CHRISTMAS...update!

WOW the past few days have flown by! So much has happened and so much to catch up on, I hardly know where to begin. The few days before Christmas I was busy wrapping and delivering all the Christmas goodies to friends and family. Tyson was the one who delivered the gifts and he was SO happy to go to each door and see the peoples reaction when they opened the door. I could tell that he was really in the spirit of giving, and it was AWESOME!

Christmas eve fell on a Sunday and it couldn't have been a more perfect day. Our Sunday service was beautiful, filled with glorious music, and messages that spoke of service. It was a great way to start of the holiday season. After church we headed down to Cardston to Tyler's sisters house to gather with his family for the evening. We had a wonderful ham dinner with all the fixins. The kids (cousins) had fun playing together and the adults enjoyed visiting and playing cards. It was a great evening! Later we went to my parents house to get the kids settled down for the evening. They were very excited and could hardly go to sleep..well at least Tyson was having a hard time. After the kids were tucked into bed and we were sure they were asleep SANTA came to deliver the presents. It was great to sit and reflect with the glow of the Christmas tree lights. I was just as excited as the kids!

Christmas morning came fast and I couldn't wait for the kids to wake up! They slept in until 8:30! It was so fun to see the excitement in their eyes. Tyson was so captivated by the magic of Santa and all that he brought him. It really was a great Christmas!



Tyler surprised me with a PINK Ipod Nano. I was totally surprised that he bought me it, because for the past 2 years I have asked for one and didn't get one...so the year I don't ask for one I get it. Imagine that!

The rest of the day was spent with family enjoying a wonderful Christmas dinner made by my mom. She is the BEST cook! You couldn't even tell that the chicken we had wasn't turkey! After having full tummies we just hung out and enjoyed each others company, the kids played with their new toys, and everyone was happy.

Here are a few pictures of the kids opening their presents.

Tyson got this bright yellow hummer from Grandpa & Grandma Jensen. He was SO excited. He had to wait 8 hours for the batteries to charge before he could use it though...that took some patience.

Tyler also got a remote control vehicle. His was a black Silverado truck. The boys were in heaven. After they got them all charged up it was time to go in the back yard and give them a try. Tyson caught on quickly and the two of them had a GREAT time!

Here is Tyson opening up his Transformers. He was ONE HAPPY KID!

A Fancy Tie, & A Special Visitor...

For the past week or so I have been trying to teach Tyson the true meaning of Christmas. That it isn't all about Santa and the presents WE get, but that it is about the birth of Jesus and about giving to others. So I decided that he was old enough to think of something that Tyler would like, and then we would go out and buy it. I would let Tyson choose exactly what HE wanted and I wouldn't try to alter his decision any. He was THRILLED. When I first asked him what he wanted to get dad he said, "I think he would like a fancy cowboy hat with lots of bright colors on it." I told him that dad already had a fancy cowboy hat and wondered if there was anything else he might like to get him. He then said, "How about a new house!" A tired to explain to him that we liked our house and that we didn't want to move. I then left the ideas for a day or so and let him think about it. When I asked him again he said, "I want to get dad a fancy tie to wear to meetings." PERFECT idea. So we headed out to Walmart with the goal in mind to find Tyler a fancy tie. I had my mind set that no matter what tie Tyson chose that would be the one that we would buy for him, and even if it was wild (i.e. Scooby Doo, or some crazy Christmas tie) I would have Tyler wear it and be proud of it. So we went to the tie section and I was SO surprised at the tie Tyson chose, it really is nice. I wasn't surprised AT ALL that it was blue, Tyson's favorite color. Here is a picture of the proud boy with his FANCY TIE for DAD! Today was the day to wrap the fancy tie. I let Tyson pick out the wrapping paper and then helped him write his name on the tag. He wasn't as happy to take a picture with the wrapped present though. Now he can hardly wait to go with Tyler to purchase something for me. I truly believe it is about GIVING, and not getting, and that children are never to young to learn this concept. This is turning out to be a wonderful Christmas season!

Also tonight we had a special visitor come to our house. SANTA! Tyson was so excited and couldn't wait to tell Santa what he wanted. A Transformer Cybertron (Whatever that is??) Carson on the other hand wasn't too thrilled about seeing Santa. Santa aka Ryan has come to visit the kids in our ward now for a few years. This year though, Tyson caught on that SANTA was Ryan, but we didn't tell him that it was. I guess because he hang out with Ryan and Heather so often it was easy for Tyson to recognize his voice. None the less Tyson enjoyed his visit and is excited for when the real Santa comes to visit him on Christmas Eve.

A GREAT Article!

I was sent this article via email today. I found it to be a GREAT article. I wanted to share it with those who may read my blog.

A NON-MEMBERS POINT OF VIEW 2006

Paul Allen is the owner of the Seattle Seahawks, the oneswho played the Pittsburgh Steelers for the Super Bowl.He is also the owner of the Portland Trail BlazersNBA basketball team and is co-partner with Bill Gates inMicrosoft. He wrote this editorial in the Santa Clarita,California newspaper.------------------------------------------------------------------

Subject: An editorial on Mormons - Santa Clarita, CA. I have heard and seen enough! I have lived in the West all my life. I have worked around them. They have worked for me and I for them. When I was young, I dated their daughters. When I got married they came to my wedding.Now that I have daughters of my own, some of their boys have dated my daughters. I would be privileged if one of them were to be my son-in-law. I'm talking about theMormons.

They are some of the most honest, hard working people I have ever known.They are spiritual, probably more than most other so-called religious people I have encountered. They study the Bible and teach from it as much as any Christian church ever has. They serve their religion without pay in every conceivable capacity. Not one of their leaders, teachers, counselors, Bishops or music directors receive one dime for the hours of labor they put in. The Mormons have a non-paid ministry - a fact that is not generally known. I have heard many times from the pulpits of others how evil and non-Christian they are and that they will not go to heaven. I decided recently to attend one of their services near my home to see for myself. What a surprise!

What I heard and saw was just the opposite from what the religious ministers of the day were telling me. I found a very simple service with no fanfare. I founda people with a great sense of humor and awell-balanced spiritual side. There was no loudmusic. Just a simple service, with the membersthemselves giving the several short sermons. They urge their youth to be morally clean and live a good life. They teach the gospel of Christ, as they understand it. The name of their church is "TheChurch of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints. Does that sound like a non-Christian church to you? I asked them many questions about what they teach and why. I got answers that in most cases were from the New Testament. Their ideas and doctrines did not seem too far fetched for my understanding. When I read their "Book of Mormon" I was also very surprised to find just the opposite from what I had been told I would find.

Then I went to another church's pastor to ask him someof the same questions about doctrine. To my surprise,when he found out that I was in some way investigating the Mormons, he became hostile. He referred to them as a non-Christian cult. I received what sounded to me like evil propaganda against those people. He stated bluntly that they were not Christian and that they did not fit into the Christian mold. He also told me that they don't really believe the Bible. He gave me a pile of anti-Mormon literature. He began to rant that the Mormons were not telling me the truth about what they stand for. He didn't want to hear anything good about them.At first I was surprised and then again, I wasn't. I began to wonder. I have never known of a cult that supports the Boy Scouts of America. According to the Boy Scouts, over a third of all the Boy Scout troops in the United States are Mormon. What cult do you know of that has a welfare system second to none in this country? They have farms, canneries and cattle ranches to help take care of the unfortunate ones who might be down and out and in need of a little help.The Mormon church has donated millions to welfare causes around the world without a word of credit.They have donated thousands to help rebuild Baptist churches that were burned a few years ago. They have donated tons of medical supplies to countries ravaged by earthquakes. You never see them on TV begging for money. What cult do you know that in stills in its members to obey the law, pay their taxes, serve in the military if asked and be a good Christian by living high moral standards?Did you know that hundreds of thousands of Mormon youth get up before high school starts in the morning to attend a religious training class? They have basketball and softball leagues and supervised youth dances every month. They are recruited by the FBI,the State Department and every police department in the country, because they are trustworthy. They are taught not to drink nor take drugs. They are in the Secret Service - those who protect the President.They serve in high leadership positions from both parties in Congress and in the US Senate, and have been governors of several states other than Utah.They serve with distinction and honor. If you have Mormons living near, you will probably find them to be your best friends and neighbors. They are Christians who try to live what they preach. They are not perfect and they are the first to admit this. I have known some of them who could not live their religion,just like many of us.The rhetoric which is spread around against them is nothing more than evil propaganda founded in untruths.(Others) had successfully demonized them to the point that the general public has no idea what they actually believe and teach. If you really want to know the truth, go see for yourself. You also will be surprised.When I first moved here some 25 years ago there were five Mormon wards in Santa Clarita. Now there are 15.They must be doing something right.

End of Article.

I have been a Mormon all my life as well as my parents, and their parents, and theirs as well. I have lived in Southern Alberta where there is a large population of Mormons. I haven't really come face to face with any anti-Mormon literature or even people who ridiculed me for being a Mormon. I guess I have been lucky. I liked this article because I really think that it ansers alot of questions people may have. And what is even better is that it was written by someone who wasn't even a member of the Mormon church. It is nice to know that there are people out there who have questions about our religion, and then they go out and get the answers themselve, and go directly to the source who would know the answers. To often we believe what we are told instead of finding out for ourself. So I am proud of Paul Allen for not listening to all the "tales" he may have heard, and by going directly to a Mormon service and getting the answers he was looking for.

All I can say is WELL SAID!

Annual Gingerbread House at the Pilling's

It has become an annual Christmas tradition to make a gingerbread house. Tonight was the night! Tyson has been looking at the box for a few days now and begging me to make it. So tonight while our family was all together we assembled a fabulous gingerbread house. Tyson was the "candy man," or so he called himself. And Carson was the candy eater! This little munchkin wouldn't stop eating the candy. Some he liked and others he tried and then spit out. After about 10 minutes he was one sticky mess...and headed for the bathtub. Tyson took great pride in putting his gingerbread house together. He told mom where he wanted the "glue" (icing) and then he would decorate that area. Check out this video of him assembling his masterpiece.




*Dad helping Carson decorate a
gingerbread tree.

*Carson concentrating on


where he is going to place


his next candy.

*Tyson the master builder
assembling his master piece.

THE END RESULT! Isn't it BEAUTIFUL!

It most definitely is a wonderful time of year!

Pilling Christmas Card - The Parents!

Like I mentioned in a previous post, I have been having a terrible time getting my kids to co-operate with me to take a few pictures. And it has been just as hard to get Tyler home with us at a decent time to take a family picture. So I have reached the deadline and this year the Christmas card will only have the kids on it. I am bummed, but what could I do? So for this year here is the card that will be going out.

I think the pictures turned out cute. But the tree became very dismantled as I was giving Carson balls to throw so that he would smile and laugh. The things we do to get our kids to smile.

I have to admit that I haven't wrapped 1 present! Usually by now they would have been wrapped and placed under the tree...but not this year. This is my year of Christmas procrastination. Everything seems to be on the back burner. But tonight I have a new movie to watch, "The Devil Wears Prada," and I am all geared up to wrap! At least that is what my intentions are. Tyler has been gone all week, and I am lonley! The kids are starting to miss him and it is hard to explain to them where he is and when he will be coming home. But I know that he is working hard now so that he can have time off during the holidays. So that will be good to have some time to spend together.

S*A*N*T*A*

Today was Tyson's pre-school Christmas concert. For the past few weeks we have been practising the 2 songs at home. Tyson has quite the little memory and he knew both songs well. I told him that he needed to sing really loud so that I would be able to hear him. Of course I was a proud mother as I saw him standing in the front row singing his little heart out. I was bummed though because it was SO dark int he gym that it was hard to take a decent picture, and the video is dark as well. Tyson is the boy in the front row in the middle.




There are only 11 shopping days left until Christmas. I can't believe it. Part of me is in the Christmas spirit, I have the music playing everyday in hopes I get into it more. I guess I don't really feel like it is Christmas because there are SO many things I haven't done this year that I always do. I haven't gotten our Christmas cards out yet...haven't been able to get a good picture of all of us together. So it just might be a picture of the kids this year. They are getting them taken tomorrow, I hope they co-operate! I also haven't done any baking like I usually do. Also the gingerbread house is still in the box waiting to be decorated. I sure hope it doestn' turn our like the Halloween house we were supposed to do. Now it is hidden in the cupboard in hopes that we get to it next year. I am hoping that next week the Christmas Spirit will fill our home and we will accomplish lots!

Little Shepherd & Trimming the Tree...

On Sunday Tyson had to dress up like a Shepherd for a sharing time in Primary. We practiced all week the 2 lines he needed to learn. They were: "C" is for the Christ Child, and "S" is for the stable where baby Jesus was born. All I can say is THANK GOODNESS for grandmas because I knew that my grandma Heninger had costumes for all the characters in the nativity. I remember as a child having the opportunity to play each part, Mary, a donkey, shepherds, and a wise man. I remember that very vividly putting on the costumes and acting out that most sacred event. Now it was time for Tyson to take part in the nativity. Grandma had the perfect shepherd costume, and Tyson loved getting dressed up and he was proud to say that he was a shepherd. What can I say...I think he make a very CUTE shepherd!

I can hardly believe that it is Christmas time again. I was having deja-vu today as I put up the Christmas tree. It really doesn't seem like a year has gone by...but it has. So much has happened, we have been so blessed, and we have grown so much. It has been a GREAT year. I love trimming the Christmas tree! It has kind of become a family tradition to put it up on the 1st Monday of December for FHE. We get the fireplace going and the Christmas music playing and Tyler starts hauling all the Christmas boxes out from under the stairs. It is a daunting task but he is happy to do it, which I am glad because I really wouldn't have to crawl under there! Tyson was a BIG help but "fluffing" out all the branches on our artificial tree. Tyson had fun this year but putting all the "bells" on the tree. Bells is his word for balls. LOL. It was funny because all the balls were at his level and the top 2/3 of the tree was bare. So when he wasn't looking I moved a few of the balls around to make them better dispersed throughout the tree. Finally after about an hour of fussing the tree was complete and beautiful as ever. I love the glow of the lights and the feeling that the "tree" brings into the house. Tyler did say something kind of funny to me today about the tree, he said " You know it is kind of funny that we bring an outside tree inside, put lights on it, and decorate it." And you know, he is kind of right. Where did the idea of decorating Christmas trees even come from? I am sure thought that it has been done for many, many years. And you know with each year I look forward to it. Tonight after FHE and prayers Tyson asked if he could go lay under the tree for 10 minutes before bed. I wanted to tell him that it was WAY past his bed time, by then it was 8:45, but I let him. I put the timer on for 10 minutes and told him that when it went off it was time for bed. So off he went and got his favorite blanket and went and just layed under the tree. It was the CUTEST thing ever. And sure enough when the timer went off he came right up to bed...and he was sleepy!

Life Is SO GOOD!

I have to thank Heather for this wonderful quote, "When you arise in the morning, think of what a privilege it is to be alive; to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love. Marcus Aurelius " I always enjoy reading her blog, she is so inspirational and SO positive. She is an example to me in SO many ways. Even though we have never met in person and live about a 1000 miles apart it amazes me that people can still connect and influence each other. Heather thanks to your wonderful idea about putting this quote on your bathroom mirror, I may just have to use this idea for myself!

As I mentioned in my blog yesterday, it was our ward Christmas party and Santa came to visit the kids. Carson wasn't feeling 100% and was quite out of it because of the medicine I gave him. But he enjoyed sitting on Santa's lap. The Christmas season is upon us know and it is my favorite time of year. Today or possibly Monday we will dig out all of our decorations and trim the house with a little Christmas spirit. Then the rest of the month is full with parties, concerts, plays and family gatherings. Not to mention the preparation still left to do at home for family, friends and neighbors. I love this time of year when I can bake up a storm and share the goodies with those I hold dear to me. This year another family and us has decided to "pixie" a family in need. We did this last year and it brought us so much joy to really be in the spirit of giving. This year I hope to involve Tyson more so that he will begin to understand the true meaning of Christmas.

Life truly is blessed. I often take for granted ALL of my many blessings. I have 2 beautiful children who are happy and healthy. A husband to loves me and our kids, and who is a good provider with LOTS of ambition. I have a family who loves me and excepts me for who I am. I have friends and neighbors who go out of their way to help me when it is needed. The list could go on and on and on. Today is a GOOD day...take a minute to think about all you have been given, and then if possible give something back.

It Tastes TERRIFIC!

Tonight was our ward Christmas party. It is an annual tradition for our ward where all the families get dressed up in their Sunday best and we gather together for a nice Christmas dinner and have a program, followed by who else...SANTA. Every year there seems to be more and more people from our congragation who attend the supper which is good, but more people means longer lines to get your food. Of course the kids were starving by 6:30 when the supper was supposed to start. Do church functions ever start on time..I think not. Oh well, it is something I have gotten used to, but it is hard to convince a 4 year old that SOON he will be able to eat. So in the mean time we had to occupy the kids with something to eat. We were located close to the desert table and the kids eagerly snatched up some Rice Krispie treats. Watch the video to see how excited Tyson is to eat one. (This is the first time I have used the video function on my new digital camera so it isn't the best, but you get the idea.)

A Proud Mother...

What can I say...I am a proud Mother. Last Sunday, November 26th, 2006 Tyson gave his first talk in primary. I am amazed at the memory he has, and was beaming when he said his little part in the Primary presentation a few weeks back. His line was "Be sorry to Heavenly Father, as well as the person you did the wrong to." He said it perfectly! I swear we only practiced it 10 times and he had it down. Now this brings me back to his talk. I had known for 2 weeks when he was to give his talk. I eagerly picked it out, "My Big Brother." A little story about Jesus. I was planning on having him memorize it that way he could concentrate on holding up the pictures that went along with it. But as you know time flies by and we forget what day it is and I forgot about that talk. After our shopping spree in the states we came home exhausted and 2 kids to really needed to go to bed. And then it hit me...THE TALK! AGHHH! So I quickly ran over the talk a few times with Tyson, disappointed that I didn't remember in time for him to memorize it. Oh well, not everything can be perfect. He did a GREAT job anyway, and remembered what I had told him about saying the words loudly and slowly so that everyone could hear him. I was so proud of him. I know that this is the first of many talk to come, but how could I not jot this down on paper for his posterity to remember. Way to go TYSON!

p.s. I was really, really tempted to take my camera and get a picture of him standing at the pulpit in the Primary room giving his little talk, but I know that would be appropriate. So I hope that I will be able to burn the imagine into my brain and remember how sweet and innocent he looked while giving the talk about Jesus. I really was a precious moment.

It Is FREEZING...

The weather here in Southern Alberta is way beyond cold. It is like we are living in a deep freeze. The temperature is -22 degrees BELOW freezing. The kids and I are locked up in the house with NO intention of going outside. Tyson has soccer tonight but it is way to darn cold to bundle the kids up and drive to the city for it. I hope he doesn't mind missing it, it will be our 2nd week in a row not going. I feel bad for Tyler though because he has to work in this cold weather. There company policy is that they work until it is below -30, then they don't have to work. How generous of them! LOL! Thank goodness for warm clothes and lots of layers. So for the next few days while it is supposed to be cold we are going to stay close to the fire and watch t.v. and movies. Nothing very productive but at least we will be warm. And another positive for the cold weather is that I don't even want to go out shopping. LOL!

I have SO much to catch up on! Blogging has most definitely been the very last thing on my list of things to do in the day. I must say though that I have missed blogging and am afraid that I could have missed some things that should have been written down. Oh well...I'm recommitting. So to update in point for here it goes:

1. I have spend the last 2 weeks completely giving my kitchen a make over. I have hated the dark brown cupboards since we bought the house 7 years ago. So I decided to paint them, and what a JOB it was! I will never, ever do it again and I would never recommend doing it to another person. But the end result is great and I love it!
2. We had new laminate flooring put in the kitchen and in the dining room. For those people back in the 70's who thought it was cool to have carpet in the dining room...what were you thinking! We got rid of it and the place looks great. Now I have to decorate the bare wall where I used to have a bunch of junk!
3. I have started to sell Salt City candles, and they are being received VERY well. I must say they are the BEST candles on the market. So if you are looking for a great, fairly inexpensive Christmas present this would make a great one.
4. Tyler and I spend the last few day in Kalispell doing some major Christmas shopping. It was "Black Friday," the day after Thanksgiving in the U.S. and it is the #1 shopping day of the year. We had to take part in the great sales. We rented a mini van before going down and man are we sure glad we did. The van was loaded to the roof with all the stuff we bought. Some of the best purchases we got were the new Canon digital camera, a 10 inch DVD player for the car, and of course lots of clothes for both the kids and myself. This will become and annual tradition!
5. I HAVE to get our pictures taken for our Christmas cards. It has been so hard to get the kids to co-operate and look at the camera at the same time. And not to mention Tyler, that guy won't smile for the life of himself! So it might not be the best picture for this year.
6. I have been asked by a magazine to contribute to a special issue they have coming up. So I need to get scrapbooking again. I haven't done it in awhile and the pictures are starting to pile up. AGHHH!

So much has happened around here, and it looks like I am going to be having a few busy weeks ahead of me. Tyson has his pre-school Christmas program coming up, so that should be fun.k I love the holiday season. I hope this year we can have the true meaning of Christmas in our home. That we won't focus on the materialism of it all as much, and focus of the birth of our Savior. I am looking forward to putting up the Christmas decorations and playing Christmas music (although i played some today.)

Halloween...

My blog entries seem to be fewer and father apart these days. Life has been very busy, as I am sure it is for everyone. Tyson's Halloween party was fantastic, and the kids are still talking about it. All the kids dressed in their costumes. We decorated mini pumpkins, then played a few games, came back upstairs for a treat of cupcakes and floats. We finished off the day by decorating cookies. It was a blast, but very hectic, with 10 3-4 year olds and 3 babies. Yes I know I am CRAZY, but it was worth it to see how much fun the kids had.

Trick or Treating was so fun this year, all though the weather was extremely cold. That didn't stop Tyson and Tyler though. We went to the Park Place Mall after school and loaded up on the treats there. Then it was home to get more treats. Tyler took Tyson out so I could stay home where it was warm with Carson. By the time they got home 2 hours later Tyson had 3 bags FULL of candy. Here it is a week later and we have hardly put a dent in all the goodies. Now Tyson is already starting to tell me what he wants to be for next year. CRAZY KID!

Tyler's work is still busy so on Sunday we made a spur of the moment trip up to High River so we could spend the night with him. Tyson has been asking when we could go and spend a night in a hotel and go to the waterslides, so he was thrilled when I told him we were going. We had fun and the kids were relatively good in the hotel. Carson finally settled down after we put him in the playpen. It was a good thing I brought it because we wouldn't have gotten a very good sleep if we would have had to rely on him sleeping in a bed. The next day we went to the city and did a bit of shopping. The kids were GREAT!

I have ventured yet again into a home business. I have been in LOVE with Salt City Candles for sometime now and decided to become a demonstrator. They are seriously the BEST candles out there. The fragrance is so intense and fills your whole house with wonderful scents. I am quickly booking parties and can't wait for these candles to become peoples favorites!

Where should I begin? Time seems to be getting away with me, and blogging hasn't been on my "to do" list for quite some time. I must though sit down and jot a few things so that I won't forget about them, and to share them with others as well.

Last Saturday October 14th, 2006 my youngest sister, Kimberley was married. We were all thrilled for her that she was finally marrying the guy she has been with for 5 years, and with whom she shares a child with. We have been busy planning and preparing for this joyous occasion. I helped make the invitations and the guest book. They both turned out so cute. My mom is the ultimate planner and not a single detail was left out. She got everything perfect down to the chocolate colored napkins, and gold napkin rings. It was beautiful! I am sad to say that I didn't get many pictures at all! I was too busy chasing after 2 kids. I did get this picture from Tiffany though of the 3 of us, and I think it is really cute. Kimberley looked like a radiant, beautiful bride. You could tell that her and Travis were both very happy to be man and wife. Travis gave a beautiful tribute to Kimberley and said he didn't know where he would be without her, probably not very happy. Their little girl Jayda was the flower girl and she looked so cute! She was happy to announce and tell everyone that, "Mommy & Daddy are getting married." She was thrilled! My mom is happy to have the wedding over with, she was exhausted with all the planning, working, and cooking meals for my dad's hunting clients. She had a full plate that is for sure. So now all of her girls are married and mothers to her grandkids. It is nice to have a new brother in law. I hope that he will feel welcome in our family.

I decided to have a kids Halloween party for Tyson. I feel it is a shame that the kids often only get to wear their costumes once. In the past our ward has done a trunk or treat for the kids, but for the past 2 years they haven't, which really is too bad, but I'm not the one in charge therefore I don't have control over what the Primary does. So instead I am having 10 of Tyson's friends over for a Costume Party. Tyson is SO excited. He could hardly wait to take the invitations I made to school today. I thought that I would decorate mini pumpkin and also sugar cookies. I am also looking for some kind of fun Halloween game we could play. It shouldn't be hard to entertain 10 3-5 year olds though.

It has been awhile since I have blogged...life has been busy. I'm not even sure where to start to catch up on what the Pilling family has been up to.

I recently finished reading "Inside My Heart," by Robin McGraw. It is a MUST read. It is such an inspiring book. I couldn't put it down. It really made me stop and think and re-evaluate a few things in my life. It is a book that I know I will find myself referring back to and reading more than once. If you need a pick me up, or just a good inspirational book to read...this is the ONE!

Fall is here and I have found myself baking up a STORM. Last weekend we celebrated Thanksgiving with my family. We weren't able to get together for this coming weekend so we had it a week earlier. I found myself thinking while we were cleaning up a wonderful dinner, "What am I going to do with all these left over cranberries?" It seems no turkey dinner is complete without them, but we hardly make a dent in the can. So I decided to search for a recipe to use up the left overs. So yesterday I made these delectable little cranberry cheesecake squares. So YUMMY!

Here is the recipe:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup butter, softened
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 (16 ounce) can whole berry cranberry sauce
DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, oats and 3/4 cup of brown sugar. Cut in the butter until the mixture is crumbly. Reserve 1 1/2 cups of this mixture and press the remaining mixture into the bottom of a 9x13 inch pan.
Bake for 15 minutes in the preheated oven.

2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, beat cream cheese with sweetened condensed milk until light and fluffy. Stir in the lemon juice and spread the mixture evenly over the prepared crust.

3. Empty the can of cranberry sauce into a small bowl and stir in the cornstarch and brown sugar. Spoon over the cream cheese layer. Sprinkle the top with the reserved crust mixture.
Bake for 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven, until top is golden. Let cool completely before cutting into bars. Store covered in the refrigerator.

Tyson started soccer last Monday and he LOVED it. He kept telling Tyler and I that it was Super Dupper Fun! I am so happy he enjoyed himself. He can hardly wait for 2 weeks till his next game. Pictures to come.

I Did It!

I actually scrapbooked 2 lo's the other day. And right now I am in the middle of doing another LO. YES...my MoJo just may have come back. I am loving all the fun goodies I bought at my LSS. It is always so fun to play with new product. So here's to finding my mojo and hopefully I will start cranking out the pages. It has been fun for me to go back and look at the pictures I took over the summer. We really did do some fun things. Now I can't wait to put the memories on paper so they will never be forgotten.

On a totally different subject...I have had terrible back pain for over 2 weeks now. One day I bent over to mop the floor and a stabbing pain shot in my lower back. I have experience trouble with it before but never had I experienced this magnitude of pain. It literally took me 5 minutes before I could hobble over to the couch. I managed to get in for a massage but needless to say it didn't help, it only made it worse. Usually a massage will make it feel better, but not this time. So after going to the Dr. twice and with a fist full of medication I can finally function. I would rather have a baby any day than go through the pain I have been in. It has been terrible! So bad that I had to call Tyler in the middle of the night (he was out of town for work) and I was sobbing in pain. It hurt so much that I missed part of the season premier of Grey's Anatomy. Now you know I was in pain if I am going to miss Grey's! I went so far as to call a friend who is a pharmacist, and she came over with some med's that helped me at least sleep that night. But now...after the pain comes some relief. As long as I have some medication handy if it gets to painful, I can make it through the day. I am going to get acupuncture next week, maybe that will help. I am willing to try anything. I am thankful today because I haven't had to take any Tylenol 3...so that is a good sign & I hope I am on the road to recovery.

A Tear Jerker!

I came across this book recommendation on another blog. I am always drawn to what other people are reading, and I love to find a good book to curl up with. I am also always on the prowl for good kids books. Both of my boys love to read. I have read to them since I brought them home from the hospital and they have a love for books as I do. After picking up this book, Let Me Hold You Longer, from the library today, I took a few moment to quickly read it while I was getting supper ready. Wow is all I can say. It really made me stop and think about life and how quickly it passes by. We usually only think of our child's "firsts." First tooth, first steps, first day of school, first day on a sports team etc. But do you ever stop and think about your child's "lasts?" The last time you nurse them, the last time you hold them while they drink their bottle, the last time you curl up with them for there afternoon nap, the last time to comb their hair etc. This book really made me reflect on the life of my children and how I really need to cherish each moment. Even though life gets buys and we don't take to to stop and slow down, we really need to...I need to! Before I know it my boys will be in school full time, then off to middle school, then high school. They will be driving and going on dates, and applying for colleges. Then there will come the day they turn from teenagers into men and leave the home they grew up in. I hope that when they leave, that they will always return. In the meantime I hope and pray I can cherish the time we have together. Share the good times and bad, the laughs and the tears. If you haven't read this book...YOU MUST! I am going to pick it up for myself as soon as I can.

Today I attempted to work on my sister's wedding album. Man am I out of the scrapbook loop or what! I took me an hour to complete the simplest page I have ever done. I think I am out of practice...or maybe I need more supplies to work with. Who knows..I think my scrapping mojo is totally lost. I need some inspiration and some solutions that will help me get this album done quick. The wedding is in less than 4 weeks and there is still SO much to do. So if any of you have some scrappin fairy dust, sprinkle some and me! LOL!

It Is All In Your Attitude...

How happy or miserable you are in life really comes down to your attitude. It really doesn't matter what situation you are faced with, how you handle it really is determined by your attitude. I'm sure you know of someone in your life that is very optimistic, always has something positive to say, and always looks on the bright side of situations. They look at their glass as being half full instead of being half empty. Then there are people who are always negative, they are depressed and have no hope of a brighter tomorrow. Lately, I have been finding myself somewhere in the middle but leaning more to the negative side. Life hasn't been very easy or pleasant for me, or atleast that is how I have been seeing it. I don't want to focus on the negative, I have had a change of heart and have decided that I need a major attitude change.

On Sunday I introduced the song "You Can Make Your Pathway Bright," from the LDS song book. It is all about attitude and how we can make life happier by out attitude. It hit me, that I control how happy or unhappy I am. Now I know that being completely happy 100% of the time is a very unrealistic thing to happen, but I can try and have a more positive attitude in general. So that is MY challenge. Look more on the positive side, see my glass as half full instead of empty. I know that this attitude change won't come over night, but gradually and with help from a more divine power than my own, I know that I can make a more positive change in my life.

Tonight for Family Home Evening I had a lesson on just that...being happy. I presented Tyson with 2 characters, Miserable Mack and Happy Henry. Each one was faced with different situations where they could make a happy choice or a miserable choice. Tyson seemed to grasp the concept. At the end of the lesson I presented a challenge to him, if he could be a Happy Henry all week until Saturday then we could do something special as a family. He chose to have movie night together, complete with a movie picked by him, popcorn, treats, and his favorite POP. This will be a challenge for my little 4 year old who has been struggling lately with obeying and listening. For every time he isn't happy he gets a body part taken away from Happy Henry. He can earn them back by being extra good, but it will be harder. At the end of the week if all the pieced to Happy Henry are on the fridge, then we have movie night...and if not...we don't. Tyson fully understands the rules, now I hope we have a successful week. I guess we will see.

Life

Life, it has many steep hills to climb, and many slippery slopes to get down. There are hairpin curves that we get thrown from time to time. Once in awhile you are on a nice long straight stretch when life seems to be going okay. But those long stretches don't seem to last very long. Life isn't easy, and it wasn't mean to be, but sometimes it seems too hard, and too challenging. I am having one of those days today... even one of those weeks. I have never had a complete meltdown, where the tears start to flow and I let all my emotion out. I seem to keep it bottled in and my head starts to think about all the possible scenarios of how to make life better. How life would be better if Tyler were to quit his job and find something where he could be home more. I find myself envying those women whose husbands have a 9 to 5 job, and whom are home on weekends. Whose jobs don't require them to cut there holidays short because they have a staff shortage. I find myself thinking about all the time my boys are missing with their dad because of his work load. and I have been finding myself thinking of the blessings I don't have, instead of counting the many bounteous blessings we have been given.

Today I came very close to letting my emotions get the best of me, and it would have been at church, which wouldn't have been very good. I found myself yet again taking the kids to church by myself. And it can be trying on the best of days, but today was not MY day. Carson was being a little terror and wouldn't co-operate. Then we couldn't find a seat in the chapel because people won't scoot to the middle of the row so others can sit on the outside. So we didn't have a place to sit other than in the gym, which made the kids even more rambunctious. I just couldn't take it, and my nerves were shot. So after 20 minutes I packed them up and we left. I could tell that a few other ladies new I was stressed out. They expressed to me that they understood and they too at times have felt the same way I do. I really feel though that I am the only women who has thoughts of packing a suitcase, getting a passport and leaving to somewhere tropical for a vacation by myself, letting my husband deal with EVERYTHING! I often feel unappreciated with all that I have to do, and all that I do accomplish. I know that Tyler works hard, and I appreciate that he is a hard worker and that he is a good provider, but I honestly don't think men understand just how much WE do! Maybe I am finding that if he would express his thankfulness more often it would make it worth it. The kids don't give me any positive reaction or praise for all I do, so the only person I can get it from is Tyler, and he really has been lacking in this area. I know that the storm rages before it calms down, and I am just wondering when this storm I am in is ever going to cease. I keep trying to tell myself that I am doing the best I can, that I can endure a little longer...but how long?

Sorry that this post wasn't very encouraging, but I felt it might do me good to get my feelings down. :) Here is to better days and brighter tomorrows. My mom always told me that it would be better in the morning, and it was.

1st Day Of Pre-School!

My baby is no longer a baby, he is a Pre-Schooler! Today was Tyson's very 1st day of Pre-school. He was SO excited, and couldn't wait to put on his Spiderman backpack and walk to school. He did ask me if he could ride a school bus. I had to tell him that he didn't need to ride a school bus because he lives across the street from the school. Only kids who live a long way away need to ride the bus. After that he was happy to walk with Carson and I. I could see the excitement in everything he did on the way to school. From how fast he was walking, to the skip in his step, the loudness of his voice, and the anticipation that I was hearing. He was EXCITED! It gives me such joy to see my children this happy. I took a few pictures of him in front of the school. He told me he didn't like pictures, and I said, "We have to get some pictures because you will never have a VERY 1st day of school again, this day is very special." After that he agreed. When we got to the school he RAN to his class. He went right in with no hesitation. Then he remembered the book order and wanted to give that to Miss Rita. He then sat down at a table and began doing a puzzle. He wasn't scared or hesitant AT ALL! That's my boy. I reminded him about using his manners and his inside voice, and to raise his hand when he wanted to speak. He kept telling me, "I know mom." So after a quick kiss I left. I knew he was in safe hands and that he felt comfortable.

When I picked him up 3 hours later he was so excited he could hardly speak to me. He told me the "rules" of his class, that they were to leave their name tags there when they went home, and that if they had to go to the bathroom, and adult had to go with them. He was happy about the day, and can't wait to go back next week. This is sure a mile stone in his life, and in mine also. It is an exciting time for our family!