The Men in My Life

The picture was taken on Christmas morning before church. These are the 3 most important men in my life.

First there is my Pop. I have always been Daddy's Little Girl. And in the later years of Pop's life we have gotten closer and have done much more together. I am so appreciative of all the changes he has made in his life that have helped in making our relationship even better.

Second is my very best friend and husband, Steve. I have often said that I had spent many nights wishing on stars for Prince Charming and then he came into my life and is more than I had even wished for.

The last, but certainly not least is my first baby, my son Zack. What an incredible little boy. He has made me feel a kind of love I did not even know existed until the first moment I looked at him after he was born.

Sorry, I guess with this year winding down and thinking of everything I am grateful for I am getting a little mushy.

So Steve and I have no big plans for tonight. We will probably hang out, play a game of Settlers of Catan. Then maybe snuggle up on the sofa, turn on the fire, make up some hot cocoa and popcorn and watch a movie. Then around midnight we will watch the ball drop in Times Square. I have been thinking about some of my "goals" for 2006. I hate the word resolutions, so I will use goals.

1. I want to lose weight. I am really bummed with how "chubby" have I become this year. I also would like to be able to wear ALL those clothes I have in my closet.
2. Then I want to work on cooking "real" meals for my family. In past years I have been discouraged because one I make the meal every says, "do we have to eat
everything...I don't like this" So I stopped making big elaborate meals, even
though I really do like cooking.
3. I am going to try to be more diligent with my scripture study. I am so bad at this. I will probably try to do this early in the morning because doing it before bed at
night just is not working.
4. I am going to submit my layouts to magazines more consistantly. I want to be published at least 10 times. I also would like to have made a DT by the end of the year.

I hope you all have a fabulous 2005 and an even better 2006.

Mommy and Her Girls

My mom emailed this picture to me. It is my favorite picture so far from Christmas. From left to right it is Becky, Belle, Me and Katie. I am so proud of my little girls. These are the dresses I got for the girls to wear on Christmas to church. They all looked so beautiful. I am so terribly blessed. There is not a picture of Zack, but it was just as handsome.

I saw this year in review on some other blogs and thougth I would give it a try. Hope you enjoy!!

JANUARY
1. Did you have a new year's resolution this year?: To get published and to cook more meals for my family.
2. Who kissed you at midnight?: Steve of course
3. Did it snow where you live?: I don't remember if it actually snowed, but it would be safe to assume there was snow on the ground
4. Have you ever been to Times Square to watch the ball drop?: Nope, and honestly don't really want to...too many people. I like my New Year's kind of quiet with my hubby alone

FEBRUARY
1. Who was your valentine?: Steve, we do the 14 days of Valentines beginning on the 1st.
2. What did your valentine get you?: Steve made me a desk with the drop front to keep me paper work and such in.
3. When you were little, did you buy valentines for your whole class?: Yes. I remember filling them out and giving special ones to those "special" boys.

MARCH
1. Are you Irish? No, mostly Italian
2. Did you wear green on St. Patty's Day?: Nope, never been into that. I have flashbacks of getting pinched when I was little for not wearing green so now I boycott
3. What did you do for St. Patty's Day?: Nothing

APRIL
1. Do you like the rain?: I love listenign to it at night with the window cracked open a little bit. And if there is thunder and lightening I am into it alittle bit more
2. Did you play an April Fool's joke on anyone this year?: No, never really been into that either (this is making me think I am a boring person)
3. Did you get tons of candy on Easter?: No, I think I was dieting at Easter time

MAY
1. What's your favorite kind of flower?: I LOVE gardenias
2. Do you like the spring? I love watching the flowers and trees come back to life in the spring, but my fav season is Fall
3. Finish the phrase: "April showers bring...": May Flowers
4. What would you think of as a spring color?: Lilac

JUNE
1. What year did you graduate from school?: High School was 1990
2. Did you go on any vacations last June?: Steve and I went to Rhode Island at the beginning of the month for Steve's parents anniversary

JULY
1. What did you do on the 4th of July? We go camping the weekend before, so were camping with friends of ours
2. Did you go on any vacations during this month?: It seems like we were off doing something all month long. Chip got married in Vegas so we spent the weekend there, my cousin Lacy got married at the end of the month so went away for that.

AUGUST
1. Did you do anything special to end off your summer?: Suzanne and I went to CKU the weekend before school started.
2. What was your favorite summer memory of '05?: The road trip with Steve to and from Vegas. I love just talking with Steve. We sometimes have the best converstions on road trips
3. Did you go swimming a lot in the summer?: No, I am usually poolside
4. Did you go to the beach a lot?: Nope...We live in Utah

SEPTEMBER
1. Any fun trips for Labor Day?: The week after Labor Day Steve and I went to Yosemite and I went on my 1st 9 mile hike.
2. What did you do once your children were back in school?Scrapbooked a little more in the middle of the day, and started working in my ward's primary presidency.
3. Did you like fall better than summer?: Oh Yeah!!! Fall is my favorite seaon.

OCTOBER
1. What was your favorite Halloween costume ever?: I made a Dorothy costume for me and a Scarecrow costume for Steve about 6 years ago.
2. What's your favorite candy?: Reese Peanut Butter Cup
3. What did you dress up like this year? A mom passing out candy to trick-o-treaters

NOVEMBER
1. Whose house did you go to for Thanksgiving?: My mom and dad's house
2. Do you like stuffing?: Not really
3. What are you thankful for?: Being a mom, my children, a wonderful loving husband, our home, my friends and the gospel

DECEMBER
1. Do you celebrate Christmas?: Yes, all parts of it
2. Have you ever been kissed under mistletoe?: Yes, but I don't need it anymore. Steve kisses me plenty
3. What do you want this year for Christmas?: This year I wanted a new digi camera, a Sizzix machien and an iPod
4. What's the best present you ever got for Christmas?: I remember when I was 6 getting a Shaun Cassidy nightgown and I totally loved it. I also got a handwritten cookbook the year after my grandmother died with all her recipes.
5. Do you like cold weather?: Only if it is snowing and I can snuggle by the fire with Steve and drink some hot cocoa
6. How would you rate your year on a scale of 1-10?: This was definitely a 10!!!

A Silly Internet Game

I went to my friend Shannon's blog and she had done something kind of funny. You goto google.com and do an advanced search on "________ needs" (put you name in the blank) and then press search and you pick out the 5 funniest ones that come up. Here are mine:

1. Nikki needs a good whack in the head

2. Nikki needs to be the dominate female

3. Nikki needs 2 sets of bibs

4. Nikki needs to learn to count

5. Nikki needs a ride home

Okay all give it a try and lets see what you all need!!

Getting Caught Up

Has everyone missed me?

I had a great Christmas. My parents came for the weekend. We had a great Christmas Eve dinner except, we forgot to make the Pizzagania. I am actually somewhat in mourning over this. e have had pizzagania as part of the Christmas Eve meal for as long as I can remember. All day on Saturday I kept thinking we are missing something. But I couldn't figure out what it was and then when I set the food on the table did I realize it was not there. Maybe I can convince my parents (they are responsible for this creation) that it would make a wonderful Easter dish. HINT, HINT!!! We woke up Christmas morning and dug into the stockings and opened up 2 gifts from under the tree and then had a HUGE Christmas breakfast. Then everyone got showered and dressed and attended church. When we got home after the wonderful sacrament meeting everyone but Pop and Steve put on their jammies and we opened the remainder of the presents. Santa gave the whole family a trip to Disneyland in January. We can't wait to go. Steve got his very own laptop so we won't have to share this one anymore. The kids got a Gamecube and Gameboys. Katie and Becky got lots of My Little Pet Shop stuff and Doggie Daycare. I was SPOILED by both Steve and my parents. 1st I opened my iPod nano. It is so cute and small. Then I got my new digi camera. WHOO-HOOO!! I got the Cannon Powershot A520. I have wanted it for sometime. I love being able to just pop the camera right into my purse. Then I got a Sizzix machine and the 1st season of the Gilmore Girls on DVD. I can't forget my bottle of Estee Lauder Beautiful. It was definitely a good Christmas. My parents stayed and visited until Tuesday and unfortunately had to get back to their real lives. I spent yesterday putting away all the Christmas decorations in side the house. That is always so depressing to me. I just wish Christmas lasted a little longer.

I can't sign off without a Belle story...This afternoon Belle asked if she could goto a friend's house. I said sure, but first she had to brush her hair. She came down and said she was leaving, but her hair still looked funky. So I asked her to get the brush so I could do it. When she came back with the brush she informed me that yesterday she had a piece of gum and thinks she had fallen asleep with it in her mouth last night. Sure enough there was the piece of gun with a bunch of hair stuck in it. BUT if that was not enough she had taken it upon herself to cut the piece out. She had cut tons of hair from the underside of her head. UGH!!!!! I was so frustrated. So we went upstairs and cut, literally, 6 inches of hair off her head. She now has very short bob cut. She cried the whole time, but I did not know what else to do. She was totally upset this afternoon, but it seems that as the day has gone on she has adjusted and I think is even starting to like it.

The Morning After

I DID IT!!!
I FINISHED MY POLAR BEAR PRESS ENTRY!!!

After I posted about not being sure I would finish my entries in time I got comments from some of my fellow Peas on my blog of encouragement and I was determined to get it done. THANKS EVERYONE!!! I worked on it until 10:00 am yesterday, then I had to head over to my kids school to help with the Reindeer Grams that the PTA had organized as a service project. They are candy sticks with a little "to" & "from" tag attached. The children pay $.50 each to send them to friends and teachers. The best part is all the money we make is donated to Make a Wish http://www.wish.org/ and then we will have helped in granting a wish to an ill child. I was there until 3:00 pm. I thought that was it I was not going to make the midnite deadline. But when I got home I told Steve I did not think I was going to be able to do it. He told me to go down stairs and work and he would handle dinner, the piano running and tending to the kids. So with his help and my determination at 11:20 pm everything was done and emailed to Polar Bear and then this morning this is what I woke up to:

So needless to say I will be spending most of today putting my scrap area back together.

I just wanted to share a fun thing that was emailed to me. If you love A CHRISTMAS STORY this will bring a chuckle to your day. http://www.starz.com/features/christmasstory

A Visit to St. Nick

On Friday Steve, the kids and I headed to Salt Lake to see the "Candy Window" at ZCMI Center and have dinner with Mom and Pop. I was thrilled when we walked past the store front that is housing Santa this year and saw there was no line. HOLY MOLY...GRAB the KIDS...Before you knew it they were on his lap telling him their wishes and wants and we had a pretty good picture and were on our way all in the matter of minutes. This is a first for me. Every other year we have had to come with snacks and activities to help pass the time of standing in line. What an awesome Christmas present for me.

My weekend has had ups and downs.....
Good news...The baking frenzy has come to an end.
Bad news...I probably won't get my pages done to submit for the Polar Bear Press DT Call.
Good news...All my neighbor goodies have been packaged and delivered.
Bad news...Missed tithing settlement last Tuesday
Good News...The clerk called Sunday after church and said we could get it done right then, and not to bother changing into church clothes. We were in and out in 4 minutes. LOVED IT!!!!
Bad news...I spent hours dipping pretzel rods in caramel and chocolate only to find out later the chocolate had not tempered correctly. YIKES!!!
Good news...Chargers beat the Colts yesterday (yes..I am a closet football fan. I even have a fantasy team)

Well, I am off to tackle those Polar Bear Press layouts...Wish me Luck!!!

Anyone Up For A Teaparty?

This weekend the kids and I went to Ferron to spend the weekend with my mom and dad and attend my Aunt Margaret's family Christmas Party. She had bought a small gift for each of the children, Becky received a barbie, Belle a plastic tea set, Zack a set of binoculars, but Katie got

"a teaset made of real glass."

She has loved this little set. She carries it everywhere she goes. I have actually hand to superglue some of the pieces back together because she does carry it absolutely everywhere and forgets that it is breakable. Well, yesterday morning Steve and I walked into the kitchen and there was Katie eating her breakfast with her teaset. She could only fit a couple of CoCoa Puffs on each plate, but it was still adorable.

The baking FRENZY has begun in my house. The last 2 mornings I have gotten up at 2:30 am and began my baking. I actually enjoy doing it while everyone is in bed. I turn on an old movie like Philadelphia Story, West Side Story or His Girl Friday and bake away. It was kind of funny...yesterday at about 3:00 am as the mixer was going full blast, Belle wandered down stairs all ready for school. I had to send her back to bed. Little did she know that her mother is a nut. I keep telling myself that I will be able to sleep on December 26th.

Katie & Becky-Our Dancing Queens

Katie & Becky had their first dance recital this year. We performed at Trolley Square. They did a great job. It was funny the 1st time they tried on their costumes. So we pulled the clothes out of the bag and they explained that their teacher had told them the shirt would not go as low as their other shirts. So they put it on and let the shirt sit above their bellies, but they tried pulling the pants up as high as they would go...Yes, a HUGE wedgy, to help the pants meet the shirt. It was hilarious. When I pulled the pants down to where they were suppose to be, they said, "...It's not modest." Too cute and it makes me feel good that we have already planted the seed of what is and is not modest.

So, I feel like I have had Christmas a little early. I used the merchandise certificate I won at CKU and ordered Stacy Julian's new book "The Big Picture", Donna Downey's "Photo Decor Book", and "Creative Sketches 2" by Becky Higgins and they arrived yesterday. I am loving the Stacy Julian book. She is just the coolest. She has a website that has the same name http://www.bigpicturescrapbooking.com/ and it sounds as though she has big plans. Virtual classroom with different projects. I love her thoughts of scrapbooking. She was the first one I heard talk about scrapbooking mini albums for events, (Halloween, a particular vacation, Christmas, etc.) rather than scrapping chronologically. I also redeemed another GC from CKU and got a pack of Basic Grey Blitzen and Fusion Paper.

Family Photo Shoot

So it is that time of the year...time for the annual family photo for the Christmas cards. We got dressed in our cute matching outfits and the kids were patient while we posed them for half an hour. I think this year's picture turned out pretty good. Thank heavens for digital technology. We could take dozens of shots and know for sure if we got the one. For the last shot the kids got to make funny faces. The older the kids get the more enjoyable doing these things becomes. Now I just need to get the prints back from WalMart and put them in with the Christmas cards.I haven't started my holiday baking yet. I was finishing up some other projects. I will probably be doing that at 5:00 in the morning for the next few weeks. The girls have dance recitals twice this month. I always love to see them out on the stage. They are just so stinkin' cute. Belle started Junior Jazz basketball yesterday and did quite well. It is already evident to both Steve and I that she has improved since the last time she played. It is a busy time of the year. I sometimes feel like I look forward to Christmas all year and it just flys by.

Hey, I thought I would fill you all in on what my family and I are doing for a service project this Christmas. It is actually our 2nd time doing it. Instead of going grocery shopping this week, we eat whatever is in our cupboards and in the back of the freezer. Then at the end of the week, we use the money we would have spent on groceries on buying food for the local Food Bankhttp://csc-ut.org/foodbank.htm. It is a great way to get the whole family involved in the service project. It also makes for intertesting meals for the week.