Caught Ya!

The other day I caught Sawyer snuggling on the couch with Maddie's pink monkey slippers on! Silly Boy!

Trunk or Treat

Our ward Halloween party was on Saturday. It was great letting the kids wear their costumes a little early this year. I was running around last minute getting the final touches and pieces to their costumes. I didn't get very many good pictures since it was dark but I'll get more on Halloween.
Carter and Sawyer- Super Mario Brothers
Maddie- Elizabeth Swann (from Pirates of the Caribbean)

Yes on 8!

Here in California we have been working very hard for the Yes on 8 campaign. It has been pretty exciting to be part of something so big and to be able to stand up for what is right. Our prophet has asked us to do all we can to get this proposition passed so that only Marriage between a man and a woman will be recognized in California. Many say that we are teaching our children to hate and not being tolerant. They fail to look beyond the surface. This isn't about equal rights as Gays and Lesbians already have the same civil rights as married couples in our state. It is about forcing us to accept and embrace their lifestyle. If this passes our children will be taught about Gay marriage in our schools, the opposition says it has nothing to do with schools but it is already happening in Massachusetts where Gay marriage is legal. There will be law suits and churches can be sued if they don't agree to marry a same sex couple. The line has to be drawn somewhere for the sake of our families. It is so sad that we have to explain to our young children what this is all about, but it is so important that they understand we are standing tall and standing up for what we believe in.

On Saturday I took the kids up to the street corner near our home to wave our "Yes on 8" signs (Along with many other ward members). What a wonderful experience to be like Captain Moroni and stand for what we believe in. Our kids loved it and chanted "YES on 8" Many people honked and cheered for us but there were some who had unkind things to say which was hard. One woman looked right at me and said, "You are teaching your children Hatred". That was hard but I have to remember that the adversary is working very hard against us. Those who disagreed did not do so kindly they had a vengeance and anger about them. Maddie kept a notepad with her and counted all the honks for yes votes and the people screaming (or flipping us off) as a no vote. (She took a tally for about 20 minutes and got bored) Here is her tally, I thought it was cute.

Well said

Nie Nie Dialogues

If you haven't already heard about this amazing family watch this video and visit their blog. nieniedialogues.blogspot.com Stephanie Nielson is a famous blogger and inspired so many mothers across the world to love being a mother and a wife and to find joy in all the small things. Sadly she and her husband were in a plane crash on August 17, 2008 and suffered severe burns. Stephanie has over 80% of her body burned. They are both hospitalized and in critical condition. Just visit their blog and also her sisters blog cjanerun.blogspot.com (who is caring for 3 of their 4 children) and you'll be inspired by their lives and how through this tragedy 1,000's of people have come together to help them and the most wonderful part is that it is those who have come to know them that are blessed.

I don't know them personally but Stephanie is actually my second cousin on my dad's side. (Her Mother is my Dad's cousin) Since Mormon families are so huge I don't know many of my second cousins. I have been enthralled by reading her posts and what kind of woman she is. In a world where motherhood is looked down upon she makes motherhood the most noble and wonderful career one can find. We can all be blessed by their story.

Bright and Early

This morning was absolutely beautiful! The sun was bright, the sky was blue and the air was crisp and very cool. It was about 60 degrees this morning and just lovely. Maddie had a soccer game as usual, this time at 8:00 am. A bit too early for my liking but that was okay because once we got outside it was just perfect.

Maddie did very well and had lots of fun. She played defense the entire game and even got to play goalie for one quarter. She was excited about that because she hadn't had the chance yet. She stayed right inside the goal and got her hair caught in the net twice! It was too cute!


Meanwhile Sawyer and Carter ran around and played with some other boys. Sawyer and Carter are so different. Carter came home as clean as a whistle, he does not like to get dirty. If he does get dirty he wants to be cleaned off as soon as possible. Sawyer on the other hand was slinging mud and just loving it. We had to strip him down to his diaper before we got in the car.


It was a great day at the soccer field!

Pumpkin Patch

For family night we went to the pumpkin patch. We don't live near any "real" pumpkin patches so the street corner one had to suffice. They have little rides and a big slide that the kids love. They also had a petting zoo which was really cute. It was a great way to get in the fall spirit.

Vote Yes on Prop 8