Banana the Monkey came to visit.....

Nathan was chosen to be the star for the week in his class and with that honor this monkey got to come home with him for a week. Nathan got to name him and Banana was chosen. Nathan is to show Banana around and document it with photos and a journal.

First thing Nate did was to introduce Banana to the Playstation and had a BLAST playing Lego Star War and Indiana Jones.

Banana and Bean became quick buddies...
But Bean got tried of Banana's clinging.
Banana bumped into another classmate of Nate at Isaac's Basketball game.
He even got to see a basketball legend, John Stockton.
Banana decided to bunk at night with Nate.
Both had restful nights without any nightmares.
He had fun riding in the car around Nate's neck.
He also liked hanging around Mya and Isaac.
He even got to participate in Isaac's "Pinewood Derby", he especially liked the racing stripes on Isaac's racer.
Off to experience culture at Isaac's music concert...the African drums were his favorite.
Banana has a fun filled adventure with Nathan and was very sad it had to end. We also was sad to see him go but we know he truly cherished the moments he had with us and he's off to new adventures.

Random Photos of General Conference Weekend

These are randoms photos of our General Conference weekend. The weather was finally starting to feel like Spring. On Saturday the kids played in our yard and allowed me to take some photos of them.
Nate being a good sport and sat down for me...so I can take this shot.
Mya doesn't have a problem letting me take photos of her.
The boys practicing soccer. (Isn't our dead grass...LOVELY!)
On Sunday, we decide to take Bean on his first walk on the leash and he didn't like it a bit.
But then he realize he didn't have a choice...either walk or be dragged.
Each of our kids took turns walking Bean and it's was Mya's turn.
He struggle a bit with Isaac but Isaac showed Bean who's boss.
Nate and Bean taking a stroll on this beautiful Spring afternoon.
Wait a photo of me and my little girl.

We wandered around our neighborhood and took Bean to the Dog Park. The kids and Bean had fun with the other dogs. It was truly a peaceful and quiet weekend.

Twelve years and counting....

We met in August 1996 behind my moving truck and who would have thought that our lives would change forever. We soon started dating and were engaged on December 27th 1996 and married April 18th, 1997. It was so quick but I don't regret any minute of it because you're my eternal companion. Three kids...8 moves later and I love you more than I loved you when we first got married. Heavenly Father has blessed me tremendously but especially with you...I'm eternally grateful!

Easter Weekend!

We had a great Easter Weekend and since I had tons of photos I decided to put them in collages. We started our weekend with a trip to Amber Lake in Cheney Washington for some fishing.
The weather was ideal and sunny. We didn't catch any fish every though we could see them and they were fat rainbows.
So I decided I would take some photos of the the kids and they really cooperated with me. My sweet Isaac has a hard time giving me a natural smile but he's a sweetheart for trying.
Nathan was such a sport and bared with me while I tried to get him to smile.
Mya didn't have a problem and gave me so many poses. She would tell me, "mom, take a picture of me."
I decided I should have some photos of me since I'm always behind the camera.

My kids are cute but very Cheesy.
On Saturday, we had a Primary Easter's Egg hunt and the kids had a blast except for Nathan. He had a soccer game to be at but I made it up to him on Easter morning.

I haven't decided when it became so difficult to try to take a photo with all your kids together but heck it's hard!!! But we truly had a great Easter even if the weekend it rained and it was colder than normal . Hoped everyone had a great Easter!

Where a Kid can be a Kid....

One of the things we did on our spring break was to head to Chuck E Cheese and we had a BLAST! It was the first time for the boys and Mya has been once before. The place was packed but they sure did have fun and it's now one of our family's favorite place to go especially when the weather outside is crappy! Thank Goodness for Chuck E Cheese!!!

Straight, mmmm...

I decided this morning before Church that I would straighten my curly top's hair and she loved every minute of it. Having curly hair, you never see how long your hair truly is and straighten you can. She truly loved the feeling and seeing how long her hair is and she kept saying, "See Mom my hair is long like you." But I have to say, I love her curly hair better!

Future Dancers of "Dancing with the Stars"?

One of my favorite shows is "Dancing with the Stars" and the kids love watching and dancing with it. It's so funny seeing them performing, that I had to have them on video. Here are some videos of my future dancers.... (The best part that you can see all the videos at the same time. It's a great laugh!!!)

Mexican Cruise or Washington?

My little sister decided instead of taking a Mexican Cruise, she would come and visit us here. Poor thing couldn't have picking a worse time, we had a mini winter storm. It got into the teens and she froze! But I was so grateful for her and I had a blast having her here. She also brought with her Singstar games for the Playstation 2 and my goodness was that so much fun!!!! I did better with the songs of the 80's, but the pop sonsg of the 90's not so much. How are you suppose to rap and keep with the pitch is beyond me. We also had a Japanese night for Family Home Evening and we made gyouza and yakisoba, very tasty. We attended the boy's basketball, walked in a mini blizzard to the supermarket, went to hula and a course we went shopping!! Thanks you so much Clelia, for spending your Spring Break with us!

Our New Addition....

Let me introduce you to our new puppy BEAN. We have decided two years after losing our first dog Soup, it was time to get another dog. We decided to get the same breed as our first dog, which is a Shiba Inu. We have loved having a dog again, even though we forgotten how much work they are especially as a puppy. It's like having another child. We are so glad that he's in our life and looking forward for the many years with our new pet.

HOMEMADE GIVEAWAY

So I notice this blog on one of my friends blog but I definitely wasn't one of the three to win a prize but then my friend Cheri had this blog and I'm one of the winner. YIPEE!!! I can't wait to see what she sends me. So now it's my turn and here it is girls;

1. Be one of the first THREE bloggers to leave a comment on this post, which then entitles you to a handmade item from me (yeah handmade!).

2. Winners must post this challenge on their own blog, meaning that you will pay it forward, creating a handmade gift -anything!- for the first THREE bloggers who leave a comment on YOUR post about this giveaway!

3. The gift that you send to your 3 friends can be from any price range and you have 365 days to make/ship your item. This means you should be willing to maintain your blog at least until you receive your gift and have shipped your gifts. And, remember it’s the spirit and the thought that count!

4. When you receive your gift, blog about it! If you are not one of the first three to comment on this post, you can still play along. Go ahead and start your own Pay It Forward chain, and encourage your blogging friends to do the same! It's all about paying it forward.

Is It So....

It's amazing what traits are passed from parents to their children either physical or emotional. Or the odds of us just having one child with my coloring and having two red heads is surreal or unreal.

Our third child, we been told how much Mya looks like me especially from my mom but I didn't fully understand until I saw photos of me around her age. It's truly mind-blowing to see how much she truly looks like me.
How about our second child , how people have asks me if Nathan is adopted until they see Blake. I have heard many time that Nathan take after the Beecher side of the family or look like a mini Blake. Well I found some photos of Blake around Nathan's age and I can see the resemblance.
Now for our first and oldest child. People will see Isaac and tell me that he takes after my side of the family but he is truly a mix of both of us. He definitely has my coloring and his shape of his face is like mine but his smile is all dad's. Even the teeth are the same as dad, that's eerie.
It fun to see the physical traits we have passed down to our children but that doesn't matter. It doesn't matter if we look the same or don't, what matters is the love we have for each other and for our Heavenly Father.
What matters is that we are an Eternal Family.

The Things We....

It amazing the things you do for your kids even when you don't have a clue how to do it. Yesterday was the Blue and Gold Banquet in our ward and each scout was told to bring a cake that depicted a national or historical monument. Well we thought it wasn't a requirement but we found out different on Tuesday night. Mind you I wasn't home on Tuesday night and I found a note on Wednesday's morning about the cake that needed to be made that day. Isaac told me he wanted the Washington Monument and all I could think was "HOLY COW"!!! Well this monument took me all day to make and a trip to the supermarket without a car (we only have one car and Blake had it). This is what I came up with and we were awarded "the best decorated cake".

My Blessing In Life

How do I begin to tell him how lucky I am to have him in my life?

I'll start by saying what an honor it is for me to be his wife for eternity.


He's my best friend in the good times and my rock in times of sorrow.
He's the reason for sweet yesterdays and my promise for tomorrow.


I never thought I could feel this loved until I became his wife.
Every morning I wake up and see, him lying next to me.


He's the one I cherish and love, a blessing sent from Heaven above.
I will love him as a eternal partner should, and do everything for him I could.
I would let him know everyday, that I love him more than words can say.


For the three children we have together,and the love for Heavenly Father in each other.It will keep our love for each other strong, and the Lord will guide us away from all wrong.

Fairies Dust...

For my little girl, I wanted a special room just for her. I actually let her picked out the color for her room and she wanted her favorite color which is blue. I decided to add white because we had installed dark wood flooring and I didn't want the room to be dark . I also decided that the furniture would be white too. The dresser we got from Craig's List (Love that site) which I painted. I also changed the hardware. That was the easy part! I had a hard time find what I wanted originally. I wanted molding mounted on the walls to divide the color but I couldn't find the molding I had envisioned. We went to some many places but yet no luck. I was so frustrated because I wanted to finish her room. They my husband suggested a border, at first I was against it but then I happen upon a border that I fell in love with and the best part was it was on clearance for a dollar each roll. From that border, everything fell into place. Mya has always wanted these Tinkerbell fairies stickers and I thought it will work perfect with the border and now my little girl has her Fairies' Room.

Here are some photos of the results...

Before

After
This fairies stickers are ideal and they are removable

This comforter set ties the room perfectly. These fairies was given to her by her grandma for her birthday.

I decided that the fairies should look like it belong with the border and I feel that I made it work.

So again I want to thank my hubby for suggesting the border instead of molding. The room came out better that I have image.

It's FINALLY Done!!!!

We been working on the remodeling of our kitchen for the last 6 months. We had some major problems, like grout drying on the glass tiles and couldn't be remove except with ajax and having to remove all the grout we did and redoing it again. The paint was not the correct color (added dark brown paint to the color and now I love it) and barely had enough to finish the kitchen. Let's not talk about the outlets and switches we replaced either. BUT...I can finally say its done except for decorating but HOORAY! Here are some of the results...

BEFORE

AFTER

We had this empty space in the kitchen and we decided to open the walls to be able to have a open layout

This is the out come
Now I can be in the kitchen and still be able to see and talk to anyone in the dining room or living room

We also added this island

I been truly blessed with a husband who was able to make me and give me this beautiful kitchen. Next step is looking for a window treatment.

Look Who Turned 4!

I can hardly believe that my baby girl is 4! Where has the time gone? To me she's my baby but she tells me that she's a big girl now and it makes me a little sad. As I look at these photos I realize my baby is growing up!
We have a tradition in our family that the birthday person is the star of the day and whatever they want to do or eat, it's done! Mya decided the menu for the day was: breakfast-"Apple Pancakes", Lunch-"Hot Dogs with all the fixings and fried fries", and for dinner-"Turkey Tacos". As for the birthday cake she wanted "Cherry Cake", which is a favorite in Blake's family.

She opened her presents as soon as she woke up and had a blast playing with her new toys.(So did her brothers!) We had a nice and quiet day at home. We watched the movie she picked out "Over the Moon" (which is a cute kid's show). She was the star and she was loving it and the boys was so sweet and attentive. We are grateful to have her sweet and special spirit in our lives. We are grateful to Heavenly Father for blessing and choosing us to be her family.

"Change Can Happen"

And it DID! It was a truly an exciting and monumental time in our lives and those of my children, to witness history in the making. As my friend beautifully stated; "This moment is the proof that there are no barriers to achieve your dreams. Keeping in mind that the inauguration will be not about the first African-American President, but about all races, all religions, and all cultures. In essence we are ALL one!!!"
As President Obama stated:"We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness."

I will always remember this day and the emotion I felt as I heard these words. I'm proud to be an American!

Also as Mya saw these photos, she said" that's Obama, Obama Mama!" I couldn't said it any better!