Merry Christmas

This year we (meaning Ryan) have opted out of doing a Christmas card. We (and again I mean Ryan) are just feeling too busy and overwhelmed at the moment. So I decided to give a brief update on our lives through the blog.

Ryan is really busy. He is working for a company called Moog. He does a bit of everything. He does anything and everything visual and creative. He is really amazing and so very talented. Not a day goes by at work when he does not get a positive comment on the work he does. He is serving in the Elders Quorum as secretary and is pleased in doing what he can to serve. He is also going to Utah State University (in Salt Lake City). He is working on his MBA. We only have three classes left and are really looking forward to him graduating in June.

I, Brooke am busy also being a stay at home mom with three kids. I have been feeling really overwhelmed this year which is so crazy because I am so blessed in my life. I am able to serve in primary as a Valiant 9 teacher. I really love primary.

Anikka(7) has been growing so much this year, physically, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually. She is still in Karate which I just love. It has been so good for her and she is so tough. She does really well in school. Especially with spelling and math. She is discovering more about herself and is learning better ways to make choices and to find good people to be around. She has also bore her testimony in Sacrament Meeting a few times this year. I really love to hear her heart and the wonderful example she sets for her brothers.

Bennett(4) is such a crack-up this year. He informed me early this year that his name is Bennett. He will still answer to Ben but when asked what his name is he will say Bennett Charles Jeppesen. He is so focused on where he is and what he is doing at the moment and he is not likely to forget when we talk about doing something in the future. He seems to be taking after his Mom in that he is really good at remembering names. He knows all Seven Dwarfs by heart. He now has hundreds ( and I am not exaggerating) of "Characters" these are all little action figurines that he has collected over the year. He loves tham all. They range from Disney figures to Star Wars figures to Super heroes. He knows when even one goes missing. He really is determined and also seems to really like to know all rules ahead of time and really likes to follow all rules.

Mac(1) Oh Mac. He is a handful of trouble but he is so stinking cute that he gets away with a lot. He is my climber and I just can't seem to keep him off the counter. He has also developed a very cute pout and can stick out his bottom lip so far. He is in to everything but he is so happy all the time that you don't realize until it is too late that he has gotten in to something that he shouldn't. We do not have a single outing go by without at least one person commenting on how cute he is and how white his hair is. He really is a bundle of joy. A really big, bouncing every which way bundle of joy.

We have had a really good year. I am, however, really looking forward to 2009 because I am excited for big changes that may be happening soon in our lives. Stay tuned....

Talking Back

Bennett Charles Jeppesen is expanding his vocabulary in a smart alec way. We were at the store on Monday Morning and Ben asked nicely for some goldfish crackers for a treat. I said sure. When we got to the car he wanted to eat his goldfish right then and I said no we can eat them after lunch. He promptly threw a fit and said "Mom you ruin everything!" It was pretty hard not to laugh and to sternly tell him that he cannot speak to his mother like that. The very next morning, I was getting Ben ready for preschool and trying to get his bed head wetted down and combed. He kept trying to run away until he turned to me and said "Mom, I am so tired of you". Again I have to really try to not laugh and tell him to speak kindly.

Then just yesterday Ben turns to me and asks, "Mom do you know what is wrong with Christmas?" I said "no Ben I don't." He replied "nothing it is FUNtastic!" Hopefully he will learn soon that if he can't say something nice don't say anything at all.

ABC' s af Thankfulness

My cousin just did her ABC's of blessings so I am going to copy her and do all the things I am thankful for.

A: Anikka

B: Bennett Charles Jeppesen

C: Church

D: Dishwasher

E: Entertainment ( Crazy things the kids do)

F: Family

G: Grandparents

H: Home

I: In-Laws (I really do have the Best)

J: Jeppesen Name

K: Kitty's (Thor and Loki)

L: Love

M: Mac

N: Neighbors (near and far)

O: Outings

P: Parenthood

Q: Quirks (the little things that make us all unique)

R: Ryan, the love of my life

S: Sitting Still ( for 3 minutes a day)

T: Talking

U: Undershirt (modesty)

V: Vietnamese food

W: Water

X: X-Rays ( modern medicine)
Y: Youth
Z: Zoo

So some of these are a bit of a stretch but I think I get points for creativity. These are also not the only things I am thankful for. There are numerous things that I am thankful for that start with a lot of letters But I only used one thing for each letter. Happy Thanksgiving

Something Fun for Christmas

Midway Utah is most known for Swiss Days. Recently they have started hosting an Interfaith Creche Exhibit. If you are ignorant like I was a Creche is a Nativity Set. People who collect Nativity's exhibit them at the Swiss Stake Center in Midway. The entire church is put to good use to show off all these Nativity's from all over the world, it is a really cool thing to see. The free exhibit is December 5th, 6th, and 7th. It really is worth taking a drive to see it, all of you that are close enough to come. E-mail me if you want more information.

Just Like Pulling Teeth

Anikka had gym day on Tuesday and the gym teacher sent home a note telling parents to make sure the kids have good shoes to run around in. That got me thinking about gym, so I asked Anikka what they do in gym class. She immediately got embarassed and said "well, today I did 27 push-ups." I said "Great! nice to know that you learned how to do a perfect push-up in Karate huh? Did your teacher see how good your push-ups were?" Then she got even more embarassed and said "Yes, She had me go up in front of the whole class to show them how to do a perfect push-up." I told her that was so great and she said "I don't want to talk about it because I don't want to brag." Then the rest of that night and the next day I would ask her questions to try and get more information about it. It turned out she did the most push-ups in the whole class and was singled out for it and she didn't quite like the singling out. Ryan, who is also very shy and humble about his many abilities was so postive with her about not wanting to brag. I felt that she should celebrate her accomplishments and be so happy about doing well that she would skip home to tell about what she accomplished. I didn't realize that I needed to deal with self-esteem issues and the balance of humility and pride at the age of 7.