My Best Friend's Wedding

My sister, Jenny, got married on December 29, 2010. It was such a joyous day and I couldn't be happier for my her. Jenny is my one and only sister and truly one of my best friends and I'm thrilled that she has found Matthew, who appreciates her for the wonderful and amazing person that she is. Jen, I love you so much and I'm so happy that this day has finally come. Thanks for letting me be a part of your special day!

Christmas 2010

We spent Christmas at Grandma and Grandpa Shelton's house this year. We had a long way to go this year, but it was so nice to be with family on Christmas!

Here's the traditional (at least it was a tradition when I was growing up) picture on the stairs before heading up to see what Santa left for us.Here's the girls before the traditional picture on the stairs. Is there anything more exciting than Christmas morning for a kid?The three older girls each got a doll from Santa. They were all wondering how I knew to make matching doll nightgowns for their dolls. I told them that Santa and moms are tight like that.Brigham with his Buzz Lightyear.Stick horses for Brigham and Rachel.Hazel playing with her new tea set.Running gloves and a Spanish hymn book for Ben!Merry Christmas!

Barfus Family Party!

We had a fun party with the Barfus side of our family. My kids had really been giving me a hard time because with everything else that we had going on this year we didn't have time to decorate graham cracker houses. They were thrilled when we got to Ben's parents house and saw what we would be doing.Thanks Grandma and Grandpa Barfus (and Uncle Josh) for getting me off the hook! We also did the traditional white elephant gift exchange and had lots of fun playing with our Barfus cousins.

Snow!

Surprisingly, there wasn't any snow when we arrived in Utah. It did snow a little the second day and the kids jumped on the opportunity to build a snowman with their cousins and Uncle Nathan.Well, actually, they made three: a mama, a daddy and a baby.

Thanks to the Holman Family in Panquitch, UT!

We had quite the adventure as we were heading to Utah for Christmas. We left at 8:00 pm on Sunday night, hoping the kids would sleep most of the way. Although we had a bit of a rough start, they did pretty well and by 6:00 am we were around Panquitch, Utah and were pleased that we hadn’t hit any snow yet. As we headed up the mountain between Panguitch and Beaver the heavy rain began to turn to snow and just as we were almost to the top we realized that we couldn’t go any farther and would have to turn around. We headed back down the mountain to Panguitch where we planned on filling up with gas and possibly finding an alternative route. We thought it was a little odd when we drove into town that there wasn’t a single gas station open, but we just credited it to the fact that we were in a small town. We waited for a little while and then decided to look for any place with lights on. We drove into the hospital parking lot (although we weren’t sure what we were going to do there) and saw two guys walk inside and then walk back out a few minutes later. Ben got out of the van and approached them and it turned out that it was a couple of missionaries! Ben talked to them for a few minutes and found out that the whole town had lost power which explained why we hadn’t been able to find any gas stations open. They gave us their phone number and told us to call if they could help in any way and then went on their way. We drove out of the hospital parking lot still with no idea what we were going to do and pretty soon we were again parked on the side of the road. The kids were all awake by now and needed to go to the bathroom, but without any gas stations or stores open there wasn’t much we could do for them. We decided to say a pray and ask Heavenly Father for help. Afterward, I told Ben we should call the missionaries again and see if they knew of a place where we might be able to use the facilities. They said they would see what they could do. They called us back a few minutes later and said that there was a member family who was expecting us. We drove the few blocks to their house where the father was waiting at the front door welcoming our family into his home. As we walked into their front room they had a fire going in the fireplace and their children were gathered around waiting to see if school would be cancelled that day (it was). We were given flashlights and took turns using the bathroom and warming ourselves by the fire. It turns out that the father of this family of eight (four daughters and two sons) was the one and only seminary teacher in Panquitch. Their sweet children played with our little ones as Brother Holman proceeded to make us breakfast and make us feel completely at home. After breakfast, some of the girls took Rachel, Eliza, and Brigham (dressed in their own rubber boots and oversized hoodies) out to the pasture behind their house to see their pet sheep. We were there for over an hour before the power came back on and we were on our way again. We pointed out to our family as we left that little town that the Lord had answered our prayers that day.

The Joy School Carolers

Went caroling this morning with our cute little Joy School group. It was such a nice day and we had a great time. The kids only knew one song, "Jingle Bells", but they sang it with a lot of enthusiasm! We went around to several of our elderly neighbors and gave each of them an ornament and Christmas card made by the kids. Lots of fun!

My Little Wise Guy

We had a little Joy School party tonight and the kids acted out the nativity. It was so adorable! And I have to say that I thought Brigham made a pretty darn cute wise man.

Rachel's 6th Birthday!

I can hardly believe this little girl just turned 6 years old. She is still just as tiny as can be, but don't let that fool you. She is full of spunk and is a little ball of energy. She loves playing with friends (including her sisters and brother) and when she's not doing that she likes to help her mom out. She's very strong-willed (which can sometimes get her into trouble) and has a HUGE sweet tooth. Mostly, this girl is very fun to have around and we love her!

Rachel got these squinkies for her birthday. She loves anything that is little and cute--she recently has become buddies with my two-year old niece, Bethany, who definitely fits that description.Rachel really enjoys going to kindergarten and loves her teacher Mrs. Taylor. She got to be the Star Student this week and do a special show and tell on her birthday.Rachel is into Barbie. She got the Christmas Carol Barbie and movie.
Here she is blowing out the candles! (Notice how we have the number candles 4,3, and 1 on the cupcakes. Um, yeah, we didn't have any regular candles so we improvised.)

Holiday Light Parade

We went to Safford's Christmas Light Parade tonight and had a really fun time. I wish I would have taken the camera so that I had some pictures of all the cool floats. I was surprised it was actually a really nice parade for little ol' Safford. And it was over 60 degrees outside at 6:30 pm. This place is starting to grow on me...We also had a fun time with our some of our neighbors afterward over at the Konopnicki's. They invited everyone over for hot chocolate after the parade. I love our neighborhood!

Brigham's elf

Brigham made this cute little elf at Joy School today. His teacher said that he insisted on the elf having a striped hat and worked very hard on his stripes. He is getting so big and can focus surprisingly well for a three year old!

Picture with the Big Guy

I took the kids to a Christmas party for all the school kids at the library and guess who was there?

Christmas time is here!

The kids were very excited to put up the Christmas tree on Friday as is our family tradition. It took all of 10 minutes and they had it all decorated. It always makes me laugh when I think about the first couple of years we were married and how I had to make sure that all of the ornaments were placed on the tree just so. Now, I just let the kids have at it and they have the best time going through all the ornaments and remembering where they all came from.

We also had a fun night at the Safford downtown tree lighting. They had lots of games and activities for the kids and it was nice that we didn't have to totally bundle the kids up just to go outside. We think the weather is great, but all the locals have been saying it was the coldest Thanksgiving in 80 years. I just imagine how cold it probably is in Utah at any given moment and enjoy the fact that it's 60-70 degrees here!

Thanksgiving

I was telling a friend of mine last week that I was finally feeling like life was slowing down a little lately and she said "Aren't you having Thanksgiving at your house this year?". I did host my first Thanksgiving this year. My parents, Matt and Nikki, Jenny and her fiance, Matthew were all there. I didn't really stress a lot beforehand, I just made sure we had all the food we needed and we all had a great time cooking and eating together Thanksgiving Day. We didn't have any fancy tablecloths or centerpieces, but the food was great and the company was even better. It was probably one of my all time favorite Thanksgivings. I wouldn't mind having Thanksgiving at my house every year!

Pima Turkey Trot

Ben and I ran our first 5K last Thanksgiving. This year we decided to do it again and make it our annual tradition. What better way to start Thanksgiving day than with a little exercise? So when we found out about the Pima Turkey Trot we were excited that we wouldn't have to go very far. Matt and Nikki joined us along about 450 other people which I thought was pretty good for little ol' Pima. We had a great time and my mom came along to cheer us on.

The Kimball Branch

A few weeks ago, the stake president, President Sanders, called us into his office and asked if we would accept a call to serve in the Spanish Branch in our Stake. We were not totally sure why we were meeting with the stake president, but we kind of figured it might have something to do with the Spanish Branch because we had recently been talking to Eliza's soccer coach and his wife about how they were members of the Spanish branch and the possibility of us coming there. We were surprised, however, that they also called Matt and Nikki at the same time to see if they would be willing to attend as well. We all said we would be willing to go and I think both Matt and Ben are excited at the prospect of using their Spanish and associating with the Latin members in our valley. (So even though we no longer live in the same house, we will still be attending church with Matt and Nikki. So too bad if they wanted to get rid of us;)) As for me, I have mixed feelings about attending the branch. I know that this can be a wonderful growing experience for our family, but I also really loved the 5th ward. We felt very strongly that we should buy a house in this neighborhood partly because we wanted to stay in the ward. But, for now, the Lord has other plans for us and we'll just look at it as an exciting new adventure for our family! I know that if we let it be, this will be a great opportunity for our family to not only learn about another culture, but, more importantly, for us to serve the Lord and His children. Wish us luck!

Women at the Well

Tonight I had the opportunity to participate in the Women at the Well program by Kenneth Cope. This is such a neat program that tells, through song, the stories of women in the scriptures who knew the Savior. My good friend, Carol, wanted to do this as a fireside in our ward and I'm so happy I got to be a part of it. Each of the ladies who participated really bore their testimonies through their songs and it was such an uplifting experience. My song was "Greater Love". It was the last song in the program and from the perspective of a woman in the modern days. Thanks to all the ladies and to Carol for making this such a great experience!

Marcus

My brother Marcus passed away on Friday November 5. He had been diagnosed with stomach cancer a mere seven months ago. And although he was told that it was a serious case he had been receiving radiation and chemotherapy treatments and was doing quite well. It came as a shock to us all when we heard the news that he had passed away suddenly outside an apartment complex in Meridian while on his way to visit a friend. He left behind his wife and soul mate, my sweet sister-in-law, Colleen.

Marcus has always been fun-loving, outgoing and a friend to everyone he met. I remember Marcus' teenage years. Marcus was different from my four other studious and reserved brothers. Marcus was actually "popular" and so my friends and I really looked up to him as someone who was "cool". Most teenage brothers would probably have thought it was annoying to have their ten-year-old sister and her friends hanging around, but Marcus never acted like that. He would talk to us as we were skating out on the driveway and joke with us like we were friends and not annoying little sister-types.

As I grew into a teenager myself I found that, personality-wise, Marcus and I were very different yet I still enjoyed hanging around with him and his friends. I remember that Marcus and Colleen's very first date (or one of the first) was actually a double date with me and one of Marcus' friends. We went to a "skating to gospel music" night at a local roller skating rink.

Because we are so different, Marcus and I certainly had our share of disagreements. I remember very well one particular time when we were on a family reunion. I was probably about ten or eleven and Marcus was sixteen or seventeen and had just begun to drive. I remember that he was driving the car and I was in the passenger seat and he must have said something that made me really mad because I started smacking him as he was driving. I have no idea what it was, but you have to understand that ten-year-old girls can be very sensitive so I may have overacted and put all our lives in jeoprady, but anyway...A couple of days later we visited a theme park of some sort and I found myself sharing a car on a carnival ride with none other than Marcus. The car could be turned upside-down by turning a wheel and Marcus, never letting anyone be angry with him for long, held the car upside-down and refused to turn it right-side up again until I promised that I would forgive him. I had forgotten about that memory until just a day or so after Marcus had passed away and the memory of that lovable Marcus made me smile.

I am grateful that we were able to live close to Marcus and Colleen for a little while about three years ago while Ben was working for Albertson's and later for the State of Idaho. When Ben first started working at Albertson's he went ahead of us and Marcus and Collen let him stay in their home, as they did for so many others. Ben was remembering the other day that the first night he arrived at their home they had a basket full of goodies and things to make Ben feel more at home there. Marcus and Colleen were always so good to welcome everyone into their home and make you feel comfortable there. I had my fourth child, Brigham, while we were living in Boise. The day I went in to deliver Brigham I had been contracting all day, but talked to Ben as he left work and assured him that he needn't rush home. His commute was lengthy at the time, but I felt certain that I would be fine until he got home. A little while later, I was wishing I had told Ben to hurry home a little bit faster and I called Marcus and told him that we would have to leave for the hospital as soon as Ben got home from work. Marcus came straight over along with happy meals for all the kids and still beat Ben to our house. I was so grateful to him for being there when I needed him.

We will all miss Marcus dearly. I am sad when I think that he won't be there at family gatherings to "liven things up a bit". He was such a special person and he touched so many lives. How grateful I am for the gospel of Jesus Christ and the knowledge that I have that I will see him again someday.

Marcus, I love you so much. I am grateful that I could call you my brother and look forward to that day when we will meet again.

The end of soccer

The soccer season has come to an end. Rachel and Eliza both had a great season. Eliza particularly enjoyed playing soccer this year and also became quite good friends with several of the girls on her team. I must admit I am somewhat relieved that it is over because it will free up our Saturdays, but I'm glad that the girls enjoyed themselves. The girls were thrilled to get these neat trophies which will proudly be displayed in their new bedroom.

Halloween!

Halloween was a crazy time for us this year because we were right in the middle of moving all of our things into our new home, but we managed to celebrate by attending a trunk-or-treat at our church which included all the wards which attend our building. The girls met up with some of their friends from school and Rachel was thrilled to see her Kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Taylor, there. They had games, food and a spook alley which none of children chose to go through. They didn't get all that much candy because they insisted on standing in line for cotton candy, but I personally feel that a little candy goes a long way (plus less temptation for me while they're at school). We even invited some non-member friends from soccer and were very pleased when they came and we got a chance to visit for awhile. Since we gave away all of our candy at the trunk-or-treat we decided to go up to David and Ruth's on the real Halloween (the trunk-or-treat was Saturday) and hang out up there were they don't get trick-or-treaters. I am looking forward to going trick-or-treating in our new neighborhood next year when Halloween isn't on a Sunday.

(Please excuse these poor pictures which were hastily taken in the church kitchen with a borrowed camera in the midst of our ward's trunk-or-treat. I am posting them simply for memory's sake.)

Because I Hub You

I have to share a really funny story about Brigham. The other day around bedtime Brigham went into the bathroom. A few minutes later he yelled out a famous phrase at our house: "I NEED HELP WIPING!!!". Ben and I looked at each other, silently debating who the lucky parent would be. Ben says "I'll do it" and heads for the bathroom. Brigham, hearing our exchange in the other room, yells out, matter of factly, "I want mommy!". Ben gladly stops and motions for me to go ahead. As I walk into the bathroom to see my sweet little boy sitting on the toilet smiling up at me he says, "Because I hub you". Priceless! Being a parent may not be the most glamorous job, but moments like that make it all worth it! Love that boy!

We,ve moved...again!

We've moved to a new location just a few blocks away from our last house. We are happy to be out of the rental and into our very own home. It's smaller than we are used to, but I'm amazed that from the very first day we were there it just felt like "home". We are in a great neighborhood that we absolutely love and are surrounded by lots of wonderful people.
I promised the girls when we moved that we would create a super cool space for them so that has been one of my biggest projects in this new house. We painted their room a very bright green which they all think is super fun and cute. I worked very hard to make a cushion for the window seat in their room and then covered their lamp to match. My next project is going to be an awning window treatment above the window seat.

Soccer!

Rachel and Eliza had their first soccer games yesterday. They both did great and had fun. It was a little hard for me because Ben had church obligations yesterday so I had all five kids there by myself. I felt really bad because they all got sunburned being out on a very warm day for three hours. Next time we'll be more thorough with the sunscreen and Ben should be there to help me cheer them on. Way to go girls!The kids had fun feeding leftover soccer snacks to the ducks between games with the Konopnicki kids.