Victory Times

Mary Did You Know

2010-07-22T12:40:00.000-07:00

I found this video on youtube back in 2007. The music is being sung by Clay Aiken. I just love this song and the pictures that go along with the words.

Picture updates

2010-06-19T23:25:00.000-07:00

The last couple of months have been gone by so very fast. Here are some of the highlights!
Jason turned 5 years old. His best friends are Lucy, Teegan, Isaac, Ashley, and Londan. We had a small party at the park behind our house and they had a great time.

Terry had to prove that he actually could ride a bike for the kids. They didn't think he could.

It has been a lot of fun watching him grow up!

Ryan was a Junior this past school year and went to two different proms. The first one with a family friend, McKenzie Kaiser, for her high school. The prom was at a place called The White House, in Orange County. They had a great time.

The second prom was with his friend Michelle Choi from his school. There prom was in Riverside at the Mission Inn, a very nice place.

We also went on a campout over the Memorial Day holiday to La Jolla Indian Reservation for 5 days. Ryan was went to Indiana to visit his friends. The campout was relaxing with no cell phone service. The water was very cold, but it didn't stop us from having a great time. Perfect weather: hot during the day and cold at night.

We had a great time and can't wait to go back there again.

Not always picture perfect

2010-05-11T14:58:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had one of those days when life just isn't going the way that you wanted or pictured it to be? I'm not really having one of those days, but completely just having a blah day. I was thinking about the posts that I put on this blog. Almost all of them are of these picture perfect moments. Most of the time, it's simply so that I don't forget. But, today I just simply wanted to post the truth. I didn't do much. Today, I took Ryan and Kyle to school, took Joshua to the doctors, made breakfast for Jason (the older boys fend for themselves), worked on some stake girls camp stuff, watched biggest loser on the Internet, and fell asleep watching biggest loser. Here is what is funny, even after doing those few things, here are a few of the things I still need to do today: meet Sister Elsmore at the stake center to plan the menu for girls camp, take Josh to baseball practice, make dinner, meet the YCL's for a meeting tonight at the stake center, go to a special education meeting at the middle school to volunteer to be on the district special education committee, and write a 750 page essay for my English class by 12:00 midnight. Is it OK that I want to wave a magic wand and have these things all done for me? I just don't want to do it today, but know that I should. So, I am now confessing that this little post was very therapeutic. I don't even know if anyone ever reads my posts, but I am now done being a normal person and off to work on the picture perfect day!

His Love

2010-04-18T07:45:00.000-07:00

Love this song! Perfect thing to listen to on a Sunday morning.

IHOP

2010-04-03T08:10:00.000-07:00

I love pancakes! I especially love pancakes when I don't have to make them. For my sons we typically go through 1 box of pancake mix per setting. So every year when IHOP has their National Free Pancakes, you can guarantee that the Victory's are going. This year we met our friends, the Porter's there. It was a good meal and great company. Here are a few pictures taken:

Nathell and Leanne

Holly Porter

Jordan and Lucy Porter

The Porter's & Victory's (Evan & Terry were not cooperating)

Jason, Josh, and Adam Porter

Our bellies were full and we loved it!

Create video

2010-03-08T07:20:00.000-08:00

I thought this video was very inspiring this morning!

A Great Day in Heaven!!

2010-03-06T19:47:00.001-08:00

Today was a great day for me and my family. My Dad went to the San Diego Temple to be sealed to his parents and siblings for time and all eternity. The spirit was very strong in the sealing room. I am so proud of my Dad. It was cute how nervous he was. I am so grateful to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Families are Forever. I can't imagine Heavenly Father wanting it any other way!

My parents, Ron & Roxanne Brown

After the Temple we went to Old Town San Diego for lunch at the Mexican Restaurant. It's our favorite!!! We decided to go over to the Mormon Battalion visiting center. It just reopened. The renovations are amazing. After the tour you can have your picture taken. Don't you love my Dad's smile - he looks like he would have fit perfect in 1847!!

My trip to Maui

2010-01-23T21:34:00.000-08:00

10,000 ft up on Haleakala Volcano

I had one of the best trips to Maui this past week. I went to visit my "sister from another mister" Laurie Kimura. The trip was amazing, Laurie and her boys were the perfect hosts. First, my awesome parents let me use those frequent flyer miles and I got to fly FIRST CLASS round-trip! I really enjoyed that warm towel to wash my face and hands. The hot swordfish dinner on a real plate with silverware was perfect. I even ate the carrots. Can you tell it doesn't take much to impress me? So during my 6 hour flight I made a list of everything I wanted do: visit Hana, jump in a waterfall, eat a pineapple, wear a lei, see a whale, swim with a fish, see the sunset from the top of the volcano, visit a public market, get a picture of a rainbow and several other things. The most important thing was just to hang out with Laurie.

I am so lucky to have her as a friend. I joked with her once that in the pre-exsistence Heavenly Father said a little prayer when we left Him because we were a handful then and knew we would be handful again when we became friends on earth. I wonder sometimes if when He is watching over us He giggles at some of the things we do, as any parent would.

We went to a lavender farm that had the most awesome view of the island. The only problem was the lavender is not in season. But we enjoyed the peace and quiet, a lavender scone with jelly (kind of hot), lavender brownie and lavender herbal tea (not my favorite, it tasted like dirty water). Road to Hana

On one side of the island, its this beautiful green with waterfalls, tall bamboo trees, tropical plants and flowers. And on the other side....

Dry, ugly and only accessable by a dirt rode. Note to self, not wise to go on a dirt rode in a Honda Accord. What an adventure!

This is Baldwin Beach, right down the street from Laurie's house! Seriously, the girl has it made!!

Saw a rainbow everyday, that has to be good luck right?

This is Twin Falls, less than 10 minutes from Laurie's house. We had so much fun, one of my favorite moments. The water was cold but felt good after our legs were numb.One of the highlights on my trip was getting to see Elder Steven Perry, the tall Elder. I was one of his primary leaders when I lived in Michigan. The last time I saw him he was 13 years old and a lot shorter. His parents are Jim and Tracey Perry who are wonderful parents and did such a great job raising a beautiful family. It was fun to see him and his companion at church and talk about Detroit. So proud of Elder Perry! We both agreed that we don't miss the freezing weather. Isn't the gospel amazing that whereever you go in the world, the church is there for you and can instantly feel like you are apart of that ward? I love being a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints!

I know this post is long but I wanted to share a few of my favorite pictures. Next week I will be adding the pictures of Laurie and I snorkling! Thanks again Laurie for a fantastic week!

Lucy Porter

2010-01-11T14:19:00.001-08:00

This cute little girl is Lucy Porter, one of Jason's best friends. Jason and Lucy are 4 years old. About a year and half ago they started preschool together. Lucy's family have become really good friends to us, like they've been a part of the family our whole lives. Her mom watched Jason for me during my first semester of college, so they were together 5 days a week and on Sunday during Primary. They play great together. I would even say that they have a mini "marriage". They have a great time together, fight every once in awhile, then they are back to being the best of friends. Pure forgiveness, no matter what the situation. They have one game that they love to play, it's called "Lucy Chest". When Jason came home one day and said that he loved playing Lucy chest I asked him to repeat what he was saying because it caught me off guard. I asked him how he plays Lucy chest and he explained that they get a board game out and put the guys on both side of the board, knock out the guys and Lucy always wins. That's why it's called "Lucy Chest". I am so glad he understands at such a young age to always let the ladies win!!

A New Year

2010-01-08T10:51:00.001-08:00

I had a conversation with my sister-in-law last night that kind of freaked me out. In the Fall of 2010, I will have one son as a senior in high school and one son as a brand new kindergartner. I have got to step it up and just make lots of new memories with my boys, maybe even make new traditions. Whatever it is, I realised this morning that my time as a parent just flashed before my eyes and I need to document as much as I can. Is it a coincidence that its the new year? I don't know but as I sit here in an empty house, I got sentimental. My greatest accomplishment in life is my children!! Here's to a new year and lots of new memories!!!!

Elder F Enzio Busche

2009-10-12T07:54:00.000-07:00

My friend Shannon Brown posted this video on facebook this morning and I love it. I love the message from Elder Busche, it was just what I needed this morning. There are so many people going through trials right now, including myself, and this video gave the little extra strength that I needed to get through the trials for today. Hope you enjoy it!

Havasupi 2009

2009-07-30T19:00:00.000-07:00

Ryan and Kyle had a great opportunity with their Boy Scout Troop to visit Havasupi Reservation that is at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. When we moved into our ward a year ago, the scout leaders were already preparing for the trip. All the YM were required to go on 4 10-mile hikes throughout the year to prepare for the long hike down the canyon. We were really afraid for Kyle. His scout leaders assured us that he did great on the pre-hikes, so off we sent them. There was alot of preparation for this trip; hikes, ordering food, golf tournament (the fundraiser for the trip), gear checks, etc. They came home very exhausted but had a great time. I will be forever grateful to the scout leaders who put so much time and energy into the program for the YM.

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The Weston's and The Baker's

2009-07-29T21:56:00.000-07:00

The month of July has been so much fun for us. First the Kimura's came to visit and then a few weeks later the Weston's came to town. We were able to spend time with them and the Baker's who now live in Carlsbad. For some reason I don't have a family picture of the Baker's. Sorry Jill. I am pretty sure that Ryan and Kyle would give an arm to live back in Indiana. They miss their best friends Scott and Jake. Some how Sophi convinced me to sign up for the TV show "Wipeout". Here are some pictures highlighting our week. These 2 families are filled with amazing people and we are so grateful that they are part of our lives!

Me and the Boys. This was taken at the San Diego Temple. Love this place. One day I hope to have a family picture where we all look at the camera together and smile and Terry is with us. Until then, this is my little family!!

Tanner Baker and Kyle

Scott, Sophi, Chloe and Ryan

Awesome friends - LaDawn and Jill!

Joshua chilling at Oceanside!

Leanne and Sophi - friends forever!!

Kyle, Jake, Josh and Jason in a tree on the grounds of the Los Angeles Temple.

Chloe, Ryan, Sophi and Scott in La Jolla.

Jason

The Weston Family: Rance, LaDawn, Chloe, Scott, Sophi, Jake, and Olivia

The Kimura Family

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

We just spent 4 wonderful days with our friends the Kimuras. Here is a list of some of favorite things about their family.

1. Laurie is an awesome cook. One of the first things that Joshua asked Laurie when she got here was if they could make cookies together like they did in Indiana. My kids were fed well and are sad that she is gone.

2. Everyone has a fun time. Whenever we are together, there is never a dull moment. Funny moment over the weekend: Micah and his contagious laugh after he found out that Ryan has a hair stylist named Vince. Thanks Ryan for being such a good sport. So happy that you are ok with your manhood!

3. We haven't seen each other in over a year and it felt like it was just the previous weekend we were all together. We are more than friends, we are family!

This was a 4 day vacation with great food but even better company!!!

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Mom, do I look handsome?

2009-04-15T12:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I was ironing clothes and Jason came to me with a huge smile on his face and asked, Mom do I look handsome? Obviously, he had put something on his lips but I wasn't sure. I knew my lip gloss was in the car so I asked what he used on his lips and this is what he presented to me:

Elmer's Disappearing Purple Glue Stick

Jason Atilano Victory

2009-04-13T09:35:00.000-07:00

On this Easter Sunday it was Jason's 4th birthday. It was great to have our family and friends gathered around. We all went to church together because Ryan was ordained a Priest. So exciting! It was the first time that a majority of my family could attend an ordination for one of our boys. I loved seeing the circle of white shirts, it was a small glimpse into the eternities! But this day belonged to Jason. All day long he sang happy birthday to himself and one minute he was 4, next 7, then 5, then whatever number he could think of. He told my visiting teacher he was 8. There are days when I just want him to be my baby forever and then I can't wait for what life has in store for him.

Jason has his own unique style right now. Most days he prefers no clothes, or they are inside out or backwards. So to have our Superman pj's on to go hiking is ok with me. He will wear snow boots, crocks, or tennis shoes. I leave it up to him. Most days its snow boots. Kind of funny looking in California, but he's a little kid so he can get away with it.

WORD OF WARNING: If you decide to watch this cute video of Jason, turn your volume down a notch, we are a loud family!

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Happy Anniversary!

2009-04-10T21:46:00.000-07:00

This has been a very busy week for us when it comes to celebrations. Last Friday we started out with Kyle's 13th birthday party, spring break started on Monday, Thursday was Ryan's 16th birthday, Saturday is our 17th wedding anniversary, and Sunday is Jason's 4th birthday and it's Easter. Terry frequently stops by our family blog because he likes to see the updates on the family and all our friends updates. I thought I would post a few pictures of Terry and I because I just know how much he loves to have his pictures posted. Happy Anniversary Babe!!!

Sorry about the quality of this picture. It's the only prom picture that I have and I actually carry it in my wallet. Terry has worn a tux 3 times in his life: prom, our wedding and my brother's wedding. He would rather be in shorts and a t-shirt. We look like babies!

I think this was our announcement picture. We didn't have a lot of money, so Terry's Grandma took this picture outside her front door. We look like we were ready to take a nap. Terry's sweater was so big!

This is one of my favorite pictures. My Grandpa snapped this picture with a throw away camera. Tender moment for the big guy - I love him so!

Today we had lunch at BJ's Restaurant - one of our favorites. Who can resist a pizookie? Not us! We might not look or act the same when we started out 17 years ago but our love for each other continues to grow each and every day!

Happy Birthday Ryan!

2009-04-10T08:17:00.001-07:00

Ryan had his 16th birthday yesterday. When I gave him a hug he just wrapped his arms around my head. He's so tall. He spent the day at Disneyland with his cousin Charlotte. He said space mountain was his favorite.

Ryan weighed 8lbs 3 oz when he was born. Now there isn't a single oz of fat on him!

His hair was so blonde that it didn't show up until he was 13 months old. He loves his hair now - so funny. What a cutie!!

Terry loves this picture. This is Ryan at his 1st birthday. I would like to update that his eating habits haven't changed. He's constantly hungry and is super skinny.

We added this picture for Andrea and Morgan Grey. Did you notice what he is holding in his hand? That's right - N'Sync!!! Ryan sang every song from that CD over and over.

Ryan our stud! This is yesterday at Disneyland. As his Mom I can't help but praise my baby. He's a good kid. We love him. We have to fight with him everyday to do his chores but overall we love him. I can't believe that 16 years ago I held this little boy in my arms and now he could probably carry me!

Hanging out with the kids!

2009-04-07T19:39:00.000-07:00

Spring break started out yesterday and so I have been trying to keep the boys busy. It was a gorgeous day on Monday so we went to Oceanside for about an hour and half. McKenzie and Jacob Kaiser came with us. Jason stayed home with my mom because "Grandma's is awesome"! (Seriously, Jason would prefer living with my parents because she spoils him.) Today, we decided to go for a hike up in the mountains. Idyllwild is about 40 minutes (5000 ft) up the hill from us. So beautiful!! We hiked over to a small stream. The boys were hungry, but when are they not hungry, so we stayed only for 1 hr. We got back and left for Joshua's 1st baseball game. He did so good, 3 for 3 with 1 RBI. He plays center field on the Phillies team. Super proud of him. Here are a few of the pictures that I have taken. Hope you enjoy!

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Kids do crazy things!

2009-03-30T09:03:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Terry and I went to visit his brother John, his girlfriend Angel and her son Reuben. Reuben is 12 years old and a great kid. Recently he was diagnosed with ADHD and has had to make some changes at school, etc. When we got there, Angel said did you see Reuben's eye's? He did show us his new glasses, very excited. But what we were suppose to notice was his eyebrows. Apparently, he was in the bathroom for sometime, John and Angel thought he was taking care of business. After some time, he came out of the bathroom and was freaking out that someone shaved his eyebrows! Even went on about it to John and Angel and said "which one of you did it while I was asleep". When the truth came out, Reuben confessed he did it so that he wouldn't have to go to school that day. Needless to say, Reuben still had to go to school. I thought he was pretty clever in shaving the eyebrows. That is definitely one for "kids do crazy things" to get out of school! Notice that he only shaved a portion of the eyebrow. Next, we are going to work on a hair cut.

Why Mormons Build Temples

2009-03-18T12:10:00.000-07:00

I went on www.lds.org today to look up something for genealogy and saw this youtube video and thought I would post it. There has been a lot of uproar in the news about the HBO show Big Love, as I'm sure many of you are aware of. My thoughts on the whole situation is that I'm grateful that when I am in the Lord's House I learn something different about myself and my relationship with Heavenly Father every time. There are a lot of things that I do not know about the gospel or understand, and I'm sure that is where faith comes in. I could spend lots of time bearing my testimony about the gospel principles that I believe in. I will say that I do believe in the sacredness of the Temple. It saddens me that those who do not understand, feel it's okay to try and explain without having that testimony. I always try to look for the good in people and maybe this HBO show is appealing to someone and one day they will investigate the gospel for themselves. That's just me trying to think positive instead of on the negative. I am also grateful that we have leaders that provide a website that we can click on, get some direction, and then pray for the truth for ourselves!

Here is a link to the official statement from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in regards to the publicity dilemma.

http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/commentary/the-publicity-dilemma

Team Titan Spirit Award

2009-03-05T20:01:00.000-08:00

I had a proud mom moment tonight. Ryan got the Team Titan Spirit award! I can't believe that Ryan actually gave me a real smile in a picture. Doesn't Ryan have a cute smile? Coach Hyde said that Ryan is always cheering on his teammates and an upbeat kid. I love being his mom. I love him for being a good example and a well-rounded kid. Way to go Ryan!

Simple Pleasures

2009-03-04T09:22:00.000-08:00

Today I was having one of those moments when I was vacuuming the front room, I realized that I really love seeing the fresh vacuum lines in the carpet. It just looks so clean. Call me crazy, and I know some of you do :) but it was my simple pleasure for the morning! I just love vacuuming. It's Joshua's chore and he doesn't care for it. Actually, he just doesn't like doing chores. Does anyone pay their kids for chores? We never have, just curious.

National Pancake Day

2009-02-24T18:55:00.000-08:00

Today is IHOP National Pancake Day. In honor of that, we went to IHOP for dinner tonight. Don't you love to have breakfast for dinner sometimes? Each person got a free stack (3) of pancakes. IHOP is a sponsor of the Children's Miracle Network and are raising money for that charity. Every one ate everything on their plates, in fact, Ryan finished his and then half of Charlotte's. Does your family have interesting discussions at the dinner table? Our topic of the night was: is it correct to say "party of (however many guests)" or "get together (however many guests)". Needless to say, "party of" won but made for great conversation at the dinner table!

Love their blueberry syrup!

Yummmmmy!

Jason & Joshua happy to get chocolate milk with their dinner.

Kyle and Joshua

Charlotte ready to ring Ryan for the table talk!

Sledding fun

2009-02-22T20:16:00.000-08:00

On Friday the young men went "winter" camping up at Idylwild. Not sure if you consider it "winter" since it was 65 degrees. These are the mountains about 30 minutes from our house. On Saturday, the young women joined them for a day of sledding. Here is a picture of Ryan and Kyle.

Ryan showing us how to sled with style!

Who said Kyle needs reindeer?

Zach McCray

2009-02-22T11:07:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to post this blog for everyone to see. My friends Tim and Debbie McCray have a son Zachary that is serving in Iraq right now. Zach is a great kid. I guess he's a man now! Zach and I became friends when he was in my Sunday School class many years ago. I always felt like I needed to make sure that I knew what I was teaching because Zach had a different way of looking at things at that time in his life. He really strengthened my testimony because I had to think out of the box. I miss him and pray that he and all people he is serving with will be safe. Please keep Zach and his family in your prayers also. His blog is

http://zachiniraq.blogspot.com/

Thanks!

Keeping the Sabbath Day Holy

2009-02-17T12:38:00.000-08:00

Kids can be so creative when they what to do something they know that they can't do on Sundays. My brother Steven came to church a couple of weeks ago for the first time in several years. He brought my nephew Corey and he asked if he could go to primary with Joshua. Steve was not happy, 1 hour of Sacrament was long enough for him. So not to disappoint his son they stayed. After church, I went to find my boys, Terry and Steve. What I found was my boys agreeing with Steven to go to In-n-Out for lunch. When I said No, I got lots of moaning and crying of please, please, please. I always thought when the parent says No that's what it meant however, my brother must of heard different! Do you see where I am going with this? The boys drove home with Steven (we live 3 minutes from the building). Terry and I pull up into the driveway, no Steven. 5 minutes later they pull up with In-n-Out. When we talked about the whole keeping the Sabbath Day Holy, Joshua says: "Mom, it's okay because Steve is inactive and he paid". Man, am I in trouble or what?

Photo Tag

2009-02-09T22:31:00.000-08:00

So Janet asked for the sixth picture from my sixth folder. Don't you love the farmer's tan? This was taken by Joshua while we were in Nauvoo 2 years ago for the 4th of July. We sat across the street from the Temple on the mountain side and watched the fireworks over the Mississippi River. It was a fun night. Nauvoo is one of my favorite places.

Bunco Friends

2009-01-20T15:36:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pictures from our 1st Bunco party. For those not familiar with bunco, once a month a group of 12 women get together and play a dice game. We eat, talk, roll dice, eat candy, talk a lot, laugh, scream bunco and just have a great time getting to know one another. It's a lot of fun and a great way to make new friends. Hope you enjoy!

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Talented People

2009-01-17T22:28:00.000-08:00

My mom and I went to the quilt show today. She is so talented and creative with her own quilts. Can you tell that I think she's awesome? There were so many people who displayed their stuff! Apparently, your not suppose to touch the quilts. Didn't know until a lady freaked out and said "Don't touch"! (Whatever, just admiring.) We could not believe the beautiful quilts and the time that was put into these masterpieces. I just thought I would share a few of our favorites. Remember these pictures are of quilts! I wish I had and the time and talent to create something this beautiful, but so grateful that others allowed us to appreciate their talents.

This one reminded me of the Garden of Eden! Or at least my minds version!

This picture does nothing compared to the actual quilt. It was beautifully quilted. So many small pieces all sewn together.

Oh Brother!

2009-01-16T10:43:00.001-08:00

Steven is a great uncle to my boys. Steve has been trying to teach Kyle and Ryan how to surf. He is an awesome dad to his son Corey. The only flaw that I can think of is that he's a San Diego Chargers Fan! Seriously, what is that about!

Eternal Families

2009-01-08T20:19:00.000-08:00

So I was thinking about my boys today and how much they mean to me and I remembered that I took this picture a few days before Christmas. It's not the greatest picture but the thing that I love about it is that everyone of them is unique in their own way.

Terry is my best friend. I can't believe that we have been together for 20 years! My love for him continues to grow stronger and stronger. He makes life interesting. I love you so much, babe!

Ryan loves music and has such a crazy fun personality. He listens to bands that I never knew existed. He just started playing the guitar. We know the chorus to "Hey there Delia" very well now. We're always wondering what multiple personality will grace us for the day. You are so much fun, RyRy!

Kyle is so loving but is the most challenging. He can be the devil's child one minute and then use his dreamy eyes to melt your heart. I love it that he holds his own around his uncles. He's great with one liners.

Joshua is the best hugger! Whenever you walk in the room, he will come running with a smile and a hug. He brightens my day. He wants to be at school so early in the morning that he normally is up before the sun. He loves playing handball and riding his bike to school. His newest interest: the Cults Cheerleaders! Also, he loves to talk on the phone, just ask Guy Kimura.

Our little man Jason! He is so much fun right now. Since we arrived in California 5 months ago, he found his voice. He talks non-stop now. I love it when he tells Terry to get out of "his" house when Terry is yelling at one of his brothers. We are 80% potty trained. So close! He is still a hugger and kisser, which I am grateful for. I love that he is trying to be independent and holding his own against his brothers.

So those are the men in my life. They are everything to me and I am grateful that Heavenly Father let them be a part of my life. I would not be the person I am if it wasn't for them.

Go Titans!

2008-12-16T14:37:00.000-08:00

This past Saturday we had a fun family day. Ryan is now playing on the JV Basketball team at Tahquitz High School. I really can't tell who was more excited, Terry or Ryan. What was great about Saturday was that Ryan was playing against Elsinore High School, which is where Terry and I graduated from 20 years ago. To surprise Terry, Ryan had his jersey number switched to #33 (Terry's basketball number is high school). My parents, brothers, sister-in-law, niece's and nephews, and cousins all came to watch Ryan play. To top off the afternoon we all went to lunch at In-n-Out (Yum!). Unfortunately, Elsinore beat Tahquitz! Better luck next time.

The Green box

2008-12-16T09:26:00.001-08:00

Ok for days now I have been trying to figure out how to remove the little green box above the blog list. It is frustrating me to no end. I can barely figure out how to add a new post let alone figure out how it even got there. It will have to remain until I do another mistake and then maybe it will disappear. I wish there was a website: blogging for dummies! I sit here for hours trying to make it nice and somewhat presentable. It's like I am addicted. Speaking of addicted - I started the Twilight book a week ago. On Tuesday I read the 2nd book, Thursday I stayed up to 2:30 am to finish book 3 and on Sunday I finished book 4. I could not put the books down. My laundry looks like a mountain, the floor wasn't mopped all week and I can not tell you what my children had for dinner except for one night when I ordered pizza. I still have not seen the movie which is why I wanted to read the book in the first place. Call me crazy but now I am sad that I've finished them so fast. Then I feel guilty because how can I read books that are at least 600 pages each in one day but can only read about 4 chapters of the scriptures in a week? What kind of person does that make me? And when I read the scriptures, I normally have a second book that helps me understand what I just read so that when I go to Gospel Doctrine I can understand what everyone else is talking about. Ok now I feel totally crazy, sometimes I wonder if Heavenly Father listens to my thoughts and thinks He needs a break from listening to my weirdness. At least I know that He will always love me, despite everything!

Southern California Snowman

2008-12-06T18:57:00.000-08:00

Today we went to our town Christmas parade. We could not stop laughing at the man-made snowmen that were on several floats throughout the parade. In case you can't tell, he's made of tumbleweed. I thought I'd share a picture to all our friends back East that are battling the winter cold!

"Bee"sy Weekend

2008-10-12T14:57:00.000-07:00

Friday night we went camping with my childhood friend Shannon and her family at Lytle Creek. Her family is part of a members only RV park. The first people to claim Lytle Creek as their home was the Tahtam Indians. On June 11, 1851 the first company of Mormon Colonists arrived from Salt Lake City as part of the Mormon Battalion. With this group was Captain Andrew Lytle. He never lived in this canyon, but another LDS family came to live in the canyon and built their ranch which is still present today. The creek was used for mining. Lytle Creek RV park is part of that original ranch and has had several owners. Very fun place to camp.

On Saturday, we headed over to the dry river to hike to a waterfall. We were so close, the waterfall was in view when Joshua and my friends son Ean walked into a bees nest. These were the stinging bees. As you can see from the pictures this was a very rocky area. Josh was screaming and running down the rocks with bees all over him. Ean tripped over a tree log and went airborne doing a flip and amazingly landing on his feet. We were really close to a stream of very cold water. The two boys were completely covered with bees. We starting taking off their clothes and applying the cold water to their bodies. I've only seen bees attack someone in the movies. We hiked back out of the canyon and took them to the ER because Joshua had over 14 visible bee stings all over his body. Ean had several as well. Needless to say, Josh and Ean will be afraid of bees for awhile. By the end of the night, a dose of benadryl, and some dinner the two boys were back to playing like normal little boys.

This will be a memory that we will never forget.

Fun at the Beach

2008-10-06T20:45:00.000-07:00

So it's been really hot here and I was determined to go to the beach. The boys have gone several times with my brother Steven already. We had family council and we penciled it in for this past Saturday. All week it's been in the 90's and the day we decide to go to the beach, it's 71 and overcast. It was raining in Hemet but I didn't care we were going to the beach. There is no reason to waste time any more and it turned out to be so much fun. The water was actually pretty warm. Kyle and Ryan have found a new hobbie. Ryan got up on the surfboard. He's very excited! Kyle tried several times. The waves were very choppy. Just when we decided to leave at 2:00pm the sun came out. Go figure! Jason got knocked down by one wave and said he was done with the water and spent the rest of the time playing in the sand. Joshua couldn't make up his mind on whether or not he wanted to be in the water or play with his cousins on the rocks. I tried to get in the water to take pictures with my little camera but the waves kept pounding me. I'm a wimp and I admit it. All in all I love being at the beach. It is so beautiful despite it being overcast that day!

Happy Times

2008-08-05T16:35:00.000-07:00

Hello to our family and friends. I am so excited to start this blog stuff. I love reading the family blogs of our friends, so I created one of our own. So, we are a family of 6. We are Terry, Leanne, Ryan, Kyle, Joshua, and Jason Victory. We recently moved from the awesome town of Greenwood, Indiana to Hemet in sunny Southern California. We miss our friends from Indiana so much. We are so grateful that we have email, cell phones and text messaging.

So I will add more to this new adventure soon. So keep an eye open for the new Victory Times!