The snow has hit the High Desert...

Wow! Can you all believe that the DESERT got this much snow???? I decided to go Christmas shopping in this mess... not exactly the greatest idea. After being out for a couple hours we almost didn't make it home. The snow just kept coming. I am glad tho that we were smart enough not to drive faster than 20 mph. Well here are some pictures. We love you all. Have fun with this 'once in a lifetime for the desert' day.

The snow fell down the post and made a little animal, depending on how you look at it, we think it looks like a piggy or Winnie the Pooh.

10 1/2'' at 1:30pm

The boys taking in the sights.

Daddy having fun.
Daddy knocked a hole thru the snow, who knew?

A lesson to be learned...

This year is going to be a little different than years past when it comes to presents. Brent and I have decided to teach our children the meaning of Christmas.
This year our children have been especially naughty and not very nice to each other or the others around them (including mom and dad). We have been dealing with bad attitudes, non-sharing, rude comments and general mis-behavior. So with such bad behavior we believe it would not be right to reward them.
Instead we are taking the kids with us to the store; we are allowing them to pick a couple toys, blankets and outfits to give to other little boys and girls. We are going to take them down to the homeless shelter to give the gifts so that they can understand how very blessed they are for all they have. And to share love and Christ during this Christmas season.
When we told the kids that this was our plans we expected there to be a fight about what is 'fair.' But instead we were pleasantly surprised when the kids started to get really excited for the idea of giving gifts. So far everyday the kids have been asking when we will go and buy the gifts and when we will give them. I love that they are really getting the message.
We also informed the little ones that Santa may bring something special if he can see that they have a happy heart when they give the presents. So we will see how this goes. Hopefully they will understand the meaning behind our actions; that happiness is in what you do and not what you have.
So there are our plans to spread the true message of Christmas. We hope you all have a great Christmas and many blessings.

Christmas time is here.

So Christmas time is here... I love this time of the year. This is the time for all the colorful lights and decorations. This is the time to snuggle in with your loved ones. For hot cocoa by the fire, Christmas songs and great movies. But most importantly for the joyful occasion of the birth of our Savior. What a beautiful story of a child born so humbly to remind us that we are just as important as the Son of God. How quickly we forget the TRUE meaning of Christmas. Although family togetherness and thoughtful gifts are wonderful pieces to the holiday season, let us not forget that God gave us his only begotten Son for our sins. A beautiful baby boy born in a manger in a cold desert barn.
On a lighter note, how great it will be to see all the family this year. For Thanksgiving we spent the day with the Faylor Family and it was so nice to see all the family. It was great to be able to visit with some that we haven't been able to talk to in quite some time. How easy is it to get so caught up with our own lives that we forget to call or write the people that mean the most to us. So for this Christmas it will be so great to see more of the family. We are so very excited to see both sides of the family and some friends.
With love to everyone this season. See you all soon.

Twilight Opening

Ok I know I have talked to most of the ppl on here about going to the opening night of Twilight. But I had to divulge and write it all up. So getting to the 14 screen opening, yes 14, at 430pm we were about 400-500 from the front. Ppl may say, 'Was it worth it?' My response? Oh MOST DEFINITELY. Now of course it did not follow the book to the 'T' but close enough. There are also some things I would have changed but I will not go into detail for the respect of those who have not seen it. The experience is then what I am going to write about.
Although there was the majority of tweens there (or even adults behaving as tweens) there were still a great many a ppl that can appreciate the awesomeness of a fairy-tale. It was fun to make new friends... I made friends with sisters who were 10 and 12 years old, made myself just like a mom but can't deny that part of myself.
So prior to the movie I was unsure of the casting but seeing it on film totally changed that thought. The casting was so good! Much better looks than in the still pics. Also, I have the soundtrack and wasn't sure of the choices of music but again after the movie, it rocked.
Anyway- The most of you who actually read this we are planning to watch the movie again, we can talk then.

Surprise at 5 am!

As so many people know, I have my clinicals on Friday, all the way down in Pomona at 7 am. Well to be there on time with the possibilites of traffic I need to be up at 445 and out the door at 530. Well this morning As I was finishing getting ready (early, amazingly enough) I recieved a phone call from my classmate at 5. She told me that our teacher was in the hospital and we had no clinical for the day. I just have to point out, isn't it that some of the greatest things come at a price? So I ran back up to bed to snuggle with my honey for another hour. It was such a great thing not to go to the hospital, only because I am usually up for 20 hours before I see my pillow again on Friday. However, it seems that my teacher is not going to be able to come back to teach for the rest of the semester if at all. She has told us before about her back problems so it seems that while doing another clinical she had herniated another disk in her back. And now she has no feeling in her leg. The doctors don't feel there is much they can do. So... who knows what is going to happen.
Well a few of us felt so bad that we went over to the hospital where she is, and took some flowers and a card. She seemed very happy to see us and kept saying that she was so surprised. (She was in an unusually happy mood given the circumstances, but I would think it had to do with the Demerol they gave her). So there is the fun for the day. I love that I had no clinical but it really stinks what happened to have no clinical.
So in other news... ha ha. Brent is working 9 out 10 days in a row. The poor guy is going to be exhausted by next weekend. He is such an amazing guy, he offered to take another guy's schedule so that he could go visit his kids in Texas. I am so proud of the kind of man he is, but man, ALL those days without him? How am I going to survive??? Unrelated, my computer is trashed, all those viruses really don't do good for a computer. But it is in the shop getting fixed, I just hope that they can save all my files.
Kids are well as always, Dillon is getting his last two teeth in, and man to they make him so very cranky. Trying to keep up with the growth spurts of the kids is close to impossible. So we have to hit the stores, AGAIN to get more clothes for them. Yea for kiddos!
That is the latest for this Fam...

Our 6th Anniversary...

So after some polite threats... here I am writing again even though I could have been studying, no mentions of whom it was... I will say it starts with an 'N' and ends with Icole. ;)
We just had our 6 year anniversary, and I was thinking how amazing it is to be so lucky. Although we didn't do much being that we were both so busy, but anniversaries are not about what price you paid for a gift, or how much time you spent finding that gift. It really does come down to how much of yourself you gave that person. I believe that if you can put your own desires aside for their desires, that is when you have reached true love and caring for the person. And notice I said desires, not needs. The reason I say this is because if you put others' needs before your own, well then there is no more for you to give because you have given it all.
So that is my 5 cents worth of marital advice...
We were able to run away just the two of us about 5 weeks ago to Mammoth. It was so amazingly beautiful. We got up there in the mid-morning on Saturday and started hiking immediately. I grabbed some film, yes film, I was using my God-father's old Pentax camera (For those who don't know that is a very nice camera, so I was blessed by his generosity.) It is about 30 years old and still works like it was brand new. I was able to play with all the options, like old time photography. We went up to Devil's Post Pile and Rainbow Falls. After that, we went out to eat, and was pulled over by a Mammoth Police Officer... We apparently didn't realize our tags expired a whole 12 days prior. This guy was just ready to take our car and ruin our night. That is, BEFORE he found our Brent was a Deputy. So here it is, the perks of the job... So after our great dinner we walked the town, which is interesting that the town shuts down at dusk, unless you're into the bar scene, which we are not. So... bed time it was. We woke up early on Sunday and hiked some more, we went up to Emerald Lake and on our way home stopped at Rock Creek and that's where I got the my best pics of Fall colors. I was so excited. I loved our time together, and I loved that we were able to find even a few minutes to do what we really love to do. So it wasn't our actual anniversary but we still like to think it was.
Anyway, not much has changed in the last month. We are just trucking along getting business done. Brent is doing well in the jails, although he is already wanting to get on the streets. He has been blessed to take on some overtime, which is a God send being that car problems seem to be the normal occurrence in our household. He has also gotten his new schedule and he will have Christmas off this year. So that is very exciting to us.
I am still in the program, we will see how much longer. I have been so proud to go to one of the most respected schools, but there are definitely some obstacles I could have gone without. But overall I am having a great time, speaking to one of my friends I had stated that I am the happiest when I am with my patients. So at least I know I am where I am supposed to be. I knew that I would love this, but it really is amazing to be able to put what I learned in school to use in the hospital. Well enough of that.
Rebecca is having a great time in school, she just got back from a field trip to the pumpkin patch and had a blast. Everyday she is coming home singing a song from her school play that is coming up in a couple weeks. She is having so much fun doing it.
Jordan I had to pull out of state preschool. I just didn't like what he was learning from the hoodlum children in that school. Call me a snob, that is fine but when my 4 year old walks thru the door saying to me 'what?! you want some?' While proceeding to throw his arms out to the side ready for a fight, I said that's enough of that. Can't protect them forever, I know, but at least while he is still young. He is back to normal though now that he is at home.
Dillon is talking more, thank goodness. We were only mildly worried that he hadn't started speaking, but he is doing well. He has also started to get a little sense of humor. He has the Faylor humor, that's for sure. He is so funny, and he seems to think so about himself.
Well that is the update on our side of the world...
The Faylor Fam

New Chapters

This week has been really busy but in that chaotic schedule there are so many things I learned about the people I love and about myself. Firstly, my children are some of the most resilient people I have ever met, even more so then some adults I know. They have had several life changing moments and have taken it all with grace and understanding, which is a lot when you are 5, 4, and 2. I have started to look at my children differently, to revere them for their faith in our family.
Some of the changes they have had to deal with are new schools, and going to school for the first time. Not having each other there at all times like they are so used to. Mom gone to school, and dad busy with his work.
Brent had finished the academy and is officially a San Bernardino County Deputy. We are so very proud of him. His graduation was on Thursday, and many of our family and friends were able to make it, and it was so great to have them there for this amazing achievement. It was a powerfully moving ceremony. So here comes the hard part... the real work starts now. He is a great man, and I have no doubts that he will continue to do marvelous things. I have learned that this guy that happens to be my hubby is one loving soul, he will help you in anyway that he can. And seeing his loyalty to us, his family, as well as his new brotheren creates a feeling that resembles something of pride but also humbleness. I love him for his dedication, to family, to loved ones, and to random strangers that will never understand why he pulled them over fo speeding. ;)
I also learned something about myself, that I too can deal with a lot more than I ever gave myself credit for. We have had so many things go on that stress became a normal feeling, just as easy as smiling. It was something I was just prepared for every morning when I woke up. Without going into boring detail, everything that you can imagine can happen in a three week period, did happen. So it lies on me. But overall there were things to be so grateful for. Things could have been worse but the good Lord had helped us through it all. It is a hard thing to do when you change your attitude from, 'God why is this happening, I can't take it anymore,' to 'God thank you for it not being worse.' But I believe that with this attitude we can overcome so much.
Well that is my blah blah blah for the day. Just as soon as we have pics from the graduation we will be posting them. God Bless.