Miami, Florida...A Holiday getaway

After a wonderful Christmas celebration with the family, Clint and I packed our bags and headed off to sunny Florida the morning of the 26th of December. They say that Christmas is for kids, (and I still consider myself to be one of those too ;) but the week after was definitely just for the 2 of us! In the company of 2 amazing friends, we did our best to relax, eat yummy foods, see beautiful places, and eat some more yummy foods ;)...
This was the view out our hotel window...I love how the blue sky is mirrored in the blue ocean...









On the night we arrived, our friends Rob and Leticia picked us up from the airport, chauffeured us around, and took us to an outdoor market where we ended up having dinner and taking pictures in front of this HUGE tree that grew right in the center of the place!

My newly adopted sister Leticia and I in front of the Christmas tree at our hotel. This was the first time I had actually gotten to meet her and we hit it off so well that in my eyes she just kind of surpassed friend mode and went straight to "family" mode :)

It is also very helpful that Clint and Rob might as well be brothers!... (aside from the height factor that is ;)






Here we are the whole gang at the Seaquarium. Clint was a little sick that morning, but still put on a smile and enjoyed the shows. Dolphins, manatees, sea lions, turtles, killer whales and more. It was a fun twist to see shows like that at Christmas time! I especially liked the Santa hat they put on the killer whale...

After the shows, we paused for a quick picture of the beautiful sunset on the beach. Heavenly Father has created such beautiful things for us to enjoy...

The next day we visited an old castle called Vizcaya. It was AMAZING!!! Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take photographs inside so you will just have to trust me on this one...but we did get a few pictures outside...

And you can't go to Florida without seeing the alligators! Here is a nice close up of the one Clint ate for lunch...(Just kidding;) But he DID try Catfish, alligator and frog legs for lunch one day! Just the sight of it was enough to make me not even want to finish my chicken either!!!

Clint sharing his soda...

This is the view of the Everglades where we rode on an air boat to see the gators...

And being a typical tourist, I had to try and get a picture with the gator that I almost didn't see! Can you see it hiding in the water?

We got done early enough at the Everglades that we still had time to go for a walk along the beach. It was a little chilly~definitely not warm enough to go for a swim, but still just right for finding sea shells!

We also went for a drive down to the Florida Keys which was pretty amazing in itself! We stopped for a picture on the "7 Mile Bridge." When you are out there surrounded by all that water, you really catch a glimpse of just how small and insignificant we really are in this big world!

Clint and Rob...Just too cute;)

I couldn't really tell if this pelican was loving all the attention he was getting, or if he was just trying to decide which one of us would taste the best...Hmmm...

Here we are sitting by the pier that was near the southernmost point in all the U.S. Pretty cool, huh?

One of the funnest things we got to do while we were there was to ride around the island on these fun scooters! I had a little bit of jitters at first worried that some crazy person might not watch out for me~but after just a few minutes, it was just thrilling, fun, and exciting all at the same time. It was particularly fun to watch Rob and Clint ride together! They looked like just a couple of big boys racing, laughing, and having a good old time while Leticia and I rode in a little "golf cart" type car together. It was a blast!!!

We made time for sight seeing, shopping, and ice~cream all before it was time to head home for the night. I just love this picture too~me and my sweetie pie :)

Thanks so much for some memorable times Rob and Leticia! One of my most favorite things of all time is just the times to be had with the love of my life! Throw in some wonderful friends and you have the recipe for FUN!!! I can't wait to do it again!!!

Memories of Christmas 2011...

Gathered around all of our family, We smile and give thanks so joyfully. The sweet Christmas spirit is filling the air, All because of the birth of the baby so fare...

Our family truly loves Christmas! Here are a few highlights of our celebration...
Christmas just wouldn't be complete without a visit from "The Real Santa!" This particular night was at our Trickett family Christmas party where we got to spend the night up at Heber Valley Camp. It's always fun to be with Clint's family, it's just funny how Grandpa Trickett always comes up missing when Santa arrives!? ;) This year he brought with him Christmas jammies for all the kids!

Going sledding is one of my favorite Christmas activities ~ and lucky for us, there was just enough snow up at Heber Valley that we were able to take out the sleds in the morning and have some great bouts of squealing and laughter all the way down the hill! Kambriella loved it and seems to have a love for speed just like her mother;)

Gavin and his cousin Drake were having a great time riding down the hill together! Their cute little squeals of laughter got louder and louder and made me smile bigger and bigger as they steered their sled right into the bushes!

Carew had the luxury of helping to pull Kambriella up the hill...sometimes... that was about all the little princess would allow him to do! She is such a mama's girl that I was the one that was with her most of the time. ~But, "Her Highness" did allow her brother to come on in for a few pictures together...(Boy is she spoiled!)

~And although I don't have any nice pictures to do it justice, a lot of our time was spent with Kierra and the Nutcracker! Here she is as the Snow Queen which was her favorite part! She got to dance with a "hot, buff boy" in a partner solo where she was lifted and twisted and spun all around! It was amazing and I was so proud of her! She is such a graceful and talented dancer! (She also got to have 3 other parts ~ a rose, a merliton, and a member of the snow corps on the nights she wasn't the Snow Queen.)

~And lucky for us, Santa delivered our most magical, favorite gift of all...The Gift of Time! On this particular night, we were instructed to make sugar cookies and then to take them to someone we love... The kids had such a fun time making them and decorating them...but out of my best motherly intuition, I decided that the recipient of these cookies needed to be "the best dad in the whole galaxy" due to the amount of "finger licking" that went on during all of the preparations...;) (He was grateful for the cookies and felt really loved!)

We were also instructed by Santa to go to the Olympic Oval for a fun night of ice~skating! Here is the gang just out front of the Oval for a quick picture to remember :) Everyone had a FABULOUS time!!! Everyone that is ...

~Except for Kambriella!!! She HATED it!!! But we all still enjoyed ourselves and tried hard NOT to laugh at her because it would only make her more mad! But we just couldn't resist the smiles and the giggles because, well~let's face it... she still looked just TOO cute!

~And of course all of the excitement and anticipation led right up to Christmas Day! We loved the fact that it fell on Sunday this year! Part of my heart felt like we could in some small way give a little something to the Savior for Christmas by attending church on that special day and devoting a little extra time to Him! Although the only gift giving that was given was another great gift right back to us~ the sacrament, the spirit, the beautiful songs of praise, and testimonies too... Just when I think I can give a little, it just ends up coming right back! I know, I know...I will never be able to get ahead!;)

So here is our family right after church and right before we started opening the gifts!

~And my absolute favorite thing of all this year...

My parents came to stay with us and celebrate Christmas together!!! It was so much fun to have that sense of excitement that children bring to Christmas and to have them there to share it with! (And it's a whole lot of fun to pick out all of the presents for them for a change!) Part of our Gift of Time from Santa was to share our special memories with my parents too and to help them feel some happiness and joy during this especially hard time after my brother's passing. Some of the gifts that Santa gave from the grandchildren to their grandparents were gift cards to go out and spend time doing fun things together during the week after Christmas too. We loved having them every minute that we could and loved spending some of our funnest time with some of the ones we love the most!!! We love you Grandma and Grandpa!

A Gift for baby Jesus

It's Christmas Eve and I was just getting ready to hop into bed, when I found myself drawn to pause and take in the peace and quiet of the moment. I was enjoying looking at all of the Christmas cards from friends, I peeked in on sleeping children, and thought of the importance of Christ in my life. I can honestly say that everyday that I live, every breath that I breathe, and every blessing that I am given comes from Him. Now as I think of what I am given, I ponder what I can give in return...
There is really nothing sufficient, but I do want to give my heart. I had a moment where my heart was touched once again by this little angel baby of mine. At our ward Christmas party, she headed to the corner of the gym where she spyed a little baby Jesus and was immediately in love. But what she did next brought a smile to my face and warmth to my heart... She went to the little table where she had made her own little wooden baby Jesus wrapped in a little square of fabric, and brought it over to the baby Jesus. First, she showed him what she had made, then, she very carefully lifted his arm and tucked the little wooden baby into his hand! She was giving what she had to baby Jesus! It was so sweet and an example to me to look for the Savior in my life and then to share the things that are important to me with Him. I can give my heart and I can give my all, just like little Kambriella ;)

Kambriella's "Friends"

This is a picture of one of my very favorite Christmas decorations! (It's actually 2 little play nativity sets...one plastic and one porcelain...that's why you can see there are 2 baby Jesus!)
I love this little piece because 1) Yes, it is VERY cute! and 2) I have loved over the years watching each of my little ones play with it and spend time with the real reason we have Christmas!
Every year when we would get out the decorations and start pulling everything out, each of the kids would ask where "their" baby Jesus was? Well, this year has been another delight as Kambriella is now taking a turn playing with baby Jesus! But the sweetest part of all, is now that she has spent time with it everyday, she packs them all around the house and lines them all up in a row and then very carefully squishes them ALL into the stable to see baby Jesus! Then, if she moves on to another toy for a while, she will come back to me and say, "Mom, where's my 2 baby Jesus and my friends?" Then I will remind her of where she played with them last and she will run off giggling to find them and say, "Oh, I forgot!" I love how she calls them her friends!!! It's too cute!!!

Her little face just says it all! She smiles so big while she plays with her "friends!" I think she seems to be having just as much or more fun than when one of her real friends comes over to play! These simple little joys of Christmas are what really help me to feel the spirit of Christmas, and I am so happy that I get to spend every day having a little one on one time with Kambriella and her "friends!" I'm such a lucky mom...;)and oh how I love Christmas!!!

Kambriella gave me a good giggle!

Today Kambriella and I had a little conversation that just made me giggle! It was one of those moments that made my heart happy, my mouth smile, and my heartstrings tug ~ so I just HAD to write it down!!!
~Here's how it went...

Kambriella was rummaging through my church bag looking for a mint.
I said,
"Kambriella, don't get in there please, there are no mints left because you and Gavin ate them all, remember?"
Then Kambriella said,
"I don't need a mint mom, I need a gum..."
Then I said,
"I don't have any gum either Kambriella..."
Then she said,
"You need to buy some more gum, mom..."
Then I said,
"But I don't have any money for gum Kambriella..."
Then she said,
"Then you need to buy some more MONEY mom!"

Do you see what I mean? It made my day~ that cute little stinker!

Thankful AND Grateful...

Thanksgiving Day this year was yet another day where my heart was filled with so many emotions. As I looked around and literally tried to count my blessings, I found it once again impossible to do because the number is infinite...the list goes on and on...
So now I find myself being reminded that my gratitude needs to continue to come forth everyday and I need to be grateful for every moment that I am given.






It took some time this year, but I made personalized cards for everyone that would be there, expressing what it was that I loved about them and why I was grateful for them. Although it took a bit longer, the outcome was worth every minute. With circumstances in my family being what they were with my brothers recent passing, the words were tender and meant so much. Especially because just earlier that week, my other brother Craig had an accident and scared us all. Thank goodness he is OK, and though he was in a lot of pain, he came straight from the hospital to my house and was able to join us for Thanksgiving dinner.

Early Thanksgiving morning when I had gotten back from my morning run, Craig was still at the hospital and had called being very emotional. The pain was too much and he was still uncertain if he would be able to get out of the hospital for Thanksgiving. I hung up the phone and walked straight to my car and made it to the hospital in about 12 minutes I think. Looking lovely in my running attire ~ he thanked me for coming so quickly~ I smiled and winked and said, "I ran all the way here!";) Those quiet moments at the hospital with him that morning were some of my favorites of Thanksgiving Day. Then with his strong will and determination, he made it to my house with the OK from the Dr. where we made him a comfy bed on the couch, and the kids fussed over keeping him comfortable and happy ~ playing checkers, filling up his cup with coke, and taking turns hugging him and making him laugh. Those were some of the best moments ~along with watching the kids laugh at our hideous hair do's from our home videos of when I was little! The day was simple, the food was delicious, but the spirit of love and of family was there in abundance as we were all thankful AND grateful to just be together.

A lump in my throat ;)

Just the thought of the holidays and especially Christmas can make me get all choked up inside! But one of the sweetest things to me is when my sweet husband does just the same thing, and then makes a joke about how he feels like he's "going to choke" or there's something stuck in his throat! Last week on the day after Thanksgiving, Clint and I snuck away for a couple of hours and went to a Christmas concert by the One Voice Children's Choir. We sat cuddled up next to each other and when it was over, we walked out together laughing and smiling about how much we felt like we were going to choke! Then last night as we were setting up our Christmas tree and listening to a very beautiful piano concert by Paul Cardall, Clint stopped what he was doing and took me by the hand and started dancing with me around the room and pointed to his neck because there was once again a big lump stuck in his throat! It was too cute!
Then , somehow the lump came back at the end of the night as we sat down together to read a Christmas story together with the kids. We have so many stories that we decided to read one again over breakfast this morning, and sure enough as we did, Clint advised me that it wasn't very wise to do that to him while he is eating because then FOR SURE he felt like he was going to choke!!! Oh my cute boy, I have such deep gratitude for you and all of the many times that you make me smile, shed a tear of joy, or even get caught choking from the big lump in my throat!!! :)