Christmas Day...

Christmas Day truly was magical this year. I knew Reese would get really excited when she opened her presents and I couldn't wait to see her face. I felt like a little kid on Christmas morning because I woke up early and had to force myself to go back to sleep and wait for Reese to wake up. So 8:30 finally came around and I woke up Reese. We sat in her room singing Happy Birthday to Jesus until Ron was ready for us to come down. I was hoping she would see her stocking and the HUGE Yo Gabba Gabba doll, but she immediately went running over to the kitchenette that was covered with a blanket. She yanked off the blanket and did a little dance and then started cooking in her kitchen. She finally came around to opening up her stocking and was so excited to find many boxes of Tic-Tacs. (One of her favorites.) She was also really excited when Sachi opened up her present, which contained a lot of dog toys. Reese just started tossing them in every direction yelling Sachi's name. 

 We finally took Reese upstairs so she could find her trampoline. When she saw the tramp, she ran right over to the tramp and started jumping as high as she could. It was awesome! She would have jumped on her tramp for an hour if we would have had the time.

 When we got home Christmas night, I was amazed at just how much stuff Reese received from grandparents and cousins. She is one spoiled little girl and loved all of her gifts! Christmas truly was magical this year.

Christmas Festivities

We had a lot of fun with Reese this year and all of the Christmas festivities. We had our 2nd annual white elephant gift party at our house and Santa came this year. The kids were all really excited that Santa brought them a gift. We had an adults white elephant game and we had a fun kids white elephant game as well. This was the first of the fun festivities.

 The next night, we had our extended family party and Santa came to this party as well. My great aunt has had our family Christmas party at her house for over 20 years. When we were kids, Santa would come to this party and bring gifts. I remember when Santa was leaving, the adults would tell the kids to look out the window and watch Santa leave and we would see a light in the sky as he left. ( I'm not sure where the light came from, but it was pretty realistic for us kids.) Well, this year, Santa came to the party for the first time in almost 20 years and brought every single person a gift. It was actually pretty amazing because there was at least 50 people at the party. The kids thought it was pretty funny that their grandparents were sitting on Santa's lap. I didn't take any pictures at this party, but it was a great night.

On Christmas Eve, we went to Ron's parents home and Ron's mom always makes a fancy prime rib dinner. Then we play the chimes, sing Christmas songs, act out the nativity scene while Grandpa reads Luke 2 and then Grandpa reads "The night before Christmas" to the kids. It is a fun night, but also helps us remember what Christmas is really about. Reese was so tired by the time we got to the nativity scene that she just sat on the couch and watched the other kids.

Another lesson learned

Last Monday, I received a call from our caseworker notifying us that a birth mother and birth father were going to be placing their baby and they had narrowed it down to us and another couple and they wanted to meet us. I never expected that we would get chosen this soon and because of our previous experiences with failed placements, it's almost as if I just go numb to protect myself from getting too excited. I was really trying to not get my hopes up, but then we met the couple and they were just a great couple. The baby was due January 2nd, so the baby could literally come any day. When the baby could come any day and the birth parents have not decided on an adoptive couple, it's difficult not to prepare for this precious baby to come into your home and your heart. A few days later, they notified us that the birth parents had chosen the other family. I was pretty disappointed, but I knew that Heavenly Father knows what is best for that baby. I was pretty angry and sad because I had allowed myself to get my hopes up. I was just so happy in my little Reesie world and now I feel like I opened my heart up for this baby and now I have a hole that will remain until we are able to adopt again. I know that the right baby ends up in the right family and I know that we will adopt again. After we were notified that we were not chosen, I was kneeling down to pray, but I was a little disappointed and sad and didn't really want to pray. I asked Heavenly Father to help me pray and as I started to pray, my mind was flooded with joy and excitement for this other family that will soon be adopting a sweet baby boy. I was filled with gratitude for a Heavenly Father that is blessing this other family with their baby that they have prayed for. I was filled with gratitude for the opportunity that we have had to adopt. This experience with prayer has filled my mind every time I start to feel that ache in my heart. I am so grateful for this little roller coaster of emotions that opened up my mind and my heart. I am grateful for the adoption process and the things that I learn through the Holy Ghost. As we awaited to hear if we were chosen, I noticed more than usual of just how much Reese loves babies. Reese's baby cousin came over and as soon as he was on the ground. She was bringing him books and reading to him. Then she grabbed her blankets from her bed and wrapped them around him. She just kept squealing to me, "mama baby, mama baby". She will be a great big sister, when we again have the opportunity to adopt.

Fun stuff

We had to take our car to get worked on this week and so Reese and I had a lot of time at home. I had to post these videos. It is so funny to me of how our games came about. First I was wrapping presents and ended the roll of paper and so Reese was playing with the cardboard. Then we decided to put cars through the roll like a tunnel. Then Sachi jumped over the tunnel, so we decided to make an obstacle course for Sachi. Then it became an obstacle course for Reese. Anyway, you can watch for yourself. Just ignore my voice. It it so loud and sounds like I am talking to a baby.

Scriptures

 The other night, I went to bed feeling a little discouraged about what to do to help Reese eat. She has been a really picky eater lately and will not eat the food that I cook for her or she will throw her food to Sachi (yes, she is a sneaky one). Then I was scrolling through the pictures on my phone, which I do on a regular basis at night, and found these pictures that Ron had taken of Reese and I started to cry as I realized that Reese may be a picky eater right now, but she loves the scriptures and she loves to read to me. She loves to get two sets of scriptures, one for her and one for me, and we sit next to each other and night and she reads to me. I will turn to where we left off the night before in mine and she will turn to wherever she wants and points to a spot and then we will take turns reading. She does this multiple times through the day and it melts my heart. In my efforts to teach Reese to love the scripture stories, I had bought her one of the picture book of Mormon for kids and would read that to her at night, along with the other 10 books that we read at night:) She really did not like the picture book and would go on to the next book. Little did I know that she just wanted to read the same book that mommy and daddy read each night. Now, we take turns reading a verse and when it is Reese's turn, she will jabber something and then I will read the verse and have her say a couple different words in the verse. I have realized what a special experience it has been to teach Reese about the scriptures and although she may be a picky eater right now, she is growing and thriving in so many different ways. I am always reminded of how much I need to learn from this little girl and her purity and willingness to be taught.

Tuesday night basketball

 This past Tuesday night, Reese and I went to visit Ron at the church and Reese discovered the gym. She was so excited that she just ran back and forth at least 10 times. She is definitely a runner and I quickly realized how great it is to have access to a gym. It was so fun to watch Reese try to dribble and shoot the ball and then she would run all the way to the opposite basket. I love to watch Ron and Reese play together. She sure loves her Daddy. I think I might start taking her down a little earlier on Tuesday nights so she can play in the gym with her soccer and basketballs.

A fun weekend

I 

 I love days when Reese and I don't have to go anywhere. I love that I don't have to take Reese to school yet or soccer, piano, or dance class. I'm sure those days will come, but right now, I love that we just get to do whatever we want all day. So today, Reese made a baby train and pushed her babies around everywhere.

 And when Ron got home, he was teaching Reese how to play racquetball and it was pretty funny because Reese didn't care about the racket, she just liked that the ball was pink.

On saturday, we had a full day. Reese had a lot of fun at Isla's birthday party. She liked all the rides at Chuck E Cheese and dancing in front of the screen. After the party, we went down to SLC to watch the BYU v UTAH girls game. My friend plays for BYU and we hadn't watched her play in a while. Reese loved watching the game and clapping with the band.

 For some reason, Reese wanted to watch the game upside down for most of the game.

20 months

 I am a little late with Reese's 20 month post, but she's not 21 months yet, so I figure I'm doing pretty good. Reese is starting to talk in sentences and I love listening to her cute voice. She said her first prayer today and both Ron and I were a little teary eyed as she said her 8 word prayer. Reese also loves to read the scriptures when I am reading. It is so funny, because I usually read my scriptures laying on my stomach and she will come by me and start to read as I read. I will ask her questions about it and she will say, "ummmm, jabber jabber jabber etc." I absolutely love it!

 - Reese loves to use my make-up brushes when I do her hair
- Reese loves cucumbers and my sister taught her to put them on her eyes:)
- Reese loves Minnie Mouse
- Reese played racquetball for the first time
-stopped saying "why" and now started saying "what"

 - Reese loves to play in the pantry and give Sachi a doggy treat
- she loves to draw. It breaks my heart when Reese will try to draw a flower or balloon and ends up throwing her crayon in frustration.

 -Reese loves to play with her friend Charlie

 -Reese likes to do the splits

 Reese loves to play with her Daddy and his IPAD.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

I love the Christmas season and all the fun activities that go with it. I love the decorations, the lights, the music, the wrapping, and the excitement that comes with Santa. I love it when the young women come caroling to our house (mostly just to see Reese, but I will take them anytime), and all the reminders of our Savior's birth. One of our favorite Christmas traditions is going to the "Savior of the World" musical production down at the conference center. Ron actually proposed to me at this production 5 years ago so that is another reason why I love "Savior of the World" so much.
       Each year at Christmas time gets more and more exciting with Reese. Her eyes light up and she yells "Wow". I am excited to take her to temple square soon to see the lights. Ron is going with the young men and young women in our ward  soon and so we are going to head down with them. I can't wait for Christmas morning and to see the look on Reese's face.

 Reese wasn't sure about Santa, but he was the best santa I have ever seen. He's the real deal!

 A little cold, but Reese loved taking a wagon ride to see the lights. Her eyes were huge as she looked and pointed at all the lights.

 Reese wasn't scared of this Santa because she knew he gave out candy. She wouldn't even look at him, but just dove into the candy cane bucket.

Reese's shoe tree.

Family blessings

 Ron was called into the bishopric a couple weeks ago and we have been blessed so much by this calling. To avoid multiple nights in meetings, Ron is usually at the church on Tuesdays until 12:00. Reese and I have been taking dinner down to Ron on Tuesday nights so Ron can play with Reese for a little bit before she goes to bed and it has been a really neat experience. The first time I went down, I didn't want to interrupt any meetings because I knew that the bishopric usually has a million things to do and address, but when the bishop saw Reese and I waiting for Ron, he stopped everything he was doing and treated us like we were the most important thing in the world and that Ron spending even 15 min with Reese was the most important thing Ron could be doing that whole night. The bishop didn't stand at a podium to teach a sermon, but I felt the spirit so strong testify to me of how important our family is and how much Heavenly Father loves His daughters. This was just one occasion, but since Ron's calling, I have felt those promptings over and over again. There has been so much peace and love in our home and our family has become so much stronger.
             One of the funny things I have to mention is that when Ron was called, the stake president had told me to sit somewhere in sacrament where Reese can see Ron so she knows he is there. He also told me that if Reese needs to sit with Ron on the stand sometimes,  then let her sit on the stand. I laughed to myself as I imagined Reese sitting on Ron's lap making faces at the congregation. She loves to make people laugh and I'm sure she would do whatever she could to accomplish that. The first week Ron was on the stand, Reese and I were sitting in the back and she kept saying, "Dada, Dada". So I let her stand on my legs and pointed to where Ron was sitting. When she finally realized where Ron was, she started pointing at him and laughing so loud that everybody around her was laughing and I had to take her out in the hall. I am sure this will be the first of many memorable moments.

Sledding

 A few weeks ago, we took Reese sledding for the first time and she loved it. She is so fearless and did not want to ride on the toddler sled, but on the big kids sled. We were up pretty high on the hill and she jumped right on her belly by herself and went flying down the hill. Once the sled stopped, she jumped right off and started to pull the huge sled up the hill like it was nothing. My sister and I were laughing so hard that we about peed our pants. Reese loved throwing snow at Sachi as she would leap up in the air and try to eat it. It's funny to me how I playing in the snow until Reese came. Now I think I get more excited when it snows than she does.

Goodbye for now Grandma K.

(I wrote this post on 12/8/10)
The other day I went and visited my Grandma who lives at an Assisted Living Home. There was a nurse in her room just checking up on her and when she was leaving, she said, "Your Grandma is a sweetheart! I wish I could hear her life stories!" I told her, "Me too! She is pretty amazing!"
On my way home, I started to cry as I thought about my grandma and all that she could have told this nurse about her life. My grandma had a stroke 8 years ago that partially left her without the ability to use the right side of her body. She also lost a lot of her speech. ( She still will say "good bye", "I don't know", sometimes "I love you", and occasionally "kiyomi") Before the stroke, my grandma always came to my soccer games, my brother's baseball games, and my cousins sports activities as well. She was always so active and loved to garden! She loved the Utah Jazz and Ice Skating. Sometimes you would hear both TV's going at the same time with both basketball and ice skating going on. I remember when I was in elementary, my dad would have to go to work early in the morning and so my grandma would come and pick me up early in the morning and would let me eat all of her mochi for breakfast and then take me to school. I am sure she didn't really like coming and picking me up at 6:00am, but she never complained. I remember when I was in junior high, I would ride my bike over to her house and pick raspberries with her and then take some home. She always had like a million piece puzzle out that I would end up working on while I was there.
My grandma truly is my hero. When I was having a difficult time with our failed placement a couple months back. I went and visited my Grandma and even though she cannot talk, she brought me so much hope. As I sat there talking to her, she just squeezed my hand and a tear ran down her cheek. I knew she understood every word and that she was telling me that she loved me. Many times when I ask my grandma a question, she will try to answer, but it does not come out right, so she says, "I don't know." I thought about how that would be to not be able to tell your family how your felt about things they were asking you. Of course, we all knew how Grandma felt about us, but it would be really difficult to have so much to say and not be able to. Grandma's life reflected selfless love and we all knew she loved us. I thought about how active my grandma has always been and now for that past few years has barely been able to walk. I guess I just thought about how strong my Grandma is and because of the trials that she has been able to endure, I can endure any trial as well. Hopefully, one day my actions will express how much I love all those around me, without having to say a word.

As I wrote before, my grandma has been my hero as I watched her suffer through an extended illness and on November 24th, 2012, she finally went peacefully to rest to be with my granpa again. She continued to love to the end and always wanted to make sure her family was ok. The viewing and funeral services were great and I know my grandma would have been smiling.  She would have smiled when my mom's cell phone went off during the services, she would have laughed when my niece farted really loud when grandma's casket was closing and we were all crying and lauging at the same time, and she would have smiled when my little nephew started clapping and saying "yeah yeah" after part of the service. That was just the kind of grandma she was. All the grandchildren were asked to write some of their favorite memories of grandma and Ron was asked to read them. I know grandma was smiling during this part. I am grateful for the legacy she left behind and I know I will see her again! I love you grandma! Here are the memories of all the grandchildren........

Leigh:
I don’t have just ONE memory of my grandma, but what I did have was a
second mother, a best friend, a roommate, a sports fan, someone to eat
out with 5 times a week, someone that made me laugh, someone to iron
for me because I didn’t know how, a shopping partner, the grandma that
would stop whatever work she was doing when I would show up at
Stokers, and dig through her purse to get .50 cents to buy me a Fanta
Red Cream Soda, someone that would sit on the top bleacher with her
orange sun umbrella and never missed any of my games, the person that
would grasp her hands so tight watching the jazz play that she would
break blood vessels, and the grandma that accepted me for who I was
and loved me unconditionally. These and so much more are the
memories I will cherish forever, she was the coolest and most supportive
grandma I could have ever asked for and I am thankful for that.
I love you and will miss you granny goose!!!
Jennifer’s Memory:
My favorite memory of my Grandma Kay is – every time Mom, Grandma
and I would go to the mall, before  leaving
we would stop at ZCMI and Grandma would always get me some cashews.
There were only a few that we would share but they were so good.
Adam:
As I think back about Grandma, many memories fill my mind...
...fresh raspberries from the garden, a bucket of KFC waiting for us after
a game of backyard football, birthday presents wrapped in the Funnies,
Grandma in the stands at nearly every baseball game, and Mochi, ginger
beef, and Octopus (which is called "Tako" in Japanese) on New Years...
One New Years, Grandma did not have any Tako.  When I asked her about
it she said "Well, I went to the store to get some, the man asked me what
I wanted and I said 'Can I get some...um...well...I need some...nevermind." 
She started laughing, shaking her head, and threw up her hands and told
me "I was so embarrassed...I couldn't remember what it was called in
English, so I just left!"   
Grandma K will forever be missed, but the many warm, loving memories
will always be with me.
Kyle:
The one thing that stands out to me about Grandma was her ability to
find humor in life.  Whether it was falling down the stairs, inadvertently
serving her favorite grandson rotten milk or saving her favorite grandson
from a gigantic garter snake (seriously this thing was huge), she always
gave out the laugh that we all love.
I remember when I was in her basement one day and heard somebody
FLYING down the stairs like a wild teenager, so I timed it perfectly and
came running with my arms out in perfect attack mode and gave my best
Godzilla roar, meeting this wild person at the bottom of the stairs.  I
thought that it could only be my sister who would be coming down the
stairs so fast but sadly I was wrong.  In one brief moment I realized my
mistake…this also happened to be the same moment when my eyes met
Grandma’s eyes and I saw nothing but sheer panic and horror on her
face.  Her momentum immediately stopped and she magically flew back
up the stairs without ever touching the ground.  In this brief moment I
was convinced that I had literally scared Grandma to death.  I was
embarrassed, scared, ashamed of myself, but once Grandma reached the
floor again she was laughing hysterically.  To be honest, I don’t think I’ve
ever seen her laugh so hard.  That was Grandma, always finding
something to smile about.
Brandy:
I have a lot of great memories with Grandma (and most of them involve
being at a baseball, softball, basketball or soccer game because she was
our #1 fan)...But really when I think of Grandma a few specific things
come to mind:
- Cabbage Patch Dolls - surprise, surprise - Grandma had the best
collection of UNOPENED Cabbage Patch dolls.
- Souvenir spoons - Every time we went on vacation we'd have to get a
souvenir spoon for Grandma so she could add it to her collection.
- Kentucky Fried Chicken - This may sound odd, but it seems whenever
we went to visit, we'd always have KFC at Grandma's.

I love you Grandma and treasure the memories you gave me. I will forever
miss you!
 Brandy
Casey:
I'll always remember walking through Grandmas garden and picking
raspberries and cherry tomatoes. The smell of raspberry bushes will
always make me think of Grandma.
Glen’s Memory:
My favorite memory of Grandma Kay is - she was always at my football
games no matter how far away they were. During one of the games she
cheered and clapped so hard she broke a blood vessel in her finger.
I’m going to miss my grandma a lot. I just hope she is proud of all of my
cousins and myself for what we have done and who we have become.
Darcee:
When I was in 6th grade, I moved to my Dad's house and in order for me
to stay at my same school, Grandma would pick me up at 6:00am and
take me back to her house. It was great! She let me eat mochi for
breakfast and we would do her million piece puzzles until it was time to
go to school. I loved the one on one time with Grandma.
 Another great memory was when I got my first job working with
Grandma at Stokers.  I thought it was pretty cool that I was the grand-
daughter of a superstar. Grandma and Auntie Yuki were so fast and could
plant 4 flats in the time it took me to plant 1. Grandma was always kind
enough to help me catch up when I was falling behind.
My last favorite memory was a couple years ago when we were trying to
adopt. We had had a couple of failed adoptions and I would talk to
grandma about how much I wanted a baby and to be a mother. She would
just hold my hand and cry with me until I was comforted. Thank you
Grandma for always being there for me and teaching me what it means to
love.                                                                              
   I love you!
Amber:
The thing I remember most is calling my Bachan on the phone and
leaving her messages on her birthday and holidays. I also called Bachan
to tell her when I started kindergarten and second grade so she would
know how I was doing. Goodbye Bachan I love you.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

I was trying to catch up on the things I am grateful for, but I didn't quite make it, so I will just write a list. Before I write my list, I just have to say how grateful I am for my life. A couple days ago, I felt such a peaceful feeling of joy and contentment. I was just putting Reese in the bath and felt overwhelming joy for my life. I remember getting these feelings right after I was married and it was wonderful to feel these feelings again. That "peace that passeth understanding". I am grateful for a life that I love to wake up to. With that......Here is my list!

A husband that I love and loves me

A daughter who I adore

A wonderful family

Reese's hugs

our loving dog Sachi who is always excited to see me

the scriptures, prayer, temples

a warm home

running

the blessing to be a stay-at-home mom

a husband that has a good job

and here are things that I really like that I am grateful for

christmas lights and decorations

the Hallmark Christmas movies (I know.....I am getting old)

the multigrain chips they sell at costco (LOVE)

snowy days with no where to go