Music to my ears.......

Madison is now taking piano lessons thanks to Grandma B.  I was lucky enough to get a beautiful piano for Christmas and Madison is happily taking lessons.  She loves the piano.  Her face lights up when she plays the songs her teacher gives her and realizes that it is an actual song and not just random notes.  I love that she gets it.  

I know we were all given gifts in the premortal existence, and it is our responsibility as parents to help our children develop these natural God given gifts.  So I am very thankful to my mom for being the financial backer for Madison to take piano.  Her teacher is wonderful and very patient.  We love Jenny.  I love how music fills our home. 

I coach Cheerleaders.......AND IM PROUD OF IT!!

Being raised in a family of athletes, basketball players, I guess it was just kind of expected for me to eventually coach it.  Not that I ever had coaching basketball in mind when thinking of a future career.  But I guess if its not basketball, its a waste of time.  Well I am standing up and yelling out, "NOT TRUE"!  I love coaching and I am good at it.  I don't care what the sport, I love coaching.  It fills my soul with joy to teach and mentor youth.  But who would have ever thought of me, 6'4" Angela Burgess being a CHEERLEADING COACH?  Well that is exactly what I am.  And I LOVE IT!  I love having a creative outlet as well as being able to do what I love, Coach!  I see nothing shameful or wrong about it.  These kids that I see every day are major athletes.  They work their butts off and are in better shape then most other "athletes" their age. My girls are not only physically fit, they are expected to always look their best, be role models in the community and perform each game and competition like they are perfect.  They leave their worries and problems at home and bring it every time.  It is not easy, but they do it and I am proud to call them my athletes.  I love coaching this sport so much, that I am now working on moving into the high school level.  Sorry to disappoint those hoping that I would one day coach basketball, but I just don't have the passion for it.  Not the same kind of passion I have for making up awesome choreography and editing FIERCE music.

This is what I love doing and this is what I am proud of doing.  I don't expect others to like it, but I do expect them to respect my decision to do what I love.

Do I still love basketball?  Yes.  I love watching my brothers and I absolutely will have my own girls playing the sport that took me all over the country and paid for me to attend the best school ever!  But I will support whatever decision they make for their futures after they have ended their basketball career.  Anyway, I will get off my high horse now, but these are my true feelings and if you really want to know how much I adore coaching cheer, come and see my kids rock it out at their shows, then you will truly know how passionate I am about these girls and their sport.

First School Formal

A CTR and a Sunbeam

    Jacquelynn moved up into CTR 4 and was more then happy to show off her CTR ring.

 She also made me a picture that I get to keep

 My favorite was her explanation of what CTR means.  She knows it means Choose The Right, but if you ever get the chance, ask her what Choose the Right means.  I promise you wont be disappointed!

 Brooklyn moved into primary today.  My little Sunbeam.  She was kinda ticked off about not going into Nursery, but she adapted quickly.

What a PERFECT little Sunbeam!!!

Happy New Year

Bring on the new year.  With a new beginning and a new outlook, I am ready to take on 2011.  I just know this year will be amazing.  No resolutions, just faith!  I know that faith is always pointed toward the future. Faith always has to do with blessings and truths and events that will yet be valuable in our lives.  

Every day ought to be the start of a new year and a new life. Such is the wonder of faith, repentance, and the miracle of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

When I think of every day being the start of a new year, I remember the quote from The wise kung fu master oogway in the movie Kung fu panda,
yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the "present."
The atonement of Jesus Christ gives each of us a gift at the start of every day.  Let us always cherish that gift.
 

My baby is just growing and growing....

 December - 8 Months Old

 November - 7 Months Old

 October - 6 Months Old

 September - 5 Months Old

August - 4 Months old

Christmas has come and gone....

But oh what a wonderful Christmas it was.  I always build up the holiday season to something so unattainable and out of reach and always feel like I was left out in the cold.  I really did not want that to happen again this year.  So I decided to make it about making memories, spreading good cheer and helping the girls to understand what the Christmas season is really all about.  So instead of trying to schedule something Christmas every night, I let Christmas just happen.  If there was a Christmas movie on NetFlix, we watched it.  If there was a street with Christmas lights, we stopped to check it out.  If the girls book of choice for the night was a Christmas one, we read it.  If I felt like baking, I did.  The one thing I had to have was KOST 103.5 Christmas music playing in the call all through December.  There was no way I was gonna let that pass.  I just did not want to FORCE Christmas.  i wanted it to happen naturally.  To my pleasure, it did. Early on I noticed that the girls were all about Santa and presents, so we made a trip over to Toys R Us and bought ourselves the Fisher Price, Little People Nativity scene.  I wanted to make sure the girls knew why we celebrated Christmas and to understand the beauty and majesty of the holiday season.  Boy did they love that Nativity, they played with it all December long.  They created stories and rein acted the story of Jesus birth over and over.  My heart delighted in watching my girls tell the story of the baby Jesus. 

We made sure to stop by Joann's Fabric store a few days before Christmas to pick ornaments for the tree.  Every year the girls get to pick 1 ornament.  The best time to do this is a few days before Christmas because all holiday items are 70% off.  So its very budget friendly.  The girls all ran off separately to find their special ornament.  When they returned to me, each of my girls held a different ornament.  Different, but the same.  Madison chose a fairly princess with wings and a crown in a pretty light blue dress.  jacquelynn chose a lovely fairy princess with a red dress and a crown. Brooklyn chose a fairy princess with a pretty pink dress and a wand.  She also chose a snow angel with wings and a crown for Sutton.  So as you can see, my girls are true fairy princesses at heart.  I am excited to see who chooses what next year. 

We were the only family here in California this year.  It made my mom sad, but I thought it went well.  I miss my brothers and their families, but I understand that life takes us to far away places and there is just nothing you can do about it except hope that everyone is safe and happy in their own parts of the world. 

The joy of this Holiday season fills my soul and I am blessed knowing that my Savior walked on this earth and took upon himself the sins of the world so that through him I can be perfect and whole.  I know that my redeemer died for me and broke the bonds of death by living again.  I pray that every person can be touched by the love of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Rejoice the Lord is King.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!