Shadow Mountain #4

My baby is off to Shadow Mountain this morning.  I can't believe that I've sent 4 kids to Shadow Mountain.  For some reason this was the hardest time.  Maybe it's because J is my baby, I don't know.  She was super excited until this morning when she told me she had a stomach ache.  I think it was nerves, so hopefully she'll be okay.  Once she saw her friends things got a little better, she ran off to get on the bus.  All the kids have really enjoyed their time at Shadow Mountain and have told her all about it.  I'm hoping she has just as much fun as the rest of the kids!

Jakob and Tal

We got to babysit Jakob and Tal this weekend.  I wish I could see them more often, we had lots of fun.  They sure kept us busy.  Jakob is one active boy, but such a cutie.  And Tal is the same princess as ever!

So blessed to be their auntie!

Frozen Fruit Tarts

Last night while we were playing games, these two cute girlies wanted to make a treat.

These frozen fruit tarts were delish!

Splash Pad

We enjoyed some splash pad fun this week!

Love little Pen's octopus bathing suit:)

Summer!!

Summer is in full swing!  Last week was our first week of summer and we enjoyed it by being completely lazy.  It was grand.  Monday we had a BBQ with 2 of our favorite families.  We feel very fortunate to have such good friends.  Unfortunately T was feeling pretty sick and didn't get to enjoy our first day of summer.  Tuesday we went to the Brandts for another BBQ!  Can you have too many of those in the summer?  I think not.  We enjoyed some good family time!  The remainder of the week was enjoyed with friends, late nights, lots of outside fun, planting the garden, trampoline jumping, and much more.

I have been getting in some good reading time!  I love to read but don't get to do as much as I'd like during the school year.  So, I'm getting as much reading time in as possible.  If only I could get the kiddos to catch the reading bug.  I'm working on it.

I love reading Nicholas Sparks.  

If I need a quick, enjoyable read, one that I don't have to think too much about, this is it.

I borrowed this book from Dani.  Super cute and super quick.

Loved the language in it.

This was our book for book club this month.  I've read it before but I thought I should read it again as a refresher.  It was just as good the second time around.  I can't wait for her new book to come out this fall!

On Saturday we attended the baptism of one of our friends' sons.  When we first moved into the ward he was just a few months old, and now he's 8!  He is such a fun kid.  Everyone around him loves him!  I'm so grateful for the example that Jesus set for us.  To be baptized and to be able to repent so that we might reach our ultimate goal of returning to live with our Father in Heaven!  How blessed I feel to be a part of that wonderful gospel.  After the baptism we went to their house for a BBQ and to enjoy time with friends.

This week T is off at scout camp and M is off at girls camp.  It's strange to have 2 kids gone at the same time.  However our house has not quieted down one bit.  I'm babysitting this summer and this week had 3 extra kiddos.  That's the way summer goes.  S is doing a 2 week sports and fitness camp and is enjoying that.  Yesterday he was the "Star Player" and received a free pass to the swimming pool.  J started dance this week.  So, although it's summer we are still keeping busy.  I love it though!  

S 6th Grade Graduation

I can't believe this was the last year of elementary school for S.  

He had his ups and downs, but overall had a good year.  His grades were excellent!  He is super excited to go to Jr. High and to start a new chapter of his life.

A Baby Shower (A Few Months Back)

Ange and Reggie

A few months ago Andrea, Yoho, and Reggie came for a visit.  

While they were here we had Andrea's baby shower.  A lot of people came to support her and she got a lot of nice things for my cute nephew.  He will be here in about a month.  Too bad they live so far away, I won't be able to hug and cuddle him as often as I would like.  

Sandbox Fun

These two girls are such good friends!!

I hope they always stay that way.

What's Been Keeping Us Busy

Southwest Pasta Salad

I've been experimenting with some new recipes lately.  

This recipe is delicious!  It was a hit with the whole family.

Little Penny is finally starting to like us!  

She even let us babysit her and didn't cry once!

We used up all our strawberry jam, so when strawberries were on sale I knew I had to get to work and stock up again.  The kids were thrilled to have more jam to enjoy.

We enjoyed Easter.  

I can't believe I never posted any pictures of it. 

Scripture reading with the Brandts!

Day Camp 2013

J went to day camp and hubby and I went up for dinner and to watch the skits.

 The skits turned out really cute and J had a great time. 

May Party

 

We had our family party on Saturday.  S is the only one with a birthday in May so he gets lots of attention.  We've been focusing on being more prepared and have shared ideas about what to do.   We are trying to cook recipes that we can cook out of food storage, talked about 72-hour kits, car kits, and other preparedness issues.  It's been good to be more informed and to start getting prepared for an emergency.

9th Grade Awards Night

T received an award last night for recognition in Journalism. 

 So proud of the young man that he is turning out to be.  

Feeling the Love

We had our Preschool closing social last Friday, and the kids and parents were so generous.  We got some fun gifts.  This year has been fun and trying at the same time.  The kids were fun to work with and I will miss them, but I'm glad summer break is almost here!  I love summer.  I love the care-free schedules, the warm sun, the time home with my kids, swimming, gardening, and everything else that summer is about!

Region Champs 2013

  

T played on the JV soccer team at SFHS this year!  He was super thrilled to be on the team.  He got some good playing time, scored, had some assists, and completely enjoyed himself.  It was a great season to watch!  Go Dons!!

Orange Shoes

Last year I saw some cute shoes on Pinterest that someone had dyed.  I wanted to do some but couldn't find any shoes to do.  I was at the store the other day and found these beauties for $5ish and couldn't pass it up. 

Before

After

Love the orange color!

They were super easy to do.  The hardest part was trying to figure out what color to do.  I love the orange and now am ready to do some more.  I'm thinking maybe purple?!

Fun During the Competitons

Some fun things we did during the competitions:

We went to the Bluebird Cafe' in Logan and

enjoyed some delicious shakes and sundaes.

One of M's dance groups.

M and Stacey Tookey 

M and Travis Wall

She was super excited to meet Travis!  All the girls were going crazy over him.

Us moms with Ivan Koumaev

While our girls were in their classes and we were waiting for them to get done we had some fun of our own.  

Ivan is from SYTYCD and is super fun.  I asked if we could take a picture with him and he said only if he could wear my hat.  So, we swapped hats for our photo op!  BTW the lovely matchy hats were bought to embarass our daughters.  Funny thing though, we got so many compliments on our hats. 

 We sure enjoyed ourselves!

Doing a little shopping.

 

At our last competition one of M's dances won an overall, so the whole group got these jackets.  They were thrilled.  They really did an awesome job!  It was a great way to end the competition season.

The Herriman baseball team "put on" the competition and at the end the players had a dance off.  This guy was the winner, so why not get a picture of him?

J had to have her picture taken too:)

S is 12!

This handsome young man has been waiting and waiting and counting the days until he turned 12.  He has been looking forward to his 12th birthday for a long time.  And, on the 5th his day finally arrived!  S has been anticipating getting the priesthood for a long time.  He has often tried to sneak onto the row with the deacons who were getting ready to pass the sacrament.  He's begged to go to young men's on Sundays and to mutual on Wednesdays.   He's asked to go do fast offerings with his brother.  Well, now he can do all those things.  He was able to receive the priesthood on his actual birthday.  He was so excited and you could see the joy on his face.  It was a very special moment for me to watch his dad give him the priesthood.  What a blessing that is.  Now I have 3 priesthood holders in my home.  I'm so grateful for the priesthood and for the many wonderful ways it has blessed my life.  I'm so excited for S to continue to learn and grow and to watch him grow into a wonderful young man!

T's Art Project

T and his friend made this all out of duck tape for an art project.  

It has now replaced one of the ceiling tiles at his school.

  I think they did a pretty awesome job!

Competition Season 2013

We've had a very busy competition season this year.  We just finished our last one which is always bittersweet.  I LOVE watching the girls dance, but it takes a lot of time.  The last 4 weekends have been tied up with competitions, making it a total of 5 for the year.  That doesn't include performances, practice, and the recital that is coming soon!  This has been a fun year of dance for the girls.  They have learned and have grown so much.  I love watching them and seeing how excited they are to be doing what they love!

Breath of Life

Bright Wings

Heart Cry

Hero

Let's Go

Coin Laundry

Redeemed

Late Night Painting

We don't do sleepovers, but we LOVE late nights.  The kids had friends over one night and I came into the dining room to this scene.  The kiddos were all busy painting.  They set up, painted, enjoyed, and cleaned up all on their own.  It was a success for everyone!

My Birthday

The girls made this yummy chocolate cake for me for my birthday.  They even made the frosting from scratch.  Love, love, love my family!

Charades

We had our family party at my SIL's house and then made an impromptu stop to visit this cute family.

We got to play a game of charades while we were there!  Love family time!

He's 15!

I can't believe this boy is 15.  I know I say that all the time, but it's true that time flies.  He was so excited to open his presents that he woke up at like 5:00 a.m. to see what we had gotten him.  I was half asleep and he eagerly sat on the bed and opened up his Skull Candy headphones and XBOX live gift card.  I was such a sleepy head I didn't get any pictures.  Oh well, he was thrilled.  We did all sing to him that evening and enjoyed some homemade Payday bars.  YUM!

T is a smart guy, and a nice guy when he wants to be.  However he is a messy guy.  He HATES cleaning his room.  On this particular day M was in there "showing" him how to do it.  Good thing I love him!

Presidents Day Weekend

In February we went to St. George for Presidents Day weekend.  T had a soccer tournament.  Sadly the reason we were there I didn't get any pictures.  The boys did great in the tournament and fun was had by all! We stayed with some friends and were thrilled to be in warmer climate.

The kids thought it was warm enough for a night swim.  

I opted out and was content to be the photographer!

On Sunday after church we headed over to walk the temple grounds. 

The St. George Temple is so beautiful!  We went to the visitor center and watched a short film on families.  It was very touching and even the kids walked away having felt the spirit.  

My cute girls. 

Hubby and I.

Visiting some friends.  M was smart and stayed in the hot tub.  The crazy boys were jumping off the roof into the freezing pool.  They are nuts.  The kids also enjoyed some ziplining!

I'm not a huge fan of cake or cupcakes.  However, there is a fabulous place that sells the best cupcakes.  So, whenever we are in town we stop by Twenty-Five Main for a delicious treat!

The kids enjoying their treats!

The dads and kids enjoyed a game of kickball in the park.  Everyone was having a blast until DH kicked the ball and it bounced right off of J's forehead.  Poor girl.  

All in all, our trip to St. George was a huge success!  We enjoyed several soccer games in the sun, visited with friends, ate good food, did some shopping, and enjoyed time together as a family.