Fastest photo shoot ever

Doug and Tara (Allisa's sister) wanted their pictures taken the weekend Mya got baptized and it was so cold.  But, we did take a few pictures even though we were all freezing.  Poor kids, they were such troopers.

Nakia's family

What a crazy Thanksgiving!!!!

I will post some pictures when I download them.  I am just really thankful for my family and that Ray is feeling better.  I am also thankful for good friends.  This week should be a continuation of the craziness, but I guess I wouldn't know how to handle life if everything ran smoothly all the time.  Thanks again to everyone for your prayers and everything else.

Halloween

So, I put these pictures on here the other day and didn't have time to write anything with them.  Well, I am at the hospital with Ray right now and I have a little time on my hands, so I am going write something now.  I wish I had my sd card and I could update through today, but just my luck.

For Halloween, Kinlee went to the sugar city trunk or treat with Nakia and I watched baby Gaven.  I know I really got the sweet end of that deal!!  Then we went to moms house for dinner.  I just barely noticed when I posted this picture that Ben is holding Lydia up in the background.  He is always good for some kind of laugh during picture time. 

Baby Gaven with mom, isn't he so cute!!  He had the worst cough and he didn't have a voice, he had this really quiet sad voice when he cried.  Broke my heart.

Grandpa just loves me when I take his picture.  I know I have said this before, but he likes it even more when I post his picture on the internet.  The good thing about that is he doesn't ever read my blog so he doesn't know he is on here unless someone else tells him.  So mums the word.

What cute people I have in my life!!

Jerika's performances

Can you see Jerika in this picture?  Doesn't she look thrilled?

Here is Jerika's new high school and below is the auditorium - it is huge.

This is the singing group that she is in at Madison that she had to try out for.  I think she likes it and in December they are going to Utah to perform.  I am pretty sure I get to go with them, so that will be fun....for me anyway.  Jerika said she wants me to go too and she knows it will be much more fun if I am going. LOL

This is her solo performance for her voice class.  She sings so well, but really quietly, so it was pretty hard to hear her.  But, she did it next time I am going to put the microphone much closer to her mouth while she is singing.  I am quite certain with that little threat on the table she will make sure she sings as loud as I know she can, because she does at home frenquently.

Place clever heading here.....

So as I was surfing other blogs today, I was thinking, wow they are behind, they are just posting Halloween pictures.  Well, guess what I am even behinder than that.  So, I thought I better update my blog so I am not so far behind.  Also while I was reading other blogs, it kind of made me jealous that I am not clever with my words.  I can talk a mean talk, but when it comes to writing things down, I could be much more witty, but this is what you get.

This is Jerika and Sam.  I am pretty sure this is the first time introducing Sam on here.  He is Jerika's "friend".  She says he is her best friend and we haven't quite figured out yet what that means.  All I know is there is a whole bunch less drama when she hangs out with him than other girls.  But, it also makes me a little nervous too.  But, we like him and he has been good for her.

Kinlee didn't want to carve pumpkins, she didn't feel very well.  But, in looking at this picture now, I am thinking maybe she was faking.  Jerika and Sam went to get the pumpkins and they got her one too, however, this is not a time honored tradition in our home.  As a matter of fact I think we have only carved pumpkins one other time, so maybe she just didn't care one way or the other.

This was the other pumpkin and I am not sure how we did it, but we convinced Ray to carve it and he was such a good sport (at least according to the pictures I am posting, I didn't post the other ones where he didn't look very happy about his task.)

One of these days I am going to figure out why my chin looks red and blotchy in every picture I am in.  I really can't see those blotches in the mirror and if anyone else has noticed them in person, I wish you would tell me, at least then I would know they are really there in real life.

We all did have fun (I had fun watching).  And it was fun to spend some time with Sam.

Girls Day Out

Whenever Christopher & Banks in the mall has a sale, at least one of us get a personal phone call letting us know about it.  Well, this one was the best phone call........50% off the entire store..... and even better, only the people that got the call knew about the sale for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.  So, mom, Nakia, KaReena and I went to the mall Monday morning and checked out the sale.  I took the day off, KaReena went in late, Ben went in late to work so that Nakia could go with us and since mom is retired, she was totally willing, eager and ready. 

We had one of the bought something at one of those little stores in the middle of the mall, so the guy was totally willing to take our picture.  Then after shopping we went to lunch at Panda Express.  It was such a fun day and I think between all of us we saved at least $200.00 which made it all worth while.

THANKS GUYS IT WAS SO MUCH FUN!!  LOVE YA

POW WOW

Kinlee is in 5th grade this year and is learning about indians.  So the other day they had a pow wow and the parents were invited.  They sang and danced and told interesting facts about the indians that were assigned to them.  Kinlee's were the Southwest Indians and they did a really good job.  Grandma Sharp got to come too, since she is retired, she gets to come to a lot more of the things the kids do.  And thank goodness for that since Ray isn't usually home I don't have to go alone. 

I really think it is crazy how our little premie baby turned into one of the tallest kids in her grade.  It isn't just in her class, it really is the whole grade.  She said there are a couple of boys that are taller than her, but that is it.  I am just thankful she ended up being a healthy kid, we had our doubts when she was a baby for sure.  Grandma also brought her the indian dress for her to wear, thank goodness for Grandma!  It was fun for us to go watch.  Kinlee is doing pretty good in school, she is still struggling with her reading, but other than that she is getting pretty good grades!!

Goodbye Young Women

This activity was my last Tuesday night activity after I got released.  We had already planned to take the girls' pictures I just happened to be the one taking the pictures, so I got to to one last time.  There were only half of our laurels there, so these are are just pictures of 6 of them.

Kristen, Kylie, Lily, Allyson, Rachel & Tia...we are missing Jerika, Kristina, Rebekah, Amy, Mary and Hailey.  It would have been perfect if they could have all been there, but we had a blast anyway.

I miss all of them really bad and I miss my calling too.  It has been really hard to have to walk away, I love those girls like they are my own, but all good things must come to an end.  And I feel like they loved all of us leaders too, so I think we accomplished what we needed to while we were there.  I also love the ladies I worked with, but I think I already mentioned that too in a previous post.  It was such a huge blessing and I am thankful I was able to serve. 

On Sunday they called me as a Sunbeam teacher, so that should be an interesting turn of events.