My Sweet 16 Year Old

Mariah turned 16 a couple months back but has her first official DATE coming up on Sept. 26th for the Homecoming Dance! I don't know who is more excited....her or ME! Her date is a doll and came by the house last week when Mariah wasn't here to leave a bunch of bananas, balloons and a poster on the porch that said, "I would go BANANAS is you would go with me to Homecoming!" He called first to ask our permission to ask her, which I thought was very sweet. Anyway, it will be fun to help her find a dress and all the trimmings...and it's not Lane that I have to worry about being on the front porch with a shotgun...it's big bro Alex. I don't think he is ready for his little sis to be dating!

Her best friend's older sister just started a photography biz and did a photo shoot of Mariah and Carlee a few weeks ago. Take a look at them, I know I am biased, but they are SO BEAUTIFUL! I don't know how to insert a link so just go to the website. It is www.startinphoto.com click on CLIENTS and then Carlee & Mariah.

It is wierd to have kids old enough to date when it just was yesterday for me! How does that happen??

Happy Birthday Mom!

September 14th is always a day in the year that I am especially thankful for....it is the day a wonderful gift was given to this earth and without her, literally, I wouldn't be here. My beautiful mother celebrates her Birthday today. I actually don't even know how old she really is (unimportant facts tend to get lost in my brain) all I know is that for my entire life, she has been part of it.

My mom did all the important things that good moms try to do for their children. She taught me the Gospel, she taught me all the duties of how to be a good homemaker, taught me to serve others whether it be in the form of taking in a meal or sharing our talents. She was a visible prescence in our highschool as she helped with many school plays and performances and then was always there in the audience to cheer us on and give hugs at the end.

My mom has so many talents and special gifts that are hers. She has the knack of making ANYTHING look beautiful, even if it is a tuna sandwich....she will make sure that it is on a pretty plate and accompanied by a glass of sparkling lemonade in a beautiful goblet. She just always goes the extra mile for everything. Some have criticized her for trying to reach perfection in all that she does throughout her life, but as I get older, I appreciate more and more the "intensity" with which my mom lives her life. She is a passionate, emotional person who feels things much more deeply than some. She feels pain and she feels joy with the same intensity. She can cry harder than anyone I know, because I think she loves deeper than anyone I know. She can also help others to see the joy and beauty around her because she notices the little things more than anyone I know.

My mom has become my best friend. Being best friends mean that we accept someone for who they are with all of their weaknesses and strengths and that we share in things together. We help each other through those days when we feel like we can't get out of bed and we celebrate all the wonderful moments in life together. I am so thankful for a wise Father in Heaven who sent me to earth with just the mother that I needed. She has helped me become who I am today.She always expected the best of me, and while that was difficult at times, I know that it forced me to grow in ways that I wouldn't have otherwise. I am still a work in progress, as is she, but so many little things I find myself doing or saying...I think to myself, "I got that from mom."

My mom has risen above the ashes so many times in her life. We know that we are here on earth to be tested and go through trials. I have watched her over and over as she passes the test and comes out better and stronger because of them. The best thing about my mom is that she loves her children more than anything in the world. Each one of us knows that and always knows that she will be there for us no matter what.

Mom, thank you for teaching me how to love. Thank you for pulling me up when I am down. Thank you for always believing in me and supporting me in whatever I do. Thank you for always seeing the best in me even when I don't deserve it. Thank you for instilling in me that I am a daughter of God with unlimited potential. You are just the person that I have needed to help me through this life. We have been through alot of things together that have made us stronger and closer. I know that you struggled so much of your life with severe health issues that kept you from being the person that you so much wanted to be. I am thankful for many of those trials that came to our family because of that. It helped us to become stronger and to really appreciate the mother that we have today who is healthy and strong and able to give more fully to all of us. I feel so blessed to have a mom that is beautiful, classy, FUN, spiritual, talented and my best friend.

Thank you mom. I love you. Happy 50th Birthday....(am I close???)

New Home Remedy

I had to tell everyone about a great little tip I got from my friend yesterday. Lora came home from school with a sty in her eye and I wasn't sure what to do about it. It was not real big, but hanging down on her eye enough to irritate her and it was all red and swollen. Well, I mentioned it to Becky and she told me that her mom always used to rub a gold ring on a sty when they were kids. I reacted just like you probably are with an ...."oh right, that sounds like voo doo..." Well, I had nothing to lose, so I took my wedding band and gently rubbed it back and forth on her sty. I did this about 3 times before she went to bed that night.
ok, guess what...this morning it was GONE!! AMAZING huh?? It must be some mineral property in the metal, like maybe how Zinc works on zits....I don't know, but whatever it was, it worked.
So, there you go, another home remedy to add to our list.

Summer at the Martinsens!

I can't even believe that summer is over for us and we are back into the routine of school. Unfortunately mother nature doesn't know that summer is over and we still have temps way over 100! Since I haven't blogged in quite awhile, I will give a quick run down of our summer:

My kids were coming and going to many different things. Lora and Mariah both got to go to Cali. (further reading on their blogs) Mariah also had EFY and Girls Camp, both of which were amazing experiences for her as always.

I made my first attempt (successfully) to drive to Utah by myself with the 3 youngest kids. Actually went pretty smoothly thanks to being able to stop off for the night in St. George at my sis in laws house, which is empty, so it is better than a nice hotel!

We spent almost 2 weeks in Utah with family wich was so GREAT and badly needed! We spent the first several days with Shawn and Cheryl and got to go camping with them and my dad. The kids had a blast and it was really great. Then we went to Kristen's for almost the rest of the time, which was so much fun. A tad crazy at times with so many kids but we had so much fun and I just loved spending all that time with her and the kids. All her kids are great but Connor and Abby I could just eat! They are so dang cute and funny!!

Then we had Lane's family reunion which he flew in for and that was awesome to see everyone again on his side. Spent a couple nights at my mom's and then back home to AZ and the heat. We left Abe at Kristen's and brought Haley home with us.

We came home to our foreign exchange student from China who had gotten here a few days before and thankfully my cousin April played hostess until we returned.
We had the next 2 1/2 weeks with her and it was nothing short of WONDERFUL! It was such a fun expreience for all of us. We really bonded with her and it was so hard to see her leave just a couple days ago. She was so darling and so great to just jump in and do whatever we were doing. She seemed to love being part of a big family, since she is an only child in China. I could write so much about our time with her...but maybe later.

In the midst of all this...I turned 40. Yes, I did just say that. I still can't really believe it myself. My friends took me out for a great night for dinner and then we went to see "Mama Mia" I thought it was so dang funny! I laughed my head off. It is definately a chick flick! SO if you are in the mood for a good laugh, grab a girlfriend and go.

ok...next, my BABY started Kindergarten!!! I guess I really am 40. I think it was actually harder on Lane than me though. He was pretty much a mother hen those first couple days to her. They are best buds though, so it didn't surprise me really. Funny, that Alex calls home feeling a little lonely and Lane is like "it's good for him" and then a friend calls to tell me that Emma is crying at school and Lane is like "I'm on my way!!" and was by her side within 5 minutes of the call! hmmm....

She is having a little struggle adjusting to the all day thing but each day is a little better.

I still have Lora here who doesn't start until Aug 11th so I am not yet really experiencing the quiet house thing, but I think I am really looking forward to it. Do you think it would be too indulgent of me to just float around on my mat in the pool for a few days after they all go back?? I got a new book for my b-day that I have been dying to start. And I might even have to celebrate with a diet coke even though I have stuck to my no soda goal 100% since Christmas. That's long enough don't you think??

Oh gosh...we did lots of other things as well this summer but my brain is a little fuzzy right now. I think because I ate a Swiss Cake Roll about an hour ago and now I have a headache. It wasn't even good. It tasted like crisco.

Here are a few pictures for you. Of course, Emma on her first day of school and then Abe as well. He started Jr. High. nice pic huh? Mariah leaves the house at 6:15 AM and she is quite grumpy in the mornings (sorry Miah, but it's true) so, no picture of her on her first day of her Junior Year. and of course Lora hasn't started yet, so that will be coming.

and a pic of our family with Elvira...our chinese lady, as the kids called her.

ok, well, I still have one more AWESOME thing happening to top off my summer. AMY AND HER KIDS ARE COMING TO STAY WITH US FOR 9 DAYS!!!! We are so excited!!!!

That's it for now. ta ta

update

just so you know...I am going to update my blog as soon as I have a minute. hee hee

"Lora the superstar"

so some of you have heard Lora sing in the shower, but I finally captured her (fresh out of the shower) and I just have to show this off, of course, I think she is AMAZING!!
and Emma wants me to say that SHE is a superstar too.
make sure to listen all the way to the end for the "big finish"

Out of the Mouth of Babes

Mariah just returned from a week long trip to California to visit a very close friend. The whole family was gathered around the computer to view all the pictures from her trip. When we got to this one, Lora said:
"How did you and Erica make LOVE in the sand?"
Lane and I couldn't help but crack up and then that got all the kids laughing....the funniest thing was Emma and Lora both were laughing their heads off. They didn't even know what they were laughing at.