Sara Had Her First Birthday Sleepover.....AND I SURVIVED!!

I love planning my children's birthday parties!! There are so many great places to have kid's parties these days!! We have tried out just about everything and have always had a great time with the kid's and their friends. It seems that Sara is feeling like she has outgrown all of the birthday venues and for the past 2 years has opted to have her party at home. Last year for her 8th birthday we had an OVER-THE-TOP princess celebration where 10 girls came to our house and had dinner, got makeovers, hair up-dos, manicures, decorated tiara sugar cookies and learned some line dancing all the while they fashioned tutus, "pearl necklaces", tiaras and pink boas. Needless to say, that party about sent me over the edge. Anyone who knows me,knows that I like things done right! Thanks to so many great friends (it nearly took an army) it was a sensational good time for all. Although, the night ended with me in the Jacuzzi tub for a very long time!!
Well, this year I thought it would be a great idea to take some of Sara's friends out to a fun dinner and movie. I presented the idea to Sara and she quickly turned me down and told me it was time that I allowed her to have her first sleepover! I told her that if she chose my alternative she could invite 10 friends and if she chose the sleepover, I would only allow her to invite 5 friends. I thought that would definitely change her mind. How could she narrow her list to 5? Well, we had our first sleepover this past Friday night....and it too was a wonderful success! The girls all wore t-shirts that I made and High School Musical Slippers. Sara chose for me to make a yummy oreo ice cream dessert instead of a cake (note the very unprofessional decorating job) and it was yummy! The girls had a fun night playing Wii High School Musical dance and sing-a-long, RockBand and watching a movie! We also decorated tote bags that I made with the same logo as the t-shirts. Ellary had the best time of all hanging with the big girls and said "This is the best party in the whole world." The best part for me is that after midnight I didn't hear anything else from them. I actually got some sleep! They are a great group of girls!!


Emily gave Sara a subscription to Tiger Beat Magazine. What a great idea!


Sara still loves those Webkins! I think she has about 45 now!!



As you can see, Ellary loved hanging with the big girls!!


Here you can see the logo on the front of the shirts and the name on the back! The girls also decorated tote bags with the same logo!

Sara is Turning 9!!!!

How fast time flies!!! It seems like just yesterday Sara was born! Richard and I were so excited to hold our first baby girl. I couldn't stand to wait for my due date. I did everything I could to make myself go into labor and begged my sympathetic doctor to please not send me away if I showed up at the hospital. Since my first baby came three weeks early, I was ruined for the rest of my pregnancies. I have never had the patience to wait til 40 weeks. I was so big when I was pregnant with Sara. It was the end of December 1999 and I remember a lady at church commenting to me that I was just trying to hold on to my pregnancy so that I could have the first millenial baby of the year 2000!! She was pretty surprised when I told her that was definitely not the case and I had 6 more weeks of pregnancy to go!! At last Sara was born on February 1, 2000!!! (2 weeks early) and weighed 8 1bs. 6 ounces and 20 1/2 inches long. From that day on, she has been a sunshine in our lives. It has been a great joy to be her mother and watch her grow and change over the years. Sara is a very compassionate, sweet girl who loves life and has so many friends and family members who love her. I want to wish my sweet baby girl a very Happy Birthday!! I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!

Life is NEVER Dull with a Toddler!

So, we now go to church at 1:00 instead of 9:00. This is great for me because it now means that instead of me getting to church 15-20 minutes late each Sunday, I can actually make it 15-20 minutes early!! This past Sunday was the first day with our new meeting schedule. Just like I had anticipated, I arrived with all four children 15 minutes early and we walked in reverently and took our seats close to the front of the chapel. (It is always good to sit where Richard can give the kids "the look" when needed). I was feeling so accomplished and happy with myself with time to spare. Well, I have learned that the "time to spare" is probably not such a good idea with a 2 year old. Before the opening prayer, she had already read one of her books, opened a bag of pretzels and was on her second piece of artwork with her paper and crayons! It was when the opening prayer began that things really went wrong. Ellary was very proud of the drawing she had done and was very enthusiastic about showing it to me. This is how the conversation went (during the prayer, nontheless).....

Ellary: "Look Mommy, isn't it pretty? Do you like it?(not in a quiet tone)

Mom: "Yes, Ellary. We have to be quiet. They are saying a prayer." (in a very soft whisper)

Ellary: "Mommy, You are annoying me!" (in a loud tone)

Mom: "SHHH Ellary, be reverent during the prayer, please." (in a very soft, but feeling stressed to quiet my child, whisper)

Ellary: (now shouting and standing) " Mommy! Why do you always annoy me?!?!?

I have no words for my daughter's actions that lovely sabbath morning. I am not quite sure when she added the word "annoy" to her vocabulary. Although, nothing she says surprises us anymore. I am just glad that we are old veterans in our ward and everyone knows and loves Ellary. I also think I might not arrive quite so early for church next week. Maybe we can get through the opening prayer before opening our bag of "quiet" activities! I have posted a picture that I took of Ellary before church on Sunday so that you can try to visualize for yourself how in the world such a cute little girl with such a kissable face could find it within herself to talk to her mother that way........especially in church!

HAPPY 2009!

I hope everyone is having a Happy New Year so far! I don't think I have ever before started a new year with so many feelings of thankfulness and gratitude. As I begin 2009, I want to make it a goal to always remember what is important in life, each day of my life. It is so easy to get caught up in all of the things of the world that really don't matter so much when looked at from an eternal perspective. I have so much joy in my life and it all comes from my greatest blessings; My Family and the fact that we have the gospel of Jesus Christ as the center of our lives. I have a wonderful husband who loves me and our children unconditionally at all times. He works so hard to provide for us in every way. He works so hard at church to honor his priesthood and serve the Lord. We have 4 wonderful children that fill our home with joy and laughter. I am so grateful to be a mother to these 4 children. I can't imagine life without any of them. They each complete me in their own individual ways! I am a daughter of two amazing parents who continue to teach me on a daily basis. Without their loving guidance throughout my entire life, I would not be where I am today. I am grateful for a wonderful mother and father-in-law who raised my husband to be the man he is. Like I always say...As long as I have my family and our health, I can get through anything! It is my goal for this year to keep that perspective and not let the "other stuff" get in the way! I am so grateful for all of the many family members and friends that I haven't mentioned! It is my prayer that 2009 will bring much joy and peace to all of you as we strive to remember what is really important in life!

Family, Food and Fun = One Great Christmas!

We had a wonderful Christmas this year! It is such a great holiday to spend time with the people that we love so much! We were so lucky to have my Mom and Dad here for a few days along with Stephanie, Ray and their boys! I only wish that everyone in the Turner family could have been here. We missed not being with Stephen & Angie and their sweet kids and Shay & Scott and their wonderful five! We Love you all and feel so blessed to have you in our lives!




Mom, Alana, Sara, Ellary and Zachary getting ready for our Christmas Eve Fun!


Papa, Zach and Sara displaying the yummy Red Velvet Whoopie Pies Mom and I made!


The Love of My Life!


Sara, Cousin Drew, Cousin Brock and Zachary


Stephanie(my sister), Ray, Brock and Drew


The kids are waiting til Dad gets the video camera ready before they can come down the stairs Christmas Morning.


Sara and Zachary opened IPod Shuffles.


OK! I know it is strange to display a picture of my sweet baby girl in this position! But, she was so excited about her new potty and Dora the Explorer panties that Santa brought. After she took it upon herself to successfully use the potty right in the living room, she danced around singing "I DID IT, I DID IT". I just love this picture. What a classic!!