The Vow

Patrick: "have you watched the vow yet?"
Rachael: "no"
Patrick: "it's a good movie"
Rachael: "it's stupid"
Patrick: "Here, I'm going to make you watch the Vow"
Rachael: "No, I don't want to, I'm just going to fall asleep...I swear!"

Hahahaha...The Vow = A Chick flick!

Christmas 2012

I usually come up with a clever poem for our Christmas post, but this year, I am just lucky to get the pictures and memories blogged. I am sad at the lack of Christmas pics I took. I didn't even get any pictures of Ethan opening up presents. *sigh* At least I got one playing WITH his presents! Without further ado...Christmas 2012 Durling Style!















All the kids got a special present from Patrick and I. Carly got Disney on Ice tickets to see all the princesses, Malia and Ethan got How To Train Your Dragon Live Spectacular tickets, and Raya...well, she cried when she opened her present...Check it out!


(to view video, select "Raya gets 1D tickets for Christmas" on the DVD at the end of this book"


Do you think she had the best Christmas EVER??? She probably thinks so!

8 Years Old

Eight years ago, I received an early Christmas present. This Handsome little boy!



In eight years he has grown taller, grew some teeth, lost a few of them, grew some more. Has become an expert in paper airplane making as well as all things Star Wars. His heart is kind, He loves his muscles, he can do math easily, loves 2nd grade and doing his parkor gymnastics. I love this kid and am glad he arrived just in time for Christmas! Happy Birthday E-Town!

Movie Stars

The Young Women's president contacted me and asked if I could make some "movie posters" using photos of the girls in our ward for their Young Women in Excellence program. I had a few days to pull it off. I think the hardest part was finding good movie posters to use as a template. I'm not going to post all the ones I did, but I will share with you Raya's. It turned out way cute!



During the program, they presented a movie with interviews from the girls and whatnot. unfortunately, Raya didn't go to any of the activities where these interviews were happening so I was asked to video tape her doing something she loves. I filmed her singing. They used it in the video and while watching it, attendees mouth's dropped. They were shocked and had no idea that Raya possessed this talent. Even the bishop mentioned something about it in his closing remarks. Raya loves to sing and like most girls her age, wants to be a singer when she grows up. I've finally let down my protector parent guard and am letting her participate in all the music events she wants while still encouraging her to study hard and get used to blood because she said that if she doesn't become a singer, she wants to be a doctor. Maybe she can be both?

Check her video out:
(You can watch this video on the DVD included at the end of this book)

Eight and Angry

Ethan is turning eight in a few days and true to protocol, we had his birthday party really early in the month. He wanted an Angry Birds birthday party and it was super easy, super cheap, and a ton of fun!

The decorations were so easy and turned out way cute!





The pigs above were made from pop up tab cans. I used a can opener on the bottom of the cans to take the peaches out (we ate them) and then filled them with candy and stickers. I just hot glued the bottom back on and voila! An easy "Thank You for coming" party gift that was cheap, easy to make, and fun for the kids to open!

The most expensive part was the cupcakes. I don't normally spend $3.50 a piece on cupcakes, but weren't these just darling?



All the kids that were invited came except for one:



Ethan opened presents and got legos, Angry bird stuff, and a really cool circuit board toy:





After cake, ice cream, and present opening, the boys played outside on the trampoline, Perhaps the best part of the party was when they played Real Life Angry Birds! I bought cardboard bricks at Toys R Us, and had a few different Angry Bird foam balls. I saved different cans that I used and made "bad piggies" from green paper and printouts: They were way cute!



I had two slingshots but after Ethan went the first time, the boys realized that throwing the ball was a lot easier and more fun:













Carly wanted to try the slingshot. I love her little face...she actually knocked down some of the bricks using it!



Of course, after their five turns were up and there were bricks still standing, the kids used their hands and arms to finish the job!





Ethan really enjoyed his party and I am glad to have another birthday party under my belt...Perhaps the "bad piggies" are too:

Allergies

Shhhh...Don't tell Raya I'm posting these photos! Remember these:









This was a little over a year ago. She obviously had an allergic reaction to something. We assumed it was a cat. Fast forward a year and 3 allergic reactions later (none that puffed her up like this, just red, burning and itchy skin), we ended up taking a trip to the allergist:





She endured a torturous allergy test (42 pricks to the back and 3 terrible itchy spots):



Only to find out that she was allergic to two things...Olive Trees and Mugwort Weed. Do you see something wrong with this picture? No Cats! WHAT? The doctor decided to do a blood test to check to see if she was allergic to the actual cat skin (they only tested for cat hair) as well as bees, wasps, and the like. We are still waiting for the results. I hate to say it, but I hope she is allergic to cat skin. Then it would solve the puffy face allergic reaction mystery AND I will have a legitimate reason why we can't have a cat for a pet when the kids ask. On another note, I am glad that Raya was only allergic to the two things. When I had that test done years and years ago, almost all the pokes yielded an allergic reaction and I had to go back like 3 times. Here's to hoping that the blood tests gives us some kind of answers! In the meantime, we got 2 Epi-pens and some allergy medication. Not sure we actually need either of them, but we have them just in case!

Glimpses of When They Were Babies

Carly is funny! She's the baby so she was always lugged around, taking her naps whenever she could possibly do so. I think because of the this, she has learned that she can just fall asleep wherever:



Sometimes I get little glimpses of when she was a real baby:





No matter where she falls asleep, there is one thing for sure...she will always have her "nanny" (Brown Blanket). Not sure how we are going to get that away from her *sigh*

Preparing for Christmas

This time of year is certainly busy. I feel like I am rushing from one place to the next, from here to there, doing this and doing that. I enjoy the little things that make Christmas time, Christmassy. There's the tree:





And our Annual trip to Dovewood Court to see all the lights (This was our third time in three days...we love Dovewood Court!)

































We also went to see our old Babysitter, Katie, in her Tap Dance show called "Secrets of the North Pole". She was amazing. The show was really cute!







And also, a visit to Santa Claus (Psst...Malia was snowboarding with daddy):









I am grateful for all the little things that we can do to bring the Christmas spirit into our lives especially during this super busy time of year.