Christmas Wish

My wish is that everyone is able to sit back and truly enjoy Christmas Day. Enjoy being with your loved ones, and remember why we celebrate Christmas. Merry Christmas.

We had a surprise guest show up at the Collins Christmas party. Emilee was so excited to see Santa.

Temple Square

We had so much fun walking around and looking at the lights this year, even though it was only 9 degrees the night we went.

Festival of Trees

Every year we try to go as a family to the Festival of Trees, an event to help Primary Children's Hospital. We love to walk around and look at all of the amazing trees, wreaths, and gingerbread houses that people donate. Emilee got a little tired towards the middle, so we sat down and ate a treat. We bought some of the scones they sell there. The scone helped Emilee make it through the rest of the trees. She really loved the ones with all of the babies.

Elves Scavenger Hunt

We decided to go to Gardner Village and look at the elves this year. Before we went I found that they were having a scavenger hunt for the little kids. I printed off a list of the elves we needed to find, and off we went. It was so much fun to look for the elves while we were shopping, Emilee really enjoyed seeing Santa's Elves. Once we found them all, we took the list to the Candy store. Emilee was able to choose a candy stick, and of course she went for peppermint, it was pink.

Halloween Weekend

Halloween was fun this year, Emilee started to understand what was going on. On Friday night we carved pumpkins. I was the lucky one that helped Emilee. I cleaned out her pumpkin, and I carved the face. The things we do for our kids, I hate cleaning pumpkins, yet I did it for Emilee. I haven't cleaned a pumpkin in about 15 years. Unfortunately Emilee wasn't feeling well, so we decided to start early on Halloween. We went to Grandma and Grandpa Yorgasons house first, and trick or treated with Maylee and Ryan. While we were there we got to see Sam, but we didn't want to hold him, we didn't want to run the risk of getting him sick. Then we went to Grandma and Grandpa Collins house. We arrived at the same time the pizza arrived, so we all ate pizza before we went out trick or treating. Then we took Emilee, Matthew, and Lily trick or treating. Emilee started to wear down and we had to carry her most of the way. Matthew enjoyed it so much, he was running as fast as he could to the doors. After trick or treating we came home and watched a movie. As we watched the movie we ate all the yummy treats that everyone brought. We had such a fun weekend.

Yorgason Halloween Party

We had so much fun at the Halloween Party. Everyone came dressed up in costumes, we had Pirates, Rockers, A deviled egg, a cake mix, Bumblebee, a cupcake, Tinkerbell, Cinderella, BYU Fan, Disneyland tourists, the Cat in the Hat, Supermom, and a pig in a blanket. We had tons of terrific food, that everyone helped make. We also played lots of fun games. We played ghost bowling, pin the wart on the witch, a game where we played chickens, we danced with a broom, and we had a scavenger hunt. Everyone seemed to enjoy the night, what a great party.

Congratulations

Congratulations to Ryan and Kristiena on your new family member. A handsome baby boy, born Sunday. We hope he continues to grow strong and gets to come home soon. We love you guys.

Hardest job on Earth

You always hear that being a mom is the hardest but most fulfilling job in the world. Having a 2 year old I have to agree. I often find myself watching other moms and thinking they are perfect, and that I am not. I wonder in amazement how they seemed to have missed out on the tantrums, the fighting, the joys of potty training, and not being reverent. I always think what I could I do better, and how do I raise a child. Then there are the times when I just need a break, but then Emilee does something that just melts my heart.

I love when she just climbs into your lap just because she wants to be there. When she wakes up in the morning asking for daddy, and then telling you he's at work. Then about an hour before daddy comes home she starts watching out the window, and shouts for joy when she sees him. Or how she runs and gives you a hug when she sees you, or just because she wants too. The way she looks to you to save her when she is scared, or sad. How she wants to show you the picture she colored in Nursery, because your opinion is the most important. One of the sweetest things is when she tells you "love you, mostest." Its all of the wonderful moments that makes me realize being a mom is the greatest job ever.

General Conference

This past weekend was The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints general conference. It was a great weekend, especially Sunday. My mom has made homemade cinnamon rolls for the Sunday morning session for as long as I can remember. Now that most of us are married it's still a large tradition. This time all of us were there, Curtis and Brittany came down from school, and all of us married couples showed up. It's a great tradition, that I hope always continues. We were blessed to listen to the council that our Prophet and Apostles shared with us.

I want to thank everyone in my family for making the day such a great day. Thank you Mom and Dad for providing the home in which we listened, and for the great food. Thank you Curtis and Brittany for taking time out of your lives to come and listen with your family. Thank you Russell, Amber, Christy and Robert for also sharing the moment with us. I love all of you, thank you for being a part of my family.

DisneyLand

We visited Disneyland on Thursday October 1st and had so much fun. We were sad to find that Pirates had been closed for maintenance that day. We had really looked forward to taking Emilee on that ride. We still had fun taking her on lots of other rides. She really loved It's a Small World, she loved to see the dancing "babies". She had so much fun meeting the characters, and shopping she was so tired by the end of the night. Thank heavens for the kind employees of Disney. They were so patient with Emilee as she started to get ornery from being tired. When we were standing in line at the end of the night to look at the pictures we had taken, she was really upset. So the kind ladies gave her a special Tinkerbell pin, and a button that said she was an Honorary citizen of Disneyland. I really appreciated the kindness they shared with us. We bought a "couple" of things to remind us of our trip. My most favorite, was from the silhouette studio. We wanted to get Emilees picture done, and didn't know what to expect. They had me hold Emilee on my lap, while the Artist talked to Emilee and sang songs with her. All the while she was cutting out the silhouette, and it only took her about a minute. I was totally impressed and love the picture. If I ever get a chance to go back to Disneyland I will definitely visit their shop and get a picture done again.

Thank you to everyone at Disney for the wonderful memories, we had a terrific visit.

California Adventure

We had so much fun today. We didn't think that we would spend the whole day in California Adventure, but we did. The time just flew by, before we knew it we had to leave. Emilee had a lot of fun. As we first walked in we ran into Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, and Goofy. We bought her an autograph book, and she loved having them sign their names. We went on some rides and played some games, Emilee and Adam both won prizes, I am not great at arcade games so I did not win any prize. Today we had a nice surprise and ran into Becca and Noel Platt. It was nice to see some familiar faces. We had lunch with Ariel, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, and Jasmine. Emilee was hungry when we met Ariel and Cinderella so she didn't smile that much. She warmed up, and enjoyed seeing the others, she kept trying to tell Sleeping Beauty that she had met Cinderella. We had so much fun, we can't wait until tomorrow.

Knotts Berry Farm

Yesterday we went to Knotts Berry Farm, we had fun. I felt bad for Adam it wasn't anything like he remembered. He was so excited to take us there, and then was really disappointed. We took part of a promotion they had going on, so we only paid about half price for our tickets. We went to camp snoopy for Emilee first, as we walked in we saw snoopy greeting kids. To our surprise she ran right up to him and gave him a hug. I would of had a really cute picture, but one of their employees stepped in front of me to take their picture. So I had to pay for a copy of the picture. I would of paid anyway for 1 copy, but I wanted to take one so I could print it off for scrapbooking. So we will try scanning it when we get home. Emilee had fun on all of the rides she could go on, but one. She didn't like the tugboat that swung back and forth, while going in a large circle. It made her tummy upset. After camp snoopy we walked around and Adam went on a few rides. Then we went to lunch, and that was the end of our trip to Knotts Berry Farm.
We got back earlier than expected so we took Emilee to the pool and she loved it. We had to pull her out again after a couple of hours, because she was starting to freeze.

Swimming

We decided that part of relaxing tonight would be swimming. It was so much fun, we were the only ones in the swimming pool and Emilee loved it. It was the first time that we actually took her to a real pool, she has only been in the kiddie pools. We had so much fun playing with her. Adam got her to jump of the side of the pool, and we played ring a round the rosies. We had to pry her out of the water, and she already wants to go back. She keeps telling us that she wants to go swimming. We have had a really great vacation so far, and it's only the second day.

We Made It!!!!!!

We are finally sitting in our hotel room, in California. We left yesterday morning, and didn't run into any problems. Emilee started to get irritable about 3/4th of the way to Vegas. We spent yesterday at the Excalibur, Emilee enjoyed playing some of the kids games they have in their arcade room. We ate at their buffet, and thanks to the special they had it only cost $11 for all of us. Emilee had a hard time falling asleep, and woke us up early. So after getting everything ready, we left for California.

A really happy side note, Emilee didn't have any potty accidents both days.

It's broken!!

Adam started playing softball this summer with his brothers and some friends. He wasn't sure about playing at first, but he has ended up liking the game. The team just started a new season last week, which Adam has been all excited about. Well, last night Adam decided to hurt his finger. He was trying to catch a ball that was coming at him on the ground, when he went to scoop it up in his mitt he "jammed his finger". He finished the inning, and then decided to get ice. On the way to get ice he showed it to me, the fingernail was already blue. He sat out a couple of innings and then finished the game. I was the over concerned wife, and wanted him to get it looked at. He kept saying it was fine, just jammed, no big deal, and that it was just a finger. This morning he woke up and it still hurt, and he couldn't move it. So I spent about an hour waiting for him at the Doctors office. He comes out with a bright green bandage on his finger and going down his hand. Apparently it was an "I told you so" moment for me. I don't get to say that phrase very often. He broke the tip of his finger. So now he can't play for at least 4 weeks, which is about half the season. He might be able to play the last 2 games. I say he might be able, he says he will be able too.

Hogle Zoo

We decided to take Emilee to the zoo one Saturday. We thought it would be fun to show her the animals, and it was something different to do. When we first got there we took Emilee to the playground. That way she would be able to get some of her wiggles out. They have a large snake slide, that Emilee wanted to go down. Yet when she got to the top, she decided she was scared. Adam went up saved her, and then went down the slide with her. When they came out of the slide, it looked like they were being eaten. It was fun to see all the animals, we must of gone at a really good time, the animals were all active. We saw the Elephants eat, and watched the Rhinos charge each other. The monkeys were out playing, and we saw the bears wrestle. Even the lizards, turtles, snakes, and birds seemed to be more active than in the past. When we went to the prairie display, a dove came running from the other side of the display over to Emilee. That dove followed her all along the glass, she had made a new friend. We think it's because she had a little doll and the bird liked the look of the hair. A lot of the animals that day were attracted to Emilee. We met a nice family who said they were about to leave, so they gave us 2 tickets to the Conservation Carousel. That was very kind of the family, Emilee loved riding on the animals. Because they gave us 2 tickets, and Emilee needed an adult with her, she's still little, Adam and I both got to take her. We had a lot of fun that day, I really think Emilee enjoyed seeing the animals. It was fun going and spending time away from our house as a family.

4th of July

We had so much fun as a family this year celebrating the fourth of July. Adam actually had the day off, all he wanted to do was relax and enjoy the day. We had an afternoon barbecue with my side of the family. It was nice to do something in the afternoon. Everyone in the family brought something to the picnic. We made cupcakes, with ice cream on top of them. They tasted like bite sized ice cream cakes. Russell and Amber brought a sweet potato casserole which was delicious. Mom and Dad provided the chicken, potato salad and baked beans. It was a great meal. Brittany set up her old pool and slide for the kids to play in. Emilee loved it, she played in the pool before and after we ate. She had fun going down the slide and landing in the water. She loved splashing anyone she could reach.
Brittany was finally convinced to join her niece and nephew in the pool. Emilee decided to help her down the slide. She kept telling her she would catch her, and she kept her word and did catch her.Later that evening we went to the Yorgasons for a Barbecue, it was great food. There was so much to choose from. After dinner we talked for a little while, then the guys decided to throw a softball to each other. When they were done we played a family game of kick ball. I haven't played kickball since I was in elementary school. It was so much fun to play again, and with everyone. We played girls against boys, the little kids where on the girls team. We really didn't keep score, but everyone thinks the girls won. We played until it started to get dark, then we got ready for the fireworks. It was fun to watch the fireworks, thank you to everyone who brought some. The fireworks were a great ending to a wonderful day. Emilee and Adam playing with a sparkler.

Toddler Bed

This is Emilees new bed. I found the toddler bed at the D.I. they wanted $25 for the bed and a mattress. Usually when buying furniture I like to ask Adams opinion, he was fishing that day and I couldn't get a hold of him. I knew that the bed would go quick, so I made a decision to buy it. Which was a good thing I did other people were starting to look at it. Well Adam came home and surprise he had to help me pick up a bed. It needed some work, which Adam took care of. I did help a little. We let Emilee pick out her bedding, which as you can see, she went with her favorite, she choose PRINCESS. Emilee loved playing on her bed, and even sleeping in it. Until it was time to actually go to bed. She soon found that she was able to get out and play. It took a little less than a week to get her sleeping through the night in her bed. It felt more like a month of no sleep for Adam and I. This bed was well worth the $25, its a bed that will last and Emilee loves her big girl bed.

My 30th Birthday

I had a birthday last month, which was lots of fun. My husband had the day off so he took me out shopping. It was fun to spend the day with him and Emilee, not worrying about anything. We went to dinner at the Cheesecake factory. Which is always good, as we got our check we noticed there was a survey code. We took the survey and received a $10 gift card in the mail. We like to celebrate our birthdays with family, so I got cake twice that week. The first cake is the one I made to celebrate with my family, the second cake I made to celebrate with Adams family. I loved my birthday, Adam did everything he could to make it great. It was a wonderful day, I am thankful for everyone who helped me celebrate.

Emilees New Car

Emilee and I were home one Saturday wondering what to do with our time. While she was eating breakfast I decided to search classifieds on KSL. Under the free section there was a nice family saying they were giving away the stuff in their garage. They had a lot of things listed, but the one that stuck out to me was Little Tikes Car. I decided to go and see if we would be lucky enough to get the car. Emilee was lucky that day, we got the car. Adam called from work to see what we were doing and I told him I got Emilee a car. So our minds went to work, and we decided to fix it up.

Emilee helped her daddy wash the car, the whole time she was so excited. Then with a little patience and some spray paint, Adam fixed the car making it look new and different. She loves her car.

The Last Month or So

I can't believe how fast this past month has gone. My Grandpa Mustard and my Aunt Bonnie came to visit my family for five weeks. Those weeks flew by and they have gone home. It was so nice seeing them and having the time to visit with them. I am lucky that my Grandpa does come and visit once a year, so I can still spend some time with him. I haven't seen any of my Aunts on my moms side in about 6 years, so it was really nice to have Bonnie here. We miss them already and hope to see them again next year if not sooner.
The last week of April we spent a day in Logan with Brittany. My brother Curtis was having an art show/presentation. It was were all of the seniors were showing off their portfolios. It was fun to visit with him for a few minutes in the morning before he had to set up for the show. We went to Aggie Ice Cream. All of us ordered the Aggie blue mint, except for Emilee she had cookies and cream. I'm not a fan of mint ice cream, Aggie blue mint is the exception. I love the flavor and am sad I have to drive to Logan to enjoy it. The rest of the day we spent at the Logan zoo and the park. Emilee heard all the ducks talking to each other, and started to quack like them. She had fun at the zoo, she really enjoyed the park. She had Brittany following her and playing on the swings with her all day. We went to dinner at the Copper Mill, we have fallen in love with the restaurant. My parents called and joined us there for dinner. My dad even said it's some of the best food he's had. If your ever in Logan you really need to eat at the Copper Mill and try Aggie Blue Mint Ice cream. After dinner we all went to Curtis' presentation. It was fun to see what all the portfolios looked like. I really liked Curtis and not just because he's my brother, he had one of the better portfolios.
Mothers Day was a nice day, Adam made me breakfast. Emilee and Adam gave me a raspberry plant and some roses. I am so excited for the raspberry bush, I have wanted one forever. Now I'm just waiting for the raspberries to ripen. We went to my Moms ward that day. My mom had to give a talk on what she learned from her mother. She was so nervous, yet she did a wonderful job. I was so proud of her for overcoming her fear, and doing a wonderful job at the same time. We enjoyed dinner with my family and chatted with them for a while. Later we went and visited with Adams mom. The rest of the family was there, it was nice to visit with them for a while. It was a great day, I couldn't of asked for a better one.
In the last month we have celebrated some birthdays. Curtis and Kayloni turned 24, they both think they are old. We also celebrated my Dads birthday, he loved the fishing pole all of us kids bought for him. Thank you Russell and Brittany for picking out such a great gift for dad.
For Memorial day my husband was so sweet. He could tell that I have been going crazy and have needed a break. So he took our little family to a hotel for a mini vacation. We didn't go far, we just went to Lehi. It was nice to just relax and spend the time just hanging out and enjoying the night. We couldn't do anything during the day because Adam had to work. It was nice to get away and enjoy being a family.

Time Out

The last two days have been so nice. Wednesday morning I woke up, and everything was irritating me. Adam and I could both tell that I really needed a time out from everything. So he offered to stay home with Emilee and let me go shopping. I actually took him up on the offer. I haven't been by myself like that in a long time. I was gone for about 3 hours. It was strange at first I kept feeling like I was forgetting something, but I enjoyed my time alone. I was able to go to stores and take my time if I wanted. I know it wasn't the shopping that made me feel better, I only bought a couple of things. It was knowing everything was fine at home and I didn't have to worry about a thing. I felt refreshed when I got home, like I could handle anything. I really appreciate my sweet husband giving me a time out. He is a kind, loving, and understanding man, I'm lucky that he is mine.

Snow!?!?!?!?!

It's April here in Utah, so the birds should be singing and the flowers should be blooming. Well unfortunately Utah is known for crazy weather. Early this morning as my husband was preparing to go to work he woke me up to ask me if he could take the car I usually use. Being half asleep, it's really early, I remember him saying something about 3 inches of snow. I tell him go ahead and take the car I want you to be safe. Then I fall back asleep. About an hour later I hear noises that sounds like someone scratching on our windows, I'm still so tired I barely register the noise and then fall back asleep. So 7:30 this morning I wake up look out our front window and see all the snow. Wasn't too surprised, I had been warned, also wasn't so happy about seeing the snow. I remind myself we live in a desert state and can use the moisture. Well I go to our back door and open the blinds and this is what I see.

This branch is right outside the door, it's suppose to be above our second story window.

I get past the first branch and turn the corner. All of a sudden I feel like I've stepped into a wonderland. I was surrounded by tree.

This is what the tree looks like from the front. The lower branches are usually closer to the top of the pine tree. I honestly enjoyed what I found this morning, there was something calming about the whole thing. I was even crazy enough, that as soon as I saw the first branch, I slipped on my sandals and went into the snow to take pictures. It's Utah and I knew that this moment wouldn't even last a few minutes. The sun was coming, and the moment was going to slip away. I added the last picture because I like it. I found something funny in the fact all the branches were in the garbage can. I hope everyone found something to enjoy this magical morning.

Easter

I can't believe Easter has come and gone. I hope everyone had a great Easter. As for our family it was a great weekend, we kept ourselves very busy. Saturday Morning we went to an Easter Egg hunt that was hosted by Rocky Mountain Mortage. We went with Adams family, his dad works for the company, so we all take our kids and enjoy. It's fun to watch everyone search for eggs and race for prizes. After that egg hunt was over we went to my familys house for the "Collins" easter egg hunt. Right now there's only 3 cousins, and only 2 that can enjoy the egg hunt. We keep hoping that one day there will be more children. Matthew and Emilee enjoyed looking for the eggs. Since they are the only 2 that can look they get more than enough. That night we dyed eggs with Emilee. It's the first time we have dyed eggs with her, last year she was too young, yet she knew exactly what to do. She enjoyed "throwing" the eggs in the dye. Luckily for us we had alot of towels down. Easter morning we woke up and got ready for church. When we were all ready we came down stairs to see what the Easter Bunny left us. Before we went to church we watched the Easter Message, its a great reminder of what this holiday is really about. We went had dinner with my family that evening. It was great fun, we did miss Russell and Amber they were with her parents. It was great to share Easter with my Grandpa and my Aunt Bonnie, they are visiting from North Carolina. After Dinner we went to visit with Adams family and enjoy a family night that Ryan and Kristiena prepared for us.

With all of the family activities that happen for holiday, its easy to forget why we celebrate. As we watched the Easter Message it was a great time for me to reflect and to find peace. I know that Jesus was sent here to help us. That he loves each one of us and he did die and bleed for us. I also know that he arose from the grave. I am Thankful that he was willing to give his life for me. That one day I may return to Heaven. I only hope that I may be a example of his love and show it unto others. I know that I have a long way to go, but I will keep trying. If you want to watch the Easter Message just click here.

Gardner Village

Yesterday we went to Gardner Village with my family. For those that don't know Gardner Village was an old mill that they have turned into a bunch of shops. It was a nice to spend time with the family talking, walking, and enjoying the day. Grandma thought ahead and had bread with her for the kids to feed the ducks.

Emilee enjoyed trying to get the ducks to eat the bread she was throwing. Unfortunately her bread didn't always make it to the water.

Emilee and Matthew, her cousin, didn't understand why they had to share the bread. They were hungry too.

Emilee really hates being in her stroller. She loves her freedom when we let her out. She decided to run back and forth on one of the old bridges they have there.

Emilee and Matthew walking away smiling and laughing. Emilee thought it was great that she was able to hold Matthews hand and "help" him walk. I don't know if she made it easier or harder for him. They had fun playing together. By the end of the day everyone was tired and ready to go home.

The Beginning

In Elementary School when people would ask what do you want to be when you grow up? I would always answer that I wanted to be a Mom. That dream finally came true. I met Adam, my sweetheart and best friend, in November 1999. We were married in July 2000, and have enjoyed every moment together since. We wanted to have children soon after, unfortunately that became our trial. We tried for seven years with no success. Finally that wonderful moment came, Our Little Miracle arrived in February 2007. Emilee is now 2 years old and has brought such joy into our lives. Adam and Emilee are my dreams come true.