Poison

Daniel tried poisoning me. Shocked? So am I. A few nights ago we were watching a movie and I was frozen solid cuz I had previously chomped down 6 cups of ice-(my iron is low)- Daniel being the thoughtful husband he is made me some hot chocolate to help me "defrost." Well I took a sip and gagged. It was awful. I have never had a problem with hot chocolate before, so I figured it must have been the milk. Daniel tried to "fix" it, and gave me some to try again. Once again I gagged. It was just disgusting. The next morning I was getting the kids breakfast and happened to notice some pills in the cupboard with the nesquick- AH HA- Daniel put the drugs in the hot chocolate! And then he denied it. The little skunk. But to be fair, I must admit he was only trying to get me to take those nasty iron pills to get my iron back up. I hate those pills, so I havent been taking them, but its about the kill me off cuz I am just wiped out, so he thought he would trick me into taking them. So I appreciate his concern but come on pal- iron in hot chocolate? That was just not nice!

FYI- Ben is measuring too small right now, so they are now considering him high risk. So I am now going to be spending 3 days at the drs office each week so they can keep a close eye on him. The Dr said if he hasnt showed enough improvement in two weeks, then they will induce him. So if you dont mind, please keep him in your prayers. We really appreciate it!

Happy Birthday

Today is Daniels birthday, so I dedicate this post to him.

"Sometimes I wonder, is this a dream or is this true?

I can't believe I'm lucky enough to spend my life with you!"

3 things you may not know about Daniel:

-Daniel says he isnt a picky eater, but he is. He hates combined food textures- he cant have anything crunchy with something fluffy. He hates onions- if something has onions it makes him sick.

-Daniel cries. Rarely, but it happens. The last time we watched Charlie, he cried.

-Daniel is an amazing chef. He makes the best BBQ chicken pizza ever.

3 things you probably know about Daniel:

-Daniel loves motivational audio Cds- like Tony Robbins, Earl Nightingale, Napolean Hill, etc.

-Daniel loves toys. For Chirstmas he got a dart gun and Isaac gave him a remote control Helicopter and both things entertained him for days!

-Daniel loves the heat of Arizona in the summer. thats why we will probably never move from this desert waste land.

3 things I admire about Daniel:

-Daniel is extremely patient. It is really hard to get him worked up or upset.

-Daniel doesnt complain. EVER.

-Daniel is compassionate. He is understanding and non-judgemental. He cares about people and tries to help when he sees a need.

3 things about Daniel that make me smile:

-Daniels dance moves. He puckers up his lips and does a little shimmy that cracks me up.

-How extremely tickelish he is. The guy goes down quicker than a gunshot if he gets tickled. If my nephews knew this, they would have him conquered anytime they wrestle.

-How he looks when he is cold. He curls up with a blankets and looks like a little kid. Its really quite adorable.

3 things about Daniel that drive me crazy but ultimately I love:

-The guy never speeds. Oh it drives me nuts. But at least we get where ever we are headed safe and without any tickets.

-He rarely argues with me. Sometimes I just want a good debate, but if he has a different opinion, he keeps it to himself and lets me carry on. Oh it makes me bonkers, but I understand he does it so that I dont end up all ticked off cuz he doesnt agree.

- He is usually right. Again it drives me crazy, but I am glad I am married to a man who is intelligent, even if I am wrong sometimes.

3 things about Daniel that I find endearing:

-I love the father he is. I love the way he wrestles with the kids when he gets home. I love the way he comforts them when they get hurt from wrestling. I love how he teaches and encourages them. I love that he gives them a different perspective than I do.

-I love than Daniel is romantic. I love that he still gets the door for me, holds my hand when we are walking, asks me out on dates, and writes me love notes.

-I love Daniels testimony. I love his insights and understandings and thoughts about the gospel.

Things about Daniel that I want to say:

Daniel is my best friend. He is the love of my life. He is a strength and support to me. He is an example. He is genuine. He is kind and compassionate. He is thoughtful. He is generous and selfless. He is adorable. He is honest. He is patient. He is quick to forgive. He is adventerous. He is determined. He is strong. He is sensitive. He is enjoyable to be around. Daniel is everything I ever hoped for in a companion. He truely makes my days brighter and I am forever grateful to spend my life with him.

Happy Birthday Daniel! I love you!

Bens ultrasound

So we had an ultrasound today and can I just say I think Bennie-boy is just so cute! It makes me excited to meet this little guy! I am just amazed with technology! And amazed with the miracle of life.

Hide n Seek

Today I lost James. I had gone into the office to check my email, and when I came back into the family room James had disappeared. I asked Ty where he was, but he had no idea. So I started searching. I couldnt find him anywhere. I started to get a little frantic until I heard his little voice. But I still couldnt find him. I listened and knew he was close but honestly had no idea where he was. Finally I found him. He was hiding in one of the kitchen cupboards. He climbed in, shut the door, and waited for me to find him. He was laughing when I opened it up and pulled him out. The little nut taught himself how to play hide n seek. Crazy kid.

getaway

I have been a bit stir crazy lately, so we decided to make a trip to San Deigo- our last trip before Ben arrives, and hence our last family trip in the camry. We booked a hotel on priceline for a steal, and got zoo tickets on craigs list for another steal, and made a great little trip on a budget. Kylie didnt have school on Friday, and Daniel was able to take off half the day, so we took off friday afternoon, stopped in Jucumba to visit the desert tower and caves, then drove to the beach, grabbed some dinner and headed to the hotel. We woke up this morning, had breakfast, and went to the zoo. We stopped in Viejas on our way back to get Daniels birthday present, then headed home.
I have some great memories of this trip, and hopefully the kids do too. The kids LOVED the caves in Jacumba- Daniel had been there as a kid, but we have never stopped before cuz I hate stopping places- i want to get to the destination ASAP- but Daniel talked me into it, and the kids loved our "adventure." There are tons of enormous rocks, and several are painted into animals and monsters. Several other rocks form caves that you can explore. The kids didnt want to leave. Tyler kept exclaiming "this is AMAZING!"
We got to the beach a little before sunset, and even though it was beautiful, it was COLD! It was still fun though. Daniel got the kite up in the air, which James loved and kept pointing at. Ty and Kylie had a blast running up to the water, then running away as fast as they could as the waves crashed onto the shore. Tyler didnt get away fast enough on one attempt though, and ended up drenched in the freezing water. Daniel had been running away as well, and when he noticed Toast wasnt by him, turned around and "saved him." after that, we packed up cuz Ty was just shivering like crazy. He was pretty happy though cuz he got a new shirt out of the ordeal-(we stopped at one of the beach shops that sells souviners, and bought him a San Diego frog shirt for 4 bucks- bargain!)
The kids were pretty excited to go to the zoo. Kylie was excited to see the zebras, and Ty kept saying, " these are just AMAZING animals!" James loved the monkeys and tried talking to them for a while. Daniel ran into a guy who had served in the Japan mission while Daniel was AP. The guy had recognized Daniel while we were in line, and they started talking and had a fun stroll down memory lane.
Trips like these just make me so grateful for my life. Daniel is such an incredible father, and such a great man. I am so blessed to have him in my life. And I just really love my kids. They make me smile and appreciate the little things.

valentines

For the first few years of marriage, we celebrated valentines day. The last few years we have just aknowledged it with an exchange of cards, and if daniel wants bonus points- flowers. Its just not a big deal in our home. Enter Kylie and Tyler. They love holidays. They get so excited and make little plans weeks in advance. When I was growing up my mom made holidays special, and on valentines day she would make us little candy bar posters, which was a big deal cuz candy was something we only got from time to time- unlike my kids who have it ALL the time. anyway I want to make my kids memories as wonderful as my mother made mine, so i have been thinking of what I could do to make it special for them. interestingly enough to me- Daniel and I arent into this holiday as a couple, but i get into it just for the sake of making it a happy day for my kids. So i picked up some little trinkets at the dollar store, made little valentine cards telling them we love them, and left them on the table for them to discover when they woke up. It was like Christmas. They were so excited over a heart shaped painting set, a heart shaped notepad, a candy filled plastic heart and a cheap valentine stuffed animal. Funny thing is that I put all this together and signed the cards "love mommy and daddy" but Kylie, after careful inspection of her gifts, says "Toast did you know daddy loves us so much?"-Yes, all the credit goes to daddy. Oh the joys of being an under-appreciated mother. Oh well. Happy Valentines to all our friends and family!!

Camping

Last week Kylie had an early out day, and after we picked her up we tried to think of something fun to do for the rest of the day. The kids wanted to make a fort and so we started building one but james kept knocking it down. A few Christmas's ago the kids got some little tents from their grandparents and we have never opened them before, so we took them out and set them up. It kept them and James entertained ALL day! The thing that cracked me up was when they pretended they were Nephi and they were camping in the wilderness. I dont think they quite understand that Nephi didnt get to bring his toys along with him. Anyway I just loved listening to them "pretend"- what amazing imaginations they have.

stretching

Daniel is training for a marathon in April, and on Saturdays he has been working his way up in the milage department. Today they ran 15 miles in less than 2 hours- amazing! Anyway he came home and i was helping him do some stretches, and James was watching us and started mimicking us. Then he ran up to Daniel for a hug and started stretching on his daddy. I thought it was pretty dang cute and had to get a picture.

sharing

Yesterday when I was getting Kylie from school I learned a valuable lesson from my little girl. In her class they have a treat box and when the kids have worked really well, at the end of the day they get to pick out a treat. One of the moms brought in some cute journals, and had brought one for each girl, or so she thought. Turns out Kylie got a new classmate this week. Anyway all the girls had picked out the journals, but one little girl didnt get one and was very sad and distraught over it. Kylies teacher was trying to consol her and point out the other things she could pick from the box, but Kylie went up to the little girl and gave her her journal. When I got there Mrs Morris related to me the little incident. As her mom, I couldnt be more proud of Kylie. I love that she has such kindness and compassion that she was willing to give something she had to the girl who didnt get one. No one was prompting her to do it- she did it of her own accord. She was willing to give just to make someone else happy. Hows that for trying to be like Jesus?

names

Daniel and I have been trying to come up with a name for our baby. This has been a most unusual pregnancy due to the fact that I havent been calling him by his name, whereas with my other three we were calling them by name at 16 weeks. In November Daniel reluctantly agreed to Ryan- but was never really into it, so I didnt feel right calling him that. So a few more months have gone by and still we havent had a name. Yesterday I was getting pretty ansy cuz I really want to call my baby by name and so after we put the kids to bed Daniel and I had a discussion. And we narrowed the field down to four names, then two, and then finally one name that we both like for our boy. Drum roll if you please- our baby will be known as Benjamin Ryan Jackson. Our own little B.R! The Benjamin comes from two significant people in our lives- the first is my dad, Bennie. The second is Daniels grandpa, Beniah. Finally its settled and we are getting more and more excited to meet our little Ben! Only 6-7 weeks left!!!!

Yumas zoo

So today we took the kids to the zoo. "There is no zoo in Yuma"- I can hear the accusations now- but there really is a zoo in our little city-three actually. This one is less than a mile away from our home. We saw the angry lions and tigers and bears- OH MY! and some snakes and turtles and some monkeys. Yes it was our little trip to the zoo, and I couldnt wait to get out of there. Yet, when trying to get out, it seems like the animals find a way of keeping you in until you are about to pull all your hair out from insanity. our little zoo-aka Walmart- isnt the most fun place to be, but they are the only ones who carry my favorite pasta sauce here, and even though I hate admitting it- they do tend to have cheaper prices. Next time we take the kids to the zoo, I hope it will be the san diego zoo, where the animals arent quite so upclose and personal!

A Tribute to Gordon B. Hinckley