California State Board Exam

Shane took the California State Veterinary Board Exam today and.......PASSED!!! Now we are just waiting for his National Board Exam results (hopefully in February sometime). I am so proud of him, he has worked so hard! Only 5 more months of school - YIPPEE!!!

Tia's 1st Santa

I had to post these! I just got them from the Primary President and I didn't know if I should laugh or cry...I wanted to cry--poor girl! Jayden was sick, so Dad & Tia had to go to the ward party without us! I was so sad to miss it, but SO glad that the ward photographer caught Tia's 1st experience with Santa for me.

Uncle James Wanna-be

Jayden's really been into skateboards lately. Thanks Preston for letting Jayden ride yours. We might need some skate lessons from Uncle James over Christmas Break. You can check out James' Hurley videos here. You rock Uncle James!

Yeah for Dad!

Shane took the National Veterinary Boards last Thursday. We are so proud of you Dad!!!

My HOT Men!

The things they do to entertain themselves!!!

Happy Birthday JAYDEN!

Today is Jayden's 3rd birthday! We just LOVE this kid! Yes, he is a WILD and CRAZY 3 year old....but we wouldn't have it any other way...he adds excitement to our lives every day!

Some things we LOVE about Jayden:

1. His cheesy grin and silly faces that he ALWAYS makes.

2. His sweet, soft, cuddly side...especially when he says "mom, dad...you're my best friends"

3. The amount of love he has for Tia. Although we need to help him find different ways to show it (her face is currently covered in scratches, bruises, and carpet burns from HIS LOVE).

4. When he acts like the grown up and puts US in time out for saying "butt, stupid, & dork". Thanks Jayden for keeping us in line!

5. The excitement and energy he has towards life. He loves to be actively involved and having fun every day.

We began celebrating Jayden's birthday 2 weeks ago when we had a joint party for he and his twin cousins (who are 2 weeks older than him).

"Thanks Aunt Tera for the cool, yummy, personalized cakes...they were awesome!"

Then, last Friday we went to Disneyland with some friends to help celebrate.

For the last few weeks Jayden has been praying that DAD could go with us to Disneyland for his birthday (dad is usually at school or work when we go-luckily Dad just got done taking his Boards and had Friday off). It's always a blast when dad comes!

Jayden and his buddies.

Jayden insisted that he wear his "Buzz Lightyear" outfit to Disneyland on his birthday (the fun things you find at second hand stores)!

Waiting in line to ride the "Astro Orbitor."

Dad and Tia looking just as cute as ever!

By the end of the night 3 out of 5 kids crashed while watching "fantasmic". We just love Disneyland! Thanks Castleton's for adding to the fun!

Jayden's ACTUAL Birthday...

Jayden's been pretty sick the last few days, so we had to kept it pretty simple today. He had fun with presents, learning that he's 3 & holding 3 fingers up, eating at the Macaronni Grill, having a few friends visit, blowing out his candles and eating cupcakes.

I made Jayden a blanket with all of his "Favorite Movies" on it. He was so excited! Thanks to my crafty friend Tanya (you have to check out her blog-she has so many fun ideas on it) for inspiring me to TRY and be crafty and for her sharing all of her neat ideas. She taught me how to make this type of blanket 3 1/2 years ago.

Our BIG 3 year old!

Happy Birthday...We LOVE you Jayden!!!

Thanksgiving 2008

We LOVE the holidays!

Here's what we did in a nutshell...

Had a FABULOUS Thanksgiving at the Andrews!

Thanks everyone for your hard work!

Hung out with cousins and jumped on the tramp....A LOT!!!

Tia fell in love with these.

Aunt Tiana built us a fort.

Uncle Byron taught us how to use his iPhone.

Grandma's toys were a blast!

Went and fed some ducks.

Climbed the Dixie Red Hill. Here's Tia with Grandpa Andrews.

Don't you just love that RED Dixie sand?!!!

Here's my home town...gotta love St. George!

Then we had a joint birthday party for everyone who had birthdays in November and December (Grandma, Tiana, Aspen, Sage, and Jayden).

Here are the boys "planning" their attack on the pinata. They are all geared up and ready to go.

The boys were all really serious about this!

Uncle Byron realized that the foam swords weren't going to make a dent in the pinata...so he stepped in to help!

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for our neat scrubs...

...that have our name on them (Dr. Tia, etc.)

We also REALLY love these cool bikes!

What a busy weekend! We LOVED hanging out with family again! Cousins just have a SPECIAL bond! We miss being so far away. We stayed an extra day so that we could see the Atkins when they all got back in town. We are so lucky to have both families so close! We love you all!

Tia's 1st Birthday!!!

That's right...our little girl turned one last month!!! It's so crazy how fast time flies, but we are loving every minute of it!

A few things we LOVE about Tia:

1. She absolutely LOVES her big brother (despite the headlocks and body slams from him)!

2. She's a tough little cookie. She is finally big enough to defend herself. If Jayden takes a toy from her, she will hold on for dear life...even if that means being dragged across the room while holding onto a toy.

3. She's determined! She tries over and over all day long to walk-it doesn't bother her when she keeps falling.

4. She loves when mom or dad come home!

5. She's got the best little giggle..it makes you laugh just listening to it!

6. She loves being tickled.

Here's a little glimpse at her Birthday week...

Having fun with Grandpa

Grandma & Grandpa Atkin came out to help celebrate.

Loving the sweater that Grandma gave me.

I got a really "cool" car from my grandparents.

Happy Birthday to me!

Jayden was SO excited to help me blow out my candle.

Eating dinner at one of our favorite restaurants...Macaroni Grill.

Tia's Big Day!

We took Jayden and Tia to the Dollar Tree...yes that's right...the Dollar store...and we let them run wild. They had a blast!!! They couldn't believe how fun it was to play with the toys! We had to drag them out of there at the end!

Tia with hair..ha ha!

My birthday balloon that Jayden picked out for me.

Eating at John's Incredible Pizza (similar to Chuck E Cheese's)

Playing at John's after dinner.