Homemade Valentines

This year we thought it might be kind of fun to make homemade valentines. I'm happy to report it was loads of fun!!!

The boys really went to town hunting out and collecting broken crayons. (Thanks Bells for donating your broken crayons to our stash!) After peeling all the paper off the crayons, we melted them in heart shaped silicon molds. Once the molds cooled the beautiful hearts were baggied, tagged, and signed for each of the boys' classmates. Making homemade valentines was such a great activity that I think we might do it again next year!!

Naked crayons, at least that's how Jared refered to them.

Daniel thought it was very cool to watch the colors swirl together.

Beautiful crayon hearts

Who knew playing with crayons could be so fun!

Fun at the Zoo

Yesterday, we enjoyed a fun afternoon at the zoo with a few of Bryan's co-workers. It was such a lovely day and the weather couldn't have been more perfect!! The kids sure did have fun. We're certainly going to miss Steve & Jen but wish them the best with their move!!

Happy Birthday

I have to admit, now that I've had children I love birthdays so much more.

I love seeing their little faces light up with excitement as they carefully prepare their surprises. They did a wonderful job of making me feel special!!

Just take a look...

(Not pictured is the very yummy dinner they treated me to on Friday & the wonderful meal Bryan prepared today!!)

Thanks for the "over the hedge" pajamas & beautiful butterfly necklace!!

The original artwork on the wrapping paper was a nice touch!!

A little baker hard at work.

Pretty flowers from Grandma & Grandpa Flores

Doesn't that cake look yummy? It tasted great too!!

Daniel & Mom enjoy a much needed rest.

Happy Anniversary!!

It's been nine wonderful years!!

I love being by your side!!

MQAMQM

Hanging with the Kemps

Just a few more pictures of when the Kemps were in town...

Grandma and Sara enjoy the wonderful Christmas meal Bryan prepared. Our culinary journey took us to Puerto Rico & Guatamala.

Thanks Jenn for the Guatamalan tamales!!

Grandpa shares his ice cream. Yum!!

Jared & Kev during our Annual Christmas Kickball game.
Is this considered cheating?

Grandma & Sara keeping warm during the game.

We value swordsmanship in our family!

Siblings...Kev, Jon, Melissa, & Bryan

Gingerbread Houses with the Kemps

What can I say? We love doing gingerbread houses!!!

Jared is hard at work

Wala! It is done! Jared & his masterpiece.

Uncle Kev joins in the fun!

Grandma Kemp's lovely house

Daniel & his masterpiece

I know the picture doesn't do justice to the work of art but hopefully it will give you a sense of all the carefully thought out details. Daniel created a sleigh, a mailbox, a parking lot (complete with a laser security system), a lock on the door, a garden gate, a clock, just to name a few details. This little house has taken him several days and many, many hours. It really is a work of art.

I think Daniel is amazing!!!

The front of Daniel's house.
Uncle Jon helped with the finishing touches.

The back of Daniel's house.

Missile Museum

I'm so grateful that Bryan really enjoys history. Thanks to him, our children are acquiring an appreciation for learning about the past. Here we are enjoying a visit to our local missile museum. It was nice to have Bryan's parents & unmarried siblings come to visit. I hope they enjoyed the trip to the museum as much as we did!

Bryan & Sara

Jared & Kev

Daniel & Jon

Jared & Daniel moving the BIG door

Jared, Jon, Grandma, Daniel, Aimee, Bryan, Sara, Grandpa, Kev

Christmas Morning

Christmas mornings have always been my favorites. This year was no exception!! Sometimes I wish these adorable little people could stay little forever. I know they can't. I'm SO grateful for wonderful moments like these which will become cherished memories in our journey through life. Merry Christmas!!

Christmas Eve with the Maloufs

D & T (Bryan's sister & brother-in-law) hosted a delicious Christmas Eve celebration. YUM!!


Uncle Jon entertaining the little ones


Jared eagerly waiting for the middle eastern feast to begin


Sara (the angel) & Bryan (a wise man) getting ready for the Christmas program

Las Vegas Bowl

Bryan & Clint made the trek to Las Vegas to meet up with Bryan's brothers (Larry & Jon) for the BYU vs UCLA football game.


It sure was a nail biter but BYU came through and pulled off a WIN!!

BYU 17, UCLA 16



Jon, Bryan, & Larry (the good, the bad, & the ugly...you decide who is who)


Bryan & Clint


Bryan & Jon storming the field

Christmas Party at Church

Earlier in the month we had a great time at our ward's Christmas party. After a very tasty meal we were dazzled by some great entertainment.



Daniel is just an amazing little boy, seriously not normal. He actually volunteered to participate in the variety show!! He did a great job!! He was by far our favorite act, although the "Dancing F. Family" came in a close second.



Sara's not too sure about the guy in the red suit



Jared and his wonderful smile

Gingerbread Houses with Daniel's Class

Our boys love it when we share our Christmas traditions with others. So here we are again (for the third year in a row).

Yes, we really are a little crazy but we LOVE it!!!
Don't worry we're not crazy enough to do it all alone we had A LOT of help!!

A very special thank you to everyone!!!
Erin for helping count cups of flour
Suzann for donating the cardboard & cutting and wrapping it too!
Chris & Bryan for helping to assemble the houses
Jenn for helping with the transport & in the classroom
The Bell & Martinez families for donating the candy
CWE for letting us borrow the flatbed dolly
Mrs. K for welcoming us into her classroom

Cookies with Jared's Preschool Class

Because we had so much fun decorating gingerbread cookies with Daniel when he was in preschool we decided to do it again with Jared and his class. Miss Malia is so wonderful and we thank her for welcoming us into her classroom for this activity.

Jared was a big help in mixing, cutting, and baking the cookies. I made the frosting and together with Miss Malia we helped his classmates decorate the cookies. There were some pretty fabulous looking gingerbread people and trees!!!

How I wish I'd remembered to take the camera to class. Oops! Oh well, at least we have these few shots taken at home.


Jared with the cookies ready for school. He is soooo excited!!!



Jared enjoying the product of his labors afterschool. Yum!



Jared and Daniel worked together to make these adorable little reindeer to give to their classmates. Aren't they cute?! We've certainly had a lot of fun getting ready for Christmas this year.

Holiday treats

Here are our little elves ready to deliver holiday treats to friends and neighbors.

We had a wonderful time putting the plates together. The boys did most of the work and everything was so tasty. Way to go guys!!

It's Gingerbread Season!!

How can you tell it's Christmas at the Kemp Home?

By the scent of freshly baked gingerbread that fills the air!!


I didn't realize how much our children associated certain smells with different seasons until recently.

Earlier in the month, I was in the process of making a dessert to take to a Relief Society Enrichment Meeting when Daniel came home from school. The first words out of his mouth when he came through the door were, "Where's the gingerbread? How many more days until Christmas?"

I couldn't figure out what he was talking about. It was then that I realized I had been baking gingerbread for my trifle and in Daniel's mind the smell of gingerbread directly correlates with Christmas!!

Bethlehem: An Oratorio

Wow!! What a great experience!!!

Friday night was a little cold and raining and the weather kind of set the mood for the evening. As a whole, the performers were a little anxious and nervous but terribly excited at the same time. It's a series of emotions that are difficult to describe. The green room was buzzing with energy. I'd forgotten how much I LOVE hanging out in a green room waiting to perform!!! Even though the show experienced a few technical glitches (like blowing a fuse during the shepherd boy's solo, augh!!) overall the performance went well, not great but well.

Saturday night was totally different. Everyone was much more relaxed and joyful. The night was beautiful, cool but not cold. The audience was energizing and inspiring. In the green room before the show, Michael got a little emotional when he expressed his gratitude and testimony of the Savior. Emily, my section leader gave each of the second violins an ornament with a short note. I love her words, "We are showing our gratitude for Christ: His life, His atonement, and His resurrection." Friday night was a performance but Saturday night was a bearing witness of the birth of our Saviour. From my perspective there was a tangible difference felt as music filled the building. What a memorable experience!!


Here's an excerpt from the program booklet:

Bethlehem was written in Turin, Italy over the period of about 10 months, from October 2003 to August 2004. Composer Michael Turnblom was working on other projects when the idea came for a large-scale oratorio. His concept was to highlight the key elements of the Nativity story. For several months, he studied, researched, and composed using Luke chapter 2 as his primary source of inspiration. By August 2004, he had completed an initial version of the oratorio. After certain revisions and additions, the final version was completed the following year.

The oratorio includes a dramatization that underscores the various musical elements and visually recounts the story. Regarding this approach, Michael says: "I wanted to avoid any fictionalization and focus on what really happened--in real time, as it were. At the same time, the central character in the oratorio is the fictional shepherd boy, who is meant to represent all of us. Through his childlike wonder and sincerity, we should discover and rediscover the meaning of Christmas."

In 2006, Bethlehem received the Deseret Dramatic Recognition Award and was recognized by the Cultural Arts Committee of the Church of Jesus Christ of Letter-day Saints. Excerpts were performed in Salt Lake City this past February. Tonight's performance represents the world premiere of Bethlehem as a complete entity.

Pies!

I'm not much of a pie maker. My idea of making a pie is cruising down the frozen food aisle at Fry's and picking out a nice Sara Lee pie to bake in my oven. However, since one of the prizes for our PTSA membership drive was a homemade pie I thought it would be a little deceiving to try to pass off a Sara Lee pie as my own. Seriously, I was secretly hoping Bryan would come to my rescue by offering to make the pies, but no such luck. He's a little busy these days. So one night, after putting my little family to bed and carefully watching a pie making episode or two on television, I set out to try my hand at pie making. And here are the results. What do you think? I have to say I'm so excited they turned out!!! Don't they look good enough to eat?! I sure do hope they taste good!