Wii had a Great Christmas

We ate our fancy Christmas dinner on Thursday, Christmas Eve. After dinner, each person opened one gift. Then we went to a friend's house for a special tradition of theirs.....Christmas Eve Bingo Night. We had a lot of fun, but we were out late. By the time we got home and put all the kids in bed, everyone was still all keyed up. Jeffrey and Savannah were still awake at 10:45pm. Luckily, they fell asleep soon after and santa was able to come. Mark and I finally broke down and got the kids a nintendo Wii gaming system. We told the kids they could wake us up at 7:00am. So we were up at 7:00am and everyone was surprised and excited. We've been playing Wii ever since!!!

Sammy understood more of what was going on this year. However he didn't want to wake up Christmas morning. After the many reminders of new toys, he let me get him out of bed and change his diaper before going into the living room to see what was under the tree. He has been pulling the draw string on the back of his Woody doll, and playing with his Cars, and lego bus. He is also up for a game of baseball with his new spiderman bat and ball.

Savannah was excited about the Wii and her new Hannah Montana game, along with the new clothes, Pajamas, books and webkin Pink Poodle she received.

Jeffrey couldn't believe we got a Wii. He said it was the best Christmas ever. (Of course he says that every year, which makes mom and dad feel good!) He has been playing his Lego Star Wars complete saga game on the Wii and all the Wii sports with the rest of us. He was also excited about his star wars action figures, new books, pajamas, and his little webkin puppy too.

Getting ready for Christmas

We visited Santa at the resident's christmas dinner at the hospital. Sammy was really excited to SEE Santa, however he would not SIT on Santa's lap.

Jeffrey's 10th Birthday

Jeffrey turned 10 years old on December 7th. We had a family party, and he received the Lego set he asked for. Mark and I can't believe that we have been parents for one decade!!

Christmas Greetings 2009

Mark finished his research year in June, and in July he began his 2nd year of his orthopedic surgery residency program. We enjoyed having him around the house more during his research year and even these past few rotations have been really nice. Unfortunately come January, he will be busy again. He has 3.5 years left of his program. In his spare time, he still loves to play golf, help around the house, and cook and bake for the family.

Melissa works hard in the home. She painted 4 rooms in the house this past year, and she and Mark updated their bathroom. She had the busiest summer ever with the kids including: swimming lessons, playgroup at the park every Tuesday, bowling each week, and swimming every Thursday. To add glamour to her life, she started selling Mary Kay.

Samuel (2.5) is a fun character to have around. Besides loving Lightning McQueen, Elmo, and Thomas the Train, he has discovered Jeffrey's old Rescue Hero toys and the Star Wars galactic heroes. He can sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, the alphabet, and Frosty the Snowman. He has learned his basic shapes and colors. He loves to play with his older brother and sister.

Savannah (7.5) is in the 2nd grade. She loves going to school and choosing her outfits for school. All of her teachers say that she is a delight to have in class. She is becoming a good swimmer and has been in a tumbling class this fall. She is a great help to mom and spends lots of time playing with Sammy. We are looking forward to her baptism this spring.

Jeffrey (10) is in the 4th grade. He enjoyed playing baseball last spring and taking swimming lessons during the summer. He also achieved his Bear badge in cub scouts and is in Webelos now. He began playing the violin this year at school and practices on his own. He loves to be done with homework, so he can play video games.

We are grateful for all our family and for the gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives. We are excited to announce we are having another baby in June 2010. We wish you all a joyous holiday season!

Mark, Melissa, Jeffrey, Savannah, and Samuel

We are expecting!

I am officially 12 weeks pregnant, and I am ready to blab the news to everyone! We knew after we had Sam that we would want one more, and it has happened. The baby is due the middle of June 2010. I am feeling good, and I am grateful for that. I did have 2 colds back to back which lasted a month, but I am healthy now. I have had 2 ultrasounds already, and I've seen the little heart beat. We are all really excited especially the kids. Savannah wants a little sister of course. I feel like I would be happy with either a boy or a girl.

Road Trip to Kirtland, Ohio

Last Saturday of Thanksgiving weekend, we took off and drove 3 and 1/2 hours up to Kirtland, Ohio to see church history sites. We went to "Historic Kirtland" where we have a visitor's center and saw the old historic houses and buildings of what is left there. We also toured the Kirtland temple which the Community of Christ church (RLDS) owns. We stayed in Kirtland that night, and then drove down to Hiram, Ohio on Sunday morning to see the John Johnson Farm. It was nice to get away even if it was for one night. Sammy got bored though and kept saying that he wanted home. The following posts are pictures from our trip.

Newel K Whitney home

This cute yellow cottage is the Newel K Whitney home. The Whitney's were considered well off due to their store. The house was really nice inside, but I have one question, where is the bathroom??? I know, the out house. For that reason, I am glad to live in our time period.

Their sitting room in the kitchen.

The summer kitchen on the side of the house.

Another shot of the sitting room.

The front parlor room.

Newel K Whitney Store

This is the Newel K Whitney store. It was considered top of the line for it's day. They have stocked the store today using the records of what was sold in the store. It is neat inside to see what all was available in Kirtland in the early 1830s.

Joseph Smith showed up at the store and said to Bro Whitney.....Newel K Whitney, you have prayed me here, now what do you want with me? We walked into the store through the same door that the prophet walked through.

Look at the old shoes. There was no right or left foot. They looked uncomfortable to me.

This is upstairs in the Whitney store where the church business took place for awhile.

This is the School of the Prophets. This is the room the brethren mucked up with their tobacco, smoke, and whatever else. Emma's kitchen is located directly under this room. She would have to clean it, and we know how the Word of Wisdom came to be.

LDS Visitor Center in Historic Kirtland

This is the front of our visitor center in "Historic Kirtland." They had a nativity display in the visitor center, and we were also able to watch a video on Kirtland and what happen here in church history.

This is the John Johnson Inn. After their huge farm was distributed amongst the church due to the Law of Consecration, this is what the Johnson family got in return. Somehow it doesn't seem fair, but that's a higher law I am not ready to live right now. This building is right across from the Newel K Whitney Store and the Whitney home.

This is looking up the stream to the sawmill. There must have been more water flow back then to run the sawmill.

The sawmill.

Inside the sawmill.

Kirtland Ohio temple

The Kirtland temple was amazing. We toured the inside and of course, no pictures can be taken on the inside. We saw all 3 floors of the temple and climbed too many steps to get to the top. The very top floor is divided into 4 rooms all connected by doors. The middle floor looked much like the main floor. The pulpits were not as fancy as the main floor. The middle floor was used for learning, kind of like a school set up. The main floor was the whorship floor. The dedication and all there Sunday meetings including the sacrament happened on the main floor. The building felt very old, however it is amazing what the saints were able to build in their poverty.



Here are Sammy, Savannah, and Jeffrey standing infront of the temple.

The temple is right on the street. So, we took pictures in the side park which is between the temple and the Community of Christ visitor center. They own the Kirtland temple right now.