"We Care"

We recently received a check in the mail dealing with a business transaction - well, we received half of the check. It was amusing to find the 1/2 check and 1/2 of the original envelope inside a USPS envelope. On the back of the envelope the USPS told us that our mail got whacked and continued to explain that because they process so much mail, we shouldn't be surprised to see a letter here or there ripped in to shreds. Hey, it's not a big deal. It was only going to be used to pay a mortgage. No problem! =S

Christmas Report

We had a great Christmas at our house! Here are the highlights. We all got new jammies. Even mom and dad!

Kaylee and Kyler were both surprised to find a bike and a scooter, things they did not ask for, but thought Santa was very smart!

Tyson was awake over 2 hours (3 am to 5 am) before Christmas morning. He is teething. We have 3 molars through and only have 1 left. So, we didn't wake him up with the kids, he joined us about 45 minutes after we started. Luckily, he was way happier than he was during the night. The highlight of my Christmas was watching Tyson play in his new car. He thinks it is so fun! He has even taken some ownership to it by yelling at Kaylee or Kyler if they try to get in it. I didn't know he was old enough for that. He sat in his car most of the morning and was very happy.

Mom and Dad got in on the fun too. I was able to surprise Brian with a PSP (Play Station Portable) which he has enjoyed a lot the last few days. I got a very nice quilt rack and Brian bought me some snow boots, which are perfect! I was impressed.

Family Snowball Fight

Kaylee and Kyler were making a snowman but got interrupted by some troublemakers.

Tyson's Scrapbook

A week or so ago, I forced myself to put away the sewing machine and get out the scrapbook stuff. I made a goal to do 20 pages in Tyson's book before I could put it away and go back to sewing. As of 20 minutes ago, the 2o pages are done! Words and all! I still have a ton of scrapbooking to do, but that is a step in the right direction. Here are a few of my favorite pages.

Bags, bags, bags!

I found a cute pattern and decided to attempt to make a bag! I've never made one before, but my mom has been looking for a cute bag to take to church, so I took on the challenge. I made them a few weeks ago, but haven't been able to post pictures of them so that it would be a surprise for my mom. Well, I gave one to her yesterday and she was really excited about it. I didn't know exactly what she was looking for, but I think I came pretty close. I hope she enjoys it. I've made a total of 3 bags with plans to make another 1 or 2. They are easier to make than I thought and I really enjoyed trying something new.

Piano Recital

Last night was Kaylee's first piano recital! She has only been taking lessons since August, so I think that she is doing amazingly well! She played "The Perfect Christmas Tree" and "Jolly Old Saint Nicholas." When she was done she did a curtsy instead of a bow (she said that was the boy way) and it was really cute! Enjoy the video.

2007 Christmas Card Update

Here’s a quick update on the Cressall’s. We had a great start to the year 2007 by getting our baby boy on January 10th. We named him Tyson Brent Cressall, after Grandpa Cottle. He has grown so much in the last 11 months! He’s crawling all over and getting into everything. Kaylee and Kyler love to make him laugh. Lucky for mom, he’s a really happy baby.
Kyler is almost 5 years old! He is loving pre-school and is very smart. He loves to write and draw. He’s always asking me how to spell words. He loves riding his bike and playing with others. He is always saying “Mom, I want to do something fun with you.”
Kaylee is already 7! She loves 1st grade and is a great reader. She is a great big sister and a big help to mom. She loves all the girly stuff like dresses, princesses, anything pink, and jewelry.
Brian’s new challenge this year is learning all about Scouts for his new calling as Scout Master. This has been very time consuming, but Brian is perfect for the job. He’s made big improvements for the scouts in our ward. I think his favorite part of scouts is taking the boys in his new truck. They all want to ride with him. Brian has also had some changes at work. The company is growing so much they had to restructure a little and made Brian a manager over one of the programming teams. He does a great job and really enjoys the people that he works with.
These last couple months I have re-discovered how much I enjoy quilting/sewing. It’s been 3 years since I pieced a fun quilt (something besides squares) and I got back to it and haven’t stopped. I finally got a break from doing all the music in my ward and now get to do Sharing Time in Primary once a month. It has been a really good change for me.
I love this time of year that always helps to remind us to be thankful for all we’ve been blessed with. We have truly been blessed. We hope you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.