WOW!

Our ward has a very dedicated emergency preparedness specialist. Today was our "Get ready, Get Set" fair. We had some excellent classes from 10-11:30 and then we were ushered outside to meet with firefighters, policemen, EMTs and an Air med crew. The Fire Truck and ambulance pulled in as we were coming out and gave a great demo for the kids about safety and what to do in emergency situations. They also put on their fire gear so that the kids would not be scared of them if they really needed to be rescued (they do look pretty scary with all that gear on!) About 15 minutes into the demo we started to hear some loud noise and we saw the Air Med helicopter getting ready to land, right in our church parking lot! It was thrilling for the kids (and their Dads!). We listened to some more great info from the helicopter crew and then they invited the kids to come up and sit in it. They were on duty at the time and let us know that they would have to leave if they got called. Unfortunately they did get called just before we got up to the front of the line, but the kids were still happy they got to see it and they LOVED watching it take off! After the helicopter left they were able to climb in the fire truck, ambulance and the police car that arrived while we were busy with the helicopter. Eric was in HEAVEN! Great job on a great activity!
p.s. if you want to see the pictures better you can click on them to enlarge...:)

What's your guess? Fille ou Garçon ?

The big day is fast approaching. My ultrasound will be on Tuesday (the 3rd). See the survey on the right to make a guess! :)

Le grand jour approche rapidement. Mon échographie aura lieu le mardi 3 Mars. Votez sur la droite si ce sera une fille(Girl) ou un garçon (Boy)! :)

Moment of weakness...

As a general rule, I try not to indulge my children too often just because they want something. I don't want them feeling entitled to a treat or toy every time we go somewhere and so I usually refrain from buying them anything outside of a water bottle. Today was an exception. How could I resist when Lydie put on that darling headband that was only $1 at Target? She already had the green t-shirt on and she is such a sunshine-y girl, I simply could not say no! And of course, to be fair, I had to get something for her siblings too! Wow! What is this world coming to?

Praise to the Man

Roland came home with a little surprise for me today (it's been a long week). He has a co-worker who is in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Roland knew of my great desire to own their new CD "Praise to the Man". So, he talked to his friend and was able to purchase a copy for me. I have been listening to it ever since he brought it home. I know I'm a total weirdo, but I absolutely love the choir. If you haven't heard this one yet, you can listen to excerpts (or just purchase it) here.

I'm it again!

Here are the rules:
1) Post rules on your blog
2)Answer the six '8' items
3) Let each person know by leaving them a comment 8

8 Favorite TV shows
I have to be honest here. We don't have cable and the antenna is such an ordeal that I haven't really watched anything for years. I really couldn't come up with 8 shows! :)

8 things I did yesterday
1 . Took Eric to school
2.Vacuumed the basement for preschool
3. Sent Emilie down for preschool
4. Thanked my friend for picking Eric up because I was feeling yucky
5.Finished reading Sense and Sensibility while laying on the couch feeling yucky
6. Called Roland to warn him that I was feeling yucky and would not be able to make dinner
7. Was glad when Roland came home for a few minutes to get things under control
8. put the kids to bed and took a bath

8 things I'm looking forward to
1. SPRING
2. My garden
3. being done with sick!
4. My sister's wedding and our trip to CA for her open house
5. going to St. George for a long-weekend without the kids in a few weeks!
6. having a baby!
7. Roland's parents coming to visit
8. SPRING

8 favorite restaurants
1.TRIO
2. Biaggi's
3. Flour Girls and Dough Boys
4. Cafe Rio
5. My step-dad's kitchen
6. Any pizzeria in Italy
7. Einstiens (because my sister works there and I love lunching with her!)
8. JCW's for a shake!

8 things on my wish list
1. a finished basement
2. a payed-off house
3. Warm weather
4. a healthy baby
5. a family trip to France
6. to get in shape and loose weight as soon as the baby is born!
7. to have a completely organized house
8. to be able to eat chocolate without consequences!

8 people I tag:Karen M, Lyric (I'll just keep tagging until you post something!:), Lauri, Leslie, Devin, Emily H, Sydney, and Zandra (welcome to blogging!).

Be my Valentine!

I have posted before about how much I love family traditions. One thing I always wondered was when those traditions would "catch on". Or, when would the kids realize that this is what we always do on this occasion. This year Eric has really started to remember and anticipate many of our traditions. Valentines Day was no exception. A few years ago I decided to start doing a special Valentine breakfast of heart-shaped pancakes with fresh strawberry sauce, pink yogurt and pink milk. I use boxes of conversation hearts as place cards. The week before Valentines he was asking if we would be having our special breakfast. I gotta say it warmed my heart!

p.s. If you want to see better you can click on the image to enlarge it. The picture in the middle on the bottom is my gift from Roland. It pays to be married to and OC Tanner employee on days like this! He got me a Gerbera Daisy plant (potted so it would last longer!) and a Brighton Bracelet that came in a really cute box from his work! I love my Valentine!

fourth of the fourth

This is a tag where you post the fourth pic in the fourth folder. Whenever my sister, Lindsay, comes over she grabs my camera and has an impromptu photo shoot with my kids. And, somehow they always cooperate with her sooo much better than they do with me! Anyway, I love that this one was the fourth because I think it's such an awesome picture of my silly buddy boy!
*Now I tag my sistahs-Linds, Katie and Lyric! Get posting girls!*
p.s. Thanks for the fun tag Devin Ann!

Il s'agit d'un tag me demandant d’affichez la quatrième image dans mon quatrième dossier. Chaque fois que ma sœur, Lindsay, vient chez nous, elle saisit mon appareil photo et improvise une séance photo avec mes enfants. Et, en quelque sorte, ils coopèrent toujours avec elle bien mieux qu'ils ne le font avec moi! Enfin bon, j’aime cette quatrième image, parce que je pense que c'est une super photo de mon petit garçon amusant ! * Maintenant, je tag mes sœurs Lindsay, Katie et lyrique! Trouvez vos fichiers les filles! * p.s. Merci pour le tag amusant de Devin Ann!

Grateful...Reconnaissant

What a difference a week makes! We are feeling so grateful for the power of prayers and the power of the priesthood today. Other than her raw nose (which is already much better) she shows no signs of her horrible week last week. She has her appetite back (mostly) and is not sleepy or lethargic at all. Considering how terribly sick she was, I would call this a miracle in our life and I am so humbled. None of the rest of us have had any of her symptoms and we are looking forward to moving on (and getting out of the house) this week. A big thank you to all who prayed for her last week, I know it helped! We love our little Emilie Sue!
p.s. This picture is from today! Doesn't she look great?!

Quelle différence une semaine peut faire ! Nous sommes si reconnaissants aujourd'hui pour la puissance de la prière et le pouvoir de la prêtrise. A part son nez qui coule encore un peu (mais qui est déjà beaucoup mieux), elle ne montre aucun signe de son horrible semaine de la semaine dernière. Elle est de retour a sont appétit et surtout n'est pas léthargique du tout. Vu la façon dont elle était très malade, nous appelons ceci un miracle dans notre vie et cela nous rend si humble. Aucun d'entre nous dans la famille avons eu ses symptômes, et nous sommes impatients de continuer notre petite vie (et de sortir de la maison) cette semaine. Un grand merci à tous ceux qui ont prié pour elle, la semaine dernière, je sais que les prières l'ont aidé! Nous adorons notre petite Emilie Sue! p.s. Cette image a été prise d'aujourd'hui! N'a-t-elle pas l'air bien mieux!

Popsicle Princess

Emilie seems to improving a tiny bit each day which is encouraging. She still refuses food most of the time (I can get her to eat maybe 2 bites of something a day), but she will eat popsicles. Her poor little nose is completely raw. We're hoping to clear that up with neosporin every night. We are still trying to get rid of the persistent fever too, but it's not anywhere near as high as it was on Monday (103.7).

I know she has only been sick for a few days, but it seems like a lot longer because the days go by so slowly. I have been grateful that I can be here with her. We've had fun coloring, cuddling, watching movies, taking baths, playing with Eric's new legos and anything else that requires little energy. The house is showing signs of neglect, but it's okay. I've really appreciated the opportunity to focus on Emilie. She as been very positive and complained very little and for that I am also grateful!

Happy Birthday Buddy Boy!

We had a great day with our Birthday Boy. He woke up to a "birthday door" (decorated with streamers) and wanted pancakes for breakfast on the "You Are Special Today" plate. He got sung to at school and took treats to share, had a visit from Matt and Katie, got a package in the mail from Mamy and Papou, made his own cupcakes and cupcake toppers and, by his request, went to the Mayan for dinner with Grandparents, Aunts and an Uncle. He even got a special visit from the Myan King and got to hold his magic staff (kind of scary looking if you ask me!). He loved his presents and loved spending time with the family. Eric is such sweet, tender-hearted boy who is devoted to his sisters and parents. He loves to be helpful and is very curious and creative. We love you Buddy!
p.s. A special thank-you to Aunt Lindsay who played with him and his new toys all night while Mommy and Daddy were at the doctor with Emilie! (see below)

Emilie update...

By Tuesday night Emilie was not doing any better and was actually getting worse. She was having a hard time breathing, her glands and even her face and jaw were very swollen. She was lethargic and sleepy and just looked and felt awful. This turn for the worse all took place while we were celebrating Eric's birthday. We ended up cutting the party a little short and taking her to the Urgent Care doctor where she was diagnosed with Mono. Her tonsils are so big they are blocking much of her throat and her fever just won't stay down. She is also really congested. He gave us a prescription and some advice and sent us home. I feel relieved to know why she has been so sick. I'm grateful for modern medicine that allows us to take care of these things before they really become a problem! Unfortunately Mono is contagious (not airborne, but if she touches her mouth or nose and then touches something else...you get the idea) and can last quite a while (although the extreme symptoms should be over sooner she will be tired and not hungry for a least a few more weeks) so she will be stuck with me at home. She is handling it very well so far and I hope her good attitude continues! My only other concern is that the rest of us are vulnerable to it and I am praying that we can keep it from the other kids. Roland gave me a stern lecture about being extra cautious myself because it could be extra dangerous for me. I know there are much worse things that could happen and I'm so glad that this something manageable. I know the Lord is watching over us.

puppy dog eyes

Poor little Emilie has been sick the past few days. She is so good and never complains (I even took her to church with me, although not primary). But her eyes gave it all away (they are actually much better in the pictures!). They were puffy and so sad-looking. When she woke up with a fever, I took her in and although she was negative for strep, he throat was so swollen that she was given an antibiotic anyway (yippee!). She is really hopeful that she'll feel better by tomorrow for Eric's birthday (and so am I!).