The Smith Family 2010 Run Down

Rebecca (18 months) continues to be the happiest little girl around. She runs, talks, climbs onto everything (bunk beds included), loves her baby dolls and stuffed puppies. She likes to color and write and thankfully most of her drawings end up on paper. She’s learning Spanish along with her siblings. She knows body parts and some animals, and her 1st Spanish word was “papa” which is what we call Grandpa Jenson. She is absolutely adored by her siblings and loves to follow them around doing what they do. Thankfully she likes to be outside (when it’s warm) and enjoys going to all her sibling activities. She is the most advanced with teeth for this age and has a mouth full with 4 more coming it.

Ammon (5) started kindergarten his fall and loves it. He’s learning to read and draws pictures and writes notes all the time. He played T-ball in the summer and soccer this fall. His favorite Spanish words are hamburgesa y papas fritas. He went to sibling camp (a special camp just for kids who have/had a sibling with cancer) for the 1st time this summer. When we picked him up he wasn‘t sure if he’d go back again this year-it was tough being away from mom & dad for a whole week, but I have a feeling he’ll want to go again. This past summer he learned to swim underwater and asks to go swimming every chance he can.

Corrine (7 and 10/12ths) is in the 2nd grade and loves everything about school. She is our budding artist and draws pictures for us all the time. Last spring Corrine flew off a swing in our backyard and broke her right arm. She healed incredibly fast and only had a splint or cast on for 3 weeks! She played soccer this fall and was the only girl on the team. She was in Girl Scouts and sold so many cookies she got a special party! She loves horses and was so excited that her troop went horseback riding this fall. She went to her 3rd year of sibling camp, where she also got to go horseback riding. She is such an awesome little mommy to Rebecca and is a great helper in the kitchen. In February she’ll turn 8 and be baptized!

Simeon (9) is in the 4th grade and doing very well in school. His favorite subjects are math, social studies and recess! He’s involved in K-kids, science club, Spanish club and will be joining choir again. He lives, breathes, and talks non-stop about sports! He played baseball and soccer this year, and played enough backyard football/baseball/ basketball you name it games to count for multiple seasons! He also learned to swim underwater this year. He earned his Wolf and Bear (both early-so he also has arrow points for both). He’s been done with chemo for 1 year and is doing awesome! He has grown so much in the past year. In January he will start playing on a baseball team for the high school. It’s alot of practices and games-and he’s so excited for this opportunity.

Kari has been busy keeping up with all the activities going on with our family. She’s in the Young Women’s presidency at church, Corrine’s Girl Scout leader, and volunteers regularly in Ammon’s kindergarten class and with his Spanish class. After 2 years of being the President for our local MOMS club group, she’s now enjoying just being part of the group. She got a nice camera in the spring and has been having so much fun taking LOTS of pictures with it. She’s been on a quest to be more organized and thankfully has a husband who knows how to build storage shelves, hang hooks evenly and put up a giant whiteboard!

Johann became the Young Men’s president at church this spring. (Yes having both of us in youth positions does pose some scheduling issues-but we always seem to make it work. Thanks in part to Johann’s mom always being willing to help with babysitting!) After 10 years of coaching a Babe Ruth (teenage) baseball team, he changed gears and helped coach Simeon’s baseball team this year. That was a lot of fun to see father and son out on the field together!

This summer we went on an almost 3 week vacation to visit Kari’s side of the family. We explored in Utah, played in Idaho, traveled all over Yellowstone and visited Mount Rushmore. Our faithful van worked hard and put on over 4,000 miles on our trip, and we only needed to make one unexpected stop for new brakes. We had such a great time playing with cousins, seeing grand & great grandparents, chasing chickens, climbing the Y, counting buffalo, earning 4 Junior Ranger badges and 1 Young scientist badge, counting the 1,000’s upon 1,000’s of motorcycles in South Dakota and coming home to look through over 2,000 pictures!!

We hope this letter finds you enjoying the wonderful blessings in your lives. We are thankful for each of you and the blessing you are in our family lives. We look forward to 2011 and all the blessings, trials, joy, business, friends and family that will surround us!

The Smith Family
Johann, Kari, Simeon, Corrine, Ammon and Rebecca

Our new van

We are the proud new owners of a beautiful Pearl Blue colored Town and Country Limited. Is is nice!! It has 2 dvd players, power doors, stow and go seats, navigation, remote start, heated seats, 2nd row windows that open and so much more. It has a 6" screen on the dashboard with so many things to do-like Siruis radio and backseat tv (both for 1 year only), back up camera, navigation, i-pod hookup, voice command. It's going to take some serious playing with it to figure it all out.


The day we got it the battery was having a hard time staying charged, so they told us to drive home with everything on and turn everything off when we got home. When we picked the kids up from Grandma Smith's house the tv's were on. The kids came out so excited and Rebecca pointed to the tv and said "tv"! Since the driver has ultimate control of the dvd screens-they won't be on around town.
We got a great deal on the van. We have 0% for 72 months. We added a 7 year bumper to bumper warranty.

On Thursday we brought the van back to the dealer to get an undercoat on the outside of the van, and a protectant spray on the inside. The outside spray has a 10 year warranty. If we get any rust they will replace that part with a new body. And the inside if it gets any marks they will clean it for us for 5 years. But because of the weather it took longer for it to dry and we alost didn't get the van back for the weekend. While they had our van we had a 2011 Chevy Sierra for a rental. It was a very nice truck. Rebecca loved sitting in it. It was so fun to hear her say "truck". The kids all enjoyed the truck-but were happy to get the van back.

The kids now want to be the last one in and out of the van so they can push the button to open and close the door.

We traded our red Dodge Grand Caravan in. We cleaned the van all up to trade it in, and it looked so nice. It was a great van. We bought it used with 13,000 miles when I was pregnant with Corrine, and we traded it in 8 years later with 106,000 miles on it. It took us on lots of fun trips across the country. In the time we had it we only had 2 small accidents. One time I hit the driverside sliding door on a cement barrier in a parking ramp (fixed) and the back bumper had a dent which we think came from backing into a snow bank.

VERY Berry Muffins

These are our families FAVORITE muffins. I originally found the recipe in a Taste of Home magazine, but have changed in a little to make it our own.

1/3 cup butter, melted
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk
1 1/4 cup berries (we use half raspberries and half blueberries)

Mix butter, sugar and eggs. In another bowl combine flour, salt and baking powder. Mix dry mixture into 1st mixture alternately with milk. Fold in berries. Pour into 12 muffin tins (will be pretty full) and bake 25-35 minutes @ 350, depending on if you used fresh or frozen berries.


The batter is more purple then normal with these muffins because I let the frozen berries sit out longer then I normally do and they had started to defrost and turned the batter purplish.

1 year later

Today was a BIG day. Today Simeon had his 1 year off treatment appointment. He looked great!! His blood counts are holding steady. White count was 7.2, hemoglobin 14.0, platelets 200. All are in the normal range. They have been staying right around here for months and will probably be around here from now on. He also grew taller again this month!!

His appointment was very much the same as the other appointments this year. A finger stick for blood counts and a physical. But making it to 1 year off chemo is a HUGE step!!


Dec 23, 2009 LAST DAY OF CHEMO appointment. Also his last day of chemo party. He had surgery 5 days later to remove his port and took his last dose of oral chemo Jan 10, 2010.


Dec 29, 2010 One year off treatment appointment.


Look how much they have all grown. It's been a great year of growth and good health.

Christmas Day

To avoid Christmas Day starting out way too early-this was placed at the top of the stairs.

It worked!!

Some of the highlights of the day:

Simeon got all 7 Hardback How to Train Your Dragon books, a BYU jersey and lots of baseball gear.



Corrine got a horse for her Rebecca Doll and Dance Dance Revolution.



Ammon got Castle legos and LOTS of them and a Zhu Zhu pet with battle gear.



Rebecca got her very own couch, a pink Zhu Zhu pet and a bouncy horse just her size.



Johann got 4 books he's been wanting and an MP3 player.



Kari got 3 very nice pots and scrapbooking things.


And our family is getting a NEW VAN!!!


The kids brought their Zhu Zhu pets (Santa brought all of them one today.) to visit Great Grandma Riddle. Grandma and the other residents had a fun time watching the kids chase them around.

The Night Before Christmas

Since we either gave away or ate all of Santa's cookies we made earlier this week we needed to make another batch today. Santa put in a special request for deluxe sugar cookies with homemade butter frosting.


The kids all decorated a cookie for Santa. They also decided that Santa would perfer a soda over milk this year. They also left 9 carrots for Santa to take to his reindeer.


Clockwise from top left-Corrine's, Rebecca's, Simeon's and Ammon's.

Rebecca was more into eating the m&m's then decorating with them.

Snow much fun

Today we went out for "outdoor recess" and took Rebecca out with us. She absolutely LOVED the snow!!! There wasn't much snow to play in and what there was was crunchy which made it easier to walk on. The big kids got to use their new shovels from grandma and Rebecca had a sand shovel just her size that she was digging with.


Corrine was working on making a big snow mountain with some help from Ammon then was having fun throwing snow up with her shovel.


Ammon was running, crawling, shoveling-being a constant ball of movement and loving the snow.



Simeon perferred playing basketball then playing in the snow.





More snow and lots of it is coming our way in the next 48 hours, so there will be more to play in.

Espanol

All 3 of the older kids have been taking a Spanish class. Corrine & Simeon have been going 2 mornings before school and Ammon has been going 2 days after school. I have been helping in Ammon’s class which has given us free tuiton for all 3 kids. Rebecca has also enjoyed coming to class and playing with the toys in the classroom. Ammon meets in the other kindergarten class and it is “play house” heaven for Rebecca!

At the end of the semester Simeon & Corrine put on a little show for the families about what they had learned. They sang some songs and did some narrations. They also got to show off their family trees that they made.






For Ammon’s class at the end of the semester they had a fiesta complete with a pinanta. After the pinanta was broken and candy given out the teacher was asking the kids some questions. If they could answer them correctly, then they got a point from the pinanta. Ammon raised his hand for a question, but couldn’t remember the answer. A little boy next to him leaned over and told Ammon the answer, so Ammon got the point. It was such an unselfish thing for the other boy to do. In the end the little boy who helped Ammon also earned a point.



Rebecca in the process of the classes she went to and working on Spanish at home, has learned many body parts and some animals in Spanish. It’s easier for her to say “aqua” then “water”, so she says “awa” for water now. We can also ask her “Donde esta la cabeza?” (Or other body parts) and she’ll point to them and say then in English. It’s been a lot of fun teaching the kids Spanish.

We call her "Marshmellow"

The kids lovingly call Rebecca "Marshmellow" when she has her snow suit on. It really is a reminder of the Christmas Story movie where the little boy falls down and can't get back up because of all his snow gear. That's Rebecca! It's even harder for her to move with her thick snow gloves on. They are so thick they don't come out of the sleeves, and her hands and arms are stuck in her jacket.



When I get it all on her, she usually will just stand still. If she gets off balanced she'll fall down and lay on her back looking stuck. This morning I found all 4 kids laying looking stuck together before school. Rebecca seemed to like that she wasn't the only one laying there helplessly!



Oh but the cuteness of Rebecca and her snow suit make up for the lack of movement she has!! She stays warm which is what really matters. I'm so glad I bought this set for her last spring at Kohl's in an amazing sale. We walk to school in the morning and afternoon and this keeps her toasty and dry.

We love you "Marshmellow".

-These pictures are alittle old. The pumpkins have been put away for some time now and she has 6 new teeth too!

Cookie Central

Today was cookie making day in the Smith house. We started out with deluxe sugar cookies (made with powdered sugar-not granulated sugar and they are so much better!!), with homemade butter frosting, Farmhouse mint cookies that my friend Linley made us years ago that I have fallen in love with and peanut butter Hershey kiss cookies.



The table at the height of decorating the sugar cookies. It was covered with goodness!

The entire day was spent making, decorating and packaging cookies. We also made a batch a hot chocolate mix to give with the cookies.


I can honestly say that I made 13-14 dozen cookies and we gave them all away. We ate a few-but not many. We'll have to make more for Santa later this week.

Ammon's picture

This afternoon Ammon showed me a picture he had drawn of his medical doll he got from sibling group. He drew this at school and it he drew it exactly as his doll is. I love how he has the IV in the right place. He wrote "I go to sibling grup" above it.


I makes me so happy that he has such a fun place to go that helps him to feel special and validated with everything he has gone through, and that he is comfortable enough to share his experiences with his friends.

1st snow fall

Today we got out 1st real snow of the season. We've gotten snow other days, but it was just a dusting here or there. Today we got 3-4 of beautiful white powder. I love the way the snow makes everything seem to slow down and quieter.





Yes our tree is still in the backyard. We are still waiting for it to be cut down. Sometime this winter it will go away, until then we soak in it's beauty.

Creamy Chicken Chowder

This is one of our families favorite soups. The kids request it every time I ask what we should have for dinner. It's warm, comforting and full of veggies. It's the perfect soup to make on a cold winters night.

I must admit I don't know who gave us the recipe. We started making it years ago, and we assume by the timing that we got it when we were living in Utah.



Creamy Chicken Chowder

3 cups chicken broth*
2 cups diced potatoes
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup diced celery
1/2 cup diced onions
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until vegetable are tender.

1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup flour
2 cups milk
2 cup grated cheddar cheese
2 cups cooked chicken
1 can cream of chicken (Campbell's makes it taste the best!)

In another pan make a white sauce by melting the butter, then add the flour. Mix well. Gradually stir in the milk. Cook until thickened on low heat, stirring lots. Stir in a handful of cheese, mix until melted and add another handful. (If you do this too fast, your soup may be lumpy-and lumpy soup isn't as good looking.) Stir in soup, then add chicken. (The white sauce will be very thick at this point.)
Add the white sauce to the vegetables. Mix well and enjoy!

*I like to cook my chicken and make the broth at the same time. I add 4 cups of water, 3 bouillon cubes, seasonings and 2 large chicken breasts to a large pot, bring to a boil. Boil until chicken is cooked through. I then measure to make 3 cups broth and use this as my broth.

If your doubling the recipe, do triple on the vegetable and double on everything else.

This soup in creamy, warm and oh so good. Pair it with fresh made rolls and you've got yourself a wonderful dinner.

Ward Christmas Party

Tonight at the ward Christmas party Ammon's class was asked to do a live nativity. Those sweet kids were so precious portraying Mary, Joseph, the angel, the shepards and the 3 wise men. The Shepard's got a little silly and choose to lay more then sit, but it was still so precious. Ammon was one of those slightly silly shepards. He was so excited all week, and kept counting down the days until the "performance". When he first told us they were going to do this he said "Mom Darren's Joseph this time and I'm a shepard!" He was so excited for his friend which was so sweet.




The young women were asked to make some gingerbread houses, but they weren't able to get them done, so we got one of the houses to make. The kids all picked a different part to decorate and they went to town. Rebecca didn't understand why we out candy on a house and then weren't eating it. She didn't want to just look at it, she wanted to EAT IT!!




I was asked to be the photographer for Santa at the party. I had so much fun taking pictures of all the kids. There were half dozen kids who were scared and screamed when they were placed on Santa's lap. I'd tell the parents, "set them down and take one step over, and I'll get a picture of them." We did that a few times, and each time I was able to get the classic screaming kid with Santa picture. But for every scared kid, there were so many more so happy to talk with Santa. One little boy was so excited that he sat on Santa's lap 3 or 4 times. I remember one little boy (whose family is having a hard time right now) tell Santa "I want a yo-yo." I'm not totally sure why, but that touched me so much. And then there was the most precious little guy only about 4 months old, stare up at Santa's face. Oh I loved being able to take those pictures.




Rebecca decided that Santa was NOT someone she's friends with this year. Even a bag of candy couldn't make her want to be near him even if dad held her.




Simeon was a good sport and stood with Santa so mom could get a picture. Really I think he was after the candy like the other boys his age. He told Santa that he wanted a Droid X phone like dad.




Ammon was very into telling Santa his wish list. The magic of Santa is still very alive in Ammon this year. I think a phone was also on his list this year. I love how Santa has his head turned to listen as Ammon concentrates on telling Santa what he wants.




Corrine also happily sat and told Santa a wish for this year. She looks so big sitting on his lap-she has grown so much this year.

Simeon earns his Bear in Scouting

Tonight at scouts Simeon was presented with his Bear, a Gold arrow point and 2 Silver Arrow points. In the business of life, the original patch with mothers pin got lost, so he didn't actually receive the award during the ceremony, and he didn't need to kiss his mom (which he was going to do without a fuss).


After the ceremony was over and dodge ball had been played a single Bear patch was found and he was presented with it. The mothers pin will follow-or I'll go buy one to have on my neck thingy. Official word-you know!



Simeon finished his Bear 6 months before his birthday so I have a feeling he will earn LOTS more silver arrow points to go along with the ones her earned tonight. It's a good thing he has a bigger shirt, because he has ALOT to put on it.

On our way home tonight Ammon said "I only have 2 1/2 years until I get to be a cubscout!" Simeon makes scouts look so fun and exciting, that Ammon can't wait to join when he's 8.

We're so proud of Simeon and how he has been working to get his scouting awards done. He enjoys scouts and learning new things.

My new friend

The other night I was talking with my parents when I heard Rebecca laughing in my bedroom. The other kids were in bed, so I wondered who she was laughing with. I peeked in to find her looking into the long mirror laughing with her reflection. She would bring something to the mirror-look at it in her hands, then in the mirror, talk to the mirror and laugh. It was simply adorable!
This morning I brought the mirror to the front room for her to play with. She was so cute! She had her puppy friend and an animal book. She was watching herself in the mirror to see what she looked like as she played. It was the funnest thing to watch and capture with pictures.
I took so many this morning-so here is a collection of my favorite ones:











We now have the mirror in the dinning room right next to the kitchen. We find her sitting by it and looking into it all day long. It's been such a fun thing to have around.