Another Christmas Has Come and Gone

We had another great Christmas with our family and friends. It was very fun watching 2 kids wake up to Christmas morning. Bryson was so excited to see presents under the tree. I think he was a little worried that there might not be any due to his struggle the weeks before with the whole naughty and nice issue. 3 is a hard age. He's definately testing his limits and mommy's nerves. Camryn decided to sleep in, but loved playing with Bryson and her toys once she joined us. I don't have pictures yet of the rest of the day, but we also had a great time sharing the day with my family and Chris's family. We are truly blessed to be living here near both of our families.

We also had a wonderful Christmas Eve. We went to the Slade's home and ate foil dinners. (The Slade's are my brother-in-law's family.) We had a lot of fun, a few laughs and ended with a little arm wresting. I was able to beat my mom and sister but lost horribly to Richard Slade (Anthony's older brother). To be fair, I was tired from the other matches. My mom and sister actually made me fight for the win. I guess I need to do a few more push-ups and demand a rematch. We ended the night with our traditional evening with my grandparents at their church's Christmas Eve service.

Merry Christmas!

So, this is probably the closest thing we are going to get to a Christmas card this year. Merry Christmas everyone! (Make sure to click on the link for a Christmas surprise!)

Love, The Coburn Family

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/Iyd8QktgKyuZOu1h?cmpid=ey_fb_self

Beginnings of a Testimony

Bryson absolutely loves Nursery. It probably has something to do with his teachers also being his grandparents. Who else gets to call their teachers Grandpa and Grandma. I am so grateful to them for helping him learn to love the gospel. I am continually impressed with the concepts and scripture stories that he is already familiar with by the time we teach them. Today after church, Bryson and I started talking about testimonies and how a testimony is something that you have faith or know is true. The conversation went something like this:

Angele: "Bryson, do you have a testimony?"

Bryson: "Yeah, I do."
A: "What do you have a testimony about? What do you know is true?"
B: "I know that Jesus loves me. I know that Jesus is proud of me." (I'm pretty impressed right now)
A: "Yeah? What else?"
B:" I know that Santa will come and our tree is pretty..."

He then proceeds to list random things that he sees around the room. How quickly 3-year-olds get distracted. Oh well, he started off good! Thanks again Grandpa Brother Ball and Grandma Sister Ball.

Yes, another cake

It seems the only thing we want to show you are cakes. Ah well, this was the latest, and our first to get paid for. We only made about $10 over the cost, but it is our first. It's a baby shower cake. The bottom tier is chocolate with chocolate mint whipped ganache, and the top is chocolate with chocolate raspberry whipped ganache. This is also our first foray into fondant. We didn't cover either tier with the stuff because we didn't want to compromise the flavor, but I don't think the looks were compromised either. Yes, the booties on the top are edible.

Second Star to the Right...

We had so much fun at a few pre-Halloween parties. As you can see, we went with a Peter pan theme. We won prizes at both costume contests. I think it was Captain Hook that was the clencher. But Peter and Tink were dang cute as well, if I do say so myself. Thank you to the Bostonia Ward and Ricky and Troy Hartpence for throwing great parties!

Bryson's Dino-mite Birthday Party!

The Dinosaur Cake

I have to say that most of the pictures are of me decorating, but Chris did all the baking. Two 10in. rounds, one 12in. round, one 8 in. round and one mountain! He also made all the icing from scratch! Chris makes it taste good and I make it look good so that people will want to eat it. We make a great team!

The Volcano Cake

(Yes, Bryson had 2 cakes for his party. I couldn't decide which one, so we made both! The smoke from dry ice was an awesome touch. The kids loved it!)

My Cup Overfloweth

As the minutes go by and this day comes to an end, my heart is heavy with conflicting emotions.

First, I reflect on this day three years ago. I remember driving through a mountain to get to the hospital, waiting hours for a room, desparately wanting my mother to arrive from the airport, pain like I never could have been prepared for, the oh so precious relief of an epidural and tiny thumping noises from a heart monitor. I remember feeling very excited and terrified at the same time. I knew that Heavenly Father was entrusting one of his choice spirits to our care, a choice spirit who found much enjoyment in kicking his mother's ribs. As I held Bryson's little body close to mine, traced his face with my finger, and stroked his head, I knew that my Heavenly Father loved me very much.

Bryson, you have brought me such joy in these last three years. I love the sound of your giggles and laughter. I love hearing your beautiful voice. I love when we whisper I Love You's to each other. I love seeing you light up as your imagination transforms you into your favorite superhero, animal or object. I love your mature sensitivity towards others and their feelings. I look forward to every day of being your mother. I love you.

~~~~

Today, I also reflect on the memories I have of a dear friend, Amanda Gunter. I recently received the news that she, along with her husband and 2-year-old daughter, was involved in a fatal car crash. Amanda was thrown from the vehicle and suffered injuries that took her life and the life of their unborn child (5 months along). Levin, Amanda's husband, had to be cut from the car and was in critical condition until just recently. Their daughter, Ansley, miraculously came away with little more than a scratch on her head.

I am still digesting this terrible reality, but feel that sharing this will help me as I sort through these emotions. I was priviledged to meet Amanda at BYU Hawaii. She and Levin were newlyweds, very social and outgoing. We attended the same ward at church and lived in the same building on campus. I never remember seeing Amanda in a bad mood and as I read through others' tributes to her, I truly believe that she had a smile on her face even in her sleep. She was genuine, happy, caring, talented, devoted, loving and charitable. I ache to think that her daughter will only remember her goodness through the words written and spoken of her.

My heart goes out to her dear husband and both of their families. Life has stopped for them and I pray that they will feel the love, support and prayers on their behalf. Amanda, as you watch us from above, know that you touched the lives of many people and I am confident that you are finding out right now how proud and pleased our Heavenly Father is with the things you accomplished during your time on earth. We love you.

July in a Nutshell

I know, I know. Our cake is beautiful, but I think 2 months is long enough. Time for an update!

Here is a quick overview of the month of July in the Coburn family.

Beach

Family Home Evening at La Jolla Shores

Potty Training

(Well, kind of... He had 2 good days and then anounced to me that he wasn't going to wear "big boy pant" anymore, "just diapers." At least he doesn't yell at us anymore when we ask him if he wants to go on the toilet.)

Beach

Wiggles Concert

Beach

Justin Home from Mission

Beach

Beach

Beach

So you can see where we spend most of our time in the summer. It started out with just Stan and Debbie (Chris's parents). Now, after 3 or 4 years I think, it is practically a ward activity. We love it. Thank you Stan and Debbie for starting such a wonderful tradition.