Families Are Forever

This weekend we helped make one final push to urge those undecided ton Proposition 8 (proposition in California to protect traditional marriage), to vote YES! Even though it was raining ALL DAY we went out as a family (plus Papa Redfearn) to put door hangers on about 100+ houses for about 2 hours. The kids started out in the wagon and then Emma wanted to get in on the action too, so she ended up walking most of the time with daddy or Papa. I don't think she really understands what is going on with the Proposition, but hopefully she will be able to reap the benefits of it in her youth. All you Californians who read this--DON'T FORGET TO VOTE TUESDAY!!

Happy Birthday Emma!!

From her first birthday....to Today!!






Emma came into this world making a statement....and still does to this day! I went into labor at a Kings basketball game on Halloween Night. I was having contractions so I went to the stop of the stairs to stand for awhile, and if one more person said, "Great Costume!" to me I was going to scream!! So we finally ended up at the hospital to finish the whole thing. But Emma was going to decide when that all happened. My wonderful doctor, Dr. Jo, had a feeling that she should come bring her paperwork down into my room while I was towards the last stages of labor--but still thinking it might be awhile. Not 15 minutes after she broke my water did Emma's heartrate drop below 60 for quite awhile. Luckily since Dr. Jo was there she was able to act fast and use the vacuum to help Emma out (weighing in at 8 lbs. 13 oz.) Once out, they wisked her away (luckily with everything happening so fast Papa Redfearn was caught out in the hallway and was able to be with her until Daddy could get out there) and everything turned out fine. We now know that this was Emma's way of making a statement. She is and always has been a very laid back child--but WATCH OUT--every once in awhile she let's us all know what she wants.

As a mother of my first child, I really didn't know what a great baby/kid she really was. Very happy, alert, and full of energy. Nothing really bothered her and she was very shy. Even now Emma is just starting to come out of her shell in public and let the rest of the world see what we get to at home.

Even though Emma has been somewhat reserved, she has always been able to be who she is. She is not easily swayed by those around her, and seems to stick up for the underdog. Just this week at school another mom told me how much her son talks about Emma. It looks like she made an impression on him the first week of school on the playground when some other kids weren't being that nice. Emma is always the first to give into her brother when he wants something she has, plays the game the way he wants to play it, or even say it didn't really hurt when he is about to get in trouble for hitting her.

She has recently developed a love of reading. Anything to do with art, markers, scissors, glue, tape, glitter, etc. You can always find Emma working on a new "project" at some point during the day. And since she could walk, anything Princess, jewelry, makeup, shoes, purses,clothes(good or bad), or hair accessories have caught her attention.

I hope she is always able to keep that mellow, easy going spirit about her when there is turmoil in the world around her. And that she will always be okay with herself and sure enough, not to let others opinions influence her. And that she will still let her brother win sometimes, even when she is 16!! We love you EMMA!!

Oh the...things they say!

Have you ever had one of those conversations with your children where you just walk away shaking your head, because it was either that or loose your temper?

Today Grant was having a hard day with a lot of things. At one point he got mad at something I told him not to do, folded his arms across his chest, pouted, and made a loud sigh. When I told him that he should not act that way or he would get a time out, he proceeded to tell me...."Mom, I was just going to say a prayer! Blah, blah, blah....AMEN!!!"

I guess at that point I should have been the one saying the prayer. And to think--he's not even 3 yet!! HELP!!!

Look Mom-I can ride a bike too!

Emma decided that she didn't want to be outdone by her brother. So she asked Daddy to help her ride WITHOUT training wheels. She hasn't been real eager before to try, actually a little (okay a lot) scared. But I think when she saw Grant riding the other day it gave her a little bit of courage (or competition) to try. I got this cool handle thing (look closely at the video) that saves your back!! You go girl!!

PS--Yes it is the same bike that Grant was riding. When we went to get her bike she had a flat tire that wouldn't hold ANY air, and she was so insistent to ride, that she made Jamie raise the training wheels and put the handle on the little bike. Whatever works!

How Tall This Fall?

I think the photos speak for themselves. Every year we take a photo at this spot of the kids. Its so fun to go back and look at the progression. But we NEVER get the best shots. Oh well!!

Cousin Fun

Aunt Marcia and Cousin Charlie have come for a visit. The kids have had lots of fun playing outside together, throwing rocks, dancing to music, and just being kids. On Friday night we went to a Halloween party. Grant was planing on being "Hulk", but when we got out cowboy stuff for Charlie, Grant changed his mind and had to be a cowboy too. So we took 2 little cowboys, and Sharpe, from High School Musical to the party.

We also took at trip up to Apple Hill. We saw some horses (didn't ride them because the line was too long), drank some apple cider, taste tested some apples, shared a caramel/fudge apple, and then stopped at McDonalds for lunch! The plan kind of got changed due to the traffic situation and the shear amount of people trying to enjoy Apple Hill at the same time. Oh well, all 3 kids were asleep and took a 2 hour nap by the time we got home!! PURE BLISS!!

The Natural

Grant has always been a "natural" at most things he does. Obviously bike riding is another thing he excels at. Please remember when you watch this video clip that Grant isn't even 3 years old yet. He has shown an interest in Emma's bike for some time now, and even climbed up on it the other day to try his hand at it. He got very frustrated because he wasn't quite tall enough to reach the pedals and kept putting on the brakes. So we had this bike laying around in our garage and daddy took the training wheels off Emma's bike--and off he went. Looks like Santa might have to bring Grant a new bike!!

Cleaning Up With Dad

The other day I asked Jamie to take the kids upstairs to clean up the loft area while I finished doing the dishes. After awhile I heard music, which is not unusual. Emma LOVES to blare the tunes while cleaning--whatever works! Then the music got louder, the sound of little feet got louder, and the laughing got louder...this is what I went upstairs to find: At least they got the job done!! Love you daddy!!

Prop 8--Help Protect MY Kids!

Please help ME!! Right now in California we are voting to CHANGE our constitution. A couple of years ago we already voted on an amendment about same sex marriage, but the Supreme Court voted that it was unconstitutional and overturned it. Now we have to change our constitution to keep marriage between a man and a woman. I just want to say that I don't care how people live their lives. I personally believe that marriage should be between a man and a woman. But what I do care about is what they want to teach MY KIDS about in school. If this passes, something like what happened in the above video could happen to MY kids, or MY husband. PLEASE, PLEASE encourage ANYONE you know who lives in California to vote at the upcoming election. They need to VOTE YES ON PROP 8!! Everyone keeps saying that if this Prop 8 does NOT pass in California than it will affect the rest of the country. YOUR STATE COULD BE NEXT! There are few things that I am this passionate about, willing to make a statement about and put myself out on the line--BUT MY KIDS ARE ONE OF THOSE THINGS!!

Weekend Stay-cation

This weekend we were supposed to head off to Lake Tahoe. Jamie is finishing a job up there and we were going to meet him up there to play. But Fall finally decided to hit and they were expecting rain and snow at 6ooo feet. And since most of our plans included the great outdoors, we decided to have a stay-cation at home instead. We fill our weekend with the "Chihuahua" movie, pizza, ice cream, pj dance parties, a daddy wrestling match (Grant & Emma tag teamed him), some playing in the backyard, staying on our pjs ALL DAY, and not answering the phone. Grant even got to sleep in mommy & daddy's bed!!

What more could you ask for?? Life is good--now back to reality!

College Spirit Day

I just wanted to share with all of you something really cool that Emma's school does. Every Friday is normally School Spirit Day, and everyone wears the school colors. Then once a month they have College Spirit Day. Everyone wears a college shirt and the teachers fly a college flag outside their classroom, etc. Maybe this is not a new thing to some of you, but I thought it was a great way to get kids excited and thinking about college and its importance at an early age.

October Fun

Okay, so I know its not quite October yet, but we just couldn't wait any longer. Today after school I took the kids out to a place called Davis Ranch, and we did a little pumpkin selection. They were amazed at the amount of pumpkins to choose from. It wasn't quite going out into the field to pick one, but it was just as fun. Then we went over to the farmers market area and got an apple to eat on the way home. It was the perfect way to start our October (tomorrow)!

PS--We got the decorations out too! More pictures to come!! Happy Haunting!!

The Transformation

Primary Program

We did it!! I work with the children in our church ages 3-11 years old. And every year we do an hour long presentation of the things that they have learned throughout the year. This usually includes speaking parts and musical numbers. For the second year now I have been in charge of this program. There are many, many hours spent preparing for this and the kids did a fabulous job!! Its always a little scary when you put a 3 year old in front of a microphone, but things turned out just fine. Emma was one of the kids to participate, and she sang her heart out! I'm not exaggerating when I say she knew ALL of the words to the 8 songs that we sang! Good job Emma!!

Sleeping Beauty

Even though I had a post earlier about Sleeping Beauty, this is the true picture of Sleeping Beauty (at least for the mom of a 2 year old):