Our trip to Boise

A very tired Kristi on Christmas morning.
Olivia woke me up before I was ready. But
then again, who is ever ready to be woken
up on Christmas morning?







Garrett was all too ready for Olivia to wake him up.
He has been waiting for Christmas for quite some
time now.










Where did Matt go?







Here's the early bird! Doesn't she look cute?











Olivia's favorite stocking stuffer is her own
can of easy cheese. It is a treat. I don't buy
it any other time of the year. I mean...Santa
doesn't buy it any other time of the year!


Below are the kids with their cousins, waiting
patiently to open presents.

Our Faux Christmas

Friday, December 19th, the kids pestered Matt all day to let them open their Christmas presents before we left for Boise. I went shopping and when I got home, Matt said that we were going out to eat. He took us to the Mandarin House. Our Christmas Eve tradition is to go to Chinese food. This was the first sign. The second was that after dinner, Matt took us to Santa Claus Lane. A neighborhood that goes all out in decorating their homes. Another Christmas Eve tradition. When we got home, Matt took out his Bible and read the Christmas story from Luke 2. Another Christmas Eve tradition. All of this to say that the kids won out. We
opened our gifts 6 days before Christmas! an you believe it? I still
can't!

Ladies Christmas Tea

On Tuesday, December 16, the UBC Women's Ministries held their 4th annual Ladies Christmas Tea. We had it at the Rosewood Reception Center. It was beautiful. Some ladies volunteered to hostess a table. They brought their dishes and decorations from home. Each table was unique. It was a lot of fun. We feasted on tea sanwiches, truffles, biscotti, and cream puffs.

Our entertainment for the evening was the Trouver singers from Highland High School. They were amazing. Their music filled the
reception hall. I was amazing. I was thrilled to hear them sing the traditional Christmas songs that tell of the true meaning of Christmas. The birth of our Savior, Jesus.

A Long Time...

I know it has been a long time since I have posted on this blog, and this is going to be short.

We were watching "Kung Fu Panda" last night, and one of the characters said, "Yesterday is history, Tomorrow is a mystery, but Today is a gift. That is why it is called 'Present.'" Even though it is just a line in a movie, I think it is a pretty profound statment. We need to make the most of every minute of our lives. We need to live our lives to the glory of God.

On Christmas Day, my uncle, Jim Barnes, my birthmother's brother, went to meet Jesus. He was very close to my birthmother, always there for her. He was the only uncle that knew about me before I was born. He knew Jesus Christ as his Savior. It is because of that that we can have peace about his death. This is why we must live every minute of this gift, this present, this today, to it's fullest. We never know when God is going to call us home, if we know Him, and we must be ready.

I love you, Uncle Jim. I am privileged to have known you.

Baby Shower Cake

This is a Beatrix Potter cake that I made for a baby shower at church.

Trick-or-treating with the Davenports

On October 30th, we carved pumpkins. We have learned, living in Idaho, that you don't carve your pumpkins too early. They shrivel when it freezes outside. The kids always look forward to carving pumpkins.

This year, Matt and I dressed up as Dorothy and the Cowardly Lion from the Wizard of Oz. Garrett was "Slash" from Guns and Roses, and Olivia was a rock star. We had a good time at the Fall Festival that our church has and then trick-or-treating.

Fall leaves

Yesterday, the kids and I helped our neighbor bag his leaves. Garrett and Olivia decided to bury themselves in leaves. They had fun.

Matt's 40th "Surprise" Party

Matt was not surprised at his surprise party. He did, however, enjoy himself. We had a great time with all of the guests. Both sets of our parents came and it was really nice to have them here.

I am glad that he had a good time. He is a wonderful husband and I just wanted to celebrate him.

Women of Faith 2008

This past weekend, I went to Portland, Oregon for a Women of Faith conference with 7 other ladies. The pictures above are Mt. Hood, me and my dear mother-in-law, Sue, and then Tina, Anita, and Sheila. These pics were taken at Salty's, a very nice restaurant on the Columbia River.

While we were there, Sheila, and another lady, Jolene, decided that it was time for Sue to have a make-over. It brought out the "feisty little hottie inside" of her! I just had to take a picture of this Starbucks. It was the coolest Starbucks I had ever seen. Then, there is the annual photo at Multinomah Falls. It is just beautiful.

A Day at the Park

One Sunday afternoon, Matt decided to take Olivia to the park across the street, and teach her how to take pictures using different photography techniques. They took around 80 pictures that afternoon. Olivia really enjoyed the one on one time with her daddy.

Garrett's 13th Birtday party

So, our first born is turning 13 this Wednesday. Where those years went, I do not know. I am thankful for a son that is tender and loving as well as full of humor. He is a blessing.

Matt was quick to point out who was taller in the picture of Garrett and I
in the picture with the cake. Yes, he
is about 1 inch taller than me.

We had his party this past Saturday. Our friends, the Pettits, are back from their mission trip in China, so we had the pleasure of having them at the party. We also had the Lemon kids and the Deagle boys. It was a lot of fun.

It rained really hard on Saturday. When it rains, the park across the street becomes a river. So, the kids all went over there after lunch and played in the park. I think they had a great time.

Garrett, Dad and I love you very much. We pray that you will become a young man whose heart's desire is to honor and glorify God with your life.
Love, Mom

Finished

O.k., I ran the Poky "Run the Gap" 1/2 marathon today. I was early to the buses, that drove us to the start line. I sat and talked to the bus driver for a while. While driving to the start line, we saw some of the marathon runners, who had started 2 hours earlier, run by.

At the start line, when they fired the gun, about 400 people started running. I ran the first mile in 8 minutes, the first 7 in 71 min., but from there, I struggled. At mile nine, I was ready to quit. Thankfully, I have told all of you that I am doing this and that held me accountable to finishing. I am a woman of my word. I have to do what I say I am going to. My legs were cramping. The most I had run on the road before today was 8 miles. Other than that, the rest of my training was on the treadmill which has a soft deck. At mile 11, I wanted to walk so bad. I kept telling myself that if I jogged, I would get to the finish line a lot faster than if I walked. The last 1/4 mile, there was a bad head wind. But the finish line was just ahead and I pushed through. I did walk here and there throughout the 13.1 miles, but ran for the most part. I haven't seen the official times, but according to my watch, I did it in 2 hr. 25 min. That is actually a good time for me. I received a finishers medal, which is nice.

I am glad to say that I have done this, but I don't think I will do it again. I think I will stick to the 10Ks next summer! Thanks for your support and for holding me accountable to this endeavor.

Kristi's 35th Birthday

I celebrated my 35th birthday this past Wednesday. It was a great day. The kids were done with school by 1:30 p.m. Matt brought me a huge balloon bouquet and this beautiful cake that I had requested. It was SO SWEET! It was a wonderful day. I feel so great at 35 that the age doesn't bother me at all! I feel like I am in the best shape of my life and am set to run the Pocatello 1/2 marathon tomorrow morning. I am SO excited. I will let you all know how I did, if I live through it! Just kidding, mom!