Now Who's The Paranoid One?

So, I am sure that you have recently heard of the two plane crashes in the news. And I am sure you have heard the cause for both of these near death tragedies...yep birds. I don't want to sound paranoid, but do you really think it is coincidental? I also was in Lowes and Target (big surprise) within two days of each other and guess what had been flying around the store...yep a flock of birds. Maybe it's not the poor economy thats threating our nation that we should be worried about. Hmmmmmm. Just puttin' it out there people. Watch your backs, Watch your backs.

Our 44th President

I wanted to document my thoughts on this historic day, not only to share with others, but have it recorded in my journal.

I am trying to be optimistic about the promised changes our new president will try to implement in our country over the next several years. I hope they will take place over the course of time and peoples lives change for the better. I am also a bit emotional about our first African American president. The idealist in me feels some sort of victory that we as a nation are headed in a direction that considers all races (and genders) to be candidates for any position. I am excited to see what the future holds for our country. I would hope the million plus people that stood on the steps today is a good indication of us coming together to better our nation.

My Aha Moments of 2008

This was certainly an eventful year, so I thought I would list my top Oprah moments:

1. The Pet Egg. Seriously, if you have not invested in one of these, do so, it's worth the ten dollars!

2. Faced my political allegiance. I've always suspected there was something different about me when it came to politics in my family. This year it became evident and I could no longer live a lie...I am a Democrat. Sorry, Mom!

3. Learned To Ask For Help. Sometimes you can not solve problems on your own. Heavenly Father gave us tools to solve our problems and I have finally learned to use them this year!

4. Finding hobbies. I wish I could say running is my passion. I really like it, but I can't consider it a passion, so I'll call it a hobby.

5. Finding Joy In The Journey. I loved this talk by President Monson. If ever there was a talk written for a stay at home mom, this is it. It's easy to find the joy in the months of June-August, I think I'll try to work harder on my "off" months

6. I Love My Family. This may seem like a silly moment...you didn't know you love your family? Yes, I did but each year I become a little more appreciative of our life. If you pay close attention to those around you, strangers or not, I've realized how blessed we are.

Oh my goodness!

My friend gave me the great idea to give Ab a Karaoke machine for Christmas. As you can see from this video, I think it was a hit!

We don't have a Wii?

I thought for sure Ryan and Abbey would catch on once they opened their games they were getting a Wii. Apparantly, it took some seeing to believe it!

Chirstmas Day

Christmas Day was such a fun day. We started at Grandma and Grandpa Miller's house. Of course they spoiled our kids but isn't that what grandparents do?




We started a new tradition of drawing names this year on the Miller side. Ryan and Abbey had so much fun with this. We went to Target and of course Ryan picked out a nerf shooter to give to Mitchel. He was so excited to give it to him!

Abbey and Adrianne drew each other for the drawing. Abbey couldn't have been more excited. We went to three different places to decided what to get her. Finally, she decided on this hooded shark towel for baby M. along with some lotion and soap. Very practical, my Abbey. Adrianne got abbey littlest pet shop (which she loves) and walkie talkies that you can decorate. I am sure she and Ryan will have fun going on their secret mission with these! I wrapped Adrianne's gift in wrapping paper that Abbey decorated out of butcher paper. This was such a fun experience for Ryan and Abbey.

Christmas at the Gamboa's. After we spent the late morning and early afternoon with the Miller's we headed of the Ho Ho's. The kids were once again spoiled with presents. They all had so much fun opening and playing with their new toys with their cousins.

As the night grew on, Allie decided to spice up her outfit with some ornaments off Grandma's tree. Looks good Al!

Christmas Morning 2009

Christmas morning is so magical! So magical in fact that Jeff and I woke up about 5:00 am and waited for our kids to get up. We thought for sure this was the year they would wake US up. So Jeff took a shower, I opened all the bedroom doors and of course Allie was in our bed so we tried to wake her up. Still nobody was making a sound. So about 6:00 am Jeff and I had all we could take and flipped on the Christmas lights and threw the words Santa and presents around hoping they would hear us and get up! Finally, after about 15 minutes of noisy talk and Allie trying to wake them up, Ryan and Abbey came out to find Santa had found them!

It turns out Santa is okay with weapons and decided Ryan did not have enough of them and brought him a full sized gun and one that fits in his holster along with 500 caps to shoot out of them! It's a good thing Santa is a boy!

Abbey want Tumbles the dog. She rolls over and barks like a real dog. I love this side of Abbey. She loves animals and wants to nurture them. Since this is as close as she will get to a pet, I think she loved it!

Allie has two loves...High School Musical and Elmo. Since she is too young for barbies, Santa brought her this adorable Elmo that tells jokes, tells stories, giggles and laughs when you touch his nose and tummy. He will keep her company once the kids go back to school!

One of my goals for next year is to learn the basics of sewing. My mom is a great sewer and I want to be able to show Abbey and Allie how do it someday. So with the help of my mom, I made us all matching pajama bottoms. Abbey helped me pick out the fabric and everyone thought it was fun to match.

I always make Christmas breakfast. This year I took everybody's favorite things. Bacon - Ryan's favorite, Muffins- Abbey's favorite, Eggs- Allie's favorite and milk- Jeff's favorite. And as for my favorite - all of it!