Pinewood Derby

Alex and Trevor raced in the Pinewood Derby last Thursday with their scout troop. They worked really hard to design and paint their cars and did a fantastic job. Trevor's "cheese car" took 2nd place overall. Alex's car did not fare so well but he was a great sport and had a good time. Way to go boys!

In memory of Tipo

Our pet tortoise, Tipo died last Sunday. It is amazing how quickly pets become a part of the family. When Jim and I first got married, I teased him about his turtles and wondered how he could be so attached to little creatures that just sit and do nothing all day. Then, I started taking care of them and watching them as I worked on the computer and quickly grew to love them. I was amazed how much personality turtles can have. Tipo was very active and was always hungry. He would eat his food and then bully Logo out of his. He loved when we talked to him or pet his head and would get very active when I had music on in the room. Logo is a little antisocial and prefers hiding under his log and almost has to be forced to eat. We were worried about him and thought he may not be well. Tipo had grown to almost twice Logos size over the past several months, so we were shocked when we found Tipo dead on Sunday.

Let them be little.....

There is a country song by Billy Dean that says "Faster than a flower blooms, they grow up way too soon...Let them be little....cause they're only that way for a while".... Last weekend I went to visit my family in Tooele and was reminded again how true that is. My baby sister, Carisa went to her first dance on Saturday. In the picture on the right, taken about 16 years ago, she is the baby on my lap. Now she is a beautiful, amazing 16 year old....driving, going to dances, and dating!!! My other two sisters are all grown up now too. Sara is pursuing her dreams of becoming a photographer and is a beautiful, talented, amazing woman. Alisha will graduate this year and bought her first car last month. I look around at my own children and hope that time will slow down a little so I can enjoy every moment with them. So, I guess I will do my best to remember to...."Let them be little....'cause they're only that way for a while...give them hope, give them praise, give them love everyday...let them cry, let them giggle, let them sleep in the middle, oh, but let them be little. So innocent, precious souls....then you turn around and it is time to let them go....so let them be little, cause they're only that way for a while."

The "man house"

Jim is lamenting the loss of his last claim to his man house as I painted the kitchen over New Years. It has been a joke between us about his man house. He really did a great job being a single dad and managing a home and all his duties but the house definatley lacked a womans touch. Lots and lots of blue, turtles in the front room, and some dust bunnies all have slowly disappeared. He has been a great sport about it all and even though he struggles to admit it, I think he approves of our new home.

Snow,Snow, Snow!!!

Cedar City has become a winter wonderland. The kids have loved sledding in the front yard and plowing with dad on the four-wheeler.

Christmas 2008

Our first Christmas together was a marvelous one. We were able to have all the kids together and Jim had two and a half days off! Christmas Eve was spent at Jim's parents in Hurricane. We made Vietnamese food for dinner, decorated cookies for Santa, acted out the nativity, and opened a present from grandma and grandpa. The kids had been so excited for Santa to come that they had been getting up early every morning for two weeks. We were worried we would be getting up very early Christmas morning but I guess the kids were worn out from so many early mornings and we were able to sleep in until 6:30. The kids were so excited with their presents but dissapointed that Santa forgot to bring them a dog. The rest of the day was spent playing the wii, hungry hippos, transformers, and learning how to train Ellie's interactive dog. Jim even made us hootenannies (yum!). My family traveled down to celebrate with us, braving snowy roads and windy conditions. We were so glad to have some time with them. Holidays are always better when shared with those we love.

Gingerbread Houses

This year we continued our tradition of making gingerbread houses with my family. We had Jim's family party up north Saturday afternoon, so we decided to go up Friday and make gingerbread houses Saturday morning. The kids had so much fun and were very creative. Grandma even made homemade gingerbread cookies for them to decorate.

December

December is here and all the craziness of the season has begun. Last weekend we traveled up to Tooele for a family party and then up to Pleasantview for a baptism. We managed to squeeze in the lights at Temple Square on Saturday too. What a way to start off the Christmas season. The lights were beautiful and it was great to spend time with my family again. We will be traveling again next weekend for Jim's family party and then before we know it Christmas will be here!

Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving from the Douglas Family! We had a quiet Thanksgiving this year as our kids were all gone. We enjoyed the day with Jim's family down in Hurricane. We had an early Thanksgiving on the 22nd with our kids, my mom, Alisha, Carisa, Sammy, Connor, and Dalton so we are all "turkyed out". Today (29th) we went four-wheeling with Jim's sister and her in-laws, about 15 miles south of Hurricane. It was a beautiful day and we had a great time!

Halloween 2008

Happy Halloween! We had a great Halloween here in Cedar. The weather was beautiful here and we only needed light jackets. Alex, Ellie, and Maddie were with their dad and step-mom on Halloween but at least we got to see them dressed up before they left. We had fun carving pumpkins together and the kids really worked hard on their designs. Enjoy the pictures!