Great Christmas Pictures

I just learned how to take these great pictures with my camera -- which we have owned for almost 4 years. :) So I played around a little with our Christmas tree and the ornaments the kids got this year. Thought I'd share!

Fun with the Kids

Tyler's favorite Christmas movie is the Polar Express. He likes to recreate a scene or two with his own trains. This is from when the Polar Express is sliding over the ice.



I don't think I need to give any explanation for this one! Just one question -- when was the last time you could do this? LOL

Breakfast with Santa

Every year our ward has a breakfast with Santa. It's so much fun to see the kids' excitement when he first comes in the room, and then have them shy away from him when he greets them!

Tyler asked for a "big train." He's been begging for these electric trains at Hobby Lobby. Sooo not going to happen this year -- just too expensive for what he would do to them -- but he asks anyway, and we go see them every time we go to that store. As we were in line, Tyler turned to me and said, "Mom, I'm going to say, 'Santa, may I please have the big trains?' And then he will say 'Yes, Tyler, you may.' And then we have to go to the store to buy them." That's when I informed him that even Santa has to ask Mom and Dad for permission to buy a toy!



Adeline fell asleep while we were in line, but I couldn't let her first Christmas pass without a picture with the big guy, so here she is sound asleep -- and notice playing with Santa's "hair." LOL LOL



Here's Dad flipping some pancakes with another member of the bishopric and Santa pre the big red suit -- umm..I mean Brother Hayes!

Secret Talent?

According to our experts your secret talent is :

You are a karaoke champion

http://www.QuizTank.com/what-is-your-secret-talent-quiz.html

Christmas Cards 2007

Here are our cards for the year. Some of you got a green card, and some of you got a red one! And for those who did not get one at all...send me your address, and I can add you to the list for next year! :)

Playing Santa

Okay, so I totally love playing Santa for my kids. I love to see their excitement when they get the Santa present. But I find it so stressful just deciding what to have Santa bring! It's even more complicated when I get my hubby's opinion! LOL Not that I don't want it -- love you, honey -- but, having too many Santas in this family is really hard! Plus, Tyler has a birthday in February. So, usually what we decide not to get him for Christmas we get him for his birthday -- or at least have it on the list for others. Oh my word. I had not idea it was this hard! And I haven't even begun to think about little Adeline! What in the word do I get a 5/6 month old?! So anyway. I am off to make lists and more lists. Wish me luck!

Kid Happenings

Tyler is growing up so fast! He is becoming more and more interested in reading and writing. Instead of drawing pictures -- which he never was really into -- he writes stories. I'll post one of his latest, but it'll have to wait until later. He's still such a great big brother. Oh, he has his moments, but honestly, I have it pretty easy with him.


Adeline has been growing like crazy! She tries to pull her knees under her while on her tummy, and she's figured out how to wiggle herself enough, while on her back, to go after something. I've already had to talk to Tyler about keeping his toys put away if he doesn't want Addie to get them. He freaks out any time he sees her with one of his cars in her mouth! She's also sitting up very well on her own. She still leans forward sometimes, but she's getting much better. And she would much rather sit than lie down. For about 2 months now she's been lifting her head up and doing some tummy crunches trying to sit up. When she can't get up she'll throw a tantrum all because she wants to sit up! She has also developed an I'm-mad-and-frustrated yell! It's so much fun seeing her little personality come out. She has a strong personality!

We tried cereal for the first time last week. You can tell from the pictures that it wasn't her favorite thing!

Putting up the Tree

We put up our tree last week, too. Today I'm getting the rest of the decorations up. Tyler has been getting his fill -- and mine -- of Christmas movies this week! I'm okay with the over viewing of these because I know in a month they'll go back into the box for another year! :)

My Grandma Ensign gave each grandchild an ornament each year for Christmas until we were 18. Then the next Christmas, she gave us own ornament storage box to keep them in. Since my mom is now Grandma Ensign, she's decided to carry on the tradition.

Here's Tyler and his ornament this year.

Here is Adeline putting up her first ornament.

Tyler was given a train last year. He calls it his Polar Express train.

Putting on the star.

Thanksgiving

I'm a little slow this week getting things posted. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! We went to my parents' with another family. It was small, but nice. I didn't pictures of people, however -- I was too busy dealing with children, I think.

Dad carving the bird.

Look at all that yummy food!

Adeline and her Uncle Alan.

Shirley Jones

Mom and I went to see Shirley Jones last night! She had a small concert at one of the colleges. She sang a few medleys of songs from musicals she's done, and a few other classics. She has performed in every Roger & Hammerstein musical -- some on Broadway and some in films. She told us a little about herself. She's 74, has never had a face lift & will not retire until she falls off the stage!

It was amazing to be that close to someone so talented, and someone who had such an impact on me. Watching her in "Oklahoma" is what made me want to sing when I was little. I remember going around the house singing "Oh, What a Beautiful Morning!" :) I hadn't realized it before, but in nearly every voice recital, and even for my senior solo in H.S., I sang a Roger & Hammerstein song! I knew all the words to a lot of the songs -- and wanted to break out and sing with her!

It was so nice to go to a concert like this where I didn't have to worry about lyrics or crude humor. She even made the comment that the songs today are terrible that way. She signed autographs after the show. Mom & I both got her autograph! I was within hugging distance from her -- and I wanted to so badly! LOL I walked away from that concert with such a good feeling. It was definitely one of those "praiseworthy or of good report" occasions. She is a real classy lady, and I'm so glad we went.

Oh, I was also one of the youngest in the audience! LOL

What cookie are you?

What flavor are you?

Christmas Stories & Fire Drills

I've always wanted a collection of Christmas stories we can read as we count down with our advent calendar. I wanted them to be stories from the Church magazines or leaders. So last night I spent some time searching online for stuff to use. I decided to use stories from The Friend since I have 2 little ones at home -- I thought they might enjoy them more. I found quite a few of them through the Church's website & at eprimary.dk under "holidays."

Tonight for our FHE lesson, I had us do a fire drill. I talked to Tyler about emergencies and that we need to have a plan in case we have to leave our house in an emergency. We talked about our "safety buddies." So, when both parents are home, we each have a child as our buddy. Then we decided on a well lighted meeting place in case we get separated. Then I set a times for a couple minutes, and we went about doing our thing. When the "fire alarm" went off we got our "buddies" and headed out the door. We all walked to our meeting place. Okay, it seems kinda cheesy, but I feel so much better knowing that we know what to do in case of an emergency. And Tyler was great. At first he was nervous and didn't understand why we had to do it, but then afterwards he got it. My next step is to have our 72-hour kits part of the drill too. We'll probably do this every so often so we can really be confident that Tyler knows what to do. If you haven't done something like this with your family, I highly recommend it!

Let's Say Thanks

Let's Say Thanks

I've used this website before, and just recently was reminded of it. It's sponsored by Xerox. And I think it's a great way to show support for our troops all over the world. I have a couple cousins, and a cousin-in-law who are a part of the arms services, and 2 brothers who are looking to join in some way after high school. They sacrifice everything so we can continue to have the freedoms we enjoy. I cannot even begin to express my gratitude for all they do for us as a nation.

This Morning

So this morning started out just fine. I got Dallin to work on time, got home in time to feed & dress both kids, and still have a little bit of wiggle room before needing to leave the house to drop the kids off while I went to work.

It was 8:30, and I told Tyler he needed to get off the computer & get his shoes on. He came waddling back to my room, and said, "Mom, I wet my pants." UGH!!! Really, Tyler? Okay, no big deal. So, I take him into the bathroom and help him get his wet pants off. As I'm taking off his pants, he starts going on the floor! So, I run him over to the toilet, and then go get some clean clothes -- after cleaning up the bathroom floor. I didn't get his wet things off before having to run him over to the toilet, so now I'm trying to do that as quickly as possible. I then notice that he started to poop in his underwear. And because I didn't know that before I tried taking the wet things off, he now has it all over his leg.

So, I get the pants & underwear off, and do what I can with the underwear before leaving for work. Then I hear, "Mom, I need to go poopies." Ya think? So I plop him down on the seat, run out to get the wipes cuz I know this is going to be messy, and grab the phone to call my boss to let her know I don't know when I'll be in to work -- oh, and to call my friend who was watching them today. I start to call my boss, and after about the 4th ring -- when the voice mail would pick up -- my phone turns off. Low battery.

Ok. We'll just go as fast as we can. So, then as Tyler's finishing on the toilet, I'm cleaning off his legs & oh yeah, the toilet because...well you get it. So, he finishes, I get him dressed, and we head out the door only 20 minutes later (8:50) than my intended ETD. I get both kids outside, and started out to the car, and Tyler says, "Mom, the bus is here!" The bus.

We have 2 handicapped gentlemen in our complex who are in wheelchairs and who take the city bus every morning. I know I'm running late when the bus gets there. Normally, not a big deal. Sometimes, though, it parks right behind me, and I can't leave until it does. Today was one of those days. Now remember these guys are in wheelchairs, so they take the bus with the wheelchair lift -- and it takes time. So after getting my kids in the car, I then had to sit there for 3 to 5 minutes waiting for the bus to move. Now granted, the driver & the CNA's are really nice about trying to hurry when someone comes out to their car -- usually me at this time -- but it still takes time, that I've already lost because my son forgot he's potty trained!

I finally got the kids dropped off, did a quick "here's the deal" speil, and headed off to work. And can you believe it? People had the audacity to be on the road when I was in a hurry!!! The nerve! I should just be able to put up a sign or lights or something on my car that lets all other drivers know I'm a stressed out mom late for work AGAIN because she can't get her kids out the door in the mornings without incident! I need to be like Fezzic -- "Everybody MOVE!" When I got to work, I told my boss what had happened that morning. She then shared with me her morning -- also dealt with poop -- and I think we came out just about even -- she came in just before I did this morning. Phew.

Tag..You're It!

Okay, I'm tagging Jamie & Chelsea -- those are the only other bloggers I know who haven't been tagged with this one.

I've Been Tagged...Thanks, Shelley

Here are the rules:
A. Each player lists 6 facts/habits about themselves.
B. At the end of the post, the player then tags 6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog, for these rules.

1. In high school I was the sports editor for our yearbook. I designed the layout for every sports page, was the copy editor for all the articles & sotries going into the sports section, and I wrote several stories of my own. At Ricks, I wrote for the yearbook -- yep in sports. My biggest reason for writing for sports? To meet cute guy athletes. Yup. There is it in black & white.

2. I have played the piano since I was 5. I'm now 28.

3. I'm always nervous leaving my children with a sitter -- even my parents. I'm not worried about the kids so much anymore as I am worried about what my kids will do to the sitter! LOL And I have the most wonderful and easy children so I don't know why I worry so much!

4. I always wanted a big sister/brother, but never had one. So, I tried to be the kind of big sister/brother that I always wanted. I don't know that I've succeeded very well in that area, especially since I was a bully to my younger siblings. Swirlies anyone? :)

5. I love maps. I like to imagine what it must be like to live somewhere -- what the people are like, what it looks like, etc. I think the best part about being a General Authority in the Church would be to visit people & places all over the world!

6. I have a hard time reading a fiction book more than once. I read fiction books mostly to find out how they end, but once I do, I have a hard time reading them again -- I know how it ends. But, I'm not like this with movies. I can watch movies over again until I can quote them from beginning to end.

I don't know who to tag yet. I'll have to go see who has been tagged already. I'll post it later.

Better late than never

I'm late sharing these pictures of Halloween. I'm sure you'll all forgive me!

Shawano, Wisconsin

We just returned from a quick weekend trip to Shawano, WI. It was a 1 yr. birthday party for my niece, Adrienne -- Stacy's little girl. Here are some cute pictures.









We had a great time. It's always nice to get away, even it's a 4 hour drive to get there! On the way to Shawano we go through Oshkosh. I don't know how many of you have been through Oshkosh, but it has a TON of outlet stores! And every time we drive past these outlet stores we always say, "One of these times we're going to have to make time to stop & do some shopping." I don't think that is ever going happen! LOL What we are going to have to do is just make a trip to Oshkosh just to see Oshkosh!

Both kids did wonderfully on the trip -- I have the best kids ever! That makes traveling as a family a lot more enjoyable.

Taking the Plunge

Everyone starts their blogs by saying how much they didn't want to have a blog, but they're now jumping on the band wagon and starting a blog. I, on the other hand, started a blog, then deleted it because no one was into it then, and then just started up another.

This is a blog I am starting to help us keep in contact with our friends. We have family websites through myfamily.com, and I will continue to post there as well. So this is mostly a friend's website, though our families are invited to view this blog, I don't think there will much posted here that is not posted on our family websites.

That being said, welcome to the Eggett Family blog! Hope you enjoy, and we hope to hear from you too!