The Twilight Before Christmas...

Tis the season...

As Im sure it is for most, this is my favorite time of year. I love Christmas. I love everything about Christmas. This year, we are trying our hardest to not overspend and just get quality versus quantity. Last week Kurt brought home some Angel tree ornaments from his work. So we decided to go to the store and get the items on the list. As we were in the store looking at the simple items these precious little kids wanted for Christmas, I started to cry. I felt so blessed that my kids didnt have to ask for jammies, clothes, or shoes. These kids were asking for things I take for granted, things I dont consider "presents". It made me feel so grateful for all I have, for my family, for our home.

I know its a message we always hear this time of year, but we really need to remember why we truly have Christmas and the spirit we should carry with us throughout this season and into the year. Christmas is about our savior, his gift to us, and the love he has for us we should have for all man kind.

OKay, so this sounded like a talk...its not. I just felt the need to share.

Merry Christmas.

No comment...

I got this off my friends site, so I take no credit in finding this article whatsoever...

If I was born in 1932...

when I graduated I would've looked like this...




http://yearbookyourself.com/

TCU and BYU games

Needless to say, I am a Ute fan. The game was awesome!! I loved it. I had tons of fun and Im so happy that we are headed to a BCS bowl again.

Here are some photos of Carter and Kurt at the TCU blackout game (that he went to on our anniversary) and some photos of us at the game last night against BYU.

Twilight Hangover

Last night/early morning me and a few (nearly a dozen) friends went and basked in teh Twilight frenzy. I had a great time! I loved finally having a girls night out! It was really fun and I loved the movie.

I know there are a lot of opinions out there...critics...dissapointment, whatever. I loved the movie and I really dont care what others think. Loving the movie for myself is enough for me and I feel bad that people found something in it that made them not like it. But oh well, I did, and I think the more I see the more I will like it.

Things I loved

*Edward, I really thought that Rob did a really convincing job and I was in love with him by the end. (although my ultimate Edward leans more towards the Henry Cavill genre) He was amazing.

* Bella, Charlie (loved Charlie), Jacob, Alice, Jasper, Rosalie, Emmett were all dead on. Wished there was more of the Cullens, but Im sure there will be more back story in the next movie.

*Loved the "sparkles". It was not over the top, and not over done.

*Sorry, but I loved the cheesy-ness of the movie. I am sappy and love that stuff...thats why I married Kurt.

*Loved Victoria...she is soooo perfect. She was the creepiest for me. More than James.

*Loved the baseball scene.

* I just thought it was done the best way it couldve been with the budget they had.

Had a blast though!! Got home at 3am and zonked. Now Im a zombie!

My little bro is all grown up

I think these pictures are so cute. Its Brandon and his new Bride, Becky.

My little love...

Here is one of the photos at my Bro's wedding. Lizzy was so crabby that day. But I love this pic. MOre to come.

Carter Quotes

Okay, so I have seen others do this on their blog so I will try to get these on as soon as they happen.

Yesterday Carter was drinking one of those chocolate milks you get from Wendy's and he accidentially spilled it. We tried to calm him down and let him know that it was not a big deal and he just needed to be more careful. Kurt told him he would make some more and Carter got this really upset look on his face and asked him how he could make his Wendy's Chocolate milk. Kurt said he would just use the chocolate syrup and put it in the same container. Again Carter looked confused and then he said

"But Dad, what about the calories!"

Stake Broadway Show

Here is my duet with Becky Sorenson at the stake show. Enjoy!!

Invisible Moms

My friend sent this to me. I want to share this with all who read my blog.
*********************************************************************************
It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?'


Obviously not; no one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more! Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this??


Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30, please.'


I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude -but now, they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going, she's going, she's gone!?


One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England . Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I brought you this.' It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe . I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it t o me until I read her inscription: 'To Charlotte , with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.'


In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.


A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof, No one will ever see it. And the workman replied, 'Because God sees.'


I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does.


No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become. At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride.


I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.


When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for 3 hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, 'You're gonna love it there.'


As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

Broadway Family Fun

A few months ago me and Kurt were involved in a Broadway show for a family reunion of a friend of ours in our ward. I finally got the recordings from them. The first one is me and Sarah Johnson singing "In His Eyes" from Jekyll and Hyde. Its not the best performance, I was a little nervious as it has been a while since I did anything like this. If you know me at allyou know how critical I am of myself and how nervous I get. My breathing is terrible and the end isnt the strongest. Anyway...I am the first voice and she is the second. I will be singing this song again in the Stake Broadway Show with Becky Sorenson and it will be much much better because we will have better equipment and I wont be so nervous. Sarah was amazing though, but we all know that!

Just follow the link and download the songs to hear them.

http://www.mediafire.com/?mnhyojmgnnx

This next one is Kurt singing "Empty Chairs and Empty Tables" from Les Miserables.
I love it! He did such a good job.

http://www.mediafire.com/?24zww22t0yt

Enjoy!

Big week.

This week has been long and hard.

First of all, my grandpa Mac died. He was 90 years old. He was so sick, and longing to leave this life for so long. He missed my grandma so much. He had been without her for nearly 11 years. I got to say my goodbye's on Sunday. I got the call on Tuesday that he had passed. I will miss him so much and it is so hard to see him go, but I know..I KNOW..he is in a much better place, happy and safe. He is with grandma. Love you Grandpa.

Then Wednesday, we found out who our new president is. Barack Obama. I am excited and hopeful.

Then on Thursday, my little brother Brandon married the love of his life, Becky. They looked so amazing and it was even more special that I felt like my grandpa and grandma were both there to see it in the temple. The day was suprisingly gorgeous. A little chilly, but nothing too bad. I got to visit with my brother Bryan and his wife Siobhan and thier kids Ian and Cameron. They live in Montana so it was nice to have them down and they got to see Grandpa before he passed too. I also enjoyed seeing all my relatives at the reception. I love my family!!

That same day...Nov 6th. Was my 9th wedding anniversary. Alas, due to the wedding and other things which I will discuss, it slipped Kurts mind due to the "big game" :( But Thats okay. It was nice to be in the same temple we were married in 9 years ago. It was nice to remember that time and the reasons behind it all. To remember the vows we took and covenents we made. I love my husbnand.

That same night was the Ute game. Kurt took off from the reception early with Carter and went and had a blast at a game that i was envious to be able to go to. But my family was more important and I am glad I stayed. The Utes won. Now 10-0! BSC here we come....almost.

So that is my week so far. Busy busy. I will post photos of the wedding soon!

Halloween..

Well, the crypt was tons of fun. We scared a lot of kids, but I did get attacked at the door by a bunch of boys that pulled my wig off....I shouldve taken their candybars away!!

Kurt was hilarious as some sort of gravekeeper homeless caveman thing. It was fun. Next year will be even scarier!!

Here are some photos of us on Halloween. Unfortunately my camera died before i could get more. So those will have to wait til Kurt's bro's girlfriend sends them to me.
'
Carter was Capt. Rex, a clone from Star Wars


Lizzy was tinkerbell


I tried to be scary....it was somewhat successful.

Happy Halloween! Wait til you see what we do next year!

My Journal Pages...

So if you have been following Kurt's blog... he has now posted the first edition of my journal pages. Get prepared to take a blast to the past in the rollercoaster ride that was my teenage years.

No worries, I made him edit things, and frankly, I was so silly then it dosent even bother me that he is doing this. It just makes me laugh. Check it out. Just copy and paste ( for some reason I can't get it to link)

http://utahmankb.blogspot.com/

Finally.....

The time has come for my bro to get married. Here is his adorable wedding invitation. Why didnt they have cute engagment photos when I got married? Maybe it has to do with the people in the picture...and we've all seen Kurt!

Story...

Remember when we had that theivery the other day when Kurt's wallet and cell phone were stolen. Well the other night we were up late watching TV and we heard a knock on our door. It was 11:30. So Kurt went to see who it was, it was a police officer. He asked, "Are you Kurt Beckstrom?" Of course he said yes. The police officer handed him his wallet and said, "Your neighbor found your wallet." It was just three houses away, for two weeks in their lawn. the neighbor found it when he went out to mow his grass. Nothing was taken out of it. It was as is pretty much. Crazy!! So after all we went through to cancel cards and get new ID's, it was only a few houses away.

Well, we are fortunate that we now know nothing will happen fraudulently with Kurts stuff, but so crazy!

Little things...

Today I am soooo greatful for the little things. Today my "Service Engine Soon" light went off!! Hooray. Maybe we CAN make it one more year in the Jimmy!

Husband tag...

My husband...

1. Where did you meet?
WX High School during the high school play and again in choir. We were in Mads together so we had tons of time to be with each other.

(here are some photos of how I remember Kurt in High School )

Football Boy

Christmas Dance

Prom

2. How long did you date before you got married?
4 yrs

Saying our last goodbye before his mission.

Saying our first hello when he returned from his mission.

3. How long have you been married?
9 years this November

4. What is your favorite feature of his?
His smile

5. What is your favorite quality of his?
His witty humor and his ability to remain calm.

6. Does he have a nickname for you?
Sweets

7. What is his favorite color?
ummm...green?

8. What is his favorite food?
Mexican food

9. What is his favorite sport?
duh...football

10. When and where was your first kiss?
lol, on his bed at his mom's on November 11th 1995.

11. What is your favorite thing to do as a couple?
Be with each other...no matter what we are doing. He is my best friend. But I love to sing with him. Always have.

12. Do you have any children?
Yes,two, Carter and Lizzy

Carter

Lizzy

13. Does he have a hidden talent?
Singing, drawing, sewing, cooking, building, playing sports, he pretty much does everything well.

14. How old is he?
30

15. Who said "I love you" first?
He did. Only a few weeks after we had dated.

16. What is his favorite type of music?
He likes it all except Rap and Country.

17. What do you admire the most about him? The way he can calm me down and the way he teaches his children principles. He has such an amazing spirit that he is to "cool" to share most of the time. I love that about him. He has a good soul and Ifeel like I have known for eternity already.

I tag Lys, Steph, Sarah, and Arien. Share your man with us!

THE NEW TWILIGHT TRAILER IS HERE! - Twilighters Anonymous

Click link below to see it!

THE NEW TWILIGHT TRAILER IS HERE! - Twilighters Anonymous

Who am I...

Take the Quiz and Share Your Results!

This was kinda fun!

My husband has caught the bug...

No, he is not sick, he has the blog bug. Check out his site...he is hilarious. Plus it will help him feel like he is loved.

http://utahmankb.blogspot.com/ (the link is also in my favorite bloggers list at the bottom of my blog. Its called Dumb It Down...and Other Useless Pieces of Garbage)

Enjoy!

Five things TAG

Friday, October 3, 2008
TAG- 5 Things...

5 Things I was doing 10 years ago:
1. Wow...in college dating the very very wrong kind of boy.
2. Waiting for Kurt to get home from his mission.
3. Trying to get a degree in architecture
4. Staying up til 3 in the morning and still be able to wake up for school at 7am (those were the days)
5. Eating way too many whoppers...look where it got me.

5 Things on today's to do list
1. Dishes
2. Laundry
3. Cancel my credit cards because Kurt's wallet was stolen.
4. Remember to record Carter's star wars show tonight.
5. Be lazy (my doc was out of town so no work for me this week)

5 Snacks I enjoy, unhealthy to healthiest:)
1. Sweet joyous candy
2. Chips
3. icecream
4. crackers
5. Tomoatoes and green apples with salt, yummy

5 Things I would do if I were a millionaire (you mean "when")
1. pay off house (im with you Sarah)
2. Pay off debt
3. Make it possible so Kurt never has to work again
4. Get all my fam out of debt
5. Vacation...vacation...vacation


5 places I have lived
1. Woods Cross, UT (20 yrs)
2. Salt Lake, UT (a long 8 months)
3. Bountiful, UT (1 year)
4. Woods Cross (again), UT (6 years)
5. Layton, UT (2 yrs)

5 places I have worked
1. Mountain Orhtopedics (but really its in my house)
2. Coldewell Banker
3. Su Casa
4. Pizza Perfect or as I called it, Piece-o-crap
5. Bob's Deli (oh that place was so good)

Now five of you get to do this!!!

I tag Lys, Arien, Amy, Quinn, Mary.

WARNING!

For all those who live by me, last night Kurt's car was broken into and his cell phone and wallet were taken.

I always feel like this neighborhood is safe, and it is safe, but the one time you let your guard down, someone steals something. I feel so violated. Just plane icky.

So heads up.

Out of the Box

So Kurt and myself were on a gameshow last night. Dont get too excited...it was a local gameshow and the only prize we got was some freebee stuff from the Fox network. So its only a local channel on Comcast and the gameshow is called "Out of the Box" we will be on in 2 weeks on Sat ( I think) Frankly, I thought it was really lame...but anything for his brother who happens to be the cameraman for it. Thanks Jeff for allowing me to waste 2 hours of my night@!@

Kurt, as usual, scored the highest score...EVER.
Me...well...lets just say I didnt.

HAWAII!!!

So, Kurt suprised me with a trip to Hawaii that I found out about early. Nonetheless...IT WAS AWESOME. We went with our bested friends Scott and Brooke Johnson. I cannot describe how amazing it was. We were on the island of Kauai and it was gorgeous. Pictures do not do it justice. We stayed in a quiet villa that we rented in the North shore away from all the touristy stuff, which was awesome. We even had a mango and lime tree in the yard that we made slushies with almost every day.

We found hidden beaches, and went alot to our favorie one "secret beach", we snorkled, we took a boat ride around the famous Napali Coast, we swam with sea turtles, watched dolphins, kayaked an ancient river to an ancient village and hidden waterfall, we were going to go to a luau but it cancelled on us due to rain, we jumped off lava rock formations into pools, we did so much and there was so much more to see. We had an amazing time.

By the end of the week, I was ready to come home, but I miss it and will be so excited when we go again.

I remember...

Today is 9/11. I dont have to explain what that means to this country or that we all know what happened that day. I just wanted to share some of my memories.

I remember that day I was late for work. Kurt didnt have to be in to work til later that day so I slept in a little. As I was driving to work the radio was talking about this terrible crash that happened in New York. I was so overcome with sadness for this, what I thought was, a terrible accident. While listneing to this, they started to explain a second crash, and how this is not an accident. I was stunned. Numb. When I got to work, I immediately turned on the radio and looked up any and all info I could find online. I called Kurt and told him to turn on the TV and tell me what in the world was going on. Thats when he told me about people jumping out of windows and then the buildings collapsed. It was hard to even know how to react that day. Overwhelming saddness is all I can remember. Even talking about it now is making me tear up. It was the worst thing I had ever experienced in my life like this. I went home for lunch and watched the endless footage they were showing on the TV. I was numb, shocked, and so sad. Along with the stories of the heroric airplane crew that stopped something even worse happening and the one that crashed into the pentagon, I felt like it would never end!

To think that people would do something like this never really hit me until that day. You hear the news, you see the pictures, but it never really hit me what kind of world we live in. And then...I remember the unity. Out of all of this, all this awful awfulness came a feeling in this country that I have never felt this strong before. Pride, Patriotism, Unity. I was so proud to be an American in those few short months after this awful moment. I am still emotional. And I living all the way in Utah with no family or relation that was directly involved in this. I felt it. I feel it now.

There is always a reason for things, good or bad. I truly beleive that. And I know that through this a greater plan will come. I love my father in heaven and my savior and this only made me beleive and trust in him more.

Sorry for the ranting on. I just wanted to share my thoughts.

I will never forget. No one ever should. God Bless America.

One of those weeks...

Aside from me being endlessly sick and Carter having seperation anxiety at school, Kurt's car was hit by a 2x4 that came flying off a truck on the freeway. It damaged his axel and eventually blew the tire, his poor windsheld got a rock chip and this impact with the 2x4 cracked the window! Then this morning his battery in his motorcycle was dead because he left the lights on. He had to jump start it 4 times because he kept killing it.

I like to think that all these incidences are somehow teaching me something. And somehow, in someway protecting us. Who knows what could have happened to Kurt today if he got off to work on time? All I know is something didn't want him to go, not yet, and there were no mishaps on the way to work for him.

Its interesting the little things that are done to protect us that may seem like inconveniences at the time or frustrations.

Hang in there, my love. The week is almost over!

Lizzy started Joy School

Unlike our little man, Lizzy did amazing. She had so much fun on her first
day of school. Im so glad we decided to put her in something like this. She
rarely gets to play with kids her age so its fun for mommy too.

Who knew....

22

Created by OnePlusYou - Online Dating

Kurts first day back to school...

This day signifies Kurts first day of his last year of school!! We are all very excited.

Especially Kurt.....(by the way I made him pose like this..lol.)

Tag...

So here's the deal: Post these rules on your blog. List: 3 joys, 3 fears, 3 goals, 3 current obsessions/collections, 3 facts about yourself. Tag 5 people at the end of your post by leaving their names. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog!

Joys:1. My family 2. My Sleep. 3. Vacations

Fears:1.Losing Kurt or one of the kids 2. Natural disaster (mostly Volcanoes) 3.Being alone for the rest of my life.

Goals:1.Flat tummy (and then Ill get preggy, go figure) 2. Control my temper with my kids 3. Start back painting again and make the Tab Choir someday.

Current Obsessions: 1. Work 2. Budgeting 3. Jane Austen type of movies.

Facts: 1. I had a nose peircing 2. I too love to shop...but hate spending money 3. I love football but never did until I met Kurt.

Regrets: 1. I also regret not finishing college. 2. Not helping Kurt finish school before we had kids. 3. Not enjoying high school more than I did.

Okay...I am now supposed to tag....Lys, Arien, Amy, Mary, Rachelle, Sarah, Bev, Amber, Jill, Kristina - I know..a lot more than 5...have fun!!!

Breaking Dawn...finally finished

Im slow but Im done.





I give it 3 1/2 out of 5 stars.

I liked this book actually. There were a few things that I thought were lame in it and totally sappy. But it closed everything up well and I am a little sappy myself and cant help having a happy ending for everyone! So all in all it was good. Not my favorite one, however, but good nonetheless.


I recommend it.

Cant wait for the movie though. I know it will have dissapointments, thats just Hollywood, but I still am very excited.

Carter's First Day of 1st Grade

Another year has passed and I still cant beleive that my son is a 1st grader. My oldest memories are of when I was in 1st grade and I cant beleive he is old enough to have those moments. I didnt cry, barely though, when we dropped him off with his teacher in his new class. He was so brave and so matter of fact. I know he will excel in 1st as he did in Kindergarten.

Oh I love that boy and I hope that his time in school will help me and him actually grow closer together as we wont spend so much time fighting with each other. Plus it will keep him busy and his eager mind continuing to learn new things.

Love you Carter!

Carter and Kurt being silly...

Carter decided that he needed a BETTER bike helmet, so he took Kurts motorcycle one...then Kurt just got plane silly with it.

Gee, where does Carter get it from.

Murder mystery....

So for my little sis's birthday, we threw her a suprise murder mystery party. Iwas hilarious! We all dressed up like gangsters and flappers. I of course ended up being the murderer....and I won! But everyone had fun.
Here is a photo of me and Kurt trying to take an "old time" photo like the ones our greatgrandparents took....sadly we kept laughing too much. I kept looking like I was mad.



It was a blast though!!

Someday...it will all be worth it, right?

I have been so burnt out the last few days. Carter has been in one of his, only too common, moods. At church I was fighting back tears as he screamed at me during sacrament, and then again outside as I tried to get him to calm down. Its been so hard lately to even get him to listen. I love him so much, but I get sooooo frustrated with his antics. I have tried books, differnet styles of discipline and he does really well, then digreses. I know its partially because I work during the times he is home and maybe its attention, but I am literally physcially and emotionally exhausted.

Does anyone have suggestions on how I can help my stubborn strong willed son from making me crazy. There are so many times I loose my temper lately that its hurting my will and I need some advice.

All I hear is he will grow out of this and all I can say is...maybe I need to grow out of this.

IP....AGAIN

Well we headed to IP again. DId the same old stuff as before...but this time we SAW A BEAR...with a little baby cub! So cute. It was in the back country of Yellowstone. So finally!

We also got to share this trip with my family and we got to be with my brother and his family who live in Montana. So it was a special treat for me and my kids to see them and their kids.

Congratulations Brandon and Becky!

My brother propsed to his sweetheart, Becky. We are so excited to have new sister to the family...but most importantly get Brandon out of mom's house. LOL!

She is just perfect for him!

Party time...

HERE ARE A FEW MEMORIES WE HAD FOR LIZZY'S BIG DAY
She woke happy as ever.




Family party. Always fun to have everyone over!




We asked Lizzy, "Where do you want to go on your birthday?" she said "Applebees!" So here we are.



Lizzy hugging Carter for her present he gave her.