The most meaningful gift....

This year for Christmas, I got a phone call from my sister Mara telling what our dad had done for us this year, she said it was, "The most amazing thing." I was so excited to find out what it was that I begged her to tell me. (and because I cannot wait that long to visit Provo and find out myself) She said my dad had gone to the house we use to live in YEARS ago, we moved into it shortly after my mom passed. About 1989, and he asked the new owners if he could go into their attic and see if there was still some old boxes he'd put up there. The woman was so sweet and let him come in her home and check her attic.....

~Here's a quick little background, After we'd moved out of that house 7 years later we looked everywhere for my mother's belongings. Certain things were very special to us and we never found them, we thought they'd been accidentally thrown out and gone forever....~

My dad checked all over the attic and finally in this small corner, there sat 3 boxes. He checked inside the boxes and THERE was my mother's things. For 18 years it sat up there collecting dust, and my dad decided he'd go check and I am so glad he did. He divided the things up to which ones would mean the most to each of us and that was our gift from him, the greatest gift.
I haven't yet seen what it is that I got, but I don't care what it is, its something that was my mom's.
I am so thankful that my dad has done this for me and my sisters it meant so much to all of us. I was blown away that all of the things were still there.
This is one of those things that we realize its not the amount of money we spend on a gift, it isn't where we buy the gifts, it truly is the thought that counts because this is the most heartwarming and amazing thing I've ever received. I also wanted to thank Val & Ron, who are the best in-laws a girl could ask for, thank you for everything! Thanks to all of those who sent their love through the mail and remembered us this Christmas!! I hope everyone had a great Christmas! We missed our families and we love you!!

Gingerbread House

This year Grandma Curtis wanted all of us to make gingerbread houses. I improvised and bought graham crackers instead, they worked out great! Grandma Curtis broke her back recently and has to sleep on a board! Get better soon grandma. We just wanted to let her know how much we love her and Grandpa Curtis too! They are the sweetest grandparents we could ever have, these pics are for you guys! Love you!

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas???!

What is going on?? It snowed...in Vegas! I didn't think I missed the snow, but it was nice, I felt like I was in Utah again. And the best part, it MELTED the next day. Perfect. Here's some pics, I took the kids on a walk to enjoy the snow;)

So you think you can dance?!

THERE WAS A FUNNY elf dance here but it expired. The comments were so funny, I am just leacing this post here anyway. Just imagine Tyson country dancing and lasso-ing me in....GOOD TIMES!

Husband Tag!!

Answer the questions about your sweetheart…

*What is your husband’s name: Tyson Gert Schrader
*What is his favorite color? RED
*Favorite Song? Its a tie between Led Zeppelin's "D'yer Maker" and Eric Clapton's "Layla."
*How long have you been married? 4 years on January 8th
*How long did you date? dated for 2 months, then engaged for 6 months
*How old is he? 31
*Who eats more sweets? Tyson does. He likes his candy!
*Who said I love you first? He did.....
*Who is taller? Tyson by 3 inches
*Who can sing best? Me, we had karaoke just the other night, but he's pretty good too;)
*Who is smarter? Hmmm.....He is
*Who does laundry? Me, I like to do laundry
*Who pays bills? He brings home the bacon, I cook it.
*Who sleeps on the right side? Me, The left is closest to the door!
*Who mows the lawn? We don't have grass here in the desert
*Who cooks dinner? Me
*Who drives? Tyson
*Who is first to admit they are wrong? Tie, we're both pretty stubborn
*Who kissed who first? I kissed him first.
*Who asked who out first? I asked (or told) him to take me to breakfast.
*Who wears the pants? We both wear pants.... sometimes jeans, sometimes p.j.'s its equal. (safe answer huh?)



I tag anyone who reads this!

Angels Among Us

"You are never so lost that an angel can't find you."

Tonight I went to Enrichment night with my neighbor and good friend Molly. As you all know I have been inactive in the church for years now. I have been thinking about attending church again now for the last few years. Mostly for my kids sake, but tonight, I really thought about it.
The Enrichment night theme was "Angels Among Us" and a few women stood up and spoke about someone in their life that they considered an angel to them and why. It really got me thinking. It was such a great dinner and program that I came home and I was inspired to blog about it. I have so many people that have blessed my life that I consider my angels, but I really wanted to talk about one person who has really made such a difference in my life in the short time I have known her.
My angel is Molly, my next door neighbor and new friend. Molly and Jason and their cute little boy, Carter live next door to us. When we moved in, they immediately came over to introduce themselves to us because they saw our University of Utah license plates and they are big fans also. I thought to myself, "Wow, what a coincidence that we move to Las Vegas and we have Ute fans as neighbors!" but the more I got to know their beautiful family, the more I realized that it wasn't a coincidence at all. Over the past few months, Molly and Jason have been so kind and invite us over for dinner, they spend time with our kids and just welcomed us with open arms. Molly is one of the nicest people I have ever met and I just wanted to let her know how much she has impacted my life here, made it so much easier transitioning into a new place for me and my family.
It may seem to her like something that is just second nature, but it means the world to me. So, thank you Molly for everything and I appreciate you!! I feel like certain people who come into our lives are there for a reason, its just up to us to figure out what it is. I am just grateful that we met and became friends! For this Christmas season, I tag all of you reading this blog to think about someone who is one of your "Angels Among Us" and blog about it;) Merry Christmas!!

Father & Son.......

One of my favorite things in the world to see is Tyson with our kids. Today Tyson was helping Kai with his homework and I was watching them together and teared up a little. I kept hearing Tyson teach Kai how to sound out words, and Kai exclaiming, "Oh, I get it now, Nene you are a good teacher!" As all of you know, technically Tyson is Kai's step-dad, but you would never be able to tell. Tyson has been in Kai's life since Kai was 18 months old. We've taught Kai that he is lucky to have 2 dads, and that's how he sees it. I can't imagine how hard it would be to be a step-parent, but Tyson makes it look so easy. From the day they met they had this connection that can't be denied. Tyson is a wonderful father and I just love seeing him treat Kai like his own. Kai looks up to him and talks like him and has some of the same mannerisms. Its so sweet, Man, I am a lucky girl!

Personality Plus!

Tonight we thought Ashtyn was asleep, well at least she SHOULD have been! Then we hear these little footsteps coming down the stairs and there is our little Ashtyn with all of the headbands she could find on her head. Then she told us to wait a minute, she must have forgotten something, so I followed her into the guest room (where her dress-up clothes are) and she put on the final touch, purple high heels. The next post I'll get some pics of Kai being silly, he was actually asleep when this happened;)

Ashtyn's new coat......

Ashtyn and Kai are growing like weeds. I realized that their coats were too small, so I took their outgrown clothes to Kid to Kid to trade in and get the size that fits. I saw this coat and it screamed, "ASHTYN!" I mean, its pink with fur and has strawberry shortcake on the back! She saw it hanging in our closet (drying from washing it) and yelled, "Oooooh pretty, so pretty." Tyson couldn't help himself and immediatley put it on her. She came downstairs prancing and twirling around the house. I am shocked I managed to get a picture of her holding still with it on. She's hopefully asleep right now.
I went to check on her, literally 10 minutes after taking the 1st picture and this is what I found..........

Keepin it real.....

I originally posted this as a journal entry post and it ended up on my blog, I took it down because I didn't want to offend anyone, but in doing so, I contradicted myself and how I feel. I know that speaking my mind may at times be construde as being rude, but I am who I am and I have always been honest about my past and present, My life is an open book. So, here it goes, my BIGGEST pet peeve.........

"I have had such great experiences here in Las Vegas. I really like people who speak their mind. I can't stand fake people and I know ALOT of them. I am blessed to have friends here who speak their mind, that way you always know where you stand with them. What is the boundary between real and fake these days?? I have always been a person with no or hardly a filter, I realize that might be negative sometimes, but at least you always know where you stand with me. So where is the line between being real and being polite?? Example: If there was something stuck between my teeth, I'd LOVE for someone to tell me rather than brush it off and let me go the whole day with this green thing between my teeth. I know so many fake people and I wish they'd be real and just be honest about who you are. Its okay to have struggles, its okay to have feelings. That just makes you HUMAN and REAL..... I know everyone has had their own struggles in life....But their is a big difference between putting up a facade and just being honest. There are so many blogs out there and I really respect the people who tell it how it is. So all of you who think that this Internet world will judge you, think again and write your feelings because that's what we're here for and unfortunately, People can tell if you are being real and to those people, we love you, just be you, that is WHY we love you!!! :)"
P.S. Thank you so much Rochelle for the encouragement to be ME... I love you! You inspire me everyday!