Matt's Quilt

...a long time coming!!

I started cutting the squares for this quilt probably eight or more years ago.

And now, TA-DA, it's finally finished!!

I don't know who likes it more, ME or Matt!!

It's sooo soft and warm and heavy, it's practically impossible to NOT fall asleep

when you put it over the top of you.

My Girls' Bedspreads...Finally!!

Okay, so a number of months ago I was working hard on these adorable bedspreads for my girls' beds and a few of my friends asked that I post pictures when they were finished. The bedspreads themselves have been finished for awhile now, but I was still working on pillow shams. I still am planning to make a few decorative pillows to throw into the mix and we still don't have bedskirts for them, but at least you get the idea. It all started when we got new beds set up in their room for them, Sydney got a new full size bed, and Sadie got a daybed. So then I got looking for new bedding that would somewhat match and liven up their room with the boring white walls. I ended up finding an ad on KSL with full size and twin size matching sheet sets from Tommy Hilfiger for $35. I figured I could make them into simple but cute duvet covers, until I talked to my mom about my plans. She just happened to have a full size and a twin size chenille bedspread that her friend was going to throw out, and told me I could use them for the girls' beds. But, with boring white walls, I didn't want just plain white bedding too. So I then got the inspiration I needed from my neighbor friend who makes the cutest quilts with chenille blocks mixed in with her other patterned fabrics. They turned out so cute, I absolutely love them. They add so much spunk and personality to my girls' bedroom, and they love them too!!

Sydneys quilt has a somewhat random pattern to it

(as random as my anal side would allow anyway),

and Sadie's all runs diagonally.

I had so much fun with these quilts that I actually pulled out some denim squares that I cut out to make a quilt for Matt probably eight or more years ago, and got the top all sewn together to give to him for Christmas. I just got the batting and flannel for the back of it last Saturday, so when I get it all finished I'll have to post pics of it too. I can't believe how hooked I've become, I just love creating things, especially for the people I love!!

It's been a whole week!!

Yeah, yeah, I know I've been slacking; nothing much to be posting lately. You all know how it is, Christmas and the Holidays are all over and all we are left with are the January blahs!! I rarely leave the house these days, so I spend most of my days lounging around in my sweats, and you can forget about my hair and make-up getting done!!
So you may be asking yourself..."Just what does she do all day?" And the answer is...facebook!! Aside from all the BIG and little mundane tasks and household chores that require my attention, of course.
Some of my blogger friends are already my friends on facebook, but those of you who have not yet joined, "Get on Board!!" It is so much fun, and even more addicting than blogging (I realize that may not be a good thing, but once you start you just can't stop). I have had so much fun connecting and chatting with old childhood friends, High school friends and new Neighborhood friends, it's the greatest!!
So if you are reading this and you aren't already one of my facebook friends, I'll be expecting a friend request from you soon.
Go to http://facebook.com and get connecting, you won't regret it.

Sledding FUN!!

Saturday afternoon we took the kids sledding at a park not far from home. It was so bitterly cold, but we still happened to enjoy ourselves quite a bit. We really had a great time!

Sydney, Stetson and Shay going together in a triangle train.

Syd and Shay with Sadie laying across their legs.

Stetson heading back up the hill.

Sadie, all on her own.

McCrae loved it!!

He preferred going alone, and wanted to hit every bump.

I even joined in the fun for a couple runs down the hill.

Good Things Utah!!

Last Monday, being the first day of Christmas break, my mom and sister were out of school (no work). So we had requested tickets to be part of the studio audience for Good Things Utah. All my family came up Sunday night to spend the night at our house so we could get into SLC in time, and boy did we have a full house. In addition to our family of six were four more adults and five additional children, we filled every bed and threw beds down on the floor for the kids...it was a riot! Then Monday morning us girls headed to Salt Lake leaving my poor brother in charge of the nine kids--he's such a good sport:) Thanks Cody!!

It was just starting to snow when we were getting ready to leave the house, so we made sure to go early and give ourselves the time we would need. We had such a great time, we wanted to try and go again on the 30th before school starts up again, but we didn't get our request in for tickets.

My Mom(Peggy), ME, my sister(Racquel), my mother-in-law(Claudia), my sister-in-law (Heather)
Here we are with the GTU girls; Nicea Degering, Angie Larsen, and Christiana Brady.
We all were a little sad that Reagan Leadbetter was stuck in CA and was not able to make it home for the show that day, but we still had a great time and enjoyed every minute of it...it definitely went too quickly.
After the show we headed to Gardner's Village for lunch at Archibald's, YUM!! Then as we headed home we were surprised at the amount of snow that had fallen while we were out playing. There wasn't nearly as much snowfall in the Salt Lake valley as there was further south. When we got back to my house at about 1:00 that afternoon we had gotten about 8 inches of new snow and my sister couldn't even pull in my driveway. Her van decided to just park itself in the middle of the road in front of my house, once again--Thanks Cody for digging us out!!

The Cox Family 2008

Merry CHRISTmas!!

Hello all! It has been a busy year for our family. We would like to wish you the best for the season and a very Merry CHRISTmas!!
Matt graduated from USU this spring with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology. He is currently getting his application ready for graduate school at BYU in fall 2009. He is applying to the School of Social Work for a Master’s degree. He still works at Heritage Residential Treatment Center as a unit counselor. He is now currently looking for a job that will increase his experience in the field and pay a little better. It has been a long road but it has been very rewarding. He is currently in the Sunday school presidency and enjoys that calling.
Shantelle is still an at-home mom and loves being there for her kids. She has started a blog that can be found at www.cruisinwiththecoxes.blogspot.com . She tries to keep it updated with our latest happenings and loves reading others blogs too. She cuts hair for the neighbors and works one night a week at Heritage cutting the female clients’ hair. She still loves serving on the Enrichment Committee and now enjoys helping out with cub scouts each week. We celebrated our 13th anniversary this year by going to a movie and then some Christmas shopping. I know, pretty exciting!!
Sydney will be 11 in one month and has been doing excellent in school. Her teacher, Mr. Dias, has been a favorite of hers and she loves being in class. She continues with achievement days and fits dance in when she remembers to go. She is growing like a weed and we love her very much.
Stetson is 9 and is in cub scouts. He played tackle football during the summer and absolutely loved it. He is a great athlete. He also played baseball and soccer. He was baptized on his birthday and is trying to follow Jesus.
Sadie is 5 and she is in pre-school with Mrs. Linda again. She keeps learning sign and is beginning to read. We are very proud of her. She is also in dance and loves playing with her neighborhood friends Brooklyn, Asia and Cosette.
McCrae is 3 and loves to be with mom each day. He watches and follows the example of this brother and sisters. He loves cars and animals. He really likes the movie Cars and was able to potty-train this year so he could get lightning underwear.
All is well with us and we hope this letter finds all well with you too. We have been blessed in so many ways. May the love of the Savior bring peace and solace to you through this next year’s trials and triumphs.

Stetson the Speed Stacker

Backing up to the 10th of Dec. now. The kids' school was chosen as FOX 13's Cool School, so they had many short segments throughout the morning news showing off all the great things about their school. Stetson was invited to demonstrate Speed Cup Stacking; an activity some of the students participate in through the Shark Nets Program.

He's pretty "speedy", and he was so excited to be on the news. But, he was most excited to meet 'BIG Buddah'!

Let's Play Catch Up!!

Well, I'm gonna try at least. This month has been very busy trying to get ready for Christmas and all, and when I do get around to hitting the blog I have so many other fun blogs to read and catch up on that I never get a chance to post my own great adventures. So I'll try and get everything caught up over the next couple of days.

Going back to Sunday, Dec. 7...we went with Matt's parents, and his brother Erick's family to see the lights at Temple Square. It was beautiful, as always. The weather wasn't too bad either, if you look close in our group picture you might see Matt is wearing shorts, although that doesn't prove anything (he wears shorts all winter and is always HOT). We were there the night of the First Presidencies Christmas Devotional so when that got over our nice enjoyable stroll through Temple Square very quickly became busy, crowded, and mass chaos.

This larger than life Nativity scene set up in the center of the reflecting pool was amazing!!

My funny boy!!

Is that a hippo in your pants,

or are you just happy to see me!?!

This afternoon while I was upstairs surfing blogs, the kids were downstairs watching WallE. When I went down to check on them I found McCrae fast asleep, with this Happy Meal toy tucked nice and snug into the waist of his pants. I thought it was so funny and cute I couldn't help but snap a picture of it. And what's the sense in taking a picture if you're not going to share it with your closest friends in the blogosphere?

It's beginning to look alot like......

CHRISTMAS!!!!

Saturday was a long, fun filled day for us; it started with Matt and I planning to attend the temple but when we arrived there we found that it was closed for cleaning. So, on our way back to pick the kids up from Grammy & Papa's house we stopped at the new Smith's Marketplace to check it out and get us an early lunch. It was an awesome store, and the chinese food was pretty good. After we got the kids again we headed to Tanksgiving Point to check out the Art Gallery (a recommendation from a friend who volunteers there), they are currently working on the leaded and stained glass windows for the new Draper Temple. It was amazing to see the magnificent beauty of glass art. They also had a tree made of glass for the Festival of Trees, it was amazing, so if you get a chance you should go check it out!

Then we headed to Fillmore for their Electric Light Parade, we thought it started at 7 pm but about halfway there Matt called a friend and found out it was starting at 6 pm. We made it to Fillmore in great time (thanks to Matt's speedy driving), but arriving in town at about 6:05 only allowed us to see the tail end of the parade. We wandered around the park checking out the light displays and was lucky enough to catch Santa as he and Mrs. Claus were getting in their car to head back to the North Pole. We then went to visit Matt's childhood friend and her family, so that was fun.

Here is a picture of the kids on the fountain in front of the Millard County Courthouse.


And, our run in with Santa. It's pretty blurry but we were being rushed.


These last two pictures are from a park we stopped at in Nephi on our way home. I was very impressed with the amount of lights and beautiful displays there.

Driving around and looking at the Christmas lights is something we did alot when I was growing up, it's one of the many joys I've inherited from my mom. Now we've had a great start for the Holiday Season!!