Curfew Time!

I just got my hair colored and cut! This is as brown as I have ever been!

I think I am getting pretty good at writing once a week!!

Scott and I haven't felt a need in the past to give our kids a curfew but today we had to lay down the law! I don't think I have the energy to be a mom of teenagers! I don't have the stamina to stay awake all night waiting for them to return home. Both Emma and Tanner had different activities to attend last night. I thought Emma would be home around 10:30 but around 11:30 when she hadn't showed up I told Scott to call her and just then she actually called us. I heard Scott say no you can come home now and I could hear her trying to argue the point with Scott but he held firm and soon afterward she showed up. I had told Tanner earlier in the day that I wanted him home by 11:30 but as soon as Emma showed up I feel sound asleep and woke up in the morning and asked Scott if he knew if his son got home last night? He had the same answer that I did...we didn't know! I went into the kitchen and saw his shoes in the middle of the floor and therefore knew that he indeed had made it home but at what time??? When I talked to Tanner this morning about it he said he got home some time after midnight but didn't know what time for sure.

I remember thinking that when I was growing up that my mom and dad where dumb for giving me a curfew my dad use to tell me I had to be home by midnight, I use to beg and plead with him to let me stay out later and all he would say is there is nothing good that goes on after midnight therefore Krys you have to be home before that. I felt it so unfair because of course they allowed Gary Jr. to stay out much later. I still don't understand why Gary was allowed to stay out later when nothing good happens after midnight but now I understand that nothing good happens after midnight!!! Especially when the parents can't keep their eyes open after 11:30!

The weather has been so beautiful here in Minnesota!! For the last couple of days it has been close to 60 degrees! I am looking forward to a little sunshine...my mom thinks Elle and I are lacking in vitamin D I am not sure why I just remember she said so. I think the whole state of MN could use a little more D myself! We will probably get to Utah this week and then the weather will be terrible there and wonderful here :) Oh well we will feel like sunshine in our souls!

Fun Times As a MOM!!

I am working on Emmy Kate's baby quilt!


Well...I went to Tanner's last parent teacher conference a couple of nights ago. I definitely will not miss going to them!! He usually always gets very good reports from the teachers but once in a while a teacher will not like him because he knows what to much for his own good (that means he knows more then the teacher or will disagree with a teacher and they don't like that!). We have always tried to teach Tanner that if he doesn't agree with a teacher or has a different opinion then he needs to be respectful in expressing those feelings but once in a while I think a teacher can become very offended by his opinions because he has a very strong way of swaying others to take his side....that is why he loved debate so much! Oh well now his college professors will have to deal with that wonderful personality trait of his I wish them luck!



Emma on the other hand notified me last week that she had absolutely no desire to graduate from high school! I am not quite sure how to deal with her lack of caring about school except to just love her. I hope that this is a stage (although she seems to have been stuck in this stage for 3 years now) that she will out grow very quickly. My only leverage I feel I have is her desire to get her drivers license. I told her I would not pay for drivers ed unless she brings her grades up because I will not pay for insurance unless she can get the good student discount!! Emma always has a different COW (crush of the week) which is fun to hear her talk about which boy she is finding interesting at the moment. Emma and Edna go down to the subway downtown every week to do homework (which I am sure is not done at all) to watch a couple of cute peanut butter and jelly boys (their code for hot guys) who work in the Karols Korn stand. They come home and report each week what was said and each week they get a little bit more bold and the conversations seem to get longer and longer with these two guys. I wonder what the boys are thinking about these two crazy girls who have taken an interest in them. Isn't it fun to be a teenager! I love Emma!!!!



Elle is doing great she too is absolutely boy crazy!! I don't think the boys she is eyeing are even aware of girls at this point but that doesn't stop her from going goo goo gaga over them. She is almost as tall as me and Emma. Another inch and she will have us beat. She seems to be controlling her roller coaster emotions a little bit better lately but she is still known to have great outbursts of anger and annoyance with Tanner and at times me. I just keep trying to teach her how to express her feelings without blowing up at any little thing and she seems to be doing a bit better with it. I have another 7 wonderful years with her and I am sure it will be pure joy!!!



I sent off Katies special gift I made her!!! Finally I can talk about it. I made my first quilt!! It was so much fun to make and I have started a new hobby!! I love the fabrics and designs that you can create with quilting. It is so relaxing to just sew and create something so beautiful. I love it! I have my next 4 quilts already planned out in my mind. My problem is finding the time to dedicate to it. I wish I could work on it daily but that is just not possible with everything going on in my life. The girls and I are going to Utah over spring break to see the new baby and attend the blessing. We are very excited to see our brand new niece!!! And to see everyone else too.

March Madness

My great D.I. Team!!

Hello everyone out there in blogger land! I have had a crazy week and am so thankful it is over. I have been helping with the D.I. (Destination Imagination) program in Elle's school as a team coach. When I signed up for this position in Oct. I thought it was a one day 2 hours a week deal but as we have gotten closer and closer to the tournament date March 7th it has started to consume all my "extra" time (if there is such thing) since January we have been practicing 4 days a week 2 hours each day. I am burned out!! But it is finally over Hurray!!! As a team we did terrific. It was an interesting journey working with 7 very strong and different personalities but they were all able to learn how to compromise and come together in the end and it was a very positive experience.



I am done with Katie's baby gift!! I will be putting it in the mail tomorrow. I can't yet revile what it is because it is a surprise and I don't want her reading this and finding out before she actually gets it. Next week I will post pictures of what I did. Just know that I found a new hobby and loved making it!!! I am going to start making another one tomorrow that is how much I enjoyed doing it. I love this new hobby.



We are almost to spring...if someone would just tell the weather man to quit sending snow and cold our way I would be most happy! We had a beautiful week last week with highs at 50 degrees! But today it snowed :( at least at this point in the year we know that the snow will melt instead of be on the ground for another 5 months :)



I hope to have news next week about Tanner and school acceptance or rejections (we hope it is the first) I will be making a trip out west to good'ole Utah the last week of March for spring break. I think I will be taking the girls with me. I can't wait to see my new beautiful baby niece Emmy Kate!!! Well I must run...until next time :)

A Night of Fun and Family and Friends!

Emma Kate took a few minutes out from reading one of her MANY vampire novels to enjoy FHE

Elle and Caiden hanging out during Family Home Evening.

Heather, Krystine and Caiden sharing fun times!

Bali, Elle's friend is writing down goals during FHE.

Tanner's object lesson involved tying Elle up with sins.

Elle had a great time trying to do things while all tied up!

early morning seminary and snow daze!

This is my 5 maybe 6 or 7 loads of clean clothes waiting for me to fold and put away! I should get off the computer and do that instead of blogging but blogging is so much more fun!!

Oh my gosh!! I finally have a minute to sit down and write! My life has been on over-drive for the last few weeks. I need a vacation!

I wanted to share a story about Tanner and Elle. They both make me laugh very hard (Emma does to but mostly in a quite way). Okay so the kids (Tanner and Emma) get up around 5:15 every morning to attend seminary (youth church class, for those who aren't familiar with it) so they can leave at 6 am and pick other kids up and make it on time 6:10 until 7:o5. So Tanner came bursting into my bedroom yelling at me first thing this morning dripping wet and wearing only his towel. "Mom, Mom! Where are my clean under ware and an undershirt???? (I have been so busy that I only wash clothes, forget about folding and putting away...besides my kids are very capable of doing their own laundry if it gets bad enough!!)...anyways I did have a load of clean whites sitting in a basket on my floor waiting for me to get to (it is still on the floor as I write but I would rather write). I thought he was using a urgent voice and seemed very annoyed. I told him to calm down and where he could find his clean undies on his way out of the room I heard him bang on Emma's bedroom door she moaned from the other side and he let out a sigh of exasperation that I am sure the whole house could hear. As I lay there I thought it felt very early- probably too early! I glanced at my clock and it was only 4:50 in the morning! well even for Tanners standards that is just way to early to get up and ready for seminary. I walked down stairs to his room and said through the door, "Tanner do you realize what time it is?? " He replied "Yes mom why do you think I am freaking out? It is almost time to leave" "No Tanner it is not...it is only 4:50 in the morning you are freaking out for no reason!" Are you sure mom?" "Yes, Tanner" "No are you sure?" "Yes, tanner" then a huge long sigh rolled out of his mouth much for relief that he wasn't going to be late and the other because he realized that he was CRAZY!! I went and got back into bed (I had another hour before I got up to go walking) but sadly Tanner had ruined mine and Emma's peaceful sleep and slumber neither one of us was able to fall back to sleep! Thanks for the laugh Tanner!!! the more I think about his rushed, annoyed, and impatient morning the funnier it becomes to me!

Last week we had a snow day except that it didn't start snowing until about 1:00 pm. The school district thought that the snow storm was going to begin much earlier so they cancelled school for the day. The two older kids got up to go to seminary that morning but Emma (the great detective she is) found out school and seminary had been cancelled due to the snow storm that hadn't even arrived....I told the two kids to go back to bed. Elle had slept through this whole conversation (she doesn't get up until 7:30). Well I sleep in as did Tanner and Emma (they always close their bedroom doors so Elle didn't see them sleeping). Well Elle woke up around 9:00 (school starts at 9) and she quietly went about her business of playing on the computer. Around Oreo (the dog) started running down the hall to my bedroom it was 9;30 by this time I had gotten up and started walking down the hall as oreo and Elle both approached me she was running as fast as she could on her tippy toes to try to stop Oreo. She was very startled to see me coming down the hall and ran into my arms and said "Hi Mommy!" I asked her what she was doing because she was acting very strange. She said nothing and tried to act normal. She followed me out to the kitchen and we started talking and then she quietly asked me if she could miss school all day. I told her school was cancelled because it was a snow day (there was absolutely no snow falling at this time) and she didn't believe me. I told her again and she still didn't believe me. She asked me why the other kids had gone to school I told her if she went and checked on them she would find both of them fast asleep in their beds. finally she confessed to me that she woke up and thought that I was just sleeping in and if she kept quite enough that she would get to stay home because she would miss the bus and then it would be much to late for me to take her to school! She was trying to run after Oreo so she wouldn't lick me and wake me up! Elle makes me laugh so hard!