The Holidays

The first week of December we took the kids to the Temple Lights. They were beautiful!

I couldn't get Caleb to wear his coat...it was nice weather, but not that nice!

One of my favorite light displays is of the Three Wise Men (we're blocking them).

The picture we took of the Temple didn't turn out too great.

Shaylee at her Preschool Christmas Program. She was so proud & did a great job singing!

Caleb & Shaylee playing in the leaves...

Caleb showing off his art projects that he did for Thanksgiving. I helped in his classroom for just a couple of hours (a very LONG couple of hours!). Thank you, thank you, thank you to all of the teachers out there!!!!

Be Thankful

This quote was in our church bulletin...I loved it, so I thought I would share it with everyone:


BE THANKFUL

Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire.
If you did, what would you look forward to?
Be thankful when you don't know something,
for it gives you the opportunity to learn.
Be thankful for the difficult times.
During those times you grow.
Be thankful for your limitations,
because they give you opportunities for improvement.
Be thankful for each new challenge,
because it will build your strength and character.
Be thankful for you mistakes.
They will teach you valuable lessons.
Be thankful when you're tired and weary,
because it means you've made a difference.
It's easy to be thankful for good things.
A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are also thankful for setbacks.
Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.
Find a way to be thankful for your troubles,
and they can become your blessing!

Good-Bye Summer!

I know I'm weird, but I'm going to miss Summer...the nice HOT weather! No more swimming in the pool or wearing shorts. These pictures were taken the last day of swimming lessons...in October!! I guess I shouldn't brag too much, because we're thinking about moving back to cold, cold, super-freezing cold Utah! We've been talking about it for a while, & now with Kyle working from home we can do it. I also thought we better do it before our kids get old enough to get attached to friends. But this has been a really hard decision. We LOVE it here, but we also miss family & friends back home. Can't we just combine the two places? How nice would that be!

Anyways, Malia was a wonderful swimming teacher & has been a great neighbor. And my kids love to play with her daughter, Braylin. Here are the 3 trouble-makers actually sitting on the step. It was my job to keep them there while each kid had their turn swimming. I seriously wish I had their energy!!! The housework I could get done...

Here's Caleb trying to warm up in the sun. My kids are now good little swimmers & love the water. I feel much, much better now:)

Happy Halloween!!

This year we had a fun, safe, & very busy Halloween! It started off with our Bishop asking Kyle to be in charge of our annual Trunk-or-Treat. We had a chili cook-off, fun house, cookie decorating, pumpkin decorating, a train for the kids, & of course trunk-or-treating! It was a ton of work, but it turned out great & we had a lot of help from our friends. Kyle's haunted/fun house was a big hit & the boys enjoyed scaring the kids:)
Shaylee was a kitty (she LOVES cats) & Caleb was, of course, Indiana Jones. It was great to have such easy costumes this year!

Shaylee getting popcorn at our neighbor's house. Every year they have hamburgers, hot dogs, homemade rootbeer, & popcorn. It's a great neighborhood get-together & we get free dinner!

My mom in front of Melissa & Shane's house. Every year Shane does a haunted house on his front porch area. He's a tall guy, & when he wears his black outfit with mask, it's quite scary! It's funny to hear the kids screaming as they run out:)

Vegas Trip

About 2 years ago for our Girls Getaway a bunch of us flew to Vegas. We went to the Celine Dion Concert...it was amazing!!! We had such a great time. One of the highlights of the trip was stepping off of the tram at the airport, and BAM! Right in your face is this picture... We couldn't stop laughing over it. "It" was huge & so we just had to get our pictures taken with these posters.

When we got home, we were all looking through our pictures at our monthly Family Home Evening with Kyle's family (on the TV screen) when we came across these pictures. We made up a little story about how great the "Thunder from Down Under" show was. The guys were not happy. But we couldn't keep straight faces for long - good thing we don't play poker!

Here we are on the tram that takes you all over Vegas. Great idea, they should do it here:) We had such a great time. Good memories:)

"Who I Am Makes A Difference"

Caleb's New BB Gun

Caleb is so proud of his very own gun, just like Daddy! His target was the cereal box on the slide. Kyle teaching him how to aim. He actually did really well!

Checking out his box to see how he did. I think Kyle was a proud Dad. Good job Caleb:)

New Doo

Last week Kyle's mom cut & colored my hair (back to my "real" haircolor). I was tired of the long hair & wanted a change. It's nice having a mother-in-law that does hair:).

Talking to G'pa & School Pic's

Well, the first two pictures are of Shaylee talking to my Dad. Caleb handed her the phone & she didn't know who it was at first. But...

as soon as she realized it was Grandpa Dent, she just sat on the phone with a huge smile on her face. She didn't say one word to him, just smiled. She loves talking on the phone.

Shaylee's first day of school. Since I procrastinated & waited until two days before her school started, all of the good backpacks were gone...so, we ended up with one almost as big as her!

But she still loves it. She packs her babies in it. Here she is after school...she had so much fun & couldn't wait to go back! I hope this continues through all of her school days. Cross my fingers!

I couldn't find the picture of Caleb in front of his school. So this one is the next week. These are some of his art creations. He also loves school, & I am so grateful!!!!

Doing homework (Shaylee is supervising).

Caleb likes to give Shaylee lots of loves. Sweet kids:)

Trip to the Lake

About a month ago (I'm a little behind on my posts) we went with the Robinson's to Saguaro Lake. We were only going to stay for a few hours, but ended up staying all day. We were having too much fun to leave!

The first picture is of Caleb cliff jumping. At swimming lessons he thinks it's funny to jump off the diving board "superman style". WELL, I forgot to tell him NOT to do that... as he was flying through the air I was terrified!! I felt
helpless as my baby was about to hit face first (it's way higher than it looks). After he popped out of the water, Uncle Shane rushed over to help him, and the only thing Caleb said was "my face hurts". He didn't even cry! What a tough little boy. After a little bit of convincing he jumped off a couple more times (this time holding onto Uncle Shane & Daddy's hands).

I couldn't quit laughing over this second picture... Me & Melissa are flying in the air & the boys have a look of terror on their faces.



Poor Nadine was so scared to go - we finally got her to go with Shaylee, but she spent most of the time telling Shane to "slow down!".



After we got the little girls off of the tube, Madeline got on with us. Kyle kept trying the entire time to dump ME off... I'm proud to say he only succeeded once (but I lost my sunglasses in the Lake - that sucked). Watch out if you ever see Kyle behind the wheel of a boat (or car)!

Utah Trip

The first week of August we took a road trip up to Utah. We stayed with my brother, Bill, for a couple days in Delta, then drove up to Price for my cousin's wedding & stayed there for a couple days. My kids had so much fun with their cousins...they didn't want to leave. Shaylee LOVED the cats at Bill's house, she wouldn't leave them alone (poor cats), and they also had fun swimming & riding in the Rhino. I have to admit it was fun getting out of the city and hanging out with my brother & his family in "the country" (good ol' Delda). I only wish we could visit more than just once a year...the drive is just so dang far!!! It took us 11 hours to get to Delta. But we had a great time & maybe one of these days Bill & his family will come down & see us?!








Uncle Bill letting Shaylee drive....scary!








Kinsey, Cassie, Shaylee, & Caleb riding in back of the Rhino.












Ty, Chrissy, & Bill at Lee's wedding in Price.
He's such a good baby & so dang cute! He was finally getting use to us right about when we left. I love my sweet Nieces & Nephew!

The Great Debate

We watched the debate last night between John McCain & Obama. We just have to say that McCain was AWESOME!!!! I had some doubts about him before, but after last night, I think he would make a great President for our country. Go McCain:)

Kyle's Trip to Hawaii

Kyle went to Hawaii about 2 months ago for a business trip, with his business partner Spencer. They were gone for 5 days & I think they had a little too much fun without "the wives". I think my next post will be of our "annual girls getaway"... last year we went to the Celine Deon concert in Vegas without the guys:)

Kids Say The Cutest Things!!!

Writing down the things my kids say doesn't do them justice...as all parents know. But I thought I would try. And just remember to keep in mind the cute little voices saying these things (oh, and don't forget the attitude that goes along with the cute voices!).

* Shaylee fell off the couch, jumped back onto her feet, and said "any time, any place, I'm ok!".
* While eating her yogurt, Shaylee said "I stir it up like paint". (what? how often do I talk about stirring up paint? Little sponges!)
* Caleb watching Disney channel - "this show, it's not gross, it's not scary, it's just right!".
* Shaylee - "I said no, and that means no!". (I have no idea where she got that from)
* Shaylee - "Think about it". (she says this a LOT)
* Shaylee - "Mommy's can do anything...(long pause) if they want to".
* Caleb always says "the next good morning" (he means tomorrow).
* A few days ago I accidentally scratched Shaylee, and she said "you hurt me Jessica", so I replied to her that I am her mother, then she said "well, you are a mommy and a Jessica". True:)
* Caleb said this to Shaylee - "that's a pincher spider, one pinch and you'll die!"
* The kids wanted a peanut butter sandwich, without the peanut butter.
* Shaylee looked out the window last night and said "it's not hot anymore, dude". (if she would have actually walked outside, she would have noticed that it unfortunately is still hot...even at night).
* Shaylee - "I colored on myself, I'm sooooooooo naughty!".
* She was rocking on her chair hard, & it hit the wall. She stopped, turned around to look at the damage, and said "dang it, dang it, dang it!".
* Both of my kids are always saying stuff like "Dude...That's hilarious!...Oh, fine!"

These are just some of the funny things they said this weekend. It's fun to write it down & read it again. I love my kids, they are soooooooooooooo hilarious!!

Happy 4th!!!

Every year for the 4th of July, one of our neighbors has a flag ceremony, bike parade for the kids, & yummy breakfast. So we dragged our sleepy little bodies out of bed at 6:45 a.m. They are in our ward, and since Kyle is in the E.Q. Presidency, he was asked to help out with it. We had a good turnout and the kids had a blast on the huge waterslide and just running around with all of the kids. But poor Kyle had a hard time staying very long & ended up leaving early because he was up at 3 a.m. helping his friends post political campaign signs in Mesa (for 3 hours, yuck!). So he had a good nap after the festivities:) We also went to the High School for fireworks, but they were horrible, so we ended up going back home & having a firework extravaganza of our own:) We had Jack on watch in case any cops came (we are such law breakers).
Hmmm, what else did we do...well, my dishwasher is broke (it's only 1 1/2 yrs. old), and we can't figure out how to fix it. Hopefully we can get someone out here Monday, because I really do not enjoy doing every single dish for 5 people by hand (but on a positive note, it has made me extremely grateful for all of the modern appliances I enjoy on a daily basis!!). And my mom helped me put up a stencil I have been wanting to do on the wall above our family pictures. It says "Home, the place your story begins". Every time I look at it, I smile...the simple things in life are the best:) I am also super sore today because last Saturday Melissa invited us to her gym. We did the kickboxing class, an entire hour long, which in my opinion is complete torture. I thought I would be able to handle it just fine, b/c I excercise five days a week. But boy was I wrong!!! It totally kicked my bootie...I guess I'm not in very good shape after all. So, I decided to do something about it. I drove my out-of-shape body over to Goodwill and bought five different workout videos (since I hate the gym). I did the first one yesterday, "The Firm". I was so proud of myself for lasting the full hour, but after I woke up this morning, I was second guessing my enthusiasm. At least I know it was a good workout! My goal is to do a different video every day until I am toned & sculpted (I can do it!?!?). I think next month I need to challenge Melissa to a workout showdown:) Let the games begin!!

Our First Baby...Flash:)

I started thinking that I haven't posted a picture of my other baby! Poor Flash...he was our first attempt at a "kid". We had only been married for five months, we were driving back to Chandler from Utah, and decided to stop by "Best Friends Animal Sanctuary" in Kanab. We were only looking (ha ha), but spotted Flash & I just loved him. He was so sweet & cute - they warned us that this type of dog was very hyper - but I ignored them & decided they were wrong. The first month he was the best dog ever, BUT then out came the real Flash (by the way, there is a reason they named him Flash...he is very, very fast!). He barks at anything that moves, & has a ton of energy, but we love him to death!!!! Especially my kids - I don't know what we would do without our Flasharoo. (This is a horrible picture of Shaylee with Flash, but it was the only one I could find.) And the other picture Caleb begged me to put in...we have been dog-sitting for over a week. His name is Jack, & he is an awesome dog (he even knows how to do tricks). We dog-sit him every-once-in-a-while for Kyle's Uncle Mike. We're always sad when he goes (well, a little happy because of the dog hair & slobber).

More Kids In The Clouse House?

These pictures are from Shaylee's birthday a month ago. Since Caleb is now 5 & Shaylee is officially a "big girl" at 3, we have decided to move forward with the Foster Care Program. We met with Kimberly yesterday, and she did an interview with us to see if we are candidates. I told the kids to be on their best behavior, and no "booty dancing", which my kids do all the time. It's so embarassing, they look like they belong in a strip joint or something! Well, of course right when she got here, there they go!! They like to show off, which I understand, but the dancing has to stop:) So I'm sure that made a great first impression. But hopefully we will be starting the classes in August to get certified. I'm really excited to be doing this, it is something I have wanted to do for a long time. Everyone wish us luck with the entire process, I'm sure we'll need it!!!!!

The kids love sugar...I have no idea where they get that from?! A couple months ago I was wondering why their little bellies were getting so pudgy - I'm quite strict with junk & I feed them really healthy stuff. THEN, I found out they had been climbing up my pantry shelves & hiding chocolate in their rooms. Caleb's stash was under his dresser, & Shaylee's was everywhere throughout her room. Sneaky little things:) I must admit they did a super good job at hiding the evidence!

Bear Hunting Trip in Northern AZ

Kyle is very proud of his bear. Before we were married, we had a deep discussion about how I do not want any dead animals in our house. BUT, somehow, this bear, which Kyle made into a full body mount, wound up in our den...it looks at me down the hall! How did I lose this battle??? We both agreed to put it at his office in Mesa - am I a pushover or what:) Not that I'm not happy that Kyle got his bear, & it is a beautiful animal, but in my house?! Man, I am a GREAT wife:)

The picture to the right is Kyle with his guide Vernel.

Father's Day 2008

For Father's Day we had to wake up early for church, so Kyle had to wait to open up his presents. Shaylee made this tie card in nursery... we were laughing so hard, this is her silly smile. And the tool card, Caleb helped make. They of course had many, many other crafts to give him, & I gave him two books and a DVD. Tonight we are going over to Melissa's house for a fish fry. Shane & their boys went fishing last weekend & caught 50 fish, mmmmm yummy:)

I am so grateful that Kyle is such a wonderful daddy - what would we do without him?!?!

P.S. Happy Father's Day to our Dads & Grandpas!!!!!

Playing in the Irrigation

Caleb & Shaylee love it when we irrigate our backyard, it's like a huge swimming pool. I tell them how gross the water is, but of course they could care less. I guess I did the same thing growing up in Delta (ditches & the rez - yuck!).

Swimming Lessons Begin!

This picture cracks me up... they are so entertaining:) They just started swim lessons last week. The past two years I have been taking them to the pool at the middle school, where there were six kids to one instructor. They didn't pick it up at all & were both terrified of the water. But this year, our neighbor two houses down decided to do private swimming lessons again after a two year break (yeah!!!!). After just two lessons, they are doing great! I'm sure that by the end of this month they will be little fish, which makes my anxiety much lower. Just about every single house in our neighborhood has a pool, and as a mother, it scares me to death. So, I am very relieved that they will finally learn how to swim, along with survival skills in the pool.