Happy Holidays!

I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas Holiday. We loved seeing and hearing from many of you and missed those that we were not able to spend time with. Happy New Year from our family to yours! Here are few highlights from our Christmas Holiday.

As always, decorating gingerbread houses with the cousins is a fun evening. I made the houses for the first time this year. What a sticky mess. I have to thank Mike's Mom, Lucy, for all of the many years that she has made the houses for everyone to enjoy, THANK YOU.

While I stood in line waiting for our Santa pictures the kids ventured with Mike over to the Toy Store, Sam was being a good sport about going along but it looked like he had a little fun!

Sam, Megan, and Mollie on their annual carousel ride at Westlake

Our favorite Gingerbread house at the Sheraton. It was a fabulous display and tribute to those that serve in the armed forces.

Waiting for Santa

Sitting with Santa
Having my picture with Santa, does this Santa look familiar??

Hanging out Christmas Eve at Grandma's and Papa's house

Some in my family questioned why Santa would give an "Air Horn" to a 15 year old boy.

Megan can't wait to go to school on Monday with her new sweatshirt.

Mollie taking time out to give her new Dolphin a squeeze, this pillow pet is her new favorite pillow in her room.

And finally, the highlight, I love this picture of sure joy and happiness. The kids were very shocked, surprised, and overjoyed when they learned that we are heading to Disneyland in February!

Family Prayer

We have family prayer pretty much every night. Some nights run great and all goes smoothly and everyone is off to bed and some nights don't go quite as well and of course there are the occassional nights here and there when someone starts chuckling during the prayer. I have to admit that this week it was me who was laughing. Sometimes kids say the craziest things even when they get older.

Several days ago we tye dyed t-shirts. The girls thought is would be fun to wear the shirts for Santa pictures and Sam was talked into the plan. We have never tye dyed shirts before so it was a quick but entertaining few minutes because none of us really new what we were doing. We wrapped the shirts in saran wrap and left them to sit overnight. As we knelt down to prayer that night Sam said "please bless the shirts to do whatever it is they need to do."

Two days later as Mollie was praying she said "please bless that our Christmas budget will increase so that I can have everything I want."

Finally, Mollie has a good friend named Chandler who just had surgery. Sam quite frequently teases Mollie about her friends who happen to be boys. Well in the prayer Mollie said "please bless Chandler that he will recover quickly" just then we all hear Sam very quietly say "ooooooooooooooooooooooh Mollie." Megan and I started laughing and couldn't stop. Mollie quickly ended the prayer. Once we quit laughing we proceeded to get Sam in trouble for teasing his sister, especially during a prayer. His comment was "what, I did it with the utmost respect and reverance.

I love coming together for family prayer!

Another Year

I have a love hate relationship with the month of september.

I hate seeing summer come to and end but love getting back into a routine.

I hate the endless amounts of homework but love hearing the kids talk about some great thing they learned or see their excitement when they grasp a new concept.

I hate shopping for endless amounts of new clothes and supplies but love cleaning out the dressars and cupboards to get ready for the new items that actually fit and don't have holes etc.

I love the morning routine when it runs smoothly but absolutely hate waking up (I have never been a morning person).

I love watching Megan swim, Mollie play soccer, and Sam play football. I hate worrying that they will be safe and I definitely hate the wet, muddy, and stinky laundry that goes with fall sports.

I hate filling out the forms and papers that have to be signed and returned to the school. I love that I get to work on my penmanship skills (yeah right)

I love listening to sixth graders practice their band instruments, I hate listening to sixth graders practice their band instruments.

I could go on and on about many more things that I love about my kids and about being a mom but I must admit that it is a little sad to see them growing up. After eleven years I no longer have a child in elementary school. It is kind of weird. One last thing, although I don't always love working I do love the fact that I have a job that is flexible enough to let me be a mom whenever needed.

Here are some pictures from the first day of school. Megan is a Junior, Sam a Sophomore, and Mollie started middle school, 6th grade.

Catching Up - Part Three - Megan

First of all Congratulations to Megan's dear sweet friend Sammy, who has offically battled cancer and won. We are excited that she is in remission and doing well. Megan loves the fact that she will be back at school this year. Megan has been an amazing support and friend through everything. We have all learned alot from Sammy's strength.

Last spring she wrapped up her sophomore year playing softball for the school. They needed a catcher and she stepped up. It was fun to watch her play as always. She obviously loves the game if you get a grin this big when you get on base.

The High School band spent 5 days over Memorial day weekend in Disneyland. Megan had a blast spending time with her friends in the band and playing center court in a Memorial day concert. I must admit that I on several occassions I have mentioned how jealous I am of her many travels. However, it is exciting to see her live life to the fullest every minute of every day.

Megan with her Favorite Character. We often joke that we should put a life size Mater on her bedroom wall.

Afterer Disneyland she feverishly wrapped up her sophomore year. Constant excitement in the air as she studies for finals, planned activities with friends, and got ready for her summer adventures. Here is her group of friends at the "Mormon Prom."

The week after school was out she headed off for a week at EFY in Tacoma with her friend Whitney and with Sam. Of course she loved every minute of it and had a blast. She returned home for less than a day, just long enough to do her laundry and then was out the door to her cousins house in Pennsylvania. She spent a wonderful week with her cousins and was shown a great time. Thanks Jeanne and Roger for giving them such a great experience.

She loved her time in New York and DC and really enjoyed Hershey park and the church sites along with the pageant.

After months of nagging on my part I guess she decided that a street vendor in NY seemed like the perfect place to buy her first purse.

After returning home it was once again time for a quick turn around to get ready for a week at Girls Camp. She was a little tired when she headed out the door but as usual had a great time at girls camp. After camp she did return home and take a week to catch her breath and get a few other things done. And then it was time to get ready for TREK.

As I mentioned with Sam, what an amazing experience. They heat in easter washington was terrible the bugs and conditions gross but she loved it and learned and grew a lot. I love this picture of her brother giving her a little boost at the end the "womens pull." She enjoyed her trek family and the experience a lot.

The trek ended her adventures away from home for the summer and she managed to squeeze in a few more weeks of fun here at home before she had to start preparing for school and swim. Of course as always the lake is a popular place to hang out with friends and family. Tubing is one of her greatest adventures. She had a fun time being at the lake with all of her Hickman Cousins.

Catching Up - Part Three - Megan Continued...

Here is the picture I made reference to of Sam and Megan at Trek. Sorry I could not get it to load onto the other post. :)

A short clip of Megan's band at their last performance. Megan is in the front row of the clarinets, third head in. This year in band she is playing the Bari-Sax. She is very excited.

Catching Up - Part Two - Sam

Yes, we are still here. It is amazing how time gets away from you. Anyhow here are a few of the things that Sam has been up to (besides making his Mom laugh and bugging his sisters) Five months ago this week he had Elbow reconstruction surgery. It wasn't easy but all things considered it went well. He now has about 95% use of his elbow and the surgery was a success. Thanks, to everyone for your love and support and prayers. He missed less school then anticipated and rehab was easier than expected. He had a great freshman year of highschool in spite of having elbow surgery, oral surgery, and getting his braces put on.

After being cooped up for a while and not participating in very many activities he was very happy when he got the OK to start doing things again. Of course getting out on the wakeboard was at the top of his list.

Both Sam and Megan did a great job cheering on Mollie and her team throughout the all star tournament. After every win they would add a new item to their outfits. Much too Mollie's amazement all of the 10 year olds on the team loved Sam and Megan.

The last week of June Sam's cousin Ryan came for a visit and they had a blast. Sam only gets to see Ryan about once a year but they manage to cram in a lot of fun in a few short days.

Of course what fifteen year old boy wouldn't love anything that involves fire.

Sam went on the teachers quorum scout high adventure for a week and had lots of stories to tell. He loved the rock climbing and white water rafting. He wasn't thrilled with all of the hiking but I think a view like this would make it all worth it.
On August 1st he celebrated his 15th birthday (yes I know there are only 9 candles, what can I say). A few days after his birthday we went to the lake with two of his good friends and had a fun day. He loved having the guys to hang out with and I managed to get 15 candles on the 2nd cake. I don't have any pictures but Sam also went to EFY for a week down in Tacoma and had a wonderful time. I loved talking to him after he got home. It was great to hear about all the fun he had, the people he met, and the things he learned. He is already talking about next year. Next it was off to TREK. It is amazing to me that they take so little on trek and do just fine. He wore the clothes you see, had a five gallon bucket of various supplies and a sleeping bag. Despite the hot weather and all the walking he enjoyed it and even had some time to goof of with his friends and smile.

Finally as summer grew to a close Sam loved innertubing with various family members and friends over the summer. I love taking the pictures it is so great to hear all of the laughter. After one last weekend at the lake for the Hickman reunion Sam was anxious to get back to football and is somewhat excited for school and seminary!

Catching Up - Part One - Mollie

Well lets see, so many things have been going on the last three months that I am not sure where to start. I thought it might be easier if I broke it into segements. So I will start with Mollie. Mollie has had a very busy and exciting spring and summer. She spent several months playing on her regular season softball team and had a fabulous season. Her team won first place in the league in her division and she did a fabulous job pitching. After the regular season Mollie tried out for the all star team and made it. She has loved being on a more competative team but sometimes gets a little tired with the rigorous schedule. If she is not playing short stop she is pitching and doing a great job. She pitched a fabulous four innings in 95 degree heat to win the district tournament. It was very FUN! The state tournament started today, GO Mollie!!!

Mollie graduated from elementary school last month and will be moving on to middle school. She was excited to leave elementary school behind and is looking forward to new adventures. She loves the idea of having a band class and getting to rotate teachers. I went with Mollie and all of the 5th graders to Camp Orkila in the San Juans for three days, what an adventure. Mollie and I both came home very tired. Since school has been out Mollie has enjoyed filling her spare time (when she is not playing softball) with friends, swimming, babysitting, cooking, watching movies, and of course wakeboarding and innertubing at the lake.

Mollie recently started collecting water bottles. We thought it was a little crazy at first but now that the collection is growing it is very fun to see all of the different places and different types of bottles she has. It is time for a bigger water bottle box in the pantry. She is always on the look out for the best deal and loves that the family has started picking out bottles from special locations.

Last week Mollie celebrated her 11th birthday. We had a great party here at the house with thirteen girls. It was crazy but fun.

TIME MARCHES ON!! (Way too quickly)

I am still trying to figure out where exactly time goes. It seems to be ticking by faster and faster as I watch my little family grow up. Things are busy and crazy as usual but everything is going along just fine. Here is a glimpse of a few things that have happened in our family over the past few months.

In February the family took a trip to Montanan to visit my parents and my brother Tim and his family. We had a great time visiting and hanging out with everyone. We also had the chance to visit with my grandparents, aunt and uncle, and cousins. It was a quick but enjoyable trip. The kids had a great time sledding, playing with their younger cousins, and of course skiing at Bridger Bowl and Big Sky. I spent a fun day on the ski hill with the family. I rode the lift up to the lodge and because the lift was shut down I got a snow mobile ride down from the midmountain lodge. It would have been a fun ride if it hadn't taken two and half hours to get the ride. The next day I chose to stay with my Mom and go shopping instead. It was great.

Megan, Sam, and Mollie with the twins and new baby Brandon.

The gang heading out after lunch.

Megan is as busy as ever. Probably her biggest highlight was getting her drivers license about two months ago. Of course it makes me nervous but she is a great driver and actually ventured into Seattle on I-5 this last week. High school softball started a few weeks ago so that is taking a lot of her time but she enjoys it. She is playing catcher this year. She manages to fit in a little time for homework, church and of course always has time for her dear friend, Sammy, who is sick with cancer. Please send your prayers her way.

Sam is definitely a teenage boy. I love him but he can drive me crazy. I am not sure if it is his mission in life to annoy me or make me laugh but he is good at both. His latest crusade is to become my "trainer." I might have to take him seriously since he is now taller than I am. He decided to join the swim team over the winter and did great. This is the first time he has done any organized swimming and really enjoyed it. The coaches are attempting to turn him into a butterflier (is that a word?) He ended up swimming in some varsity heats by the end of the season. Remember that elbow injury that we posted a picture of last spring. Well it never healed correctly and he is having elbow reconstruction surgery. It sounds like a grueling surgery and a long recovery. He will miss several weeks of school. He will be very busy with physical therapy and homework but seems to be taking it all in stride. I better start brushing up on my geometry skills. Maybe send a few prayers his way as well.

Mollie played basketball for the first time this winter. In my mind she was a great little player but she found the sport to be very frustrating. She wanted to revert to soccer where she could sneak in some shoving and body contact or softball where she could have a collision at home plate. Not being able to grab (which she did several times) the person she was guarding was very frustrating for her. She started softball a few weeks ago and is looking forward to a great season. I am coaching her team and I love being on the field with her. She is dabbling with the piano but took time out to play the trombone in the 5th grade band. Tonight was the band concert. The family went and listened to 14 songs in 21 minutes. It was AWESOME! One last thing about Mollie, she has become a phone talker. When I can't find a single phone in the house I head to her room and usually find three.
Just for fun, the other night I took my shoes off on the porch after softball practice. A few hours later Mike saw something when he was going out to the car. A frog in my shoe. A little excitement before bed.

Lets see, as for Mike and I. Mike started his new job at American Seafoods March 1st in their IT department and is really enjoying it. He commutes downtown on the bus but doesn't seem to mind. He doesn't have much time for umpiring anymore but is hoping to find a little space to sneak in a few games. We celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary and my 40th birthday. Like I said time is marching on. I am basically just trying to stay sane as I jump between work, kids activities, church, and home. Needless to say I always have something to do.

Hope all is well with all of you! HUGS TO EVERYONE, DEBBIE.