HAPPY BIRTHDAY CONNOR!!

Today the once little guy I fell in love with turns the big 1-3! He's a TEENAGER now!!! God help us! Soon he'll be driving and dating and ..........I don't want to think about it.

I've always felt so close to Connor. He was the first nephew/grandchild in the family and he will forever hold a very special place in my heart. I've always felt an unbreakable bond with him. He is a super kid! He will work his little tail off to make you happy. He'd rather be outside with the horses or dogs or shoveling snow than be inside reading a book or doing homework. Heck...he'd rather clean a toilet than do homework! School is not his strong point. His mom and dad have to keep on him to make sure he's doing what he needs to do. But he loves being involved in sports, especially wrestling and track, and he likes to be around people.

He loves to go to grandma and grandpa's and help them around the house or snuggle up with grandma and watch "Ice Road Truckers"...which thrills grandpa to death! :) He loves to come to Auntie's and Uncle's house and play in the pool or play with the XBox or PS3.

He is a wonderful horseman and a fantastic skiier. Grandpa Mike has played a major part in those talents. Grandpa Mike calls often to see if Connor can go on a horse ride. Connor has also been fortunate to take part in working with Grandpa Mike's and Grandma Anita's Siberian Husky sled dogs. He's also raced them in local competitions a couple times quite a few years ago. He loves those dogs! I'm so proud of him and his love for animals.

Several times when Connor was very young and I was still living at home, mom and I would drive up and have dinner at Michael and Amy's or babysit Connor so they could go out. When it came time for us to go, Connor would want us to tuck him in and that sweet boy would start to quietly cry and we'd ask him what was wrong. He'd look up at us with those big brown eyes and say "I'm just so worried about you guys driving home...please be careful." Awwww... that sweet-hearted boy. He has a very tender heart and his feelings are always right at the surface. It breaks his heart when someone gets angry at him. Like I said before, he'll work his tail off to make you happy.

Connor...I love you dearly. I still can't believe you are 13 today! Your shoulders may be broader, your voice deeper and you may grow another foot or two but you will always be my sweet boy who used to snuggle on my lap.

I hope your birthday is everything you wanted it to be! I hope to see you very soon!

We love you!!!

P.S. You can see that he's a great big brother to M.J. and miss Brisa.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!

A big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Dad Ireland! My ten-foot-tall and bullet-proof dad! Although the last few years have taken their toll on him, he'll always be my protector, provider and always loving dad. I can't believe he'll be 77 this year! It just seems like the time flies. I have the fondest memories of truckin' with him every summer when I was younger. Up until his stroke five years ago he was a truckin' fool. :) He was very fortunate to have worked for a company that didn't send him out for weeks at a time. He was home every few days, depending on the location and the load he had. I have SO MANY memories of visiting different places with him, probably the two most memorable were Edmonton, Alberta Canada and our 8 day trip thorugh the midwest and up into Detroit. On that journey we witnessed a tornado not too far off in the distance. SCARY! I NEVER want to see one of those again, EVER!

Other than trucking with him, I remember the times he was home to see me in a school play, a choir concert, or just being home for the holidays.

I have a lot of my dad in me. I'm very stubborn. I love to travel and I might add that I am a fantastic driver and map reader, if I do say so myself. :) And you can ask the man himself on that subject...he'll concur.

He's a great Grandpa to those three kids. He especially loves that little miss Brisa. He's just like Grandma...ever so patient to watch the SAME movies...over....and over....and over again. His patience does start to run thin though if the kids get too noisy or start bickering.

Speaking of bickering...it reminded me of a story that Amy and I laugh at to this day. I guess there was a trip that we were on as a family and Amy and I both were very young. Well, we had stopped at a travel station and we each wanted a little toy of some kind. So we purchased our new prized posessions and we piled back in the truck. Well not five minutes down the road and Amy and I were at it! We started bickering over our new things and Dad reached around into the back, grabbed both of them (still driving, by the way), rolled down his window and out they went! He said the crying was easier to take than the bickering. See, he was basically raised as an only child. He had one older sister that was born with mental as well as physical retardation and back in those days they just shipped them off to an institution. Well then he came along. After him they had another girl who was born with the same handicaps as the first daughter. So again, they shipped her off. After that, his mother died at a very young age. From stories told about her, I wish so badly to have known her. I guess I'll have that chance though someday. Anyway, then my grandpa remarried and they had a son but by that time my dad was quite a bit older and wasn't close to the new son. So he doesn't understand that siblings bicker. My husband being an only child doesn't understand that concept either. I"m working on that one...

My favorite memory of my Dad that he has told about himself is that when he was young, now remember how old he is...I'm talking WAYYYYY back when he was young, he and some friends decided that they would go skinny-dipping in the water tower. We're talking about rural Nebraska, one of those big water tanks that all the water to the house and property were pumped out of this water tank. Yeah...they skinny-dipped in the drinking water. That's my dad! LOL He's always been a character and he still is.

He has a caregiver that comes to their house every weekday and helps him with stretching and exercises and helps around the house. He gets around using a wheelchair or walker. It was so hard for me when he had his stroke...which was two months before my wedding (can anyone say STRESSED OUT BRIDE!!!!)...to see him go from "big trucker, protector, provider" to someone needing that much help. My sis, mom and I all had a very difficult time. BUT...the happy ending was that he was there to "wheel" me down the isle at my wedding, with the help of my dear brother-in-law. I will never forget the look on his face when he saw me in my wedding dress as I entered the isle...precious memories.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!! Oh by the way, his birthday is the 24th. We are heading out to Blackfoot, weather permittinng or not! Good thing I got my studded tires on!

And to all of you, my dear loved ones, A MERRIEST OF MERRY CHIRSTMASES! I love you all and I wish the Lord bless you and your families! Stay safe!

Ode to Nyquil

As we draw nearer to the BEST holiday sesaon of the year...I find myself struggling to breathe through my nose, unplug my ears, and not cough so hard that I displace a rib. I guess if the bless-ed flu/cold bug was adament about residing in my body, thank the Lord that it is THIS week instead of next. But if it's all the same to anyone else...I'd rather pass on the whole event altogether. But if it must be...I thank the Lord for NYQUIL! The mormon's version of "getting liquored up". Ahhh...that sweet burgandy colored, berry flavored liquid! (I can't stand the green version!) Did someone out there say DAYquil? Nuh-uh...I'm hitting the hard stuff and sleeping it off. I put off the grocery shopping, errand-running, Christmas-present-finishing-up until today. I just couldn't let it go on any longer. So I braved the bone-chilling air today and accomplished those tasks. But now...as groceries sit in the refrigerator, Christmas presents are awaiting wrapping...I am going to partake of that bless-ed liquid and drift off into slumber.
Ahhhhh....I love Nyquil. Hopefully one nostril will clear by tonight.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

See! I told you guys we have a lot of birthdays around this time of year...and we're not done either! There's two more before the end of January!

This one is for my WONDERFUL, BEAUTIFUL, LOVING MOM! A girl couldn't ask for a better mom than mine! I've always been a "mama's girl". I think it's because my dad and I are too much alike that we butt heads sometimes. We both are VERY stubborn! So my mom has always been my closest and dearest friend and I love her more than she will ever know. She is so sweet and so loving. I always feared my dad coming in to wake me up when I was younger because of his harsh way of doing so...open door, flip on light and in a stern voice say "wake up". Not mom though...she would tip toe in, sit on the edge of my bed and start rubbing my arm or gently push the hair out of my face and say "hey sweetie pie, time to get up". Always the tender touch. To this day I sometimes crave her tender touch, especially when I don't feel well or I am having a teary, bad day. Joseph comes pretty close but he's no Mom. :)

Mom struggles with her health these days but she is always there to comfort me over the phone, share in my sorrows or my happiness, and send so much love over the phone that I can actually feel it 150 miles away. She is definitely an angel and I'm so glad she's my angel. She's always called me Annie Babe or Charlie Ann. Don't ask me where she got the Charlie Ann thing from but it's definitely endearing to me.

She is a wonderful grandma...doing all she can considering her health and giving those three grandkids such love that only a grandma can. And you can see in each child's eyes how much they love Grandma. They love to go to her house for sleepovers and to have that special one-on-one time with Grandma. She is ever so patient to watch the same movie they pick out EVERY time and to cuddle them with their own little blankets that await them at her house. She loves to hear the antics from each child and she treasures them like fine gold.

A phone call to talk to her a few minutes ago informed me that she will be celebrating with her favorite birthday cuisine...Hong Kong chinese. Her favorite.

I love you Mom! I hope you live forever because I can't imagine my life without you!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Wow does the time fly!

Hey everyone. The time has just flown by and I know I haven't posted for a few weeks but... what can ya do. First and foremost, I want to wish Dad Gardner a HAPPY BIRTHDAY! He turned another year older on Saturday, the 13th.
Thanksgiving was wonderful. The time always goes faster than you hope it will. I celebrated my birthday that weekend and was spoiled rotten by both sides of the family. It's always fun to celebrate with family!
The last couple of weeks I've just been trying to finish some Christmas shopping and keep my sanity. Joseph and I have been lucky to be able to attend a few things that CSI has had going on. The week after Thanksgiving we went to "The Messiah" chorale concert. It was absolutely fantastic! I had chills pretty much throughout the presentation. Then this last weekend we attended a percussion ensemble concert on Friday night which was amazing! It was mostly drumming and several other percussion intruments intertwined in the mix. So fun! Then last night we went to "A Christmas Carol" play. They did an amazing job! I'm so impressed with our facilities here, seeing as how it's a junior/community college. The more I'm introduced to events, places and people, the more I love Twin Falls. Joseph and I both are so thankful to be living here. I don't think we are feeling the pinch of the economy as badly as if we were living somewhere else. We talk frequently about how lucky and how blessed we are here and are thankful for our VERY many blessings.
Again today, I had the breakdown of "I'm not spending enough money on family for Christmas" and "I hope we make it through the holidays without selling a car for money!" Silly, I know, but true. No matter how many times I think of all the blessings and that we have a wonderful family who doesn't care how much is spent on gifts, it's still hard to think that you're not giving enough. And I feel bad passing by the Salvation Army bell ringers and the donation boxes for food or toys, but when it's all you can do to hold yourself and your family together I have to remember that the Lord will provide...to us and to them. I've always been one to beat myself up over things like this until I'm forced to take a pill to help me calm down! LOL But I can't change my spots....and it's genetic! I get it from my mom...who got it from her dad...who got it from who knows who. Thanks Grandpa for that! :) Everytime I worry...I think of you!
To all of you...May your days be filled with Christmas wonder and the blessings of the Lord.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL!

We send our warmest wishes to everyone for a wonderful, safe, happy Thanksgiving! We sure are anxious to get to Blackfoot and see my parents and my sis's family. My mom can hardly stand it, she's so excited to have us home for a couple of days! Yesterday, Monday, I met up with my sis and brought M.J. over with me for a couple of days. He has this whole week off from school and has been bugging for a "sleep over" at Auntie's and Uncle's. So we made it happen. We've baked cookies, ran errands and he is now enjoying one of his favorite new games on the XBox 360. Boys and their toys...no matter if they are young boys, old boys, little boys, big boys....they have to have their games! I never grew up with gaming systems, not even the old Nintendo. So the whole lure of it totally escapes me! I will admit that I love to play Tetris on the 360 when I feel in the mood, which is not often.

Anyway, during this time of year it's ever so foremost in my mind to remember all the blessings Joseph and I share. We hope you all have warm shelter, warm food and lots of love all around you.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO YOU!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY M.J.!!!

Yes...my family has a ton of birthdays between September and January. Without a doubt it causes us to go broke every season! But it's ok. Today is M.J.'s birthday. He turns 7! Holy cow...I can't believe he's 7 already! I still remember seeing him as a newborn baby. He's quite a character. He loves to make up stories and he has a WILD imagination! He's a great little guy! He has the most amazing green eyes with his dark brown hair and of course, the unfairness of it all, his LONG dark eyelashes! Why are they wasted on boys??? My sister said yesterday that M.J. wanted to have his first sleep over with some kids from his first grade class. So tonight there will be four in all who will be camping out in the front room with a movie, pizza and cake and ice cream! Good luck sis...God speed. We love you M.J.! We couldn't imagine our family without you!