"I was carved by an angel"

About a week ago we were having dinner at my in-laws & I was talking to them about the frustrations of having two very handsome youngmen that are also very polite. For McKay this has caused quite a problem at school. He has girls stalking him to the point that his teacher asked for my permission to talk to the class about it. As we were discussing this matter McKay was standing in the doorway & simply said, "What can I say, I was carved by an angel."

McKay's life goals......

McKay recently got to "bid" for what he would do with his life. Each kid in his class was given $2,000 to bid on what they wanted their lives to become. We of course were anxious to hear that maybe he wanted to be the President or a CEO........Here he is with his buddy Hayden durinng their 4th grade play. McKay was fabulous so maybe he wants to now be an actor.......

Here he is wearing his favorite hat that his Uncle Jake gave him, it's for a football team so maybe a football palyer....

Here he is looking his finest in his suit & tie, so maybe sell men's clothing....

Here he is being a good nieghbor so maybe a service man.....

Here he is flashing his beautiful smile & big eyes, so maybe a model......

These are all great jobs but what McKay really wants......

1. To marry someone good looking

2. To travel the world

Yep those are his life goals & that is what he bid for. I'm gonna be honest & say I'm failing as a mother!

McKay anything is possible as long as you set your mind to it & I know with your looks you will go far!

Love you McKay (Johnny)

Running hair, running there, running everywhere

Taylor's hair is always a topic of discussion. He has a great head of hair & I would give my right leg, arm whatever to have it. It's thick & it curls in all the right places. Hair I will take you on some pretty hairy adventures of his hair. (haha)

You can't see it too well but I love how his hair curls up around his helmet.

Then there are those in the family who dream of his hair!



He often has to do the "flip n fix" to get the hair out of his face & he loves doing that. You can find him spending much of his day flippin n fixin!

Here's Taylor's hair right after having 1/2 inch cut off. He has to get it cut every month so I can be happy & he can be happy.

In this picture we see how perfectly cool his hair looks when in place. I love how his bangs flip out.

When you see Taylor you connect him with his hair. Last night while he was teaching FHE I tried to picture him with short hair & just couldn't. We are often asked how much time it takes to do his hair. Well the truth is 2 seconds. He washes it, brushes it, puts product in it & then flips it & is good to go. He said when he turns 12 he is cutting it off so stayed tune to see if that really happens. I love him just the way he is. His hair truly fits him as a person.

Love you Taylor (Smitty)

Be strong and of a good courage..........

On Friday evening Eliza was with her group of friends that she loves to hang out with. As they were trying to figure out what to do it was suggested that they do an activity that Eliza knew Nate & I wouldn't want her doing. She told her friends that she wouldn't do it & the reason was because she knew that her parents wouldn't want her to. Her one buddy suggested that she just not tell them as he put it "part of being a teenager is lying to your parents." She said that she would know & it would eat at her & she would have to tell Nate & I that she did it because that's just how she is. They asked her why she tells her parents everything & she told them because I always want them to trust me. Eliza called me to come & get her so that her friends could do what they wanted & she could be faithful to her word of not lying to her parents. I was so proud of her for being strong and of a good courage!

Eliza at the Temple....

Eliza spent a couple of hours yesterday with the youth in our ward at the Bountiful Temple doing Baptisms for the Dead. She was so excited to go again & wanted to make sure that her dress was the most pleasing to her Heavenly Father. She was so excited to be in the Temple & feel of the Spirit & has lived her life in such a way to be worthy to enter the doors of the Temple.

After they finished the Temple work they were doing they returned to our ward building & had lunch. Eliza said it was such a wonderful day. Nathan & I are so grateful for the righteous young woman she chooses to be & her willingness & desire to partake of all the Gospel has to offer. She is such a light in our home & a light to many she comes into contact with. If you know Eliza you know that she radiates happiness. We are so privalidged to have the opportunity to be her parents & have her teach us on a daily basis.

Today was a good day, a very good day........

Today was a day where you feel the warmth on your face & think, "God is good." it was actually a stressful day but it turned out to be such a relaxing night of the kids sitting around the table doing their homework & singing together while I made dinner & what made it even better is we are in our own place now. They sang & told stories from their days at school.

*****If you know my kids they don't leave a detail out of a story so something you or I would tell them that would take us 5 minutes to tell takes them 25 minutes to tell*****

I love hearing their details to each & every storie. It was so fun also to listen to Eliza & Taylor sing. I could have listened all night. I love to listen to McKay's comedy. Today was such a good day!!!!!!!!!!

Taylor's latest film credits...........

For those of you who know Taylor you know that he is an actor. This is his most recent work & he thinks it was one of the funnest projects to work on. I'm sure it will be easy to see why.



http://www.riester.com/blog/2010/02/24/the-unexpected-and-hilarious-results-of-visiting-buffalo-bills-yellowstone-country/

How quickly they grow...

It is hard to believe how quickly my three beautiful children are growing up right in front of my eyes. This past December my in-laws had a family conference. At the conference each family told of an ancestor. Our three children together each gave a couple mintues little miny talk about what they learned on the ancestor we were given. It was so fun to watch them together & yet sad that they are so independet & getting so mature. They are all at such fun ages & working so hard in school. We are trying to enjoy every minute we have with them. Eliza thinks we are mean sometimes because some Friday nights we just make her hang out with old boring us. How quickly the time goes & how blessed I feel everyday I get to be their mother.

my siblings....

Brandon & Griffin a few shorts months before Brandon passed away.

six of us @ Devin's wedding in Dallas, TX

all us girls with mom

the family together on the 1 year anniversarey of Brandon's passing.

I am so grateful for my siblings. This Christmas was very quiet with nobody being here except my older sister & her family. It is hard to have life change & us living in different states but it's nice to know that we all value our family traditions & hold on to the great memories. I'm grateful for the example they have each been in my life....I love you Brandon, Carly, Sara, Krista, Devin, & Griffin! My life is so blessed from what each of you have been to me. Siblings are the greatest!

Merry Christmas!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas! We are so grateful for our Savior & His life. We pray that you will all remember the reason we celebrate today.
Love the Smith Family.

Eliza after auditioning for Den Brother (a new Disney Channel Movie)

Eliza was auditioning for the part of a 16 year old. She had a lot of fun & it was a great experience for her!

(notice her Hippie Band by Leza, that's her & mine's new business)

football season is almost over

As the boys get ready to play in their last games of the season this Saturday we all feel a little bit of relief that it is finally coming to a close. It has been a long season & even with all the wins & playing in the playoffs & now the championship games, it has not been what we expected football to be. McKay has enjoyed it because he hasn't had to work hard. They are expected to be lazy by their head coach. (SO FRUSTRATING!). Taylor (Smitty as they call him) has started to loose the love he has for football & wont playfor this coach again because he said that he is still playing for Norte Dame & he isn't letting this coach stand in his way. His coach told Taylor one day he was gonna buy him a pink dress & a tutu so he can dance on the field since that's all he knows how to do is dance. So over the next 2 games Taylor had 18 unasstited tackles & 2 sacks. One someone brought up the comment the coach had made he said that's how he gets Smitty to perform. I am just thankful that our boys have told us that they are unhappy with how things have been. Both McKay & Taylor have grown a great amount this football season.....to bad it has had nothing to to with football.

Taylor's latest headshot.....

Eliza's latest headshot

It's Football Season....yeah baby!

Oh the smell of the sweat & the joy of being together as a family watching Taylor & McKay play the game they love. This is truly our favorite time of year. Yes our life consists of practices almost every night of the week & every Saturday we spend at the football fields but the time together as a family & the memories our boys are making learning a sport they love, how to be better people, & developing life long friendships are so worth the hours.

I never thought I would say that give me my family & put me at one of my boys games & I'm good to go. It brings me great joy to watch them having so much fun. Now maybe this year they will even win a few games!

(no injuries so far. see if I feel the same then)

Do you Facebook?

Do you Facebook? I do & I love it. I love being in touch with friends from my childhood, teenage years & now. It is like doing your family history in a split second. It is a great networking tool & you run into friends that you haven't seen in ages & you are all caught up on what is going on in each others lives. I'm telling you it is such a great tool to have.

There is a down fall to Facebook though. It is very addicting & sometimes you start forgeting to even have real conversations with people any more.

So there is my spin on Facebook in a nutshell. I love it & got have it!

A 10 year old in mourning.....

It has been a week since Taylor was sitting in his acting class & his acting coach, David H. Stevens, said: "Michael Jackson died today." We hadn't heard the news & I happened to be walking past the class & heard the news just like Taylor. I was shocked but I was most concerened about my 10 year old son who over the past 14 months has grown to love the skills of an amazing artist. I saw his face & saw the tears coming. He needed a moment to gather his thoughts. That night when we got home he had a good cry & has a few more since. He has literally watched his DVDs & listened to all his CDs 24/7 since last Thursday. He has watched all the specials on TV & is truly mourning the loss of an artist he aspired to be like (not as a person but as talented). Yesterday he had a voice lesson & he has been working on the song "Heal the World" by Michael Jackson. On the car ride home we always listen to their lessons (they are recording on CD to practice) & his was very somber. It made me think that I grew up listening to Michael Jackson & never stop to think "oh yeah he is quite talented or wow I really like him" but here my son is hurting for the loss of an artist. It has also helped me learn to see the good in people. Taylor can find all the good qualities in Michael Jackson even after the world has made him such a freak show. I pray the Michael Jackson will have peace but most importantly that Taylor will feel joy in his talent knowing that are great songs out there because of Michael Jackson.

Random.......

We have very busy with life lately. Here are a few random pictures of the kids.