Alex the Kitchen Boss

Alex loves watching Buddy the Cake Boss on TLC. When he saw he had a new show called the Kitchen Boss he wanted to record it. The first episode they made a dish that Alex really wanted to try. We tweaked it a little bit and ended up with Eggplant Parmesan and Roasted Asparagus. To my surprise the boys ate it and loved it. Who knew that I needed the magic of Buddy to get my kids to eat?

The chef of the night

Bowling

Alex and Logan were tired of being cooped up so we set off for a bowling adventure. We ended up having a ton of fun. I told Alex he was too big for the ramp so he had to bowl normally but I still let him have the bumpers. The boys had so much fun and it was nice to spend time with the boys.

Pinewood Derby

Alex participated in his first Pinewood Derby last night. He and his dad went to Hobby Lobby and bought a kit to make it easier to build. They enjoyed all the painting and gluing it took to get his car just right. His car looked cool and it even won a few races. The Pinewood Derby I would say was a success. He also earned his Wolf badge that night. Alex loves scouts!

Alex's Birthday Party

Alex wanted to have a nerf war for his birthday party. We reserved the church and invited 6 crazy, nerf gun tottin' boys to come play. They were each given a few chairs, blankets and tables to build their forts. We tried to create a fun obstacle course and let them just have fun. I think all of the boys loved it. Who wouldn't love being given permission to run with guns and fire at people? Overall, I think the party was a hit. We hope you had a great birthday Alex.


The fort building

Dad was the biggest kid there

Alex in motion

The gang

Farewell Sasha

Alex has had 2 pet mice for a little over a year, Sasha and Lilly. He has loved them and played with them often. A couple of months ago he noticed a lump on Sasha's leg. Andy took her in to the vet and discovered she had cancer. It finally was getting big and we knew we would need to put her down. Alex had a really hard time with this but knew it was what was best for Sasha.

Emma's Headstone

Thanks to a lot of prayers we were able to get Emma's headstone in when we wanted. I had called the cemetery the week before and they said it was just too wet to be able to do it. We needed a good week of freezing temperatures to harden the ground. The weather cooperated and the ground was perfect to put it in on the day we wanted, her due date.
When I was designing the headstone I knew I wanted a picture of Christ I just wasn't sure of which one. I kept coming back to one that I bought before Alex was born and that we have had in the nursery for both boys. This picture just felt right. I knew she was in heaven enjoying life and this picture portrayed that perfectly. I love how it turned out.
It was a peaceful feeling to go to the cemetery and have everything completed. I will forever be grateful for the sacrifice of others who made this happen. We truly love you and are so eternally grateful for you!!



We each picked out a flower we wanted to give to Emma.

Happy Birthday Alex!!!

Wow where has the time gone? How is it that Alex is 9 years old? He is such a smart and funny kid. We love having him in our family. He was lucky to have 3 birthday parties in just 2 days. The first we had in the morining before school. He got Lucky Charms for his birthday breakfast and a sketch book from his dad. Then after school we headed to SLC for a party with Andy's side of the family. Then on Saturday we did a birthday party with my side. He was spoiled rotten but he deserves it. He is an awesome kid!!!


A b-day present from the Neu Grandma

Birthday morning

The Ras fam b-day cake

Beware of an Alex with a lighter



His pizza cake

Rock the Halls

Alex was able to Rock the Halls on his birthday. What is this you ask? Alex's school does a program called advanced reading. They earn points for every book they read and take a test on. Logan thought it would be fun for Alex to have a birthday baloon when he was rocking the halls so we stopped and got one on our way. When I got out of the car I held onto the balloon while Logan got out. All of a sudden I feel something and look up to see the balloon floating skyward. Apparently the store hadn't tied the ribbon too tight. You can see in the pics the ribbon that the balloon was tied to around his neck.
As we sat waiting we heard the announcement over the PA system to have all the kids go to one end on the school that had earned this right. Then a few minutes later all of the other kids were allowed to stand in the halls to cheer them on. The school mascot is the bulldog so of course they played the song Who let the dogs out? It was really cool to hear all the cheering and the nmoise for these kids. It was a lot of fun and I am so proud of Alex. He worked really hard to earn these AR points. Great job Bugs!!!

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Emma's Challenge

Tonight I will complete Emma's challenge. I am so grateful I had the feeling to start on this challenge before Emma's death. I have found myself yearning for the spirit of this marvelous book. One night I stayed up late to watch a movie with my hubby. By the time we were done and heading to bed it was midnight. I was exhausted but I couldn't fall asleep. I turned on the light read my 2 chapters and then laid back down. I quickly fell asleep. I know my soul needed the spirit of that book.
Just as this challenge has been a spiritual journey it has also been a journey of healing. As I read of those who have gone before and all they had to go through I realized I could be that tough. Because I knew it wasn't just me carrying this load. I was being helped on my journey by my Savior, by my friend. He wants me to be happy. He didn't do this to make me sad. he did this to make me strong. To make me yearn for that peace that only He could provide.
I have learned what a difficult thing the atonement had to be for my Heavenly Father. In a small way I have given of my child so that she could have a better life. One free from all the ugliness and hatred of a cruel world. That is the same thing my Savior did for me. Someday I will be able to cross to the other side and see my baby girl just waiting for me and welcoming me home with the Savior by her side. I just hope that I am worthy of being in both of their presences.
I am not sure of who all took on this challenge. If you did I would love to hear your stories. I would love to hear of your journey and what you learned, if it isn't too personal. I want to again say thank you to everyone for all of the prayers on my family's behalf. It truly is the faith and prayers of others that is helping us on this journey of discovery, healing and hope.

Welcome to Holland!!

I am not sure if I have posted this before but this is a great story. Very few of us have our lives go exactly as we have planned. This a great reminder to all of us to enjoy the journey no matter where it takes us.
WELCOME TO HOLLAND
by
Emily Perl Kingsley.

c1987 by Emily Perl Kingsley. All rights reserved

...When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.

After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."

"Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."

But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.

The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.

So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.

But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."

And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away... because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.

But... if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland.

2011

We always celebrate New Year's with the East Coast so that the kids can have fun and still get to bed early. Other than banging on pots and pans at 10 it was a low key day at our house.