Sweet Boys

Aside from my own children, I have never loved two children as much as I love these two boys...
Sebastian (aka Sebby) being handsome....

Elliott, aka, "Ellie" bein a rockstar!!

Ellie after a long, hard day at his daddy's funeral...



The boys with their most favorite person in the whole world, their daddy...

An emotional Christmas....

I was not into the "Christmas Spirit" this season, until Christmas Eve, and I will tell you why. The most heartbreaking thing happened. Let me start with a little background...

Elliott and Sebastian moved in across the street recently with their single dad, Patrick, and their grandparents, Barbra and Gary. The boys are very cute, and very well-mannered and loving kids. The second I met them, they have been at my house playing with Ashtyn and Kai and they are the same ages. Elliott is 5 and Sebastian is 7. Their dad, Patrick and I instantly became good friends. Tyson, Patrick and I would sit outside for hours watching the kids play, we were able to get to know each other pretty well.

Christmas Eve started out like every other day, I slept in a little and woke up to the kids' voices downstairs. I could hear Elliott and Sebastian and I did not think anything of it since they are always at my house.
Tyson walked into the bedroom while I was getting ready and had a very disturbing look on his face... he then told me that the boys' Aunt brought them over and said that Patrick had a heart-attack and not to let them outside. I thought maybe Tyson had his information mixed up, so I got my shoes and told the kids I was getting the mail, I ran across the street to see if what was going on, I saw 2 ambulances and 2 fire trucks. Patrick was being wheeled out of the house, he was 38 years old and had a fatal heart attack.

We had the boys all day and we took them to the park and made sure that they knew nothing of what had happened. It was SO hard to hold my composure, these boys have really made their way into my heart and I thought about when I was 5 and lost my mother. They knew something wasn't completely normal, but they did not know what. We played with them and I hugged them extra tight, but for the most part, I acted as normal as I could. Kai and Ashtyn were a good distraction for them.

A few hours later, their grandpa Gary asked me if I would help them tell the boys about their daddy since I had grown so close to the boys and they trust me. I agreed, I cannot even go into detail about how heartbreaking this was to do. I literally witnessed two little hearts break in front of my eyes. Since Christmas Eve, I have been with these boys while their family flies in from around the country and plans the services. It is hard to know what to say and what not to say. I have tried to answer their questions the best that I can, but every question breaks my heart. "Why did daddy go to Kevin (heaven)? Is there food in Kevin? I am sad that my daddy died." I could go on, but can't :(

Please, please, pray for these sweet boys. They are so precious and so smart and such amazing little people, I feel blessed that I was able to know their daddy and have them in my life. They are at my house everyday and I feel as though I have two more sons added to my little family.

I really learned a lot this Christmas, mostly to be grateful for what I have, truly grateful, and to give service to others is the most fulfilling thing you can ever do.

For Patrick.....

Life is so fleeting...uncertain...unpredictable..scary at times, and beautiful in a painful way always. Be generous with your love.

Accepting Donations for my sister-in-laws family!

CLICK HERE to visit the blog set up to inform everyone how they can help. There is an account set up at America First Credit Union and if you have other donations, please contact my father-in-law, Ron. They are a very good and honest family and anything you have would be MUCH appreciated. They are living with my in-laws for the time being in Cottonwood heights, UT

FIRE!!

This morning we were woken up by Tyson's phone ringing at 4 AM. It was his dad telling him that Tyson's sister, Brittany's home was in flames and completely burned. The top floor collapsed into the basement, they lost everything.

Thankfully, the whole family was on a mini-vacation and were not home, so nobody was hurt. I am so grateful they are all okay, but my heart is aching for their loss. They are a family of 5, their kids are ages 12, 15 and 8 and it is horribly sad.

If anyone is interested in donating anything to the family, email me at mizkylie@gmail.com. They especially need your prayers. Prayers of gratitude that this family is still alive and well, and prayers for their comfort and to help them to get back on their feet.

Here is the link to the news story about their home.

Everyone hug your loved ones and be grateful this Christmas.

My two women....

It all began with a friend request...... This woman named Theresa, requested to be my friend on Facebook, I saw that we had no friends in common and since she had a profile picture of herself as a baby, I grew suspicious (of what, I do not know?) and I denied her request, just like that. I had forgotten all about it until a few days later, when I saw I had another request, from the same woman. I saw this time that she was also friends with my uncle, thinking it was another one of his new girlfriends, I denied it again. Little by little, she was becoming friends with my sister, my aunt, my cousin. I decided I would finally try to figure out who she is, so I asked my sister. My sisters' reply was, "She was a friend of mom." That is all it took. I requested her friendship immediately after that and I felt bad that I had denied her a few times, but I also felt thankful for her persistence.

Theresa and I started chatting via Facebook and "liking" each others posts. I was introduced to her daughter, Leilani, that is only a few months younger than I am and I instantly liked her as well. We quickly discovered one-another's love for books and started reading the same books together.


My mother as a bridesmais at Theresa's wedding, July 1974

These two lovely people are meant to be in my life. I can feel my mother pulling us closer to each other as we get to know each other. They send me cute, homemade things with sweet notes attached. I just cannot say how thankful I am that we have found each other and are able to have a really great friendship. I enjoy hearing stories about my mother and although we live 2,000 miles away from each other, we have a special bond and commonality, my mom.

So, thank you, mom, for bringing us together. Thank you for being a great mother from where you sit now. I hope I am making you happy with the choices I make and how I raise your grandchildren. I believe I am. I love you.

Home

Tyson and I took the kids to Utah for Thanksgiving. We were able to visit for 9 days!!! I was able to visit SO many friends and family and we had a great Thanksgiving. Utah was so beautiful and since we do not get snow in Vegas, this is what was in store for us when we arrived.....



I also was able to see a bunch of my friends from high school. We use to always have a Christmas party and get together and have dinner. I was able to pull this off after 8 years of neglect. It was SO FUN!! I feel old now and cannot believe it has been 10 years since we all graduated, time flies!!

I cannot tell you how nice it is to be surrounded by our close family and friends for the holidays. I hope everyone's Thanksgiving was filled with love and family!! XOXO

A few pics...

My amazing friend, Kara, did a photoshoot with my family while we were in Utah over Thanksgiving. Here a just a couple pics of the kiddos that I got from her today! :)

W, X, Y & Z

W. I am thankful for my WONDERFUL friends!!

X. Did I already say SpanX?? :)

Y. I am thankful for my YOUTH.

Z. Ya got me, I can't think of anything with a Z!!

I know this was a sad ABC thankful list, but I just had to finish it!! :)

Thankful ..

R. I am thankful for REST, when I get it. :)

S. I am thankful for SPANX. If you don't know what those are, google them!! :)

T. I know it is sad, but I am thankful for my TV.

U. UNIQUENESS. I love finding unique qualities in people.

V. VACATIONS. I have been lucky enough to get a couple of fun vacations this year. One by myself and one with the family. I am very thankful for those opportunities.

STILL Thankful....

L. I am thankful for LIFE.

M. I am thankful to be a MOTHER.

N. I am thankful for NAPS.

O. I am thankful for OLIVES. (I love olives)

P. I am thankful for the Power of PRAYER.

Q. I am thankful for QUIET time.

Lia Sophia

I am trying to start my own Lia Sophia business. There are a few reasons why. First, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE their jewelry. It is such good quality and they have a lifetime guarantee. The jewelry is gorgeous and I would never sell something I didn't completely believe in. Second, I need to focus my energy on something I love to do and that brings in some extra income.

There are SO many benefits with Lia Sophia. The hostesses are treated SO well, when you host a party, you get anything in the catalogue up to $100 for $15~!! There are tons more amazing benefits to hosting a party. After I hosted, I decided I really want to start selling it. There are a few stipulations, the big one is that I have to make $600 in sales. I had a party last night and it lasts until Saturday night, I am still way below my amount and I want to get the word out! In case any of my readers want to buy something from Lia Sophia, you can by going to http://www.liasophia.com/sites/charliemelvin
and type my name is as your hostess. I hope I can raise the sales because I really want to do this and have my own Lia Sophia dream team!! Wish me luck!! :)

Thankful.... K

K. I am thankful for KISSES!! I realize I am completely biased, but The Mister and I kiss perfectly. We both have full lips and our kisses fit just perfectly. Kai and Ashtyn inherited my lips and they give the cutest kisses too.

A kiss can make everything right with the world. One of the things I love about Tyson is that no matter how mad we are at each other, he will ALWAYS kiss me goodbye. He ALWAYS tells me he loves me, every time we talk to each other. Even when we are fighting, he will still say, "Love you, BYE!" I love it because it really makes me secure in our relationship.

I love that every time I leave the house, or the room for that matter, Ashtyn will ALWAYS kiss me. Kai is getting to the age where it is a little embarrassing to kiss me in front of his friends, I understand, so we have a cute thing we do that my dad taught me, we hold hands and when you squeeze three times, that means, "I love you."

KISSES ARE THE BEST!! :)

Stupid Insecurity....

Everyone has insecurities. Mine is just more obvious than others. My BIG insecurity (pardon the pun) is my weight. Ugg.... I joke about my weight to people mostly because I try to "beat them to the punch" type of thing. It can be really frustrating because my whole life, even after I had my son, I have been TINY!! NO bigger than a size 5.

After I had Ashtyn, in 2005, we moved to the desert. I had no friends and no family. I really was a slave to my house because I had nothing to do. That is when I started packing on the weight. I started losing it, and then I quit smoking. THAT will make you gain weight because you substitute the cigarettes for food or snacking.



I know that I am beautiful and I am very confident in my personality and how I interact with others, however, I feel I would love to feel better physically and look better for my hubby. He SO deserves to have the hot wife that he married! I don't have a desire to be rail thin, I just want to be healthy and look healthy and tone. I can't show off my body anyways because of these Jesus Jammies I now wear!;) LOL I did try the HCG diet and lost 1 lb a day, but I did research on it and I DON'T RECOMMEND IT!!! It is horrible for your body and it changes all of your hormone levels. Also, you learn NOTHING about healthy eating habits or exercise. It is only a quick fix and you will gain all the weight right back if you don't make a drastic change in your habits afterwards. So, I am all about doing this the right way and keeping it off!!

I came across a website called, Groupon. I am still learning about it, but every week or so, they sponsor a company and give a huge discount for an item or a service. Today's discount is for a Boot Camp here in Vegas that is usually $380 for 20 classes. They have it on sale for today only at 92% off!! $29 will get me 20 classes of hardcore working out!! I am SO excited, my in-laws knew how much I wanted it, so it is part of my Christmas present!:) I really would love a work-out partner and some much needed motivation, for that, all I have to do is look at my friend Kami's gorgeous pictures only months after giving birth to her second child!! Kami, you are a rockstar!! :)

Thankful..... J

(Don't I look GORGEOUS in these jammies?? ) LOL

J. I am thankful for my JAMMIES!! I LOVE a new pair of pajama pants ANY day! Especially this time of year when its cold outside. I would much rather it be cold than hot, because I love to snuggle up with anything. A good pair of Jammies is SO nice to have, it's a wonderful comfort.

**if anyone wants to go ahead and tell my hubby to look at this post, that's be great, you know, because Christmas is coming!;)

Thankful .. I

I. I am very thankful for the gift of INSIGHT. I feel I can, at times, be pretty insightful. I also LOVE gaining insight from others on people and situations. I think having this ability helps me in many situations and I do not take it for granted.

Meet.... "Torry"

I MUST write about our new addition to the Schrader household. "Torry" joined our family on November 6, 2010. Our beloved F150 had over 120,000 miles on him and was such a gas hog. We LOVED him, but, it was the more sensible thing to do, to have him traded in. We are a one-car family, so our car needs to be VERY reliable and we can't be worried about break-downs and all of that nonsense that comes along with owning and older vehicle. We took our truck into CarMax, hoping we could get a crossover SUV for our family.

Then, we met Torry. A 2006 Pontiac Torrent with only 37,000 miles!! We test drove it and it drives SO smooth and has leather interior and a GPS navigation/DVD player/new stereo system/sunroof.... the works. We fell in love. Ashtyn? Well, lets just say it took her a while to warm up to Torry.

When we were doing th paperwork to trade in our truck and drive Torry home, Ashtyn was literally HUGGING the truck goodbye. She would pout and say, "I'm going to miss Beast." Her sadness did not last long because she LOVES Torry. It's a nice addition, we've always wanted a smaller SUV and needed one. We got a sweet deal on it and can't wait to take it to Utah for our Thanksgiving trip!:)

Thankful H

I am thankful for, my HOME. Anyone can live in a house, but to live in a HOME is a very special thing. It is the little things that make a house, a home. It's those tender moments with your spouse. It is your children laughing. It is the arguments and the make-ups. It is the craziness and also the humility. It is the prayers and the tears, and the hugs, and the kisses, and the yelling, and the wrestling.

My home is my safe haven and where the three people who make up my whole heart reside, and who can live without their heart?? :)

Thankful... G

G. I am thankful for the GOSPEL in my life. I know what it is like not to have it in my life and I would much prefer it. Two enthusiastic thumbs up!!:)

Thankful... F

F. I am SO thankful for my Family. My sisters and their families are so amazing. I have been able to get close to my sisters this year and have been able to visit with them 4 separate times this year!! Recently, we went to Denver with the whole family to see them and it was such a great time. My sisters mean a lot to me and I think that the more time I can spend with them and that my children can spend together is PRICELESS!! Love you guys!

Thankful...D & E

D. I am SERIOUSLY thankful for my Dvr!! It records my shows so I can skip the commercials and just watch what I want!! LOVE IT!!

E. I am SO thankful for my Extended family! They help me out in so many ways and are always there for me when I need them! They are the best family I could ask for and I love them a plethera! ;)

Thankful....C

C. I am so thankful for Children's laughter. What a dull life I would have without it. When any child laughs, it makes my heart happy.

Thankful ABC's

A. I am grateful for Ashtyn. This little girl is sassy, loving, fun, and outgoing and my LOVE. She is SO loving and I am forever thankful that my family has been blessed with her in it.

B. I am thankful for the Beauty that I can find in each person I get to know. If we just search for it, we can always find beauty in somebody.

Kai-Kai, Little Guy

8 years ago on Monday, I was nineteen years old. And, I had my first child. Before Kai, I was a very messed up teenager, to say the least. I was doing a lot of things I shouldn't have. Kai was my saving grace. My Angel. Everyday I am grateful for him saving me. He doesn't even realize how much, one day I will tell him. There is a song that reminds me of him. It makes me cry every time I hear it. Those close to me know what the song is. Happy Birthday Kai. I love you more than any words could ever describe.

Spitfire

Ashtyn may look like Tyson, but she acts just like ME!! The other day, her Primary teacher and I were chatting on the phone and she told me a story about my dear, sweet little girl. It goes like this;

Every Sunday, the Primary teachers pick someone who has been extra good and they turn off the lights and shine a flashlight above them and tell them why they are loved. Well, there was a new teacher who did not know you are suppose to shine the flashlight above them, not in their faces.

The teacher had chosen a little girl sitting next to Ashtyn and she ended up shining the flashlight directly into Ashtyn's face. To which Ashtyn yells out,

"Hey Lady, could ya stop shining that light in my face already?!"

I love her!!

Sometimes I wish..............

That my mom was here and she could hug and kiss my kids and play with them and love on them. And.... babysit them! :)

Ashtyn's Song

Ashtyn loves Kindergarten SO much! She asked me to show her video to everyone. Click on this, "Kindergarten Song" and she sings it and does the actions ALL DAY! I thought it was cute, so I uploaded it to YouTube. Here is the link...

It reminds me of a song I use to sing in church about Noah's Ark!

Moments of emotion....

Kai is turning 8 years old soon. Very soon. Too soon. Yesterday, I had one of those moments. You know, the one where you realize just how fast your kids are growing up and your head spins and you cry a little because you feel like time is your enemy??

I called Deseret Book to see if they had any "imperfect" scripture quads to buy for Kai's 8th birthday. Well, they did. I drove there to pick up his new scriptures. They are beautiful. Black leather with gold trim. I had his name engraved and while I waited, I wanted to pick out the perfect scripture case. I saw this orange one from the corner of my eye in all of its glory, I had to have it for him!


Those of you who know Kai well, know that he LOVES the little things. He is so excited for these new scriptures. He knows he is getting them since it is a tradition in our family when you turn 8 to receive them. He has not, however, seen these...yet.


Anyway, I bought the scripture case and as soon as I was handed the newly engraved scriptures, I lost it. Tears just started rolling down my face. They are even as I type this. What a baby I am.

I just am at a loss at how much Kai has matured and just totally impressed me. He is so smart and he has such a big heart. He is getting baptized on October 9th by Tyson's dad. I couldn't be more proud. It will be a bitter-sweet day for me.

Kai_Kai

 

Strip Virgins....

Uncle Ronny and all the kids

I know, the title isn't what is it sounds like. Tyson's brother Ronny, and his wife, Michelle and their three kids, Aiden, Jackson, and Vala came to Vegas last weekend. It was Michelle's first time here!!

Naturally, we had to go to the strip. We took all 4 kids,, (Kai was in Salt Lake) and we parked at the MGM and made our trek down the strip stopping at M&M World, Coke World, The Bellagio fountains and Bellagio gardens, then ending it with a stop at Ceasar's Palace. The kids were AMAZINGLY well behaved and it was a really hot day. We even got to see a bum laying on the cement while EMT's tried to figure out what was wrong with her, it wouldn't have been a genuine Vegas experience without seeing that.

M&M World



New York, New York

Aiden, Ashtyn & Vala @ MGM



At Coke World, we met the Coca-Cola Polar bear and he was the COOLEST! The kids loved him and he was very playful and fun. We also did a taste test of 16 different Coke products from around the world. There were 2 that were HORRIBLE!! There was a mint flavored one that tasted like mouthwash and one called "Beverly" from Italy that made us all gag. It was a fun experience though and I think it's a "must do" when you visit the strip.













We hit up the Bellagio fountains and afterwards, went inside to show them the Bellagio Gardens. They were the best part. Michelle absolutely LOVED the fountains and it was such a beautiful day outside. The Bellagio is one of the nicer casino's, so it was a nice break from the chaos of the Vegas Strip.








The weekend was a blast and it was a fun family visit. We were bummed that Kai wasn't with us. Next time for sure! ;)