Happy Birthday Trent!

Trent turns 11 on October 17.  He is a great kid!  I love him very much!  So here is 11 things you may not know about Trent!  Happy Birthday Trent!


 
1.  Trent loves sports!  All of them!  When he's not playing them, he loves to watch the D-Backs and any football on TV.  When sports isn't on TV, he's watching the highlights on ESPN!
2.  He is a peanut butter junkie!  Fluffenutters is his favorite sandwich, and he loves any candy that has peanut butter in it!
3.  His favorite color is green.
4.  His favorite book series is Harry Potter and he loves to read.
5.  His favorite restaurant is Oreganos.  He loves pizza and of course the pazookie!
6.  His best subject in school is Math, but his favorite is reading.
7.  He loves to watch "The Amazing Race" on tv.
8.  He loves video games, especially on his itouch.
9.  His favorite place to visit is Newport Beach, a place he wants to visit would be Atlantis in the Bahamas.
10.  His favorite movie is "Real Steel".
11.  He is the best kid ever!

Families Are Forever!

On August 6, 2011 our family was sealed in the Mesa, AZ temple for all eternity!  It was an amazing day!  I'm so lucky to have that knowledge that our family will be together after this time on earth.  I love the plan of happiness.  Our Heavenly Father loves us so much and families linked together is part of that beautiful plan!  The kids knew the importance of this day and were looking forward to being able to go to the temple, kneel around the alter as a family and have such a wonderful gift bestowed on us.  Families are Forever!  I'm so glad I'll be with mine!

The Simple Life-On Mt. Graham

We decided to escape the heat and head to the Gila Valley and spend the Labor Day weekend on Mt. Graham.  This brings back a lot of memories for me.  I would spend at least a week of my summers as a little girl going to my grandpa's cabin on Turkey Flat.  It was a simple life back then and it was fun to share those same memories with my kids doing the same things I did as a kid.  Aunt Jacque was there to help Tatum with her values quilt and Grandma and Grandpa Cluff were there too.  It was a nice relaxing weekend.  We loved enjoying the Simple Life!

The Dawes Invade London!

What an amazing time we had in London!  We saw everything and more (even a bar brawl fight that my kids will never forget!).  Our favorite things to see was the Westminister Abby, the Tower Bridge, Big Ben, the London Eye, and of course Buckingham Palace just to name a few!  We loved seeing the city by double decker bus and escaping to the town of Windsor to see the summer home of the Royals!  So much fun!

Roma, Italy

We absolutely loved Italy!  Some of the highlights were the Trevi Fountain, The Coliseum, the Castello Odescalchi di Bracciano, and the Vatican.  But the best part of Italy was definitely the FOOD!  Heavens it was to die for!  Especially the Gelato!  We had an amazing time as a family!  When in Rome...do as the Dawes do!

Tatum gets her braces off!

 Before...

Tatum at age 11.
October 2009


















During....

Tatum on her 12th birthday (June 2010)

Tatum right before she got her braces off.
 (May 2011)

and After....!!!
June 2011 (almost 13)
What a Beautiful Smile!

Punta Cana, DR

For our 14th anniversary we went to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.  We had such a wonderful relaxing time.  We snorkled and swam with sharks and stingrays, hung at the pool and the beach and of course dined until we were stuffed!  It was really fun and the weather was perfect!

Easter 2011

This scrapbook customized with Smilebox

D-Backs game

It's tradition in our family to always go to "Magnet Night" at the Diamondbacks game.  It is also the first game for us for the season.  We love spending time at the ball field cheering on our D-Backs.  Tatum also brought along her bestie, "Annie B."  It was such a fun night being together as a family!

Weekend in Sedona

When we go to Sedona, we always go for a hike.  One of our favorites is "hidden canyon".  It's an easy hike with beautiful views. A snake even crossed our path.  The kids thought that was pretty cool.  Mom didn't!

Tatum's talk

Tatum gave a cute talk on baptism.  Because she has a super soft and sweet voice and there wasn't a microphone, not too many people could here her.  So I've included it here so you can read!

We all know how much Trevin loves the game of baseball and I know the Richie family has baseball players in their family too. So today I would like to explain baptism in terms that Trevin would best understand. Baseball terms.

Our Heavenly Father gave us a beautiful plan, a plan to make us very happy while we are on Earth. Itʼs kind of like a baseball game. He sent us to live with our family-our family is our team. With parents to guide us the way-they are known as our coaches. We also have the rule book which are our scriptures. We have so much to help us be successful. Our Heavenly Father is like our umpire, he wants us to have a successful game here on Earth. Our goal in this life is to return to “home” to live with our families with our Heavenly Father. Just like in baseball our goal is to touch all the bases and return to home base.

Later in your life you will go to the temple and receive ordinances and be sealed to your wife. That would be second and third bases but that is not what we are learning about today.

Today is all about reaching first base. Baptism is our first base. The baptism covenant is the first gospel-ordinance covenant you make with Heavenly Father. When you make this sacred covenant, you show your love for Him. You also promise, or covenant, to take the name of Jesus Christ upon you, to always remember Him, and to keep His commandments. You should also be willing to bear testimony of Him, and to love and serve Him by loving and serving others.

Our Savior Jesus Christ was our perfect example of how the game should be played. You can think of him as an all-star. Jesus has given us guidelines to help us follow Him. He expects us to love each other, to bear one another’s burdens, to mourn with those who are sad, and to comfort those who need comfort. That’s what He did when He was on the earth. If we want to be called by His name, we will try to do these things, too.

What do you think it means to take His name upon us? Most of us already have two names. Itʼs like our team name. We have a given name, like Trevin, or Jessica; and we have a family name, like Dawe, or Ritchie. When we take the name of Jesus Christ upon ourselves, it means we are part of His family. We are ready to be known as Christians. We are willing to “stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things and in all places”. We want to act like Christ and follow Him.

Each week in sacrament meeting we take the sacrament and that renews our baptismal covenant. You’ve been taking the sacrament ever since you were babies, but up until now that was practice. You’ve been learning to think about Jesus and all that he has given us through his atonement. From now on each time you take the bread and water you are renewing your promise to do as the Savior did, to be obedient to the Father and always keep His commandments. The blessing we receive in return is to always have His Spirit to be with us.This beautiful plan our Heavenly Father has provided for us is so that we can be happy. When we get baptized we are showing our love for him and keeping his commandments. We have many fans waiting on the other side to shout hooray when we return home. If we keep the commandments or the rules of the game, we will be forever with our family, our eternal team.

Trevin's Special Day

Trevin was baptized on Saturday, March 26, 2011.  It was such a special day to share with family and friends.  It was truly special that his dad got to baptize him.  It was a wonderful day to remember.

Happy Birthday Trevin!

Trevin turns 8 yrs. old!  He had a great birthday with friends and family!

This scrapbooking design customized with Smilebox

Trevin's Baptism pictures

These are a few pictures I took of Trevin for his Baptism invitation.  He looks like a little stud in that suit.

Disneyland 2011

We went to Disneyland for Spring Break this year.  We had a blast for three days straight!  We were exhausted but the memories are worth it!  We love the happiest place on Earth!

Pinewood Derby 2011

This free scrapbook personalized with Smilebox

Trevin's Baptism Invitation

Trevin's Baptism Day is coming!  We'd love for everyone to join us for Trevin's special day!

Dinner at our home immediately following the baptism!

Oregano's Pizza Bistro

Our favorite family restaurant is Oregano's!  We love to be together as a family and Oregano's seems to be "our spot"!  You know what they say, "A family who eats pizza together.....is a forever family!" I think that's how it goes!

Valentine's Day 2011

The kids woke up to heart-shaped, chocolate chip, red velvet pancakes!  Hardly a breakfast!  More like dessert!

For Family Home Evening, we frosted and decorated cookies and then shared them with our neighbors!
We had a wonderful Valentine's Day!