January...

family \ ~fam-(i) le v

1: joy 2: sweetness 3: laughter

**I am going to try and update every month...kinda journal our month's adventures. January was a great month for me, I love to be all nestled in. And for Lyndsie, I suppose, turning 16 is no every day event! I had the opportunity to substitute a 4th grade class for 2 weeks, starting at the first of the month. I loved it so much, it almost surprised me! I thought that maybe I would enjoy it, but at the same time wish that I didn't have to go and teach each day. But I loved it and looked forward to it. It was so hectic though...if I ever went back to teaching full time, I would really have to change my routine a little bit so I could get more things done at home. The class was so cute and such good kids.

**Steve just did his thing, going to work and then coming home and helping with homework - fun huh!? He is starting something that I think he is super excited about though and that is finishing the basement. I think that he likes to go down there and work on things!

**Lyndsie's big event was of course turning 16. She has already had her first date even! She is now a Laurel and I can't believe it, it seems only yesterday that she was in primary. She is driving a lot and thinks that she can drive all of her friends around too. But I say "No way, not until you have your liscense." She is still cheering at games and is very busy that way, she just started taking tumbling again and she loves that and is so good at it too! Santa brought her a guitar for Christmas, so she is planning on starting a class for that...soon she will be playing like a rock star. The weekend of the 16th, I planned a surprise party for Lyndsie and her group of friends. I rented a hotel room and everyone came and had a great time. They went swimming, had lots of treats, laughed and then decided to go to bed around 1:30! I was so tired.

**Sydnie had a fun January. She hangs out with friends every weekend and when she isn't hanging out, she is planning for the next get together. She did great this quarter again with her grades. She is still taking piano and is preparing for a recital in March. She has been in piano for about 4 years and she is getting really good. She can play some songs without the music just by listening to the notes. Wow!

**Brinley is still going strong! She is playing futsal and going to soccer practice every week. She started tumbling along with Lyndsie and loves it. (My girls have always loved to tumble) She is doing so good in the 5th grade and she loves her teacher, Mrs. Gardner. She works hard every week and does her best! And guess what?!? Brinley's Science Fair project won and she will be going to district in February! Yea Brinley!!

**Sam is Sam and loves life! He is my buttercup. It is always good to have someone little around the house, because funny little people seem to bring down the stress and help us big ones remember that life shouldn't always be so busy! I love to watch him enjoy life and go all day long...never stopping! He is my reminder to always live life to the fullest and most of all...enjoy it. He is doing good in school, we work so hard every night to get his reading up a little. It is paying off, because I think that he is getting so good...Great job Sam!

**And Roxy is eating and eating and eating and eating!!

Science Fair Project...

...I dread this time of year when science fair projects are due! But oh well, here we go again. Brinley did her project on your heart rate and what happens to it when you are placed in stressful situations. She did a great job and worked hard putting it all together...of course, we were working on it late into the evening the night before! Oh well, we finished and her project recieved 1st place and she will be going to district on February 17! She was so excited...she is the first one in the family that has gone to district with her project. Yippy! Way to go Brin!

Playing basketball...

Tonight was Sam's first basketball game. He did a great job and he has a super duper team! Sam was so excited, he kept counting down to the day like it was Christmas. He loves it!! He has some fun friends on his team with him...Brady, Landon, and Greyson. They are soooooo fun to watch. I love it!

(Thanks Kim for some of the pictures!)

Surprise!!!

I thought that turning sixteen was a good reason to throw a surprise party. I got a hotel room in Layton and invited all of Lyndsie's friends to come and surprise her. Kylee helped me do a lot of the planning and her dad was able to get us 2 rooms for a good price. Sydnie, Brinley and I went to the hotel room earlier in the day to decorate it with streamers and balloons and then everyone started arriving about 8:00 (after all of the basketball games). Lyndsie showed up at the hotel a little later and was surprised by all of her friends. They all seemed to have a great time...swimming, laughing, catching up with everyone since they all go to 3 different high schools. It was a great night for Lyndsie, at about 1:30 things started to quiet down and everyone was sound a sleep.

Sweet Sixteen!

Today Lyndsie turned 16! Wow, she thinks that she is soooo old. It was a hectic day for her, I am sure, because it is almost the end of the quarter and she had a couple of big tests today...darn it! But other than that, I hope that she had a great day. She has some great friends that came over and decorated our house with big signs and posters, wishing her a happy birthday. They even baked her a cake and when we came home from getting an icecream cone, they were in our house to surprise her with a cake that they had made. After that exciting party, we all went out to dinner and Tenille joined us. Of course, we went to Chinese food, because that is Lyndsie's most favorite. We had a great dinner, but as soon as it was over, Lyndsie had to go to a basketball game to cheer. She got home late and was tired enough from her exciting

Sweet Sixteen Birthday!

Chucky Cheese!

Why do we do this to ourselves? I have never been to a restaurant that was soooo busy. It was almost comical! There were so many people...it is a very popular place. Grandma Linda wanted to take all of the grandkids to Chucky Cheese before everyone had to go back to school and it was sure a big hit! Everyone had a super time, even the older kids...

Happy New Year!!!

Happy New Year...2008 has been a great year and we celebrated at the Jardine's house. It is always fun to go over there. We all played games, visited, and ate breakfast. All of the kids were invited too, so it was a full night of excitement. We celebrated with the Jardines, Larsens, Garretts, Calls, and Vests. It was a great night!