Jake played basketball this year. He did so good and was such a star! He took it very seriously and was determined to win each game. Not only did he SHOOT and SCORE....but he was very conscientious of all of the other players making sure they all had a turn with the ball and a turn to shoot. I am very proud of him and the player he is becoming. He LOVES sports. He loves football, basketball, and anything to do with throwing, kicking, hitting, or bouncing a ball. His grandpa Paul was at EVERY game. He is a great supporter, example, and mentor for Jake. They share sports stories together and enjoy watching games together. We all look forward to many years of watching Jake in sports.
The other day, to my surprise.....look who I found sleeping on my couch! Lo and Behold, it was SPIDERMAN! My days are passing me by so quickly. A blink of an eye ago, my little Jakey was running around in this suit nonstop. His best friend Baey had a matching suit and it was their favorite thing to do. Now....you'll often find me in the grocery store with Spiderman! He'll often wear it to Jen's first thing in the morning. And he'll definately be out riding his bike this summer with his "nice guy" Spidey suit on. He loves watching GreenGoblin, DocOc, and now the Sandman with his big brother Jake. I thought we were sick of these movies before....but now we are starting it all over again. That is okay though....enjoy and savor each moment!
Also....we have THREE villains in the house. Robin gave up on Batman and joined the "Good" and "Bad" Spiderman!
"Hello!" from Thailand. This February I had a "once (hopefully more) in a lifetime" experience of visiting Thailand. My sweet Trevor could not enjoy this experience without me so he took me along. Stepping outside of my comfort zone, I made the 23 hour trip BY MYSELF to Bangkok. I knew once I made it to the SLC airport I would be fine. From there I hit San Francisco, Tokyo, then Bangkok! Trevor's blood pressure had sky rocketed and Devin thought he was going to have to find a sedative when I was 45 minutes late through the gates. Once in his arms, we were both relieved and able to "breathe" again. From there Devin (Trevor's brother) and his hottie wife, Laura, took us to the most unbelievable places. In that I mean UNBELIEVABLE! Like you would have had to see it to believe it....GOOD and BAD! Some of the living conditions were unfathomable....and the temples were incredible! In my first 24 hours, I thought for sure I would starve to death. Or at least have a great perspective of the "Survivor" stars that live on rice for 30 days. I knew that would be all I could stomach. I soon found the fruit carts and truly relied upon the pineapple. Although Devin wanted us to "experience" TRUE Thai food occasionally, he still took us to some VERY nice restaurants and also some fine "American" cuisine such as KFC and Pizza Hut. We were able to take a quick 2 day flight to Chaing Mai (northern country) where we were able to ride an elephant, hug a snake, and pet a tiger. The night bizarres I have to admit were OUR favorite. Now, do not go thinking I was the big shopper in all of this. Trevor almost had me beat and even though Devin made fun of us, he was pretty good at it himself! I was ridiculous buying scarves just as THEY were crazy with the ties. The heat finally got to us...along with the insane 90% humidity and we were anxious for the Idaho snow if you can believe that. Our memories are still strong and our shopping desires still haunting us. We are already planning our next trip back. Thank you so much to Devin and Laura for hosting a wonderful, memorable trip to Thailand....and TREVOR for sharing such an amazing experience with me. I truly am lucky to have you!
Our favorite picture from Thailand. We took it while floating down a river on a bamboo raft.
Riding the ol elephants! It was amazing although NOT as comfortable as you would think.
Just an elephant shot that I LOVE!
Thank goodness he was sleeping...otherwise not sure I would have sat so close.
I wanted to share the remaining Fall Photos we took. My good friend Becca snapped these while the leaves were a beautiful fall shade. I only wish we had 100 more....and I now would love some Winter White photos.....we'll see if that happens! I have one more that is my favorite that I will have to add later. Unfortunately, Luke's face is so incredible that it captured ALL of the flash. So...we cannot seem to adjust it, but you'll have to check it out anyway.....
After Christmas we packed everything but the kitchen sink and Tag, Lys, Jake, Luke, me, and Trevor all headed to Cascade, Idaho, for the Castleton Family Christmas! ;-) They had rented a nice cabin by the lake where the view was amazing. Everything was planned perfectly. Monday our sledding adventure was cancelled due to rain, but we had a fun day of ice skating instead. After a good 30 minutes, all ankles were sore! The following day we headed to the sledding hill again! I had mixed emotions about getting Luke, let alone myself, up on that hill....but never the less the tickets were bought and I found myself on an innertube hooked to a tram! My baby LOVED it. He couldn't get enough of it. I have to admit that it WAS actually fun. Everytime we were about to go down, Luke insisted on me promising him ONE MORE TIME! Jake, Lys, and Tag had a blast too. The scenery was beautiful....the family was amazing....and the experience was definately one to remember always. Thank you again to the Castleton's for including us on your adventure!
This Christmas Eve we joined my family at the Presbyterian Church in Idaho Falls. We had such an awesome experience listening to the Christmas story, hearing Christmas music, and feeling such a cherished spirit. It was neat to have a moment of Christmas Eve truly focused and in tune with the reason we all celebrate this time of year. Once we were home, Allysa shared a Christmas story with us, we fixed Santa's plate, and headed off to bed. However, we had to check the Santa tracker and locate HIS exact spot first. Not until Santa had arrived in Boise did the kids decide they really did need to get to sleep....FAST!
Thank you to my sister Kamala and her family for hosting us all to a wonderful Christmas party. Fred made homemade eggnog and the ham was incredible. As chaotic and loud as it can get, it is nice to settle into a peaceful night with those you are most comfortable with, safe with, and LOVE. The last few years my sisters & I have tried to get a picture together....here are a couple family shots I want to share....Jake arm wrestling with Marshall! Allysa with her princess Santa hat from Trevor....and Lukey wrestling with Uncle Gavy!
Jake played basketball this year. He did so good and was such a star! He took it very seriously and was determined to win each game. Not only did he SHOOT and SCORE....but he was very conscientious of all of the other players making sure they all had a turn with the ball and a turn to shoot. I am very proud of him and the player he is becoming. He LOVES sports. He loves football, basketball, and anything to do with throwing, kicking, hitting, or bouncing a ball. His grandpa Paul was at EVERY game. He is a great supporter, example, and mentor for Jake. They share sports stories together and enjoy watching games together. We all look forward to many years of watching Jake in sports.
"Hello!" from Thailand. This February I had a "once (hopefully more) in a lifetime" experience of visiting Thailand. My sweet Trevor could not enjoy this experience without me so he took me along. Stepping outside of my comfort zone, I made the 23 hour trip BY MYSELF to Bangkok. I knew once I made it to the 
