Need your Prayers, please.

I need to ask you for a favor. On our pray list is a boy named Allen Woelmer. He is Eilish's age and have cancer. He has been dealing with cancer for quite awhile. He seemed to be doing better lately yet he just had a MRI. They were hoping for good news yet we are all sadden to see the results of his scan. This is what they told us.


Well Allen got his MRI on Friday and I am sad to report that his tumors have grown back. They are the same size they were when we got here and he has some new ones different then the original ones he had. The Dr's said that there is one chemo we can try. Its a chemo he has had before but its given everyday for three weeks. He gets it in his NG tube. Its a chemo we can give him In the Ronald McDonald house.
The other option we have is to give him a chemo in the clinic. We would have to go to the clinic 5 days a week for three weeks. The Dr's said that they are not sure which one would work better because we are in unchartered territory. So Susan and I feel that the chemo that we give at the house would be better so Allen isn't in the clinic everyday. He can be with us in the comfort of the room. He can play and do the things he wants to do.
He can't get the chemo until his counts come up they are at 362 and need to be at 500 to receive the chemo. So on Tuesday we will get his counts to see if he can start the chemo. We are just hoping that we are making the best decision for Allen. He is feeling well and is in good spirits you can't tell that hes sick. Hes playing and acting like a normal kid. They told us that where the tumors are different things can happen and we need to keep an eye on him for the changes they expect us to see. PLEASE pray for Allen he need them more than ever now.
They have helped in the past so tell everyone to pray and pray hard. We are sorry for the bad news but we feel you all need to know the seriousness of this. Thanks you all for your continued support love and kindness. We will try and keep you posted as to his progress. Thanks again.
Love the Woellmers

Please, pray and fast for Allen. They have already lost one daughter to this kind of cancer. I can't imagine loosing another child. The heavens need to hear us and feel our faith. Let's see a miracle happen. Thanks so much. Check out his web site and get to know this little guy. I can't wait to meet him in person.

Christmas Eve

I was able to get all my Christmas things done by 4am Christmas eve. This was the first time in at least 8 years that I was able to enjoy Christmas eve with out having to finish projects. We went to the Stake Center early that evening with some friends and their families and had a light dinner. We were going to have a program with music and reading yet by the time we were done eating we had to get back home as the Elders were coming over. They got to the house just as we were driving up. We made Taco salad and had an enjoyable time getting to know a new missionary, Elder Southworth. After...dinner, we had the Elders open their stockings and Christmas presents. Of course, like a lot of families, we get new P.J's for Christmas eve every year. So the Elders got some PJs with their name and their mission dates. The one thing I don't like is not knowing exactly what size everyone is...so it is a guessing game. Elder Southworth's theme was soccer and Elder Bailey's theme was Milk and cookies.They also received laundry bags also with personalized stockings filled with goodies.

After the Elders opened their gifts, we then opened our PJs. Here we are sporting ours.

We have "Fishy Dad, Captain Brandon, Hot Rod Nephi, Ballerina Eilish and not pictured, Froggy Mom. We had such a FUN time with our PJs. Everyone said it was the best time they have every had with PJs. If you look at this picture below you might see something embroidered in white. Do you see it? Let me turn off the lights and tell me if you can see it better.Can you see it? My camera was having a fit so I didn't get the greatest pictures. It says "Did you think to pray?". Isn't that cool. Glow in the dark thread. Now you know why we all were having so much fun. If anyone once some for next year, get your order in early.
After we had loads of fun with the PJs, we have a tradition of reading the Christmas story in the Bible and Book of Mormon and while dad does this we have Hot Chocolate and make S'mores over the candle stick. The kids love this.

Here it really was dark except the candles. This is why David has a flashlight. I need to read the manual for my camera.
Well it was a wonderful, fun and spiritual night. Some times I like Christmas Eve more than Christmas as it seems like Christmas Eve is more about Christ and Christmas day is more about giving. How fun to celebrate the Saviors birth, life and all the gifts he has given us. I would love to find out what you do on Christmas Eve. I will post Christmas soon, so check back.

I loved how her hair turned out this day. What a fun style. The back "ponytail" is tied up in chains and then pinned up to give it that curly look. Fun, Fun, Fun!

Well here is Eilish's Christmas dress this year. I never know what I am going to do until the last minute. This is three different patterns I used. She wanted the dress long and also the sleeves extra long. It is so much fun making her dresses as now she has such ideas on what she wants her clothes to look like. YES, she is ONLY 5.

Happy Birthday David

Sorry, this was late in posting. I was just so busy with Christmas presents. David's birthday was last Saturday. As you can see, he turned a big 47!! We went to Ihop for his birthday dinner. It is hard to imagine we are as old as we are. The kids being young, keeps us young, yet because of this we don't "fit" into any group. People our age are having grandkids and people with kids their age, are so young. By the time we start having grandkids, people our age will be having Great grandkids. My kids told me I can turn back the clock. So instead of getting older each year, I am getting younger. Cool, huh!!

Merry Christmas

I needed to drop in quickly to wish all a Merry Christmas!! I hope the spirit of Christmas has been felt this Christmas season. So often we get so caught up in the commercial part of Christmas, that we forget what Christmas is really about. Christmas is giving, sharing, Love and all the wonderful gifts Christ gave to us. Let's all stop and ponder on all our many gifts we have received from Christ.
My wish for all of you, is that you receive all the blessings you desire and need. May the Spirit of Christmas stay with you through out all the year.

P.S. I will post our Christmas eve and Christmas pics this week-end.

My First Follower

Whoo Hooo!!! I have a Follower. I have been wanting one every since I started this blog and now I have one. I am so excited. I have seen other blogs with double and triple digit followers. Who else gets excited over simple things in life?

What to do with this girl!!

OK. Look at this girl. Isn't she sweet and innocent?

Now look at this girl. Sticking her hip out. Trying to act cool.

David and I have major worries with her.

There is a boy in her primary class who lives next door to us. A couple of weeks ago I was in primary and noticed they were sitting on the same chair. OK I thought, as long as they are quite. Then he would put his arm around her shoulder and later she would put her arm around his shoulder. Then they would hold hands. Later I saw Eilish scratching his head (I am sure he loved that). This went on the whole 45 minutes of sharing time. I even had other leaders comment on what they were doing.
Then last Sunday...again I was in primary. All the Jr. primary came in and sat down. Then the music stops and the person who is conducting gets up and starts the meeting. I then looked around and noticed Eilish and this boy (who is younger, my daughter is the "older" woman) not in primary. I go looking around the building and as I was coming back to the primary room because I couldn't find them, they come walking down the hall holding hands. I asked Eilish where they were and she said they were just walking!!! Already she is skipping class and walking the hallways. For those who may not know this...she is only 5!! 5 years old and already acting as if she is a teenager. I told David it is time to get the shotgun out and put it by the front door. :>) Does some one have a good and strong lock, without the key?

I'm a Spoiled Mom!

I have to say that I am very lucky. As I have mentioned before...My kids are so good to me. Brandon will open the doors for me, home, buildings, car doors, etc. Start my car in the freezing cold. He is always around with a hug. He loves giving hugs.
Nephi is my spa person. Just to night he lotion my feet, hands and face. He then massaged my feet and then he and Eilish "decorated" my hair. Nephi just scheduled me for a FULL spa tomorrow after church. Brandon and Nephi's wives are going to thank me. These boys will spoil their them. I am very blessed to have them!!
Oh, I guess I am down in the books for having a Full spa on Christmas day also... Merry Christmas to me!

Tis the Season to Sew

Well it is here.

No matter what I think...I will never be able to get my Christmas sewing done before December. Most of the time I don't even know what I am going to make until November. As I have stated before, I make 1/2 of the kids gifts ( I am curious. Lets add them up. 3 kids and they get 12 gifts so that is 6 x 3 = 18 plus PJs for all so that is 5. A total of 23 hand-made gifts...not counting friends and extended family.Oh I forgot Eilish's Christmas dress and the boys' tie so a new total of 28.)and then they, the kids have to make all of their gifts and of course they need my help. One thing most people don't realize is this. If you have kids in public school, you can sew while they are in school, or if you have toddlers, while they are napping, but if you home school, the only time you can sew is while they sleep, which means no sleep for you. I try to get the kids in bed by 9pm and I will sew until 4am and then get the kids up at 8:30am for school, so when you see me, if I look tired, slur my words, do not make sense, it is not because I have been "drinking". I am just in the season of sewing.

and on a P.S note...some of you might ask why I torture myself? For me part of Christmas is about thinking, figuring out what a person really wants or need and then putting your self into that present. When I ask my kids what gift they like the most, it is always the one tailored in love.

P.P.S I love seeing my kids decide what they want to make their siblings. Last year Nephi made Brandon a Fleece zip up vest and cap. First time doing a large project like that and he did very well. Brandon made Nephi a wall hanging with different cars and trucks he painted. I was shocked. Last year they were all picking bigger projects. One year Brandon made Eilish a Jesus doll. They cherish these gifts their brothers and sister makes for them. I am praying that they are learning the true meaning of Christmas through making thoughtful gifts for each other.

Eilish's Jesus from Brandon

Brandon's vest and cap from Nephi

Nephi's wall hanging from Brandon. Just to let you know, Nephi is really into cars and trucks.

The Lehi Tree

One thing we have done is what is called "The Lehi Tree". Christmas is all about the Spirit of Christ, which is his Love and this is what the Lehi Tree represents. So, every other year we do the Lehi Tree for Christmas.
What we do is decorate the tree in white and silver. We then hang cookies or some other treat on the tree. About 12 days before Christmas we would start, where every night we would read about the Lehi Dream and the Tree of Life in the Book of Mormon. After we were done, we would have the kids line up in the hall way. We would blind fold them and Dad (who was at the tree of Life) would call their name. They would then try to follow his voice until they came upon the "Iron Rod" (Shower rod), in which they would grab hold and continue on their journey to their dad. Once there, he would take off the blind fold, give them a BIG hug and tell them how proud he was of them and how much he loved them. He would then tell them about the "fruit" on the tree and would ask if they would like to partake. They would then get their treat. This would continue until Christmas Eve.
The kids love doing this and I am sure have a better understanding about the Tree of Life and what it really means.

New Greenie

Well as some of you might know, a couple of weeks ago we received two new missionary. One Elder McNaughton has been out a year and the other Elder Bailey has been out a month. When we had them over for dinner Elder Bailey was only out 3 days, so with any "greenie" we give them a "greenie" dinner. It might look awful, yet it taste great.

Kids' Favorite Christmas gift

I started this about three years ago and now the children ask for them. What I did was make a coupon book. There is probably about 20 coupons for each kids. They range from... Day off of school, day off of chores, Game of your choosing, 1 hour reading in bed, 1 hr of computer or TV games, pick a movie with popcorn, choose a snack at the store, day at the park, day at the library, etc... then it moves up to bigger and better things. Cold stone, Golden Corral, Magazine subscription, craft item, cookie session. You are getting the idea. I have some that have dates on when they can use them, so they are spread out through out the year. Otherwise they would use them up the first month...ok week!
I make these into small business size cards and use cement glue on one side, so they can peel off a card, one at a time. I then put them in their stockings.
I asked the kids one Christmas what their favorite gift was and all of them said "The coupon book".

Winner of Giveaway!!!

OK, I havn't posted for awhile. I figured why post if no one is reading it. Well it is time to announce the winner of the Giveaway!


This giveaway was a sad one. I only had two people resond to my giveaway.

So, Drum roll please......................

The winner is..............................













Connie and Rosie
Since you were the only ones who posted, you both win. I will be getting them done this week and will give them to you next Sunday. Thanks for playing. I really enjoyed reading about your home-made gifts.

Christmas Ideas

Last year I made everyone a fleece jacket. I should of made Brandon's bigger as he has already out grown his. They were all different. I enjoyed making these.

Every Christmas Eve they are able to open up on gift...and of course they are pajamas. I remember doing this as a kid. I was always so excited to go to sleep (ok, tried) on Christmas Eve in my new pajamas. Here are the kids modeling theirs. David and I also get some.

This last year is where the coloring purse/tote started. I made it for Eilish on Christmas and later figured more people would probably like one for their kids. She uses hers all the time.




I will have more ideas later.

Weaving Project

Eilish decided she wanted to learn to weave. So, we bought this kit that makes pot holders. Remember these? I had one when I was a little girl. She was so proud of herself. She did a wonderful job. My little girl is growing up.

Boys with their Legos

For school the boys ordered Legos kits. Nephi's kit comes with lots of different projects to make. It comes with a workbook, in which he does experiments with each one and explains his results. Brandon's is more complicated. His is a Robot in which he programs on the computer and this guy will do a bunch of different things. I remember trying to get the kids interested in Legos when they were little and they wanted nothing to do with them. Now, I can't get them to stop playing with them. They love to build and use their imaginations.

New Blog

I have been told, that Eilish's hair designs were taking too much room. So, I have created a new blog just for her hair. Not that anyone will see it as I have had less than a handful of comments since I started this blog a couple of months ago. I some times wonder why I am blogging as I feel I am the only one on this site. It's not like I have nothing better to do with my life.
Oh, just in case you would like to look at Eilish's blog you may go to www.eilishshairdesigns.blogspot.com .

GIVEAWAY / Home-Made Christmas Ideas

Ok, Christmas is coming and time to start picking brains for gift ideas. I have some thing this year picked out (can't tell as until after Christmas as I have eyes all around me), yet I am going to start early for next year.

For every idea you tell me (must be home-made and one comment per day), you will get your name put in for a drawing. So if you tell me 4 different ideas for home-made gifts (each a separate day), you will have your name in the drawing 4 times. The drawing will be closed on November 27th (Thanksgiving) at midnight. Next day the winner will be announced. The winner will receive a S'more kit, personalized. Color is subject to change and food is not included. It does come with 2 toasting forks.

I will also share what I have done in the past. Now this is "home-made" gifts. I don't care for the store bought as anyone can do that. Not a lot of thought process there.

Here is mine.

I will share one once a week. I guess I will start out with our funniest, most successful one.

One year I was stuck on what to do. It was already Nov and I had no idea. A friend of mine ( who is VERY creative) suggested doing a castle as the boys had a bunk bed. The since we do new P.J's each year I decided to make Knight P.J's for the boys and Eilish had a princess nightgown (you will see in the pictures). Then I thought it would be lots of fun to have a long cape/blanket for them to play with and if you have a cape you need a shield/pillow and of course, if you have a shield you need a sword/pillow.

Here he is being tough. You know knights have to be tough.


Now it is your turn to give me some ideas. I can't wait!!!