we took her temperature again and the thermometer read 106!! Paul and I were FREAKING out and wondering what to do. We stripped her clothes and put her in a lukewarm bath while I sent my mom to CVS to get a new thermometer to see what a different thermometer would read since I have never seen a temp go that high. That was our deciding factor as to whether or not we go to the ER.
Anna returned with the thermometer and it read at 105. 15 minutes later it had dropped to 102. Another 15 minutes it had dropped to 101 so the bath and Motrin were finally kicking in. We decided to keep her comfy and put her back to bed and watch her throughout the night. The last time I took her temp it read 99 so I felt pretty good about keeping her at home.
The next morning her cough was horrible and she sounded as if she had just ran a marathon, plus her 104 fever was back. Not wasting any time we left for the doctor who I knew would take care of her.
The doctor knew just by looking at her what her diagnosis was, but he wanted to take proper tests so Camryn had to have a chest x-ray and her oxygen levels were tested. The diagnosis was the beginning of pneumonia! What?! For a 4 year old?
Doc gave her a shot in the booty and the poor girl had to take a decongestant twice a day, Motrin when needed, antibiotic once a day, a steroid once a day, and use her breathing machine 4 times a day for an entire week. It was a crazy week! I've never seen Camryn sleep as much as she did nor eat and talk as little. Those who know my little bundle of energy will agree with me that this is very not normal. The medicine worked and now about 8 days of medicine and staying in the house she is finally better.
Many people asked me how she got so sick and with pneumonia, but I have no answer. Obviously, just a virus in the air that she picked up and it attacked her immune system. Yea, my little girl is better and things are getting back to normalcy. Thank goodness I was on track break so I could take care of her.

About 5 days after she was sick I thought it would be good for her to get out of the house and go for a car ride. She lasted ten minutes until she was fast asleep.

Camryn on her fun breathing machine 4 times a day. She didn't mind doing it since she knew it helped.

I hope everyone else isn't suffering with illness this time of year.

Disney Days

2009-03-08T12:32:00.000-07:00

Yes, our family made another quick trip to Disneyland for the weekend. Madison got to perform there so that was our main excuse for going, plus we got to leave Jaxon behind with Grandma so it was pleasantly different to not have to worry about strollers and diaper bags. Since I'm finding myself to be a Disney coniousseur, here are my top 10 tips for enjoying your stay at the happiest place on earth.

1. Buy a season's pass only if you plan on only going to Disneyland for vacation for an entire year. Our family loves to go to Disney and we will definitely get our money's worth, yet we won't be planning any other trips for a year except to go to Disneyland. Unless you have all the money in the world and then you can do what you want anyways.
2. Never go on a weekend! The best days to go to Disneyland no matter what time of the year is Tuesday-Thursday. Those days aren't half as croweded as the weekends and the lines aren't too bad. Try to never go on a holiday. Ugh...need I say more!

3. Don't splurge on a pricey hotel. How much time do you really spend in the hotel anyways? When I book a room I shop around different websites to find the best deal. I won't stay at a one star hotel, but have stayed at a two star hotel and wasn't hightl disappointed. You pay for what you get, but once again if you're only there to sleep then spending a lot of money for a hotel room is silly.

4. Plan to take your own food into the park. Try to have breakfast in the hotel and pack a lunch to eat while in the park. The food isn't that great and it's very expensive. Remember to pack lots of water since a bottle of water at Disneyland will cost you $2.75. I do splurge on popcorn and churros for the kiddos, plus we will either eat dinner at the park or leave and go to another restraunt.

5. Take a thin sweater or jacket for nightime since the weather does turn chilly at night. You can wrap it around your waist or if you don't have a stroller you can rent a locker for $11.00. Yikes!

6.If money isn't an issue I would experience either Goofy's Kitchen or Breakfast with Minnie at least once. This is character dining and the kids will love it. Both places are about $30 a person to eat so again...very pricey.

7. My favorite place to eat is called the Blue Bayou. This is the dark restraunt that you see when you first get on Pirate's of the Caribbean. I never knew it was there until we tried it last year and now we make sure to go there every single time. You need reservations and it's pricey, yet good steakhouse food. The atmosphere is also fun.

8. Only do the water rides in the afternoon since you will get wet! Splash mountain and the River Bend ride can leave you soaked so it's not a great idea to ride on those rides at night.

9. If you're nursing or mom of a baby check out the Baby Centers. They have quiet, private areas where you can feed, plus change the little ones. You can also heat up milk, food, and buy basic baby needs, if needed.

10. Disneyland will be croweded no matter what. Go with a happy disposition and you'll enjoy your day. People will get in your way, no one will move if you have a stroller, and some people are just dumb. All in all you can have a great time and enjoy the happiest place on earth.

Yes, I'm off to the Magical Kingdom AGAIN next week for Maddie's birthday. Just her and I which should be a blast. Look forward for more exciting Mickey photos.

I'm Happy!

2009-03-03T12:32:00.001-08:00

Today is a good day....sorta. I'm on vacation for almost three weeks which is always a plus.

I had the great idea to clean out closets since it's starting to get warm here and I want to see what kids can wear what before I go out and buy more. So each room in the house is a complete disaster since I have piles of clothing waiting for me to put in garbage bags.

Camryn is horribly sick with a 104 degree fever along with croup. When she coughs she pukes which makes for lovely messes. Trying to get her to take medicine is miserable unless I bribe her with something.

I'm trying to get at least 45 recipes together to submit for our ward cookbook so I have about fifteen cookbooks spread out and opened all over the family room floor that I have to type up eventually.

I have an endless amount of cords that no one knows what they go to so I've been trying to match ends with ends. Jaxon helps very well with that so cords are strung throughout the house.

I just realized that I sprayed my bathrooms down with cleaner two hours ago intending to clean them, yet never did.
I couldn't begin to tell you the countless messes I've cleaned up that Jaxon has made or the nice bruise on my butt thanks to the kitchen tongs that he squeezed me with.

It's 12:30 and I'm still in my pj's, haven't exercised, fed my kids lunch, and still need to look for the hamster that has been missing since Friday. Luckily, I just sent my mom to the grocery store and had her take the dog to the vet. Eventually, I hope to shower (yea!), pay some bills, take Anna to get a new cell phone, pick up Maddie and then drive her to dance, come home and fix dinner, maybe say hello to the Wii Fit, listen to the hubby's day, pick up Maddie from dance, play with the little ones, and probably help Maddie with homework.

How do you stay at home mothers do this day after day? I so give credit to you all! But, yes it is a good day!

Scroll Down....I do have an updated post!!!!!!!!!

2009-02-19T22:00:00.000-08:00

MIA

2009-01-30T20:41:00.000-08:00

Ok, so if I'm not having camera issues it's gotta be something else, right? Yup, now my computer won't read my memory card which means I can't download any photos from playing in the snow, Jaxon's bday, Disneyland (again), and fun stuff. So just to stay in the blogging world I thought I would complete this fun tag that my bffl sent me to do. Yea, don't pass out Carol...I'm finally doing it!!!

Things I Can Do
1) Spend $1000 in a blink of an eye
2) Teach a child how to read
3) Text my friends
4) Plan a trip out of the country in less than a week
5) Reproduce...yep, glad that's done!
6) Shoot an AR15 semi-automatic assault rifle
7) Show love to my kids

7 Things I Can't Do
1) Speak Spanish
2) Skydive or anything that has to do with free falling
3) put my hands in dirty soapy kitchen water
4) balance a checkbook
5) Steal or lie from a friend
6) Part with my perfume collection of 50+ bottles
7) Go to a cemetary at night

7 Things That Attracted Me To My Husband
1) His ringlets!
2) I knew he would always provide a home for me
3) His hairless chest (I know...tmi)
4) His stereo bass thumping from his truck 10 blocks away.
5) I knew we would create gorgeous kids
6) He worshiped the ground I walked on....and still does....haha
7) He always wore good smelling cologne.Mmmmm remember Polo, Drakar, and Ceasar's Man?

7 Things I Always Say
1) Daddy!!
2) Puddin'
3) No Way!
4) My new fav...."I will cut you!"
5) Umm...no
6) I was born at night, but not last night
7) Yea, think again

7 Things I Love To Eat
1) chips and guac
2) good juicy steak
3) McDonald's french fries
4) string cheese
5) white cake with any frosting
6) french toast with maple syrup
7) white custard ice cream with marshmellow topping

7 People I Tag(And ya don't get 7 months to do it in!) :0)
1) Brandi 2)LaDawn 3)Kim 4)Heidi K. 5)Cathy 6)Stephanie 7)Melissa

I'm Back!

2009-01-19T12:36:00.001-08:00

It's amazing to think that February is half way over. Here's a recap on what we've been doing since January 1, 2009.

Snow Day
Many people can't fathom the idea that Vegas gets so stinking hot in the summer, yet come winter time it can get cold. Okay, cold to me is in the 30-40's but who would think that you can escape to actual snow and snow ski in only 15 minutes? We went to Mt. Charleston which is literally a 15 minute drive up the mountain where people do go to ski and play in the snow. Camryn has never seen snow so we took the kids to play for a couple of hours. The girls loved it, yet Jaxon was not a happy camper. He wouldn't wear gloves so he was freezing and wanted to be held the entire time. He was happy sitting in the car drinking his hot cocoa. It was a great and fun family afternoon.

Birthdays
Paul and Jaxon's birthday both fall in the month of January and where do you think Paul wanted to spend his birthday? Yep, Disneyland again. Who can say no to that, but it was a long three days since two year olds at the park isn't my idea of fun. I won't bore you with more photos, but in all of the years and times that I've gone to Disneyland there was one character that I've never seen. Last year I even asked a worker at the park why this character was never out. Lo and behold guess who we see?

Yep, Piglet!! This was a first for me and I was so excited. Of course, the little things do excite me.

Jaxon's Birthday
My baby turned 2!! So sad for me since I'm realizing that I'll never have another child at this age again. For his 2 year old check up I have no idea how much he weighs or what his height is since he refused to cooperate and let the nurse or doctor check any of his vitals. He was sick with the flu during this visit, but I'm guessing he weighs about 22 lbs and is who knows how tall. Here's a funny thing about Jaxon and my mother would DIE if I shared. For some odd and strange reason Jaxon doesn't call my mother grandma or Nana. He calls her...I don't even know how to spell it...rhymes with bike only with a /d/ instead of a /b/. We have no clue what he is trying to say or why he is referring to her as this name, but it's pretty embarrassing especially in church when your two year old is screaming for dike. Gotta love him!
For his birthday we went to dinner at our favorite restaurant, opened presents, and ate cake and ice cream. My sister from UT was in town with two of her kids so we had a fun celebration for him.

I will admit I've been lazy with the camera. Not one photo during the month of February!! I know...shocking. I'll be better. Promise!!!

Introducing....Jaxon My OCD Child

2009-01-02T21:36:00.000-08:00

Those of you who know me well understand where I'm coming from when I call my almost two year old my "OCD" child. Jaxon is definitely a different child who is extremely unique and set in his ways in everything he does. Do I medically think he has OCD? No, he just has some weird characteristics that crack us up and make us go insane with his actions.

For example:

1. Jaxon has always used a pacifier, yet now only uses it when he sleeps. He must have two-three pacifiers with him at all times or he throws a fit and won't go to sleep.

2. When he wakes up in the morning we've done the same routine since he was one. He calls my name, "MA," and then when I go and get him he has to have his pacifiers, a blanket wrapped around his shoulders, and whatever stuffed animal he slept with for the night. Next, we go downstairs and he sits on the couch while I make him warmed up chocolate milk. Once its heated at exactly 45 seconds I have to hold him on the couch while we watch 45 minutes worth of Oswald and Wienie. The pacifiers, animal, blanket, and milk MUST be on his lap. This routine is every single morning. If Paul or my mom try to get him out of his bed he has a fit and refuses to get out. Also, don't forget any of his items or he'll freak.

3. He understands directions. When I tell him we are going somewhere and I happen to go a different way he starts crying and pointing to the opposite way that we should be going. One day he thought we were going to Costco, but I just drove through the parking lot and he had a fit because I was going the opposite way.

4. When he eats at the table he must have a fork and spoon to use. If he's having cereal...he needs a fork.

5. If the telephone is laying on the ground he makes sure that Paul or myself is holding it. If he goes off to play and then notices that we're not holding the phone he stops what he's doing and goes and gives us the phone to hold. This would be the same for the remote to the TV.

6. Bath time is a joy. You can put him in, but don't make him sit in the water. Yes, I do force this issue on occasion since I don't want a smelly butt boy, but he freaks out if you make him sit in the water. When he gets out he must have his towel wrapped around him and he must then lay down on the floor with a pillow and blanket to watch....yep, Oswald. He'll lay there for a good half hour watching TV.

7. Jaxon repeatedly has to call my name to find out where I'm at. Except when I'm at work he won't do it since he knows I'm gone, yet when I'm home if he can't see me then or even if he's playing on the floor and I'm on the couch he still calls my name over and over to make sure that I answer and I'm where I should be.

8. When I'm at the computer (of course, he's right there) he thinks its time to put on lotion. He'll go and get one of my many lotions to put on and he rubs it on him and then on me. Only when I'm on the computer.

9. He doesn't talk really well yet, but is building a good vocabulary. Food and drink= Num. Everything is num. If we're eating dinner....it's num. When the dog is eating....its num. When he wants a snack...he wants num.

10. When Jaxon has socks on he must have shoes on. He'll go and pick out his shoes and kick/scream until we put on his shoes.

Yes, yes I love this child! He's just got some very different characteristics that I'm not used to, but Jaxon is such a loving sweet little guy that I can handle anything "odd" that he does.

Christmas Fun

2008-12-29T16:47:00.000-08:00

Trying to wrap up a fun Christmas with photos is almost nearly impossible since so many fun things are done and too many pictures are taken, but I tried to document up some fun moments that I'll always remember. Every year I always try a new sugar cookie recipe since I never seem to have any luck, but this year I found a really good recipe that worked out pretty well. So well that we ended up making two batches on separate days. Of course, no one else in the family besides Camryn and I wanted to make cookies so guess who had to eat them all up! Yup, we ate them all too! Someone in our stake was dressing up as Santa for anyone to come by and take pictures. So I was totally into not standing in line at the mall or paying mall prices for a pic with Santa. It was a hilarious night since we had no idea whose house we were going to and were just hoping Santa would be there. It was raining and the house that we went to had nothing but mud in the driveway and leave it to Camryn to jump in the mud puddles and get water and yuck all over my car. Santa was so cute and loved holding all of the little kids. Of course, Jaxon freaked out and wouldn't go near him unless I was holding him. Madison was finally able to dance at her Christmas dance recital which was originally canceled due to the snow. It turned out really cute and she did a pretty good job. She had to dance in 11 dance numbers! On Christmas Eve we always go out to a different restaurant with my in laws to eat and then look at Christmas lights with finally exchanging gifts and opening jammies. I'm a loser and took no pictures of my kids in their pj's and even forget to label Jaxon's present to open. Christmas day was a blast with opening gifts and just enjoying the day. Jaxon got a new bike and since he's up by 5 every morning when we walked downstairs he kept saying "ride, ride." The house was a mess and stayed a mess until the next day. We all just had fun putting things together, eating, sleeping, and watching movies. Since it was raining on Christmas day we had to wait until the next day for Camryn to ride her new scooter and Jaxon to ride his new bike. Camryn loves her scooter, yet notice Jaxon's bike not being touched. For some reason he wouldn't go near it outside and only wanted to ride Camryn's old scooter.

Merry Christmas from the Watkins Family

2008-12-23T12:40:00.000-08:00

I'm a loser and procrastinated doing a holiday card this year. It took us 14 years to finally get a family photo and I waste time and not send anything out so I'm stuck sharing my family fun on my blog. Sorry! Here's a quick rundown of what we've been up to this year:

Paul has been busy with work. Fortunately for us his electrical company hasn't suffered due to the Vegas economy. Business has actually increased for him which is a huge blessing. He was able to go bear hunting this year and did a couple of deer hunts. Unfortunately, he didn't draw a deer tag for himself so he was stuck taking Tanner for his yearly hunt. How sad! I constantly tease him that he's pushing "40" since he will be 38 in January. Old age only makes you better, right? We love our dad and are so grateful for the provider, husband, dad, and lover of Disneyland that he is.

Kris is still teaching 4Th grade and absolutely loves her job. It's very close to home and she works with an awesome group of other teachers and has fantastic students. Who could complain about only working 180 days of the year? She's starting the grumbling process about possibly starting back to school in January, but she's still deciding. Kris keeps busy with work, running kids places, shopping, and just hanging out with the family.

Tanner is 15 and a sophomore in high school. Our boy has really blossomed into a fine young man. His dad promised him a car if he keeps his grades up and that's a goal he is taking seriously. He also enjoys going hunting with his dad, but didn't get a deer either this year. Tanner participates in scouts and loves anything that has to do with an Xbox. He is a good brother, except for the normal constant teasing of his sisters. We love him!

Madison is 10 and is in 5th grade. She is professionally trained in dance for more than 11 hours a week which is taking a toll on her, the entire family, and mom's checkbook! She loves it and gets to perform for the community many times a year. In February she will get to dance at Disneyland again. She also had the opportunity to dance with famous dancers at a convention here in town. Madison is a big help to us and is always entertaining her younger siblings. She will be receiving the Great American Award soon and enjoys participating in activity days with church.

Camryn is my precocious, daring, and hilarious 4 year old. If you're a reader of my blog you've heard the many stories of what Camryn has done or said. She is a character and lightens our day with her sweet demeanor. Camryn loves going to preschool and is gearing up for kindergarten next year. Camryn loves the computer and playing with her stuffed animals. Such a sweetie pie.

Jaxon will be 2 this coming January. What a sweet finale he is to our family! He makes us all laugh with his OCD tendencies and loves going to the park and playing outside. He's obsessed with Oswald the octopus and Weenie the dog...which is one of his favorite shows. When it's on he doesn't move. We had a scary moment with him in November when he got his finger stuck in the treadmill and tore off most of the skin on his thumb. He barely missed a tendon, but his fingers have healed very well. Jaxon is such a good lil' guy and loves to be loved.

I think this year was the traveling year since it seemed we were on the go more so than usual. We took a family cruise to the Mexican Riviera that consisted of Puerta Vallarta, Cabo San Lucas, and Mazatlan, three trips to Disneyland, a parents trip to Cancun, Mexico,and a dancing trip to Laughlin, Nevada. I'm glad that our passports were put to good use in 2008!

Our family has been extremely blessed this year and are so grateful for the good health and the many blessings that have been bestowed upon us. I'm so fortunate to have a great family, great friends, and a wonderful life.

Merry Christmas to All and Have a Happy New Year

Snow...in Vegas?!

2008-12-21T21:20:00.001-08:00

Yes, for those of you who live in a hole, VEGAS got snow. Not just a little layer on the ground, but actual flurries floating to the ground and sticking. Snow was falling on my way to work and not thinking to properly I wore high heel sandals to work, plus had morning duty outside in the snow. My feet froze and by the time I was back in my warm room I had to take off my shoes and walk around barefoot just to get the circulation going again.

Of course my principal thought it was be an "educational experience" for our students to go and play in the snow. Yea, loads of fun until I have kids crying that their fingers are going to fall off because they are so cold and I'm standing in the snow freezing, hence the shoes, but I did get some fun pictures of my little kiddos.

By evening time the snow was falling pretty good and lucky for me I had to drive across town in it so Madison could perform in a dance recital. It was so beautiful watching the snow fall, but my reverie was broken when the recital was canceled as soon as we made it across town. ;( and yes, I'm a loser for not taking more pictures of the snow coming down, but it was dark and cold!

What wonderful memories my kids will have of wearing our pj's, sitting by the fire, drinking hot cocoas and watching the snow fall outside the window. It was a perfect ending to a long, but exhilarating day. So yes, I'm a bit jealous of those of you who get endless amounts of snow during the winter. I love my heat, but what fun it was to experience the snow. I'm sure other Vegas folk would have to agree.

Cheap Times

2008-12-11T19:42:00.001-08:00

Want a cheap activity to do with your kids? Go for a walk at night around the neighborhood! Yep, that was our Friday night family fun last week. At least for Camryn, Maddie, and myself. Jaxon freaked out when I tried to put on his jacket so his dad happened to come home just as we were ready to leave so he stayed behind with him. Camryn enjoyed it so that she asks me daily to go walking to see the lights. Have you noticed that every picture I take of her she smiles and either looks to the left or right? Odd one. And yes, her choice of colors are rockin'!

Madison's dance group performed at Cowboy Christmas this past Saturday. Why they call it that...I don't know. It was held at Floyd Lamb Park in North Vegas and was advertised as a fun, get out of the house, jaunt for kids. They had bounce houses, a petting zoo, Santa, an arts and craft table, and even hayrides. All free! Camryn didn't go so it didn't seem fair to stay and enjoy the fun after Madison was done dancing (why lie...the lines were too long and dealing with an almost two year old who's scared of everything is not pleasant.) But, the highlight of the day had to come when I met an actual celebrity. OK, so a Las Vegas celebrity. Don't be jealous....

Yes, it was probably the "cheapest" weekend I've ever had and so much fun. And yes, that's Mayor Oscar Goodman for those of you who have no idea why this thrills me so!

Top Ten Loves

2008-12-02T21:42:00.000-08:00

My list of loves for the week since my camera remained on the counter throughout my time off:

1. I love that I was able to go back to work. No, I really do love my job as a teacher and so enjoy my class of 4th graders and the people I work with. I do enjoy staying at home (who doesn't) but I know what my commitments are and teaching is one of them.

2. I love Facebook! This is a great website for finding long lost friends from high school, old wards, or prior work locations. It's a blast catching up on what other people are doing in their lives so I would highly recommend it.

3. I love the fact that my husband enjoys cooking and prepared a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner for us. It was just our little family this year and it was a great holiday. I shopped for everything he needed, was there for assistance, cooked a pie, and set the table. That's about it since he did everything else. Thanks Paul!

4. Black Friday is my LIFE! I'm up on Thanksgiving morning by 5 so I can get the paper and start going thru my ads to see what stores I'm going to first. My list is made and the alarm is set for 3:30 AM. This year I only went to two stores due to Paul having to work and still had a great time. I love the rush!

5. I love that Camryn "found" my diamond necklace on the floor that had been missing for over a month.

6. I love that I loved the "cheesy" Twilight movie. But, could they take some of the makeup off of Carlisle and make Jasper not act like he has something up his butt?

7. I love knowing that I'm loved unconditionally.

8. I love wrapping gifts, putting them under the Christmas tree and then having to re wrap them thanks to Jaxon who unwraps them for me.

9. I love the humor of Camryn who ran in the house screaming and crying about snakes being all over the ground when it rained. Of course, I didn't go and check to see, but they were in fact earthworms wiggling all over the ground. Now she won't go outside to play.

10. Finally, I love that one of my 4th graders had to inform me that yes, boy hamsters do have balls, just like humans. Did you know that?

I love my life!!!!!!!

A Good Laugh

2008-12-02T21:04:00.000-08:00

I'm not a fan of Beyonce or SNL, but do enjoy Justin Timberlake so I was definitely wanting to check out their skit a couple of weeks ago that they performed on SNL. I almost wet my pants from laughing so hard and still crack up every time I watch it. I hope the link continues to work. If not, try to find it on YouTube since it will make you smile!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2I121W5AlA

Disney Fun

2008-11-23T21:02:00.001-08:00

Word of advice. Always plan to go to Disneyland during the week if you are contemplating going. We went on a Wednesday and Thursday which was fabulous and then come Friday and it was horrible! Of course, it was the first day of the Holiday season at Disneyland, but you'd think that by 10:00 at night people would start going home and putting little kids to bed. Nope, everyone was still on a roll and long lines for rides were still in effect that late at night.

Anyhoo...we had a wonderful time and can't wait to go back soon. Paul is obsessed with Disneyland and would rather go there on vacation than a nice tropical place. (I'm missing Cancun!) You couldn't tell since he's so photogenic in his pictures. We are there when the park opens and we stay until it closes. Must be a bit of OCD for him. Wednesday there were no lines, no crowds, and wonderful weather. It was a perfect day with Mickey and Minnie. Yes, I'm a bit obsessive with wanting to see all of the characters. I never did find Pluto...next time.

It's one of our family traditions that we always ride Pirates of the Caribbean first to start off our adventure, but what a mistake that turned out to be. Jaxon freaked and his days were pretty much spent crying and upset with every ride that we got onto. Of course, it didn't help that his two year old molars were coming in so he was a grouchy and snotty lil' thing, but everything scared him...even the tram that you have to take to get to the park. I have very little pictures of him laughing and having a good time. There were some moments, but not a lot. The following photos show how his days were spent at the happiest place on earth.

Camryn is my daredevil and rode everything that she was tall enough for, except for Tower of Terror. We were getting ready to go on the ride and she had a meltdown and wouldn't go on it. Everything else she went on. It was such a fun trip and I've had to hear from Camryn at least ten times a day that she misses Disneyland and wants to go back. I'm with her since I love that place and look forward to going again. Enjoy the random photos.

Good Times

2008-11-15T15:46:00.000-08:00

My little girl is growing up. The other day I was looking at old home movies (after realizing that I have nothing video taped of Jaxon except for the day of his birth) and noticing the many changes that Madison has made throughout the years. It's sad when you stand back and notice how time does go by and really see the changes that are occurring. She is truly blossoming into a beautiful girl.
She decided that she wanted her hair cut off and I went along and let her do it. I was so pleased with the result. She truly looks like a little lady.
We also had family photos done at Floyd Lamb Park and there happened to be three trees that actually had true fall colors! I was so excited and actually felt like a photographer noticing the fall foliage.

Can't wait to see the family photos since it seemed to be a nightmare with Camryn having a cold and shoe issues, but I'm glad we did it since our last family photo was....ok...I'm bad....13 years ago!!! We did see an albino peacock which was pretty exciting and a pack of wild geese chased the kids around! Good times.

Maddie's Fun

2008-11-10T10:21:00.000-08:00

My weekend was spent driving back and forth to the Hilton Hotel where Madison participated at a dance convention called Pulse. Many stars from the show So You Think You Can Dance were there who taught kids different types of dances for the entire weekend. The only names I recognized were Cris Judd and Mia Michaels. She had a blast and because it was a hefty fee for her to attend I had mentioned to Paul that I hoped she was enjoying it because she wasn't doing it again. Late Sunday night she thanked Paul and I for letting her go and telling us it was the best weekend of her entire life. Geez thanks, what about all of our fun trips and all of the other many fun things we've done as a family? And you choose this as your "best weekend!" The life of a dancer, I guess.

Some members of her dance group that were able to attend the convention.

First Major Owie for Jaxon

2008-11-06T10:47:00.000-08:00

No Mom of the Year award for me. In our bedroom we have a treadmill that my kids are infatuated with and are continually turning it on while watching their toys slide down the treadmill like a conveyor belt. Of course when I see this happening it's stopped, they're reprimanded, and they do something else yet today I had just got done telling Camryn to turn off the machine and was emptying trash cans when I heard Jaxon screaming. To my horror he had his fingers caught at the bottom of the treadmill while it was moving. In my panic I yanked his fingers out since they were being eaten by the belt (kinda reminded me of feet getting stuck on escalators)when I should have turned off the treadmill first. I about puked with what I saw and instantly knew we were headed to the ER. Go ahead....Take a look...

Yes, the white is bone that you see from skin being scraped off. I ended up taking him to my family doctor since I knew he had an x-ray machine and I was worried that he had broken some of his fingers since they swelled up so quick. His thumb had major damage along with the inside of his index and middle finger which looked like a big chunk of finger was missing. I wanted to hurl and felt so bad for my little guy.

Luckily, nothing was broken but a special mesh (second skin) had to be placed on all fingers and then bandaged very tightly for the skin to heal. He came pretty close to rupturing a tendon and has to be watched carefully this weekend for infection or circulation problems. Then Monday we go back to the Dr. to change the dressings and make sure that the wounds are healing. He's good now and we're keeping him drugged with Motrin for pain. Poor baby.

The good news is that I'm on track break until Dec. 1!!! Yea me!

Halloween Fun

2008-11-02T20:25:00.001-08:00

Halloween was a fun and exciting evening. I didn't work Friday and had all of these fun things planned to do with the kiddos, but I wasn't feeling too great all day. Nothing that a nap and some Advil didn't fix. Hurray for Nevada Day!

I've tried to put Jaxon's Spiderman costume on three separate occasions, but he wouldn't go for it. Luckily, he relented on Halloween and didn't have a melt down until he realized the costume wasn't coming off but then he was fine.

We were invited to a fun Halloween party where they had a haunted house and a bounce house set up for the little ones. Jaxon freaked when he saw the scary people and stayed glued to his dad. After some munchies we then went trick or treating which is always humorous since one of my kids always seems to trip and fall. This year it was Jaxon and Camryn who biffed it twice and sent their candy flying.

Jaxon LOVED going to the houses and even got over his nervousness of the scary costumes and just followed the large group of kids and waited his turn for candy. Camryn was Camryn. She informed everyone that she was a "Happy Bee" and not a bumble bee. Who knows why.

Later we went back to our neighborhood and went to a few houses scrounging for candy...I mean trick or treating. The kids had a great time, yet I'm always glad when the holiday is over and back to normalcy for a bit.

Weekend Fun

2008-10-26T20:33:00.000-07:00

It's been a fun and eventful weekend. Friday night was my schools Halloween Howl which consisted of food, a haunted house, and carnival. It was a long day since I started work at 8 AM and finally left work at 9:30 PM that evening! The evening was a blast and the kids had fun. We had an awesome turnout and the best part of it is that our class auction basket won $160 which goes directly to me and my classroom. I ran a booth with another teacher, although many of my awesome parents took half hour shifts to relieve me, so I was able to walk around with the kiddos, play some of the fun games, pet the K-9 dog, and horse, and then treat myself to a yummy Retro Bakery cupcake...OK maybe two.

Saturday morning Madison had to perform at Centennial Hills Day at the Butterfly Park. Kids were able to wear their costumes and Jaxon flat out REFUSED to put his cute Spider man costume on. Camryn looked cute in her bumble bee costume. Madison had to perform at 12 PM and the temperature had to be about 90 degrees. We were roasting! Poor Camryn was wearing all black, I felt so bad but I kept promising her that we were going to the carnival as soon as Maddie was done dancing. Madison's group did really well and I was video taping so I don't have any pictures. By the time we got Madison, loaded chairs and bags into the car, and then walked up and down the hill to the park area...the event closed. Yep, the whole darn community event ended at 1:00 and we'd just missed it. Melt down time for the kiddos occurred until they saw the fun park. We played for a little bit but it was so dang hot that we didn't stay long. We all actually got sunburned!

**Photos of mom,dad,Jaxon, and Madison were taken by Camryn...my budding photographer**

Little One's

2008-10-20T22:24:00.000-07:00

Funny what happens to your camera when it's left laying around. Camryn got a hold of my camera and these are the best of 100 photos that she took of herself. Love the mouth ones!

Jaxon insists on wearing sunglasses when he goes to bed and loves to wear my bra and heels. Paul is slightly worried!!!

Camryn had her very first princess party and she was so excited for the big day to arrive. She had her pretty party dress, her hair curled, and pretty pink lipstick for the big day. She had a great time and didn't want to come home.

Here is Jaxon when he found out he wasn't going to the party with Camryn. Poor guy!

On our Las Vegas "cold snap" when the temperatures were around 50 degrees where would I find my two little darlings but playing in the nice, cold tap water. Little stinker Jaxon knew to hold the hose out toward anyone who came near him so I got drenched trying to turn off the water. But who can resist that cute lil' face!!

Update

2008-10-14T17:26:00.001-07:00

Hubby is home and doing good. His throat is sore and he's pretty hoarse, but everything went well. Thanks again for the prayers and well wishes!

About My Day

2008-10-13T10:02:00.000-07:00

Hurray for the little things that can turn your days upside down. For those of you who heard,my hubby had a minor surgery late Sunday night. At dinner the previous Saturday he started choking on a piece of meat which then became lodged in his esophagus. He happened to be in Wells, NV deer hunting so when he got home we quickly went to the ER due to him puking every 15 minutes and not being able to even swallow his own saliva (gross!) The doctors gave him medicine to relax the muscles in his throat to see if whatever was lodged would come out. It didn't so he had the emergency procedure Sunday evening at 9:30. Poor baby had to be put to sleep and then his throat was roto rootered to get the nice, piece of prime rib out. Now, he's still in the hospital due to having a fever and a possible infection. But, he's doing much better than before so thanks for the prayers and well wishes.
That was my Sunday and how was your day?

Still in a Picture Funk

2008-10-02T06:15:00.000-07:00

Seriously... I'm lazy. Whenever I have the time to download some photos my camera is downstairs and I'm just too lazy to run down to get it. So for now I'll list my favorite things from the past week.

1. Retro Bakery. Ok, so not a part of my diet, but so so good. I had a lemon cupcake with pink lemonade frosting. Yummy! Located at Durango and Deer Springs.

2. Juicy Couture perfume. Smells so good and now one of my favs. Thanks sis for the gift!

3. Elephant Bar. Reminds me of Rainforest Cafe, yet more leopard and tiger looking decor. A really fun place for the fam, but kinda pricey. Located at the District in Green Valley.

4. Juice It Up. Also not part of the diet, but the one I like is only 220 calories a serving and I've really cut down and only get it once a week now. Thursday is $3 day so that's the day to go. Located on the corner of Craig and Jones.

5. LOVE Halloween! One of my favorite holidays and always one that I decorate the most for, besides Christmas. Does that make me evil?

6. The realization that track break is in less than 4 weeks! Yahoo!!

Life is Good

2008-09-20T20:52:00.001-07:00

Sorry...Blog and picture funk. Whenever I see that I need to snap a photo either my camera is upstairs and I'm downstairs or vice versa so that's my reason for not posting. I'll try and do better. Life is good, I can't complain.

Camryn loves loves the dinosaur park at Aliante and due to the heat we haven't ventured out there, but Sat. morning was a gorgeous day so we headed on out to feed the ducks and play at the park. There are now geese at the park who actually eat your bread! The last time I'd taken the kids to feed the ducks they were snobs and wouldn't eat the bread! This time they loved it.

The Little Things that Make Me Happy!

2008-09-05T21:42:00.000-07:00

So for my birthday I wanted a new camera due to my camera needing new batteries every single weekend and it always seemed to die at the worst moment. Paul and I went looking for a new one last weekend and after talking to the salesman about my camera I was informed that the batteries that came with the camera, which I tossed away, were rechargeable! Instead of spending a fortune on a new camera I bought new rechargeable batteries and a charge station so I can now take pictures of my kiddos. Yea me!

It's been a great week. The highlight came when instead of buying a new camera we splurged and bought a new bed. Ours was pitiful and soo uncomfortable and now sleeping on a new, nice one it amazes me that I waited so many years to get a comfy bed.

Camryn also started preschool this week which she absolutely loves. This is her second year with Robyn's Nest and is always excited to go. I wasn't there to see her off, but Madison (or Maddie as she now wants to be called) took this glorious picture of her on her first day. Yes, Jaxon does have his fingers in his nose.

Madison also had her open house at Heckethorn which was fun to go to. She has an awesome teacher who is so respected by her students. As a teacher myself that is an awesome quality to have.

Finally, my boys. Jaxon LOVES Tanner and when he's not glued to my hip he is always following around his Bubba. Too cute.

Fly Bye Week

2008-08-25T17:26:00.000-07:00

It's been a crazy on the go week so let me try and catch up.

Here's Jaxon the helper. He thinks he's putting in soap for the dishwasher, yet the container is empty. He then closes the door as if it's cleaning. I'm teaching him early!

Last Wednesday I returned back to work. Big class of 34 fourth graders this year with a set of triplets and a set of twins. All identical! I love my job and am actually looking forward to a new school year.

Paul took Tanner and Madison camping over the weekend which was Madison's first time shooting a rifle. Of course, she loved it and she caught the most fish out of everybody!

My nephew had his mission farewell last Sunday and he will be departing for the MTC this coming Wednesday to prepare for Mexico. Our first family photo in forever. Loving you in the suit babe!

Isn't she so angelic looking? This is Camryn when she was two and I love this picture. She looks so calm.

I work with the best girls in the world. To relive a bit of stress we took it upon ourselves to have a girls night out which was a blast. Thanks again to Viva's for making the night so much fun. The hats are courtesy of a birthday party we crashed of unknown people.

Tanner returned from scout camp which was relocated due to the flooding in Havasupi. He came home burnt to a crisp and chaffing burns on his chest region (yes, nipples) due to the boogie board rubbing his skin. It was nice to have a good laugh at my Mr. know it all fifteen year old.

Madison and Tanner both started school on Monday. Madison is in 5Th grade at Heckethorn and Tanner is a sophomore at Shadow. It's amazing how time has flown by. Camryn also had her preschool open house which she is extremely excited to start. Missuss Robyn is Camryn's favorite person and she is so looking forward to starting again.

Funny for the week. I bought Jaxon a new stroller and tried to put it together myself, but I couldn't get the wheels on just right. It was Paul's job before he went camping to fix the stroller which I assumed he did. Walking into the mall on Saturday with Jaxon in his new stroller imagine my surprise when the wheel rolled off right as I was crossing the street at the front entrance!

Second funny. Jaxon is very apprehensive around people he doesn't see on a daily basis. My poor father has been coming over every single week since he was born to see him, but Jaxon is terrified of him and will never go to him. Now when my father comes over he plays "dead" by closing his eyes and not moving until my dad leaves. The photos show what he looks like when my dad is over. I laugh while my dad cries. Such a funny kid!

Kudos for the Week

2008-08-16T21:00:00.001-07:00

I have many thanks to give out this week. Please enjoy my sarcasm.

1. Thanks to my trusty Kodak camera that died for the millionth time this week. Now I know what I am wanting (getting) for my next birthday.

2. Thanks to CCSD for giving me such a nice, long, extended summer break that lasted seven days.

3. Thanks to Camryn for deciding that dancing isn't for her (she'd rather be a cooker) and saving me money each month. I will miss that leotard though.

4. Thank you to Stephenie Meyer for NOT making Breaking Dawn any longer than it already was. It was hard enough trying to finish this boring book. Sorry fans!

5. Thank you to Viva Zapatas that made my son's 15 year old birthday so fun and festive. The heartburn from all the guac was soooo worth it.

6. Thank you to Jaxon for letting mom sleep in until 7am on Wednesday and not waking her up every morning at 6am yelling, "maaaaaa."

7. Thank you to those cheesy reality shows and the Olympics that have kept my mind turning into jello and giving me a breather after the house is quiet.

8. Huge thank you to my fellow bloggers who directed me in becoming a wiser shopper. I'm proud to say that with all of my savings, making a list, and keeping to it I only spent $99.16 at the grocery store for the week. So much better compared to the $200+ that is usually spent on a Saturday morning.

7. Finally, I give thanks for a marvelous week off just enjoying my kids, eating, swimming in the pool, eating some more, and playing. No sarcasm at all.

My Dancers

2008-08-08T19:01:00.000-07:00

1. Two girls now taking dance....wonderful.
2. Being the devoted parent and attending all competitions and conventions...devoted.
3. Watching my 4 year old do spins and toe stretches on her first day...starstruck.
4. Spending money on costumes, outfits, shoes, tuition, and makeup...expensive.
5. Driving to and from the dance studio at least twice a day...endurance.

6. Seeing Camryn in her leotard and tights....PRICELESS!!!!

Joy in the Garden

2008-07-30T16:02:00.001-07:00

When it rains...it pours. Just in the past 7 days are the following things that occurred in my household:

*washing machine won't spin ($55 with home warranty or $500 for a new one)
*deep freezer won't freeze (not under warranty so $200 to fix)
*water heater is leaking ($500 for home warranty to fix, $435 for Paul to do)
*pool heater doesn't heat ( $1500 for a new one or $1000 to be fixed)

Then to top it off...
*Camryn needs about $800 worth of dental work done. (Take the kiddies off the bottles early!)
*My camera broke, school clothes to buy, and Christmas is around the corner. Sometimes you feel if it's not one thing it's something else.

Luckily, the washing machine was fixed with the home warranty, I reset the deep freezer (after all of the food thawed out of course) and now it works fine, Paul ended up installing the new water heater (Did you know that in NV you have to have a permit, earthquake straps, and etc. in order to put in a water heater?), and all of the other things can wait for when the money comes down from the trees. All in all, owning a home can be stressful, but I always try and look at the bright side of things. I have my life, my health, and my kids. Oh yea and the hubby ;o)

Here's what happenes when you're trying to post on the blog. Yes, that's Jaxon covered in baby powder as is my bathroom and all of my things. That's what I get for not paying attention, but technically it is Pauls fault for leaving the powder out. Oh well...such is life!

We're Babysitting!

2008-07-20T11:29:00.000-07:00

A teacher I work with needed a babysitter for her two hamsters and guinea pig. Of course, I volunteered even though I have never touched one of these things in my life. They came home with me for the weekend and everyone is loving the little things. At first Jaxon was freaked out everytime the guinea pig looked at him, but now he loves her. Making me think I might have to get one. Poor Paul!

Yes, I Do Have Four Kids!

2008-07-15T21:34:00.000-07:00

I was told by one of my peeps that I never show my two older kids and only focus on the two younger ones so I'll try and do better by posting more of all. Happy Cyndi? ;o)

The joys of having a teenager. May everyone be so blessed to endure this lovely time! Actually Tanner is quite the passive child who has never really given his family much grief. At least not yet or what I haven't seen or heard. Here's a brief bio of my older boy.

Tanner (Paul as he chooses to be called now) was born August 13, 1993 at a whopping 9lbs. and 1 oz. He was a breached baby so he was born by cesarean. Tanner was always very imaginative as a child and kept himself busy by playing with his imaginary friends. At one time he was the proud owner of 25 rabbits. We didn't know that once a rabbit gives birth they mate immediately. Tanner loves to go camping with his family and has been to Disneyland every year of his life. (Sad, I know).

When Madison was born he didn't want to go to the hospital to see mom or his new sister, but wanted to ride the roaster coaster (roller coaster). When we brought Madison home he ran away ...only to the neighbors and only for 15 minutes. He was a big help with his sister and was very protective of her. When his other siblings came along he had great practice of being a big brother. He's always been a baby lover and is the first to want to hold and cuddle the new babies.

Tanner just finished his freshman year at Shadow Ridge and loves high school. He has attended the following schools: Saville MS, Guy ES, McWilliams ES, and Gilbert ES. He also attends early morning seminary. When Tanner started first grade he went to a magnet school and got to ride the bus. On the first day of school the bus didn't drop him off and no one knew where he was. Finally, we found out that he was on a bus just the wrong one and he was dropped off at 7 pm. He never rode the bus again.

Tanner loves the computer, all of his electronic mumbo jumbo things, swimming, riding his bike, going camping, hunting with his dad, paintball, watching movies, and hanging out with his family and friends. He enjoys scouts and is looking forward to going to scout camp this summer.

He's now on an exercise kick and has been weight training at school and working out at home. He's hit a growth spurt and is now tall, thin, and good looking. He gets to go and work with his dad this summer and earn some extra money. He's very excited to have his own cash.

Did you know--Tanner has had 4 broken arms, a broken thumb, and a broken toe? Not from me of course!!!

Tanner is a great kid who is a huge helper in our household of younger siblings. I would love to see him have more patience with his sisters, but he does okay. We love the kid dearly and couldn't imagine life without him.

Let Freedom Ring!

2008-07-05T15:09:00.000-07:00

Our Independence day turned out great! We swam most of the day playing water volleyball and just enjoying the day. We had a great BBQ with Aunt Pam and Uncle Ray. BBQ ribs, homemade mac n' chees, garlic bread, potatoe salad, and our favorite fruit slush wedding drink. To top it off we then ate a very sweet flag cake. Due to all of the rich food we ate all of us were extremely bloated and miserable the rest of the night, therefore calling it an early night by 9:30.

The fireworks the kids loved. Camryn was a little hesitant about the noise and the sparklers, but dad was able to get her to do one. Jaxon was hilarious! He would stand there and watch as the fireworks went off and laugh hysterically, clapping his hands while bending down with laughter. We were cracking up just watching him! Once some of the fireworks started making loud noises he'd quickly find a lap to climb up on and then just watch. All in all it was a great day being with family, being thankful for what I have, and being proud to call myself an American. Happy Indepenedence day everybody!

Cancun

2008-07-02T16:23:00.000-07:00

Make a Smilebox slideshow

That's Me!!!

2008-06-23T19:24:00.000-07:00

Yep, that's my toes...covered with sand....lying on the beach.....watching the waves crash from the Caribbean Sea....no kids...awwww the life!!!

I'm a little spoiled. Hubby surprised me by taking me to Cancun for our anniversary. We were gone for four days and had such a great time. The trip getting there and back took us over 12 hours each way, but all in all it was wonderful to relax, chill, and enjoy ourselves without worrying about a thing. Once I get my photos back from the underwater camera I'll post our fun getaway.

Funnies for the Week

2008-06-12T19:39:00.000-07:00

I don't garden. Never have and never will, yet my mom insisted on letting Camryn plant some pumpkin seeds in a little patch of dirt off of our lawn in the backyard. She planted the seeds only 3 weeks ago and look at the size of them! Camryn is the only one that's been watering them and she has been so excited about them that maybe I can be a gardner. As Camryn would say...I'm a good pumpkin pie grower, huh momma?

Jaxon is obsessed with shoes. When he gets dressed in the morning he goes and gets whatver pair of shoes he can find so he can wear them. He then backs himself up to me so I know to put on his shoes. When we have visitors over he leans down to inspect their shoes. When dad comes home it's his job to help take off his boots and put them where they go. The other day he had a meltdown becasue he wanted to put on a doll shoe and couldn't understand why they wouldn't go on. At 7 AM he has his shoes on for the day. He had another haircut this weekend and is very blond!

Camping.... Vegas style! The girls have been wanting to make smores and have a campout, but dad realized that the air mattress had been thrown in the trash and the tent was buried behind other stuff so our big camp out for the summer was swimming all day and making smores using a BBQ grill. They were yummy!!

Just in Case You Didn't See

2008-06-11T22:58:00.000-07:00

This has been out for awhile, but gives you something to thing about...Why a red pawn behind the white one? hmmmmm.

What a Week!!!

2008-06-05T21:26:00.000-07:00

WOW! The week has flown by with lots of fun and excitement. I'll backtrack a bit. Last Saturday I drove up to Laughlin with Madison and my sis-n-law Pam for a dance competition that Madison had to perform in. Right before I got to Searchlight Pam had just got done telling me to not speed because if you get a ticket in Searchlight you have to go there to pay it. Next thing I know coming toward me was Metro with his lights flashing. Yep, it was for me and he clocked me going 84 in a 60 MPH. I was stressed and poor Maddie was scared to death. Imagine my joy when I got off with a warning! I told him he was an awesome man and went on my way...just much slower. It was fun to have a girls night out. We ate dinner at an awesome steakhouse, went shopping at a Bath and Body Works Outlet, and then saw the movie Baby Mama which was hilarious. Of course I take my crappy camera that has good batteries this time, but I left my disk at home. Madison did awesome! Her group took first place in both performances.

My sister, two of her kids, and her grandson Cole came down for the week. We always have such a good time and are pretty exhausted when they leave. We took the kids to see the dolphins and white tigers at the Mirage. Of course the tigers were sleeping and all the dolphins did was poop so it wasn't that exciting. Plus, it was hot and Camryn had a nice meltdown so we ended that day with a nice dip in the pool at my house.
We also stayed one night at the Mirage hotel. Of course the day we go to swim is the day that it rained so our swimming was cut short. The kids still enjoyed it and the room was very very nice.

Camryn loved her cousin Cole. His nickname is "Cole Train" and Camryn calls him "Cole choo choo train." Too cute! Jaxon was loving him also.

Lastly, I'd heard about this new restaurant called "Dick's Last Resort" at the Excalibur hotel and if you don't know anything about it you'd probably be offended the first time you go. The waiters are actually rude and mean to the customers. If you want napkins or water they pretty much tell you to get it yourself. It's all in good humor, but some things that were said were a little inappropriate for all of the kids to hear and even the adults. They don't give you menus...you have to read the big menu posted on the wall and if you order water the waiter brings you a pitcher of water and some plastic cups for you to pour yourself. The older kids thought it was hilarious and were delighted with the titles of the food on the menu such as "Bonerz" which were rib lets or the "Big A** Burger" or the "Dolly Parton" which was two chicken breasts. Fun place, but be prepared for rudeness and don't take your mother!

The week was a blast and I was so sad to see my sis and her family leave. I love y'all lots and lots. Even if you are David Archuelletta fans!!!

Party Time

2008-05-30T13:01:00.001-07:00

To cap off the ending of preschool for Camryn, her teacher had a pool party with all of her school friends and family. It was so much fun to see Camryn interact with her friends and how excited she was to know that she was going to see her teacher at a pool. Even though it was a pool party and we swam, her teacher still had activities planned for all of the 3 and 4 year olds to do like eating, painting their own hats, going on a scavenger hunt, and breaking a pinata. Mrs. Robyn is awesome and lucky me I get the whole summer of listening to Camryn ask, "When are we going to cool to see Missus Robyns?"

New Changes...Coming soon!

2008-05-26T15:37:00.000-07:00

What crazy weather we are having in Vegas. Swimming in the pool last weekend and bundled up in warm clothes the next. Posted are some fun pics of playing in the pool and watching Jaxon eat his first ice cream cone. Grandma gives him the wonderful treat and lets mom be the one to clean up the mess. Check out the cool purple house slippers. They belong to Camryn and Jaxon insisted on wearing them all day on Sunday.

Tag...I'm It

2008-05-15T20:51:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Melissa I've now been officially tagged. I've never done one of these on the hubby so here it goes.

1. What is his name? Paul Freston Watkins (he HATES his middle name. Notice none of our boys were stuck with that hideous name.)

2. Who eats more? Right now him. He can eat anything and will never gain a pound. The man has worn the same size since I met him 18 years ago.

3. Who said I love you first? Him. He said it one month after we started dating. It took me at least a year. Hey, I was only 16!

4. Who is taller? He's 6'2 and I'm 5'11

5. Who is smarter? I always tease him that I'm the one who has the degree so that must mean that I'm the smarter one! Nope, he's the smartest man I know and can relate every date in history to you. He's a complete history wiz.

6. Who is more sensitive? Me. I've seen him cry less than 5 times and I get choked up at least once a day.

7. Who does the laundry? OK, so I live with my mom and she enjoys to do the wash. I do it when she's out of town and he washes his hunting clothes. Does that count? Yes, I'm spoiled. I know.

8. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Me. I've always slept closer to the door since I've always been the one to get up with kids in the night.

9. Who pays the bills? Me. He asks and I approve.

10. Who cooks more? Lately I've been doing all of the cooking, but usually on Sundays he will cook. To get on my good side he'll make my favorite snack every week when he knows it's a cheat day.

11. What meals do you cook together? If we BBQ we usually do it together.

12. Who is more stubborn? He tells me constantly that I am the most stubborn person he has ever met.

13. Who is first to admit they are wrong? I will fight to the end if I know that I'm right, but will admit defeat if I'm wrong. He's usually first though just to make me happy.

14. Who is more clean? It's funny because my house is a typical-you-can-tell-a-kid-lives-there-house where toys are everywhere and the dishes might not get done until the morning, but if I pack the kids up to go somewhere and they don't match or their hair isn't combed he has a fit. So now that's his job to do before we leave. I personally could care less if Camryn is still wearing barrettes from the day before. Bad mom moment!!!

15. Who has more siblings? Me. I have 5 and he has 3.

16. Who wears the pants in the relationship? That would be me, but I know how far to push my authority. I have to make him feel like a man sometimes. ;o)

17. What do you like to do together? We grocery shop together every Saturday and love going on trips. We're already planning our next adventure for 2009.

18. Who eats more sweets? No one right now. I'm not eating sweets and he doesn't have a sweet tooth.

19. Guilty pleasures? Give him a gun and something to shoot and he is a happy man. Once a month I get the pleasure of going target shooting with him. It's pretty fun, but come on. How many times do you need to shoot a gun? Plus, the bullets are expensive.

20. How did you meet? I worked at a daycare and was introduced by my boss whose son was his best friend.

21. Who kissed who first? He did after a week of dating.

22. Who proposed? He did. He had no choice since the ring fell out of his pocket and onto my lap. I did have a pretty good idea.

23. His best feature? Many. I love his broad shoulders and olive skin color. He also has pale blue eyes and pretty teeth.

24. What is his greatest quality? He loves his kids and keeps me sane.

Okay, so now I tag...April, LaDawn, and Christina. Enjoy!

Can I Ramble?

2008-05-14T23:47:00.000-07:00

My how times goes by and right now I'm loving it. I go on track break in less than two weeks so I'm definitely feeling that "time for break" mode. Last Saturday Madison had a competition and her group came in 1st place! If I could find the cord that goes from my video camera to the computer I would download the video. Too cute.

Mother's Day was good. The night before we went shopping at Lowe's (which is my favorite store in the world) and bought some outside lights, bushes, vines, and trellises to hang. Camryn saw a hummingbird on a walk we took and decided that we needed to feed the "woodpeckers" so we now have a hummingbird feeder in our backyard, but no hummingbirds. Any suggestions on how to attract them would be great. Anyhoo.. Paul bought me an Ipod video thingy that I can't figure out that was from the kids. It's pink so I like it and will play around with it when I have time. Fun day at church and then take out from Olive Garden. For dessert watermelon and fruit dip. Yummy...my favorite.

Now it's midnight and I'm rambling as I wait for 30 shirts to finish washing so I can stick them in the dryer. Yes, I waited until the last minute to tie dye shirts for field day and am now thinking how tired I'm going to be when I have to be up in 5 hours. Have a great end of the week!

Here Comes the Bride

2008-05-07T21:45:00.000-07:00

I found these pictures of Maddie that were somewhere lost in computer land and thought they were so cute. They had to be from 2005. She came across my wedding dress and veil and had to try them on. My future bride in white...with Camryn helping no less!

Need a Haircut?!?

2008-05-02T18:23:00.000-07:00

Jaxon has had 5 haircuts in his little short 15 months of life and they were all horrible. He wouldn't sit still and the hairdressers pretty much gave up after a half hour of trying to make his hair even. Finally, I took the clippers...Paul held his arms...and I buzzed his hair off. Once I started I couldn't stop because it was so short, but it turned out so cute and now he looks even more like a little man! I was shocked by the huge pile of hair that was left. Paul thinks I'm weird since I want to save it, but he may not have blond hair again. Ok, so I threw it away.

My Baby is 4

2008-04-28T19:57:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Camryn! My little bundle of sunshine is 4 years old today. We celebrated her birthday on Saturday. Daddy heated the pool and we swam all day with friends and family. Camryn wanted a bee cake with yellow and black balloons, one bee balloon, and one Transformer balloon. To top the night off she had a red Power Ranger pit-a-ta (pinata) to hit. She had loads of fun and got some really nice things to play with. We ended the birthday weekend by heading over to Chuck E. Cheese's for Monday family night.

Yes, I Do Have Four Kids!

2008-04-26T19:50:00.000-07:00

Gotta Love Kids

2008-04-22T19:56:00.000-07:00

The pictures of Jaxon make me laugh every time I see him. He doesn't respond well to the word "no" and enjoys throwing himself on the ground having a temper tantrum. I find it hilarious and should probably begin putting him on time out when he throws his fits since they occur no more than 10 times a day. But, you're only one once, right?

I meant to post this picture of Maddie a couple of weeks ago. She had her first dance competition of the season and her group placed 94 points out of 100. She did pretty good. Of course, while watching the competition my camera battery died so this is the only picture of her I have all dolled up. Don't worry...more competitions to come in the next couple of months. Yeaaah me!

Sorry, no Spotlight Sunday

2008-04-19T20:53:00.000-07:00

It's been a long week. Jaxon has had a fever, congestion, and teething for the entire week. A cranky baby is right up there with a sick hubby and not a task I enjoy dealing with. Thank goodness for my mother who kept him drugged and happy during the day until I got home. Today he seemed to be more whiny and his fever was back which put a damper on my day.

My family was then dealt with the upsetting news that my 5 year old nephew was diagnosed with leukemia. It's amazing how life can change your attitude in an instant. I immediately felt guilty about having to "deal" with a crying kid and can only imagine what my nephew will be going through. I then think of his mother and father who just brought their third child into the world in February and imagining the pain they must be feeling to see their oldest child diagnosed with this disease.
We are so fortunate to have the savior in our lives and to know that he will always be with us and help us through troubling times. I definitely hugged all of my kids a little bit more today and apologized to Heavenly Father for my attitude. My thoughts and prayers are with my nephew and am hoping for a quick recovery. If you could, please keep Jake and family in your prayers for me. Thanks!

J family....I love you all.

Spotlight Sunday...Paul

2008-04-12T14:23:00.000-07:00

Now I'll introduce you to Paul, the ruler of the house. Or at least he likes to believe. Men are easy to introduce so this shouldn't take long.

Beginnings: Paul was born and raised in Las Vegas also. He has two brothers and one sister. His parents live in Oklahoma so we don't get to see them very often. He went to Rose Warren ES, Garside MS, and Bonanza HS.

Work:Paul was a bricklayer for over ten years until the profession ruined his back and he had to switch.After two back surgeries he became an electrician and is now co-owner of the company he works for, American Southwest Electric. HIs company does commercial work and he's had the grand luxury of working in Moapa, Laughlin, and Sandy Valley besides Las Vegas and Henderson. Their company is now completing the electrical work on the new park behind Heckethorn ES and the new library on Buffalo. It's cool for me since I get to view the plans and see what's taking place.

Hobbies: Paul's favorite thing to do is hunt. Doesn't matter what he's hunting for. Just give him a rifle and he's happy. He gets to go deer hunting two to three times a year (depending on when I let him) and is going bear hunting at the end of May. Tanner goes with him once a year which is a good son/father thingy thing to do.

Favorites: Paul's favorite place to travel to is Disneyland. It's his absolute ideal vacation and we have to be there when it opens and stay until it closes.We go at least once a year. He gets more excited about seeing Mickey and the gang than his kids do. He also enjoys camping and takes the older kids once a year to Cave Lake to fish and camp.

Other tidbits: Paul wasn't raised in the church, yet is our biggest supporter when it comes to church activities. He always wants to know what Camyrn learned in primary every Sunday and is a big stickler about Tanner going to seminary and scouts. Paul has attended all of the blessings and baptisms for our kids and is always encouraging them to be the example. I know in my heart that one day Paul will see the church the same way that I do, but for now I'm content with the life we lead and the family that we've become.

Lastly:One of Paul's greatest accomplishments, besides his children and marrying me, is building our swimming pool. He contracted out what needed to be done. We saved lots of money doing it this way and our pool was built in 31 days. He's out at his pool daily cleaning it or fiddling with it. I'm proud to say that I married a great man!

Another Quirk

2008-04-11T20:43:00.000-07:00

I'm obsessed with feet. Long ago just my own two feet, but now that I have kids I'm obsessed with their feet. Obsessed in the way about cleanliness and the way they look. I'm constantly checking my two little one's feet for hangnails or clipping their toenails weekly. Nighttime feet have to be washed before going to bed and don't even get me started on going outside without any shoes on. That I can't handle. I may have a touch of OCD I'm not sure, but that's one of my quirks for sure. I will never be the one that requires you to take off your shoes in my house because I want to keep the carpet clean. I have a pair of shoes that leave black ink on my feet from the inside soles material. Nope, can't wear them anymore because I can't walk around with black feet. My niece who took the photo (and one of the best photographers I know ;))had no idea about my weirdness about feet so when a friend of mine saw the photo and knew my issues with this subject she of course doubled over with laughter. This is by far one of my favorite photos ever taken because it symbolizes my children being little and me being weird!