WINTER BLUES

I know I should be...
1. CLEANING because the house we are renting is going to be shown today but I really don't want to.
2. WATCHING MY CHILDREN closely and doing fun stuff with them, but I have no energy.
3.READING MY SCRIPTURES but when do I have time
4.THINKING ABOUT WHAT IS FOR DINNER but I am not.
5.GETTING DRESSED but what is the point if you aren't going anywhere?
6.A LOAD OF LAUNDRY but I guess I'm not in any hurry. It will still be there.

SO, I ASK MYSELF, WHY AM I FEELING THIS WAY? I have no motivation today and it has been this way for a week! I yell at my kids, eat macaroni and cheese for dinner, and my laundry pile just keeps growing.

DAYS LIKE THIS IS WHEN I COULD REALLY USE SOME SUNSHINE. Winter months really take a toll on me, especially January. It's hard to stay possitive when you can't even turn on lights around your house because the stinking powerlines got nocked down by an avalanche. You can still use your power BUT it's going to cost you! ALot.

HAPPY 5TH BIRTHDAY MORGAN

MORGAN TURNED 5 TODAY. TIME IS GOING...FASTER THAN EXPECTED. SHE IS SUCH A BLESSING IN MY LIFE.
MORGAN IS CARING: ALWAYS MAKING SURE EVERYONE IS HAPPY AND TAKEN CARE OF.
MORGAN DOES A LOT OF SERVICE: SHE IS ALWAYS HELPING ME IN THE KITCHEN WITH THE DISHES, COOKING DINNER, AND CLEANING THE FLOORS. SHE IS LEARNING ABOUT HOW TO DO SERVICE FOR OTHERS.

The PINEWOOD DERBY

I DON'T KNOW HOW IT HAPPENED. TREY IS A STAR. LOOK HOW HAPPY HE IS. YOUR PROBABLY ALL WONDERING WHY.... well, he just took 2nd place in the whole pinewood derby! There were about 16 cars and Trey, a new member of pack 5, wizzed by all the other cars by a mile. Aiden Pierce (as you can see he won 1st), is a pinewood derby vetrine. I am pretty proud of Trey because he built the car all by himself. All we did was put the weights on and the wheels...he did the rest. I didn't think it was going to do all that good...I was wrong.

His car is the red bullet heading through the finish line. All I saw was a big smile on his face the whole night.

The Mirage of Early Spring

I took pictures of the beauty around Alaska in January. I tried to get creative. It got up to 57 degrees yesturday with a warm chinook wind. It's so nice to feel heat on your skin as you stand outside.(click to enlarge)(click to enlarge)(click to enlarge)

January Activities and Fun

FUN, FUN, FUN. My hope is to keep my kids active this winter month. With the weather the way it has been, indoor activities have been more popular than outdoor. The weather a week ago was roughly around 10 degrees and snowing for almost a week straight. Then, on Saturday there was a change. The weather warmed up into the high 30's, than the 50's! All I can say is flood warning and feelings of an early spring.

So, Trey is in basketball for his first year. I think for a beginner, he is listening pretty well and getting all his energy out. The league I put him in, however, is younger kids than him. I am really confused if that is a good thing, or bad. Maybe I should move him up a level...I don't know. He is just the biggest kid on the court, and if you know Trey, he isn't that big. Mattie on the other hand cant stay out of trouble. She actually went to timeout the other day 8 times for the same thing. She is constantly turning the tv off. I can't keep her out of the food in the kitchen like the bisquick and dried cup of noodles. She also knows how to open doors now!! I am definately in trouble. This day, she got into my office drawer and colored all over herself with a blue permanant marker! She is a terror I tell ya!

Morgan is learning her colors and shapes this week. We learned you can make other colors by mixing them. She is so proud of how she is learning new things and has discovered, she really likes to paint. She is so happy.

Today is Martin Luther King day and we are going to see the Dog Hotel Movie at 4:30.

BABY MATTIE

SINCE MATTIE WAS BORN, SHE HAS BEEN VERY UNIQUE. SHE IS NOW 21 MONTHS OLD AND ONLY HAS 5 TEETH. JUST YESTURDAY, I DISCOVERED SHE IS GETTING A MOLAR IN THE BACK SIDE OF HER MOUTH.
NOW I KNOW WHY SHE HAD BEEN SO CRABBY. POOR MATTIE IN ALL THAT PAIN. ALL SHE WANTS TO DO IS BE HELD AND SUCK HER THUMB. I HOPE IT DOESN'T LAST LONG FOR HER SAKE.

Eaglecrest Resort

Saturday at 8am I loaded up the nerd heard and we headed up to the ski resort called Eagle crest. (It is one of our favorites if you want to see the resort) So along the way, I thought I would take a picture of this frozen harbor. What a sight!The temperature had rose to 31 degrees today and there was very little snowfall and wind. I was glad it wasn't stinking freezing because this was Morgans first time skiing. She didn't know what to think at first and mentioned to me that she was scared...that isn't what you want to hear. So, we walked up this small hill to meet at the ski school and right away, this friendly man in his 50's walked up to Morgan and took her by her hand, The man had a big smile on his face the whole time which made Morgan a little more comfortable. Then, too my surprise, he swung her up and carried her.

This big smile you see on her face never left the whole 2 hours.I sat and watched her for a while and she was enjoying herself and learning. The instructors said she did really good and can go down by herself pretty straight.This is the perfect age to do lessons. They learn they can accomplish something and how if feels to try new things. It's exciting that soon we will be able to do it together! Trey decided he wanted to spend his own money on a lesson. I paid for one last week and I didn't want to pay for another because they are 40.00 each. His lesson was with some young snowboarder named Trevor. I walked by his lesson and overheard Trey trying to get the instructor to take him inside for free hot cocoa. Now, this would have been fine, except the lesson just started 10 minutes before! Of course, I'm a mom so I yell out to the instructor not to take him in for hot cocoa until he can make it down the hill twice.

I can't believe how big he is getting! He is growing up and soon will be a teenager! I can't wait because then we can really snowboard together but he is going to be better than me. That is weird to think of...him better than me...man.

On our way home, we saw this porcupine walking down the road! How cool.

4 FEET OF SNOW AND STILL GROWING

MALE DOG SEAKS FEMALE SNOW DOG
I WOULDN'T THINK A DOG WOULD LIKE THE SNOW BUT DUKE RUNS AND PLAYS IN IT JUST LIKE THE KIDS DO. HE STILL LIKES WARMING UP NEXT TO THE FIREPLACE AFTERWARDS AND SIPPING ON HOT WATER OUT OF HIS DISH...IF INTERESTED, JUST HOP THE FENCE AND DUKE WOULD BE HAPPY TO SEE YOULOL...So, this is our dog duke in the snow! Yes it has been snowing for 4 days straight and it just keeps falling.. The average temperature is about 16 degrees but the kids still love to go outside and play in it. Here they are making snow angels. They also build igloos, sled, and play imaginative games. With it snowing so much, I'm so glad they do like to go outside because it gives me a chance to clean and straiten up the house. Plus, they need to get there energy out.

Here is our igloo. Right now, it is sitting under about 3 feet of snow...that is how much it has snowed since I tolk this picture.

Most of the time, Mattie jumps up on the chair in the livingroom and watches the kids play. But this time, she went outside and I taught her how to walk in the snow. I didn't realize at first this was something you have to learn but it is. She finally got a hang of it and then I couldn't keep her out of the snow. She wanted to be just like the big kids. Trey does a lot of shoveling. In this picture, he was helping pile snow for the igloo. His job is to shovel our driveway. If he gets it once a day, it's not too bad.

I will let you know how much we actually get. The adventures of Alaska!!!

OUT WITH THE OLD

ITS a new year! 2009! Hopefully it will be a good year for me before 2010. This is the year of advancement for me. Everyone has something they want to accomplish and new years is a good time to start.

You are probably looking at this pair of jeans thinking I want to fit into them. Actually these jeans are a size 8 and are about 8 years old

My goal is to get my laundry organized and get rid of the majority of the clothing. There is way too much. This pair of jeans have so many holes in them so why keep hanging on to them? It is time for change and minimizing my laundry will help my life.

This is my laundry pile! It is out of control. But there is hope in sight and something the kids can be happy about.

If you have a goal you think you want to accomplish, don't give up on it. Change doesn't happen overnight but once you do the change, your life will be better and create happiness. If you have a family, it will even bring happiness to them what ever goal it is. Test it out!
WELL, HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL.

A couple of things that will be done by 2010 is one: I will be more organized. I started this program called discoverorganization.com about 6 months ago and it has changed my life dramatically. I now have a place to start and tools to use along the way.