My little teenager...so she thinks!

This is how Jocelyn talks on the phone!! Obviously she has seen me trying to multi-task and talk, so she is copying me. It is pretty funny! She also uses her hands to talk and emphasize her stories! :)

More Easter pics...

She's not too sure about the marshmallow sucker!


She fell asleep with her head in the Easter basket!


Okay! I am ready to hunt for eggs!

Easter dress

Jocelyn was hilarious when we were shopping for an Easter dress this year. I had the hardest time finding a dress I liked and it was literally last minute shopping when we finally had to just pick something! Jocelyn was as picky as I was, which is scary! We were at Gymboree and she went around the store saying, "Mommy, it has to be fancy. That's not fancy enough!" Finally she decided on the green one! I love her little sandals! :)

More of Jocelyn and Aiden

Jocelyn is making sure baby Aiden's present is safe!!

Looks like he likes it!!

She really adores her baby cousin!

"Baby Aiden is MY cousin!"

I think I heard that statement about a hundred times this weekend! Jocelyn is VERY proud of her new baby cousin and lets everyone know! It is so cute! We went to Utah for Aiden's blessing this weekend. We had a great time and it was sooo nice to finally see Aiden! The first time Jocelyn held Aiden, he started crying and she said, "Um, I think he is scared of me!" Later while I was holding him, he started crying and she told Myrica, "I don't think my mom is very good with baby Aiden!" It was so funny! Anyway, here are a few pictures. I have to run some errands, but wanted to get some up here! I'll write more about the weekend later!

SIDE NOTE: UNFORTUNATELY I HAVE BEEN FORCED TO REMOVE THE PIC OF JOHN AND JOCELYN. I WAS THREATENED BY MY BROTHER! UHHHH! I DIDN'T THINK IT WAS BAD, BUT OBVIOUSLY HE HAD A DIFFERENT OPINION!!! LOVE YOU, JOHN!

Hoots

There is a new place in town called Hoots. It is a 7000 sq. foot building that has a bunch of the inflatable slides, rock walls, etc. for the kids to play on! It also has a HUGE jungle gym that is so much fun! Parents can climb on all the equipment too! This is definitely Jocelyn's new favorite place! Beats Chuck E Cheese hands down! Although she does love seeing Chuck E. and giving him hugs! :)

Ash, you need to come back and visit now that this place is open! The kids would have a blast! :)

I need to get rid of that book!!!!

I have been informed I need to marry Santa Claus!! Jocelyn LOVES "Twas the Night Before Christmas" and we are still reading it at bedtime...in March!! I keep forgetting to hide it!

Tonight, we were reading that book before bed and Jocelyn said, "Mommy, I think you need to marry Santa!" I told her that I married Daddy, so I can't marry Santa. She turns to Graham and says, "Daddy, maybe you should marry someone else!"

She really does ADORE her daddy, but maybe the thought of all those toys is a little too tempting! She's hilarious!

SURPRISE!!

Jocelyn has been so entertaining lately! The other day, she was riding her motorcycle..yes, she's three and she has a motorcycle and it is motorized! Anyway, she was riding it around the house and she drove up to me and this was our conversation...

Jocelyn: "Mommy, I'm going to the store. What would you like?"

Me: "some pink lemonade, please."

Jocelyn: "Okay! What would you like to eat?"

Me: "uhh, surprise me!"

So she drives into her playroom and comes back with a drink. She hands me the drink, walks over by the couch, curls up in a ball, JUMPS up and says "SURPRISE!!" It was SOOO funny! I guess I didn't think about telling a three year old to surprise me with something to eat! :)

President Gordon B. Hinckley

Today was President Hinckley's funeral. It aired on t.v and I was able to watch it. It was such a beautiful tribute to an amazing man. The Church put together a video on his life and included in that was his testimony that he gave at Conference in
2006. I am so moved by his powerful testimony and the example he has been to me all these years. I will greatly miss his sweet spirit, his sense of humor and his wonderful guidance. He was truly a man of God.


"I hope that all of you will remember that on this Sabbath day you heard me bear my witness that this is God's holy work. The vision given the Prophet Joseph in the grove of Palmyra was not an imaginary thing. It was real. It occurred in the broad light of day. Both the Father and the Son spoke to the boy. He saw Them standing in the air above him. He heard Their voices. He gave heed to Their instruction.

"It was the resurrected Lord who was introduced by His Father, the great God of the universe. For the first time in recorded history, both the Father and the Son appeared together to part the curtains and open this, the last and final dispensation, the dispensation of the fullness of times.

"The Book of Mormon is all that it purports to be—a work recorded by prophets who lived anciently and whose words have come forth "to the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations" (Book of Mormon title page).

"The priesthood has been restored under the hands of John the Baptist and Peter, James, and John. All the keys and authority pertaining to eternal life are exercised in this Church.

"Joseph Smith was and is a prophet, the great Prophet of this dispensation. This Church, which carries the name of the Redeemer, is true.

"I leave you my testimony, my witness, and my love for each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen."

President Gordon B. Hinckley
April 1, 2006, Sunday morning session of the 176th Annual World General Conference

Ballet!!!

Jocelyn started ballet class! She LOVES it! We thought about joining the ballet class at The Little Gym, but decided to go with a studio so we could enjoy an actual recital. She is still attending gymnastics class at The Little Gym, so we are very busy with all of her activities now!

The day of her first class, she was complaining about her stomach hurting and I was thinking, "Great! Her first class and she's not going to even go in!" Then we went outside and she saw a hot air balloon and was happy after that! I think she might have just been nervous or something! I was so proud of her, she went right into class even though I could tell she was a little apprehensive! She stood there for about two minutes, not sure what to do and then they started jumping for their warm up! She was sold! :) It was so cute how hard she tried to stay up with her teacher! I was really impressed with how well she did! They are just starting their recital routine, so she's not behind which is nice. Anyway, I LOVED watching her! I probably had a smile on my face the whole class b/c it was just soooo cute!

Here are a few pictures of her in her ballet leotard and skirt. She wants to wear those ALL the time! She insisted on taking pictures with her new horse, Smores! :)

More Aiden pics!

Aiden Christopher

I am an AUNT!!! Even better, my nephew is ADORABLE! John and Myrica have had a VERY long week! Her contractions started on Sunday and they've been in and out of the hospital a few times before the were finally admitted! Poor Myrica! Goodness!

They went in to the hospital Wednesday bright and early (ONE A.M!) and she was dilated to a two, so they were sent home! They went back Wednesday around three and she had dilated to a seven! She got the epidural and Aiden's heart rate dropped, so around 8:30, they decided to do a c section. Aiden was born at 9:19 p.m. and he was 9 pounds, 12 ounces and 22 inches!!! WOW! He is the cutest little thing and he has a head full of dirty blonde hair!

John is a VERY proud daddy! He told me that every time Aiden is crying, he will go over to him and start talking and Aiden will stop crying and look for him! How adorable is that?!?! The whole time Myrica was pregnant, John would talk to him, read scriptures to him, and pray into her belly! So he definitely knows his Daddy's voice! The nurses had to tell John not to talk to Aiden for a minute b/c they needed him to scream to check him out! How funny! I think John holds Aiden every single chance he gets...hopefully he'll put him down sometime before Aiden starts college! ha ha!

Everyone is doing well and expected to be home on Sunday! Love my little nephew and I haven't even met him yet! :) Jocelyn is VERY excited and tells everyone, "Baby Aiden is MY cousin!"

Big day for Jocelyn!!

Today has been such a good day! I wrote last week about Jocelyn going to Sunbeams. Well, this week she was asked to give a talk in sharing time. I had no idea what to expect b/c she's never had to do anything like that before! Every week, a different class is in charge of saying the prayer, scripture, article of faith and then a talk at the beginning of primary. This week was the Sunbeams turn and they were SO CUTE! We worked on Jocelyn's talk with MiMi last night and found some pictures that we could hold up to go along with it. Jocelyn was soooooo tired last night and didn't want to practice, so I was a bit worried that she wouldn't want to do it infront of all those kids and teachers!

This morning I asked Jocelyn if she was excited to give her talk and she said, "yes! In the microphone!" We got to primary and she sat up in the front, ready to go. Let me say, the parents all come in the primary room and will help their child say their parts. Anyway, the prayer and the article of faith went well, but when it was time for the scripture, the little girl got nervous and didn't want to do it. I was thinking, "oh boy! That's going to be Jocelyn!" Well, I went up there to help her and she marched right up to the microphone and she did SO WELL! I whispered the talk to her, line by line, and she said it all! I actually got teary eyed b/c her little voice is just so sweet!! I can't believe my little baby is to the point of giving "talks" in church!! AHHHH!

Here is her talk...
"Heavenly Father has a plan for me. I lived with Jesus and Heavenly Father as a Spirit child. I chose to come to earth and follow his plan. I came to a family and received a body. While I am on earth, my parents and teachers will teach me about the gospel. Because of what Jesus did for me, I can live with Heavenly Father again."

I'm so proud of my girl!! :)

A new year, a new class....

This year at Church, Graham and I are teaching a primary class together. We have the CTR 7 class which is 6 year olds who will be turning 7 this year. They are really cute! We have a huge class! Eleven kids! WHOA! Of course, there are only two girls and the rest are very energetic boys! Last year, I taught a class with all boys, so I was hoping for some balance this time!!

Oh! Jocelyn is in Primary now (instead of nursery) because she is three! Her class is called Sunbeams! I feel sorry for the two guys who teach b/c there are 13 sunbeams!! That is just crazy! Not all of them come every week, but still! Anyway, for some reason, Jocelyn has not wanted to go to nursery the past few months. She was doing so well and then they put new teachers in the nursery and she would have a meltdown if I tried to drop her off in there! Poor girl. Actually, poor Mommy! She would cry out, "BUT MOMMY! I LOVE YOU!! PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME!" Talk about a guilt trip! Like I said, I taught a class last year too, so I didn't have time to argue with her, so she would end up coming with me to class. It was pretty funny though. At first, after she had decided she didn't want to go to nursery anymore, she would start pleading with me to let her come with me when I started getting her dressed for church. Soon after, she would start SATURDAY NIGHT! Don't know how she knew it was Saturday b/c I sure wouldn't tell her, but every Saturday night, "Mommy, I don't want to go to nursery! I want to go to your class!" UHHH! Well, this didn't give me hope for the new year and her big girl class! She has the NICEST teachers, but for some reason, she doesn't like them. They always try to talk to her in the halls and get her to go to class, but she just ignores them! Well, they told me that those teachers would be moving up to Sunbeams from nursery! GREAT! I was hoping for a fresh start (only b/c she doesn't like them! I think they are great teachers!).

So! Last night at Church they had a "Pajama Party" to let the kids meet their new teachers. Jocelyn and I bought her adorable, new pajamas and I told her all about it. She was VERY excited all day UNTIL we got there and she saw her teachers! UHH! So she ended up staying with me half the night! I was joking with one of the other teachers and said, "Would you like to adopt Jocelyn into your class?!?!" I was teasing, but she said "YES!" and took Jocelyn! Now, this would be great news, but she teaches the ten year olds! Somehow I don't think this will work all year! :) But Jocelyn went to class with her and was completely happy! UHHH! Kind of makes it even more frustrating b/c I know she will go with someone, but not her teachers!!

Anyway, the good news is, with a lot of help from the primary leaders, JOCELYN WENT TO CLASS TODAY!! WOHOOOO! I didn't think it was going to happen!!! Graham and I were sooo excited! I know it doesn't sound like a big deal, but trust me....for us, it is! :) The Primary President is awesome and she checked in on Jocelyn and when she was crying for me, she distracted her and let her be the "big helper"!

Keep your fingers crossed for next week!!! AHHHH! :) Good thing we love her so much!

Christmas pics

Diamond ring...

The other morning, Jocelyn asked me if she could wear my diamond ring. I told her that she will get one when she gets married. I then asked her who she wanted to marry. She said, "Uncle John!" I said, "Well, what is Myrica going to do?" Jocelyn said, "Umm, make our rings!!!" ha ha. That girl!!!

Say a little prayer...

I am going to put Christmas pictures up here soon! Jocelyn and I just got back from Texas, so I have lots of pictures of Jocelyn and her cousin, Adam!

I couldn't help but write down this story of Jocelyn. It's pretty cute!!!

We rode to Texas with one of my friends and her three kids. We had a car full! We were driving down the road in Texas and Shea said, "oh boy. I just saw that cop turn around." Well, we weren't even going eight over the limit, but of course, we see the lights flip on and so we pull over. As the cop was walking up to Shea's car, I look back at Jocelyn and she has her arms folded and says, "Let's just say a little prayer!!" I have NO CLUE why she would say something like that b/c we've never been pulled over before and we haven't even really talked about police officers, but she sensed something!! The funny part is.....we got off with a warning!!! :)

Our little horseback rider!

We went to Graham's moms house the other day to celebrate Graham's 30th birthday! Grandma has eleven horses and Jocelyn always LOVES to go see them!! She would have a horse in her bedroom if she was allowed! :) She loves to go say hi to every one of them and give them kisses and she LOVES to feed them! She'll carry hay that is bigger than her, just so she can help out! It's so cute! She also gets to ride the horses. She usually rides Dirty Face b/c that is Grandma's favorite horse and she is good with kids! Anyway, here are some pictures of Jocelyn riding.

Turkey Day and Hide and Seek!

Well, I have been horrible with writing in this!! We have been so busy lately, so I thought I'd sit down while I have the chance and get caught up!

We had a great Thanksgiving Day! We went out to Mom and Dean's house and of course had wonderful food!!! Mom makes the BEST stuffing....yum yum!! Mom and I made this dessert together called Chocolate Wonderful. My aunt always made if for the family on holidays and since I don't get to Tulsa much, we thought we'd give it a try!! A little nerve racking trying to re-create something so good, but it turned out yummy!

After dinner, Jocelyn wanted to play hide and go seek with Mom and I. She LOVES this game! Usually right before bedtime, Graham will go upstairs and hide and Jocelyn and I will go find him. Daddy came up with that idea b/c sometimes it's a battle to get her to go upstairs at bedtime, so with that game, there's no fight! :) Anyway, Mom and Jocelyn went to hide and I was suppose to find them. It was the funniest thing!!! On one side of their house there are three bedrooms and the bathroom all next to each other. I would step in each room and say, "Are you in here?" Soon I heard this little voice saying, "Huh uh!" (meaning no). It was so hard not to laugh! I went in two more rooms, each time asking "are you in here?" and each time getting the sweet little reply, "Huh Uh!" Then I heard Mom laughing so hard! I find them lying on the floor next to the bed and both of them are just shaking, laughing so hard! It was soooo cute! Such a fun memory to tell Jocelyn when she gets older! :)

Jocelyn's new dollhouse!!!

This dollhouse is amazing! Cutest thing I've ever seen! It is three stories tall, has eleven rooms and came with eighty pieces of furniture! The furniture is so cute....it has a treadmill, plasma tv, vacuum, mop, playroom, a grill, bunkbeds, chandelier, ceiling fans, and so on!!! Adorable! Here are some pictures of it....