January has come and its nearly gone....

I cant believe January is almost over and I haven't even posted the rest of my Christmas pictures.I have had a lot of other things on my mind lately and have been really busy. However, I have to say that Christmas was perfect! My sister Heather came form Idaho, Jared came from Portland and Julie from Maryland. I love that most of us were able to be together. Especially since we will be moving and my parents will be leaving to serve a mission in Guatemala. It was definitely something that I cherished and needed. We were also able to be together with the whole Nielsen family as well and we loved being with everyone on that side of the family also. I am really going to miss being so close to all these special people. It makes me sad to know that we cant just go on over any time we want like we usually do. I love my family and appreciate every single one of them. OK...enough of that. It makes me sad thinking about it. I cant go there yet. I will save this for another post
My Mom and sisters

Julie and Cristian

Anyways....Back to Christmas. Christmas was wonderful. We has a great time. I actually was able to surprise Loren this year with a flat screen TV. That was a perfect moment for me because he is very hard to surprise. I will always remember the shocking look he had on his face. Totally worth it! I cant believe that I actually pulled it off. I cant wait to do it again. We also spoiled ourselves with iphones this year and I am LOVING it! I have never been so organized in my entire life. I also love having the Internet in the palm of my hands. It has made life so much easier for me personally and for the business. I couldn't be happier with my new phone. I stil need to run over my Blackberry. I hated that phone and always swore that when I got a new phone that i would run that piece of crap over!


The Nielsen "line up in the hall" tradition.


Loren and I STILL look like this

Now onto the business. The business usually gives me a little break this time of year but not this time. I have been applying for craft shows for this upcoming year in CA. I have been busy filling out applications and working on getting the business going. I actually already have some shows lined up and will be setting up for a 4 day show the first week that we get there. I am so excited for the business to grow and am so motivated to keep it running successfully. We have been extremely blessed and are grateful for all the opportunities that we have had. I appreciate Lottie more than she knows and appreciate all that she does also. She and Terry will now be running Utah on there own and that will be hard work but I know that they will do great! They have been the best business partners ever and I love that we still like each other:)

The kids are doing well also. Rowan is still in preschool and I am sad that he will have to leave this cute group of kids. Hopefully I can find something like this in Ca and if not, I will start one up. I have loved being involved with the neighborhood and being able to teach the class here and there. Lia also enjoys the kids and its good for her also. Lia is my little devil princess. She can be so sweet but also very feisty. A lot like her Mommma I guess. I enjoy her so much and love her sweet hugs and kisses so much.

Loren is happy and feeling good about this change that our family will be going through. At first he struggled with the idea but now after much prayer he feels good about it. He has a great job and we are grateful for that. We are also grateful for this opportunity to learn and grow as a family. We feel like this is where we need to be and we are OK with it all.

We haven't sold the house yet. We've had two horrible offers and are waiting for something better to come along. We are in no hurry. Dollar tree will be setting us up in temporary living in Rancho Cucuamonga until we can sell. We feel confident that Heavenly Father has a plan for us and we are trying to have faith and be patient. Honestly, I can say that I'm OK and that I trust in his will. That is a good feeling to have especially among change. I feel very peaceful.I know that things will work out in due time.

We will keep you all posted on whats going on with us. Our official move date is Feb 26th. Only one more month and then sunny Ca here we come! Now THAT part I know Im going to like!

December traditions.....

December has been full of some wonderful family traditions so far. The first one that we were able to enjoy together was giving unwrapped presents to the Bishops Store House. Can I just say that I have the best kids? Before we went to the store house we had Family Home evening and explained to the kids what we were doing. We then headed off to Target so they could pick out gifts to give. They never once whined or complained because they wanted the toys and I was so proud of them for that. We have done this the last few years and so I think they understand what its all about. It was a wonderful opportunity not only for our family but for our children. It was a wonderful lesson learned and something we will continue to do every year.
Having cookies and milk at The Bishops Storehouse

There were a lot of people there supporting our Stake and filling up these huge boxes with toys.

The next tradition we started just this year is "The Elf on the Shelf". Im sure most of you have heard me talk about this book already. I absolutely LOVE this tradition! We bought the book and read it. We then took out our elf which the kids named "Buddy" and set him on the shelf. Everynight Buddy flies home to Santa and reports the kids behavior. Every morning he hides in a new spot and the kids have to find him. The first thing they say when they wake up is "Wheres Buddy?". My kids love him to death and it has really helped them want to be good.


Now.... this tradition is one of our favorites. Every year we go to Lorens work to see Santa and have milk and cookies. The kids get very excited to do this. They really get spoiled by Santa too! Every year they get a stocking full of goodies and toys to play with. The kids were happy and loved seeing Santa. Rowan ran up to him and have him a huge hug while Lia was a little bit more nervous. By the end she was hugging him but she wouldnt sit on his lap.





Satuday night we went out to dinner with almost the whole Nielsen clan. This was a first but Im hoping that we can do this every year. We had a wonderful time at The Cheesecake Factory and enjoyed everyones company. The food was tasty and the Nielsens are always fun to be with. After dinner we went to see The Blindside and it was excellent! I love movies that make you feel good and inspire you to be a better person. Not many movies do that now a days. If you havent seen it...it is a must see movie!






For Family Night this week we made a gingerbread house. The kids were so excited to make it. They asked me all day long if it was time yet. I just bought a kit at the store and it was Ok. By the end... the roof was sliding off and it looked like it had been hit by Rita. Next year I want to make our own. I think it would turn out better and it would be WAY more fun!



Here are some pictures of the kids in their Christmas outfits. Every year I get them matching outfits to wear to church on the Sunday before Christmas. They looked adorable and it was fun getting them ready. One thing though...do girls ever stop crying when you do there hair or will this be neverending? Seriously!





Well....these are a few of our Christmas traditions. We still have more to come...the months not over yet! My sisters and brother are coming from out of town this year so I will have a lot more things to post about. I love all the family time we get to spend together every year. Im already not looking forward to after Christmas. I always feel down when its all over and everyone goes home. January is always tough for me! Lets hope for a better one this year!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Zoobiddy Zoo lights!

A few weekends ago we went to Zoo Lights with my sister in law Jen and her family. We had a wonderful time even though we froze out toochies off. I think it was the coldest day of the year when we went. It was FREZZING! Good thing we bundled up and huddled by the heaters when we could. I must say that the lights were incredible. I had NO idea how much fun it would be. I think we may go again when my sister comes. It will definitly be worth it!

A highlight for Lia was seeing the squirrel monkeys. She has talked about them a lot since then. She keeps saying..."Monkey's eat carrots" because she and Savannah watched the monkeys eat there dinner and they LOVED it! Rowan liked everything but most of all he liked the hot cocoa.

Happy Birthday Monkey Boy!

Yesterday my sweet, silly, smart Rowie boy turned 4! I really still cant believe that he is no longer my baby. He has grown up so fast its just crazy! I have loved watching him grow and turn into such a good little boy. He is also quite the character. He really makes us laugh and he knows it and he loves every minute of it. He has also turned into such a good big brother. He loves Lia and is always concerned about her. I love to watch them run around like crazy kids do. They laugh and wrestle and love to play with each other. They are the best of friends!

Here are a few pics from Rowan's "friends" Hot Wheels party last night at Classic Skate . He invited all his preschool buddies and they all had a fun time bouncing. We had a great time and Rowan was in heaven! A big thanks to everyone who came!



Rowans face when he saw his new "real" golf clubs!

Heres a little list of things Rowan loves...

1. Cars and race tracks
2. chocolate
3. cutting paper with his green scissors
4. The Wii
5. Grandma cheese
6. Cafe Rio quesadillas
7. Riding his bike
8. Lining things up
9. Milky
10.Ice cream that has been stirred soft

I love you Rowan! Happy 4th Birthday buddy!

A day of Running, Relaxing, Turkey and Bang!

On Thursday we all enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving day. We started the morning off with a 5K to support The Utah Food Bank. Its our new Thanksgiving tradition. We had a great run minus the cold weather. I guess I should have run a few times outside in the cold before I ran the race. I have been spoiled this winter and have been running inside on the treadmill. It was harder to breathe in the cold air so I didn't beat my previous 5k time however I will still happy with my time. Loren ran with me and pushed me and it was nice to run together. We had never done that before and so I loved it!

After the race we headed to my parents to enjoy a Thanksgiving lunch. I made the most bomb digity yams that Ive ever eaten. I just need to publicly thank Paula Dean for the recipe! I love yams and I enjoyed them dearly. They werent the healthiest to say the least but I still enjoyed them.

After lunch we played four games of our favorite game...Bang! I could have played all night but Terry's family had to leave. After the game we hung out and relaxed and I think I fell asleep around 9. I was really pooped after such an eventful day. I missed seeing The Nielsen's this year so it wasn't quite the same. I cant wait to spent some time with them at Christmas.

I also have to say how grateful I am for all the blessings in my life. We REALLY are truly blessed. Life couldn't be better and I am grateful for that. The gospel brings so much peace into our lives and we are grateful for our desire to live it!

Rowan! You stinker! What is up with all the faces?

Lia turns two...(three weeks ago)

I have to admit that I am completely slacking in the blogging world. I don't know why....I'm just not loving it as much. It just easier sometimes to just post some pictures on facebook and whalla! I'm done and I don't have to write anything. I have been meaning to blog sometime now. Gosh....Lia turned two 3 weeks ago! I have to remember that this blog is my journal and I know even though I'm late...that it is still important to blog and it will be just as important to my kids in the future. So here goes!


I will never forget the day my sweet angel was born. My labor was nothing like Rowans. Rowans was hard and painful and Lia's well....lets just say that I gave a few small pushes and she was here. I was very nervous about having a girl at first. I was afraid. I wasn't sure how having a girl would be. Now, I wouldn't trade having a girl for the world. She is so sweet, gentle and loving and I just cant get enough of her!








Here are few thing that I love about Lia....

1. When I get home from being gone, Lia will always give me a huge hug and say " I missed you". It always melts my little heart.

2. Lia is a fishy cracker and fruit snack addict. She whines constantly for them and it drives me crazy. She will say in her cute little voice "I have fishy cracka Momma, I have fishy cracka?" I hope I will always remember the way that she says this because it is so cute. She always seems to end her sentence with a higher pitch.

3. I love the way Lia asks me a question and then after I respond to her she always says "Oh yeah". Like...Oh yeah I knew that.

4. I love the way she jumps with excitement. She doesn't jump very high when she does. Shes lucky if she jumps a half of inch of the ground. It cracks me up every time.

5. I love the way Lia loves Rowan. She copies everything he does and if he doesn't like something, neither does she.

6. Lia loves to sing. Her favorite song is I love to see the temple. On Sunday, The children's choir sang it and when they finished she hung her head in sadness. She didn't want them to stop singing it.

7. I love the way my sweet little girl prays. She can pray all by herself and I'm so proud of her. I hope that as she grows she will continue to pray often and I hope that her testimony of prayer will also grow with her.

8. Lia is a Daddy's girl. She is crazy about Loren and I completely understand. I'm crazy about him too! She is one lucky girl to have such a sweet Daddy. Loren loves her so much and she just melts his heart. I admire there relationship. Every girl should be close to her Daddy. That is one very special relationship every girl should have.

9. Lia is the BEST sleeper. She always has been. As a matter of fact, she just transitioned into a toddler bed with no problems. I told her she had to stay in bed and not get out or she goes back into her crib. She listened and bed time is a piece of cake. She still naps and when I put down she says "nigh night" and doesn't make a peep.

10. Lia is a blankey lover. I have learned to never leave the house without it or she whines the whole time. She is also a thumb sucker but only when she is cuddling her blankee. She is so cute when she does it. I just hope she quits early and doesnt end up like I did.

11. I love the way Lia dances. She often shakes her bootay and says" Oh yeah..Oh yeah" I love absolutely it!

I am so grateful for Lias sweet spirit and for the joy she has brought into our lives. I cant wait to see her grow up and see what kind of woman she becomes. I know she will be something special!

I love you Lia and I hope I can be a wonderful mother to you as my mother was to me.