Merry Christmas

We had a wonderful Christmas here at the Adams' house.  The kids were in heaven decorating the tree, making and delivering treats, and waiting for Santa to visit.  Please be sure to note Oliver's new way of saying "cheese" to the camera.

Eme loved her little baby doll from Nana the most out of all her presents.  I was sort of surprised, since she already has about seven...  :)  Oliver has had the most fun playing with a Mr. Potato Head that we got at Disney.  Ryan and I got the best present EVER.  (Thank you again Peggy).  We got gift cards for restaraunts so that we can go out on some dates.  I almost cried!

Gabriel had a list about two miles long of things that he wanted Santa to bring.  I was very relieved when on Christmas morning all he could say was, "This is exactly what I wanted."  Even though none of the things that he got were on his list for Santa, he was still very very grateful.


This year I am so thankful for the birth of our Savior.  More so than past years.  When I wished people a "Merry Christmas" I realized that I was vocally praising the Lord for His willingness to come to the Earth as a newborn baby.  I have really been pondering His life here on earth.  I have come to realize and appreciate how willing He was to come here for us.  He lived his life as an example to all who would notice.  He willingly GAVE his life so that we might live with Him and our Father in Heaven.  What an amazing gift He has given for each of us.  I would just like to say, "This is exactly what I wanted!" 

Santa

We had a really fun time at our ward christmas party.  The kids think it's like some kind of fairy tale world when we have a party at the church.  They can run and play and no one tells them to fold their arms and be reverent!

Gabriel and Eme both loved visiting with Santa.  Gabriel took his santa letter with him and whipped it out of his hat once he got onto Santa's lap.  Santa looked at me in shock!  Oliver (of course) would have nothing to do with Santa.  He was too scary.  Oh well.  Maybe next year.

Monday Monday

My entire life I have heard the songs relating all the evils of Monday.  I think they had it very wrong.  On Monday I am usually still on a spiritual high from my Sabbath day experience.  The world seems lovely and rosey.  And then comes the REAL day that these songs should be lamenting.  THURSDAY.  Thursday is my own personal Monday.  I am generally worn out and ready for a break, but it is not to be had....yet.  It is days like this that I truly feel at war for my very salvation.  I have a very real sense of Satan's attempts to influence my life.  I think that today.....I won.

Luckily for my children and everyone else I associated with today, I had a Primary music CD playing in my car.  Throughout this day of absolute craziness I would climb into the car weary, worn, and irritated.  But then I would hear the music and the sweet words of hope and joy offered up in loving worship to our Savior and my heart would find peace again.  It was the most amazing blessing that I have ever received.   If I can win this war on a Thursday....I can win it any day....with help of course.

Learning Something New

So......thanks to Carrie, I am now trying to be the coupon girl.  I am grateful to her for introducing me to this endeavor, but I am a little miffed that she didn't tell me about it until she was leaving.  So.....here I am.

I am just beginning, but I think that I am doing pretty well.  Here is my latest shopping adventure.

I went to two different stores (Publix and Kroger).  Here are some of the things that I got.  "After" includes sales and coupons.

Brown Sugar - before $1.69 after $.89

4 lb. white sugar - before $2.49 after $1.79

Pure vanilla extract - before $8.99 after $4.39

Yeast - before $1.99 after $.40

Spaghetti Sauce - before $1.79 after $.01

Apples - before $7.19 after $2.91

Progresso soup - before $2.39 after $1.00

I won't bore you with my entire grocery list.  But the point is that I got $67.25 worth of groceries and paid $26.22.  

I think I did pretty well for a beginner.  And the best part is that this shopping trip contributed quite a bit to my food storage.

Thanks Carrie.

Housework

I have been cleaning my house for the past three days.  I am attempting to get it spotless and beautiful.  I sometimes feel like my house is my fourth child.  Every time I turn my back, it gets messy again...like it could sense I wasn't watching.  And those certain things that are never-ending....like dishes and laundry...they sneak up on me and yell, "But you aren't finished yet!"  I want to yell back, "Stop getting dirty!"  Haven't you ever had the thought...."If no one wore any more clothes, I wouldn't have to do any more laundry."  Or, "I could spend my husband's entire paycheck on paper plates and plastic forks.  That's not bad right?"

But even though my fourth child is very very naughty.  I am still thankful for it.  I never thought that we would own a house this nice.  It was given to us by the Lord and I will never forget what a blessing it was to find it. 

SOOOOOO...I am still cleaning.

As for my other children, this is what they were doing today.  They went outside with me to feed the rabbits, and (of course) decided to play in the puddle by our back door.  Then we came inside so that I could clean THEM.  Isn't rain fun?

Disney World

We had a FANTASTIC time at Disney World. The weather was absolutely beautiful.  (Good for pictures.)  Eme and Gabriel LOVED meeting all of the characters.  Eme hugged and kissed everyone that she could.

Oliver liked them from far away, but wasn't too keen on being close unless Daddy was there with him.

Gabriel was only interested in meeting "boy" characters that were "cool".
Gabriel also got to ride lots of the rides.  He just barely met the height requirement for the "big kid" rides, he was SO excited.  He went on Splash Moutain, Space Mountain, Tower of Terror, and Everest.  He was a little scared, but he did a great job and loved it!

Special thanks to Daylyn for getting us in and letting us crash at her house!  And for her sake, please be kind to the characters.  It may be someone you know!
And thanks to Mom for helping us go.  We had so much fun.

I tried to narrow down the pictures.  There are (LOTS AND LOTS!)  If for some reason you are interested in seeing ALL of them, you can go to my gallery.   Enjoy!

Elder Wirthlin

Our prayers are with the family of Elder Wirthlin.  I am so thankful for him and for his selfless service to the church.  I rejoice in his reunion with his wife and family who have already passed on.  Here is a link to the church's newsroom (or to the left) if you would like more information about Elder Wirthlin.

Giving Thanks

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Every year we go down to my grandmother's house in Florida to celebrate with her and my Aunt Cecilee. We have so much fun. We stay in the kitchen for nearly two days cutting, rolling, filling, and laughing. This is one of the things that I am truly thankful for. The companionship of women is a marvelous thing.

The other thing that I LOVE when we go down is that my grandma has a big yard, and all the little kids go run outside and play until they fall over exhausted.

I am also thankful that my mom and sister went with us this year. It has been more than five years since I was able to spend Thanksgiving with my mom. I love her now more than ever. Who isn't thankful for their mother after having children?

I hope that your Thanksgiving was as fun and stress-relieving as mine!

Random

There are many things that I should be blogging about right now.  Disney, Thanksgiving, Family...but tonight, I choose none of them.  What I choose is this:  Ryan and I went to see a movie tonight.  This is a miracle of sorts.  Since we cut our budget, we haven't been to the movies.  Tonight we went and saw "Australia" with some friends.  Can I just tell you...this was a beautiful movie.  The cinematography was wonderful, The story was inspiring, and the actors...welllll....all I have to say is....Hugh Jackman.  AAAHHHH!  (singing now).  Hope you had a good night too.  I am going to bed to dream of....

Self Portrait

So....I got my hair cut.  

Yesterday I was a little wary.  This morning I HATED it.  It turned out okay once I took some time with it...but who has time to do their hair?  I BARELY have time to take a shower, and I almost never have time to eat.  Where am I going to find the time to fix this mess of a haircut?  Maybe it will force me to take time for myself.  That wouldn't be such a bad thing.

Miracles

I know that this is very silly and mommyish of me, but I am just so excited.  You would be too if you could only see the kind of mess this child can make in one meal.

Oliver had a bowl of cheerios for breakfast this morning.  I was being brave, and decided to let him eat by himself, knowing full well that I might have a lot of cleaning to do.  But, GOOD NEWS, he ate the whole bowl AND drank the milk with no mess at all!!!!!

Miracles do happen.  Hope your day is going as well as mine!

Inspirational Words

A couple of weeks ago Elder Holland came to our stake to visit with the members here. I thought that I would write down (and share) some of the things that he shared with us.

His emphasis in talking was, for the most part, aimed towards the youth that were there. But I believe, like all gospel principles we can apply this to ourselves as well. I will paraphrase his words, but this is not a direct quote.

He first spoke of President Hinckley and his lifelong dedication to service in the church. Three days before he passed away he was conducting meetings with the first presidency and the twelve. He was almost 98 years old. He worked up until the very day that he died. Why did he do this? Why not just retire to Florida, and take some time off. Surely he deserved it after working for so long. He did it not for his own salvation. Surely Pres. Hinckley's salvation is sure, if not, then we are all in serious trouble. He did it for each and every one of us.

I ask of you today, a tithing. Not of your money, you give that to your bishop. What I want from you today is a tithe on your lives. If we all live to be 100, then 10% of your lives is 10 years. The years that I ask of you are the years from 12-22. This is a time in your lives that you will make nearly every important decision in your life. Whether or not to go to church, who your friends are, whom you will date, whether you will go to college, if you will go on a mission, whom you will marry. These years are the time that we lose many members. YOU MUST NOT LEAVE THE CHURCH.

I know that this was directed at the youth, but I think that it is such a lovely idea. To tithe your life to the church. Of course, I doubt after ten years that you would have the desire to stop. :)

He also talked about temples. I don't remember exactly how he fit it in, it wasn't a structured, written talk. There is a scripture in Doctrine and Covenants 88th chapter, 33rd verse that haunts me. It tells us if we reject the gift, we reject the giver. In our time we have 125 (?) temples. If this is not a gift, I don't know what is. Throughout all of history there have been only a few temples. We have the amazing opportunity to attend these temples on a regular basis. All over the world. Let us not reject this gift that the Lord has given us.

In his closing remarks he gave a quote of some kind. He did not say where it was from, but this is what he said. Many of us are looking toward the second coming and wondering when it will be...the actual moment when Christ descends from heaven. I am not here to announce that today. If you are faithful and look to Christ in all things. If you will be obedient and valiant in your life. You can bind Satan in your own life. We can live in our homes as if the millennium has already come. We can have millennial homes and millennial families. Satan will be bound in our very homes.

I know that many were as touched by this as I was. There were not very many dry eyes in the church. What a beautiful idea. To make our homes a true safe haven from the world. I know that this is what I am now striving for in my home. I am trying to constantly have the spirit with me so that I can deal with my children in a Christlike manner. Instead of TV or random music, I have been playing conference talks on my computer. With the tumultuous times that this world is going through, I want my family to be safe and to have a place of peace and love to go to.

If anyone has any ideas that you use in your home to make your home more peaceful, I would love to hear them.

Bravery

This is my sweet little Gabriel at swimming lessons.  I have recently been feeling like it was important for him to learn.  So a couple of weeks ago, we signed him up.  It was fairly inexpensive, and not a long commitment, just in case he freaked out about it.  He goes every Saturday for 30 minutes with Coach DeRahn.  He is actually learning to like it.  He was especially excited this week because Gram was going to take him.  He couldn't stop talking about how he wanted to show her all the things that he could do.  He went on and on about how Coach kept asking him if he had been in swimming lessons before.

The first lesson was especially scary for ME.  I kept waiting for him to completely lose it and I would have to try and calm him down while making sure that Eme and Oliver weren't throwing their little bodies into the pool.  But he was totally cool with everything that they did.

In just the first lesson he learned how to doggy paddle, back stroke, glide and go underwater.  The overprotective mommy in me thought that this was sort of a lot.  I half expected them just to teach him about water safety and how to float.

He is doing really well already.  He is swimming short distances to the side of the pool.  He doesn't freak out every time he goes under.  He doesn't even demand a towel every time water gets in his eyes.  It's like watching him

 change right before my eyes.

For any of you that know Gabriel, you know what an incredible feat of bravery this is for him.  I am extraordinarily proud of him.  To 

watch him conquer his fears is amazing.  He attends lessons every week on my promise that he will be okay, and he trusts me.

He asked me the first time we went why he had to take swimming lessons.  I told him that I thought it was what Heavenly Father wanted for him.  He never asked me again.

Gabriel's acts of bravery have inspired me to ponder my own fears.  I have a goal of handing out some Book of Mormons, but I am afraid.  I have a fear of rejection.  I also fear that I will offend people.  I think that while watching Gabriel learning how to swim, I realized that I need to just jump in.  Take a leap of faith.  And trust that this is what my Heavenly Father wants me to do.  I might have a lot to learn the first time, but I know I will make progress.  And maybe someone else will gain happiness because I was brave.

A Book I Am Thankful For

I recently read this book... "Dreams and Visions of the Last Days".  It is a fabulous book for anyone interested in emergency preparedness as well as being spiritually prepared for the second coming.  It has literally changed my perspective on how I want to live my life.  I STRONGLY recommend it.  I probably have offered it to several of you to read.  You can find it at the following link:  http://www.ldsavow.com/books.html

Fun in the Fall

I thought that I would go ahead and post some Halloween pics on here.  I haven't sent any out in e-mails yet.....

Gabriel chose to be a vampire this year...much to my surprise.  I was sure that he would insist on being a super-hero.  I was so glad when he chose this instead and I was still able to coordinate everyone's costumes.  Call me silly, but I LOVE it when they all match a theme for Halloween.  I almost had him convinced to be a white rabbit so that we could be the cast of Alice in Wonderland.

Eme was my little "witchie".  She was the cutest thing ever.  Her tulle skirt bounced as she ran back and forth from the houses.  She was completely 

adorable.  

She was allowed to wear her costume to gymnastics.  

That was, of course, the best thing ever.

This is the ONE picture I got of her in her COMPLETE costume.  The hat kept falling off and she refused to carry the broom.  She needed all her strength to lug around her kittie bag that was jammed full of goodies.

Just a little fun fact for those of you that might find it fitting.  (No pun intended).  Eme's costume wasn't finished, both her hat and her belt had to be safety-pinned.  

Oliver was my handsome little devil.  He was so good to wear his horns the whole time.  He was too cute.

It was so funny to watch him walk around with that tail bouncing behind him.

It took him a little bit, but once he figured out that everyone he walked up to gave him candy, he was all about it.  He had no problem interacting with strangers after that, and even started to pick his own candy out of the bowls!

The cutest little ghouls I have ever seen!!!!  I have to say that I think their costumes turned out really good.  It's the most sewing I have ever done at one time.  Happy Halloween everyone!