Grandpa Washburn

Thanksgiving for our family was really good, I hope everyone's Thanksgiving was the same and you found a lot to be grateful for this year. We always love to be together with family and enjoy eachother. I like to reflect on the blessings in my life. I have a lot to be grateful for this year. I feel the Lord has watched over our little family and continues to. My biggest blessing in my life is my family.

My husband, who is my biggest fan. He gives me all the love and support that I need. This has become very evident to me this last year as I accepted a calling to serve as the adult Gospel Doctrine teacher in our ward. A calling that I never could imagine myself fulfilling, but Thomas has helped me see that this was something I can do and dare I say "enjoy" doing.

My children. These two boys make me so happy, I can't imagine my life without them. They help me laugh and not take life so seriously. They really are the greatest kids I know, and I really can't take the credit for that.

Our extended family. Our parents, who are so supportive to us. Both my parents and Tom's parents are great examples of what parents should be. We owe a lot to them. Our siblings. Our cousins, aunts and uncles. Our grandparents. Which leads me to the reason why I started this post. In September, I lost my first grandparent. Grandpa Washburn passed away on the first day of school. A milestone to send my first child to school, and also to witness my grandpa's passing from this life to the next. It was a bittersweet day.

My sister and I were asked to speak at the funeral. We are the only granddaughters of the family and we felt honored to share memories of our Grandpa. In preparation for our talk, we decided to meet with all the cousins and gather everyone's memories of Grandpa. It was a neat experience to reflect one those memories, and learn a few new things about Grandpa as well. What a great man he is. What great man to have raised such good children and grandchildren. I am grateful to him for his example and love he showed us.

Losing a grandparent has reminded me of the importance of family. What a blessing it is to have family. What a blessing it is to know of our Heavenly Father's plan of happiness. To know that it doesn't end with this life. What a sad thing to think about. . . losing a loved one to death, and not knowing or believing that you will see them again. At this time, as I reflect on my blessings, I am most grateful for my knowledge of the gospel and of THIS plan. It truly is the plan of HAPPYness. I am grateful to be part of my eternal family. I miss Grandpa Washburn, I've thought a lot about him lately. But I know that I will see him again. What an awesome blessing. THE greatest blessing that our Heavenly Father has given us.


This picture was taken just weeks before Grandpa's passing. I will always treasure it. Right before this picture was taken, Grandpa was "chasing" my boys around the driveway in his chair. He was always a good for a laugh.

I've always loved this picture. It means even more to me now. That's me in the corner of the picture waiting for Grandpa to throw me the ball.

Fall Festivities

I love this time of year. Three of our four family members have birthdays in the fall, which makes it more festive. I love the leaves. I love the urgency to be nestled into our homes on a cold day with our loved ones. But mostly I love fall because this is the time of year that Thomas and I met and began to fall in love with eachother. Brings back so many great memories. It was ten years ago this year. Can't believe where the time has gone. Seven years of wedded bliss and two kids later, we are even more in love today. Anyway, here are some pictures of some of the things we've been up to.


K.C. played T-ball for the first time.


The boys and I got to go the circus for the first time. Xander was scared of the clown, and was clinging to me. Thanks Grandma Harris, we had a blast.


We went to visit the Witches at Gardner Village. Xander again was scared, of the witch this time,and wouldn't sit close to it.


We attended the Harris 2nd Annual Halloween Party. It was a pirate theme this year, and so much fun!


Xander performed at his first preschool program. They sang Halloween songs and did actions to them. This was the only picture I got of him actually singing the song. He mostly didn't sing, but doesn't he look cute as a boxer?


Adorable.

I wish that I had pictures of my favorite thing so far this fall. On my birthday my sweet husband surprised me and had my sister fly in from Las Vegas to take me to the spa for a girls day. I knew nothing about it until she showed up to take me! I was kind of in shock for a bit. I had so much fun with my sister and was glad that she was so willing to spend the day with me. Probably the best birthday present ever. The day with my sister wasn't all, just when I thought the surprise was over, she blindfolded me and took me to our church where my husband and a bunch of my friends and family were there to throw me a surprise party! Let's just say I was in complete shock. It was so much fun though. I loved seeing everyone that came, it had been awhile since I had seen some of my friends. Thank you to everyone who came, and thank you Thomas for planning everything. Also, congratulations for pulling off your first ever surprise to me. You did awesome!

May the Force be with You!!!

KC didn't have a party last year, so this year we went all out and had a Jedi themed party for him. Thomas and I didn't grow up watching, or loving, or even knowing anything about Star Wars, so we faked our way through this one! I got the idea from KC's classmate's party last year, and thought it was so cute, so I copied the idea. I know, I don't take the creativity award home for this one, but it was still fun! Plus, KC thinks his parents rock, and that's all that matters here.

Thomas pretending to be the Master Jedi and training the young Jedi, or whatever all you Star Wars nerds call it! I'm not sure of all the technical names.

Thomas being attacked by the Jedi'.

The "Death Star" pinata. Which by the way is soccer ball pinata spray painted black and silver. It was a much cheaper option than the Darth Vader pinata.

The really cool and really sweet Lightsaber cupcakes!

The whole crew! Yes, there were many invited and all but two came. 14 total came, making it 16 with my two boys. What was I thinking? Well, I didn't want to leave anyone out on having so much fun!!

Cap'n Crunch . . .

. . .or is it Crapped in Crunch? That's what Xander called it this morning when he asked for a bowl of it. I just made you all hungry didn't I?

The big 6!!!

My sweet baby boy turned 6 today, and I know you are not surprised by this, but it makes me sad that he is growing up so quickly. Life has really seemed to hit this "fast forward button" lately, and I'm having a hard time coming to grips with it. It seems the older I get the faster it goes.

I just want to take this post and dedicate it to me sweet "KC Boy". When I think about the time that me and Daddy found out that we were going to have you, boy was I scared and unsure of my ability to be a mother. It may have been a rough start, but becoming a mother to you has made me grow in so many ways and I couldn't picture my life without you. You came to us at just the right time in our lives, we needed you. You were such a good baby . . . okay maybe not for the first 3 months of colic and non-stop crying. After that you were golden. No, really you have always been golden. When I think of the first time I held you in my arms, I still get emotional and wish that I could experience that moment a million times over. Getting you here was not an easy process, but 27 hours of labor later you arrived safely to us, and oh what a relief it was. You are such a good little boy, and are growing up so quickly. You are so bright and are learning so many new things. I love helping you learn how to read each night before bedtime. You are talented in so many ways. You are polite, reverent, funny, and make friends easily. You have a real talent for music, and can make up songs off the top of your head. You remind me at times how to not take life so seriously. KC you are such a great big brother to Xander. He loves you and wants to do whatever you are doing. Thank you for being so patient with him with whatever the situation is. Your relationship with your brother reminds me of the relationship I had/have with my sister. I hope that you will always be friends and close to eachother.
Thank you KC for being exactly who you are. You are a great example to our little family and I am so very grateful and lucky to be your mom. I love you, and Happy Birthday!

Xander's first day of preschool

It's official, my boys are growing up. Way too quickly I might add. Xander started preschool last week. He was suppose to start on the 8th, but had to miss the first day because my grandpa passed away and we went to the funeral. (I'll post more on that later). So Xander started on the second day of school, but he didn't seem to mind one bit. He is going to the same in home preschool that KC went to, and so far he really seems to like it. I'm so proud of both of my boys for being so brave. They have had no hesitation going to school. I love them both so much, and feel like the luckiest mom on the earth! So far Xander's favorite thing to do at preschool is "cawa", translation: color. Here are some cute pics I was lucky enough to get of Xander, he is not one to pose or sit still for pictures.

"Mom! Just take the stinkin'picture already!"

Isn't he hot stuff?

He is SO proud of his new Thomas the Train backpack and Spiderman shoes.

KC starts Kindergarten . . .mom may go through withdrawls

We did it!! Well, I guess KC did it. Xander and I walked him around the corner and to his first day of Kindergarten this morning. He was so excited to go, I didn't think that he would have a hard time at all saying goodbye. And he didn't. Not at all.

In fact this morning, I asked him, "Will you get the ketchup out of the fridge for me, buddy?" I mean c'mon, every kid needs a power breakfast of eggs and ketchup for the first day of school.

His reply to me was, "Mom why do you call me buddy?"

I replied, "I don't know, I guess I've always called you that. Why do you not like it?"

KC said, "Yeah, I don't like it."

My thought was, "what?!! he doesn't want me to call him buddy anymore? I've been calling him that since he was a baby! It's starting sooner than I suspected. He's growing up and doesn't want to be embarrassed by his mom. Ouch, it hurts. My baby's no longer a baby anymore. He's no longer my buddy anymore."

I said to him (even though it hurt my heart to say this to him), "I won't call you buddy anymore if you don't want me too. Does it embarrass you?"

He replied, "Yes, don't call me buddy at school mom."

And there you have it. I am the mother of an almost 6 year old, who gets embarrassed of things his mom does. I guess I'm not too surprised. I used to get embarrassed by some of the things my mom use to do. (sorry mom, still love ya) I can't remember exactly what those things were, but I remember feeling the same way KC does. Oh well, I guess thats a part of life. I didn't really mean for this post to convey how sad I am that my oldest son is growing up. Really, I'm not that sad about. Just sentimental I guess. In all reality, I'm thrilled for him to start school. He has been so excited about this. Since last year, when we bought our house that is literally just a hop, skip, and a jump away from the elementary school, KC has wanted to go to school there. We've really hyped it up all year long. I was such a proud mom this morning, when I watched KC line up with his classmates and march into his classroom with no hesitation at all. Here's a few pics of KC this morning. I tried not to get too carried away with taking pictures, afterall I wouldn't want to embarrass my son.



KC and his goofy brother.

KC lining up with his class. Look at that grin. You couldn't wipe it off his face even if you wanted.

July 20, 2002

Today is our 7th year anniversary. Seriously, where does the time go? This was our engagement photo. We look SO young! I was 20 and Tom was 21, so yes WE WERE young!

It was the best day ever! We were so happy, and I remember wanting that day to last forever. Everything about that day was awesome, especially the temple. The spirit was so strong there, and I remember it vividly. I remember the sealer telling us to look at him, but we didn't listen very well- we couldn't stop staring at eachother! Everyone in the room thought that was pretty funny, because there was a lot of laughter.

It was great having a our family and friends there with us.

I couldn't decide on just one photo, so sorry you get to see more. Some of these are pretty cheesy, but if you think these are bad- you should see our wedding video! Lots of grinning and smooching going on there! I love it though!

I can hardly believe that it's been seven years. We are still happy too! :) I'd be lying if I said that we had the perfect marriage, but pretty dang close to perfect! Together, we have accomplished many things, and for that I am grateful. We bring out the best in eachother.

Thank you Thomas for seven fun, crazy, and wonderful years. I look forward to many more and eternity! I love you Always and Forever.

The best part of my summer so far is . . . DRUM ROLL PLEASE . . .

Xander is potty trained!!!!!!!! I can't tell you how excited I am about it, I feel so liberated- really I do. I think I am more excited about him being potty trained, than I was about KC. I guess because I know what it's like to have one kid out of diapers and so with two kids now out of diapers it's just that much better. Here's to one fantastic summer.

Tom's first century

I just have to brag for a minute, I mean isn't that what blogs are for? My husband is incredible. He is my hero. I've always known he is my hero, but today he proved it once again to me. Back in April (which wasn't that long ago) we bought road bikes. After doing two small triathlons on mountain bikes and realizing that if he and I were going to keep doing these triathlons, then we knew that we needed to get road bikes to make it a much more enjoyable experience. For those of you who know the difference between mountain bikes and road bikes, you'd understand. It's a completely different world on a road bike!! I love my new bike!! Okay, back to my story now. We bought the road bikes, and then like three days later Thomas signed up to do the 100 mile bike ride for MS. Pretty ambitous, don't ya think? At first I thought he was crazy! I mean he just got the bike and was already signing up to do a century ride? What the? But then I just went along with it, like I usually do. And it was for a good cause, so I thought that was cool. Well, today was the day of the ride. We went to Logan along with all the other 3500 people riding in it, and it was awesome. I always get emotional at events like this. Crossing a finish line, or watching others cross the finish line after intense physical exertion and endurance is so spiritual for me. I was just glad that I had my sunglasses on, so people couldn't see me get teary. After watching many people come across the line, I was very anxious to see Thomas finish. Let me tell you, I didn't have to wait long at all! He came in and looked great! He said he hurt like hell, but I thought he looked great. He finished the ride in seven hours. A pretty dang good time if you ask me, especially since thirty minutes of that was taken up by getting his bike repaired. What an incredible day. I think it might have even inspired me to do it next year. Great job babe, I'm so proud.

One on One time

Tonight Tom and KC had a date to go golfing with eachother. They were both SO excited to do this together. Tom noticed that KC is pretty good at swinging the club, so he set them a date to go. KC is finally able to use the little set that Santa brought like 3 years ago, thank goodness he's finally grown into them. They had alot of fun, unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of it. I would have sent the camera with Tom, but didn't think that he would even bother to take any shots. Maybe next time, I can tag along with and get some photos. I did manage to get a photo of mine and Xander's date though. He and I went to buy him new water shoes for our lake trip next week and went to get an ice cream cone too. At first, he was pretty bummed that he had to go on a date with me. He really wanted to go with Daddy and KC, but I think the ice cream cone changed his mind. Xander LOVES ice cream cones! I love this kid.

Swim Lessons

The boys are taking swim lessons at the Draper pool, and for the most part are enjoying it. Well, KC is loving it and Xander is enduring it. We put KC in level one, and I wasn't quite sure if he was ready to be there yet, but he actually seems to be doing really well. I think he also likes the fact that he is the only boy in his class and that his teacher is really cute! He is such a show off, it's fun to watch him 'perform' for them. Xander is in pre-level 2 and is doing pretty good. He on the other hand is very shy. Before we left for lessons tonight he informed me that he didn't want to go because he hated his teacher and doesn't like the kids in his class. I mean c'mon, he is 3 for crying out loud, is he really capable of feeling this?! He is such a funny kid. He'll say anything to get out of doing something, I'm really starting to catch on to his antics. I mananged to get some pictures of them while there tonight.

KC showing off for the girls

He LOVES the water

Once again, trying to get his cute teacher's attention

Xander enduring his lesson

Enduring some more, funny boy

Wanted: Photographer

Anyone know of a good photographer in the area that is not too expensive? Do you know of someone that would like to capture such a photogenic family such as the Harris'? I really want to get our pictures taken, and especially get the boys' pictures done. I'm starting to feel really guilty that I don't have any recent professional photos of the boys. If any of you out there know of anyone, let me know. Thank you!

Us being photogenic.

Ashes, ashes, and we all come tumbling down!

So last Saturday we came home from KC's soccer game, and Tom and I were beat! We hadn't slept well the night before and needed a nap. Tom fell asleep on the couch downstairs and I laid down on the bed, not thinking that I would fall asleep. Well I did. Now you may be asking yourself, what did the boys do during our naps? Or rather what did they do while their parents neglected them. KC watched cartoons, he always is really good at keeping out of trouble. Xander on the other hand is a terror- er I mean, adventurous little boy. He decided that he would play in the backyard. I don't mind him playing back there, because it is fenced and locked so he can't escape. He can usually play there for a couple hours without to much mischief. Below are pictures of what happens when both parents decide to take a nap at the same time.



Doesn't this face have "guilty" written all over it?


Notice the black eyebrows? Well Xander decided to play in the firepit and wear some of it too. He dragged two ashy logs over to the sandbox. The sandbox that we are constantly telling him not to play in, because the previous owners used it as a litter box for her cats. (Yeah, well it is on my list to get rid of.)



The thing that is really funny about these pictures is, Xander hates posing for any kind of picture. It's always impossible to get a good shot of him, but for these he really hammed it up for us. We could tell that he was quite proud of himself for what he had done. Tom nicknamed him our "chimney sweep". By the way, I'm looking into getting some sort of a cover for the firepit.