January Birthdays

Nikki's birthday was on Monday the 11th and while we knew we weren't going to officially celebrate her birthday until the weekend along with my birthday I still felt like she should have her special breakfast and dinner on her actual birthday. I got up early and made some German pancakes and then for dinner she requested curry. I asked Curtis if he would be in charge of that. Although I did have to go to the store to buy some ingredients for him. It turned out delicious! Nikki's best friend Angie wanted to surprise Nikki with her favorite flavor of cake so she texted me on Sunday asking about it. Right now her favorite is carrot cake with NO nuts. Angie also bought her a few gifts. She brought those things over while I was gone with Nikki getting our hair cut. Mine was just a trim so hardly noticeable. Nikki wanted hers very short again. I must be getting used to the short hair because I think it's cute this time. So she got cake on her birthday after all thanks to Angie and it was good!

Delicious curry. Charlotte wanted to give something to Nikki for her birthday so she found stuff from her room. A placemat she made in Kindergarten and some bows for her hair. Nikki was a good sport and played along with it.

Angie was being funny and put "Happy 71st" instead of 17th on the cake she made.

Nikki really wanted to do a glass blowing class for her birthday ever since she saw us do one last summer. Well, I got a good deal through Groupon again for Boise Art Glass plus an extra $10 off so it was a better deal than when we went. It ended up being a birthday present to her and Angie, as both of them were the ones who did the class this time. They really enjoyed it. Nikki wanted to make something she would use so she made a glass cup and Angie decided to do the same but different color.

We ended up celebrating both our birthdays on my birthday, which was Sunday. It was stake conference for us so Curtis didn't have any meetings and we all got to sleep in. It was nice. Saturday night I had baked my birthday cake so I wouldn't have to the next day. I was craving Mexican Wedding Cake, which is a moist cake that has crushed pineapple, chopped nuts (I used pecans) and a cream cheese frosting. I think the only kid that likes that cake is Charlotte (I later learned that Alice likes it too) but Nikki didn't really care which cake I had since Angie had already made her favorite for her. I knew my kids probably wouldn't like my cake so I bought some Oreos for them but said they had to at least try a bite of my cake before they could have Oreos. Not sure if all of them remembered that but I know Nikki did. What a good sport. 

During the day we pulled out a new card game Garrett got for Christmas from a friend called The Oregon Trail, based off the old computer game that was created when I was a kid. Curtis and I died of snake bites. Garrett and Nikki both drowned on a river crossing but Jack made it to Oregon by himself so technically we all won! 😆

Charlotte and Alice played on the hoverboard while we played our game.

This was the first time Alice was able to stand and go on the hoverboard. She fell off a couple times but got right back on. She's taking after Charlotte.

For my birthday dinner I decided we should cook up the turkey we had received from Curtis's work for Christmas but I also didn't want to cook a bunch of other food so Curtis called his parents and mine and they were gracious enough to help bring food. His parents brought cheesy potato casserole. My parents brought squash and a salad. Grandma wanted to help bring something also so I told her to bring the ice cream. Everything was delicious! It makes it nice for everyone when the food assignments are delegated out.  We were able to fit everyone around our table except two so Nikki and Jack ate at the bar counter. It's nice to be able to have a table big enough for guests.

Anyway, we enjoyed our dinner and then moved to the front room to sing happy birthday and open gifts. I had bought some number candles to go on the cake for both Nikki and myself but Curtis decided to buy a different candle and surprised me with it. Nikki was with him when he bought it so she knew. It was an awesome candle where you light the middle and then the rest of it lights up and the sides fall down and continue in a circle while playing the happy birthday song. Coolest candle I've ever had!

We haven't had birthday party hats in years. Curtis decided he wanted to have those also.

The fancy birthday candle after we blew it out. For the record Nikki turned 17 and I turned 38. We're nearly 21 years apart. 

My niece Alivia Cleaver made these rings and Laverne bought them from her to give to us as gifts. They're beautiful!

Fun with hats.

Do you think I could wear this for my new covid mask? 😂

The wireless earbuds I wanted.

Nikki loves the Beatles and she loves t-shirts.

Picture with my in laws.

Picture with my parents.

Picture with my grandma (GG) in the middle. The other picture I had she was closing her eyes.

Our family

It was a good birthday filled with many people wishing happy birthday on Facebook, text messages and even a phone call from my friend Monica. She and her family sang happy birthday to me. It's becoming a tradition for them that I love. Birthdays and holidays are just so much better with family, especially when you get older. The older I get the less I want gifts and the more I would rather just have a family get together. 

Puzzles, Surprises and Sunday Happenings

I worked on my puzzle I got for Christmas here and there during the week after Christmas and finished it on Sunday the 3rd while watching The Chosen. We are hooked and love that series and can't wait for season 2! Thank you Laverne for introducing it to us! I love having this puzzle mat so that I can move my puzzle around while I'm working on it, especially if I'm on the kitchen table and we need to eat. All I have to do is roll it up and move it. I still have it rolled up right now even though it's been finished for over a week now. I haven't decided whether to put it away and do it again at a later time or glue it and maybe hang it up somewhere. My dad has been doing a lot of puzzles lately so I guess that's where I get my love of doing puzzles. I used to love it when we would have family get togethers for Thanksgiving or Christmas or even at the cabin during the summer where a bunch of us would be working on puzzles. I remember the most difficult puzzle we had ever done at my grandma's house was a butterfly shape and the pieces were not normal shapes. It was hard!

Trying to take a selfie was not easy but here I am with my 1000 piece puzzle. Nobody helped until the very end when I had maybe 20 pieces left. Figures, ha ha!

On Monday January 4th it was the last day of the kid's break from school so I took that opportunity to have them help me take down Christmas decorations inside the house. I had the ladder leaning against a wall at one point and our little guy Cocoa decided to climb it. He is definitely more active than Sage and always wanting to play or climb. We love him!

Kids started school again on Tuesday the 5th but still online. However, we did learn at the end of last week that they will be returning to school starting on the 19th. Charlotte will be going 5 days a week but the older kids will return to the hybrid schedule, 2 days at school and 2 at home with Wednesday as a catching up day and day to get help from teachers. I'm so happy that Charlotte will be going 5 days a week now. Elementary students really need to be there in person. They are behind on where they should be. My kids do better when they are at the schools versus online.

Last Saturday was the birthday of Nikki's best friend Angie. Angie and her mom had to leave to Washington on Thursday to attend a funeral of some family members on Friday. They were returning on Saturday. I got the idea that it would be fun and nice for them to sneak into their house (since Nikki had their garage code from helping them with packages) and surprise Angie for her birthday by decorating. First, Nikki and I had to do some shopping. She found a couple gifts at Hobby Lobby and then we went to the dollar store to get balloons and other decorations. It turned out great and she was definitely surprised. Angie said she would never be able to top that for Nikki's birthday. It was fun helping her!

Nikki drew faces on all of the balloons too.

We basically hung balloons and streamers everywhere plus a birthday banner and the purple pom pom garland.

Last week I pulled out some clothes that Charlotte had finally grown into and I am so excited that she gets to wear the koala Australian shirt we had bought for Nikki when Curtis and I took our trip to Australia back in 2012!

Sunday was a big day for Jack. He was conferred the Aaronic Priesthood and was ordained to be a deacon. We did it before church and Curtis was able to be the one ordaining him since he's in the bishopric. Bishop Lyman also stood in. Both Curtis's parents and my parents as well as my grandma came to be a part of it. We found a big empty classroom to do it in. Jack said he was a little nervous before passing the sacrament but that it was actually fun so he enjoyed it. It's a neat feeling to see both of my boys passing the sacrament. Our ward still has the option to watch a broadcast of the meeting from home for those who are not comfortable or can't come to the building. It was great to see so many people attending in person again even though we're spread out. It was about 140 people.

Us with Curtis's parents and Jack. The girls stayed at home and Garrett was preparing the sacrament. I drove home and picked up the girls afterwards since we had our sacrament meeting right after.

Grandma, Laverne, me, Jack, Curtis and my dad

This was the picture I got at home because I didn't get any at the church. I borrowed the above pictures from Laverne's blog. Thanks Laverne!

Alice wanted to be in the picture with her pretty purple dress.

And then by herself.

After church I had my relief society lesson through zoom at 1:00. I ended up using my phone this time because I restarted my computer and it was taking forever. I actually figured out how to view everyone else on the phone. I can't see everyone at the same time but I can swipe the phone and see at least 4 people on the screen at a time. It was a good lesson and part of it was about preparedness and we were told that our stake is going to talk more about food storage again in the next several months since we haven't in a long time. And we were all painfully reminded about being prepared last spring when the pandemic hit and everyone went crazy on stocking up so that many things were running out including of course toilet paper!

Anyway, then Garrett wanted to watch some Little House on the Prairie. We finished watching season 6. Later that night after we ate dinner we all watched The Chosen again. It was the first time Nikki had finished watching the series but the second time for Curtis, Garrett and me. We all love it!

After Christmas

The last couple weeks have been so busy with enjoying Christmas break, New Year's, and getting kids back to school. For today I will share pictures and stories from after Christmas up to New Year's weekend.

Nikki's wearing her hotdog shirt from her friend Angie and the upside down goggles that came in a game she bought for the family. Funny thing is, we haven't actually played the game yet. The kids and Curtis just like trying to walk around or do things with the goggles on.

Garrett got a video game that teaches him how to play songs on his electric guitar. You actually have to plug in the guitar to the game system. 

The girls both got karaoke microphones and Charlotte got pink walkie talkies.

Garrett's friend Austin gave him this cookie baking kit. It came with a mix and a pan. So of course he baked it and ate it up!

I gave Twister to Jack as my secret Santa gift.

Alice got this princess tent with lights.

Having a little reading time in the new tent before bed.

Charlotte zooms around everywhere in the house on her new hoverboard. She's great at giving others turns on it though. Alice rides it too but I only let her do it on her knees for right now. Charlotte does both feet and knees but I find her on her knees most of the time. Unfortunately she spun circles so hard in our front room it left black marks. That's something we never had a problem with when Nikki had hers two years ago. I can't wait to get hard floors in that room....some day.

                                                

Curtis and I got out and took a walk on the dam. It was pretty cold. Later that same day we went shooting with his sister Jeanie and her husband and our niece with her husband. He was able to shoot his new shotgun for the first time.

The Monday after Christmas the kids and I all went in for our teeth cleanings and check ups. This was Alice's first time getting her teeth cleaned. She did great! And nobody had cavities this time!

Wednesday the 30th we went to Christmas in Color out in Garden City. It's a light show that you drive through. We met Tamara and her family at DQ in Boise where most of our kids climbed in the back of the truck so they could see the light show better.  It was right across the street so we didn't drive far. They had music that we could tune into on a certain radio station to listen to while driving through and it was synced with their light show.  This is the first time we've ever done this light show and it was fun! After we got the kids back in the truck and warmed up, our family decided to stop by Freddy's and get some frozen custard on the way home. Jack got Sprite since he can't have dairy. We love their frozen custard!

This is the line we had to wait in before going through the light show. The green wall had an opening for us to drive through. They would take one line of cars at a time.

Alice fell asleep on the way over and we couldn't get her to wake up for any of the light show.

On New Year's Eve some of us met up at the Majestic movie theater in Meridian. My dad went and bought a group of tickets so we could all sit close together. They had a limit of 20 people though. The movie was Wonder Woman '84 and since Jack didn't want to see it he stayed home to babysit the girls while Nikki, Garrett, Curtis and I went to the show. We met my parents, grandma, Tamara's family and Stillman's family there.  It was a good movie but definitely not as good as the first one. After the movie we went home to bake some artisan bread. Then we took that bread over to grandma's house and ate it with our soup dinner and played games. We packed up and went home around 10pm. I really didn't want to stay up for the New Year's but the kids did. Curtis and I were both tired. We let Nikki go hang out at Logan's house after he got off work at 11pm so that they could kind of celebrate the New Year together. Curtis and I decided to try and sleep until Nikki called for a ride home but I ended up getting up right at midnight and telling the other kids to go to bed. Then Curtis picked Nikki up around 12:30.  Needless to say, we slept in as long as we could. I honestly don't really remember what we actually did on New Year's Day. I think we just hung out and kids played with their Christmas stuff, etc. We also had to trap Stardust inside because my brother Colby was coming to get her the next day and we wanted to make sure she would be here. Some days she stayed away longer than others.

Stardust was fine staying inside all that day and even through the night but then the next morning she did a lot of meowing and walking to the sliding door because she wanted out. After awhile I think she got the hint and just went and hid under our bed. Because Colby and Cindy got in to town late Friday night my dad planned a breakfast get together at my grandma's house Saturday morning. I dropped off Nikki to work a little before 10am and then headed straight over and everyone was still waking up and we didn't start eating until about 10:30. After eating some yummy waffles and bacon we decided we should play a game since Colby, Cindy and his boys were traveling back home in the afternoon. We played Apples to Apples and then Uno I think. We stayed until about 2 or 2:30 and then went home to go get Stardust ready for Colby's family to take with them. We thought they'd be right behind us but it took them awhile to come over. They spent a little time visiting after they got here. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by Nephi's reaction to seeing Stardust when they first came over. He was so happy to see her and just held her for awhile and was loving her. It was great. Both boys were so happy to see her. They left our house at about 3:45 to head home. I only remember that because it was right before I had to go pick Nikki up from work. We'll miss her except for when she clawed the carpet in our bedroom and Nikki's because she wanted out and didn't use her voice instead. I also won't miss all of the dead animals she brought home and Sage eating them sometimes. Yuck! I kept her from eating them when I could. I'm sure we'll get them again though when we start letting Cocoa out. Oh well.

Cindy got a nicer picture of the boys before I came over and took a picture then Nephi gives me a silly grin.

While waiting for Colby to come we took some last pictures with Stardust.

Sadly, she is probably thrilled to get away from these two girls. They were always picking her up and she would try to get away from them. 😂

Even Curtis gave her some last loves. Nikki was at work so I wasn't able to get one with her and the boys were busy.

Stardust has now been home with Colby for a week and Colby has reported that she is doing well and it seems like she might even remember them. Yay! I'm so glad that we watched her for them and that the boys get to have their cat back. And maybe we'll get to see her when we visit some time.