Flourishing in Talents

I have ALWAYS loved to craft, and I love finding new things to do. So when my sister in law Penny asked me if I wanted to learn how to crochet, I said yes without hesitation! It was so easy to learn and I am loving it so much. I can only make hats and flowers so far , but it is so much fun. In my patriarchal blessing it says that I have yet to develop talents that are still dormant. I never knew what these talents were, but think I am starting to figure them out.

This was my first ever attempt to crochet a hat. I made it for Paityn and it ended up fitting perfectly. I love the way it turned out. Look at how cute this girl is. Whenever you get a camera out this is the cheese face she pulls. All smiles this one is and I LOVE it. Adorable!!

I had to attempt Trevor's hat twice. The first one ended up too small so I had to give it to my neighbor Lea's little boy Tucker. She didn't mind. But this one turned out perfect for Trev too. I was worried about it being to girly. He really wanted one and I finally said ok and I think he pulls it off quite nicely. What a stud!

I made one for Cami too and hers turned out really cute as well. I didn't get a picture of it so I guess I better get one of her too. I still have yet to make one for Riley but have been running short on my free time with so many other projects I'm trying to complete. I'll get there though and I'll post a picture of Riley's and Cami's when I finish.

Setting the Standard...Steed Style

One of Riley's very best friends (and longest friendship) had her ninth birthday party on Saturday the 22. It was a surprise birthday for Kelsey and it was a bang! First this extra huge limo picked Kelsey up at her house and then picked up 12 of her closest friends. We knew a limo was coming to pick Riley up, but when this bad boy pulled up in front of our house we were stunned. It was HUGE. The pictures do not do it justice. Riley was all giggles as the limo driver came and rang the doorbell and escorted her to her ride. While inside waited 11 little girls laughing and jumping around and dancing, and Kelsey's mom Allison jammin the music loudly in true limo fashion.Needless to say I was very jealous of Riley and her friends. I jumped inside and danced and sang for a bit and then they had to leave.Bummer! After they left for a six hour girly party, Cami told Chad and I that she too wants a limo for her birthday party. I reminded her that she is turning 6 and that she has to at least wait until she is in school to have a limo party. Then I leaned over to Chad and said "Boy a limo would sure be a sweet ride for someone who's turning 30 this year on her birthday!"...Just sayin! Riley and her friends went out for pizza and then over to Kelsey's Grandparents' GORGEOUS house for fun and games. She had so much fun. The Steeds have DEFINITELY set the standard for future birthday parties.

Can you imagine this thing pulling into your driveway to pick you up? I can...It was seriously AWESOME!

Riley getting ready to get inside where all her friends were waiting.

Check them out. I could barely get them to sit still long enough to get a picture. Most of these girls are from Riley's soccer team. I am so excited that she has such an awesome group of girls to grow up with in sports. Yeah Synergy!

Nerf Wars King Style

One morning I woke up to a bunch of noises coming from the family room. Noises of laughing, running, jumping and yelling. So I got up to see what was going on. I walked out smack in the middle of the Nerf gun war zone. I ducked and covered myself to safety, grabbed the camera and started shooting. Great footage on the video camera, not so great pictures with this camera. Oh well. It was great fun all around.

Chad and Trev with their shields and guns

Paityn was hiding in the fort as well. Trev was the greatest to watch. He was running out to get bullets and dodging around everyone's guns.Then he'd run back to the fort and hurtle himself over the top and duck behind saying "duck dad! Cover your head!" I loved it.

The girls with their fort and guns

Riley crafted a shield for herself out of a lid. These two were fun to watch too. Riley shot the gun while Cami ran to scramble up the fired bullets.Great teamwork!

Fam-Wii Night

It's family night it's family night!! We decided that we needed a night to relax and enjoy eachother's company and laugh and spend time together as a family. What better way to do that then by playing the Wii? We've been really busy these last few weeks. Whether it's soccer, basketball, work or scouts, something has been going on every night. SO on a night off of everything we got to spend some quality time together. We had so much fun. I get killed by my kids on almost every game but it's fun to see them succeed right? Even Trevor enjoys a little Mario Cart and Wii fit. I think that we may have started a new fam-Wii tradition!

Chad and Trev and Cam enjoying some family time

Hey Ri!! Nice teeth!

Paityn wanted a turn on the Wii fit... shirtless... better mobility without clothes holding you back...for kids anyway!

Mom and Riley...I LOVE my kiddos!

Bowling with Cami. Look at that form!Cami kept getting strikes and I was losing big time so I focused HARD on rolling it straight.

Here is Cami the "Strike Queen".

Trevor showing off his strength. He is such a boy!

We mean business at the King Fam-Wii night

And So It Begins!!

We finally got Riley to sign up for basketball this year. Yippee!! It took some coaxing, promises that she would be on her friends' team, and also signing Chad up to be her coach. Who's better for the job though right? Riley was so cute out there. At first she was shy and kept her hands by her face. Then she warmed up and got into the game a bit more. She even scored a basket. WOO-HOO!! That's my girl! She is on the blue Junior Jazz team and she's #8.Way to go Riley. Keep playin good and hard and keep making those shots.

Pausing mid game for a picture...we were killing the other team so it was fine.

Here she is stealing the ball.

Riley is a hustler. She was the first one back on defense almost everytime. We LOVE you #8!

Ta-Da!! I Finished My Entertainment Center

This is an old entertainment stand (10 years old at least) that has been passed along to family members. First it was purchased by Nate and Penny. Then it got handed over to Matt and Amy. Then my mom and dad brought it up to me. I decided to refinish it and make it look new. I feel so bummed that I didn't take a before picture of it. It was wood color, but not real wood.It's that stuff that's like a sticker that looks like wood. It also did not have the bead board on it. It was glass in the big door. Chad had to make a couple major adjustments so that our TV would fit in it. Look how it turned out. It looks totally different then before. I LOVE it!!

Happy New Year!!

Chad and Trev playing with the ipod touch.
Makelle chillin on the floor. She is the BEST baby ever. She just lays on the floor all by herself and she'll fall asleep when she's tired and then when she wakes up she just hangs out by herself without making a sound. She loved watching the kids runnin around.

Paityn being a ham. She is so silly.

I don't know why Riley is not wearing her glasses. But I found this stuff and wanted it for our New Years party. The kids had fun with them too.
Happy 2011 Cami!!
Cami, Riley, Tanner, Trevor, Hailey and Kaelynn
This was Chad and I on the real New Years Eve. In bed, playing the ipod. You can't get better then that.

Random Pictures From California

Cami and Riley shared a bed at Grandma and Grandpa's house. One night when Chad and I were going to bed, Chad decided to check on the girls. He came out of their room smiling and laughing. He said "They're holding hands!" I went in to check and sure enough, they were both sound asleep still holding each other's hand. So sweet.

We found this wig and thought we'd put it on Paityn to see what she would look like with hair. Here it is. This is what she'd look like. I'm sure her hair will come in a lot lighter and not so thick or curly.

What's a trip to the ranch without a day or two of work? They ALWAYS have a project going on. This time, the deck around the house NEEDED to be replaced. So the job was to rip out the old deck. Chad, Trev and Cam helped. It was rainy and cold and muddy. Trevor LOVED it. He was a workin boy!

Chad and Trev rippin up the deck.

Cami was covered in dirt from head to toe when she decided she'd had enough. What a good worker she was. She even smashed her fingers a few time and kept on workin.

This is how Trevor was most evenings. He would go go go until he couldn't go anymore. When we could finally get him to sit still he would fall asleep in seconds. Tired boy!

Trevor and his cousin Jacob. These two would play together ALL day long. Trevor loves his older boy cousins. He went through some major withdrawls.

Paityn was being silly one day and decided that she was going to put herself in a cubby on Grandma's shelf. She's so silly and her personality is really starting to blossom.

Grandma and Grandpa's dog Sweetie had a litter of puppies around Halloween. When we got there for Christmas there were 4 puppies left. They were so cute. Paityn wasn't too sure, but she loved watching them.

Polar Bear Swim 2010

Every other year, when we all meet in California for Christmas, we have what we like to call the Polar Bear swim. The bravest of the brave choose to swim the length of the pond (about 50-60 yards)in the freezing cold water. Now I know what you're thinking. "Oh come on. It's California.How cold can that water be really?" Let me tell you how cold it can be. Imagine if you will, sitting on a beach on a hot summers day. The sun is shining down on you. You're wearing your swimsuit and you're getting a nice golden tan. The radio plays a Beach Boys song in the background. In your hand is an ice cold cup of ice water. The coolness of the glass feels good against your hot palm. It's refreshing to the taste. You are feeling good. Life is AWESOME! Now imagine that you are still wearing your swimsuit but now the temperature outside is roughly the temperature of that glass of ice water, and instead of laying out under the sun, you are jumping up and down to try and stay warm. Can you feel it? Can you feel the cold?Now imagine wearing a swimsuit, cold temps outside and then jumping into even colder water. Water so cold that when your body is immersed in it, it goes into shock and lacks the capacity to move. Can you feel it? Are you shivering?That's how cold it was. FREEZING!! This year the ante was raised.First,there was now the prize of a trophy complete with Malibu Barbie and Ken on top. Second, Papa offered 20 dollars to anyone who would swim to the end AND BACK! All participants received a 10 dollar gift card to In and Out as well. The competition was on. It was fierce. Who won do you ask. Not me. My brother Matt came in first, then the newcomer Jenna.Jeff got out without swimming back and therefore did not receive his 20 dollars. I came in third, then Andrew, then Nate. There were some close calls of drowning due to hypothermia but we all made it out alive. We are also ALL looking forward to the next challenge two years from now.The trophy is mine

All the participants: Nate, Cara (yes Cara did it too), Andrew Me, Jenna, Jeff and Matt

My swim outfit. My underwear say "Believe in this"

Riley watching, contemplating on attempting in two years.


All the onlookers cheering us along

We'll Be Home For Christmas

CHRISTMAS!! I love Christmas. It is my most favorite holiday ever. I love the sounds, the sights, and the smells. Christmas has a smell. Christmas trees, snow, rain, wrapping paper, new clothes, candy canes, cookies. Put them all together and you have the smell of Christmas. I LOVE IT! We got to go back home to California for Christmas this year. Everyone was there this year. Matt and Amy and their family, Nate and Penny and their family, me and Chad and our kids, Andrew and Jenny and Tanner, and Jeff and his FIANCE Jenna. Jeff Proposed to Jenna on the 23 right after we all arrived from Utah. We are all so excited to have Jenna in our family. She is a perfect match for Jeff. On Christmas Eve we did our annual Polar Bear Swim (pictures to come) and made cookies. The air was filled with excitement as we all went to bed. Bright and early Christmas morning we all got up and opened presents. It was so much fun. This year I actually waited a little bit to open my presents so that I could watch everyone else open theirs. The kids were so excited. Jeff and Jenna were cute and bought all the kids presents. The kids loved that. The kids this year got toys and clothes. Chad got tickets to a Jazz game and I got an ipod Touch. LOVE IT!! We also got a new camcorder. We are loving that too. Christmas day was spent playing with our new toys, visiting with family and napping. We had so much fun. It was great to see the whole family together again. It's a rare occasion that we can all get together, but when we do I'm reminded how blessed I am to belong to such a wonderful family.

All the stockings lined up in front of the tree before Santa came. Isn't that crazy?20 stockings!

Christmas Morning before the kiddos came in. Santa Definitely found his way to Grandma's

Chad opening his Jazz tickets. I was able to keep this one a secret this year.



Paityn opening her new Cabbage Patch Baby skunk. She LOVES babies.



Paityn and Riley. Paityn was not too happy right here because she had just gotten up and she wanted something to eat before opening presents. Crazy girl, I don't know where she got that from. Forget food, give me presents!



Riley and Cami with their dolls and horses.

The aftermath

We all made stockings on Christmas Eve. This one is Paityn's. I made it but I think it was the best one.

Riley's stocking. She did a great job on hers too

My stocking


Chad's stocking

Cami's stocking. Cami did an awesome job painting hers

Trev's stocking...hmmm...way to go Trev!

Trev and his stocking.

Me making my stocking.

All the kiddos painting away.

Grandpa and Trev shooting the gun. Before we went to CA my dad told Trev that he was going to take him out to shoot the guns. For the whole week before we left Trev was walking around the house saying "I'm gonna shoot Grandpa!" We corrected him of course but we knew what he meant. So sure enough, Grandpa took him out shooting and he LOVED it.

Here they are again. Trev did not want to stop. He kept saying "'Gin grandpa!"