CHRISTMAS 2008

I Love Christmas!!! What a wonderful time of year. This picture is me and my girls in the kitchen. Cooking and baking together...one of my all time favorite things to do. We talk and laugh and make a mess. They are becoming wonderful cooks. On Christmas Eve we have a tradition of eating seafood. They all love crab and shrimp. Kari woke up Christmas Eve morning and asked "if we should start cooking the crab?" It is something we look forward to and enjoy very much. I love to create traditions. They bring our family closer together.

Lond and Valene got the boys marshmallow shooter. We were all getting blasted!
They loved them.

Marli loved everything. She was a happy girl all day!



I loved this pic. It says so much.

One of our favorite Christmas traditions is opening our gifts one at a time and making it last all day long. I remember as a kid just tearing through them and then it was over. This way you get to open something and play with it. Everyone knows what each other got and who it was from. The kids like it too because they don't want to be done. I like to slow down any bit of time I can. I cannot believe how fast things pass by.

Grandma Pam and Grandpa Robert came down Christmas Day. They made it in time for the Christmas Movie. This year we rented the theater for Trav's work and invited a bunch of patients. It was so much fun. I could not believe the response and gratitude from his patients. It was really neat and we all loved Bedtime Stories.

When Grandpa is here he is always has a kid or two on him or next to him. They wrestle and play....and give lots of kisses and hugs. Grandpa Lond is the same way. They are so blessed to have such wonderful grandparents on both sides that want to be part of an important part of their lives. As a parent, that is appreciated so much. These kiddos need all the love and support they can get.

Seventh Birthday!

Every year for Booker's birthday he gets his favorite, a pumpkin roll. It is not easy to make a fun pumpkin roll, but he is not picky. This year he got a monster truck. He loved it. That night he told me that I am a "good maker." He also asked what shape I was making next year. Sounds like I better get planning.



Uncle Darek (and Uncle Brady) got him some camo! He loves hunting with Uncle Darek!

I can't believe my baby boy is seven. He is weighing in at a whopping 78 lbs. He has passed Kari by quite a few. They have been playing soccer and it is so much fun to watch them. They look like my twins they are so close in size.

THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER!

Adri and Kari just finished the Christmas play, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. It was so cute. Adri had a speaking part. She was Doris. She did such a great job. She would not tell us her lines, so we had no idea of what she was doing, but she had them down perfect. Kari was in the Angel Choir. She sang so well and looked very cute. It was a lot of work and they are glad to be done with practice, but enjoyed making new friends and being a part of something really neat.

Adri above

Kari, top in the shadow

Happy Sisters!

Proud Momma!

I just had to share a picture of Halle's pinata. She had to make this for her honor's spanish class(which is a ridiculous project for a high school class!) but anyway, we decided to have fun with it. What started out as a deer head, ended up the whole thing. It turned out soooo cute. I hope she doesn't have to smash it. He even has a nose that lights up!

Kari's Spelling Bee

Kari and Kylee--two cuties!
Kari made it to the 3rd grade spelling bee. They take the top 4 spellers from each 3rd grade class to be in the bee. She was soooo nervous, but she did great. She and her friend Kylee sat together and got out the same round. It helped them not get too sad. We were super proud of her.

Finally..... Tonight was the midnight opening of TWILIGHT! The movie we have been waiting for for months! We had an awesome night. First, we hit Denny's with our friends Erica and Morgan, then off to wait in line for a big surprise...

The actor that plays Mike Newton in the movie was at our premiere. It made it extra cool. They brought out a red carpet and the whole works. He arrived in a big limo. He was nice to take pictures and hang out with the crowd. He looks a bit different in the movie, blonde and younger.

What a night. The movie was great. We all loved Edward...much more than we thought we would. We got home at 2:25. This will be one we'll all remember!

The Pumpkin Run

The pumpkin run is one of our favorite school activities. Each grade divided by boys and girls race and the top 24 get a pumpkin. The Wakefield kiddos all finished in the top 25.
Kari placed fourth which was GREAT!

What is granny filming? You can see Kari about to cross the finish line.

Booker picked a BIG ONE!

My First Half Marathon!

I am starting my blog with an entry about me. Odd, since my life revolves around my family. But in July, I set a personal goal to do something I have never done...and I did it! It all started after my sister in law Teresa and I finished a 5k. We were sitting around talking and I came up with a crazy idea for us to run a half marathon. I hadn't ran more than four miles, neither had she, but for some strange reason it made sense. We found a training guide to follow and we were off. I don't love running, but I love how I feel when I am done. I also love that I am healthier and stronger than I have ever been. Being healthy will help me be able to be a better mom, wife and friend....so this seemed like a good thing to do. Plus, I am a lot happier when I exercise!

We made it through the weeks of training and increasing miles, through plantar fasciitis, through having to try and find time in our schedules to run, through heat, stomach cramps and soreness...and finally made it to our race. Here is our big day!

This is us getting on the bus to head up Snow Canyon...naively happy. This is about mile 9. Not sure why we still look happy, both of us had severely aching feet.

THE FINISH LINE!
I made it in 2 hours 18 minutes. My goal was 2 hours 25 minutes so I was happy.

A big hug after our big run! 13.1 miles--We did it!! And it hurt.....And I cried....



What a great feeling. This is me with two of my best friends. We all just got our butts kicked by the road, and are going to be so sore, and it was GREAT! That is just CRAZY!!!!

Thanks so much to my family for all of their support. Having them there to do this for the first time made it so special. I love you all.