My babies hate Santa :(

Get me outta here!!

Years of Christmas Memories

I came across an entry on my friend Lisa's blog the other day and I can't stop thinking about it.  She (like me) finds herself sometimes envious of other people's "perfect" Christmas trees.  Someday..... ahhhhh.... I will have the perfectly decorated tree in my front window.... but wait.

As we decorate our tree each year it is SO fun to look at the ornaments that have been accumulated over the years and re-live the memories each brings.  How sad will I be when my kids are grown and they take their little tree treasures with them?  VERY sad. 

This year our tree is especially great since the bottom 1/3 is empty.  Well, I have a 13 month old... what can I say??

So for now I will appreciate our crazy looking tree... because it is a tree filled with memories and love.

Here are a few I thought I would share with you...

A souvenier from our missions to Canada.

Our wedding anniversary is the end of November.  One year we took a one night getaway to Park City.  At 2 AM the back of the hotel caught fire, and we spent the rest of the night in the Janitor's office with about 30 other guests.  And... we still had to pay for the room.  Awesome.  This was a souvenier we found on Main Street the next day.  We laugh at it every year!

Two Santas from my childhood.  My mom bought a new Santa for our tree every year.

A gift from my friend Penney, who I met on my mission.

A gift from my friend Cindy... another Winnipeg friend.  We got a set of six of these hearts as a wedding gift.

2000.  Wow our family was small back then!

Madison's preschool ornament.

Hunter's preschool ornament.

Hunter's fouth grade ornament.  My favorite school ornament ever.

Drosselmeyer... from my Nutcracker days.

Logan's first Christmas.

Abby's first Christmas

Mark's mission ornament.

Ahhh... first Christmas together! 1998.  Long time ago.

We hope you are all having a wonderful Christmas season, filled with the Savior's love. 

Merry Christmas!!

It's beginning to look...

It's beginning to look like Christmas at the Crandall house!  Hooray!  After cramming our tree in our tiny apartment last year it feels great to get everything up in our new house!

Now the fun of shopping begins.  Wish I was independently wealthy.  Then I could complete Abby's longer than life Christmas list.  She wants EVERYTHING!!  Dang those commercials!

Oh well, I hope you all have a great December... full of fun family traditions!  What are some of your favorite things to do during the holidays??

Hunter's big ELEVEN!!

Our Hunter turned 11 last week.  Holy cow I'm OLD!!!

Here are a few highlights from his birthday party :)  He had 9 new friends come over to the house, and we had a great time!  Hope you had a great birthday!  Love you Hunter!!

Memorial Day 2010

We had a fun and busy day on Memorial Day. We took the kids to see Shrek 4ever After and then went to visit our "Papa". We stayed for about 45 minutes and had a great time visiting with family and taking some photos of the kids. After the Orem Cemetary we went to Fuddruckers for dinner. The kids had a good time with their cousins, and Abby especially liked teasing her Uncle Bob.

I really miss my dad. Thank goodness for my knowledge of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that I will see him again. I am so grateful for that. I look forward to that day when my dad will be whole again. What a great day that will be. :)

a little mother's day inspiration...

"We women have a lot to learn about simplifying our lives. We have to decide what is important and then move along at a pace that is comfortable for us. We have to develop the maturity to stop trying to prove something. We have to learn to be content with what we are."
— Marjorie Pay Hinckley

"The family is eternal. Love must be nurtured. It must be spoken. We must put away our pride, our haughtiness, our shyness, our misunderstandings, and with humility say, "I love you. Is there something I can do to help you?" You can never be completely happy under any other circumstances."
-Marjorie Pay Hinckley

"The trick is to enjoy life. Don't wish away your days, waiting for better ones ahead"
— Marjorie Pay Hinckley

Let the adventure begin!!

Well, we've made a decision. FINALLY!!

We've decided to build a new home in Farmington, UT and I must say I'm pretty dang excited about it. It is in a beautiful area, close to Lagoon and Cherry Hill, and it has pretty much everything we want in a house. YAY!!

It is about 3500 square feet, has 4 bedrooms, a great room, a loft for all the kid stuff, and a huge master bedroom and bath. It won't be done until October, so it's apartment life for us for a while longer. Not too excited about that part, but it will be worth it when it's done! Can't wait!

rehearsal time...

I had the chance to spend some time in rehearsal with my dance students last Satruday, as they prepared for their year-end performances. I LOVE these girls! So fun. So excited to be there. So talented!


This is the part about owning the studio that I will miss... working with these girls that I have known for so long. I will miss all of them so much and look forward to seeing what the future holds for all of them!

Tonight we took the kids for a quick walk around the lake at Daybreak, and stopped on the way home to take a few photos of the Oquirrh Mountain Temple.

I love this temple at night. So beautiful!

Dinner is served!

It's not often that I find a simple and inexpensive meal that the whole family loves. This is one of our family favorites:

HAWAIIAN HAYSTACKS! YUM!


White rice topped with:

Chicken breasts cooked in cream of chicken soup
Pineapple tidbits
Crunchy chinese noodles


You can use other ingredients including celery, but my family has settled on these as their faves. Good stuff! :)

Happy Easter to my family and friends!!

Change...

Change is not always easy. It pushes us out of our comfort zone, and challenges us in ways we can't imagine. But, the blessings often come on the other side. By making the right choices the blessings will come.

I have had the pleasure of being the owner of the Wasatch Arts Center for 8 years now. I have learned many things about business and made many great friendships. I have seen young students develop their talents. I've even seen some of them grow up and get married. I have spent many hours devoted to my students, in an effort to provide them with the best possible experiences at my school.

In the meantime, I have often wondered if my own children were having great childhood experiences. Many days I have felt as if all I was giving my family was the leftovers of me. It is time for that to change.

I was approached about a month ago with an offer to buy the studio, and I feel like this was truly an answer to my prayers. With Mark working in Bountiful, and plans to move there this summer I wondered how on earth I would ever continue to run the studio from such a distance. I am now in a position where I can be a mom... and look back on my time as a studio owner and enjoy the triumphs and successes I've experienced over the years.

Why are these decisions so hard to make??

I think because the Lord knows what is best for us even before we do. Once we put our focus on doing what the Lord wants, he will bless us with peace and all of the pieces will fall into place. I truly believe that.

It is time for me to focus on my children, to be a mom, and to take the time to become the mother that my Heavenly Father wants me to be.

(photo courtesy of kdportraits.com)

Dad

This week marked the one year anniversary of my dad's passing. On Thursday I took the kids down to the Orem cemetary to visit Papa. On the way home we stopped at my mom's house to visit for a while.

My mom told me that she had found one of my dad's old journals. As I sat and read through it I learned a couple of really important lessons.

1. My children are very much like me. My dad wrote a lot of things down that I did as a child, and I couldn't believe how many of the same traits my girls have. Madison is the crafter in the family... always makeing something out of nothing. Both girls fall asleep early, wherever they are and I always did the same thing. So funny.

2. Record your spiritual experiences. MOST of what my dad recorded were his experiences with the Spirit and church service. I'm so glad he recorded those things so that I could read them. I hope to do the same for my children.

I miss my dad very much, but know that he is now in a much better place. I know that I will see him again. I am so grateful for my knowledge and testimony of the gospel. Love ya Dad! :)

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/sweet-corn-cake/Detail.aspx

Yummy and delicious! You MUST try this recipe for Sweet Corn Cake... the best part of any Mexican Food meal! MMMMMMMmmmmmmm.

LOVE this little dude!

What a week!

Have you ever had one of those weeks, where just a whole bunch of stupid stuff happens?? I mean... nothing life changing... just really annoying and frustrating stuff?

On Monday Mark's car was totalled. He is fine (thank goodness) but the car is not. The damage wasn't horrible, but it was going to cost more to fix than the car is worth.... so good bye to our Nissan Altima.

On Wednesday when I checked the mail there were 2..... (YES 2!) speeding tickets from a photo cop in Arizona. We were there on vacation there a couple weeks ago, so I guess those are our souveniers! Woohoo! Not sure what the damage is yet. That info will arrive soon. Apparently Phoenix hasn't joined the rest of the planet and raised their freeway speedlimit to 65 mph. They are still at 55 and Mark was ticketed for going 66. Eigth minutes apart... on the same freeway! Grrr.

Yesterday we were informed that the only items allowed on our balcony are patio furniture and flowers. REALLY????? So we are looking for a new home for our grill. I want a house.... like yesterday.

Then today for some reason my phone decided to delete ALL 250 of my phone contacts. Good grief that's just what I need! So if you'd like me to call or text you ever again please get me your number!

Although frustrations have been the norm this week, there were many blessings also. We were able to receive good compensation for our car and pay cash for another commuter car for Mark. He LOVES his new car. Its an Acura 3.5 RL. Old but still in great shape. I think Mark's just trying to pick up chicks... I'll post photos soon!