Christmas!

 My Momma sitting in her comfy chair on Christmas morning.

 Dave and Sasha.  My mom made Sasha the beautiful quilt.  Sasha also received pearl earrings and a necklace from my sister and her husband. 

 Rex and my Mom

 Rex, Granny, Sasha, and Jayson !

What a great looking group of folks.

 

Dave and I.  We actually took a good picture together.  

 

Our family:  Jayson, Dave, Sasha and Me.  Sarah didn't come over, so she was missing. 

  

Me, Rex, my sister Pam, and Mom

     We had a great Christmas this year.  We had the Mathison clan over on Christmas Eve.  It was a lot of fun.  Alice, Ken, Debbie, Trevor, Brianna, Don, Liza, Rosemary, Billy ( Rose's boyfriend) and our family was all there.  We ate prime rib, mashed potatoes, sweet carrots, fruit salad, and these amazing rolls.

     On Christmas morning, we opened our presents then visited our friends the Hoeppner's for about 45 minutes.  Then we headed off to my mom's house for the day and dinner.  It was a great time there too.  Dinner was delicious.  I always love spending time with the family.  

 

Ramblings and such

      I am officially on vacation mode even though I am not taking time off until the 23rd.  I don't know why I feel different, but I do.  I have too many things to do on my "to do" list, but after they are all done, I will feel totally ready to be "Christmas Ready".  I know, it shouldn't be hard to enjoy the real reason for the season. Christ is who I adore, and celebrating his birth, even though it didn't actually happen on December 25, is really a fun time.  I love the Carols and hymns  that help me feel the Spirit. I went to two concerts this week.  Jayson had his band concert on Wednesday and Sasha had her choir concert last night ( Thursday).
     Jayson's band concert was amazing. Those kids have such talent.  Most have only been performing a year or less.  They are proud of themselves and they have more courage than I ever did at their age.  Their teacher expects them to be in small groups to perform small musical numbers.   Like I would have ever though of doing that when I was in 7th grade.  Those kids eat it up.   And they are actually good.  Jayson is playing Baritone this year so it is like he is a beginning student.  The only difference is that he knows how to read music, but just has to learn the fingerings for the Baritone because he decided to learn the bass cleff version instead of the treble cleff version. 
     Sasha is an amazing singer.  She sings alto and I love to hear her talented harmonic voice.  She can hear harmonies even if there aren't any...she puts them in anyway and I LOVE it. They sang many Christmas carols.  I love that he choir director believes in Christmas and isn't afraid to have the kids sing those songs. 
     I am blessed to have music in my life.  Without it....my happiness would be less ...happy!

I got an A+

I just found out my grade for this past quarter at school.  I took a Children and Art class and loved it a lot.  It was neat finding out the many ways that art helps children with the many aspects of their lives.  It was a fun class but it had a lot of work.  I earned 511 out of 500 points....so I maxed out the points and then some.  Yippee Skippee.  Now....on to the next quarter that starts on January 6th.  Anthropology, here I come!

We have Christmas Lights!!

For the first time in several years, we have Christmas lights. Dave and Jayson surprised me a few days ago and this is what they did. We even put blue lights up in honor of the 4 Police from Lakewood that died a year ago. Doesn't it look nice?

Black Friday Shopping

Sasha "modeling" at Old Navy!

My two lovelies at Old Navy. Gotta love the sisterly love!

Sarah and Monica at breakfast!

Sandy, Heather, and I at breakfast.

Monica and Tessa.....

Sasha posing again!.

Went shopping at 0330 on Black Friday. I met the Behm's and Tessa at Target. We had to wait till 0400 til the doors opened. It was a lot of fun. We went to Denny's for breakfast although none of us actually ordered breakfast. The Behm's and Tessa were up all night waiting in lines, so everyone was hungry. I can't tell you what I bought because too many people would read it and know what they are getting for Christmas. Overall, we had a great time.

Dangerous Dishes

Five stitches total !

Getting stitches

All numb...no more pain!

Swollen and gross. What a stupid thing. Washing dishes us dangerous! I will NEVER do them again!

I was washing dishes this morning and decided to wash the kerosene lantern thing. Well...that turned out to be dumb. I had my hand around the glass and was swishing the rag inside when it busted all over the place and sliced my hand really deep. I immediately knew it was big and deep and I needed to get to the hospital. Of course, I wasn't dressed, so Sasha had to help me get dressed, put on my bra, put my shoes on, all while trying to NOT get blood on her everywhere. I called my great friend Amy Paulson, and she came right over and drove me to St. Clare Hospital. From the time that I walked in to the ER till the time that I left was 48 minutes. They were super fast and very efficient. I ended up with 5 stitches. So...the good part of this is that I cannot get it wet for 7-10 days...which means NO CLEANING OF THANKSGIVING DISHES! Hallelujah!

Hail, Sleet, and other gross winter stuff!

This is what happened at 0115 this morning. Dave and I have a west facing window in our bedroom adjacent to our bed. The wind and hail woke me up bright and early this morning. Dave was just getting home from work, so he braved the weather and took a picture of this. The hail was hitting the window so hard, I honestly thought that it would break. I said a silent prayer of protection for our home, then dozed off to sleep. I have a feeling this winter will be a doozie for sure. It was on 36 degrees when I woke up....Brrrrrr

God Can Use Everyone

This is something that came across my desk several years ago and I have always kept it. It is great to remember.

Noah was a drunk. Abraham was too old. Isaac was a daydreamer, Jacob was a liar. Leah was ugly. Joseph was abused and was hated by his brothers. Moses stuttered. Gideon was afraid. Sampson was a womanizer and had long hair. Rahab was a prostitute. Jeremiah and Timothy were too young. David had an affair and was a murderer. Elijah was suicidal. Isaiah preached naked. Jonah ran from God. Naomi was a widow. Job went bankrupt. John the Baptist ate bugs. Peter denied Christ. The Disciples fell asleep while praying. Martha worried about everything. The Samaritan woman was divorced...more than once. Zaccheus was too small. Paul was too religious. Timothy had an ulcer...and Lazarus was DEAD.

No more excuses now! God can use us to our full potential. Besides, we aren't the message...but only the messenger. God ROCKS!

Learning Chess

Dave is teaching Jayson how to play chess. I can't tell you how many times Dave has tried to teach me how to play chess to no avail. No matter how many times he tries, I am too stupid to learn this complex game. As far as I am concerned, I think that chess should be played like checkers. Anyway...here's to Jayson's successful learning chess. At least he has a great teacher. Grandma Alice hand painted the chess pieces when she made ceramics. So, this is a special game.

Jayson's Court of Honor

L to R: Ron Hjelm, Scoutmaster, Jayson and Dave

Ron Hjelm, Jayson hugging Dave

The Three Amigos. These boys are in the same church class and Scout class. They are from Left to Right: Stephen Grow, Kirkham Dooley, and Jayson Mathison. What fine boys we have that will lead us .

L to R: Mike Pope and Dave Mathison
These men have led many of the Young Men in Scouting.

Last night Jayson had his Court of Honor. He received his Star Rank. He is progressing nicely toward his Eagle Award. I couldn't make it to this ceremony because I had school, but I know he did wonderful. I am so proud of him and his accomplishments. I know that I am really partial, but this favorite son of my is awesome. And yes...I can honestly say that he is my favorite son, especially since he is my only one. I love him and I am really proud of him. Keep up the great work. I love ya, Buddy!

Rain

I love the rain. I love waking up to it, and hearing it smack into my windows. Rain makes me feel all cozy because, as a stay at home mom, that means that I can wrap up in a warm sweater, then build a fire in the wood stove right before my family comes home from their day. Rain also means that there will be a big pot of hot simmering soup for dinner. Tonight's dinner will be homemade potato soup. Nummy. Bring on the RAIN!

Nieces and Nephew

Stephanie Anne and Stephanie Rose. My beauties!

Stephanie Hughes and her brother Andrew Hoffman who was just back from Iraq in the Coast Guard. Welcome home, Buddy.

You are invited to a Sewing Bee!

On Saturday, October 23rd, 2010 from 1-5pm, you are invited to come to my house and sew. You can bring either something to finish, something new to create, or just come to visit and enjoy your friends. I will provide the pop and tables to work on. Please bring your machine, and an extension cord. Leave a comment if you need directions or my phone number and I will get it for you. It will be a lot of fun.

Mid Term test already

Just a quick post about midterms. They are tomorrow already. I feel that I just started school and now I am half way done. Good grief...where does the time go. ( My keyboard is all messed up and will not allow me to use a question mark, quote marks and it will make various Portuguese markings.) Any idea on how to fix my keyboard...

I went to college for this!!!

This is a picture of what I did in my college class for tonight. I am taking a Children and Art class, so tonight we got to finger paint. We "painted" with all sorts of gooey gross stuff...shaving cream, flour/water, corn starch/water, liquid starch, chocolate pudding....it was fun... but it was a pain in the rear to clean up.

Getting rid of JUNK!

Do you ever get in one of "those" moods? Well, this weekend, found me in just that state of mind. I managed to start going through the junk that has accumulated in our room. These are the first four boxes of books, clothes, old stuff, purses, etc. that are headed for the Deseret Industries. I have a lot more to go, but it certainly made a nice difference in my corner. So....here's for more days where I can de clutter.

Sasha doesn't have BRACES!

Sasha is so GORGEOUS! Look at that pretty smile!

Sasha and her orthodontist, Dr. Andrew Leavitt
(It was nerd day at his office)

Today was a monumental day in our lives. Sasha had her braces removed after having them on for two years. I love her pretty smile. That smile is worth $6,100 bucks....although I prefer to think of it as her million dollar smile. Now....let's hope she remembers to wear her retainer like she is supposed to so it will not have all been in vain.

An Exciting thing is happening today!

I can't tell you yet, but a wonderful and exciting thing is going to be happening this afternoon. Check back later for pictures and a new post.

Monday Moment

One of my beautiful Brazilian friends has this thing on her blog that I just love. Every Monday, people post something about their Monday....good, bad, or indifferent. She challenged us to write something on our own blogs, then link it to hers.

Here is my Monday Moment. This morning started out like most other Mondays...wake up at the butt crack of dawn to make sure that my teenager gets up and out the door for Seminary. Then I took a shower, then went down to welcome the little one to my daycare. When my son got up for school he asked me if he could make my breakfast for me. Of course, I said YES!. Jayson is 12 and loves cooking...whether it be for himself or someone else. I was so tickled that he would want to make my breakfast.

So, how could I have anything other than a fabulous day? I love him. He is a great boy. Someday he will make a great husband.

Online Tutorials

I have been spending a lot of my free time lately on the computer watching online tutorials of just about everything. Sewing, quilting, re-purposing things, organizing, ....you name it. I think I have found a new love. I LOVE sewing but don't spend enough time doing it. It is such a pain getting the stuff out, getting everything ready, then having to put it away so that we can eat off the dining room table. Well....even though these tutorials haven't solved all my sewing problems, they have inspired me to get off my keester and use the fabric that I have stashed under my bed for some awesome things. So, the next time that you have a few free moments....get on the computer and learn something. It is never too late to learn something new. If you want to see some of what I have been learning, then go to www.craftygemini.blogspot.com

My Old Time Love

When I was a little girl, I used to LOVE watching "The Price is Right". I mean, LOVED it. I used to go to school year around, so every 9 weeks, I had 3 weeks off. This was a perfect way to watch a lot of TV. Well, I also loved playing with these hard plastic animals. One day, I decided to name this cow "Bob Barker". Yes....you read correctly....! So, after many years of play and being chewed on my my crazy chihuahua, my Bob Barker still lives. I found him at my mom's house a few weeks ago. It brought back a billion memories. So, I proudly present to you....Bob Barker...my cow.

A Busy Summer and a Zillion Pictures!

Dave and Zach

Heather, Ava and Dave

Grandpa Dave and Ava relaxing on our bed

Mercy, Ava, and Dave

Heather, Ava, and Sasha

Ava and Auntie Sasha

Mercy at the Paulson's getting ready to jump into American Lake! She loved it and had never been swimming there before.

My crazy Momma. She is hilarious. Sure love her tons!

Sasha and Zach at Granny's house.

My niece Stephanie was visiting from Texas.

Some of our cute firefighters at the National Night Out on August 3rd. Who can resist cute firefighters?????

Tessa, Cory, Braxton, and Macade Ross chilling out at our neighborhood BBQ.

As you can tell, we have had a super busy summer. I have gotten really behind in my blogging but at least I have had fun and now you can see the pictures to prove it. Enjoy and post a comment while you are at it.

Sasha's new haircut

Sasha got a new haircut yesterday. She had brought in a ton of pictures and this is what it came out like. She wanted shorter hair....but now that it is cut, she wants her long hair back. I think it looks really pretty. She now has to get used to having shorter hair.

17 years ago this night!!!

Friday the 13th is always supposed to be a bad thing, right? Well normally I would agree with you. However, 17 years ago on this very night, a wonderful thing happened to me. Dave was working the late shift at work, then came over to my house after that. This was the night that he proposed to me. Dave got down on one knee, professed his love for me and asked me if I would do him the honor of marrying him. After saying YES, he proceeded to kiss me. I thought I was hearing fireworks in the distance in affirmation of the monumental event that had just happened. In actuality, it was a drive by shooting that happened three houses down from mine. In about one minute flat, there were no less than 9 Pierce County sheriff's in front of my house. So...not only do we fondly remember the time and date of our proposal, but the drive by shooting that happened moments afterward. So...a great thing happened on Friday, August 13th.....

Perseid Meteor Showers

Last night was a really cool one. I took the kids out at 11pm and we drove down to Dupont and parked at Pioneer Middle School. We took blankets and laid out under the stars for a couple of house. There were a billion shooting streaks in the sky. They would all come..then in the blink of an eye, they would streak across the sky then vanish. It was totally awesome to look at the grandeur of God's creations. As we were leaving, we noticed that there were two deers getting ready to walk across the soccer field. All in all, a perfect night for making family memories.

Jayson's Shooting Team Practice

Jayson getting ready to shoot .

Jayson shooting

Jayson is on a shooting team and every Tuesday he gets to practice. He is pretty good and loves aiming for those bulls eyes. Go Jayson!

Family Camping 7/23-7/25 2010

L to R: Bishop Badger, Pres. Smith, Jayson, Roy Johnson, and Dave

Sasha, Kellyn Bennett, and Kjersten Ness....my beauties!

Kellyn and Sasha

Sasha and Kellyn

Kaitlyn Johnson, Sasha, and Kellyn

Bishop Bennett getting ready to score a run!

Dave running to second base!

Dave hitting the ball getting ready to run to first base.

Here comes the ball!

Two Bishops!

The Coach! Love Papa Johnson

Bishop Bennett and Jodi Hjelm

Dave

Rob Sheridan, Sasha and Jayson

Both of my boys in red!

Dave Pearson and Dave Mathison

Rob Sheridan hugging Sasha

L to R: Bishop Bennett, Jayson, Sasha and Dave

Dave

Sasha getting ready to bat!

We went to Camp Nisqually over the Pioneer Weekend and had a BLAST. We played baseball, stayed up late, helped serve dinner for 500 people ( really, we did), went to church outside, and got to know our church friends much better. Can't wait till next year. Enjoy the pictures!