Brad, I love you in so many ways, I cannot name them all.  Your handsome, smart, dependable, compassionate, strong, charitable, and kind.  I am so blessed to be your wife. I love you.  Happy 6th Anniversary!

Fun day out

My sister in law and I decided to take our kids to the Wonder place in Little Rock to let them burn off some of their energy.  It can be hard keeping four kids entertained during Christmas break :)  They of course loved it and kept us busy chasing them from room to room.  

My niece, Charlotte

Brynlee had a great time exploring.  She sat contently in her stroller about half the time and had fun crawling everywhere and climbing up on things for the other half.

Jillian and Olivia

They even had a water station for the babies.  Even though I tried to strip down most of Brynlees clothes, we still managed to get water all over.  But she loved it!

The girls treated us to several puppet shows.

We had a great time. And it was so nice to have Kayla there to help with the girls.  Isn't her hair pretty?  She got a new herstyler for Christmas.

Christmas

This is going to be a long post with lots of pictures just to warn everyone.  We had a great Christmas, probably one of the best we've had.  Everything was just so relaxing and enjoyable and the kids were so grateful for all they were given and told us several times throughout the day "thank you".  That always makes you feel good when you can tell how happy your kids are and that they appreciate their things.  

 Saturday night we went over to Billy and Debbie's and had the Shelton Christmas over there.  The girls got spoiled by Grandpa and Grandma and of course by their Uncles and Aunt Jillian . But the main presents was that Kayla got Missme jeans and a Vera Bradley Purse, and Callie and Hailey got Leappad and Leapfrog Explorers.  They also spoiled Brad and I with money and of course other fun things.  Debbie made an awesome dinner and we just had a great time with family. 

My niece, Charlotte

Hailey was so into her new toy!

Uncle Cory bought Kayla some of the cutest outerwear assessories.

Papa had just had knee surgery a couple days before, but he is doing really well.

Brad's brother Craig and their family.

After we got home we decided to make Gingerbread houses (well Graham cracker houses) and they didn't exactly turn out as well as we hoped ;)  Look at Callie's face and her caved in roof!

Kayla wasn't so sure about her house either.

Brynlee had the right idea.  We should have just ate the graham crackers and candy clear from the beginning.

Here are all the presents laid out after the girls had gone to bed. We were so excited for them to see their things.

Callie and Hailey were so excited to find two of these scooters when they woke up that Papa Richard and Nana Linda had gotten them. Some of Callie's other favorite gifts were her Barbie laptop and Karaoke machine.  And Hailey's favorite was definitely her art easel.  Brynlee was just as happy with the stuff in the stockings as anything else.

The funnest part of our Christmas was watching Kayla open her Kindle fire. She didn't have a clue that we would even consider getting her that.  She was so excited!

My best gift was this awesome KitchenAid mixer that my whole family chipped in and got me.  I can't wait to put this baby to good use! If anyone has any good recipes, pass them along to me.

Last year of my 20's!

This morning when I woke up Callie asked me how much I weighed.  I said: "Why do you want to know how much I weigh?"  She said "Because it's your birthday!" 

I started laughing and said: "You mean, how old am I?"  She said: "Yeah!" 

As soon as I told her and showed her how old 29 was (on my fingers), she said: "Are you going to die soon?"  She must of thought 29 looked pretty old :)  She sure knows how to make a girl feel good.

Anyway, I had a FANTASTIC birthday.  I woke up to breakfast in bed made by Kayla who brought it to me on a tray with flowers and everything.  She had also decorated the dining room for me and had the girls dressed in matching outfits.  How lucky am I?  Then I got several phone calls from family and friends wishing me a happy birthday.  After that my mother in law came over to watch the girls while I met Brad for lunch at Olive Garden.  He then took me to get some new running shoes, which I protested at first, but after he insisted and I realized that I hadn't bought athletic shoes in almost ten years, I decided it probably was time :)  After that Brad took me to get a hot stone massage, which is awesome by the way, for anyone thinking about getting one.  I kept thinking it couldn't possibly feel any better and then it would.  I feel like a new woman.  Thanks everyone who made my birthday so special.

New Neice

I am the new aunt to a pretty little girl!  Can't wait to meet her.  Congratulations Mark and Shayla.

Our Elf

Not only does our elf "Little Red" report to Santa every night, but he also manages to get himself into a lot of trouble while we are sleeping.  The girls can't believe what he is doing sometimes when they wake up.

Callie's Holiday Fun Day

Today I got to go with Callie to School for her fun day.  She loved showing off her baby sister to everyone, and even had fun trying to feed Brynlee her lunch, instead of eating it herself :)

Callie loves both her teachers Miss Lucia and Miss Kristin.


A couple days ago, I sent money to school so she could get her picture with Santa.  I told her that she needed to sit on his lap, because mommy bought some pictures and I wanted her to smile.  She said that she would.  When she got home I asked her how it went. She said "Good", kind of hesitantly.  So then I asked  "Did you like Santa?"  She said, "Well, yes... but is Santa brown?"
I kind of chuckled because I thought maybe I knew what she meant (that their Santa was African American)  but I wasn't quite sure.  So I said "Maybe, that's alright isn't it?"  And she said 'Yeah."
Little kids are so curious when things aren't always the same as they've seen them before.

Family in need...

Several weeks ago I learned that a good family friend had been involved in a horrible car accident.  Katey Winterholler, who is about my age, was nine months pregnant when she rolled her pickup on an icy highway in Wyoming on Nov. 15.  She was life-flighted to Billings, MT. where her baby was born healthy that day.  Immediately afterward she underwent emergency back and neck surgery.  Her family does not have health insurance.   The road to recovery will be a long one for Katey and her family, as she also has a young toddler at home.  It is unsure what the long term outcome will be for Katey, but she has suffered paralysis and swelling following the accident.

This story broke my heart, I wish I had the means to be able to help them in a BIG way because that is what they really need.  I have wrestled with different ways that I might be able to help them, and each time have told myself that anything that I could do would not make that much of a difference.  Katey's husband was my brothers best friend growing up and so this story means a lot to me not just because they are good family friends, but also because I am a mother to young children and I can only imagine the difficult journey Katey and her family are going through at this time.  What I finally decided is that even though I don't have a lot to give, I do have a voice and I do have the ability to write. So I am sending this message out in hopes that others might be willing to step up and help out in any way that they can.  No donation is to small, this family has a great need, and anything will help.  If you feel impressed to do so please send donations to a benefit that has been set up in her name at:

The Katey Winterholler Fund

Big Horn Federal Bank 

8 East Main Street  Lovell, WY 82431-2002 (307) 548-2703

Please feel free to share this message so that we can get it out to as many people as possible.  I know that many of you may not know this family, but they are an awesome, beautiful family that is deserving of any help that can be offered in their behalf.

Thank you,

Nina Shelton

Starting a new tradition....

The girls got an exciting surprise when they came home from school today.  "Santa Claus" (a.k.a. Grandma Shelton) had sent a special visitor to come live with us during Christmas time.  Our very own Elf!  The girls named him "Little Red".  For those of you that haven't heard about it, there is a new book out called The Elf on the Shelf and it comes with an elf doll.  It is a new tradition to start with your kids. Here is the tradition or the story of the elf:

The Elf on the Shelf Tradition

Have you ever wondered how Santa knows who is naughty and who is nice? The Elf on the Shelf – A Christmas Tradition is the very special tool that helps Santa know who to put on the Naughty and Nice list. This interactive holiday hide-and-seek tradition is perfect for children and families of all ages. The tradition begins when Santa sends his scout elves out to Elf Adoption Centers. Waiting for their families to bring them home, these patient elves hibernate until their family reads The Elf on the Shelf, gives their elf a very special name, and registers their adoption online. Once named, each scout elf will receive its Christmas magic and become a part of the family’s Christmas each and every year.  Excellent listeners and even better observers, these scout elves are the eyes and ears of Santa Claus. Although they cannot be touched, or else they may lose their magic, the elf will always listen and relay messages back to Santa. Taking in all the day-to-day activities around the house, no good deed goes unnoticed; these scout elves take their job seriously. Each night, after the family goes to bed, the scout elf uses his magical Christmas powers to fly back to the North Pole. Once there, the elf will make his or her daily report to Santa and visit with elf friends where they will tell stories about their beloved families, play with the reindeer, and of course, sneak some of Mrs. Claus’ cookies! Before the family awakes each morning, their special scout elf will fly back to their home from the North Pole. However, since these elves like to play games, don’t expect to find them in the same spot!  While some like to hide in the freezer (probably because it reminds them of the North Pole) and others prefer to sit on the fireplace mantle or hang from the chandelier, these elves love to play hide-and-seek with their families. On Christmas Eve, the scout elf will listen for Santa’s bell and then fly back to the North Pole until the next season, wishing every girl and each boy a Christmas of peace and a year full of joy.

You can also go online and play interactive games, make a christmas wish list, etc.  The girls already believe that he is magical and that he does things when they are not around :)