Family Pictures....

Every year I say I am going to wait to take family pictures....just because for some reason I think I will amazingly lose 50 pounds.  But obviously, the kids keep getting older and I don't lose weight....so I gave in and had our friend Amy Griner take our pictures.  She did a great job!  Here is a little preview of some of our pictures.  Happy New Year!

Talent Alert!!!

 

We Jefferies (maiden name) have quite a talent. At least WE think it's a talent! :) We pick up things with our toes, we scrub floors with our feet, we pinch with our toes, we can pick something up and toss it...you name it... I've even been known to write my name outside with sidewalk chalk with my toes. I remember as a little girl, that my mom would buy cards from a lady that painted pictures with her feet. I was determined to one day do that. Well, we shouldn't go so far as to say I can paint with my toes...and really, my name doesn't look pretty when write it outside with chalk, but still....we like to think that we are pretty cool being able to have feet that are kind of like....fingers? Ok, not like fingers, but I think you're getting the point!
So, this cute little nephew of mine, (Aaron) is pretty tricky with his little 10 month old toes. When he was at our house, he would stick them up under his high chair and now look...he's got them pulling down his car seat top. I bet we'll be famous someday! LOL just kidding.....

Red Neck Christmas!

 

Okay...this is HILARIOUS! I HAD to post this! What's funny is that there are LOTS of hunters here in Arizona. That was one of the first things I noticed when I moved here! I wondered if we would "fit in" here! I've learned about waiting for your name to be drawn for a hunt... I had no idea. When Abbie was little and would go into Tawni's house, she would act scared and say, "that reindeer is staring at me!" Now, a couple of weeks ago, she came downstairs with a backpack on. It had a sleeping bag in it and she said, "mom, this is my backpack for when I go hunting!" I asked her what hunting was, just curious to see her answer. She said, "when you go and kill animals and hang them up on your wall!"
Mercy...
We'll still stick to our sports and stuff, but we have fun watching our friends and neighbors with all their equipment, 4wheelers, bows, guns, etc. Gotta love it....

Winter Concert 2009

The kids really look forward to singing in their concerts in the winter and spring times. I can't believe they are getting so big. I was in 5th grade when I moved from Arizona to Utah and still remember how I felt. I can't believe that's Mason's age right now. They all did such a great job.

 

Of course Abbie was very animated through her concert. She loves to do all the hand signs...and of course would get a little bossy with her friends around her if they were "in her way" or not doing the right thing. She truly is a crack up! She's just very excited about life and likes to be "in charge!"

 

Eli is into wearing his sleeves up. Jackets or suits, doesn't matter, that seems to be his style. He did a great job at the concert too. There was a funny song about sneezing and their noses running and he just kept cracking up during the song. He's a joy to have in our family.

 

Mason got to play the drums for one of the songs. It's fun because they let different kids do solos or little groups during the songs. They really get exposed to many things at this school. I love it! Mason did a great job.

 

Tamales for Christmas!!

Our neighbor RIta offered to come over and teach us to make tamales. What a nice neighbor, huh? Just one more reason to like living here....

The Husks...

 

The spicy meat inside. This is a pork roast...and then she added these pepper things and smashed them into the meat. Kinda spicey...just how they like it. ME? I'm a wimp...can't do it spicey so much. But it's still a good thing to learn...

 

The Masa...I think that's how they call it. It's the corn stuff. And she adds some of that spicey stuff into the masa too. My nose and eyes are starting to run just thinking about spicey.... am I spelling spicey right?

 

....Now they are ready to be steamed for 45 minutes.....

 

Davey is a quick learner!

 

Rita is a good teacher!

 

Thank you Rita! We love you! I forgot to get a picture of us eating them...but they were delish! It was a crazy night...we were on our way to the kids' Christmas concert...something I'll blog about soon....:)

 

Santa Came to our Park and Brought a LITTLE snow too!

As you can tell from my last post...I feel like I have too much going on...but this morning I am determined to get a little caught up. Last weekend, our Neighborhood had Santa come and he even brought a little snow! It was kind of funny, because at first, since we don't get snow here in Mesa, everyone was just excited about the snow. Poor Santa was just sitting in the chair waiting for kids to come and talk to him. The kids didn't seem to mind that there were just 2 hills worth of snow dumped, they got as creative as they could and got out their tubes and such and tried to enjoy it while it lasted!

 

Here's Abbie with her friends Elyza and Kiersten making snowballs and sliding down the hill with a tube!

 

Go Mason! How fun to snowboard down a 3 foot hill! Hey, at least they are having fun, right?

 

Eli, Schuyler and Mason making a snowman after most of the kids had left the park. It sorta doesn't look like snow anymore, huh?

 

We LOVE this neighborhood. Couldn't ask for better friends and neighbors to live by! They have really become like family to us!

 

Of course it wouldn't be complete without putting in a picture or two of my favorite baby in Arizona, Henry. He knows I love him and so he wanted to hang out with me for a while. HOw cute is that?

 

So, most kids LOVE to visit Santa and want to make sure they tell him what they want for Christmas. Abbie on the other hand has ALWAYS been afraid of him! She just starts to shake! We have NEVER gotten her to even get close to Santa. She will keep a good 4 or 5 feet away and just stare at him. For some reason, this year we were able to coax her into going and sitting on his lap. Her facial expressions let you know she's still not so sure about it, but she did it! Now, you can see he is really YOUNG. Maybe the younger ones aren't as scary? I'm just glad we actually got her to overcome another fear....

 

Such a fun day! Merry Christmas! I love this picture of my kids. I feel so grateful to be their mom!

The Influence of a Righteous Woman!

It is so easy to feel a little overwhelmed during this Christmas Season. I find myself feeling like I am spread so thin and have so much I want to accomplish and BE....I find myself comparing my weaknesses to others strengths. With that said, I know those feelings come from Satan. He really doesn't want us to progress or help anyone around us. So, tonight I went to www.lds.org to look for some guidance and peace and found this quote by Elder Dieter F. Utchdorf.

"As you live up to this mission, in whatever life circumstance you find
yourself—as a wife, as a mother, as a single mother, as a divorced woman, as a widowed or a single woman—the Lord our God will open up responsibilities and blessings far beyond your ability to imagine.

May I invite you to rise to the great potential within you. But don’t reach beyond your capacity. Don’t set goals beyond your capacity to achieve. Don’t feel guilty or dwell on thoughts of failure. Don’t compare yourself with others. Do the best you can, and the Lord will provide the rest. Have faith and confidence in Him, and you will see miracles happen in your life and the lives of your loved ones. The virtue of your own life will be a light to those who sit in darkness, because you are a living witness of the fulness of the gospel (see D&C 45:28). Wherever you have been planted on this beautiful but often troubled earth of ours, you can be the one to “succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees” (D&C 81:5).

My dear sisters, as you live your daily life with all its blessings and challenges, let me assure you that the Lord loves you. He knows you. He listens to your prayers, and He answers those prayers, wherever on this world you may be. He wants you to succeed in this life and in eternity."