Russ and Kade UFC

This was going on behind me while I was video taping Tess's lacrosse game. I turned around and caught some of the crazy action. Kade is Kira's older brother and also a lacrosse player. He had been calling Russ out the whole game so Russ finally answered the call.

Russ-L-mania!

After the Jr. Tigers won their lacrosse game last Saturday (8-7) and made the playoffs, most of the team came to our house and partied for 8 hours (2-10 pm)!! They played lacrosse at the park, played X-box 360, jumped on the tramp, ate lots of pizza, played 007 in our neighborhood and finished the night with a good wrestle with Brother C. Also Known as Russ-le-mania!!

Chloe and Liv on the Trampoline

Chloe and Liv were having fun with the camera making videos of each other doing tricks and then watching them backwards on the computer. 

Very Entertaining!

Olivia Ties the game!!

Olivia's team "The Monkeys" enjoyed their first

NON-loss on Saturday.

Olivia scored an amazing 13 points to give them a 30-30 tie. Near the end of the game the girls were giving Liv the ball to take down the court because they knew she was on fire. Usually they kinda argue about whose turn it is.

Gotta be those

FUNKY SOCKS

It worked! She scored the tying point with less than a minute left by shooting and drawing the foul. They give them one point instead of shooting foul shots. It was pretty stinking fun. She also picked up a loose ball with 3 seconds left and tried to make a last minute shot for the win but missed. (you can't make em all) It was great to see her rebounding and going after loose balls too. She probably caused about 3 jump balls and a couple of turn-overs! 

It was a treat to watch and she got yummy treats after the game. They only have a few more games left and she is wishing they had more. 

Family Night Treats

For Christmas Tess got a candy-making kit that we had yet to use. Last Monday night for a family night treat and activity we finally broke it out. 

Some yummy trees. These are all made out of different colors of "white" and regular chocolate. YUM!!

Part of the kit was a flower mold that you make with BIG pretzels. There were also cute Santas and Snowmen. The girls worked really hard to get all the details filled in perfectly.

And they worked just as hard at destroying them a few minutes later.

It was worth it!

Valentine's Day Winners and Losers

This year I was bound and determined to make sure all my siblings, my in-laws, and Russ's Grandma all got handmade valentines from me, complete with corny poems inside.

I started about 10 days before Valentine's day and made these cute cards for everyone and then tried coming up with the perfect, witty poems that would make you all feel loved, adored and appreciated it. Well, that's as far as I got cuz,... well.. life... and my darling children were my top priority! So enjoy this picture, it's as good as you'll get. Maybe I'll e-mail the corny poems I did finish.

I barely finished the kids' and Russ's poems in time and I got them each their favorite treat from the store. That was all I was planning even though Olivia, who LOVES my new RED bathrobe Russ bought me for Christmas, had begged me to get each of them one for Valentine's day. 

Russ's Hawaiian themed card. 

He is taking us all to Hawaii for Spring Break!!!

Lucky for Olivia, when I was at JoAnn Fabrics a few days before Valentine's Day and when I was waiting in line I noticed a shelf of SUPER SOFT BATHROBES for 75% off!!!! 

They had four different colors in sizes that fit the kids. 

How could I resist??

Enjoying their robes on a lazy Sunday afternoon!

So cozy.

Elect Mayor Dave!

Some of you may have noticed that I switched my yard sign from 

John Lewis to Dave Petersen

 What you don't know is that I was originally supporting Dave for mayor and actually helped get signatures to put his name on the ballot. I was so excited when I heard that he was running for Mayor because I have known him for over 5 years and have watched him work in the Town Council and know what a hard core conservative he is. He is exactly the kind of guy we need in government right now.  

A few weeks later John Lewis joined the race and like a lot of you I thought he would probably do a good job too since he was a great man and a great stake president. I also thought he had a better chance of winning because of his position in the church and I allowed a sign to be put in my yard even though I felt a little bad. 

Recently I have been watching and reading what both John Lewis and Dave Petersen have been saying and what they believe in and well... I am back with my first choice, 

Mayor Dave! 

(check him out for yourselves Electmayordave.com)

Some things about Dave Petersen I really like...

* He has experience in politics- knows how the game is played, knows what to look for and how to avoid traps and problems. He is not testing out his political skills for the first time.

* He is not afraid to make enemies if necessary- He is so convicted to his beliefs that he will not compromise them even if that means making some people angry or unhappy.

* Has a great knowledge and love of the principles of freedom found in the   constitution- He understands the proper role of government, that its role is limited and it is supposed to protect our freedoms, not "take care of us."

* He has a concrete vision of what he wants to do as Mayor. He is bound and determined to keep government from growing and shrink it as much as possible, lower taxes and encourage more personal responsibility and keep things like Traffic Camera's OUT OF GILBERT!!

* He is a member of NRA, John Birch Society and more- This shows me that he is serious about protecting us from the overreaching power of government that is really becoming more and more of a huge problem today. 

For these reasons, and many more, I believe that electing Dave Petersen would be the best thing we could do for Gilbert during these uncertain times. An experienced, qualified, convicted, strong leader with core beliefs in the gospel and the constitution is exactly what we need.  John Lewis was a great stake president and church leader but that does not necessarily mean he will make a good mayor.

No matter what you do, 

FIND OUT FOR YOURSELF!!! 

Make an educated choice! 

Rustin Flips for Lacrosse!

Rustin had a great game today! He scored a goal and they won 13-5!!!

He has such great skills I love to watch him play! 

Go Tigers!!

She Shoots, She Scores... A LOT!!

Olivia had an incredible game today. She scored 12 points and their team almost had their first win! 44-46! She came in and turned on the talent that we knew was in her!!! 

Great job Deeds!

Olivia's New Best Friend!

After a week of resting her broken heart, Olivia has a new best friend!

Her name is Lou Lou. (Olivia's spelling)

She is a baby Dumbo-eared rat and is much smaller, fuzzier and quicker (harder to get a picture of) than her dear departed Dumbo. She is adorable and greatly ADORED!

I found Lou Lou by searching out a rat breeder and luckily he took pity on me and sent me  this special delivery to the pet store today and told them to let me have her for free! 

Thank you Brian!

Olivia knew I was searching but didn't know I'd found one until after school today when she saw the fancy new cage on the counter with the tiny new pet inside. Rustin helped me video tape her reaction which was fun. I'll see if I can download it. 

Welcome to the family Lou Lou. 

And you better believe we will guard you with our LIVES!!

INTRODUCING... "SPATULA BALL"

RUSTIN was bored one night and grabbed some spatulas and asked me to come swat around a rolled up scarf with him. I can't resist those dimples and "Spatula Ball" was born! 

Olivia is trying to hit the racquetball (the scarf kept coming unrolled) past Rustin into either one of the open doorways and Rustin tried to get it past Livvy in the one big doorway.

Since the targets are uneven we switch sides every 4 points. (We play to 8)

The casualties of the game!

Another casualty!

"King of the SPATULA!"

Don't mess with Chloe and her jazzed up spatulas!

Thanks Rustin for the fun family memories :)

A Key to the City for a Hero we Can Believe In

This morning as I made my breakfast I was watching Fox News and they were showing the ceremony of Mayor Bloomberg giving the key to New York City to America's newest hero, Captain Sullenberger "Sully", who safely landed his airplane its crew and 155 passengers into the Hudson river. 

The reporters were praising what he did and commenting on how "he has given all of us someone we can believe in." My thoughts immediately turned to the Savior, Jesus Christ who is really someone we can all believe in and  I started drawing some comparisons about what both of these heroes have done.  Captain Sulley did an amazing thing, he used the training that he was given and his own talents,  intuition, and unflustered demeanor to skillfully and carefully land a totally disabled plane into a river which saved more than 155 people (and himself) from certain physical death. For those actions he is being praised, awarded, called a hero, had parades thrown in his honor and given a key to New York City. I think that is wonderful and he deserves the praise.

While I adore and admire this humble and talented Captain Sulley, I can't help but wonder what it would be like if people really considered what a HERO Jesus Christ is. 

Let us consider what He actually did for us.

For no pay, reward or glory, he suffered all of the physical, spiritual and emotional pain associated with every single sin that was ever committed by me,  you, our children, our parents, and everyone human being that ever has lived on this planet or the countless others he has created! 

He did not do this to save us from physical death, but from spiritual death. He paid the price of our sins so we do not have to suffer an eternity of being miserable and alone, forever separated from Him, our Heavenly parents, and earthly families.

While in the flesh He literally felt all our sorrows, heartaches, sicknesses, injuries, weaknesses, frustrations, pains, and sufferings so that he will personally know how to help each one of us in our time of need. 

He knew this would be such an indescribably painful experience that he humbly asked His Father if there was any other way it could be accomplished before he willfully submitted.

His suffering was so great it caused Him to literally bleed from every pore.

He died for us. After being beaten and abused, He was hung on a cross, a humiliating death used for the lowest of criminals.

He rose again and we will too, with perfected, resurrected bodies that can never die again.

It was not his job, he was not paid, it was not expected or demanded of him, he did it voluntarily out of LOVE.

How do we thank him for this MIRACLE? 

Do we throw him a parade or give him a key to the city? Do people from all over the world be sending him letters thanking him for saving their loved ones? Do we talk about Him on the news? Do we tell everyone that finally we have someone we can believe in? Do we talk about him with our families? Do we tell our friends about this incredible miracle, and this humble HERO? 

Isn't what Jesus Christ did so much more important and profound than what Captain Sulley did? Saving us from eternal death and misery is a pretty amazing thing and so today I want to tell him

 THANK YOU!

Thank you for every drop of blood that was spilt for me, that allows me to repent and have the chance to live again with you, our heavenly Parents and those that I love, forever! Thanks for sharing my burdens so I know that I am never alone, that someone else has felt exactly what I am feeling and that I can always call on you for help. Thank you for all the times that you have rescued me in my hour of need. Thanks for the HOPE, JOY and PEACE that only you can bring. Thank you for being the one perfect person that everyone can ALWAYS believe in. Thanks for never letting me down. I will try and do the same for you.  If I had a city I would give you its key. Thanks for being my own personal hero and Savior to the world! 

Your friend, Sarah

Great Shots in Tucson

~When it comes to Lacrosse~ 

~Sometimes you are down~

~Sometimes you are hitting someone with your stick~

~Actually, that happens a lot~

~Or chasing that little ball~

~That happens a lot too!~

~Sometimes you squish people~

~Or get even~

~Or get in trouble~

~For getting even~

~and get punished~ oh well!

Go Lady Tigers!!!

Watch out ladies of lacrosse, here come the TIGERS!!!

Tess plays for Gilbert High School JV team and they  had their first tournament last saturday, The Southwest Roundup, and...

THEY WON BOTH GAMES!

Tess is our awesome number 4 and loves playing "ATTACK"

For those of you who know her really well, it totally fits her personality!

She played great, fought hard for the ball, made great passes and catches.

Waiting right in front of the goal, GIMME THE BALL!

Getting the ball with that colorful stick of hers.

Way in the back scooping up that ball again.

Got it!

They beat some of the best teams in the state.

Horizon 7-6

Chapparel  8-5

They were VERY HAPPY and they should be!! 

Grrrrrreat job TIGERS!

Too Sad for Words

Picture this: I pull up to the house yesterday after picking up Tess from lacrosse practice yesterday and there standing in the driveway are Rustin and Olivia who are both red faced and crying.

In Olivia's hands is her new pet rat, Dumbo,

WHO IS DEAD!

 Through her sobs she tells me that while she was sitting on the couch playing with her, Nellie (who somehow got out of the room I had shut her in) ran up and snatched Dumbo right out of her hands and ran off with her in her mouth!!! Rustin heard Olivia screaming from downstairs and ran down to see what was wrong. Olivia had got Dumbo away from Nellie by then but she was barely moving and by the time I drove up, about 1 minute later, she was dead. Rustin hugged Olivia and told her he was sorry and couldn't help but cry for his little sister.

She may look like a cute and innocent dog but she is a rat killer! 

The rat did get a few bites and scratches on Nellie's nose before Olivia got her. 

Way to fight back Dumbo!

This is the second rat of Olivia's she has killed. The first time we had rats was about 4 years ago and each kid had one. We had no idea how strong Nellie's instinct to hunt and kill was but we found out only one day after we got them. She killed Olivia's named Oreo.  Olivia bought a new one but was always a little sad about Oreo. Yesterday was much worse. She had played more with Dumbo in the last 2 and 1/2 days than most rats get played with in a life time. She had put all of her sadness at losing her hamster into loving that little rat. Dumbo had such a great temperament too. She didn't bite and she was really easy to hold and snuggle. She would lick Olivia's fingers and face. We were so lucky to find such a great little rat so quickly (I had called about 5 pet stores to find a young female dumbo-rat). Olivia was SO MAD AT NELLIE- who before this was one of Olivia's best friends. She kept saying over and over that she hated Nellie. Later that night Olivia was talking about how Nellie had killed 2 of her rats and said "I think when Nellie dies she will even try to kill my rats' spirits!" I told Olivia not to worry, you can't kill a spirit. I think her heart started to soften towards Nellie when she saw the bite marks and scratches on Nellie's face.

After lots of crying and hugging I spent the rest of the day trying to distract Olivia from the tragedy and keep her happy. 

We:

Went on a bike ride

Made little pizzas

Jumped on the trampoline with Chloe

Watched American Idol

Read poems to each other

Snuggled in my bed

Sang lullabies to her

and finally, slept.

When Rustin got home from scouts that night the first thing he did was ask how Olivia was feeling.  She is not sure whether she wants to get another pet right away, or ever, because I don't think she wants to get on that emotional roller-coaster again or take the chance of Nellie killing it. But if she does, we will let you know.

Oh... the phone just rang. Guess who is not feeling well and wants to come home from school, Livvy.

Welcome to the Family!

Yesterday Olivia's beloved pet hamster, Allie, died. She had her for a little over a year and loved every minute of being her owner. We had a little graveside service for Allie and many tears were shed.  Being the Olivia lover that I am and the animal lover that she is, I couldn't say "no" to her when she asked if she could get another pet. 

It only took her a few minutes to find exactly what she was looking for. She paid for most of it (thanks to left-over birthday and Christmas money) and we headed out the door with the newest Crawford.  

She couldn't wait to hold her so she held her most of the way home.

It's a RAT! 

A female dumbo-eared rat that was aptly named DUMBALINA or DUMBO for short.

Other name ideas were; Karianne (Olivia's oldest cousin- animal lover- and expert on rats), Munchie, Mittens, Allie Jr. or Sally.

They became best buddies right off the bat. Don't you love those big ears?

 Olivia does and her broken heart has mended! 

Thanks Dumbo!

Go Cards!!!

Becky Taylor blogged a great blog about our superbowl party!!

 Check it out HERE!