Clarinet Hero??

Allias was trying to play Guitar Hero without much success and Tyler was telling him that he pretty much sucked. Here is the part of their conversation that had us all cracking up.
Tyler: "I am way better at that then you are"
Allias: "You're just lucky this isn't Clarinet Hero."

Christmas

Merry Christmas. We miss and love you all sooooo much. Wish you could have been here to share Christmas morning with us. Hope 2009 brings you all the joy and blessings you can handle.

The kids were sooo excited that we ended up being able to get them Christmas Jammies.
Here is Kailyn in her High School Musical Jammies- all ready to get snug in her bed (she actually slept upstairs with the boys). We went to some friend's house for Christmas Eve dinner and didn't get home until late. Kailyn made sure that I promised to bake Santa some cookies before I fell asleep. Good thing I had some left over cookie dough in the fridge from the Christmas plates we had made earlier in the week. Allias (man he looks like my brother Daniel in these pictures)

Tyler striking a pose. When he opened his Jammies he said, "You got me jammies with penguins on them, that's what's up."

Christmas morning!!

Allias' favorite part of Christmas morning. The Stocking!!! Tyler and Allias both got cologne in their stockings this year and Tyler got jelly bracelets (they are back in). Kailyn got a High School musical watch and some webkinz cards and Allias got some baseball cards. And of course lots of candy.

Kailyn changed her mind about the Bebe gun and asked Santa for Roller Skates instead.

Tyler checking out his cool new belt buckle from Kailyn and Allias. He is wearing the hoodie that Travis and I got him. He hasn't taken it off yet so I think its safe to say he likes it. We also got him a belt and Santa got him a hat but he ended up returning those and can't figure out what he wants instead. We have been to the skate shop twice, the mall and checked out some stuff online. Too many choices I guess.

Allias sporting the Duke hat that was in his stocking and showing off his cool new watch that Santa gave him

Kailyn got three new Webkinz. The little mouse was in her stocking and she named it Pip. She came in my room at 3am with this in her hands yelling "mommy mommy Santa gave me the little white mouse I wanted!!!" I told her she needed to go back to bed that it was too early to be up and she asked if she could bring the mouse to bed with her.

These two came from Uncle Jan. She named the Hedgehog Romeo and the Lizard is Apollo. I think the Lizard is her favorite. She also got a really neat book called TheDaringBookForGirls from Uncle Jan. Its very cool and we are going to try and get her adventure kit together soon.

I think he likes it!!!! He uses unbreakable as his tag on Myspace and was totally freaked out (in a good way) that I found this shirt. Thanks Uncle Jan!!!Allias showing off the MP3 Player he got from Uncle Jan (Its a permanent fixture on his head now). He also got a digital camera from mom and dad. I will post some of the pictures he has taken soon.

Tyler in one of the outfits that Uncle Jan got him.

The boys got a little excited when they opened the XBox 360 that Grandma Becky and Grandpa Paul helped us get.

Tyler trying to be a Guitar Hero (he is wearing the right pants for it).

Tyler and Allias playing a little Halo on the new 360.

Kailyn trying out her new roller skates.

Kailyn and mommy playing Monopoly (Littlest Petshop style). I think Tyler and Allias did a great job picking out something that she would really like. It's also helping her with Math.

And last but not least Miss Molly all dressed up for Christmas.Grandma Barbara and Grandpa Dan got the kids a trampoline which they totally and completely love- we just haven't taken any pictures yet. Tyler is determined to learn how to do a back flip on it and was even out practicing in the rain today. Kailyn and Allias were out jumping at 11 o'clock last night. I am sure the neighbors love us. We will try and get some pictures asap and post them. Oh and Barbara got me GPS!!! Its sooooo cool. I love it!

Again Happy New Year. Hope we get to see you in 2009!

Winter Ball

Tyler went to his first semi-formal dance Friday night. He and his friend Ashley went to the Winter Ball. My camera was acting silly so the quality of these pictures isn't great but they are still adorable!
Tyler had the hardest time figuring out the VELCRO on this wrist corsage. He was cracking me up. He finally got it on when no one with a camera was watching. Too cute!

They were just plain silly all night long. I think this is the picture that was taken right after Tyler accidentally kicked their chihuahua in the head. Tyler does this thing where after he sits down he kicks out his leg from the knee before either crossing his legs or putting his foot down. (hard to explain but he picked it up from another kid at church) anyway their dog was on the couch and I guess Tyler didn't see him. Poor puppy. They were both chewing gum and there are several pictures where either her gum or his gum is showing. Teenagers!!

This has to be my favorite picture from the night. Crazy boys!!!

Christmas Concert

Allias had his Christmas concert last night for band. They did really fantastic and Allias played wonderfully. He is such a talented musician! I could totally pick him out from the rest of the clarinets. His school has a student teacher working with them from ECU- she actually plays the clarinet as well. She came up to me at the end of the show and was full of praise for Allias. She wants him to stay after school one day a week for private lessons. If we can work it into out budget we are going to do it. Both mine and Travis' mom said we should think of it as a college investment. Here are videos of the songs they performed. Sorry about my poor video taking skills! LOL! In this first song there are parts where the only clarinets playing are Allias and the 2nd chair girl. They have been the number one and number two since sixth grade. She used to get upset because she has been playing since the 3rd grade but they are good friends now.

The other lady you see playing is the student teacher. She decided to join their band for the evening. These videos took days to upload (I am not exaggerating they literally took days). Good thing I am at work and have nothing better to do. ENJOY

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire

The little girl in front of me was getting restless and kept poking her head up out of her seat and talking. (her brother played clarinet too but was in the 7th grade)

During the fourth song the band director stopped them and had them start again. Allias was actually happy, he said he was thinking to himself "these people are not on time and it's messing me up" I tried for hours and hours to get the video to upload and it wouldn't! Again there were clarinet parts in this song where only Allias and the 2nd chair girl play. (the student teacher doesn't count LOL)
My battery died right as we started applauding- I am happy it held out for the last song. After the show was over I overheard the student teacher's family tell her they were laughing because she had a college degree couldn't even make first chair! She said that's because Allias is sooo good. We think so too!
I will try and get the video to load another day. Sorry!

Baby Kay and Miss Molly

I stole this picture off of Shannon's blog! It's too cute for words. This picture was taken at Thanksgiving and Molly has already changed so much. She has grown and her fur is starting to change color (Yorkie's start out black and tan and then turn a grayish color and the tan parts get lighter) and her ears are trying to stand up. She and our other dog Maisy are best buds and they wrestle and play all the time. Molly thinks she is BIG. The potty training is going as well as to be expected. Molly sleeps in her kennel in Kailyn's bed. We tried to let her just sleep in the bed but she doesn't always "hold" it through the night yet.

Here is a picture from today. See how much her little face has changed.

FIGS

Kailyn made this adorable house with her Faith in God for girls group last night. She almost didn't go but Sister Durrant went through hoops to make sure she got there. Allias had his winter concert last night so Travis and I weren't going to be able to make it over to the church and Kailyn couldn't decide whether she wanted to go without us or not. She kept going back and forth and Lori was soooo nice and accommodating. Kailyn had a really great time and was glad she decided to go.

timeout

Kailyn from the corner (she was in timeout)- "what time is it?"
Dad- I don't know I don't have a watch.
Kailyn crying- "then how will I know when I can come out?"



She also asked Santa for a BB gun. When he seemed puzzled at her request she told him not to worry that she wouldn't shoot her eye out. The girl has never seen A Christmas Story so I have no idea where that came from.

Life

I am so grateful for the wonderfully amazing friends that I have and for my equally amazingly wonderful family. I am also grateful for a Father in Heaven who is watching out for me and puts such fantastic people into my life. Life and living life tend to get a little difficult at times and it is such a blessing to know that I have so many people out there that put up with me and I can count on. Sometimes just a simple thing like texting with my sister-n-law totally brightens my day. And I love that I call my mom and mother-n-law pretty much every day and they never get sick of hearing from me (or so I think). They are both such a wonderful support to me and my very best friends!
I was talking to my friend Maria this week and I said something to the effect that the difficulties I was facing were a result of what a rotten person I used to be. Her response was- don't ever say that- that's what the advesary wants you to believe but when you were baptized those sins were washed away and Heavenly Father doesn't give paybacks. It was exactly what I needed to hear and helped me change the direction of my thinking.
Last night we spent the evening with a group of great friends who are like family. Travis and I needed that sooo much! We were having so much fun that we didn't leave until one in the morning. The kids must have had a serious party when we were gone cause wow my house is a mess (it was actually clean when we left).

Tagged

The rules are:
Go to your fourth picture folder.
Pick the fourth picture.
Explain it.
Tag at least four people.


This picture was taken June of last year. Kailyn still had long hair and she is wearing one of the boy's necklaces. She looks like a little surfer chick. She and Travis were on their way to watch Allias' dance recital. I think Travis was just playing with the camera to see if the settings were right but I actually like this picture.
I tag Brittney, Jill, Alyssa and Kirsten

New

We have a new puppy!!! Her name is Molly and she is beyond adorable!

And I have a new hairdo. I love it sooooooo much. I love that I can just go into my hairdresser and say I want to try something new and show her a couple pictures of things I like and no matter what I always leave happy. She's the best! She had a lot of fun cutting my hair today. She loves it when people want to shake things up. I should have taken a picture of the pile of hair that was on the floor.
The Front (kind of blurry but you get the picture) -
The back-

stuck

I went shopping today. I wanted to find a couple new skirts or a dress to wear for Seminary. I went to Target and picked out several things to try on. Target sizes usually run a little big so I had to come out of the fitting room a few times to get a smaller size. The last thing I tried on was a dress that had two pieces- a slip type thing and then a see through layer that went over the top. The dress looked really small so I grabbed an extra-large. As soon as I started to put it on I could tell it was going to be to small but the slip thing was all bunched up at the top so I pulled it down tight. Bad mistake. The dress wouldn't come off. It had no zippers or buttons to loosen it up and I was literally STUCK in the dress. I tried without success to pull it back over my head or to pull one of my arms loose for several minutes. Its funny how quickly one can get totally sweaty. I made up my mind that I would just rip the dress and pay for it. I tried to rip the seam around the arm but it wouldn't even stretch and I had the same results with the seam along the bust. I decided to try and take my bra off and see if that would help. I unfastened it and pulled it up out of the dress and around my neck. Yeah that didn't help- the dress would not budge over my ribs. At this point I was thinking I am either going to have to have to ask a Target employee to come and help me out of this dress or call someone to come rescue me. The only other thing going through my mind was I am totally going to have to blog this. I really didn't want to get anyone else involved in my predicament so I said a quick prayer and slowly and slightly painfully peeled the dress off centimeter by centimeter. This process took about ten minutes and finally I was free. I walked out of the fitting room and said to the attendant. "If you are wondering why I was in there so long- that dress is evil"

OCD

Obsessive Cullen Disorder

Yes I am obsessed with the Cullen family. Last summer I heard that a Mormon chick had written a book series about Vampires so I decided to check it out. Being both Mormon and a huge vampire fan I was extremely curious. After reading a few reviews and listening to a couple interviews with the author I bought the first book (Twilight). I was done with it by the end of the day- I quickly rushed to Target and brought home the second book (New Moon). New Moon was a bit harder for me. I found myself yelling at the main characters and throwing the book at times. Because of the distraught feelings I was having over the direction the story was taking it took me a bit longer to get through the book. I managed to suffer along and in three days I was done. I am not quite sure what I would have done if the third book (Eclipse) wasn't already out. I am not joking when I say I may have gone insane. I remember standing in the book aisle reading it and totally losing track of time. When I finally came to my senses I realized three things; A- I hadn't paid for the book, B- I was already 100 pages into it and C- I had been standing there a LONG time. Tyler had a doctor appointment that evening so I brought the book along with me. When we got out to the car he looked over at me putting in a bookmark and said, "Is that your place?" I was over half way done. I read all that night and finally went to bed about 3 in the morning finished and happy but totally ready for more. I seriously had no idea how I was going to wait for the 4th book. I dreamt about vampires for weeks. It was shortly after finishing the third book when I found out there was going to be a movie. Hearing this news gave me mixed emotions, I was both excited and scared. I had all the characters in my head and they were mine. I didn't want some producer to mess that up but on the other hand I wanted to see the books brought to life. Fast forward a year and the books have become even more popular. When the 4th book (Breaking Dawn) came out I was on vacation and couldn't buy it the second it was available. Denise and Alyssa left me messages saying they were line buying the book and Brittney sent me a text with a picture of the book. I was crazy!!! I bought it as soon as I returned to civilization and read it on my flight home. I remember being on the plane and at one point slamming the book shut and looking around to see if there was anyone I could talk to about what was happening (page 360).
Okay so now I am rambling but like I said before I am obsessed and that obsession lead me to head to the theatre a week early to buy a ticket to the midnight showing, show up at the theatre a few hours early to ensure a good seat and put a sticker on my mini-van that said OCD! I also got back at Brittney by texting her a picture of my movie ticket!
So the movie..... I can't say that I loved it. There were parts I really enjoyed and I loved the experience of being there at midnight and seeing it first but the movie was just okay for me. I thought the makeup and hair were terrible. Sometimes the vampires were pale other times they looked like they had been to the Bahamas and I swear Rosalie put food in her mouth in the cafeteria scene. I think the worst part for me was how shallow they made Edward and Bella's relationship seem when it was anything but that.
Parts I loved- I thought Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson did great. Their facial expressions were perfect and they had serious chemistry. Robert really did an excellent job making Edward everything he is supposed to be- strong- yet vulnerable, haunted, loving, tortured not to mention extremely attractive. I never thought the guy was good looking until now. The way he looked at Bella was exactly the way I pictured it in my mind. (hungry)
Jasper was beautiful but I wasn't digging the hair. Emmet was great and Alice was good too. She had the walk down perfectly. Rosalie was NOT my Rosalie. She was not pretty enough at all and I don't think the actress (Nikki or something) did a very good job. The human Highschool kids were really great. I loved Eric and Mike. And Charlie was sooooo amazing. Another thing I liked was how close they kept the dialogue to the book. I didn't want them to take any liberties and for the most part they didn't. I just wish they would have made it longer so we could see the relationship grow. That being said I will see it again and I will buy it when it comes out on DVD and I am looking forward to the New Moon movie- although I am going to have to learn self control between now and then. I don't think the other movie goers will want to hear me shouting at Bella to quit acting like a spoiled bratt or watch me throw shoes at Jacob when he comes on screen. Here are some pictures from the night. When I got home I just stayed up all night cleaning and stuff. No point going to bed for two hours.

Me and Dee waiting for the show to begin! We both broke our no soda rule so we could stay awake.

Boe being........ Boe- Josh's face says it all

Daniel and his friend. She just happened to be in the same place at the same time as us. I got to sit by her mom and she is way cool!

Alyssa and Josh. He tagged along and then fell asleep during the movie. He also almost gave us all a nervous break down on the drive home. I could have killed the kid if he wasn't doing such a good job of almost doing it himself. Crazy kid.

15 years ago today!!!!

1) What is his name?

Travis Jonathon Nelson

2) Who eats more?

Well he is always on a diet but I still think he ends up eating more then me- just less carbs

3) Who said "I love you" first?

I think I did- we were playing that game where you "write" something on the other person's back and they have to guess what you wrote. Travis taught me what love is. He loves so completely and so selflessly.

4) Who is taller?

He is by about three inches

5) Who is smarter?

Depends on which one of us you ask! LOL- I am the one the kids come to for help with their homework but I think he probably has more common sense and he can fix/build/take apart(and put back together) anything.

6) Who is more sensitive?

For the first ten or so years of our marriage it was totally him. I think that I have softened up a bit over time and he has maybe gotten a bit more stubborn but he is still very sensitive.

7) Who does the laundry?

If and when the laundry gets done its because I did it. Not to say that I keep up on it like I should and not to say he wont or never has he just doesn't have the time.

8) Who sleeps on the right side of the bed?

We switch it up

9) Who pays the bills

I do

10) Who cooks more.

Ummmm whatever restaurant we are eating at. Some friends of ours bought me a tiny frying pan to hang in my kitchen. It says in this kitchen we cook as little as possible. But in reality I would say that we both do our fair share of cooking.

11) Who is more stubborn?

Me for sure.

12) Who admits they are wrong first?

I don't think either of us is real keen on admitting when we are wrong. We don't really insist on someone saying sorry either. We just start treating each other better. We are the get over it and forget it and move on kind of people. We don't hold grudges and we don't expect each other to change or see things our way just because we said so. We accept each others differences.

13) Who has more siblings?

He has three brothers and one sister and I have three brothers and one sister.

14) Who wears the pants in the relationship

We share them. Although he is known to ask Who's your daddy?

15) What do you like to do together

We like going to the movies, hanging out playing games with friends and family, camping, bowling, shopping (well I like shopping).

16) Who eats more sweets?

Neither of us eat a lot of sweets. He buys more and the kids eat them.

17) Guilty pleasure

Me- Books and Cd's Him- Red Bull

18) How did you meet?

We were in high school- he walked by me- he had one of those wallets with the long chain that hangs down- and I was like "nice wallet"- he turned around and I was like wow that boy is cute.

We didn't technically meet that day though. I just stared at him every chance that I got.

19) Who asked out who first?

If me having someone write on his notebook for a good time call and my phone number counts then I guess I asked him out first.

20) Who proposed and how?

He proposed- We were in his backyard and we just started talking about how much we loved each other and he said he thought we should get married and I was soooo happy but we didn't like set date or anything. A few weeks later we were in the mall and he took me into a jewelry store and told me to pick out a ring. Once we had it paid off he got on his knee right there in the mall and asked me. I am sure the people around us thought it was pretty crazy seeing some teenage boy on his knee asking his equally teenage girlfriend to marry him.

21) His best features and qualities?!

Way too many to list here. He is kind, and hard-working, he is the MOST loyal person I know, he is smart and funny and the best Dad on the entire planet. I am just so grateful every day to be married to my very best friend. 16 years ago today I was wandering around in a graveyard looking for where Jimi Hendrix was buried- I can honestly say I had no idea that exactly a year later to the day I would be marrying the adorable boy that was with me. So Happy Birthday Jimi and Happy Anniversary to me and Travis!!!!

Molly- Thanksgiving and other thoughts

Man I wish I hadn't let Travis take the camera with him to Utah. A Yorkie puppy just kind of fell into our laps (and that is where she in content on staying) and man is she the cutest thing ever. As soon as Travis gets back I will post some pictures. This dog is seriously the most chill puppy ever. Kailyn named her Molly (after considering Boo and Batty). She was born on Sep 10 and is 11 weeks old. She is an only puppy- no siblings. Kailyn is completely and totally in love. The puppy is her Christmas present (slightly early I know). They are cuddled up in a chair watching a movie as I type.

I am getting ready to make some pies in preparation for Thanksgiving tomorrow. I can't wait to hang out with everyone and squeeze on baby Manon!!!! Food is sooo much better with friends.

I am soooo grateful for all my blessings and sooooo grateful for the gospel in my life and soooooo grateful for my Savior Jesus Christ- For the life He lead, the example He set and for the sacrifice that He made in my behalf. The knowledge that I have of Him brings a peace to my life that I couldn't live without.

Happy Thanksgiving Everybody!!!!!

Love

I just wanted to say how much I love reading everyone's blogs and looking at the pictures. It has been great to see what everyone is up to and how their kids/families are growing.

As for me.....
This week has been long already and its only Wednesday. Allias didn't make the school basketball team and he was way bummed. The coach told him he needed to lift weights and that he wasn't fast enough. I thought that was a little harsh. Allias actually is a really good basketball player and even the rest of the kids were shocked he didn't make it again this year. He has a hurt knee on top of everything else. We took him to the doctor and he has Osgood-Schlatters disease. It's very common but there isn't much that can be done other then ice and rest. The doctor said when he stops growing it should stop bothering him but right now its REALLY bothering him.

My job is psycho right now. We are soooo busy and its hard to stay sane. I think that part of the problem is that I get such a spiritual high every morning teaching seminary that dealing with everyone's issues and complaints at work is a HUGE let down. I did talk to this amazing woman from California yesterday. Her software had major issues so we were on the phone for about an hour and got to chat a little. She was talking about how hard it is to be a follower of Christ in California these days and how she teaches a class on Political Philosphies for her homeschool Co-Op. The course is set up to teach students what our founding fathers believed in when it came to governemnt. It sounded fascinating and I think I may purchase it. It was refreshing to talk to someone who is surrounded by the ways of the world everyday and is still trying to stand for something better.

I am looking forward to the holidays and spending time with friends and having some time off work.

Kailyn makes headlines

Travis opened the newspaper Friday evening and said hey that looks like Kailyn and sure it enough there she was right on the front page. I love that she is wearing her school t-shirt. And how cute is that inquisitive look on her face!? Maybe that is why he chose her as his volunteer. She was so excited to be on the front page that she took the paper to school with her the next day. She even signed a few autographs. It's great to be famous.

I decided to check out their website and found really cool slideshow that shows exactly what they were doing. There are some adorable shots of Kailyn in it.

Tyler started wrestling this week. He has wrestle-offs on Tuesday (for those that don't know wrestle-offs are where you wrestle everyone in your weight class to see where you will be in the lineup) and then the first tournament is on Saturday. As of right now he will wrestle 189 but that could change depending on how much weight he looses once he is excersizing again every day.

Allias has basketball tryouts on Thursday. If he makes the team he will be playing both city league and school ball this winter. He is way excited and I really really hope he makes the school team. He tried out last year and didn't make it but he has been practicing a lot and working to improve his skills so we shall see. He also got called as the Deacon's quorum president and was set apart today at church.

Travis and his scout troop did a canned food drive this weekend and I wish that I had pictures of the amount of food they collected. The food bank was totally shocked that they collected so much food in three or four hours. They donated enough food for 520 meals. I know the boys felt great about their accomplishment and its great to know that even during hard financial times there are so many good people out there willing to help those less fortunate.

Halloween!

Kailyn wanted to be something scary for Halloween again this year. We had the hardest time finding something because all the costumes were either too skanky or too expensive. We found this Spanish ballroom dress at TJ Maxx. Kailyn loved the way she could twirl in it but still really wanted to be something scary. I told her that we could totally make this dress work for a zombie bride. She was way excited because she got everything she wanted- A super scary costume with a beautiful dress. Here is the finished product. I used blue finger paint for her face. If we ever do this again I will have to work harder to convince her to let me paint her neck and hands.

I think she turned out absolutely gorgeous in a super terrifying kind of way of course. She did scare quite a few kids at her school trunk or treat and most of the teachers didn't recognize her.





She was totally concerned about being serious all the time to keep the whole scary thing going on. You can't see it in these pictures but we stenciled a red rose on one cheek and a black spider by her eye.




And WOOO HOOOO she won the best costume award for her age group at our church trunk or treat. She wanted me to win too but I got beat by a hobbit.

Behold the mother of the bride. I had a little heart on my shirt that would flash when I would walk.
We ended up not even going trick or treating on Halloween. Its weird having older kids that don't really care about it. Travis and Allias went to eighth grade band night at the high school. Allias had a blast and is totally stoked for high school band next year. Tyler was out with friends and I took Kailyn to run some errands and then she spent the night with her friend Emily. She had already loaded up on candy twice and it was FREEZING cold outside so she wasn't too disappointed that she didn't get to actually go out.

Our wedding day

Maren tagged anyone who read her blog to post a wedding picture so here is one of us. I know the coloring is terrible. I promise we weren't really pink but this is a copy of a copy of a picture. We were such babies then. 15 years later Travis is still my very best friend. I am so in love with him and so blessed to have him in my life. Marrying him definitely makes the list of top ten best decisions I have ever made in my life.

Your turn.

Family Photos

I have no idea what I am doing! Hopefully I will be able to get all these pictures on this thing. I need a blogging for dummies book or something. WOW each picture is taking like five minutes to upload. I just don't have that kind of time. Here is a link to my whole album on facebook.
our pictures
Just wanted to add that Shannon White (S&G Photography) took these pictures. She is really really good and totally affordable. If you want pictures done give her a call. (Click the little business card on the right side of my blog)