December bits and finally an update!

For 3 years now our ward has hosted a big nativity exhibit where people from the community can come into our church building and view hundreds of nativities. It is really is beautiful. This year I had the opportunity  to oversee the the decorating of the whole thing. It was a crazy week! I was at the church almost every day all day for the week from start to finish!

I was surprised at the spiritual experience I had with it. I really felt the spirit in the building. It was wonderful to be able to feel the peace and calm that comes with just sitting in the church. During the set up I found out my Grandpa Biesinger had passed away. I was sad. It was not unexpected. He was old and had lived a good life,  but I was surprised at how much of my mourning was over the fact that it was one more piece of the Biesinger family, for me, gone. Grandpa was straight forward and did things his way, but he also had a deep love for his family and those around him. 

While setting up the Nativity there were quiet moments where no one, but me, was in the building. I could feel Heavenly Fathers love for me there. It was such a wonderful place to be and to reflect on such a wonderful plan that we are apart of. I will miss him, but as I attended the funeral I could not help but feel my dad and grandpa standing there watching over their family. I wish I could have hung onto that feeling just a little longer.

Just a couple pictures of the Nativity...my pictures do it no justice!

Now here it is Christmas eve. The kids have been bouncing off the walls, I feel like a grinch at times because the stores are overly packed and I miss my husband (who will be home tonight!). However, my mom is here. I love hearing my children play together and try to hug them when I get the chance. I reflect on the meaning of the holiday and remember how blessed I truly am. I have wonderful friends that are just like family and take care of me. I have family that calls, sends text or whatever just to say hi. I have wonderful healthy children and a wonderful, smart, kind, loving, handsome husband that I get to be with forever because so many years ago a baby was born. 

As we go through our trials and busy time over the past few months my testimony has grown. I know that Heavenly Father loves me and is mindful of me. I know that Jesus was born so that he could die for us. My heart is full for all those reasons. 

I wish you all a Merry Christmas!

October and November

I didn't realize until now how many parties we had during the past 3 months! I think we've had one once a month. It's been fun though! Thank goodness for phones and Instagram...without it I would have NO pictures...I don't have many to begin with...

TC was smarty-pants for Halloween...

Tanner was a Ninja....and a darn cute one!

Titus was me-myself-and I. He said it as a joke but we ended up running with it. He thought it was pretty cool.

Ahrgg...Tobyn was a pirate...complete with the tatoo :-)

Todd was a head-less hoseman...sort of...I was a fairy. Too bad you can't tell from the picture :-)

And last but not least...Tate was a Ninja with Tanner.

We had a big Halloween party with a bunch of friends. I think we played "Never have I ever" It was fun to see a bunch of adults trying to out-race each other for chairs. We played Charades again and ate more food. I didn't get one picture....It was fun to see all of the fun costumes though! We really have fun with all our friends in this ward and area!

The boys actually spent Halloween night in UT with Grandma C. They told me they had a lot of fun! This was the first time in 30 years Todd had not been trick-or-treating. We didn't know what to do with our selves! Luckily we have some (more) awesome friends that went out to dinner with us and hung out. It turned out to be a really nice night. The quietest Halloween we've ever had.

Not much happened in November other than I was SUPER busy with hair! I had a client almost everyday. I will NOT complain about it though! I am so happy that so many people trust me with their hair needs. We did have some exciting new additions to the family though! Todd's Sis-in-law and sister were due the same day in November. With it being Nicholes 4th and Heathers 1st we thought for sure the babies would come a month apart...but nope! They came with-in 24 hours of each other. When we went to pick up the boys from UT we were able to see both babies! I was so happy to see each of them just hours old.

Todd with handsome little James Tyler Christensen

And Todd with cute little Zoey Nichole Christensen.

I was a little worried about Thanksgiving...we didn't go home and so we invited anyone who was family-less to come hang out at our house. My cousin David and his wife Celest came with their two adorable boys from Wichita Falls. It was fun to have some family come. A few other ward friends made it over. It was loud, crowded and our stomachs were full of awesome food! I would not have traded it for anything. We loved having every one over. We played games until we were exhausted! I am so thankful to have SO many great friends and family!

September happenings

September was quite the month! I did a quick Tuesday tid-bit....but here was a little taste of what was going on. We had soccer games and practice all month, but it was also TC's b-day and Tobyn's b-day, and we had a super fun baby shower for Kristi and Clayton to welcome their cute little baby boy! I didn't get many pictures of any of it...but I did get a few....

TC got drums for his birthday...the rest of the family got ear plugs. :) What a way to welcome those teenage years! He really has been a lot of fun. Its so great to see him grow and mature. He is become a little more responsible and a good example for those around him. He spends a lot of the day hanging out with friends...after school work of course!

Tobyns birthday was toward the end of the month. We really didn't do much on the day of. Todd was out of town and so he opened a couple of presents, had some cupcakes, and went to soccer practice (boy, have I mentioned soccer much?) He got a new scooter, the only item on his wish list btw, and we had pumpkin cupcakes. Kaylee and Lauren were there to help us celebrate!

Somewhere in the middle of soccer and birthdays we hosted a baby shower for the Fultons. It. was. awesome! I went out on a limb and decided to do a couple shower. A lot of the men protested, but most came anyway...We had a bottle chugging contest, baby food (pudding) feeding/eating contest, a candy bar diaper game and a good game of Charades. Of course there was good food also. I think overall people had a lot of fun and even made it home in time for the BYU football game.

The theme was battle of the sexes. So Clayton was 'king' of the men and Kristi was 'queen' of the women...

The laddies checking out the diapers! They might have one this round...I can't remember...I think it was a draw by the end of the night.

Todd and Sharee going head to head with baby food :)

September was a good month. 

Soccer!

Three of the boys, Titus, Tate, and Tobyn started soccer in Aug. They all LOVED it! We had a lot of "fun" spending Saturdays at the soccer fields and every Tuesday and Thursday rotating soccer practices. I nearly went crazy from the schedule, but would not have traded it for anything!

Tid-bit Tuesday

I was going to try and hold out to type this until Tues when it truly is tid-bit Tuesday, but I couldn't wait any longer.

I really wanted to post TC bday pictures and 1st day of soccer game pictures BUT my something funky happened to my laptop so I have to re-install photo shop. Hopefully that happens within the week.

I have a few day break from school. SO NICE! Lots has been going on around here so the few day break is super nice one. I actually didn't do much of anything today. It felt good, and I didn't feel guilty about it.

We're getting into the swing of things around here. Homeschooling is coming along. TC has told me little things here and there that make me realize our decision was a good choice. I'm glad we're doing it.

Life is still pretty stressful at times, but we're hanging in there.

First day of schools!

Today is/was the first day of school! I can't believe how much they've all grown. I know I always say that, but I mean it! They grow like crazy! All of Tobyn's pants that I set aside for him (2 months ago) hardly fit now, and Tanner has grown an inch or so this summer also.

It was Tanner's first day of preschool. He is doing Pre-k at the elementary school. I have dreamed of this day! I was going to do a happy dance, love having 3 hours a day to myself a few times a week, get long over-due projects done, and enjoy the next stage of life. oh-how lovely! Then....reality kicked in.

 It is no secret how flip-floppy we've been as far as home schooling the boys. We've thought about it so much and gone back and forth so many times. Needless to say we've been very indecisive with the whole thing. I've always considered it an all or nothing thing, all of the boys home or none. Then I was speaking to a good friend and she said something that totally made me think. "Why all of them? Why not just the one or two I'm really concerned about?" The younger three I feel good about where they're going and what they're doing but the other two were another matter. That's when I made up my mind. TC and Titus are now home schooled.

I'm, happy, nervous, excited, overwhelmed, empowered, guilty, full of new idea's and can't wait for new beginnings all wrapped into one big mess of my brain. Right now we are in a position where I am SO sick of all the crap being thrown at my kids. They are CONSTANTLY defending what they believe in. Middle school is SO hard. I hated it, TC hated the first year, everyone I talk to says how miserable it is. I know I can't rescue my children from everything, I know they need to work out their problems and I know I can't solve everything. I'm not trying to shelter them, I'm trying to bring them home. Trying to get the values instilled in them now so the path they go down is a good one once they get to high school. I NEED that for them.

AND to top it all off...I cried like a little baby dropping my baby off for school today. *sigh* so much for the first day of school being the joyous thing I thought it would be. Oh-man. someone just let me know I'm normal...or not :-) I just might be going crazy. lol!

Tid-Bit Tuesday

Well it's my birthday...I'm 30. It's a little weird. Not that I feel old, I don't think 30's old. Just a few thoughts going through my head today. I'm no longer in my 20's, I'm 30 and have a (almost) 13 year old, my youngest is 4, I'm in college, and I my husband is in a career he loves. Crazy! I wonder what the next decade will bring...do I dare wonder?

Now that we've flip-flopped back to having the kids go to public school I am pretty dang excited about it! Not that I didn't really want my kids home, I still think in a year or so we'll reevaluate the situation and see what to do. But I am REALLY looking forward to the 2 or 3 days a week that I have 3 hours to myself. Quiet time. No kids at home. Me time. I should be sad my baby is growing up and I am...however, bring on the new stage off life! I'll take it for now.

Things I want to do with my couple of day and hours of freedom...

-pick some awesome paint colors to redo some furniture
-go do some garage sailing and pick up so good deals
-read?
-CLEAN! I am spending a full day cleaning my house from ceiling to floor. I'm done with the messy house! Love the kids...hate the constant mess of summer.

Things I will miss with school...
-lazy mornings
-late nights playing
- no homework
- no alarms
- no schedule
-no homework
-no alarms


Life is good. Things are going at a break-neck pace. We've got 3 in soccer, I'm still involved in scouts, still in the Primary presidency, in school, babysitting 3 x's a week, school activities for the kids + you know all the mom stuff to do. I sure hope I can keep up!

I'm along for the ride.....

1 Week....

It has been one week since we took away the electronics. Some days they compensate by watching a little too much TV, but mostly they have been really good. The TV days have really only been 1 or two when it has just been too hot to play out side and they have down time in the afternoon.  I would say the fights have dropped by more than half. We have found other fun things to do. They play on the tramp, board games, build a ton of forts in the front room, soccer practice, soccer games (2 on 2) with each other and playing more with friends.

I'm actually loving this idea. I don't know what we will do when the month is over....maybe nothing? Maybe just let the electronics stay away except for special occasions? I don't know. But I do know things are going SO much better than expected. I have been happier and, I would like to think, a nicer mom. We have more time and energy to be doing things we should be doing.

So far I'd say this has been a huge success. YAY!

Utah Vacation pics!

I finally got all of the UT pictures out of my computer. Oh-man there are a lot! I guess there could have been a lot more considering we were there for 2 weeks, but still makes for a ton of pictures to post on here. I tried to get them in order of events....but we'll see :-)

The day after we got there we were able to meet up with some awesome game-night friends! Oh- how I've missed these guys! It was so fun to see them all! We met at a park and let the kids play and play while we talked. Unfortunately Todd and Jed were the only men to be able to make it. Also, just as unfortunately I did not get any picts of Jenni.....

First attempt at getting all 16? kids in the picture...

10th attempt...and I am pretty sure we are missing a few cute kidos. It's hard to believe when we started we had 6 kids total now we have 16 and 3/4 (Nichole is due in Nov.) CRAZY!

The 4 (Jenni rushed out too fast... :-) No really I was sad we didn't get her in the picture!) of us game-night girls. 6 years and counting!

The boys had a blast playing some fun games at Grandma B's. They had to suck M&M's out of a bowl with a straw and move an Oreo from their foreheads to their mouth with no hands. Good times!

Another fun day was spent at the Biesinger family reunion. I didn't get many pictures, but I did manage to catch the boys on the pony ride. It is always fun to visit with this side of the family. 

One of the mornings, before it got too hot, we took Grandpa C's 4-wheelers out for a ride. The boys had a BLAST! And Todd is ready to go buy his own. lol. All the kids including Tanner took turns driving. They loved the freedom!

3 big kids...Kady, TC and Titus. 

Tanner taking a turn cruisin'

Man oh Man our days were packed. A super fun day out on the lake with Brandon and Debi! The kids had so much fun and yet another toy on Todd's list of toys to buy. Tanner and I taking a turn on the tube. 

What a handsome group of boys!! Whoot-woo! All five of our boys plus the ultra cute Logan. 

This was actually the second time for the boys out on the water and Todd had a chance to perfect his barrel-roll on the tube. It was pretty sweet! Just call him Super-Awesome-Dad!

A few other fun random pictures from the events of the weeks. These three cute kids were all born with-in 3 months of each other. Skyler (middle) born in April, Sage (right) born in May, and Tate (left) born in June. 

The boys loved playing with, and holding, cousins. Tanner love Scarlet. He is so fascinated with babies. I love it. He is so sweet!

Traditional we hold the camera and take a picture of ourselves of Todd and I.

The boys climbed a tree and needed their picture taken. Such buddies! (Left to right) Tate, Masen, Jaxen, and Tanner. 

Kady Jo and I. I can't believe how fast she and CJ are growing up! She's taller than me...sniff,sniff.

The last night we were there we got to celebrate cute Amber's bday! We went up into the canyon (I sure do miss those mountains) and played games and ate dessert. We played fun lawn games. We miss being so close to family at times like this. 

I can't believe these two are 7 this year!

Few! A ton of pictures and we did SO much more! Including swimming, family pictures, splash pad with friends, sleeping in, staying up late, decorating rooms, sisters- night out...the list keeps going. It was SO worth the drive there and back! We are so glad we went. Next summer I'm hoping to make it a little longer. 

But for now it's back to the grind. Soccer has started for 3 of the kids, I'm back into classes, school for the boys starts the 27th. Guess summer is officially winding down. Just time to enjoy the last bit of freedom before the wonderful routine sets back in. 

Day 1.

So far the day is not so bad. The kids cried for 10 mins this morning. There might have been some gnashing of teeth, but not too out of control. 2 of them just lied down on the couch and cried tears of morning.

It is now 1:00 pm and things for the most part are good. I'm thankful for tender mercies. The kids played soccer this morning after breakfast and then came in to cool off and watched about 45 mins of TV while I did hair. Just as the fighting started a good friend called to see if we wanted to go swimming! I jumped all over that!

So far I have only broken up 3 fights and that's saying something...

The experiment...the begining

 Everyone talks about being addicted to media; video games, computer games, Facebook, Youtube, twitter, etc. Our family probably,well... definitely, falls into that category. We are CONSTANTLY on the computer, game consoles and phones. I am embarrassed to say how many hours a day the kids and I are on these things. It really is sad. But in a way I feel justified. It's HOT! There isn't a lot to do around here and there aren't many friends to hang out with.

Over the past several weeks things have been escalating...big time! My kids hang out with friends but you guessed it, it's playing video games or watching video's on the computer. They fight constantly! I knew I  hit my limit when I lost my voice yelling at the kids to stop yelling....I know I know....that's what I am talking (typing) about. It is beyond pathetic.

The solution? Get rid of it all! I can't completely be rid of the computer because it is a major need. My schooling is all online. BUT I have hidden all of games and two of the game consoles. The desk top is no longer in working condition. I won't say how in case one of my children read this, and my computer time is completely limited to updating this blog (and a quick post on FB, the app is going to be removed from my phone so I can only update FB when I update the blog on this computer). I kept the Playstation plugged in so that we can watch an occasional movie, but that will be limited to 2 movies per day or = to two hours of movie time per day.

Honestly...I feel guilty! I just barley unplugged everything and I already feel like a mean mother. My goal is to be fairly electronic free for 1 month starting tonight...or tomorrow morning when they wake up and realize it's gone. I am sure there will be detoxing and withdrawals, sad but true.

It's not worth is though! I am sick and tired of the fighting going on in this home and 80% of it due to one electronic or another. So here is goes. I suppose the experiment in it all is to see if we can stay this way for one month and see if it truly makes a difference in the fighting and contention. Check in for my updates and reports :-) Lets see if this mom of 5 Nintendo addicted boys can survive this!

What the... It's August already?!

Holy moly...where did July go?!! I can't believe I went a whole month with no posts!

July 8th we left for UT. It's such a LONG drive. We all like it much better when we fly...but we needed the car and we always come back with so much stuff it's a necessary evil, it must be done. This time we went up through OK and KS and over through CO. It is a much prettier drive then up through NM. Todd and I make a pretty good tag team and we just plow through. Over-all the drive was livable and fairly pleasant.

We did SO much while visiting. We played, played and played some more. I took lots of pictures, and speaking of which, we had family pictures done. Among other things we BBQ'd, went swimming, 4-wheeling, boating, played up in the canyon, played at the park with friends, redecorated my MIL front room, went to a baby blessing and a baby funeral, we stayed up late, and slept in. I came home really feeling refreshed! It was just what I needed! I loved that the kids could play with who they wanted and I didn't have to worry.

As I said I took lots of pictures. The internet on my computer isn't working so I edited all of the pictures on my computer, but left the CD in the computer Todd took to work. So the pictures will have to come later. :( I'll get them up though! I NEED to!

It was super nice to visit with the family! I really needed the time with them. I miss hanging out with them. I'm back into the swing of the busy life now. Todd's back to work, the boys are getting ready for school (yes we're flip-floppers. We decided to go a head and send them to school. I just don't feel like I have everything ready to home school them yet) I've got a schedule full of hair clients, and last but not least....I'm coaching Tobyn's team for soccer.

I've NO idea what I am doing :-) But I'll learn fast enough...Soccer for Dummies anyone? I think it will be fun. This fall is sure to be full of absolute craziness!! It will all work out and as long as I stick to my calender we'll survive. LOL hahahahaha hmmmm....yeah, well, we'll make it work right?!

Pictures to come soon. I'm off for now to enjoy a little piece and quiet while I can!

Tid-bit tu....I mean Friday..

I have good intentions of posting on here on a regular basis...meaning at least once a week or so. Lately I have barley posted a couple of times a month. I think Instagram and Facebook are taking over. I snap the pic post it on FB and then forget. But seeing as I print this off once a year as a journal and scrapbook I better do something to keep it updated. 

Life around here has been CRAZY! I have pretty much been non-stop since school let out. One day my A/C was broken, my car was broken, Tanner was sick, my phone wasn't working, Todd was gone and I had two assignments due. 

I ended up shipping two of the kids to UT early, 1 boy is at scout camp, my classes are DONE as of this morning...at least for July...and the A/C, car and phone are now working. Nice! Things just might slow down a little. 

I'm glad it's been a busy of things worth doing. I really am loving school, I stay busy with hair clients, and this week, with most of the kids gone, I've been getting the house totally clean and organized! I love that feeling! We have pretty much decided to try homeschooling the kids this year. We'll see how it goes and worst case I'll test them and put them back into public school.

Diesel has devil eyes in this picture and at first I laughed and though oh-well, then the dumb, wet, dog jumped all over my FRESH CLEAN bed to dry off! I was SO mad! But it still cracks me up that he will hop in the tub with the kids. I have to shut the door to the bathroom so they actually get a clean bath tub :-)

Our A/C stopped working one night. It was over 100* outside and heating up quickly in our house so we escaped to Stake 'n Shake for dinner and a shake. They are cheap and yummy!

With the brothers gone I've been having some fun with the little ones. A stop for ice cream is a must :-) Believe it or not, I used to hate ice cream. I would rarely eat it and would usually choose something else if I had a choice. Since we have moved to TX where it's so hot, I can't get enough!

Well now I'm all caught up....for now. We're headed to UT in about a week for about 10 days. I'm sure there will be LOTS of updates when we come home!

Tate's 9!

Tate turned 9 on the 6th! Where has the year gone?! We originally started with a friend party every-other-year, but it so hard here where we have no family. So this year we decided to go a head and let him invite a few friends over. 

Todd was gone on Wednesday, which was the day his birthday was on, but home for the weekend so we delayed the party a couple of days. 

A good picture of all the boys (and a couple of girls) that game for the fun!

It was a water party but along with jumping on the tramp, playing in the pool, water gun fight, and a balloon fight, we played Red Rover and Tag. I think everyone had a lot of fun. 

On his birthday night we had Volcano Cake. A family favorite!

Opening a few of his presents the day of. He got a baseball and bat from Grandma C, magic set from Grandma B, a watch and remote control airplane from Dad and I. He also got a whole bunch of other fun presents from friends. 

It sure is fun to have the awesome kid in our family! We love his smiling face! Happy Birthday Tate!

Home school?

Todd and I are debating on whether or not to home school the boys. It's a HUGE decision and one we will not take lightly!

I have SO many thoughts about it, I had to write it all out to hopefully clear my brain. We value education in our family. Todd went to college, I'm in college, we want the boys to go...will home schooling be enough? Can I and will I have the motivation to keep my kids going? Can we work well enough together that I don't want to strangle them?

I want them to get a good education, and that doesn't mean that public school isn't good enough...but is it? I am a product of public school and I turned out OK right?! (don't be to harsh if you disagree) I think it is an Ok system, but I think there are many things that could be better also.

Todd's schedule is pretty crazy. 4 days on 3 days off. He wishes he could see the boys more and work with them more...is home school part of a solution for that?

I have all of these grand ideas and hope they can carry us far, but I worry about it. It's a matter of fasting and prayer. I am using this summer to maybe do a little bit of a test run and see if I can get us on some type of good schedule to have fun while learning and to see if the boys are on board with it.

I wish there was a fool-proof way to raise kids, but hey, if we there was where would all the fun be? (it's fun right!....right?) I really just want to make the best decision for our family. I know there isn't one-way-works-all for kids and I want to just figure out which way will work best for mine.

*sigh* hopefully I can figure this out.

Grateful

I was going to post this as a Facebook status, but then realized a) its too long and I don't like forever long FB statuses. b) I felt like it was journal worthy.

While I was doing hair today, a little old lady knocked on my door and asked if I cut hair. I told her I did and we scheduled a time for her to come back that night.

She is a cute old lady. I think she is Hispanic, and proudly told me she is 82. I could hardly understand a word that came out of her mouth, but she talked the whole 1/2 hour it took for me to cut her hair. I enjoyed listening to her. While she was a little hard to understand I did understand a few things. She was visiting her daughter? In our neighborhood while the daughter was working and the son-in-law was away working.

She kept telling me how she had 7 children, 2 have passed away, and she worked hard to raise them. She kept saying "I want them to go to college. I want them to get a good education" She kept telling me how proud she was that 3 of her grand kids are going college.

Through out all of the conversation, what stood out most, is how lovingly she took care of her kids. She worked every night she said so that they could go to school and what a privilege it is that they got to go to school. She would say "Now kids have to go, back then they didn't have to. I work so they can go" She told me she would work at night and be home in time to get the kids bathed and ready for school. What a woman.

I know many moms work outside of the home and I admire them for that. I think what stood out about this little lady and her stories was the fact that she would not trade any of it. She is so happy her kids have the things they do. It was a dose of humble pie.

I am so blessed to have the things I do. We don't want for much. Sure, I wish I had more money, better car, bigger house, but I have money, I have a car, I have a house. What a good feeling. I pray to appreciate the things I have and it never fails that when I pray, I receive my answer. This lady made me appreciate what I have and that even though Todd and I work hard for the things we have, I am SO blessed to be able to stay home with my children and have the opportunity to go back to school. Those are things I have always tried to not take advantage of, but it's nice to have the reminder every now and then also.

13 years?!

Todd and I had the chance to escape to Tampa Bay Florida for a couple of days. It was SO nice! Our hotel was right on a beach. We had a little (tiny: no sitting room) balcony, a little kitchenette, 3 swimming pools, a bar and restaurant (we only ordered non-alcoholic drink with our free vouchers and breakfast :) ) We only had one full day there. All we did was relax and do a little shopping. HEAVEN!!

Our view from the hotel:

There are a host of  sports cars that I wouldn't mind driving, but I settled with the Mustang Convertible that we were able to rent while there. On our way to the shopping center (with the top down of course)

Nice view :-)

It was a very fast trip, but it was fun. I wasn't quite ready to come home. I have learned over the years that love does have many shapes and sizes and is a constant change. I have been married to this wonderful man for 13 years. Our love has evolved and been shaped by our experiences. Though the road has been tough at times I wouldn't trade anything we have together or the way the experiences have brought us closer together.

I love you babe! I am so happy to have you as my eternal companion. You mean the world to me. You are the love of my life and that will never change. Thank you for all you do. Thank you for bringing out the best in me. Thank you for your never ending patients. Thank you for being such a wonderful husband and father. Thank you for being you!