Busy Life

We had our first Christmas in Arizona this year! It was different not having any snow and 70 degree weather but a nice change. I didn't take any pics of christmas morning so these are from Kylie's new camera!

Easton got a new razor trike, cranky the train set, football,soccer ball, playdoh,etc. Kenadie got a video camera, purse with wallet,robe, movie, etc. Kylie got a mountain bike,camera, purse with wallet, etc. Tyler got a hunting wii game with guns, video game, nice basketball, etc. We just enjoyed the day together and played with toys. We left early the next day for Utah and stayed 6 days. I was nervous about going back home, I was afraid I would get homesick. We enjoyed spending time with family, visiting with friends, sledding, going to the Funpark, shopping with my sister and mom, etc. As much as I enjoyed visiting,I was ready to come back to warm weather. I realized this is home now and I really enjoy it! Since then we have been getting back into the routine of everything and am so glad the kids are back in school. Here is an update on each of us:
Eric-He still works 4 days a week,is a cub scout leader,and coaches Tyler's basketball team. He just finished his nutrition class and is a straight A student so far. He is now doing microbiology online and has at least a couple more classes before he can apply to nursing school.
Katie-I work 3 days a week, am a Beehives leader, and stay busy trying to decorate and organize this house! I recently read an awesome book called "Organized Simplicity" and I highly recommend it! It's all about decluttering and creating a simple life.Since then I have been organizing and dejunking cabinets and closets. I also am looking into going back to school to get my Bachelor's degree since it is more useful and wanted out here.
Tyler-He loves school and was recognized by his teacher and school for being a outstanding leader. He is invited to go to Washington D.C. with a group to tour the sites and learn more about leadership but I am not sure we will do it. He is on two different basketball teams,one coached by Eric and a competitive team in Gilbert. He loves to play and is obsessed!

Kylie-She loves school and activity days. She loves to play with friends and be silly. We recently found out that she has bad vision and will be getting her glasses shortly.
Kenadie-She also loves school and going to church. She loves to play with the neighbor girl who looks a lot like her! She is an awesome reader and is in advanced math. She loves to watch the boys play sports and help me cook.
Easton-What a crazy kid he is. He is playing soccer for the first time and is a natural! He has scored 14 goals in the first 4 games and the coach has to make him stay back. I don't know where his talent comes from,neither of us played soccer but we enjoy watching him. He continues to stay funny things and is a great reader.

Thanksgiving

For Thanksgiving this year, we got to see both sides of the family! First we spent the night in Henderson which is just outside of Las Vegas. Grandma Pat drove from Colorado and Eric's brother Chris and his girlfriend Reyna cooked a yummy meal. We did make a short trip to Circus Circus and saw a beautiful cactus garden that was decorated with Christmas lights. It was good to catch up with family but we wish we could of spent more time with them. Next, we headed up to St George, Utah where my parents have a second home. Both of my brothers and their families were able to come down also. The kids loved to see their cousins, climb on the red rock, go swimming,and have a second Thanksgiving dinner. We are spoiled!

It was a little weird when it was time to come home and we left in the opposite direction! I truly love the Arizona weather and I can't imagine going back to the yucky snow. We will adventure all the way up to Cache Valley for a whole week after Christmas. The kids are looking forward to going snowboarding, sledding, seeing old friends and neighbors, and spending time with family. Life is good!

Halloween

We celebrated our first Halloween in Arizona! It was different in the fact that it was 75 degrees and the kids didn't have to wear a jacket or coat. Queen Creek had a big "trunk or treat" at the community park that we went to and then the kids trick-or-treated around the neighborhood. They got oodles of candy and had fun. Tyler and Easton wanted to be ninja's, Kylie was supposed to be a corpse bride, and Kenadie was a butterfly. We even dressed up Riley in a witch costume, she looked so cute! (yes, I am one of those people :)

Life is as busy as ever, the kids are enjoying school and playing with friends. It is really starting to cool down here and it is so beautiful! I am now working 3 days a week and it is Heaven! I have some time during the week to clean and get things done. I enjoy my job and the patients. A lot of the snowbirds (that's what they call the people who live here during the winter months) have come back and we are getting busier. I also am serving in the young womens with the Beehives and do enjoy that.
Eric is working 4 10 hour shifts a week and doing online school plus scouts once a week. He will be going to the night shift at work but we are told it won't be for several months.
Tyler is in Middle School and is super excited to start basketball this next month. He is growing like a weed, he wears a size 7 in MENS, and is showing signs of being a teenager :)
Kylie loves school and is a straight A student. She has made many friends at school and has a really good friend that lives close by. She loves to learn how to cook and help me with the other kids. She loves doing cartwheels and summersaults and is talking about trying cheerleading. We will see....
Kenadie is a handful lately, very emotional about weird things, but has made some good friends. She loves to read and is in accelerated reading, math,and spelling at her school.
Easton is just a ball of energy. He loves Kindergarten and is way ahead of the normal at school. He is reading well and continues to keep us entertained with the things he says. He is starting soccer in January and is so excited. He still loves trains but has a new passion for Mario cart and making video's with Tyler on the ipod touch.
I am enjoying decorating/painting this house to make it feel like it's home. It is a work in progress and we have only touched the surface! We are looking forward to going to Las Vegas and St George for Thanksgiving and seeing family!

I'm Back!

Since we moved 800 miles away from Cache Valley I decided it was time to get back into posting. I have had a lot of people ask why we decided to move so here is how the story goes....
Back in March 2011, Eric's Grandpa died. I wasn't able to go to the funeral but Eric went to Phoenix for a couple of days. When he came back he just kept telling me that we should move to Arizona. You see, we had been talking about moving somewhere warmer for years but it never seemed like the right time. The house prices were cheaper here and a lot of jobs for nurses. I liked my job in the wound clinic but I was still missing home care and the money that I was making. When Eric found out that Schreiber's had a plant in Tempe and he could transfer it made it more realistic! It made me nervous to make such a big change and I wanted to do the right thing for the kids. I can honestly say it was one of those times in my life that I had my prayer answered so strongly that there was no doubt. I knew that it was the right thing. I had only been to Arizona once and it was ten years ago so I wanted to see if it was a place I wanted to move. Eric and I came down in April and looked at a lot of different neighborhoods and houses. We loved it! We went home and put our house up for sale within a couple of weeks. We were surprised and blessed to have our house sell within 3 weeks! We flew back down to Arizona in early June and found the house we wanted to buy. We then moved down the end of July. It has been a whirlwind when I think about it but things are finally settling down. It was a major leap of faith. I didn't have a job. I have never lived outside of Cache Valley. I didn't know who was going to watch the kids. I didn't know what direction was North, South, etc. I was extremely blessed to be offered a job the second day after we moved here for a home health company. It has been wonderful to do what I love and make money! Eric likes his job and it is a lot easier for him physically. The kids have adjusted very well and love their schools. They are closer now because they had to be each other's best friends for the first while. There are things that I miss about Utah. I miss the leaves changing in the fall, my wonderful neighbors, my house that we built, the park, the long summer days, my friends, the kids being close to their grandparents and cousins. There are a lot of things that I love about Arizona. I love the weather of course but there is so much more! I love my job, having a pool, our ward, living close to the freeways, lots of good shopping, more diversity, lots of things to do, etc. I do have to admit that I did have one day where I was so homesick. I woke up on a Sunday and I just felt so sad I can't even describe it. I think I was mourning my old life...the good, the bad, everything. I wanted to be back home but at the same time I knew that it would never be the same. I know that we could move back at any time if we wanted to but it still wouldn't be the same as it was and that is just life! Moving here has strengthened my testimony of the Church so much! It's amazing how the church is the same no matter where you go. I got called to serve in the Beehives (12-13 yr old girls) and I am really enjoying it while Eric got called as a scout leader. There is a big Mormon population out here but I am still amazed at how many people still don't know what it is. Eric is one of only 3 mormons at his work out of 150 people. He has had to really stand up for what he believes moreso than he ever had to in Utah. My testimony of the word of wisdom is so much stronger. I never had a real problem with this but you can really see the difference especially with some of the patient's I see. I asked the kids what they like about living here and they say the pool, our new house, the schools, etc. They have adjusted really well and that is such a blessing. We hope to visit Utah sometime in December and see some old friends and family. It is my goal to update weekly so we can update on what we are up too!

Long time...no see!

This picture describes how I have felt lately....Crazy! Summer has flown by and now it's time to start getting back into a routine. I feel bad that I have neglected this blog and nobody probably checks it anymore. I will try to post some more pictures lately but here are a few.

Kylie turned seven a few weeks ago. Where does the time go? She is such a blessing to our family and reminds me daily to be silly and laugh a lot. She is really starting to blossom and turn into a pre-teen. She loves everything makeup, boys, girly, etc. She is very social and has LOTS of friends. She is outgoing and a sweetheart. For her birthday we surprised her with a scrapbooking kit. She has watched me for many years and has wanted to start on her own. She has loved this kit and has made MANY pages.

Eric has been busy doing scouts and coaching tee ball this summer. He also has decided to go back to school and has been taking two classes. Between working 45-50 hours a week, homework, etc he has stayed very busy!

This summer was Tyler's first year of minor league baseball. He improved greatly and had some awesome hits! He mainly played short stop or third base but he loved playing catcher. Here is their team picture minus some boys who left early.

Eric loves to spend time with the boys and do "guy things." This picture is of their daycamp.
Things with my job situation have finally been settled! I am "officially" working 32 hours a week at the hyperbaric and wound clinic in Cache Valley Specialty Hospital. It is a fun job with awesome people. It will be an adjustment working this much but I had to seize the opportunity while I could. Nursing jobs in Cache Valley are few and far between right now. I have to admit it...this past 8 months have really been a trial for me. I left a job that I loved, that paid well,and that allowed me to be home with my kids quite a bit. I left due to Medicare cuts and ever since then it has been a struggle. I haven't had any benefits or any paid time off. I have had 3 different jobs at the same time to try and equal one income. Every pay check was a different amount. Then I got sick and spent four days in the hospital. I was stressed because I didn't know how we were going to make ends meet! Through all of this I have gained such a testimony of tithing. This has been a long lesson for me to learn but I finally "get" it. We have kept being full tithe payers and have somehow made it. I am so thankful that we have lived within our means, had some savings, and have no debt other than our van/house. If not for this we would of been in big trouble! Despite all of our struggles we have been blessed to keep paying extra on our van and will have it paid off in two months! I don't know how, but we kept to our goal. I have learned that it's not toys or having nice things that make us happy, it is being secure with who we are.
I will try to keep more up to date on my posting!

Dance Recital

The girls had their end of the year dance recital last week. It was fun to get them all dressed up and girly. They loved every minute of it! They both did really well and want to do it next year.


Don't I have the most beautiful girls?

Life has been especially crazy lately! I have been working full time at two different jobs and it has been difficult to balance everything! I am working two days a week at the wound clinic and I love it! I am still doing home health 1-2 days a week plus I just got called into scouts with my husband! Tyler is playing baseball 1-2 times a week and both girls are in Tee ball with Eric as their coach. I also am called as an activity days leader to top it off! Eric has been talking about a huge career change that would require a lot of sacrifice on our family financially and time wise. On Tuesday, I pretty much had a breakdown in front of all of my neighbors and friends. I guess when I'm stressed I don't hold it in very well! It has been hard dealing with my job change especially since I didn't see it coming! We have had to take about $1500 a month pay cut while working more hours per week and daycare costs. Just when you think life is going to get easier then you get hit with a curve ball. We have been very blessed though and I know that things will work out!

Our trip to San Diego

I am finally getting around to post about our recent trip to San Diego! I screwed up my unloading of pics so they are in the wrong order! Oh well, that's what I get for not posting for so long:)

The last big thing that we did was go to Legoland! We had a mix up about our go San Diego cards and ended up having to pay extra for it. I am still mad about that one but that is a story for another day! We had fun riding all the rides but by this point the kids were all fighting as well as Eric and I bickering. I think we had just been together too long in such a small space! Isn't that what family vacations are all about?




On Sunday, we went to Oceanside beach. The kids enjoyed putting their feet in the sand and water. We walked along the pier and at the end is a cute 50's diner. We ate there and enjoyed looking at the ocean.





On Saturday was the big wedding! We went to San Diego because Eric's cousin was getting married. It was beautiful and so nice to get to see all of Eric's cousins, Aunts, etc. The reception was at the Hilton with the Torrey Pines golf course. It was so gorgeous! The kids loved the reception, especially dancing. I couldn't believe how much Tyler liked to dance and be crazy with the other boy cousins. Kylie danced until midnight and got to sleepover with Grandma. She loved it and says that was her favorite part of the whole trip!








After we saw the Padres stadium and lunch we took a tour of the USS Midway. It was extremely crowded due to a special event but it was still interesting. It's hard to believe that men stay on those boats for 9 months! I was surprised at how big the ship is and they have everything that we have! A barber, movie theater, etc. Tyler especially liked to look at the different airplanes.





The second day we went to the Padres Stadium per Eric's request. We did a behind the scenes tour and it was really interesting! We got to go in the press box, dugouts, and even by home plate! I think Eric was in heaven the whole time! We walked in the Gaslamp District and ate at a really cool Spaghetti Factory.





The kids were so excited to see Grandma Pat and be in San Diego! Our first full day we went to the Wild Animal Park. It's kind of like a zoo but it has animals more in a big habitat. We enjoyed seeing all different kinds of animals and our favorite was a 25 minute long safari ride!






We left on a Tuesday after the kids got out of school and me off work. We thought it would be better to drive to Las Vegas and stay one night rather than drive it all in one day! We ended up not getting to our hotel until 11:30 because the wind was blowing so hard against us the whole way down there! When we woke up the next day we went to the M &M store, walked around the block on the strip, saw the little circus show, and let the kids play carnival games. It was actually kind of fun! I am not a huge fan of Vegas but early in the day it was a lot better! After lunch we drove the rest of the way to San Diego!




Ever since we got home it has been crazy! The kids will be out of school soon, Tyler is starting baseball, the girls have a dance recital, the kids need to take swim lessons, and I have started training at the hospital. I have trained in the wound clinic and the medical/surgical floor. It is different then what I am used too but that is good. I am still working at home health and I am just trying to balance it all until a permanent position opens up. I am hoping it will all work out!