Craig Family News

I'm back!!! Better late than never :)

2011-12-28T18:35:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! I am few days late, but not too shabby considering I haven't been on here in a year!!! A whole year! Crazy! I think I just got sucked into facebook, but I am going to turn over a new leaf and do better about documenting the details of our little world.

2011 has been an insanely wonderful year for me. I was able to do LOTS of traveling (my favorite thing!!!!) I went to Panama city beach twice, Nauvoo, IL for youth conference, Las Vegas with my Springville girlfriends, and on a Disney Cruise and to Disneyworld. Lots of fun, amazing memories! Other big news this year is weight loss...Nate and I have both lost quite a bit and it has been wonderful buying all new clothes. It gives us a both a whole new level of confidence. We owe it all the FABULOUS Amy Fortin. She's my workout guru...and one of my best friends. Now the goal is run a 5K and maintain, maintain, maintain!

Other HUGE news...Nate is in the process of buying out his law partner and will be the sole owner of the lawfirm Francis, Fentress, and Craig. Super exciting and scary all at once! I couldn't be more proud. He works so hard and deserves every good thing this life has to offer!!

While sharing this news with family, Nate's brother said, "SO, I guess that means you are staying in Kentucky?!?" The answer to that question is a resounding YES! We love it here and plan to raise our kids here. Long term goal is to build my dream home (It's already in my head :))

Anyway, we are so happy and feel so grateful. Nate continues to serve as bishop of our ward (It has already been 3 and a half years) and I know that he makes a difference and we are blessed for it. I am in my second year teaching seminary and I absolutely love it. Preparing a lesson 5 days a week is a lot of work, but I am learning so much and I am completely inspired by the awesome youth that I have the privilege of teaching. It is an honor!

That is 2011 in a nutshell. Looking forward to big changes in 2012 and making more great memories!!!

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-23T04:52:00.000-08:00

I realize that I have been a complete slacker blogging the past several months. I guess I should make it one of my New Year's resolutions to do better :). Things are always busy at home and with our church callings (did I mention that I am now teaching early morning seminary??), but we are all healthy and happy. I hope that all of my friends and family have a memorable, healthy, and safe holiday season. Merry Christmas!!!!

Universal Studios!

2010-10-15T05:31:00.000-07:00

In the late 90's as a student at BYU I took a young adult lit class. My teacher was talking about a new young adult series that kids were going crazy over...the character was a boy named Harry Potter that finds out at the age of 12 that he is a wizard. She said, "Harry Potter is making it cool for kids to read!" Of course, I read the books and was hooked, but I never dreamed that it would one day be part of a theme park! When the Wizarding World of Harry Potter opened up at Universal Orlando in June, we decided that we HAD to experience it! What can I say, we are fans!! If you aren't...well then...you should be!!! So fun to be transported into such a magical place. Anyway, we went to Orlando last month along with Nathan's parents, his brother Mark and his wife Maria, and our good friends Debbie and Amanda. The kids stayed home--a HUGE thanks to our friends Christian and Amy for watching them for us!!!

On the plane!

We practically ran into the park! So exciting!

Hogwarts castle from a distance

Pumpkin juice! It's pretty good! This was taken in the herbology classroom.

Ready to enter the castle for the main Harry Potter ride! I have to say that it did NOT disappoint! The attention to detail was amazing and the ride was much more of a thrill ride than I had expected.

Waiting in line to ride it again

Another view of the castle

Hogsmeade--check out the snow!

Lunch at the three broomsticks

Hogwarts express

Spiderman 3D If you look closely you can see how wet we still are from Jurassic Park and the log ride

Nathan and I after we rode the Hulk roller coaster. I was pretty proud of myself for doing it--that thing was crazy!!

Back to Hogsmeade for a little butter beer (you can see Honeydukes candy shop in the background :))

Mark trying the Berty Botts every flavor beans. Of course, Nathan was trying to find all of the discusting ones (vomit, dirt, sausage, ear wax...yup he tried them all)

Entering the other Universal park

After the Jaws ride--our tour guide was a riot! He let Nathan wear his hat.

With Mark and Maria

We saw the taping of two episodes of Family Fued with Steve Harvey. It was a lot of fun!! This is me on the front row (right before they told us to put away our cameras :))

Last night in Orlando. We ate at NBA city.
It was a whirlwind weekend, but it was a BLAST!! I love Orlando! Can't wait to get back!

Happy Birthday Alison!!

2010-08-19T13:50:00.001-07:00

The last 2 weeks have been quite eventful for little miss Alison! First, she taught herself how to ride a 2 wheeled bike without training wheels, 2nd, she started 1st grade, and third, she turned 6 years old!!! Last Saturday was her birthday party. She wanted a water themed party and my friend Amanda was kind enough to let us borrow her inflatable water slide. The kids had a blast!

So many fun gifts!

She was thrilled to get an American Girl bed for her doll. FINALLY her doll can have a restful night's sleep! :)
We love you Alison! The last 6 years have been a blessing!

Trip to Utah!!

2010-08-19T08:28:00.000-07:00

At the end of July, the kids and I flew to Utah for a week to spend time with family and friends. It was an AMAZING week! Here are some highlights:

So fun to spend the day with my girlfriends in springville!! I miss you guys!

All our kids! CRAZY!

Friday we went to the zoo with my dad. The girls favorite part was the baby elephant Zuri. So cute!

My dad's new nickname for Hailey is "queen bee". She loves being the princess!

At the bird show

On the train

Days of 47 parade in Salt Lake

We were lucky enough to have reserved seats for the parade. Thanks mom!

Temple Square--the flowers were fabulous!

Rachel

Alison

Hailey

My mom and all the grandkids! It was so great to see my brother and his family!

They loved the reflection pool at the temple

Grandma and Grandpa K

The Kartchner party at my cousin Mike's. Me with Dan and Lana

The whole crew!!! What a great posterity my grandparents have!

Lagoon!!!

We had an amazing time! Hopefully we will get back sometime soon! :)

Dance Recital

2010-06-14T05:44:00.001-07:00

The dance recital is one of my favorite things we do throughout the year. Each year the girls grow so much in their performances. This was the first year that all three kids were performing, so Nathan and I got to sit in the audience and just enjoy the show. They all did a great job!!!

They are already looking forward to dance starting up again in August! Thank you Miss Michelle for a great show!

Gymnastics Recital

2010-06-14T05:37:00.000-07:00

As always, Rachel was shining in her gymnastics recital this year.

I think we would all love to be this flexible!

That's her in the middle. Great job Rachel!

More progress on the house

2010-06-14T05:29:00.000-07:00

Slowly we are getting the house where we want it to be! here are a few of our recent updates.

Hailey and Alison's room is now lavender. The picture doesn't really do it justice--it is a great color AND it matches their chandelier. So cute!

New kitchen table

New bar stools. I love it when the kids sit here and talk to me while I cook :)

2010-06-14T05:20:00.000-07:00

Last Christmas we received tickets for the whole family to see Wicked in Louisville in May. In December, that seemed like years away, but the date finally came! We had a FABULOUS day! We all loved the show (of course!) and had a fun dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe.

Hailey is still talking about the "green baby"

They thought Glinda was so funny and loved the part where Elphaba flies into the air. Of course, Alison has mastered the "toss toss" of her hair like Glinda. If you have seen the show you totally know what I am talking about :)

Thanks grandma and grandad for such a great Christmas present. We won't forget it!!!

Kindergarten Graduation

2010-06-14T05:12:00.000-07:00

Kindergarten graduation was so cute! They did a little program, received diploma's, and had refreshments in the classroom. Such a fun day! We are proud of you Alison!

Showing off the new diploma

Mrs. Bell--the most amazing teacher in the world

The little graduate!

New Orleans

2010-06-14T04:59:00.001-07:00

Nathan had a law conference at the end of May and I was lucky enough to be able to tag along--thanks to my AMAZING in-laws that came and watched the kids for 4 days :)

I love the French Quarter. It is seriously oozing with history! Little streets like this with the window boxes are my favorite.

Having lunch on Bourbon Street

Riverboat dinner cruise on the Mississippi River

Lower 9th ward. It is still SO sad to see how much devestation there still is 5 years post Hurricane Katrina.

Sandra Bullock's new house. Seriously! Gorgeous right!!!

Rachel's Baptism

2010-05-09T18:17:00.001-07:00

I realize that this is out of order from the last post, but I wanted to dedicate an entire post to such a special event! On April 10, Rachel was baptized! It was an emotional and spiritual experience and we are so proud of her! We were also happy that many friends and family could be there to celebrate with us. My mom was able to come from UT--it was great to spend some time with her. It was a beautiful, memorable day!

My friend Rebekah is a photography student-she took these a few weeks beforehand.

So happy to be baptized by daddy (even though the water was cold!)

Grilling out at the house afterward

Cousin Sarah

Before church the next day

Hailey and Alison in their Easter dresses. I feel so blessed to have girls that are beautiful on the inside and out. We are so proud of all of them!

our busy, crazy, fun, amazing spring!

2010-05-09T16:41:00.001-07:00

I realize that this blog post is LONG overdue. Seriously, things have been crazy--almost out of control crazy, but I have loved every minute of it! Here are some highlights from the last few months--starting with the most recent.

We just got back a few hours ago from a whirlwind trip to South Carolina to attend the sealing of our good friends Serge and Sarah at the Columbia, South Carolina Temple. It was an amazing experience and we felt honored to be a part of it. We were also blessed to have the opportunity to stay with long time friends of the Craig family--Lee and Linda Starling. They live in SC on a lake. Their house and the surrounding area is stunning! We all had such a good time!

Here we are yesterday getting ready to spend the day boating on the lake! It was 90 degrees this weekend. A perfect day to be out on the water!

Alison

Rachel

The Starlings have a zip line in their backyard (cool right!) The kids had so much fun!

Even little Hailey enjoyed it!

On the way down to SC we made a detour to the American Girl store in Atlanta. The girls were in heaven!! It really was cute!

After having no luck finding a reasonable used doll for Hailey, we decided to buy her one. Yes, we are suckers!

We had lunch with the dolls in the American Girl Bistro. Anyone with girls really needs to do this at least once in their lifetime. They will never forget it!

We also had the dolls ears pierced. After doing so, Rachel and Alison decided they wanted their ears pierced too. Totally spontaneous and so much fun. Their new earings look great!

Hello Kitty earings

Sparkly blue flowers
Such a great weekend!!!

The Nashville Zoo with Jordynne and Brooklynne Larsen

Rachel's 8th Birthday!!!! She invited 2 of her best friends to come to Nashville for glow in the dark mini gold and dinner at the Rainforest Cafe. We had a great time. The biggest event for Rachel was her baptism! I am going to do a separate post of pictures from that special day!

Maritza, Rachel, and Amber holding hands at Opry Mills

As I post these, I can't help but be reminded of the extensive damage that took place last weekend at Opry Mills, Opryland Hotel, and many homes and businesses throughout Nashville as a result of the flood. Nathan and I saw some of the damage first hand when we were stranded in Franklin because of flooding on the freeway. Our thoughts and prayers go out to those that are still trying to pick up the pieces following this disaster!

My new creative outlet

2010-03-07T17:24:00.000-08:00

I think I am happiest when I am creating things. I love making bows, jewelry, scrapbooks, cards, etc. This is my new favorite thing! These are flowers I put on clips for the girl's hair. I do sell them, so let me know if anyone is interested. Let me know what you think!

Random catch up!

2010-03-07T15:17:00.001-08:00

First, let me just say how happy I am that February is OVER! We have had a glimpse of spring the past few days and we are so ready! This winter we have had a lot of snow for W. Kentucky and I think we are up to 10 snow days--which unfortunately need to be made up :(. Here are some random pictures from the past 6 weeks.

Play Doh is one of our favorite things when we are cooped up inside.

Nathan and the girls decided they wanted to make a snow fort. FYI, the cooler makes a pretty good mold!

Not bad right?! Nathan claims that he never made a snow fort when he was a kid, so I think he had fun being a kid again.

Alison is going to scare away any intruders!

I have been so blessed to have made some pretty amazing girlfriends here. We decided it was time for a girls night out and we spent 2 and a half hours here at this table at Chili's laughing and chatting. SO much fun!

A few weeks ago we went to Owensboro to surprise our good friend Debbie Oller for her 50th birthday. We always enjoy getting together with family! Here is little Hailey smiling with Nathan's grandma.

Cute cousins: Hailey, Rachel, Sarah, and Alison

Snow Days

2010-01-17T12:12:00.000-08:00

About a week ago we started hearing that snow was in the forecast. You have to understand that snow here in W. Kentucky is pretty rare, so people take it VERY seriously. The night before the snowstorm Walmart was cleaned out. Seriously--no bread, no milk, no bananas. Everyone was preparing for the worst! The storm came and with it came a whopping 2 in. of snow (obviously I am being a little sarcastic here :)). School was canceled for 2 days. I realize that my friends and family in UT are totally laughing right now, but you have to understand that the whole county only has one snow plow, so it kind of paralyzes the city. Regardless, I still think it is pretty funny. We had a fun couple of days hanging out at home.

It was freezing, so the kids were only outside for about 15 min. They decided that the snow isn't all it is cracked up to be. Hopefully we will be able to visit UT during the winter so that the kids will be able to make real snow angels. I hope everyone is enjoying winter. We are already looking forward to spring!

Christmas at the Craig's

2010-01-09T17:17:00.000-08:00

The entire month of December is currently kind of a blur to me. I think Christmastime is always crazy, but for some reason this year was extra crazy. Parties, baking, shopping...it seems like there was barely time to sit back and enjoy the season. In spite of the chaos, it really was fun. Here are a few of our favorite memories of Christmas this year.

The Craig party at grandma and grandad's:

Hailey with her new build a bear cat

Allie--you can't have enough littlest pet shop pets!

Rachel-She got a new build a bear bunny

Hanging out with cousin Sarah

What girl doesn't want a new Coach purse for Christmas. LOVE IT!

Nathan's parents gave us some food storage--super cool gift! They also gave us tickets for the whole family to see Wicked in Louisville this May. We are soooooooo excited!!

Loving grandad
The next day we went to Debbie Oller's work party with the kids. They had a blast!

We were freezing, but the kids were all smiles

Faces painted

Christmas Morning!!

"Why did we get a wii game? We don't have a wii!"

Woo Hoo!!! So much fun!
I hope everyone had a fun and safe holiday season!

Holiday fun!

2009-12-11T18:49:00.000-08:00

Things have been so busy that I haven't posted in awhile. Here are a few highlights of the last few weeks.

Alison at her Thanksgiving "feast" at school. Her teacher seriously gives 110%--it is so great to see Alison loving kindergarten

The kid table at thanksgiving at grandma's house.

Hailey sneaking my diet coke. What are we going to do with her!

Some of the primary kids singing at the ward party. I love how Hailey is front and center. Pretty funny considering the fact that she is technically not in primary yet.

Rachel and her friend Kaitlin

Chilling with Santa

Last weekend was the girls dance/gymnastics recital. It was the first one for Hailey. We were proud of all three of them! So strange for me to be in the audience without any kids climbing all over me! They are getting so big!

New Blog

2009-12-05T17:28:00.000-08:00

Check out my new blog! Go to www.americandreamhairbows.blogspot.com. I am making and selling bows for little girls with smaller matching bows for dolls. Let me know if you are interested in any bows. They can be made in any color combination. It is so fun for me to have a creative outlet. I hope everyone is having an amazing holiday season! I will post pictures of the Christmas festivites soon!

Happy Halloween!

2009-11-02T07:52:00.000-08:00

The girls had no choice on their Halloween costumes this year--we were definitely going to reuse the princess dresses from Disneyworld. They didn't seem to mind though. It is always so much fun to dress up like a princess! We had a fun Halloween this year that included the church trunk or treat, school parties, and a couple of parties with friends. SO much fun, but now it is time to slowly starty throwing away the candy!

Trunk or treating at the church with Amy Boggs and Brooklynne Larsen

Hanging out with Daddy

That Pinata had no chance!
I hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween!

Ham Festival

2009-11-02T07:36:00.001-08:00

In mid October of each year Trigg County KY has what is known as the Ham Festival. For such a small town, this is quite the production! Lots of rides, crafts, live music, and of course, FOOD! This festival is famous for its pork chops, country ham and biscuits, and pork sandwiches. You can also find just about everything fried. YUMMY!

Each business on main street has a pig and the pigs are decorated according to what is sold in the store. The kids got a kick out of it :)

Merry go round

Check out these pork chops!

Nathan admiring the smoker. He was saying Woo Hoo! This is some serious meat!

Fried pickles. Pretty good actually! :)
Such a fun day! Already looking forward to next year!

The happiest, most magical place on earth!

2009-09-22T19:25:00.000-07:00

We returned Sunday night from our week of Disney magic! I spent 6 months obsessing and planning (and obsessing), and happily, things went as planned--it was fabulous (in spite of the heat and humidity)! We made memories that we will always treasure. We were also excited to be able to spend this time with my mom. Here are some highlights:

Our resort--Saratoga Springs. It really was beautiful!

A gorgeous pool with two waterslides and a couple of waterfalls

Hollywood Studios: Our favorites here were Toy Story Mania, Fantasmic, Beauty and the Beast, and Playhouse Disney live on stage.

Toy Story. Nathan got so into this ride/game that his arm was actually sore. So competitive!

Beauty and the Beast

An excited Hailey watching Playhouse Disney

Epcot! My kids LOVED this park. We rode Spaceship Earth 3 times! They also enjoyed the Nemo ride, Test Track, and visiting all of the countries.

Pastries in France :)

Finding Nemo

Crazy girls!
Magic Kingdom. We spent 2 and a half days here and did everything a couple of times. Their favorites were Pirates of the Carribean, Haunted Mansion, Splash Mountain (Alison), Big Thunder Mountain, Winnie the Pooh (Hailey), and Mickey's Philharmagic. So much to do and see!

Cinderella's Royal Table. This is a restaurant inside the castle. SO AMAZING1

The princesses

Minnie's house

The Jungle Cruise

Dinner at the Crystal Palace

We celebrated Hailey's 3rd Birthday here. Happy Birthday Hailey!!
Animal Kingdom. Our favorites here were: Dinosaur, Safari, Lion King Show, Finding Nemo show, and Bugs Life 3D movie.

Breakfast with Mickey and friends (dressed in Safari attire--so cute!)

Safari

Rafiki from the Lion King

Shopping in Downtown Disney

Such a memorable week!!! We hope to do it all over again in about 4 years!

Countdown to Disneyworld!

2009-08-22T05:31:00.000-07:00

This is the girls watching the Disneyworld promotional DVD. We have it memorized because we watch it several times a week! This picture was actually taken last April when I booked our vacation. Since then we have been offered free dining and we were given a free upgrade to a luxury resort. It will be the trip of a lifetime and we are SOOOOOO excited! Only 20 days away (but who's counting :)

Happy Birthday Alison!

2009-08-22T05:19:00.001-07:00

Alison is 5!!!!!

We had her birthday party last Saturday (Aug 15) and since it was a sunny, hot day, we did a water party. Alison became quite the pro on the slip and slide.

Nathan spent 2 hours filling water balloons and they were gone in about 5 minutes. Fun times!

The crew doing crafts

The pretty birthday girl

Alison had a great birthday!!!!!

Mammoth Cave

2009-08-22T05:12:00.001-07:00

Nathan and I went with the young women and leaders to Mammoth Cave that is located near Bowling Green, KY. I had no idea that Mammoth Cave is the longest known cave system in the world (over 300 miles). We took a 2 hour tour and it was amazing!

Entering the cave. You immediately feel a rush of cold air! It felt so good on a hot August day!

Waiting for the tour to start

In the cave! What a fun day! A huge thanks to grandma and grandad for watching the girls!

Back to school!

2009-08-22T05:01:00.000-07:00

My brother, Dan, was in Alabama for a business trip and decided to drive 4 extra hours to come visit us! We picked him up in Nashville and had a fun day together.

Hanging out at the Rainforest Cafe

Rainforest Cafe frog. My kids got a pretty big kick out of him.

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!!! My favorite part of this picture is Hailey FREAKING out in the background. I want my picture taken too!!!

Alison--my big kindergartner!

Rachel-2nd grade!

All ready to go! Of course Hailey thinks she needs a backpack too. The girls have great teachers and we are all looking forward to a great school year!

It was fun while it lasted :(

2009-08-22T04:53:00.000-07:00

Many of you heard about this on facebook, but here is the sad reality of our trampoline. What a storm! There was a tornado that did touchdown nearby. This is how we found the trampoline.

The path of destruction. It went through the neighbors fence and knocked down their swingset. It was fun while it lasted!

Summer update!

2009-07-10T13:21:00.001-07:00

It has been a crazy fun summer so far at the Craig house! I don't think I have ever in my life been to so many parties and bbq's. Here are a few pictures to give you an idea of what we have been up to this past month.

We LOVE to swim at the YMCA--in fact we go almost every day!

Yes that is ice cream on Alison's face :)

Hailey has no fear of the water--she jumps into the deep water by herself.

This was at a birthday party/4th of July party with our friends the Wilson's. Here is Hailey taking a swing at the pinata.

Eagerly awaiting the candy!

faces painted

We spent the 4th with our friends the Hughes. It was the first time that I have ever eaten fried green tomatoes. I have to say that they were DELICIOUS! I think I am now officially a southerner :). This picture is Rachel watching the (very illegal) fireworks--thanks Christian!

hanging out with Hailey

holding a sparkler with attitude!

Last Monday we went with the whole Craig clan to Holiday World up in Indiana. Great weather and good company. It was a fun day. This is Hailey waiting in line for a ride.

Hailey with her cousin Ben

Such a fun day!

Nathan's brother Bryon and his family were in town this past week. It was so fun to reconnect! There is nothing better than hanging out with family and friends!

gymastics and dance recital

2009-06-15T10:45:00.001-07:00

Last week was a busy week getting ready for Rachel's gymnastics recital and Rachel and Alison's dance recital. They looked so cute and danced beautifully! Nathan and I were so proud! Dance starts up again on August 3rd and the girls are already looking forward to starting their new classes--Hailey included !

Rachel in the dressing room--so much anticipation!

Alison looking pretty! Notice the laundry basket of tu tu's behind her. She wore this under her costume for her ballet number.

Cute ballerinas :)

Hailey wore her "costume" to the show. She kept asking when it was her turn to get up and dance!

The girls were so excited to have permission to wear make-up

This is the gymnastics recital. Rachel did a great job! She is very flexible and is looking forward to getting better at back handsprings next fall.

Many missing teeth!

2009-05-31T14:32:00.001-07:00

There is something so cute about a 7 year old that is missing a front tooth! We love you Rachel!!!

The new trampoline

2009-05-31T14:21:00.001-07:00

In spite of my better judgement, we decided to buy the girls a trampoline (with the help of money from my dad--thanks dad!). Needless to say, the girls are thrilled! They want to jump day and night and I have to admit that I have been out there a few times :). Hey, it's great excercise!

Hanging out with the Ruff's

2009-05-31T14:07:00.000-07:00

Last weekend our good friends Becky and Richard Ruff drove 8 hours from Iowa to hang out with us!!! It was so fun to catch up and let the girls play together again. We were able to go shopping in Nashville and have the best BBQ ever in Owensboro (Nathan's home town). The time went by way too quickly and we are hoping that they will come back and see us during Richard's fall break. Here are some pictures of the girls--they love each other so much!

Hailey and Emma

Rachel R. and Alison

Sarah and Rachel C.

What crazy girls!!

This was taken by Nate's mom at Moonlite BBQ

What a great weekend!

The end of a great season!

2009-05-16T11:24:00.000-07:00

Thursday night marked the end of a great soccer season! I felt like I was running around like a crazy woman getting them to their games and practices (plus dance and gymnastics), but I absolutely loved this season! Both Rachel and Alison had amazing coaches and made good friends on their teams. We loved being outside and cheering them on! Here are a few pics of the spring season.

Rachel

Alison

What cute sissies watching Rachel play!

One of Alison's teammates has an older sister named Leona that loves Hailey and gave me a little break during the games.

They are both saying that they want to play again. Fall season will be here before we know it! Next up is their dance recital on June 12. They have darling costumes and have been working hard. I will post pictures soon!

Easter/Hanging out with Grandma

2009-04-26T14:10:00.000-07:00

I decided to take the girls and get their pictures taken a couple of weeks ago in their Easter dresses. The pics turned out pretty good, so I wanted to share. If you are a close relative reading right now this may be a mother's/father's day spoiler!

The girls together :)

Rachel

Alison

Hailey

Coloring eggs for Easter. NOT one of my favorite traditions. I must admit that the smell of vinegar combined with hard boiled eggs makes me nauseous! The fact that Hailey was trying to eat the yellow dye didn't help any. Oh well! The kids had a great time.

The creations. My favorite part about this picture is Hailey crying in the corner.

Easter morning

New Webkinz from the Easter Bunny

Two days after Easter my mom flew into town to speak at the Evansville, Indiana Women's Conference (my mother-in-law's stake). She did a great job and we had a fun time hanging out and shopping in Nashville. We are already looking forward to seeing her again--next time in ORLANDO!!

Happy Birthday Rachel!!!

2009-04-07T13:58:00.000-07:00

On March 26th my little Rachel turned 7. That weekend we had a birthday party for her. It was 1 and 1/2 hours of screaming and squealing. Rachel was thrilled to have both her friends from church and her friends from school together.

Here is the crew. One of the only perks of having the bishop as a husband is that it is really easy to borrow a table and chairs from the church.

They had pizza

And decorated cupcakes

Alison cried off and on all weekend saying "I like presents too!"

I think everyone had a good time!

I have to say that birthday parties are not one my favorite things. I am glad that we have a little break until Alison's 5th in August!

An Update--Finally

2009-03-22T16:51:00.000-07:00

Obviously, I have been in a little bit of a blogging rut. I guess winter just does that to me. I decided today that an update is LONG overdue. So, here it goes. After the ice storm things were bleak for several weeks. The kids missed 10 days of school and unfortunately they have to make them up. BLAH! My kids will be in school until the 2nd week of June. What do you do? After the storm Nathan and I took a whirlwind trip to Salt Lake without the kids (thanks grandma and grandad!) We were so excited to see family and friends and satisfy many of our Utah food cravings (can anyone say Bajio???) Here are a few photos from the trip:

The night we arrived we had dinner at my brother Dan's house with my mom, dad, and grandparents. So much fun to see everyone!

My dad with Dan's girls Leah and Olivia

Grandma and Grandpa K.

Lunch at Sweet Tomatoes (so yummy!) with Nathan's brother Will and his wife Kristy

After we came back it seemed like we just couldn't get the whole family healthy at the same time. All three kids had the stomach flu (one kid a week) and I had a sinus infection. We are now finally feeling healthy and we have been enjoying some beautiful spring weahter. Here is a picture I took of Rachel and Alison a few weeks ago--notice the coats--it was still cold outside. I make the kids play with their moon sand on the back portch (regardless of what the weather is like). I definitely don't want that mess in the kitchen!

Princess Hailey has become obsessed with dressing up. Everyday it is something new :)

Anyway, sorry about my lack over posts over the last couple months. I will do better! We have lots going on with soccer, dance recitals, and lots of fun summer activities to look forward to. Our biggest news is that we booked a vacation to Disneyworld in September. I am thrilled to not only have something to look forward to, but something to plan over the next several months! So fun! Anyway, I hope everyone is doing well!

Lots and lots of ICE

2009-01-30T16:56:00.000-08:00

This has been such a CRAZY week! As many of you have heard, we had 2 major ice/snow storms this week that resulted in schools being closed all week and power loss for over a million people in Kentucky. For those of you that don't know what an ice storm is, here is a picture to give you an idea:

Picture every tree limb, power line, and even every blade of grass coated in ice. In the sun it looks like the trees have been dipped in crystals. It is beautiful at first, but add more ice and six inches of snow on top and we had (have) a disaster on our hands. The problem is that the ice and snow on the trees became too heavy for the trees to bear and the trees started to break. Tree limbs have fallen on power lines, houses, and roads creating a real mess for the power companies. We were without power on Tuesday, so we decided to go to Nathan's parents house in Owensboro because they still had power. That night I woke up and felt the chill in the air--I knew that their power was out too. Luckily, we had a small propane heater, propane stove, and even a small generator. We stayed for two days and two nights and then got word that power was back in Hopkinsville, so we made our way home (dodging fallen trees on the freeway). Our power has flickered off and on a lot (giving me anxiety attacks--seriously!), but it seems like our power is now stable. The same can't be said for Nathan's parents and many others in W. Kentucky. We have been told that it will be a couple of weeks for some. People in Princeton and Paducah don't even have water, so we are considering ourselves very blessed right now. I have learned from the past 4 days that we were not nearly as prepared as we should have been. At the request of a couple of friends, I will compile a list of things that everyone reading this needs to have on hand.

1. Several Flashlights with extra batteries. Sound obvious? They are sold out EVERYWHERE here. You need to have them on hand.

2. Small propane cooking stove (with extra propane): If it is 50 degrees in your house the last thing you want is cold food. We had lots of hot chocolate--life saver!

3.Cash. We found a few grocery stores and gas stations open, but they were only taking cash. You should have at least $100 in small bills.

4. Propane heater: This was a huge help during the day. At my house we have a gas log fireplace that works when the power is out. We love it!!

5. Candles. We left a couple of large candles burning all of the time in the bathroom. It is surprisingly dark in there during the day.

6. Manual can opener. All I have is an electric can opener, so all my canned food is no help without a way to open it!

I would say that these are the essentials. If you don't have these things let my experience be a wake up call to each of you. There is nothing more terrifying than wondering if your children are hungry or freezing. We have made it through and I am so thankful to be sleeping in a warm bed tonight!!!

A WICKED day followed by a new calling

2009-01-18T16:53:00.000-08:00

I have several pictures of us before and after the musical Wicked in Louisville, but I can't find my camera cord to post them on the computer! I'm sure it will turn up, but for now, no great pictures. Anyway, if you haven't heard of Wicked I don't know what planet you have been living on for the past several years!!! This is the first national tour of the musical and we have had tickets since last summer (thanks again Rosie!!). We went to Nathan's brother's house in Elizabethtown and left our kids with his two kids and two sitters. Once in Louisville we met up with Nathan's parents and our friends Debbie and Amanda. We saw the matinee and I must say that I am still totally freaking out! I knew it would be good, but I had no idea that it would be extraordinary. If you are familiar with it, my favorite song was definitely "Defying Gravity" AHHHHH it was AMAZING!! After the show we went around the corner and ate the Hard Rock Cafe. It was a wonderful, unforgettable day!!
Today, I got released from Relief Socitey because I was called to be the first counselor in the Young Women's Presidency. I will miss my friends in Relief Society, but I am thrilled to be with the girls. They are small in numbers, but strong in spirit. I am sure it will be a great experience. Today I couldn't help but reflect on the great experience I had in Springville when I was part of the Young Women's presidency there. I think you learn and grow from not only each calling, but the wonderful people that you get to meet as a result of the calling. I feel so blessed to have met so many amazing people over the years.

Christmas memories

2009-01-02T13:02:00.000-08:00

The last few weeks have been such a whirlwind and I haven't had much time to post on my blog. Instead of attempting to do a play by play of the last few weeks I wanted to post a bunch of pictures to summarize our first Christmas in Kentucky. It was wonderful, but, phew--it sure felt great to take down the tree!

The girls all dressed up for church the Sunday before Christmas. That's our new artificial tree in the background. I had no idea it would be quite this big (it's nearly 10 feet!). I guess it is a good thing we have high ceilings!

The Craig Christmas party on the 23rd. Here's some of the cousins. Fun times!! That's Nathan's brother Mark and Mamaw Craig in the background.

Christmas Eve on our way out to a party with some friends. It was a beautiful sunset, so we decided to take a picture.

Christmas morning! I love how Alison is eating a chocolate Santa from her stocking at 6:00 am. Who needs breakfast! Notice the cute new jammies from Debbie and Amanda. Thanks guys!

Hailey with her Shrek baby

Is all of this for me??

Alison and Rachel with their new American Girl dolls. We let them open this gift last and they squealed with delight. It was the only thing they asked for this Christmas.

Hailey with her new kitchen set "I cook", she says.

Nathan with some Polo Blue cologne.

This was taken later on Christmas when Nathan's parents came over. This is Hailey's new shopping cart and food to accompany her kitchen set.

Grandma and Grandad also gave the girls clothes for the new dolls

Grandpa sent three boxes from Utah. Thanks Dad! These are pillow pets he sent for each of the girls. They LOVE them!

Anyway, I have more pictures of various parties, etc, but I think this is enough to sum it up. It was a lot of fun. My mom flew here the day after Christmas and will be flying home tomorrow. It has been great to have her here too.

Christmas Cards

2008-12-03T12:17:00.001-08:00

OK, so I am going to be sending out christmas cards in the next few days and I can't find my address book. Anyone that reads this that wants to receive a card please email me your address. Thanks!
amycraig93@gmail.com

Remind me to hide the scissors!!

2008-11-23T17:23:00.000-08:00

OK, so I need to preface this post by saying that Friday was already a busy day. We were finishing up some landscaping and getting ready for a wedding. That said, Alison had been chewing on her hair all day. I told her that if she didn't stop chewing on her hair we would have to cut it all off. The next thing I know, she came out of the kitchen looking like this:

Notice the chunk of hair missing on the right. Naturally I started hyperventilating! Her explanation was that she was just cutting off the "spit part".

Luckily, we were able to get her into a salon within the hour. She had about 6 inches cut off to make it even.

The finished product. Like she really needed a haircut to accentuate her round face!

We still think she is pretty cute. I just need to hide the scissors! We have made her promise to never EVER cut her own hair again!

Time Out For Women

2008-11-23T17:12:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted in a few weeks because things have been crazy around here, but I wanted to do a quick post about a great event that I attended last weekend. Deseret Book does of tour of LDS artists and authors that do a two day seminar all over the nation. Well, Nashville was the last stop of the fall tour. Last Saturday I went down with 5 others from my ward (we met up with 6 others there) and I have to say that it was AMAZING! There were probably about 1500 women in attendance from all over Kentucky, Indiana, and Tennessee. Some came as far as Texas and Florida. Anyway, it was so great to be spiritually uplifted by both music and spoken word. My favorite speaker was probably Emily Watts. She talked a lot about motherhood, so I could obviously relate. I also loved hearing singer/songwriter Hillary Weeks (see photo below). I was really touched by the entire experience. If you ever get a chance to attend I would highly recommend it!!

This is me with my cute mother in law Rosemary. She was actually kind enough to save us seats. Thanks Rosie. I have no idea why this picture is so blurry.

Me with singer Hillary Weeks. A really sweet person on top of being a great singer!

more progress on the house

2008-11-06T19:05:00.000-08:00

In the last week Rachel's new furniture arrived and Nathan painted her room green. We think it turned out pretty cute. Today the furniture FINALLY arrived for my bedroom. It is still a work in progress, but let me know what you think!

Trick or Treat!

2008-11-02T17:58:00.001-08:00

Most of you know that Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. I love the costumes, the candy, even the scary movies. However, this year I must say that I am pretty glad to have it all over with. Halloween should be a crazy, fun, ONE day event. This year for some reason it was celebrated all week long. By the time Halloween was here my girls had already dressed up three times. Alison and Rachel were bored of being the same thing, so they manged to dig out new costumes from our dress up box. Whatever makes them happy I guess. So, you will notice that the costumes change by the end of the festivities.

We kicked off Halloween week with our annual pumpkin carving. Here is Rachel showing off the "pumpkin guts--eew gross".

The masterpieces

Wednesday we went to the trunk or treat at the church. There was a huge turnout and as always, lots of food. This is the first time I have ever had BBQ pork, baked beans, and potato salad on Halloween. You've got to love the south!

This picture was taken after the trunk or treat. The girls ended up filling two bowls with candy. Most were giving Hailey extra candy because she was trying to say "trick or treat" and she was just too cute.

Alison at her pre-school party on Thursday

Halloween night. As I already mentioned, Alison was tired of being a princess. She decided that she wanted to be a cheerleader this time. Rachel switched from Cinderella to Sleeping Beauty. We went trick or treating and then went to a party at our friends' house (Chris and Amy Hughes). We had more great food and then sat around chatting and letting the kids run around outside. It was a beautiful evening with great company.
At the end of all of the parties we managed to fill three large bowls of candy. I am going to slowly start throwing it away!

Saturday we were invited out to the Waldroup's house to have one last BBQ this year. I had to take a picture because notice the kids in their short sleeves. 72 degrees on November 1st. This is my kind of fall weather. We had a blast and then were able to go to the church for a baptism. It has been an honor to witness 5 convert baptisms since we moved here. Each time it strengthens my testimony.

Anyway, things are always so busy, but I hope that you all had a fun and safe Halloween!!!

High School Musical 3

2008-10-26T18:36:00.001-07:00

So, last night Nathan and I decided to take the girls to see High School Musical 3. I have to say that it was pretty fabulous. We feel pretty well versed on the whole High School Musical saga considering that we see the first or second movie once a day, so it was a lot of fun to see it on the big screen. This was little Hailey's first movie and she was completely mesmerized. At one point she actually jumped off of my lap and started to dance in the aisle. I caught both Rachel and Alison dancing in their seats on several occasions. Anyway, it was a lot of fun. If you are a fan, I highly reccommend it!!

Fall Break

2008-10-19T18:14:00.000-07:00

I realized this afternoon that I haven't posted in awhile, so I will give a quick update of the past week. Last weekend, we went to Nathan's hometown of Owensboro for a baby shower that was held for his cousin Jeff and his wife Angie. They are adopting a 2 year old little boy from China and we are SOOOO excited for them. They will hopefully have him by Christmas and we are all so excited to meet him!

This past week was fall break for the kids and we had a great time enjoying the fall weather and doing some fun activities around town. On Tuesday, Rosemary (my mother-in-law) came down and we spent the entire day shopping in Nashville. Let me just say that if you haven't been shopping in Nashville I HIGHLY recommend it! We went to two different malls and they had every store you could ever want. Alison was thrilled because there was even a shop selling gourmet cupcakes with lots of pink frosting. Once she saw the cupcakes, everything else was secondary. As promised, I bought her one for being a "big girl". I don't think any cupcake is worth $3.50, but she seemed to think so. Whatever. Anyway, we had a wonderful time. I am so glad that I have trained my girls to love to shop! Unfortunately, I am sure that it will come back to bite me when they are teenagers!

Wednesday, we joined some friends for a picnic at the park. It was a gorgeous day and the kids had a ball. Here is Hailey enjoying the outdoors.

Alison

Rachel and her friend Camri

The park is called Ruff park, and I just had to take a picture of the sign for my good friend Becky Ruff. So, Becky, this is for you. Of course, Alison started to whine ,"I miss Rachel and Sarah Ruff". We all miss you guys!!

Saturday was my birthday so Nathan and I decided to go out on a date Friday night. We actually hired a sitter and we thoroughly enjoyed a meal at Red Lobster. No mac and cheese in sight! Saturday night Nathan surprised me with bubble bath, candles, and my FAVORITE ice cream (Haagen Dazs pineapple and coconut). It was so sweet. I have a cold, so the bath felt great. We also had our Relief Society super Saturday yesterday, so it was great to relax and unwind after a long day. I think that once you hit 30 birthdays are lame. However, I did love to be pampered. I guess birthdays aren't so bad after all!

LOVE the fall!

2008-10-07T18:15:00.001-07:00

I don't have a whole lot to say today, but I had a great day. The leaves are starting to really change and I am loving the cooler days and nights. Fall is definitely my favorite time of year. I absolutely love the leaves, the colors, and the smells. I had my scentsy warmer buring the scent "pumpkin roll" this morning (thank you Tanya!) and I wanted to just sit down and take it all in! In a week or so I am planning to take the kids out and take some pictures of them with the leaves-- I will post them soon. I hope you are all enjoying the season!!

So Proud

2008-09-28T19:44:00.000-07:00

I had a very proud day on Saturday. First of all, my sweet, 4 year old Alison scored her very first soccer goal. It was seriously so exciting. I wish I could have captured it on camera! :) I was also proud for several reasons later that evening. I am first and foremost proud to be a member of Relief Society. I was very moved by the talks of the broadcast. Surprisingly, it didn't make me homesick. Which leads me to the third reason why I was proud on Saturday-- I am so proud to be part of the Hopkinsville, KY stake. The stake presidency put together an amazing program and meal for us. It was great to get to know lots of new people and feel of their strength and spirit. The dinner was seriously out of this world. They served BBQ chicken with all of the sides and then an entire table full of desserts. It turns out that one of the pastry chefs over at the Opryland Hotel is a member and he prepared the desserts for us--too bad I didn't have my camera with me. Anyway, after the dinner, I was sitting next to a sister in the Stake Relief Society Presidency and I was complimenting her on such a fabulous meal. She said, "Oh honey, you live in the south now--and we know how to cook!" I am proud to consider myself an adopted southerner!

BUSY BUSY!

2008-09-21T13:49:00.000-07:00

What a week!!! Between our church callings and our kids' schedules we always seem to be running. Here are some highlights of this crazy week!

This was on Wednesday at the 1st grade "lunch bunch". Parents are invited to come and see what the kids are learning and stay for lunch. We sat down across from Rachel's friends. When Nathan sat down a little girl named Ava said, "Wow, are you the President?" Before Nathan could answer Rachel replied, "No, but he IS the bishop". It was pretty cute.

On Thursday Nathan's brother Bryon came into town from Hawaii. It has been a long time since we have seen him (a couple of years we think), so it was fun to have dinner and show him around the town.

Nathan smoked three racks of ribs. They were a hit!! After Bryon and his parents left Nathan's buddy Aaron Castleton flew in from LA and his brother Brent and his family came into town from Florida. All of the guys (Nathan, his dad, Mark, Brent, Bryon, and Aaron) all went golfing on Friday and Mark got tickets to the Ryder Cup in Louisville on Saturday. They guys were in heaven. They were able to see all of the greatest golfers in the world play and they even saw some celebrities (George Bush Sr. and Michael Jordon to name a couple). They didn't allow camaras into the tournament, so I can't post pictures, but I know they will never forget it!!

While Nathan was hanging out with the guys I took the girls to their soccer games. They look pretty cute in their uniforms!

I have decided that soccer is like a part time job! It has been crazy keeping up with both of their schedules this fall. I am hoping that they will want to just stick with dance.

After soccer we drove 2 hours to Nathan's brother Mark's house to hang out with Grandma and the wives and to celebrate Hailey's birthday. I can't believe that my baby is 2! I want to stick her in a little time capsule so that she will always stay this sweet. This is Hailey feeding her new doll that she got for her birthday. I said, "Hailey, what's the baby's name?" She thought for a minute and responded, "baby". Makes sense to me!

Her sisters and her cousins were more than willing to help her with her gifts. If you look closely at Hailey's hair you can see where she gave herself a little haircut.

Notice the tears. I think she was a little intimidated by all of the attention!

Clearly she got over it when she started eating her ice cream cake!

All the cousins getting ready for bed! We look forward to seeing you all at Thanksgiving!! After this picture was taken we drove home (2 hours) , went to bed, Aaron and Bryon flew home, I spoke in church today, and the youth just left our house after a BYD (Bishop's youth discussion). The week has been wonderful, but I am exhausted!! I keep hoping that things are going to slow down, but I am realizing that they never will. I guess it is good to be busy! Seriously, I really can't complain. I feel very blessed.

American Idol Concert!

2008-09-12T17:44:00.000-07:00

Last night Nathan and I went to Evansville, IN to see the American Idol's summer tour. Evansville is only about 40 min. from Nathan's parents house, so we dropped the kids off and then we all spent the night. It was so great to be able to enjoy the show and know that the kids were in good hands. Thanks James and Rosie!! I know that most of you reading this are idol fans,
so I am going to give a synopsis of the show with my opinion thrown in. You don't have to agree--just my opinion!
For starters, the Roberts Stadium is a fabulous arena because it is fairly small. We were on the side on the 5th row (GREAT seats), so it felt pretty intimate. The sound was also great. It is pretty amazing that you could hear above all of the screaming, but you could and it was awesome!! Another cool thing about the show was that the idols performed the full versions of the songs--not just the shortened TV versions.
The top 10 performed in order that they were eliminated. The top 8 performed 3 songs, David A. performed 4, and David C. performed 5. They did a finale with all 10 together.

10. Chikezie: I had forgotten about Chikezie, but his voice was actually really incredible, and his energy was a fun way to start the show. I don't remember what he sang, but I liked it.
9. Ramyelle: She was probably my least favorite. Her voice is OK, but I was wondering how she made it this far on the show. She had on a skimpy outfit with high heeled boots (can anyone say pretty woman?). Anyway, as Simon would say--forgettable.
8. Michael Johns: The girls went crazy for him. My favorite of his set was "We are the Champions". He could really belt it out!
7. Christy Lee Cook: Another revealing outfit, but I actually enjoyed watching her perform. She did "God Bless the USA" that she did on the show and it was excellent.
6. Carly Smithson: AMAZING. She was actually one of my favorites of the evening. Her voice was spot on! She did an Evanescence song that really blew us away. I also liked her version of Celene Dion's "I drove all night". She was awesome.
5. Brooke White: Granted, I am biased, but it was so refreshing to see a beautiful girl dressed modestly! She did "Let it be" on the piano, and she also played the guitar. I loved all three of her performances.
4. Jason Castro: I was not a fan of Jason's during the show, but hearing him live was outstanding. He is very unique and fun to listen to. He has such a gorgeous face--if only he would cut those dumb dread locks!
3. Syesha Mercado: I loved her voice, but by this time I was thinking David Archuleta's next!! So, I had a hard time focusing.
2. DAVID ARCHULETA: YEAH! I am such a fan--and so was everyone else in the audience. The stadium erupted with screaming. It was pretty crazy, but so exciting to be there! His voice was as pure and crystal clear as I thought it would be. While he was singing I remembered Randy Jackson screaming "crazy vocals!!" I couldn't agree more. SO sad when his four songs were over.
1. DAVID COOK: YEAH!! I am a fan of David Cook's as well and it was cool to see a rock star in the making. He was throwing out guitar picks and touching the girls hands. He was great. I especially liked "Billy Jean" that he did on the show. Between his loud music and the girls screaming my ears were ringing, but it was so worth it. My only critisism was that his pants were WAY too tight. His butt is just too big to wear those pants. Other that that, great performances!

The following is a you tube clip that was posted today of the concert last night. I can't take credit for filming it, but it is really close to our seats, so this will give you an idea of what the concert was like. It is David A. perfoming "Angels". It was definitely one of my favorites. Anyway, I think that is enough rambling about the show. It was a great time. I am glad that Nathan and I will be able to share this memory!! Just for the record, he was screaming too :)

A great week with grandma!

2008-09-07T19:12:00.000-07:00

My mom has been here all week and I am sad that I didn't take any pictures!! Every time there was a great photo opportunity I forgot to bring my camara--I am so scatterbrained!! We had such a great week though. It was so fun to show her abound the area. Nate was a great tour guide both here and in his home town of Owensboro (now my mom can brag that she has seen the largest sassafrass tree--in the world). Serioulsy, it was great to show her around and give her an idea of what our lives are like here in Kentucky. Yesterday, we had a fun day shopping in Nashville and the kids were thrilled to eat at the Rainforest Cafe. Hailey cried and cried when we dropped grandma off at the airport. We will all miss her, but what a great week of memories!

Our new bishop

2008-08-31T11:05:00.000-07:00

What a week!! We knew that our bishop was moving, but we were shocked when the Stake President invited us to his house last Tuesday night and he extended the call for Nathan to serve as the new bishop. We are both overwhelmed, but I am so proud of Nathan. The Stake Pres. said that I will need to be released from my calling ASAP, so I will have served as the Relief Society Pres. for just over a month--kind of crazy. Church today was good. Nathan's boss Denny and one of his paralegals came to support him and his dad ordained him as a High Priest. My mom had already planned to be here over Labor day, so she was also here to see him be set apart. We were both asked to bear our testimonies and there was a good spirit in the meeting today. A whole new adventure awaits. I know that Nathan will do great things for this ward!

Happy Birthday Alison!

2008-08-21T18:27:00.000-07:00

Alison turned four last Saturday! We spent the day swimming and then going to Chuck E. Cheese (which, by the way, is NOT a good place to go on a Sat.--so crowded!). Anyway, she had a blast! Sunday Nathan grilled out for his parents, grandma, brother and his family, and some good friends. Alison was so spoiled!! The food and company were fabulous. It was a great day!

Alison with her new Sharpay doll. She likes Sharpay because "her has blond hair like me and she so bootiful!"

Obviously we are biased, but what a cute little girl!!!

Make a wish!

Back to school!!

2008-08-21T18:10:00.000-07:00

I am so excited to have the girls back in school! Rachel started back on Aug. 6th. and she is already adjusted to going to school all day. She loves her teacher and is very excited about school lunch! She is riding the bus home from school each day (Nathan drops her off on his way to work). We feel very spoiled because the bus stops right in front of our house.

Alison started preschool this last Monday (the 18th). She is going to school at the same elementary school as Rachel. She is thrilled to be going 4 days a week in the mornings. Alison is also excited to be riding the bus. She looks like such a big girl going to school like her big sister!
As for me, I am feeling pretty spoiled to only have one to take care of in the mornings. I actually went visiting teaching this week and it seemed so odd to only have Hailey with me. It will be nice to spend some quality time with her!

The city that never sleeps!!

2008-08-09T20:07:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Nate and I had the awesome and long awaited opportunity to go to NYC to celebrate our 10th anniversary. Nathan's parents came to our house and watched the girls for four whole days. I don't know if we can thank them enough!! It was so amazing to experience all of the history and excitement of New York City--without kids! Yeah, like I said--AMAZING. Here are some of the highlights of our trip.

This is our fancy hotel. It's a French chain called Sofitel. Great location and a BEAUTIFUL room.

Nathan surprised me and called the hotel ahead of time to let them know that we were celebrating our anniversary. The basket on the bed was filled with bath products.

This restaurant was across the street from our first show (Chicago). It is called The Playwright. Fabulous!!!

That's me standing there looking like a dork. Oh well. I was excited!!

At Chicago. What a great show. Very sassy.

We took a harbor cruise that took us right in front of the Statue of Liberty. It was relaxing and the weather was so beautiful.

Nathan's was thrilled to see the Yankees play in the old stadium.This is the last season here. The new stadium is almost finished (It is across the street).

Great seats too!

Our second show we saw was a matinee of Grease. It was fun and energetic.

Do I need to say more??? We had Heath Toffee crunch cheesecake in this deli called Roxy in Times Square. It was seriously the best cheesecake I have EVER had. Yes--Utah ladies--even better than the Cheesecake Factory!!!

Our final show on Sat. night. We saw Legally Blond and we were so happy that we did! It was our favorite of the three shows. It was funny, modern, and the talent was unbelievable. It was the only show we attended that received a full standing ovation.

What a great trip. We will never forget it!

Dining room furniture

2008-07-27T13:40:00.001-07:00

After Holiday World Nathan and his dad loaded up his parents old dining room set to give to us. It looks great! I am so excited to finally be able to display my china. Thanks so much grandma and grandad!!! This week Nathan's parents are coming to watch the kids while we go to NYC to celebrate our 10th anniversary. I'll take lots of pictues and post when I get back.

Holiday World

2008-07-27T13:14:00.000-07:00

School starts early here (August 6th--yeah!), so we decided to take the kids to away for one last summer vacation. North of here there is a theme park called Holiday World. It's a lot like Lagoon in Utah with a much bigger water park (Nathan says, "It's WAY better than Lagoon!" I still say it is like Lagoon) Anyway, we had a perfect day hanging out with Nate's parents. Great weather and minimal crowds. It really was a lot of fun. Here are some pictures of the day!

The girls all loved the lazy river (as did I :))

Princess Hailey

Such a big day!

What can I possibly say about this picture?
Nathan and his dad are pretty crazy. They were
the only ones brave enough to go on the big
rollercoasters. I don't care if you call me a wus.

Chillin on the new merry-go-round with grandma
Rosie.

Even little Hailey rode the kiddie rides this year.
What a great day!!!

"Ode to My Wife"

2008-07-24T06:03:00.001-07:00

Amy will kill me for doing this but I wanted to post a blog expressing my love and respect for her. As many of you know, she is an exceptional person. She is a fantastic mother and a better wife. I am extremely proud of what she has accomplished and I am excited for her in her upcoming adventures as a Relief Society President of our Ward. I am proud to have her as my eternal companion and I am impressed at how smooth of a transition she has made moving to Kentucky. Despite the tractor pulls, Mother Mary statues on every lawn, foods fried....cooled.....fried again....., she loves being here with our family. I learn from her everyday. As they say here in the Great Commonwealth of Kentucky, "put your self down for an 'atta girl," Amy. I love you.

Happy Birthday Nathan!!

2008-07-17T17:56:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we went to Owensboro, KY (Nate's hometown) to celebrate his birthday. He had fun golfing with his dad and then we all went to eat at Moonlite. It is seriously the BEST BBQ on the planet. It's a buffet, so you basically eat until you are sick. :)

The first plate of food (of many)

Nate and his mommy

Happy 4th of July!

2008-07-10T18:49:00.001-07:00

Here are a few pictures of us at the Western Kentucky State Fair last weekend. The kids had a blast! They were able to ride a few rides and enjoyed seeing many farm animals at the petting zoo. The big event here in the grandstands was tractor pulling (seriously!). They turn tractors into machines that resemble "monster trucks" and pull sleds that look like they belong on the back of a semi. Nathan said, "You've never seeing tractor pulling??" Um...No. Anyway, I am learning the culture of the area :). It was actually a lot of fun and the funnel cakes were delicious! The day ended with watching fireworks. It was a great day. We hope you all had a fun and safe holiday!

The new house

2008-07-01T18:47:00.000-07:00

We are still in the process of decorating, but here are a few pictures to give you an idea what our new house looks like inside. We had a swing set put together today in the backyard and the kids are thrilled. We feel so blessed and are so happy with our new life in Kentucky.

The kitchen

The Living Room looking out from the Kitchen

The Living Room

Upstairs Bonus Room

Hailey's Room

Rachel and Alison's Room

THE NEW SWINGSET!!!

Staying public... for now

2008-06-30T08:35:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Thanks for your emails and interest in my blog. I had no idea that so many people looked at it! So thanks!! Due to the sheer numbers of emails that I would have to gather up to make this private I think I am going to keep it public for now. If anything wierd happens again in the future I will go private, but for now I will keep it public and make it easier on everyone.
Anyway, things here are going well. The house is really coming together and I promise that I will take pictures of the inside this week. We have had a lot of furniture delivered this last week and I am thrilled with how it is all turning out. Church was interesting yesterday. Nate was called to be the ward clerk and I was called to be something huge. I probably shouldn't say until I get sustained in about three week. If you are dying to know give me a call. Otherwise, start guessing! Needless to say, I am very nervous and feeling extremely inadequate.
Well, enough for today. Time for laundry.

Going private

2008-06-25T06:02:00.000-07:00

I talked to Becky yesterday about going private and I actually thought the idea of a private blog seemed kind of silly. Since yesterday, I have definitely changed my mind. I had a stranger post a comment on my blog last night. It still makes me feel uncomfortable to think that random people could be looking at me and my kids. SO, I am planning to go private this weekend sometime. If you would like an invite to view my blog please send me your emails asap.

Living in Kentucky

2008-06-24T18:09:00.000-07:00

Ok, so we are FINALLY starting to feel a little bit settled. Our dining room and living room are still empty, but we are definitely starting to feel like Hopkinsville is home. The following are pictures that were taken the week before moving out here. We stayed with my mom in Salt Lake and had a great time visiting family, going to temple square, and one last trip to the zoo. The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of unpacking and getting settled here, but we are very happy. Nathan loves his job and we have been very impressed with the ward. We are small in numbers, but great in spirit. Everyone (members and non-members alike) have been very welcoming. Here is a picture of the outside of our new house--I will post pictures of the inside soon.

Fun with friends at the Zoo!!!!

Rachel will really miss her friends

Grandma and Grandpa K - We will miss you!!!

President Eyring's office

"I love to see the temple"

Forever Sisters!!

Our new house!!! We love Kentucky!!

Riding bikes in the driveway

Swimming at the Fentress' (Nathan's boss)

Craziness!

2008-06-05T19:53:00.000-07:00

OK, so I know that many of you are dying to know about the move etc., so I decided to post a quick update. Surprisingly, I survived the flight with the girls. They actually did really well considering the fact that we didn't get to Nate's parents house until midnight last night (road construction in Nashville). Anyway, today has been nuts. We saw the new house this morning. I LOVE IT, IT LOVE IT, LOVE IT! And we went and met the staff at Nate's office. The rest of the day was spent running errands and getting ready to move in tomorrow. The truck should be there sometime in the morning, so lets hope that things go as planned. We had so much fun earlier in the week with friends and my mom. I have a ton of pictures to post, but right now I really need to go to bed. I will give more details soon.

We sold our house!!

2008-05-16T20:38:00.000-07:00

OK, so it is amazing how quickly things can change (for the better)! On Tuesday a couple came and looked at the house and they made an offer the same night! Wednesday, we submitted a counter offer and they accepted. It looks like all of their finances are going to check out, so we are just trying to pin down a closing date. It my be in less than two weeks! CRAZINESS! Anyway, I have started packing. A huge thanks goes out to Scott Kinney for the fabulous boxes. I can't believe all that I have to do to get ready to go, but it is exciting to see things falling into place. The second huge news of the day is that we bought a new house! We gave an offer this morning and it was accepted. It is brand new, but vacant, so we will be able to have immediate occupancy after we close. It is a beautiful home and we are really looking forward to being together as a family again.

Hogle Zoo

2008-05-13T17:49:00.000-07:00

The girls and I had a fun day today at the zoo with our good friends the Limon's and the Sacks'. The weather was gorgeous!! It was so fun to be outside and learn about the animals. Rachel and Alison decided that the zoo is more fun than school :).

Hanging out on the train with Hailey

It is hard to tell, but this is a huge monkey behind Rachel and her friend Nikelle

Hailey loved watching the giraffes eat

The best thing about going to the zoo is going with friends.

Premature excitement

2008-05-09T20:21:00.000-07:00

OK, I haven't wanted to post again because it has been such a crappy week and I didn't want to be pessimistic. Well, I guess it is time to post the bad news. It looks like we are starting over again with our house. After we got our offer last Friday we faxed a counter offer and then we never heard back from the couple. I actually talked to the husband on Tuesday and I still have no idea what really happened. Cold feet?? Anyway, to make a long, emotional story short, I still need to sell our house. Someone is coming tomorrow, so there is always hope, but it stinks being separated from my husband!! If you are reading this, pray for us! Clearly my prayers are not sufficient. Well, it is bedtime. I need to read a little about my favorite vampires to wind down. :)

What a week!

2008-05-02T21:05:00.000-07:00

This has seriously been a crazy week for me! Nathan left on Monday morning with his brother Brent to make the big drive to Kentucky. He arrived Tuesday night and started his new job on Thursday. He is happy to be there and said that the staff has been very friendly and welcoming. It is hard to have Nathan gone, but I have been overwhelmed by the kindness of my friends (I am going to miss you guys!!!!). We have had many invites this week for playdates and dinner, so it has been good to stay busy. Today we had some very exciting news. A cute young family made an offer on our house! They love the floorplan (as do I) and are eager to buy their first home. We are going to counter their offer tomorrow and we are hoping to get a final offer back soon so that we can start making some plans to move the family. They want to close in three weeks, so things could move very quickly. We feel very grateful and blessed. The timing is truly impeccable :) It is amazing how things always work out how they need to. Why do I ever doubt?? Anyway wish us look. Now we have to pray that all of this works out. Nathan is hoping to make an offer on a house in Kentucky next week.

One last trip to St. George!

2008-04-20T16:59:00.000-07:00

We just spent the past 4 days in St. George enjoying the sunshine and staying at my dad's condo. Like a moron I forgot my camera!! So, I don't have any new pictures to post, but we had a great time shopping, swimming, playing mini golf, and shopping. Did I mention shopping??? Nathan also took the girls on some go carts and they had a blast. Of course, we just HAD to get some Nielson's Frozen Custard while we were there. YUM YUM!
We still haven't had any luck selling our house. We are praying that the market picks up in the next month or so. Nathan is leaving for Kentucky a week from tomorrow. It will be so hard to see him go, but I am excited that he is finally able to start his new job.

Disneyland photos

2008-04-09T19:33:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, I am pretty much horrible at keeping in touch! With Nate's help, I decided to start this blog in an attempt to keep you all up to date on what has been going on with the Craig's. We have been trying to sell our house for the past 2 months (with no success so far), and the stress of it all was taking it's toll on our family. So, last month we took kind of a spontaneous trip to Disneyland. It was great to get away, and it was so amazing to experience the magic through the eyes of the girls. They were so thrilled to be able to meet some of their favorite characters including the princesses. We were also able to go swimming and meet up with some old friends from our Springville ward. The best part was the weather--a beautiful 76 degrees. Here are some of our favorite pictures.

My New Blog

2008-04-06T08:40:00.000-07:00

Since all of my friends are blogging, I decided that I better jump on the bandwagon.