live... laugh... love...

Mother's Day 2012

"I hope that my dear sisters throughout the world - grandmothers, mothers, aunts, and friends - never underestimate the power of their influence for good."  - President Dieter F. Uchtdorf (attached to the See's chocolate they passed out to all the Relief Society women at church)

After getting to sleep in and shower, uninterrupted, this is what I walked downstairs to, along with a sparkling clean family room and kitchen thanks to Lauren:

After church photo session.  The three littles had drawn pictures of me in Primary and when they sang in Sacrament meeting they held them up at the end.  It was very sweet to see all the Primary kids beaming and waving at their moms.

After a great day at church, we enjoyed salmon, corn on the cob, green salad and cool whip-cottage cheese-jello salad for dinner.  Emily and Lauren did the dishes and cleaned up the kitchen (my favorite part!), and we walked up to the water tower to see the goats that have been brought in to eat the vegetation for fire-proofing purposes.  (It doesn't take much to entertain us around here:)  Scripture study, prayer, and Daddy put the kids to bed.  It was a great day!

Annual Easter Photos

Thanksgiving 2011: The Turkey Trot: 5K

And now for the real race...

Craig pulled ahead of me and Emily early in the race...

I told you this turkey trot was legit... we even had a water (well, lemonade) station at the turnaround/halfway mark.

I managed to pass Emily coming up the hill,but there goes Craig!

No pictures, please!

Lauren coming into the home stretch.

Craig beat me by about 10 seconds.  But I beat my cross-country running daughter by a couple minutes :)

That's one good-looking and healthy family who has earned their Thanksgiving feast!

 

Lauren turns 13!

Watch out!  There is another teenager in the Puckett house!

The day started with Lauren's friends decorating her locker for her.  Then I brought her lunch from her favorite sandwich shop in town, Board and Brew - a BLC (bacon, lettuce and cheese).  I also brought Lofthouse sugar cookies to share with her friends.

 

After dinner, 4 of the girls' cast mates showed up to wish Lauren happy birthday.  Bill and Quaid performed a birthday rap, written especially for her.  She was thrilled with the attention from the older boys :)

 

 

Lauren's response to my query of what kind of cake she wanted for her birthday: 

"Remember that white cake Lizzy brought over that one time?"

So I called Lizzy to question her about the white cake and she brought over the recipe for her coconut cake with whipped cream icing.

 

Happy birthday, Lauren!

Happy Halloween 2011

Halloween went on for days around here.  Friday night was the school's First Annual Mako Monster Mash which Craig took the kids down to.  Saturday night was our ward's Trunk or Treat.  And then actual trick or treating on Halloween night.  Phew!  All that for a silly holiday that I'm not even sure why we celebrate!

Ashton (Nerf Warrior) and Nathan (Harry Potter) ready to go on Halloween night.  

 

Maren wanted to be Rapunzel from "Tangled".  I happily bought her the costume and wig.  I'm just grateful to have one more year with a little girl who wants to by a princess for Halloween.  This could be the last year :(

 

Ashley wanted to be a Barbie.  She even spent her own money on a blond wig, which she wore for part of the night at the ward Trunk or Treat, then decided it was too hot and itchy.  This is where Mom gets to say "I told you it was a waste of your money to buy that wig!" :)

 

Lauren (recycling her costume from last year) met up with her friends in the neighborhood for trick or treating Halloween night.

 

Emily (as a cowgirl) and her friends at the ward Trunk or Treat.

 

Maren and friends at the Trunk or Treat.

Emily (as Anikan Skywalker) and Alexa (as Darth Vader) on Halloween night.  They went to a Halloween party at a friend's and trick or treated in that neighborhood.

Nathan and his 8 pounds of loot!  Craig bought it off him and Nate bought himself some Lego Ninjagos.

Our neighbor, Jenna, with Ashley and Nathan, organizing their candy.

Fun nights!  Glad they are over!  Counting down the days til our annual Thanksgiving trip to the desert!

 

our month in review

I just didn't have it in me to do the 12 of 12 this month.  So how about 12 photos (give or take a couple) of our activities in the month of September?

 

Labor Day - Ashley and Nathan rode their bikes while Craig jogged from our house down to the beach.  I think Ashley's face says it all.  They called me to come down and pick them up and we went and got doughnuts and hot chocolate as a reward for their great efforts!

 

Maren and Malia after the first day of school, cooling off in the Galland's pool.  

 

Ashley is playing soccer for the third year.  Her team is the Bazookas (for bazooka bubble gum).  She actually is complaining about playing, so we reminded her that it was her idea to sign up, we've already paid the money, her team is counting on her, and she doesn't have to sign up again next year:)

 

Nathan and Ashley quit tae kwon do at the end of the school year in June.  Nathan wanted to start jiu jitsu with his buddy, Ashton.  Nate loves it!  He likes that they learn "take downs" and wrestle on the floor.  He is all boy!

 

Alexa, Racquel and Emily - First day of seminary - Day One of the next 12 YEARS! (for me at least)

 

Emily and Lauren wanted to have a photo shoot on Emily's birthday.  We went down the road to the fake guard booth and the girls flashed their best smiles and struck some sweet and silly poses while I tried out my telephoto lens.

 

Emily is running on the cross country team at the high school.  She loves it and is improving her race times.  

 

Craig celebrated his 43rd birthday with his own personal mini triathlon, Hawaiian shave ice, and dinner at Wahoo's with the fam.

 

We sang and had cake the next day with the Hoffmanns, Christian Macey, and the elders from our ward.

 

Same people, different party!  We sang and had cake for Emily's birthday two weeks later.  Emily went around all day on her actual birthday singing Taylor Swift's "Fifteen".  Emily says 15 definitely feels different, but maybe it's because she also just started high school and everything is new.  She can hardly wait to get her permit in 6 months!  And she is already picking out the truck she thinks she's getting next year :)  

Well, there's our month.  It was jam-packed.  

And there is lots more to come this month!

12 of 12: June

(click to view larger)

01:  This picture was really taken yesterday, but bears mentioning.  Nathan won the Sportsmanship Award for his flag football team at the league awards ceremony yesterday.  His teammates said he was always nice, always supportive, and a great quarterback.  We are so proud of our boy!

02:  The San Clemente Stake Center - where we spent 3 hours today.

03:  Bishop Puckett - he spent more than 3 hours at church today :)

04:  Lauren and her guitar.  She has taken a couple months of lessons.  We are currently looking for another teacher.  Lauren is always singing, playing the piano, or strumming the guitar, much to her siblings annoyance!  

05:  If Sunday is the day of rest, why can't I ever get out of the kitchen?!

06:  The kangaroo paw in our backyard has grown crazy-good this spring.  

07:  My good friend, Gina Steimle and me.  Gina and I met almost 14 years ago when we both lived in the Carlsbad Stake.  She did my hair for many years.  Now we both live in San Clemente, in different wards. We get together every 4-6 months for lunch.  Tonight we met up at the church at Seminary graduation. So glad I had my camera with me. (And so happy we are color-coordinated for the picture!)  

08:  My friend, Elizabeth, who started me on this 12 of 12 thing also introduced me to her delicious whole wheat bread.  Click to download the recipe  Download Gillespie Whole Wheat Bread-1  I must admit I am having mixer envy.  I only have a Kitchenaid, so must half the recipe.  I would really love the Bosch!

09:  Mini-midgets on the loose!  Ashley invented this silly "game", if you can really call it that.  The kids put their jammie pants on, knees first, so that it's like their legs are cut off at the knee.  Then they scoot around the floor, up and down the stairs, even pull themselves up on the couch.  It is pretty hilarious to watch.  

10:  Nathan's room.  Someday this will all look different as he grows up, so I wanted to capture his 8-year-old room just as it is now. 

11:  Ah, 14!  Emily is finally getting too cool for Mom and her silly camera.

12:  Another shot, not from today, but needs to be documented.  Maren learned to ride her bike without training wheels this week.  A bit of a late bloomer, mainly because we, her parents, were not diligent about getting out there and helping her.  And also because Maren has decided princesses are not cool anymore. (She got her princess bike for Christmas.)  How sad is that?!  

Happy June!

Easter 2011

New Easter outfits, worshipping at church on Sunday morning, annual pictures in the backyard, good friends over for dinner, then a visit to other friends' home...

A perfect Easter Sunday.

"No words in Christendom mean more to me than those spoken by the angel to the weeping Mary Magdalene and the other Mary as they approached the tomb to care for the body of their Lord: “Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen” (Luke 24:5–6).

With this pronouncement, those who have lived and died, those who now live and one day will die, and those yet to be born and yet to die had just been rescued.

As the result of Christ’s victory over the grave, we shall all be resurrected...

...Of Him who delivered each of us from endless death, I testify He is a teacher of truth—but He is more than a teacher. He is the exemplar of the perfect life—but He is more than an exemplar. He is the great physician—but He is more than a physician. He is the literal Savior of the world, the Son of God, the Prince of Peace, the Holy One of Israel, even the risen Lord, who declared, “I am the first and the last; I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain; I am your advocate with the Father” (D&C 110:4).

“Oh, sweet the joy this sentence gives: ‘I know that my Redeemer lives!’” ²

Of this I testify."                      -President Thomas S. Monson

 

 

 

 

a WICKED good time

Emily, Lauren and I spent the evening 'defying gravity'.  

The girls' first time to see Wicked.  It didn't fail to impress.

I don't think I would ever get tired of listening to/seeing those last few minutes of Act I.  

Outstanding!

(... although these pictures we took are less than impressive.  How I dislike our Olympus!)

Segerstrom Center for the Performing Arts 

Orchestra Level, Row C, Seats 12-14, only 6 rows from the stage and just slightly off center stage.  The premium price was worth it!

The curtain with the map of OZ.   


 

we got the fever!

Emily, Lauren and Ashley have all seen the Justin Bieber movie.                                                       And all of a sudden they are fans!  

 

Bieber Fever has hit the Puckett house!