I got the best complement in the world!

The fam was out to dinner this weekend, we went to a habatchi resturant.. I just so happens that we got sat right by our new Bishop. Of course he didn't know us, so after dinner I went up to introduce ourselves. The first thing out of his Wifes' mouth was "
you have the most well behaved children. They were so good the entire time you ate! "
I am still just beaming from that. Seriously I didn't even know what to say! She also commented about them at church, and "being sooo good!" I am feeling like the best Mother in the world! Especially after the week we just had, that totally boosted my spirits!

I had another hard week

I dont know why the kids are being so challenging all of a sudden, I just can't wait for Pre-school to start agian. I am needing a BREAK! I am so lucky to have Justin realize this and come to my rescue (more like the kids' rescue!) He took the Weds and Thurs and I had sometime to regroup. Ok ok I just sat on the sofa and the putter and played. Oh and I did sleep untill 1:00 pm the first day...ahh I can't believe I am admiting how lazy I was! Sheesh! But it was so nice to just have a day at home without my kids! Seriously it rawked! Now it is back to be the mom...and hoping that this week is better then the last 2 weeks!

The Binky Fairy has come to our house...

Yes it came on Friday, just dropped in and took Macies's Binkies to a poor baby somewhere that needs them more then we do. In exchange she left a purple Care Bear and CareBear DVD to keep Macie company while she sleeps. It has been a pretty smooth transition, Of course she still asks for them and it does take her longer to get to sleep but I think she will adjust just fine! I have always been an anti-binky person, but when she slept so well with them I had to give in, How can I agrue with that? Binky= More Sleep=Happy mama! Lately it has been more of a pain, she wakes up in the night crying because she can't find her binky, and I sware her front teeth are starting to stick out. It was so time to call in the Fairy!!

My Kids are Plotting Agianst Me

Seriously they are! This whole week they have been nothing but evil!

-We have had trips to the store where Kase screamed at the top of his lungs the entire time we were there...and of course I can't beat him, we were in public after all !(i'm kidding)

-There was a day spent cleaning, when afterwards as I was in shower (kids were suppose to be "napping") Macie thought she was a big girl and pooped in the potty....yah....except that she wiped herself too! Which was smeared all over her hands feet and knees. Not to mention the seat, so I threw her in the shower with me and tried the rest of the day to get the smell out of my house!

-The day after that was filled with butter and food that was thrown all over my kitchen cuboards and then smeared on Macies clothes. That time it was a cold shower for her, I have HAD it!

-To top it off I come home last night to find RED sharpie all over mykitchen floor , walls and door.

See they seriously have it in for me!

I wander what I have done to deserve this treatment ! LOL!

I am working on a Calendar..

Yes I have started yet another project... a calendar! I am PSing all of the pages and i will send it to shutterly to be printed. Heres a couple i have been working on today...

Had to post the pic of the dress

I went and got my temple dress last week but I wanted to share the money all folded up!

Nothing can make me more happy

...then to see my daughter dance around the house in a tutu. I am in love with her spins, bows and kicks that she does in her purple "dancing clothes." I told myself this is something I will not push with her in, although I would to see her dance, I would love to see her start classes. If she wants to we will start her in dance. Now, to see her find it on her own is thrilling!

4 1/2 & 2 1/2

I decieded that I am going to do my kids own pictures from now one. I useally like to have someone else deal with there "moods" but I never get what I want soo this is the first shot at it. I am in love with Kases look, he looks so much older. I love my sweet little kids!

So to celebrate my weight loss..

I went our a bought a new swim suit from Target!! I love it! It is brown and orange..not nasty orange, cute orange. I felt pretty good about myself untill Kase told me in the dressing room I had "fat legs!"

"Yes I know I do" I said," but that is very nice to say to someone"

The honesty of my 4 year old kills me sometimes!

Tea anyone?

I have been waiting forever to take these shots! Macie is in love with her tea set. After we put her down for bed we hear "clink" "clink" as she moves the cups around. I was very pleased with these shots, I wanted her to be blurry almost in the background. Enjoy!

I weighed myself this morning...

WOOOOOOOHOOOOOOO I have lost 7 lbs! I am down to 165...15 more lbs to go!

Working on a Bridal & Engagment shoot

One of my best friends here in St. George told her Neice she HAD to have me as a photographer! This is her and her Finance'. I had a blast with these shots and I can't wait for the wedding...It is in AZ! Woo hoo! Just thought I would share a few of the shots I got done! The rest are on my website
http://elementsphotography.smugmug.com

ETA: I cant upload for some reason...just go check them out on my Website!

Please email me some Salad recipes!

I am getting board of the ones I have...I would love some more Ideas

PLEASE anthing would be great!!!!

First week of going to the GYM! YEAH ME!

So this is what I looked like on my first day to the gym...

Yes I know it is ridiculous BUT let me explain myself...I had gotten in the shower the night before and I just let my hair air dry. It has some major issues (it is naturally curly) So it was out of control! I was just going to pull it up and go to the gym. BUT Justin reminded me that they were going to take my pic for my card...I just could go in looking like a bumb to have my picture taken. I did that for my Costco card and everytime I pull in out I think "OHHH that picture is HORRID!" So I had to get up put make up on and curl my hair, just to go into the gym to work out. But it wasnt all ridiculous. I had Justin snap some pics of me so that I could document my weight loose ...they are my favorite but they are pretty decent!

More thoughts...

One more thing that Blaine and talked about...

I want everyone reading this to grab a peace of paper and do it with me! Seriously !

Ok Imagine that you've died and that you are at your own funeral. You get to pick the four speakers.

1st Someone from Church

2nd Friend

3rd Family Member

4th Co-worker

...Now write down what you would want them to say.... heres mine...

Church Wyone (she was in the YW pres. with me)

Friend Brookie

Family My Mom

Co-worker Vana

I would want Wyone to say...That I was dedicated to the girls. That although I have struggled in the past I taught the girls so much about life. About the Basic princables of the gospel. That I love the lord, and that you could feel my spirit when I taught.

Brookie...That I was always there. That I could make her laught about stupid things, that I was a dependable friend. That I always understood & cared. That I was compasionate, understanding, & forgiving. That I loved Life and lived it to it's fullest. That I loved everyone that I met. That I looked for good in everyone. That I was trustworthy. That I tried to make everyone around me feel good. That I was talented in alot of things.

Mom...That I was the one there for everyone. That I held the family together. That I was a good mother to my own children. That I loved my family. That I was dedicated to Justin and my family. That I loved them more then my own life. That I was an example. That I was patient and kind to my siblings. That I was talented, that I was always striving to improve. That I was the one to talk about problems with cause I was always understanding.

Vana...That I didn't like working at Mcd's. That I wanted to be home with Kase. But that I was a hard worker. That I was honest. That I treated others with respect and understanding. That I was a good friend, easy to talk to. That I was there when you needed me & That I was easy to talk to .

Now take what you have written down and save it because this is your blue print for life. These are things that are important to you. THIS is where you can judge yourself on how your doing. Dont think about so so and so down the street all "perfect" and whatever, How are you doing on what is important to you? Make since?

What was so intersting for me was that I never once mentioned

"that I always kept my house clean, "that I was sucessfull" or anything like that.

What is important to me was my realtionships with others.

How I treat other people.

That has caused me to step back and think about how I do treat other people. How am I doing?????????

My Lesson in Self Esteem

I had a huge talk with my step dad this last week while visiting my Mom's. It was a real eye opening experience! I have been thinking about it alot this week. I have a huge problem with how I feel about myself. This is probably a struggle I will have all my life. But I am starting to understand why I am the way that I am. Blaine (step-dad) gave me some examples and it help put my feeling into words. He said...

Everbody in their life is writing an ESSAY about there life. When we are young we feel unstopable, confidant and very sercure with ourselves. Somewhere along the lines that changes. Maybe it is being tease or something like that that makes us wonder "am I ___________?" For me it started when I started school, We moved around alot and I never adapted the social skills to make friends. I was teased and ridicled. I ate alone, I was pushed by girls as I walked home. I started wondering what was wrong with me, why didn't people like me?

So I started my THESUS..."I am stupid, ugly, fat, unlovable...etc I dont know exactly what I was telling myself . It was just negitive. Then I started looking for the PROOF. After all you need proof to suport your thesus! All it takes is one person to call me "stupid" or "ugly" or whatever. There! There is my PROOF! Now it doesn't matter how many people tell me I am pretty, or smart or whatever I have the proof to back up my thesus that I am no good.

I have been doing this most of my life, In everything I do. I am never good enough.

The first problem is that I am not good enough for me! I am the one that is setting the bar here and it is way too. It is unreachable. I can never be that person, no one could. What Blaine pointed out is that, one day we will each be judge on the intent of our heart. If my goal is to be a good Mom, a vailent saint, a good friend & wife ...etc. and I fall short, if my heart is in the right place I will be forgiven of the short comings. Yes I dont read scriptures to my kids everynight, I never have a super clean house, I lose my temper way too much BUT I am trying. That is what I need to keep telling myself. I am trying.

The second problem is that I expect other people (parents, Justin, Friends) to over compinsate, and over praise to make me feel better. That is why other people's opinion is so terribly important to me. It is like the "bucket with a hole" senerio. Not matter how fast you fill it will never be full. I am expecting all these other people to fill my bucket and they cant do it. They would never be able to make me feel "full". What I need to be doing is figuring out how to plug the hole!

So now that I have recognized this and am starting to understand it ...How do I change it? How do I change my thesus? How do i fill the hole? That is what I have been left to figure out. How do I change it?

Why I love my Family

Well we didnt make it up to go snowmobiling...Kase was so disapointed! I was and I wasn't. I had been so sick...there was no way we could have done the trip. I was sick for over 2 weeks, I am finally starting to feel better. Seriously the flu KICKED MY BUTT! We did make it up to my Moms this past weekend. I left feeling so greatful that I have the Family I do. All of us siblings are increadably close, we talk almost weekly, and when are home we stay up till the wee hours of the morning laughing and just being us! I want to take a sec and write down why I love each of them!

My Mom... In the past I use to hate the fact that she would never sit still and just visit with us, but now I am beginning to understand her more. She is task oriented, she is always doing something, she is extremly motivated, she is a hard worker. We all picked up strength from her in these areas.

My Step-Dad...He is so much like me I love to talk with him. I sat up and talked to him till 4 am. He is very smart, he is a people person. He is a great singer. I love to listen to his cheesy jokes. He is a strength to our family. It is such a change, he helps make Moms house HOME.

Rob...Stong and Silent. Rob does want to start problems, he listen alot, thinks alot. He doesnt like to argue. He is hilarious, he tells the funniest stories. I just love Rob.

Ash...She is head strong and stubborn. She wants to get her point accross, she doesnt want to be labeled as a dumb blond. She is nothing like that. She is smart, she thinks for herself, and she so talented. She is so Beautiful, I am sometimes jealous of her. She is very opposite of me sometimes and other time you can't tell us apart. She is an amazing woman.

Shayla...I am the closest with Shayla. It is hard to talk about her without cring. She has been a great friend and buddy to me. She is very curious about so many things and at times I fell like I am more like her Mother. My kids love her. She is so fun to be around, she can make anyone laugh. I look forward to her growing and maturing more and more. I cherish the friendship I have with her.

Jayce...He is Macies Favorite. He is quite and soft spoken. He is sooo talented in Baseball and school. He is the most like my Mom. Very task oriented, But is starting to be more interested in our little sibling talks!

Tyler...I carried this boy with me everywhere in High School. Trips to Walmart...Dates...He has always been my buddy. He is very curious and misteivous. He is alot like Kase which is way they get along so well. I love this little guy!

Christmas Day

OHHHH I love Christmas! This year will definatly not be forgotten! The kids were spoiled rotten this year! There wasn't even enough room for all the presents to fit under the tree so we had to use the couch. It was definatly a huge difference from the last couple years. Because of lack of business in the winter we had been our wards charity case. I remember when they dropped off presents for our family one year. When Justin answered the door, he was so upset the he just dropped down and bawled. It was so hard to see him feel so bad. It was nice to just have a Christmas that was happy and joyful!

Kases' Favorite presesnts were a bike from Gma & Pa Buxton, the 3 mini Buzz lightyears from Santa & His rescue hero stuff! All 3 Buzzes sleep in bed with every night!

Macies' Favs were The Kitchen from Gma & Pa Buxton, her new Boy Doll named Rylan and her Princess Dress up clothes from Grandma Penny. She has to go everwhere with her Cinderella "flops" (shoes)!

Justin out did himself with me...He knew I wanted a Temple Dress but he couldn't just go and pick one out (I am very picky) So he folded up a $50 dollar bill to look like a dress. Then he framed it with a note that said..."for your temple dress." It was very thoughtfull. There were other great gifts including a MP3 player and the best gift was a KITCHEN AID mixer! Woo that was a huge surprize (even though I acidentally saw it) I saved me tears and excitedment for when I opened it. I am so excited about it!!!

Justin I think was surprized and happy this year too. I made him alot of things to help get his business in order. I made him a notebook that holds all of his drawing stuff, all for doing landscape design. I packing it full of colored pencils rulers and erasers so he can just sit down and create! He CRIED when he open that! WOO HOO for me! I also organized all of his reciepts from the last couple years...i know he hates doing that so he was surprized!

It was a great day!

New ChistmasTraditions

It has been a goal of mine to have really special traditions around each holiday. Each year we have been slowly adding these little memories. This year we started 4 new Christmas ones.

*Each night in December we unwrap a book about Christmas. For one thing it keeps the kids from unwrapping "Santa Gifts" too early and it is a great way to remind us about the Spirit of Christmas. I will just keep my Christmas books in my Cmas decoration box so next year they will right there and ready for wrapping. It will take a couple years to collect enough books but I am so excited for this tradition to continue threw out the years.

*In England they sell these little fireworks around Cmas time. They are little tubes that pop open to reveal, a prize, a crown, and confetti. They are all priced differantly depending on the prize inside. Well Justin found them at the store this year and he had to get them and teach the kids about this fun little tidbit. They loved them! The paper crowns were the kids' fav. Macie insisted on wearing hers all night!

*This one was not done this year because of our sicknesses BUT I would like to start having a formal dinner on Christmas Eve. With the TV of and I want us to all dress up in our nicest clothes. I got this one from my SIL Amy and I thought it would be so fun to take one night and make special and classy. I am hoping this one works next year!

*Another inspiration I got from a SIL (Elisa) was our gift to Jesus. We took old checkbook boxes (or any small box) wrapped them up. On Christma eve before we opened our one present we sat down and wrote out something we were going to work on this year. Mine was my relaionship with my kids...Patience and to stop yelling. Each of us did this and then we places our papers inside our boxes as our gift to Jesus. Next year we do it all over agian. I really liked this idea and although Macie is too small this year to understand I am hoping it is something they will all look forward to doing!