iPhone Pics of Ella

These were taken with my phone on Easter. I love these little moments.

Pinewood Derby

Last night Ty participated in his first official Pinewood Derby. Andrew and Ty have been working on the car for weeks and they did a great job. Ty earned first place in his age group and second place overall. He was super happy with the results. Congratulations Ty!

Ty's Baptism

Happy New Year!

Hello Friends and Family!

This has been a very busy year for the Smith Family. Our adventures took us across the country and we had several “firsts.” We won’t be able to do it justice, but the following summaries should give you a good idea of the adventures we had this year.

• During the Summer of 2011, we drove across the country to attend a couple of family reunions. We first went to Yellowstone to be with Andrew’s immediate family. We had a great time reuniting with his siblings and their families. There were way too many mosquitoes in the park, but we all had fun. We even saw two bears, a moose, elk and several hundred buffalo. Yellowstone is an amazing place and the kids loved it.

We drove to Idaho and spent time with Uncle Dale and some family in Pocatello. It was great to be back in the land of our fathers. We drove to Brigham City, Utah and spent a day at a reunion with our Palmer cousins. They are sure a lot of fun to be around! As we drove back, we were amazed to realize we had driven 4,436 miles through 12 states in just 11 days! Yes, that is a lot of driving and no, we’re not going to do it again next year.

• In early September, the family drove five hours from Nashville to Oxford, MS to watch BYU play Ole Miss. We ate some great barbeque and got to take in some amazing college-football atmosphere. The weather wasn’t very hot (thank you, clouds) and the Cougars won the game. A successful trip by any measure.

• Later in September, Andrew had a business conference in Orlando, FL. We surprised the kids and took the entire family down to spend a week at Disney World. Andrew joined the family in the evenings, and after the conference concluded, we had a few days together at the parks. We’re still trying to figure out who had the most fun . . . Amy or the kids.

Andrew is still working at Lexon Surety Group in Hermitage, TN. He’s the Director of Compliance and works hard to make sure his company is obeying all of the rules and regulations. He plays the tuba with the Cedar Creek Community Band and is still the Executive Secretary at Church.

Amy is finishing her second year of being the Relief Society President at Church. That responsibility keeps her more than busy and she is learning a lot. She continues to enjoy her photography business and produces some amazing work. Take a look at her website: www.amylynnsmith.com.

Brianna is in 8th grade and is growing up fast. She recently sang a Taylor Swift song at a school talent show in front of hundreds of her peers. She loves playing the piano and also plays the flute in 8th grade band. This was her first year on the school’s Cross Country team and she really had a great experience. She somehow finds the time to get great grades in all her classes, too.

Arick made the jump from Elementary School to Middle School this year. While it’s been a big adjustment, he is handling it all in stride. He, too, joined the Cross Country team and he plays the baritone in the 6th grade band. Arick earned both his Webelos badge and the Arrow of Light award. He is now officially on the path toward his Eagle Scout award and he loves his 11-year-old Scout group.

Ty is in 2nd grade this year and has a terrific teacher. He loves getting 100s on his spelling tests and also loves coming home to play with his siblings and the dog. When he’s not playing video games, he and his brother are choreographing elaborate light-saber battles. He’s also looking forward to his baptism in January.

Ella is now in Kindergarten and Amy is extremely happy about that. Ella loves school and is making great progress in learning how to read. She spends a lot of time coloring, learning about math and making new friends. One of her classmates wore the same pair of shoes on the first day of school this year and they have been inseparable ever since.

We have been truly blessed by the Lord this year. While we’ve had our fair share of challenges and sickness, we don’t know where we would be without the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We’re grateful for our knowledge of the Savior and his atoning sacrifice on our behalf. We love each of you and are so thankful for all you do for our family. We wish you a great New Year full of opportunities and joy!

We have now entered the teenage years

 

In January, Brianna turned 13. It hardly seems possible that 13 years ago this beautiful child entered our world. In honor of her birthday, here are 13 facts about Brianna:

1.   At school she goes by Bri Lynn (pronounced Bree Lynn) because there are quite a few girls named Brianna.

2.  Brianna's favorite foods are Sushi, avocado, Haagen Daaz Vanilla Swiss Almond Ice Cream, and lasagna.  She is not a picky eater and will try everything.

3.  Her least favorite activities are removing bones from canned salmon and doing dirty dishes.  However, she loves cleaning the bathroom.  She hates cleaning her room.

4.  The thing that she wants most in life is her own room that she can decorate as she pleases.  She hates sharing a room.  She has already informed me that after she has roommates in college and companions on a mission, she will be finding an apartment to live in by herself.  She will need to live by herself for a couple of years and then will get married. 

5.  Brianna is my best morning person.  No matter what time she goes to bed, she will wake up to her alarm and do so without complaint.

6.  Brianna is trying to grow her hair super long so she can sell it. 

7.  She mispronounces words a lot.  Brianna has learned her vocabulary through her passion for reading.  Many of these words are ones she has not heard before.  Her most famous mispronunciation is 'faux' which she pronounced 'fox'.  We all get a giggle over it.

8.  Her best friend is a girl named Jordan.  

9.  Her favorite birthday gift was the quilt that Grandma Smith made her (picture below).  Her second favorite gift was make-up.  She can now wear light pink lip gloss and brown mascara.

10.  Brianna has a fascination with all things Egyptian.

11.  Brianna is writing a book.  I believe she has written close to 100 pages so far.

12.  She plays the flute and piano.  She loves to play the hymns.  Abide with Me is her favorite.

13.  She is so much fun to hang out with.  I have been looking forward to older kid stage and it has been awesome so far.  She is my perfect shopping buddy and I love playing games with her. 

 

Chihuly at Cheekwood

 

On November 2, I took the kids to the Cheekwood Botanical Gardens to see the Chihuly blown glass exhibit.  We were able to meet up with our good friends the Stovers and the Judds.  Here are some of the things we saw that day.

 

The kids had a blast rolling down the large hill.

 

I loved this part of the exhibit.

Malasada Night

Since Halloween was on a Sunday we decided to all stay home and do something even better.  We made Malasadas!  They were a big hit.  Arick came up with the moment of the night.  He wondered what it would be like to put an almond joy in side one and fry it.  It was awesome!

It has been a long time

I really need to update the blog. Yikes. While I am working on some month in review posts, please enjoy this picture of our kids. We took it while on our vacation to Florida last week. Click on it if you would like to see it larger.

A video of the kids meeting Charly for the first time

I finally found the cord to my video camera so I can finally share the clip of the kids meeting their new pup, Charly, on Easter morning. Enjoy!

10 inches of rain and counting

We have received 10 inches of rain in Nashville and it continues to come down. Lots of you have inquired about our safety and we are doing just fine. In fact, if you watch the video, you might just see that our kids are having more fun than they have had in a long time.

Ella

She is growing up way too fast!

A boy and his pup

y absolutely adores Charly. She is the first thing he thinks of when he wakes up and when he comes home from school. He loves her. Today while I was practicing my lighting skills he asked if I could take a photo of him with Charly. Who knew that a puppy could make a kid so happy.




Charly is seriously tough to photograph. She really looks like a ball of black fluff.

I love this little stinker

Rarely, do I relax enough to be photographed. I know that I don't look my very best right now but my kids don't mind, to them I look just right. So I have been trying to get in front of the camera more. I can always delete the photo, right? I love this shot with Ella. She did not want to be photographed so I tried tickling her while whispering in her ear anything to get her to smile. Her stubbornness won and this was the best shot of the bunch. Oh well. I love her, even if she is a little stinker sometimes.

Time Out for Women

I had the wonderful opportunity to attend Time Out for Women in Memphis this past weekend and I can't recommend it enough. I was truly inspired and I left with an incredible amount of gratitude for my life. It was such a treat to hang out with great friends as well.

My favorite speaker was Marioma, an amazing lady from Sierra Leone whose testimony of the Savior was so powerful. She has witnessed horrors and devastation that I can't even imagine and yet her faith and hope are strong. She is such an inspiration.

Meet Charly!

Meet our newest member of our family. Believe me when I say that I never ever thought I would cave to allowing a dog in our house. Seriously, I am not an animal person at all. However, one can only take so much begging before one gives in. It really was 5 against 1. Anyone want to take a guess how wanted a dog the most? That would be Andrew. I could have sworn that he told me that he disliked animals when we were dating. If I had heard otherwise, we may not have stayed together.

It all started on April Fool's Day, Andrew told the kids we were getting a puppy. The kids were so excited which made Andrew feel horrible when he said, "April Fools!". That even made me feel guilty as I was the only thing coming between them having a dog. Well, a couple of days later, Andrew's coworker brought in some puppies that she had for sale. He sent me some pictures and I admit they were pretty adorable. I told him I would give it some thought and meet the pups. The owner said that we could return the puppy if it didn't go well which made me feel lots better. Andrew promised to train the dog and do the majority of her care as well.

The Saturday before Easter, Andrew and I met the Shih Tzu puppies. The little balls of fur were so tiny and cute. Of course, all I could imagine as I held the puppy is how happy the kids would be which broke down the last of my defenses. Minutes later Andrew was paying for the puppy and we arranged to pick her up the next morning to surprise the kids on Easter.

That night I tried to get all the things I needed to prepare out home for a puppy. It is amazing how much stuff you need and the variety you have to choose from.

On Easter morning, we placed the puppy in a basket and covered her with a blanket. We called the kids down and told them that their Easter surprise was under the blanket and to lift it up. Their reaction was stunned silence. Arick got a little teary eyed and said that it was the happiest day of his life. Ella giggled and fell back onto the couch. One of those moments I will remember for the rest of my life.

It took us a day to name her as we all had our favorites. Andrew wanted to name her Ahsoka (Snips for a nickname), Arick wanted Cutie Pie, Brianna wanted Sidia, I wanted Bailey or Chloe, and Ty wanted Charly as did Maren. Charly is in honor of the youtube video "Charlie Bit Me" which has long been a favorite source of laughter in our house. In the end Charly, short for Charlotte, won.

We have had her for 9 days now and she has been wonderful so far, except of her first night home when she cried ALL night long. She is adapting well and the kids love to be with her. Maren loves her too and when she visits us, the puppy is snuggling in her arms within minutes. She has gone on lots of adventures to Gigi's house, to the soccer fields for the kids' games, to the vet, and to Petsmart. Her favorite place is either being held or being in her crate. She loves this little stuffed animal that you heat up in the microwave.

Happy Birthday Marshall

In February, my mom, my sister and I flew to Connecticut to surprise my brother for his 40th birthday. We sat on the outdoor furniture at Lowe's with books in front of our faces and as he walked by we started singing 'Happy Birthday.' He was definitely surprised and we were all a little teary eyed. We had a fabulous weekend together and we were all sad to go. We definitely need to visit each other more often.

The highlight of the trip was eating at Bar Americain, Bobby Flay's restaurant. The food was FANTASTIC! We all agree that our favorite part was the tower of raw fish. Everything tasted great and the service was perfect. Here is a picture of the tower.


My brother ordered the crepes for dessert and they embellished it with a birthday message! The crepes were delish.



During the weekend I was also able to visits friends and attend my old ward which was super fun. One of my friends just had a baby girl so I squeezed in a mini photo shoot. Here is a picture of me with the baby and my favorite picture of the baby.