Dannehl's List of 2013

1. Dan and Katie have been married 15 years and first started dating Christmas 1994.
2. Sam and Marlee turned 9 and Lizzie turned 6.
3. 365 days Sam played outside.
4. One visit to Disney World in Florida with Dan's Mom Roni.
5. 1,000,000 times Katie mowed the lawn.
6. 1 x Dan went to Alaska with his friend Nick.
7. 15 fish Dan caught in Alaska (Salmon and Halibut)
8. 1 time our dog Prime caught a live bird. (not fun)
9. 20 times we went to Zoombezi Bay water park this summer.
10. 24 books Katie Read.
11. 1 new Denver Bronco's jersey for Dan (Manning)
12. 600 times Katie cleaned up Lizzie's spills
13. 200 new Football cards for Sam
14. 8 volleyball games for Marlee (first year)\
15. 1,000,000 pictures Lizzie has colored
16. 5 new nieces and nephews
17. 2 years in Ohio
18. 1 new bike for Katie
19. 20 family bike rides
20. 50 tulips Katie grew in the yard
21. 40 tulip bulbs the squirrels ate this summer.
22. 1 visit to Independence, MO to visit Grandpa Greg and Grandma Debi on their mission.
23. 60 times Katie painted her nails.
24. 30 chew toys Prime destroyed
25. 6 bulls-eyes Sam got in his Archery Class
26. 13 Denver Bronco Wins!
27. 1 time boating with Grandma and Grandpa
28. 0 visits to Utah for Katie and Kids
29. 2 new American Girl dolls for Lizzie and Marlee
30 1000 hours of homework
31. 1,000,000 hours Dan worked this year. :(
32. 12 times Katie has unclogged the drain from hair this year. (we have a lot).
33. 1 time Dan was released as High Priest Group Leader. :)
34. 4 times Katie had a ear infection.
35. 15 UFC events Dan has watched
36. a million nerf bullets Sam has shot.
37.  30 makeovers Lizzie gave Katie
38. 365 day Katie was happy to see Dan :)

2013 was a great year. Hoping 2014 will be even better!

Happy New Year!

My cute dog on Christmas!

I must say I have the cutest dog! 

Here he is opening his present on Christmas.  SO CUTE!

 

He adores me and I must say the feeling is mutual!

No sleep on Christmas Eve!

Well it is 4:42 AM Christmas morning and I am wide awake.  Sleeping is never a problem for me except on Christmas Eve.  It isn't that I am wrapping presents or anything (I have had that done for weeks).  I am just excited I guess.  Their is no other reason.  I remember as a kid sharing my room with 4 of my siblings.  We had double sets of bunk beds.  I slept on the top across from my brother J.B.

 I needed to go to the bathroom so bad, but if you left our room you would be able to see the Christmas tree.  I was so worried Santa would be there and I would be in trouble for being awake.  My brother told me to hold it. I did for as long as I could and then I decided I would make a dash for it.  I climbed down and went to the door, squeezed my eyes shut and felt my way to the bathroom with my hands.  Luckily I didn't run into Santa. :)  That memory is so vivid in my mind.  Christmas excites me.  Now as a Mom I sit here waiting as my children sleep.  Waiting for the magic of Christmas!  Mary probably didn't sleep well the night before Jesus' birth. I am sure she was also waiting for the magic.  As I watched the video of the nativity story last night, I thought to myself that Mary was one tough cookie. 

Riding a donkey all day right before giving birth and then staying and having her baby in a stable. 

What a great lady!  I am so thankful for Christ.  I love him! Watch this beautiful video about his birth.

Christmas Eve!

It is 4 PM on Christmas Eve and I feel so happy.  I love Christmas!  We just finished a delicious turkey dinner. My Mother taught me how when I was a girl and now I cooked todays dinner with my daughters.  I make a lot of the same things my mother taught me.  It makes me feel so happy to cook along with my girls and have a beautiful warm house with my family here together.

The tree is beautiful! We had so much fun putting it up after Thanksgiving and enjoying it all month.

My little family is so cute!

It is fun to do our little traditions.  Tonight is new PJs and the reading of Christ's Birth. 

And Santa is coming tonight! 

Merry Christmas Everyone!  Remember the true meaning of Christmas!

Fun in Kansas City with Parents!

While we were in Kansas City for Thanksgiving we went with my parents to Fritz’s Railroad Restaurant.  It was really cute.  They gave everyone hats.

 

You ordered your food by phone and a little train brought it to you. 

 It was good food and fun.

 

We also went to Lego Land.  We rode a few rides and played with legos.

 

They had a really fun 4D movie.

 

We had a great day in Kansas City.  Thanks Dad and Mom!

 

Thanksgiving road trip!

On the day before Thanksgiving we got up early and drove to Independence, Mo to spend Thanksgiving with my parents.  It was a long drive and the last 3 hours of the twelve were very hard for the kids, but when we got there it was all worth it. We were all so happy to be together.  My kids fought over who got to sit by Grandma Debi the whole time.

 

 On Thanksgiving we visited the LDS visitor center in Independence

 Liberty Jail where Joseph Smith was held for months

Kansas city Temple

My Mom also cooked us the best Thanksgiving dinner.  I love her stuffing and jello.  We were small in numbers compared to their normal thirty or so they usually have in Utah, so my Mom was able to put the turkey on the table which she thought was so fun.  It has been years since we had Thanksgiving with my parents.  We ended the night with homemade pumpkin pie made by my Mom(YUMMY).  It was a great Thanksgiving.  On Friday we spent a super fun day in Kansas City (I will post about that later). On Saturday we cleaned up and headed out.  It was hard to say goodbye, but I used my usually technique of saying "see you later" and not thinking about it.  Since the drive there was rushed and hard we decided to take our time coming home.  So on Saturday we drove to St. Louis and visited the Arch.  We all thought that was really cool.

It was a beautiful day and we didn't even need Jackets. We ran, played and had fun taking pictures.

(Lizzie)

(Dan)

Then we spent the night in St. Louis and on Sunday worked our way home at a slower, easier pace.

Unfortunately by Indiana Lizzie was sick with a fever and had all the signs of strep throat again (she had it two weeks ago). 

 (random boy in picture that I borrowed :)

And finally to our loved Ohio. 

What a great Thanksgiving break.

 

I love Cemetaries!

We are visiting my parents on their LDS mission in Independence, Missouri.  We arrived late last night and it was pitch black.  We went in to their apartment and went to bed.  Early this morning I took my dog out to the bathroom and was so shocked to see that right across the street is a beautiful cemetery.  

This cemetery is very old and has graves from the early 1800's.  We took a wonderful walk through the cemetery on this beautiful Thanksgiving morning.  I was so touched to see the respect given to the deceased's grave.  Many families have added new headstones for the family area.  I also noticed that when the headstones break or tip over they leave them where they fall.

Hear is a picture of a old stone that is almost tipped over.

Here is one that has broken off.

Here is one that has been fallen for awhile.

I love and respect my ancestors and love to see a beautiful cemetery.

I am so thankful on this beautiful Thanksgiving day for my family.  I love them so much.  

 

 

 

Language of love!

This week my sister Judi and family came to visit.  I haven't seen her or her children for a year and a half.  That is a long time when dealing with small children.  Her oldest son William remembered me, but Thomas didn't and I have never met Nathan.  Judi's kids are very shy.  I tried to talk to Thomas but he would just cover his eyes and hide.  Should I just give up? NEVER!!!  Thomas is really into motorcycles.  He found a couple of Sam's old motorcycle and played with them the whole time.  I thought to myself what can I do to make this boy love me?  I said to William and Thomas lets make a really cool motorcycle track on the coffee table.  We talked about the things a great motorcycle course would have.  William's favorite thing is crafts so I was killing two birds with one stone. 

Above is William helping with the construction.

 

We made a rock pit of skittles (Thomas loves skittles so that one disappeared soon :)), we made a pit of stick with pretzels, we made hills and tunnels. 

 

We had speed bumps and pebble pits made of nerds. We had so much fun creating this course.  Thomas raced his motorcycles for hours. 

 

 He talked to me, looked at me and actually liked me.  I LOVED IT!!!

 

The youngest Nathan was easy.  He seemed to like me from the beginning.  But he loved my dog.  I let him have his own ice cream cone (which I think about gave Judi a nervous breakdown).  He walked around and my dog followed him everywhere.  He loved it and it was so cute.

 

 Nathan sharing his ice cream cone. :)

When you love someone you say it and show it! To show someone that you love them is by being interested in what they love.  Are you willing to do what they enjoy to make them happy? I try and use this with my husband and kids, but it is very useful in other situations.  I love my nephew's and was so grateful for the time I had to bond with them.  Thomas even gave me a big hug when they left (that is huge!).  Thanks Judi and Mike for taking the time and money to come and visit. We had so much fun! We love you guys.

Trying not to be the crazy aunt!!

I am sitting here waiting for my sister Judi and her family to arrive.  I have not seen them for a year and a half.  I have not even met her baby (who is one) yet.  Her kids do not know me, but I love them.  I want to grab them, kiss them and "pinch their cheeks".  I am trying to convince myself not to be the crazy aunt when they arrive, but lets be honest I can't promise anything. 

Look at those cute faces!  I might even have to pinch Mikes cheeks too. :)

 

Little boys and church clothes don't mix!

When my twins were in Kindergarten there was a little boy in their class that wore a suit to school everyday (including tie).  His parents couldn't get him to wear anything else.  As we got ready for church today and had the usual problems with my son, "my shirt is itchy"...."I don't want to wear a tie"...."I don't want to tuck my shirt in"..."I look stupid".  I wonder why we have to have this fight every week?  I try and be kind and even let him wear his new green Nike socks.  It always ends the same, him dressed, tie on and shirt tucked in.  Why does he have to disrupt every Sunday morning when he knows we will win? I have never given in.  I know I am not the only one with Sunday morning issues, but I always hope it won't happen.  Maybe it is just the adversary working on us, but I am tired of it.  If only Nike would make Church clothing!

Even though the morning was hard, we had a great day at church.  We had Stake Conference and it was very spiritual.  I loved hearing about our friend Linda's conversion to the church, she said she was searching for something and said a prayer.  Within one hour two sister missionaries knocked on her door.  That is so cool. If you are searching for something check out www.mormon.org.  Hope you all had a great Sabbath day.

Infertility!

I have been subbing lately and my favorite is High School.  Yesterday I showed up to sub health and discovered that we were learning the reproductive organs (no wonder the teacher called in sick).  It was easy and everything went fine, but it made me think.  I know all the parts and stuff, but my body is broken.  I have been married fifteen years and have never gotten pregnant on my own.  I have three beautiful children from IVF (which I am so thankful for).  Everyone knows I love babies.  I spent years wanting one of my own.  It was a sad time in my life, but also a great time as I spent years alone with my husband.  I am now thankful for that time I had with him (I sure love that guy).  It seems like infertility is running wild now and I don't know why.  I have multiple friends with my problem (PolyCystic Ovarian Syndrome) which causes infertility and many other problems. 

 

We had so many people lecture us, from, you shouldn't put off a family for education, to, do I need to come over and show you how (seriously don't ever say that!).  So if you see a couple with no children or maybe only a few, be gentle, you never know their struggles. 

 

Here is a picture of one of my twins as a fertilized embryo, only days old and still in a petri dish (IVF).

 

 

My little twins (Sam 4 lbs. 11 oz. and Marlee 3 lbs. 13 oz.) that healed my heart.