A Magical Vacation

Last week the kids and I went to Disneyland and had a wonderful time together. Once again Adam decided not to go so it was just me and the kids. We missed Adam, but it was kind of nice to have some special bonding time, just me and the kids.

We stayed at the Grand California Hotel. We love staying there because it is so close to the parks. 

Our first day there was Thursday. We went to Disneyland and it was a beautiful sunny day. We were able to ride all of the rides we wanted, most of them more than once. I think we rode space mountain three times that day! Some of our favorites were space mountain, Matterhorn, pirates of the Carribian, splash mountain, thunder mountain, star tours and the Indiana Jones ride. We felt so lucky because the lines were so short and often times we got to sit in the front seat of the ride! We ate lunch at the French market and had Pom Frites (delicious French fries with Parmesan cheese and garlic salt) and Monte Cristo sandwiches (a deep fried ham and cheese sandwich). The food was So good!

 

We enjoyed the parade and the fireworks that evening and went to bed early so we could rest up for day two!

On Friday we went to California adventures and we were the second group in line to ride the cars ride! It was so much fun! We rode that a few times, the went to our all time favorite ride, the tower of terror! The kids also love the California screamin' roller coaster. Once again we were able to ride everything we wanted more than once. For lunch that day we had Disneys famous corn dogs and they did not disappoint! We got soaked on the grizzly Rapids ride. Luckily our hotel was so close that we were able to go back to our room and change into dry clothes before heading back to the park.

On Saturday we went back to Disneyland. One funny thing that happened was when the lady who was checking bags (for park security) looked at Caleb and said "You are here with these Beautiful princesses. You must take care of these princesses, especially the Queen throughout your entire life. May the force be with you." Hahaha! We gave Caleb's hard time about that all day. We rode our favorite rides one more time and had a Dole whip at the enchanted Tiki room. We got to ride splash mountain twice In a row because there was no one in line. We didn't even have to get out of the log boat! Then, we went over to California adventures and rode some of our favorites over there before leaving the resort. 

We stayed Saturday night at the Daly's (who just moved to California last month). It was fun because it was their daughter Skylee's birthday and we got to celebrate with cake and ice cream with her. We went to church on Sunday morning at their ward building before driving home. We were home by Sunday evening.

We all had a magical time together and we are already thinking about our next trip! We can't wait to go back! 

Snow Day With The Solomons January 9th

We had such a great time playing in the snow and introducing the Solomon family to the joys of Snowmobiles. We took them over to our favorite sledding hill and took turns driving each other to top of the hill and sledding/snowboarding down. We usually never spend more than a couple of hours playing there, but we were all having so much fun that npbefore we knew it, we had been there for almost 5 hours! We only left because we were all pretty Hungry! We are so glad that the Solomons got to come with us. They are wonderful friends! 

Quist Family Picture Day January 2nd

My Sister Angela and her husband Mike were in town visiting from Virginia so my mom thought this would be a perfect time to get everyone together for a family picture. We all met at Prospector Park in Apache junction and quickly took some pictures and let the kids play. Afterwards we all went to

In-n-out fr lunch. All in all it was a really fun Day! I love my family!

We tried recreating a family picture that was taken years ago!

Happy New Year!

We spent our first day of the new year hiking to hyroglyphic springs with the Hulses, grandma and grandpa Quist, Robertt and Conor and Russ and Torin.  A lot of other people had the same idea so the trail was really packed. We still had a lot of fun though. It was a beautiful day for hiking!

2015 Wrap-up

2015 was another great year! 

Adam and his brother built and sold two spec homes. Triple G grading and excavating continues to grow and keeps Adam busy along with the auto part delivery route. He was put in the bishopric in April and still gets nervous when it's his turn to conduct.

I have another wonderful preschool class this year, and after 8 years of serving in the primary, was released and called to teach in the Relief society.

The trio started the sixth grade and turned 12! Caleb and Sarah are excelling at the piano and Eliza can still out-run just about everyone at her school! 

Daisy is as sweet as ever and has finally gotten past that annoying "puppy stage" we sure love her!  We enjoyed family reunions, a trip to Alaska, and a few trips to Colorado!  

We spent our last night of 2015 with the Quist family at my parents home. We had a Yahtzee tournament with my grandparents, and the kids loved grandpa Quist and uncle Ben's firework show. There was lots of yummy food and great company! The kids loved being with cousins and said it was the best New Year's Eve party they've ever been too!

We are excited to see what 2016 has in store for us! Happy new year! 

Divide and Concur! December 28-30

The week after Christmas, Adam and Caleb wanted to go snowmobiling in Colorado with some of Adam's cousins. 

The girls and I, did not.

So, we split up for a few days. They boys to Colorado for a few days, and the Girls and I to Prescott to visit the Hulse family for a few days. 

The boys snowmobiled, and snowboarded. 

The girls played games and had an Anne of Green Gables marathon. And, just to show the boys that we aren't completely averse to winter sports, Eliza and Sarah did a little ice skating with their cousins. 

Everyone had fun, but we were sure glad when we were all back together again!

"The cold never bothered me anyway"! December 26th

The day after Christmas, we packed our winter gear, loaded up the snowmobiles and snowboards and went up to the old ski runs by sunrise. As we pulled up, we noticed that my cousin Jacob and uncle David were just packing up to return to their home in Eagar. They invited us to come over for hot chocolate when we were done which we gratefully accepted! It was SO cold out that day. We only played in the snow for about an hour and we were quite finished (especially Daisy) Burrrrr!!

When we got to Eagar it was snowing hard! We enjoyed aunt Pams hot chocolate and the grown-ups played a round of one of our favorite card games, "Go to Heck". It may have been a cold day, but our hearts were warmed with the love and friendship of family! 

(This picture is from a snow trip that Adam and the kids went on with the Hunt family a few weeks before.)

Peace, Heavenly Peace. December 25th

We had a lovely, quiet Christmas at home again this year. On Christmas Eve we invited our friends the Schelins over for dinner. We used our nicest dishes and prepared a fancy feast with ham and potatoes and homemade rolls and salad. After dinner, we read about Christ's birth in the scriptures and sang some Christmas hymns while Caleb and sister Schelins took turns playing the piano. Later, we watched Christmas movies and the kids slept upstairs like they do every year.

The kids didn't wake up to very many toys on Christmas morning. They got some much needed winter gear, a few games and a note in their stocking which told them they were getting a trip to DISNEYLAND!!!! They loved it! Yay!! 

The day was spent having our traditional waffle breakfast and playing games and eating leftovers. We were hoping to go play In the snow up by the Ski resort, but it was too windy. So we stayed home and relaxed. I thought it was a perfect day.

Christmas Light Night. December 21st

On the Monday night before Christmas, some friends in our ward, the Johnsons, invited us and a few other families to join them for a fun Family night activity. We met at their house and split into teams. Each team had to drive around and find and photograph special Christmas lights. Things like, an angel, Santa's sleigh, a Disney character etc. It was so much fun, but evidently there are no Rudolfs on any houses in snowflake of Taylor! Haha! We found one in a store, but the other teams wouldn't count it! For our angel, we took a picture of angel Moroni! They did count that, because that is what every other team did too! Great minds think alike! We gathered at our house when we were done and looked at everyone's pictures and had dessert! 

Chirstmas Spectacular! December 18th

The Trio participated in the annual Taylor intermediate "CHRISTMAS EXTRAVAGANZA"!! Actually it's not very extravagant. They basically just take the monthly awards assembly and tack on a few Christmas performances at the end. It was still pretty cool though. The sixth graders preformed two numbers. The first one was "Little Drummer Boy" which they danced to wearing white gloves with a black light on them . The effect was pretty neat. The second song was "Felitz Navidad". Before the performance I told Caleb that I'd give him $10.00 if he would move his hands in the air in a butterfly motion (like Napoleon Dynamite in the Happy Hands Club). HE TOTALLY DID IT!! Hahaha! It was awesome. Of course I paid up! I wasn't able to get any good pics. :(

Science Fair, AKA Worst assignments ever! December 17th

I've heard of parents complaining about science fairs, and up until now I never knew why it was such a big deal. So, the kids do a little protect and present a report on it. So what? 

Well, now I know. For all of you who have had to help a child with a science project, imagine having to help 3 children with science projects simultaneously. Honestly, at one point I asked my kids if they wanted to just skip the whole thing and just get an F in science for they quarter. It was SUCH A PAIN!!!! But, they got them done. I'm pretty sure they all got at least a "c" but as we haven't recieved their report cards yet, we aren't sure. 

Sarah's project was to find out if dogs have a favorite color. Conclusion: They don't!

Eliza wanted to know if yeast rises better when spoken to with kind and loving words. Conclusion: it does.

Caleb wanted to find out if magnets loose their power or force over time. Short term results: they don't. 

There now, we're all a little smarter! 

Caleb's Priesthood Ordination December 13th

On Sunday December the 18th Caleb was ordained to the office of a decon. It was such a special ordination, and having so many uncles and Grandpas there made it even more special! Caleb is an amazing young man, and I have no doubt that he will honor his priesthood thruout his life and that it will be a blessing to him and his family.

The Triplets Turn 12! December 12th

We had lots of family members in town for the Trio's Birthday this year. It was so much fun especially because it snowed! Uncle Russ was here with his family, The Hulses, Paul's family, grandma and grandpa Quist, grandma and grandpa Gurr and grandma and grandpa Burk! The trio also invited a few friends to their birthday party as well. We ate yummy food from El Cupidos, played games, and of course, played in the snow! Yay for being 12 and getting to go to young men's and young women's. Yay for getting to wear make-up and babysitting! Yay for getting to go to the temple! I guess it's true, "Life begins at age 12!" Haha!

Nativity December 10th

The triplets were all involved in the primary nativity at the ward Christmas party this year. Sarah was Mary, Caleb was Joseph and Eliza was an Angel. It was the last thing they did with the primary before they graduated. It was awesome!

Sand Dunes December 3rd-5th

On the afternoon of Thursday December 2nd, Adam and Caleb and Eliza drove down to the Valley and met up with Richard and little Richard and went to the sand dunes. They had some buggy problems at first, but once they got it taken care of, they had a really fun time. Tyler and his boys joined them at the dunes a little later and they all had fun riding, sliding and playing in all that sand! While the rest of our family was gone, Sarah and I went out to eat, watched some Christmas movies at home and got a lot of chores done. I was glad for the quiet time Sarah and I had together. 

Thanksgiving November 26th

For thanksgiving this year we drove to Florence and celebrated Thankgiving with most of the Malan Gurr Family. We stayed with Richard and Calli and we all had a wonderful time playing games, driving the mini racers, riding buggies and eating yummy food! We all loved it! Thanks Richard and Calli for your hospitality! 

Grandma Helen Gurr

In the early hours of November 8th, our beloved grandma Helen Gurr peacefully passed from this mortal life.

On Saturday November 21st we were able to reunite with cousins and aunts and uncles from near and far at a funeral to honor, remember and celebrate her life and legacy. It was a beautiful service and we were all grateful to hear and reflect on stories from grandma's life. One thing that was mentioned quite a bit at the funeral, was Grandma's hands. Grandma had to endure painful, crippling arthritis for most of her life, yet it didn't stop her from loving and serving her family and Father in Heaven. Each member of Grandma's posterity has a quilt lovingly made with grandma's crippled hands. These quilts are treasures that remind us of love and sacrifice and enduring to the end. 

We will miss you Grandma, until we meet again.