Around the World PingPong and Ultimate PingPong Smackdown!

James turned 15 on December 19th and had a few close friends over - the ping pong table was, and always has been a fun thing but the boys took the game of ping pong to a new level with Ultimate Ping Pong Smackdown. (Kaylie actually added the "smackdown" to the name). Only teenage boys could come up with a game that inflicts pain on each other and LIKE it! I got a couple of pictures of Around the World Ping Pong but did not get any of the 2nd game. Nor did I think to take pictures of the ping pong ball welts that were left on the boys' backs after smacking the ping pong ball as hard as possible trying to hit another player on the other side of the table. And leave it to Nik to come up with the idea of not wearing shirts so it would hurt more! They all seemed to have a great time and certainly there was no food left in the house by the time 5 teenage boys were through! :) James had a great birthday, he's got some great friends and Mike and I enjoyed having them all around!

Thanksgiving in Vegas

Before Christmas arrives, I thought I'd better get in my Thanksgiving blog! Time is running out, and even though, I'm not nearly as busy as Lia (holy cow, I got exhausted just reading about your goings on Lia! :), I've been extremely busy with work and then four out of five of us got the flu all the same day! Guess who didn't get the flu - Mike! He never gets sick!!! Lucky him. Anyways, we spent the Thanksgiving weekend in Las Vegas with my parents and sister and her daughters. We had a wonderful time, very relaxing, and all the cousins got along great, which was good considering all 8 stayed at my sister's house! It was much less stressful this year and all the adults got along too ! :) What more can you ask for? I do wish my sister lived here in Utah, so we can spend more time with Erin and Allie - we miss them!

Joy to Everyone!

My friend Jennifer sent this out in an email to share and it was such a pretty song that I had to put it on my blog and share it with you. Read the story behind the lyrics, and enjoy this beautiful song. Merry Christmas! http://www.joytoeveryone.com/

The Simple Truths of Appreciation

For those friends, neighbors, and TEACHERS that have made or make a difference in our lives, and our children's lives, this short little movie is for you. Thank you, Maria, for the difference you made in James' life in 1st grade - for CARING - I will always remember what you did for him, and for me as a Mom, with a child who was struggling and hurting with a move to Utah away from all of our family in Arizona, you touched my heart. You are a wonderful teacher and I want to THANK YOU! To Cheryl, who's had all three of my kids, all of them have LOVED having you as their 2nd grade teacher. You make a difference and they know you care about them. To Cherie and Tricia, both of you have been the best teachers that James and Kaylie could have ever had for 5th and 6th grade. You've both taught them, helped them, challenged them and cared about them! You've gone to their soccer games and piano recitals (and I have the pictures to prove it) and they WILL remember that years from now. It always makes me smile when I see my kids come up to you and give you hugs. How special is that! To Becky McKenzie, the best kindergarten teacher I've ever, ever had the pleasure to know. This world needs more teachers like you, and I miss you. My kids have been blessed by all of you. For your dedication to teaching, for caring, and for making a difference in their lives. Thank you for all of that. And, as an added bonus, I get to call each of you my friend. I'm blessed to have you in my life! (http://www.movieofappreciation.com/)

Living on the Right Course

This was the title of the sermon my Grandpa, the Rev. Glenn H. Lutz, preached on August 7th, 1983 at the First Presbyterian Church in Las Vegas, Nevada. He passed away seven days later hiking up in the Ruby Mountains with a church youth group. Talking with my Grandmother years later she revealed to me that she knew when he died. She felt it deep within her being. As hard as his passing was for her, I know she felt comfort knowing that my Grandpa passed away in a place that was special to him, doing something he loved. May we all be so lucky.
My brother Greg, just yesterday, gave me a copy of his last sermon which I just finished reading. It brought back memories of my Grandpa - preaching on Sunday mornings, dressed in "robes". He always looked so regal to me. I remember weekends spent at Grandpa and Grandma's and popping in to Grandpa's office in their house where he was working on his sermon for Sunday. I always told him I loved him and got a great big hug from him. I enjoyed those few minutes of time I had with him and he never seemed to mind being interrupted. I remember Thanksgiving meals at our house, or their house and my Grandpa saying Grace before our meal. (I also remember my Dad humorously sayng his own grace - "Thank you Lord for this grub, now let's eat!" and my Grandpa not really finding the humor in it- though in my Dad's defense, my Grandpa could be long-winded :) It's funny how certain things, like reading my Grandpa's last sermon, can bring back bits of memories of things you hadn't thought of in years or thought you had even forgotten.
My Grandpa baptised me when I was a baby and 43 years later, I still feel a connection to him because of that. I like knowing that. I loved my Grandpa, and it was nice revisting some long forgotten memories. I'm honored to be his granddaughter...... You wrote a great sermon, Grandpa.

Let's ALL Get Into Bow Hunting! (Okay, NOT me!)

Well, James started out this August getting a deer on his very first bow hunt. Unfortunately I don't have any pictures on digital camera to post of that, but suffice to say, it was very exciting for him and Mike that he did that. What an accomplishment and we have to thank Uncle Dave for getting James into bow hunting. Dave is an AVID bow hunter and James looks up to him and enjoys his time with Dave when in Arizona. Mike has made an archery range in our backyard for practicing and James, along with Mike (who has decided to join in on bow hunting next year) practice when time allows. The newest member of our family to join the ranks of bow hunters is Mark. He asked for and received a bow for his 8th birthday and he is determined to hunt with his idol, big brother James. Mike tells him that if he starts practicing now, he actually might get a deer by 12 years of age instead of 14 like James, and that motivates him. Last week, Kaylie, our sweet, beautiful girl, has decided she wants to do hunter safety and bow hunt also!!! She has been outside practicing with the boys too. If you're wondering if I will join the rest of the family, the answer is NO. No, no way, no how, never, will I EVER be able to shoot Bambi, Bambi's dad, uncle, brother, or relative! I much prefer to wait at home. I love venison (I made a fabulous venison, sausage and black bean chili complements of CookingLight magazine) and as long as I don't have to see the poor deer prior to it being cut up and put in nice neat packages, I'm fine. I'll leave the bow hunting to the rest of the family!

Kaylie's New 'Do

Saturday was a busy day with Kaylie, myself and James all getting haircuts and such at my wonderful friend Tisa's salon. (For those of you that don't know Tisa, she runs her own salon out of her house called Purple Door Salon - she's fabulous! 706-1826). Anyway, Kaylie's hair was pretty long and worn only in a ponytail - works great for soccer - but now that the season is over for a few months, I thought it would be nice to get her hair styled. Tisa did a great job and Kaylie looks just oh so cute!