Marlee becomes an adult

My baby turned 18.

 

Crazy!!!

 

 



 

I made her a Reese's candybar cake & got her the first four seasons of Fringe, our latest obsession.

 

But what she wanted most for her birthday, was to go skydiving.

And somehow I ended up getting talked into doing it too!

 

 

It was insane! And we both want to do it again!

 

 

But on her actual birthday, she did this....

 

....on our way to Disneyland,

 

 

and had dinner at the Cheesecake Factory when we got there.

 

 

I try not to focus on the fact that she will be gone in a few short months. That the days of having all of my kids at home is coming to a close. Gone forever. Chapter closed. It's freaking me out!!!

 

Happy Birthday Mars!!

 

I'm SO proud of you & your many talents & accomplishments. You've set the bar high for your sibs & I'm glad. You are beautiful inside and out, and I'm going to miss you like crazy when you leave our nest. I love you!  Love, Mom

2012 Highlights and Lowlights

Let's start with the  Highlights:

 

 

Max gets contacts

 



Caroline finally grows enough hair for ponytails

 

We finally remodel the half-bath

 

Brian runs his first Ragnar & actually enjoyed himself

 

Brian loses 30 pounds

 

I realize my dream of seeing Monument Valley

 



Skiing in Telluride on St. Patrick's Day and making some new friends

Hiking in Zions

Going to see Brian Regan in St. George, and then running into him afterwards at Appleby's

 

Every day is a highlight with this girl

 

The Earth, Wind and Fire concert

Brian & I eat our way through Missouri, Kentucky and Tennessee

I attend the JinkyArt workshop

 

 

Jake goes to his first EFY in Provo

 

 

The 4th of July at Coronado, of course

Marlee returns home to us parasite-free after spending 3 weeks doing humanitarian work in the Amazon jungles of Ecuador.

Sunday nights when The Walking Dead was on

When Jake was riding the bus home when Toro Camp was over

Haboobs

Brian becomes one of only three Board Certified Orthodontists in Mesa

 

Max moves on to Junior High

Max gets a cell phone

Jake moves on to High School

Jake plays in his first High School football game

I go on a girls beach trip with my mom & sisters

 

Marlee does a fabulous job in the Distinguished Young Women program/competition

Marlee is chosen as a National Merit Scholarship semi-finalist

We extend our attic storage space (life-changing)

Brian runs the St. George Marathon & manages to finish even though he pulls his hamstring at Mile 3

Our October Break Seattle trip with the older kids

Coming home to find that the babysitter had broken Caroline's binky habit

Finding some new additions to our Halloween collection

Thanksgiving with our Mason peeps

Brian's concert tour of a lifetime

 

Max's last day of A-hour

Watching Jake's face as he realizes his last Christmas gift is a trip to Japan with his Dad

Lighting up the neighborhood on New Years Eve

 

And now for.....

Biggest Disappointments of 2012:

Obama's win

 

My eyesight - I finally broke down & got a pair of cute reading glasses

 

My body in general

 

April Fools joke failure

 

Teenager chore participation

 

Pinewood Derby

 

shattered dreams

 



Marlee's Varsity volleyball coach

 

Lack of hot chicks at EFY

 

My garden

 

Our tooth fairy

 

I'm still in Scouts

 

Gus still can't get his urine stream IN the toilet

 

 

 

Most Annoying Pets of 2012:

 

 

Kitty - for reasons too many to mention

 

Turbo



His poops are huge & he does this...

 

to my garden

 

 

Cutest Things Caroline Does:

 

Rubs her silky blankie edges



Her careful coloring

 

 

Her drama queen faces

 

 

 

Kid with the most cavities in 2012:

 

Gus  -  9 cavities

 

 

 

Brian's 2012 Concert List:

 

Muse

 

Young The Giant (2)

 

The Cult

 

Death Cab For Cutie

 

Earth, Wind & Fire

 

OMD

 

Echo and The Bunnymen

 

China Crisis

 

The Cure

 

Roddy Frame (Aztec Camera)

 

Donny & Marie Osmond Christmas Show

 

 

 

Favorite TV Shows of 2012:

 

 

The Walking Dead

 

Downton Abbey

 

 

 

Favorite 2-year-old of 2012:

 

 





 Caroline!

Happy Valentine's Day!

 

 

Why is it that Valentine's Day these days seems to be more about elementary school class Valentines & parties than anything else?

I'm too busy putting the kids' Valentine crap together to bother with Brian! My poor, poor neglected sweetheart!!!  :)

 

 

So here's what we came up with this year....

 

 

We decided not to do this one. A little too disturbing. He looks like a cerebral palsy victim.

And then there's these guys....

 

Jake & his favorite Freshman girl, Yaz.

 

 

They're just adorable, right?

 

 

 

But here's what's really adorable.....

 

 

Melts my heart. :)



pink-eyed peanut

 

We've got pink-eye.

 

And I don't hate it.

 

It's a sure ticket home, without the misery or vomiting. I mean, who's going to send a kid like this to Nursery on Sunday? And guess who gets to stay home with her? See what I mean? I'm always up for a little break in the routine & a good excuse to not have to attend something I don't want to. You can't argue with it. It works for me.  I don't even mind when the other kids get it & have to stay home from school. It's fun.

And sometimes it's just fun to wake up with your eye glued shut every once in awhile.

I think I need a vacation.