jess & kelly

It just seems the older I get, the faster time flies, especially with kids. Where does time seriously go? As each Sunday comes & goes, I cannot believe that we just blew threw another week. Since the new year, we've had some difficult experiences been thrown our way. As most know, my sister Lisa was in a coma for 24 hrs & we thought we were going to lose her since they gave her a 1% chance to live. Well, she's doing great & living life to it's fullest. They inserted a defibrillator in her & said 99% it will not happen again. Going through this experience has definitely opened my eyes & makes me want to be a better person each day & not take anything or anyone for granted for life is too fragile. I cannot imagine not having one of my best friends/sisters on this earth right now. So many people were praying & fasting for her & I know through her faith, she is able to be here still, that her time on earth is not up.

Last week, my dad received news that his cousin was exchanging gasoline from truck to truck & it exploded, killing him instantly. 2 days later, my dad found out that his sister, Jeanne, had passed away due to a massive heart attack. That same weekend, my 15 yr. old nephew was hospitalized for a few days & found out he is a Type 1 Diabetic that he was very close to being in a coma if they did not bring him in. Wow! So much to muster in a month. I feel our emotions are all over the place. I can't imagine how my parents feel right now. But I know that although my dad has lost family members, members have also been saved & are still alive today. I feel so blessed that those family members are still alive & because of my mom & dad being on their mission is such a great blessing. It has made me & I'm sure all of my brothers & sisters faith that much stronger. I'm grateful for these hardships because they make you a stronger person.

On to some happier things. I started taking a cake decorating class at Roberts with a darling YW in my ward. It's been fun - can't wait to go through all the courses. It's always been something I've wanted to do & I've self taught myself so it's fun to learn how to really do it & that I wasn't really far off from a lot of stuff!

We got new countertops this last week. Why didn't we just do it when we built our home only 3 yrs ago? So stupid. Oh well...love it. & love the backsplash that Russ & Kelly put in this weekend {mostly Russ - he's amazing}

Here's one of the master sinks:
& the kids bath, minus the mirror that hasn't been replaced

We've been loving every day of the month of February because Valentine's is one of our FAVORITE holidays. This is the 3rd yr. we've done our countdown to Valentine's where the kids wake up each morning & find a heart with a number on it & a Valentine's surprise. Yesterday, for our surprise, the kids put together their Valentine's to pass out tomorrow.

Hugs, Kisses & a Squeeze for my Valentine! love, Adde

xoxo Ezra

They've had lots of fun finding the number & hanging it up on the wall. But Adde & Ez don't like that I keep putting it in the same place each morning, they want me to hide it so they can find it {unfortunately this year - I don't remember to put it out while they are sleeping & have to run & grab it when we all wake up}

They've got treats, coloring books, bubble bath & other fun stuff. They also got to put together Valentine's for both grandparents. Ez wasn't too interested in this because he is not interest in ANYTHING....he says everything is boring. Hopefully this is just a phase. All he wants to do is play with his imaginext toys, play the Wii or ride his bike. When Adde was making these Valentine's for grandma's & grandpa's she wrote to Lester & Ester...to Phil & Jane instead of grandma & grandpa. It was really funny. Then she mailed them all by herself.

Tomorrow is the kids cousin's Valentine party & they are super excited. So we'll post pictures later!