Christmas Time Photos

Finally I get a chance to organize/edit/rearrange the blog I threw together before the New Year's.

Santa Clause came to the house and Landon loved it! He sat on his lap and then gave him a hug before he left.

Then after Santa left Landon started looking out the window to see where he was going... it was so cute. I'm glad he's not scared of Santa... even though it would be so fun to have one of those pictures of him screaming on Santa's lap that you just smile at everytime you see it. :)

Then Landon dove into the presents after we returned from the funeral in Utah... I had forgotten in the rush of everything that we still had some under the tree. Thanks again Santa Clause!

Thomas playing with the kids as I was trying to sew together some cushions for his duck blind in the kitchen. But as you can see I got distracted by photo ops. It was fun to see him playing with the kids as I got something constructive done that has been on the To-Do List forever! Thanks Thomas!

While at Leah's the kiddos went outside in the snow to play. They had a blast! I did too getting photos. That day was a fun day!

Earlier I made sugar cookies from scratch for work and family and friends. Landon, as always, joined me in the kitchen with mixing, rolling out, and cutting the cookies. He loves to help in the kitchen! And I enjoy having him! He got flour everywhere trying to help put some down before the dough. It was cute.

I took family photos of the Linton Family. My sister, Thomas, Linzey and Zoey are pictured.

This was the first day of Snow in Kennewick! I grabbed the camera on the way into the house after work and errands.

Merry Christmas from the Fullmer Family! :)

Grandma Waggoner... the best woman I know...

Last night, December 23rd, 2008, my Grandma Waggoner passed away. Donna Waggoner was an amazing woman who lived a very full life and was loved by many. She was always very active in the church and was truly a missionary to many. She was the last grandparent that was living in my family and she will be missed by many friends and family members. She touched a lot of people's lives and gave freely of herself to others everyday and especially in their times of need. I will miss her terribly until I'm able to see her again.

I have to admit that it was very shocking to be contacted on Monday and be told that Grandma had suffered a severe stroke and was in the ICU portion of the hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah. I had just talked to her that weekend previous and she sounded just fine. She told me how much she missed Landon and couldn't wait to see him again. I just wish that could have happened just one more time before she left us. There are times when I feel sad because I miss her and want to say goodbye and just don't really want to face the fact that it will be a long time till I see her again, but then she would have had it this way if she could. She never did want to be put into a nursing home and didn't want to have others take care of her. So this would have been the way she had wanted to go, with her boots still on, as others have said. I'm glad she is finally out of her pain and that she's able to be reunited with her love.

She was always very independant and loved to clean her house and make her "Famous Jello Salad" during gatherings. She enjoyed traveling around the world with Grandpa Wetsel Waggoner. Her greatest enjoyment though would have to be having family around her, especially at the holidays. Grandma loved to spoil us kids. She was always kind and gentle and still makes me laugh when I think back to her always calling us "little shits." hahaha. (Thanks for that memory Grandma.) She loved to "play with" our backs to make us go to sleep and run her fingers through our hair. She would sing to us and loved to watch the little grandkids run around her condo terrorizing it with all it's breakables that she still had. I remember those things being there when I was a kid. It's hard to believe how fast time flys. Grandma always knew what was going on and always had advise to give... even if you didn't want to hear it. I wish I would have heeded her advise more carefully at times. It was always right on the money.

My Grandmother was a strong woman. She survived breast cancer and then cancer in her shoulder and always kept her head up. I remember her loving Grandpa so much and it hurting her to have to see him go through the pain and different things that happened when he was in the nursing home. She loved her husband so much. I hope to be able to find a glimpse of that love that she had for that man. Grandpa Waggoner treated her so well and even though he wasn't by the letter-if-the-law our "biological" grandfather, you can guarentee that we didn't know that or care. He was by every account in our books our Grandpa and we loved him greatly. They together were an unbroken force that constantly knocked me off my feet when I thought about them and their love, which continues to happen even now. I think that they were made for eachother and predestined to live out their lives enjoying one anothers love and company. May we find comfort in the time that we have left without them here to guide us and enlighten us anymore.

Thank you Grandma and Grandpa Waggoner. You were the best grandparents a kid could ask for or dream of having. You were such amazing examples, and I will never forget you or your passion for family, the gospel, and life. God Bless You Till We Meet Again. I love you both, always.

Snow, Snow, and More Snow

This weeks word has been: SNOW! lol... it's everywhere and seems to never cease floating from the sky. The roads were so bad that our ward was cut down to just sacrament meeting. I couldn't even make that because I was partly snowed in at my sister's house in Pasco. I stayed there 2 nights because I didn't want to face the roads and drivers on those roads as well as the trips back and forth from Pasco to Kennewick, so I stayed with them and had some fun! The kids went out twice during the day after a half hour of prep time (putting on hats, mittens, long socks, stuffing pants into socks, putting on winter overalls, tucking in shirts to mittens, putting on coats, zipping them up, me putting on boots, then another hat to top it off...) they roll out the door into the snow and can't hardly stand up on the back patio because it was tile and so it became an ice rink with the layer of ice on it. But you sit back after they are outside with their red cheeks and appreciate how fun and creative they are. You snap pictures here and there and they end up coming inside crying because they are freezing, hands are numb, or they have snow in their face from a face plant or snowball. :) Then the stripping of the winter gear happens. The taking off of everything just put on about a half hour earlier. And once it's off they want back out about 15 minutes later! Pchah!

This workout seems to help with all the Holiday Treats I have been baking and recieving though! I found this awesome recipe for Chex Muddy Buddies that I will post later for you all to enjoy! It's divine! and of course the cookies, salads, fudge, and the list goes on and on... yeah... can you tell that the New Years Resolutions haven't come into play yet? hahaha

We have gotten about a foot and a half of snow (more in some places) here and it's starting to loose it's charm on me. I love the snow and to look at it and feel it at times, but when it's preventing you from getting to work on time and feeling safe on the roads then it's not so fun anymore. We are expecting more on Wednesday into Thursday too! At Leah's house we had to shovel 3 times one night and then again in the morning... it was dumping snow. Some people are plowed in and I almost was this morning. I had parked my car on the street so my sister could rightfully use her driveway for her vehicle. In the morning I came out and there was about a foot of plowed up snow right next to my door. Fun? Not really... some digging, sliding and such later... we were on the way to the daycare place and thankfully haven't been in an accident yet... although there has been some close calls (2).

Anyways... once I get the cord to hook my camera up... I will upload photos of the snow and Landon and Linzey playing in it. I hope you are safe and enjoying the Christmas activites of the season. HoHoHo and Merry Christmas! ;P

It's a Wonderful Life!

Snow, christmas lights, trees decorated, presents, and the big one... the reason for the Christmas holiday. How could anyone not appreciate this time of year? I love it all. I love watching Landon as I put him in his car seat after he's walked through the snow... look at his boots and if there's any snow on them or his pants he wants it off. :) And of course there always is... he is my little world. I get hope, joy, happiness, contentment, thankful, and blessed feelings when I have him next to me as well as some frustrated, trying, and hair pulling times too... but they are not near as often as the other more positive ones.

Landon's new thing lately is sticking out his tounge at anyone and anytime. I don't know where he has learned this one... but he has been doing it for a couple of weeks. To stop this unusual thing... I have been trying to "get" his tounge if he sticks it out... and this results in his laughter, but then the fear of sticking it back out to have it "got" again! lol... he's so much fun! He also is fascinated by the christmas ornaments on the trees at my house and his aunt and uncle's house too! He is still the same climber that he's always been. He has hit a milestone that I thought would never come along! Landon has finally learned how to say "Uncle!" So now instead of calling his Uncle Thomas DaDa... he says Uncle! Woot Woot! He still calls my sister and roommate DaDa though... we are working on that now...

Last night with PaPa and Grandma Ruth at Leah's house he was climbing on the couches, the dog, us, and was a hoot trying to pull Grandpa's boot off! lol... Dad was so good with the kids and it was so good to see him and Ruth. I can't wait to see them again on Christmas Day! I hope to have a sleep over at their new house soon when they have a spare bed available.

Leah and Thomas finally get their new living room set that they have waited weeks for and are so stoked for... Congrats to them! Thomas is watching Landon tonight and I get to swing by Sportsman's to colaberate with Leah about a certain gift I need to purchase. I also have to do some quick shopping for Landon and a couple of others! I hate shoping around this time of year. People seem to stress out as they walk through the stores... but surprisingly I am not stressed at all. I actually wouldn't mind if gifts just went out the window this year... but because it's tradition... I guess it will stay and I will participate. :)

I do plan to start a tradition of my own... I am going to dress up Landon in sheets, like in olden times, and have him and maybe Linzey (my niece) be Mary with a baby doll as Jesus. I want to read from the scriptures as they do that... or at least tell the story because of short attention spans... but do that every year. I remember growing up and having my older sisters be Mary, Joseph, and the Donkey Mary rode, while Leah and I were the shepards in the fields. It was so much fun and we have the tape today to prove how funny it got when there's not much under the sheets and they start to fall off... luckily we were all girls. Love you April! ;) I hope to take photos every year of this nativity scene with Landon and make a really cool page out of it... In the past my family usually will watch Little Women and It's a Wonderful Life (title of blog), and open a present the night before Christmas together from the person who drew their name. Then the family will get back together the day of Christmas to have something to eat, nothing big, but just to have time together. It's fun and I love the traditions. I love you all and wish you a Merry Christmas and a wonderful season full of joy and enjoyable company to go with it. :) - God Bless!

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(This picture is one that I just love and had to include. I think that no matter what mudd we might have to trudge through, that we can always at least be thankful for the boots that we have on to get us through it to the other side! lol... I love it!)

I Guess I'm Not a Girl!

lol... this blog is a huge thank you to my roommate Andrea who has opened my eyes to the real world of being a girl! She has consistantly been amazed by my naiveness to the world of makeup, clothing, and just over all Needed Knowledge that All Girls are supposed to know. She tells me all the time, "I can't believe you don't know that!" or "What!!?@?!!? You've never done that??? Are you really a girl?"

lol.... until she moved in I didn't know what bronzer meant or was (and still don't use it, but at least know that it's a makeup product that makes me look more tan), didn't know that you can always fit into high heels that are bigger (by stuffing toilet paper in the toe until it's a perfect fit! even though you feel like a dork, It works!) and that I could really sob with someone while watching a movie and not feel like I was being glanced at because you were right beside me sobbing too! (The Notebook).

Andrea is amazing and has really continued to teach me things that I otherwise wouldn't have known. lol... So THANK YOU ANDREA SMITHEE!!!! You have enlightened and have made me laugh so hard my stomach aches and I have to run to make it to the bathroom before having an accident. I am glad you're here and hope that you won't be leaving too soon!

Here are a few pictures of the night that I was enlightened about bronzer and the toilet paper in the shoes thing... I was Andrea's project that night and loved every minute of it. It was so much fun and I felt good about myself which is a good and unfamiliar feeling. Thanks for all the clothes, makeup, and tips Andrea... you are truly the diva of it all.

Nighttime Beatings... not what you think!

Landon this last week has gotten the winter cold that's going around. Because of this, he constantly is waking up during the night and climbing into bed with me. So when he does try sleeping with me, I take him back into his bed soon after... well after a couple of nights of doing that time and time again and it not working (and me hating to get up that many times), I have just allowed him to sleep with me.

Last night after I went to bed at 2am because of sitting up and chatting to my roommate till the wee hours of the morning, I layed down and Landon went from the normal position in bed - head on pillow and feet pointed towards bottom of the bed - to the opposite position. You guess it all right! All night long, Landon was kicking me in the face. Finally I just rolled over so that if he did end up moving (which happened every 5 minutes) he wouldn't kick me in the face. I tried to change his position, but he liked to have his head on the mound of blankets and elevated with his feet on my pillow... so that's how we slept last night. It was interesting and I hope that tonight and the rest of the week goes better. Poor kid has trouble sleeping at night because of the cough he has. I hate it when he gets sick, I just want to take it away from him and suffer through that for him... But because I can't, I use the humidifier, vick's vapor rub and cough medicine as well as warm baths.

Dating... unnerving and scary

So as you all know I am now single and able to date. I'm glad that I'm able to date now, but that has opened a whole new world of things that I never thought I would have to go through again. I am scared to death of dating again... in all honesty. I am naive and this is a really bad thing when trying to determine if someone is being truthful or not and with so many other things too. At one moment when I think about dating I am excited and gitty and then when I really think about it, I am so stinkin' scared and petrified! I never thought I would have to go through this again and it's all new and unnerving! All of a sudden I'm thrown into going with my gut instinct, wondering what's going to be said next, and nervous because I don't know what the heck I'm doing! I have only officially gone on 1 date so far and that date didn't go as well as I was hoping... red flags going up everywhere... but I am now emailing a couple of guys and talking on the phone to some guys that I find interesting and fun. I talked to my mom last night and told her about one of the guys and then was given a slew of advise. I am going by my patriarchal blessing, which states that I need to heed my mother's counsel because she has my best interest at heart and has more experience in life. So I am heeding every one of my mom's counseling tips.

1.) Know the guy for at least a year before getting really serious. This way I can see the ups and downs that come with time, am able to talk to family/friends/church leaders and others about past and present questions and concerns, and am able to really tell how the are through time. - Mom and Bishop LaDow's Counsel

2.) Go on a date with at least 10 different guys. I have never really dated (my mom pointed this out) and I need to be able to have something to measure others with. So going on multiple dates will give me lots of different experiences to look at. - Mom's counsel

3.) Have them come to my town first. I have been doing a lot of networking on a LDS singles site and I was told (and think it's wise) to have them come here first so that I can meet them face to face and have it be on my ground/territory. Ok... that sounds weird... but anyways... you get the point. There are a lot of creeps, pedophiles, rapists, and such in the world today and anyone can get an account with an LDS singles site... so better safe than sorry. - Mom's counsel

4.) Always be in groups the first couple of dates. - My Own

5.) Have my sister and brother-in-law, Leah and Thomas, do something with us so that they can tell me things and point things out to me that I might not notice by myself. - Mom's counsel

6.) Always know my self-defense moves. Thank you Super Saturday Self-Defense Class! I really know this works because I was just showing some of the boys in my family what I had learned and downed my nephew when I didn' think I had done anything. It was pretty effective and not hard at all. :) Fun! But serious and handy as well! - My Own

7.) Go to the temple with them for date later on. I actually learned this from a fellow single guy that has had some more experience than me.... and where would you find a better place to meet! - My Own and My Mom agrees :)

So those are just a few of the things that I have set for myself.

It's crazy, I just thought that one of my MiaMaids, Ashli, will be dating in a couple of weeks!... way weird!

If you have any more words of advice or caution please feel free to share them... I am all for help! I hope that I can stick with these things and over time find the right, worthy person for me and Landon to be with.

Church Ah Ha Moment

First off... I have to share with everyone how happy I was with Landon being such an Amazing little boy during Sacrament Meeting this week! Usually I have to get up at least once with him because he is so dog-gum noisy. But this week he sat on my lap almost the entire meeting long and the noisiest he was was when he made some piggy noises because we asked him what a piggy sound was. :) I think it had to do with not sitting by Brielle (Andrea's daughter). When they sit together they fight over books, snacks, seats, and even mommies. So maybe we'll be drifting away from sitting with the Smithees, even though they are great and I love them so much!

So Congrats Landon. You were amazing... and I hope there are many more Sundays like this to come.

I am so glad that I am in the Young Woman Program. This Sunday we watched the 'Joy to the World' DVD that our ward is giving out to friends of the youth and members. It's a great missionary tool and really brings the meaning of Christmas home. So the DVD is great and I would recommend it to anyone and everyone. :)

I had an ah-ha moment in Sunday School. I have to confess that sometimes I use Sunday School to get some last minute preparation for my lesson done. I have been know to "skip" it because of this or chatting to a friend in a free room. But this Sunday I am so glad that I didn't. Brother Neilsen taught from Mormon 1-9 or something in there. It was just amazing how strongly I felt the Holy Ghost during church, and especially during this lesson. When I walked in (late!) Brother Neilsen was asking the class if we knew a 10 year old boy that would be able to take on the responsibilities of keeping the sacred records of the church. I thought of all the kids I know - even some of the teenagers and couldn't think of one that I would really pick out to give something that huge to. I know that Mormon had some time to grow and learn before he actually got the plates, but to be told, when you were ten, that you would be given the records that have been kept from generation to generation... I don't know. It just struck me as amazing. God does work in mysterious ways. He knows what He is doing... and looking at this I am just stunned. Of course this may just be me a little slower than the rest of you, but it was my ah-ha moment all the same. :P

Ok... I just read through that and I hardly understood what I meant, but I hope you could glean a little of what I was going for in that.

Thanksgiving Day for Us

I went home for Thanksgiving. This holiday though didn't seem like a typical Thanksgiving though. It was too short. I only got the day of Thanksgiving off... so I headed out with Thomas Wednesday night to Quincy. Leah had taken the kids up earlier that day. It was foggy and as funny as it sounds when we were just 10 miles or so from Quincy, Thomas (who was driving the truck) got lost. lol... and I got us back on track. I knew where we were, but wasn't about to question his navigation skills, so I just kept talking and singing along. Until Thomas admitted that he didn't know where he was. I then got us back on track which is probably the FIRST ever of me having more directional skills than another person! Whoo Hoo for me!

We got to my mom's house after stopping and letting David know about the gathering in town. We ate and during the meal told 2 things we are thankful for. Everyone said something like, "I'm thankful for my family," or "I am thankful for my kids." David was the sentimental one this year that made Misty cry with saying how much he loved her and appreciated what she did. Next year we are going to make it so that no one can repeat something that someone has already said. We also had to remind people time and again that it had to be kept G-rated. My family is a little vulgar and open. :) I love them anyways though!

We cleaned up and hit the sack after a while. Thomas and the nephews went coyote hunting and Leah and Jenny visited into the night. I slept in the full size bed with Landon and didn't sleep well at all because he kicks and turns and talks and moans in his sleep. I am a VERY LIGHT SLEEPER. So I was up most of the night listening, protecting myself, and cuddling with him. It was nice, but the next morning I could tell I hadn't slept well. My patience meter was a little low.

Then after getting ready and saying goodbyes Leah, Thomas, and I with the two little ones headed out to Thomas' Stepdad's Business in George (RiverShark Bar and Grill with only family invited) for their family get-together. There we ate even more food, played pool, and had fun visiting. Then Leah and I ended up leaving and heading to Othello to drop off the two youngsters with their grandparents. You see Leah and I both had to work the day after Thanksgiving "Black Friday." We had a really good visit with Dad and Ruth. Dad looked really good and we loved to sit and chat with him. Their house looks really good and comfy. I loved the fire in the fireplace (even though they cheated with a duralog!) :) I still loved it! It was nice to see April and Jennifer there too.

We headed home and then when we got to Leah's house we made no bake cookies, sugar cookies, and chocolate chip cookies. I then left to come to my house and made Grandma Waggoner's Famous Jello Salad for Leah as well (even though she told me not to because we were both SOOO tired). I went to bed at about 9:30 after staying up watching a movie to unwind. It was a nice day, but I wish it could have lasted longer or that my vacation from work could have. It was nice to have some quiet time to myself though.

Oh and I have to say that I went to the theatre last night to watch Twillight and am a TRUE ADDICT now! I have never seen a man as cute as Edward, even if he was a vampire. He didn't look that great at the beginning of the movie and I wondered why they had even chosen him, but by the end of the movie I felt like his #1 Fan! I feel like a little school girl all over again! He was so cute and Bella did a fantastic job too! I just don't know how they are going to do the visual effects for the 3rd movie with the prego moments! I know they will handle it. I want to say thank you to my mom for "taking" me to the movies to see that. Ok... done rambling. But man that blew the other favorites I've had for a LONG time out of the water by a very large margin! If you haven't seen it, GO NOW! If you don't want to go by yourself, I WILL COME IN A HEARTBEAT! That is if you pay for me to get there! :) Twillight rocks!

Thanksgiving...

So I am taking an idea that I read on John's blog and letting you know what things I am thankful for this year and season.

I am thankful that I live in a country that is protected by men and women who serve this amazing country and fight for the rights of freedom we have. I am grateful that I can sleep peacefully at night, be able to travel across the country without being bombed, taxed, or in danger, and chose what I want to listen to and watch on tv, travel on vacation, and worship how I please. Thank you United States Soldiers (and Marines)! A special thanks to those in our family that serve in the armed forces now: John (in Iraq right now), Jared (in Marine Boot Camp at present), James and Jake (who have served tours in Iraq), and Shawn (who has served a tour in Afganistan).

I am grateful for my family that has stuck with me and supported me, loved me, and is there for me. I am grateful for the progress my Dad has made. Dad I am so proud of you and love you! Keep up the hard work and know that I am always here if you need someone!

I am grateful for my little boy Landon. He is truly my greatest blessing by far. He is my world. I love him so much and am so grateful to be blessed to raise him.

I am grateful for my ward family. It's a hard thing to continue to attend church is no one approaches you and makes you feel welcome. I have LOVED my ward. They are amazing and I am so grateful to them for their welcoming me and loving me. I love my Bishop, who has really given me some great, sound advise and counsel.

I am grateful for my job. Jay came to me and offered me this job when I worked at Jiffy Car Wash. It truly came to me when I wasn't expecting it to. I was blessed by my Father in Heaven. He knew what I needed and provided it for me.

I am grateful for my friends. Cheryl and Jeremy, Alanna, Trista, Kristina, Mary and Mario, Andrea, Molly, Terrilyn, and so many more that I have thanked in groups above. You helped me to keep my head up this year and really made me laugh and have fun! Thanks!

But most of all, I am grateful to my Father in Heaven for opening the windows of heaven for me. I truly have been so blessed this year that I can't count the blessings in numbers. He has been mindful and close to me. I am so grateful for his influence in my days, weeks, months, and in my life. I am grateful for my brother, Jesus Christ, and hope that this season will bring us closer to him and allow us to show appreciation for his birth with this approaching Christmas holiday season.

5 Things....

5 things I was doing 5 years ago
1. Getting excited about finishing my first semester of college at BYU-Idaho
2. Serving as the R.S. Secretary in our college ward
3. Laughing at my FHE brothers
4. Stressing out over homework and projects
5. Struggling financially to pay for bills and groceries... although that hasn't changed at all!

5 Things on my to do list for today.
1. Get to work on time
2. Before going to work, drop off the Jello Salad I made for Leah at her work
3. Check my email to see if anyone has responded to my items posted on Craigs list
4. Go to Leah's and help her around her house
5. Rent and watch a movie by myself tonight after Landon goes to sleep

5 things I would do with a million dollars
1. Pay off debt!
2. Travel with my family to far away places
3. Pay for Landon's schooling and extra sports and activites
4. Give some to charities
5. Buy a medium sized house and have a couple of horses in a barn out in back of the house to ride when I would like (everyday!)

5 Places I have lived
1. Quincy, Washington
2. Troy, Missouri
3. St. Louis, Missouri
4. Some other small town in the St. Louis area that I can't think of, Missouri
5. Rexburg, Idaho

5 jobs I have held
1. Veterinary Assistant
2. Assistant Human Resource Manager
3. Dishwasher
4. Book Store Cashier/Customer Service
5. Building Cleaner

5 People I tag - Trista, Alanna, Cheryl, Andrea, and any one else who hasn't completed this one

Thoughts

Lately I have been thinking a lot. I always am thinking, but I read my good friend/adopted sister's blog (Cheryl) and have really loved the little messages she writes about her thoughts and feelings on different things. They are so good. So I am going to try to attempt to start these and I hope you don't mind the no picture blogs, because I definitely make up for them in others.

I have really been thinking lately about my friends that I have now and that I used to have. Some have stuck with me through thick and thin and have been there no matter what the outcome was. Others have been there and then something comes up that you think that they will understand and they don't and end up leaving your life. I think that friends are like family. You need to love them for who they are and not necessarily what choices they make at times. I know I wasn't the best example of this in my family at times (when my sister,Leah, became pregnant I was horrible to her, truly mean to her and still apologize to her from time to time because of it). We all have friends and family that struggle and make mistakes, but they learn and grow from them in turn. I appreciate those people who have stuck through the hard and good times with me. I am so blessed to have family and friends today and in the past. I know that I have had my share of stubbles, but I want to thank those people who helped to pick me back up and get me back on my feet when I didn't want to. Who were there to support me and love me when I didn't want it. Who didn't agree with my choices or life, but kept calling or visiting. I am truly blessed to have my family close and healthy and friends to laugh and cry with. I am so grateful for the jewels that they have been in my life. I am the who I am partly because of those individuals. If I started to name them I would miss some and I don't want to do that... so just thank you. Each of you for being there and loving me regardless of the situation. I hope I can keep paying you back for the kindness you've rendered to me. My Father in Heaven truly is mindful of me and I know that when I follow his promptings that things will happen and people will come along to help get me through, and I have seen that happen in my life. I thank Him for all He's given me and for the happiness I feel right now.

Miscellaneous Pictures :p

Abby (my niece) and I carved pumpkins when she came down for a week after Halloween. These are our masterpieces!



My Roommate dying her hair before her boyfriend came up! Caught ya! :)



Landon LOVES sunglasses and they hardly ever go on him like they are supposed to. So here are just a couple of us in the sunglasses. He's so much fun!



Landon playing on the playground at the park!



Linzey (my niece) is so stinkin funny. I was trying to get some good photos of my other niece Abby (above with the pumpkin) and she kept doing these model poses when I took photos of her. She is so silly and definitely had us cracking up. :P





Landon has found his new fun place to play peek a boo in or hide and go seek as well as his new favorite toy (thanks to Cheryl and Jeremy!).



Linzey and Landon got into the bubble bath and if you can't tell they were covered in bubbles. I had to de-bubble the bathroom after this night of bubble explosion!



The kids love us to massage their backs with this little back massager that my roomie has. Landon just laughs and laughs, but Brielle loves to just lay there and take it in... you can tell she is a girl and will grow up to LOVE back massages. :)



Landon loves to help me out in the kitchen with cooking and stirring and just watching if nothing else. So this is him in his little apron. He's such a good helper... when he listens.



These are all photos that I liked, but didn't have a good place to put them in blogs, so they are all combined into this one.

Utah Trip in August

Ok. So I have been promising my family forever that I would post a blog with a lot of pictures from our trip to Utah this August. It was so much fun to go down in 2 cars as a family. It was April, Leah, Jennifer, and Abby in the first car and they danced, sang and told silly stories. Then there was Mom, myself, Landon, and Linzey in the other car... and the entire way we were reading the last Twilight book in the series that had just come out a week or two prior. I definately think we had more fun! I wish more could have gone, but it was financially tight with our family as it is with the rest of the country then too! So we are all planning on making that trip this coming year for our Second McCullen Family Reunion. All I have to say is PARTY AT ANGIE'S HOUSE!!!!! :)

This is Landon at our first stop on the trip on top of Dead Man's Pass I believe. He was cheesing it up like always. Isn't he a cutie?

Yes my mom is notorious for scaring us... so here she is outside the rest area getting ready to scare my sister, Leah.

And then she of course succeeded! LOL. I still laugh when I see this picture. Leah totally wasn't expecting it! hahaha (that's my mom's evil laugh of victory!)

This is our family pictures at both my grandma's condo and also at my Grandpa Waggoner's grave site.

This is Linzey trying to give Landon a kiss and right then he had no interest in receiving one. Little stink!

My Grandma had her birthday and Landon's was earlier that month so we got a cake for both of them. This is Landon blowing out his candles on the cake. Then later that day as I was taking a much needed nap, the family went outside and flew kites with the kids. Landon had a Backyardigans kite and Linzey had Dora the Explorer.






These were all taken at Alanna (Anderson) Longhurst's house in Utah. She is my all time best friend and I have known her since like kindergarten I think. If it wasn't for her friendship I definately wouldn't be the woman I am today. She helped me when I came back from Missouri to Washington. She was the only one to take me under her wing and help me get a social life back in my hometown. I love her to death and can't wait to see her next time. I can't believe she is already married to Neil and has little Cedric! Landon loved the pot outside her house and kept playing peek-a-boo with it.




These are all pictures of us hanging out with Angie, our amazing cousin in Utah. She let us stay at her house and fed us and kept us highly entertained with games throughout the trip. This is when we were eating at a resturant and then playing in the water park in the shopping mall close to the downtown area of Salt Lake City. The kids had a blast and even though it was SOOOO hot we enjoyed it in the shade too!



Here are the pics from seeing the Fullmer Family! Grandma Trudy, Kimber and Kara were there with James as well as the little ones. I love the time I was able to spend with them. I really was scared that they might not accept me as well as last time because of all the things that have gone on since, but they were so good to me. I can't believe I thought it would be otherwise! I really do adore the Fullmer Family. They are an amazing clan of caring people and I don't think there's another family as sweet and fun as them.



Kimber and Hyrum, Me and Landon. Then Kara, Max, and James. This was my first time seeing Max (besides pictures). He was so smiley all the time that it didn't seem he had a bad bone in his body that would make him cry. :) As you can tell this was towards the end of the photo shoot because the kids are tired of the camera action going on. :)



Landon got on his first Motorcycle (James Hills'). And he LOVED it. I'm not sure what I think about that... but he didn't want to get off of it. First he was really scared of it, but then he warmed up to it and wanted to be in the seat. Then there's a picture of Hyrum, Landon and ______.

This is Grandma Fullmer with 3 of the many many many grandkids she has now.

Landon LOVED this cat of Kara's. This cat would let Landon do anything to it (as you can tell in the third pic of Landon standing over the cat trying to sit on him) and when he had enough he would take off and then come back later. I love the photo of Landon trying to put grass on the cat sitting side by side. It was so cute.



Grandma Trudy gave Landon a banana before we left. I felt bad we couldn't stay longer. But next time I will definitely plan on more time with the Fullmer Family.

Then we went back to Angie's house and played games after Dinner. We also watched the Olympics with the famous swimmer winning yet another gold medal in swimming, Michael Phelps. We enjoyed that as a family. I loved us all rooting for the same guy!



From left front: Mother Therese, Linzey, Autumn; back left to right: Jennifer Yancey, Leah, Angie, April and Barbara (who we hadn't seen since grade school and it was so good to meet up with. She is going to school down in Provo at BYU.)

This is Angie's family. They are so cute and caring and amazing... I can say more and go on but I won't. We love you Angie!



This is my mom, Landon, and I.



My Grandma Waggoner, Landon and I.



Our Trip to Utah for Grandma Waggoner's birthday and The McCullen Family Reunion (which didn't really end up happening) was great. We loved to see those we saw and be able to enjoy the time with them. We hope to be able to come back down next August (if not before then) for the next reunion and birthday celebration!