Faith & Lorelei Celebrate 4 years!

Faith & Lorelei picked out the Ariel Cupcake Cake. They almost chose a dinosaur cake Cousins - Almost twins, okay, maybe not!Playtime at the mall!

Build-A-Bear Workshop

Faith & Lorelei getting ready to stuff their animals
Faith covers her ears to block the noise, as she stuffs her monkey!

Faith and Lei Lei give their animals a bath!

Faith names her monkey Sarah

Aren't these girls too cute?!

All the kids hold up a heart and make a wish for Faith!

Everyone places a heart inside of Faith's monkey

Grammy gives Faith a hug

Faith and Luke hold their animals

Noah made Luke a blue bear! Luke loves it!

Sam makes a dog!

PopPop and Faith

Faith & Lorelei had a joint birthday party at Build-A-Bear. All the guests (family & preschool aged friends) met at the mall play area. Samantha and Noah were both awesome helpers, which made me very proud. Samantha made friends with every kid in the play area. After playing for about 30 minutes, we gathered at the food court for cupcakes and juice. Once everyone was adequately hyped up (with sweets), we headed to Build-A-Bear where the main part of celebration occurred.

Faith chose to make a pink monkey. Faith loved the monkey best because it could give her hugs (with the help of Velcro). She stuffed, bathed and named her monkey Sarah. She treasured her new found friend! Before the monkey was stitched together, each friend placed a heart inside. I thought that was a special touch!

A Couple of pictures for Les Miz

A finally got a couple of Les Miz pictures. You are not allowed to take pictures during the show, but Sam asked me to bring her some Starburst at intermission, so I snapped a couple of pictures.

Samantha and Jake as Gavroche (one of Noah's best friends)

Chasing a Promise!

Samantha has wanted to see the musical Wicked for months. As part of her birthday present (in July), we told her that we would take her. Our intentions were good, but between having an infant and Samantha's busy schedule (soccer, theater, homework, homework & homework) we had not made it to the show. With only another week left before the shows closing, we headed down to the Pantages. The tickets were outrageously expensive, so we decided to take our chance in the lottery. For those of you who don't know about the lottery, I will explain.


Two and half hours before each show, a lottery drawing is held for front row tickets. You stand in a line and then you place your name on a piece of paper and put it in large container. At exactly 2 hours before showtime, names are drawn. If your name is called, you have the opportunity to buy 2 front row tickets for $25 each. Since we went down on a Sunday, we tried for the matinee and the evening show. Unfortunately, we did not win. There were about 300 people in line for both show times and only 26 tickets (13 pairs). It was a fun experience, but we still had not fulfilled our promise. The show is going to San Francisco and so are we, but this time we will buy tickets in advance.


Between the two lotteries, we enjoyed time together in Hollywood. We ate a Disney's Soda Fountain and watched a movie (Bolt 3D) at the El Capitan Theater.

Lorelei's Birthday & New Year's Eve

New Year's eve was a busy day for the Masyr 6.

We started off the day by buying a new car, which Evan has nicknamed the "White Shadow". To make a long story short, our red Expedition needed repairs that were beyond its worth. After much (way too much) looking around we ended up with an Expedition EL (extended length). We felt this car met our needs best, as the older kids will be sitting in the back and there is plenty of leg room. Additionally, there is plenty of space to cart around a stroller, sports equipment, etc. Did I mention I HATE car shopping? I also hate the pressure of a new car: no dings, spills or unusual smells to search out and extinguish. We'll see how long this no eating in the car and parking a mile away lasts. On the bright side, I am getting more exercise!

After buying the car, we headed for the bowling alley to celebrate my niece's birthday. A good time was had by all. Faith & Lorelei were hilarious to watch. I love that the girls are best friends and cousins. After an hour of bowling, we headed to Wendy's for lunch, cupcakes and presents. In our family, we always go to dinner or lunch on the person's actual birthday, regardless of if or when a party might occur. It is a fun tradition!

In true Masyr style, the fun continued throughout the night. My sister and brother-in-law came over and played Rook, . Sam, Noah & Devon played the Wii. Faith and Lorelei had a grand time and entertained each other for hours. The little guys fell asleep early, as their birth year was coming to a close. As the clock struck midnight, we made some noise, pulled some poppers and made some Happy New Year phone calls . Look who fell asleep before midnight

Devon and Noah ~ Two true gamers

Midnight Madness!

Look who showed up on their Harley! Victoria & Alex

In many ways it was hard to say goodbye to 2008. It was a great year for us, as we welcomed a son and shared many good times with our family and friends. It also was a reminder of how fast time goes by. The mom in me wants to make time stand still for awhile. Of course, I want my kids to be able to spread their own wings and fly on their own someday. That day is just coming too soon!

In closing, I want to Thank God for all the blessings in my life.