Traveling

Well Ryan is gone again but this time he is in China. His Dad took him to China to meet his business contacts that they have been working with on their tie business. They are also ordering 40 more patterns from the tie factory. Ryan was so excited to go and even made his dad plan a small side trip to the Great Wall. He will be gone for 9 days this time but luckily I have lots of family around to make it go by fast. The other traveler in our family is Alexis. She just recently started crawling and is loving her new found freedom. She is also starting to try to pull herself up to a standing position. She has managed to do it a few times already. I guess I will have to watch her a lot more closely now. She is growing up so fast.

Happy Valetine's Day

We had a great time celebrating Valentine's Day this weekend. On Friday Ryan and I were able to go on a date to do sealings at the temple and then went out to dinner. It was really special because Ryan's mission President was the sealer at the temple and it was so nice to see him and enjoy his knowledge and spirit. On Saturday we went to Peyton's volleyball game and Hailey's soccer game. Amber and her kids came over for a short visit and Alexis was able to enjoy her cousin Brennen holding her.

While Amber was visiting she told us that her daughter Kalle and her dad were going to a Father/Daughter dinner at Chick-fil-A. I thought that it sounded like a lot of fun so I got Ryan to make reservations (yes, you had to make reservations). They had a nice sit down dinner where they served you, took your picture with the cow, and gave you a gift certificate to Best Buy. The girls had a great time.

This morning I got up and made a special breakfast for the girls and Ryan. We had red, heart shaped biscuits, strawberries and whip cream, bacon, and hot chocolate with whipped cream.

Then they opened their Valentine's and ate a little treat.

The girls were able to wear their matching Valentine dresses that Grandma Ferrell made them to church. I thought that they looked so cute. After church we went to a birthday party for my Mita (grandmother) who turned 96 yesterday. It was great seeing my Dad's family and the girls had a great time jumping on Nicole's trampoline. After we left the party we came home to have our traditional candlelight dinner with the girls. They look forward to this all year long and they were so excited. They picked roast, potatoes, carrots, asparagus, and gravy. We had chocolate covered strawberries, brownies, and pie for dessert. It was nice to have Ryan's parents join us this year for our celebration. I have such a wonderful family and I am so grateful for each and every one of them. I love you Peyton, Hailey, Alexis, and Ryan. Happy Valentine's Day.

Valentine Parties

The girls have had a lot of fun over the past couple of days celebrating Valentine's Day. Ryan's mom decided to help the girls make homemade Valentine's this year and she really outdid herself. The girls enjoyed spending time with her and I am so grateful for her willingness to help. Yesterday Hailey had her preschool party and she was all decked out in her dress Grandma Ferrell made her and her homemade Valentines.
Today, Hailey and I were invited to a Mother/Daughter Valentine lunch at her friend Meg's house. We had a great time eating and playing. There were about 10 little girls there and it was fun to see them enjoying each other. Here they are swinging.

Peyton was excited to go to school today and hand out her Valentines. She even made a special Valentine for her teacher (of course with Grandma's help). She said her classmates loved them. Here she is all decked out in her Valentine dress made by Grandma Ferrell.

I can't wait to celebrate more with them on Sunday.

I copied this post from my Sister-In-Law Ashley's blog. The family tie business is finally up and running so take a look. We are all very excited.

WANT TO WIN??? ENTER HERE!!!

HURRAY!!! IT'S OFFICIAL!!!
http://www.thematchingtieguy.com/ is up and running!
What do we sell you ask?
We sell neckties in EVERY SIZE! Every pattern is available in all sizes from Newborn to adult, and with hair ribbons to match as well!!

We are so excited! So, we are going to generate some interest and excitement by running a contest!
First off, What do you win?
You win your choice of matching ties, with hair ribbons to match- for every member of your immediate family!!! (Parents included)
Yes, even if you are the Duggars with 18 children, We'll send them all free! (PS- if you win and actually say you have 18 children, I may need to see a picture for proof!!) :o)
Here are the rules- and they are simple!
Just make a blog post about the Matching Tie guy and include the following-
~A link to our Website http://www.thematchingtieguy.com/
~The flier Above
~The name/description of the ties you want for your family
(you'll have to go to the website to decide!)
~A link to my blog (http://www.jaxonsfam.blogspot.com/) so other's can enter as well. Then come leave me a comment that you put it on your blog. When I check it out on your blog, You are automatically entered!
BUT WAIT!!! There's one more way to win! If you link here from someone else's blog, leave their name and blog address as the place you found out about us. IF YOU WIN, THEY WIN TOO!!! Free ties for both families!
So put it on your blog, leave me a comment, then get all your friends and family to enter and make sure they leave your name as the person they heard from!
Contest Ends Next Thursday night at Midnight...so you have one week to get crackin'!!!
(And I'm very excited to use one of those online number generators to pick the winner!)
PS-It doesn't matter where you live, we will ship them!!!
PSS- There is NO wait time! We do not handmake these, so the turnaround time is 24 hours. They are made in a professional tie factory and we have 40,000 waiting in our warehouse to ship to you AS SOON AS YOU MAKE YOUR ORDER!

Daddy Daughter Dance

Tonight was the annual Daddy/Daughter Dance at Peyton's Elementary School. She was so excited to go and picked out what her and her dad would wear. She just had to wear her Baptism dress and Ryan had to wear the tie she gave him as a welcome home present. The had a great time dancing and then went out for ice cream. I am so glad the Peyton and Ryan had a fun time.

Hailey was sad that she was not old enough to go to the dance and decided she would keep herself happy taking pictures with my camera. Here are a few images she captured from the night.

Boy I love my daughters. Life is never boring with them around.

Thank Goodness Daddy's Home!

Ryan finally returned home from his trip and I am so glad (and I think everyone else around me is too!). It is so nice to have someone to help me with the kids especially when I am about to lose my temper. Today has been so nice for me. I got to go to the gym this morning (which I haven't been able to do for a while since Alexis has been sick) and now he has Peyton and Hailey with him at the tie warehouse so I can have some time to myself while Alexis sleeps. I haven't done anything too exciting with my time but the peace and quiet has been much needed. I'm so glad that I have such a wonderful husband and him being gone reminded me of that. I guess absence does make the heart grow fonder.

First Games

Today Peyton had her very first volleyball game. When I signed her up for volleyball she was not very happy with me but I thought it would be good to give her a taste of a sport that I love to play. Well she loves playing and she can't wait for her next game. She even asks me to practice with her in the backyard. I am so glad she is enjoying herself and I enjoy watching her learn and get better. Hailey had her very first soccer game today. She has been begging to play soccer for years since she always had to watch Peyton play. Well she was finally old enough to join a team and is enjoying every minute of it (except for the grey and black uniforms because she says they are boy colors). During the game she was running around after the ball but hadn't kicked it yet. During one of their breaks my dad told Hailey that if she kicked the ball he would give her ten cents. Well that was enough motivation for her to kick it 3 times. Boy was she excited. I guess money motivates her. I love my little girls and I am so proud that they are willing to try new things.