Crazy Cashier Guy

Today when my kids got home from school I had to run to Harmons super fast.   We needed milk, cereal is an AWESOME deal (5 for $8 for Honeycombs & Fruity Pebbles-Fruity Pebbles make AMAZING rice krispy treats if you mix em 1/2 and 1/2 with regular krispies-just an fyi!), and I needed postage stamps.  I also needed to quickly make a copy of Shay's birth certificate for soccer.  I was rushing because Sawyer has soccer practice and Alyssa & I have Young Womens so I of course have to figure something quick out for dinner.  I ran into a few people and love to visit so by the time I was leaving it was crunch time.  My cashier-sorta crazy.  He kept chatting and normally I like to chat with strangers-but only with normal fun strangers-not psycho ones.  His last remark as he is FINALLY handing me my stamps and receipt-"Do you like to play games...like Go Fish and Gyn Rummy?"  Me-"Um-no."  Crazy cashier: "Ya-cuz your stamps have the King of Hearts and Queen of Hearts on them."  Seriously?  So What?  The sad part-he had a wedding ring on-somebody loves him.  I'd love to meet her!

Memorial Day Weekend

This picture cracks me up!!!  I was teasing Casey that he looked like a tour guide-that he took himself a little too seriously-this is the pose I got from him!  So funny!  I went for a little 4 wheeler ride with him thinking we were just going to spend time together-NOPE-we were looking for deer.  He was shocked I wasn't totally upset we only saw 1...what a nerd!
Happy, greasy couple that needs a shower!  ;)
Sawyer LOVES to fish...such a cute kid!!!  He'll sit at the lake all day...he might let his sister's paint his nails sometimes but he really is all boy!
Sawyer practicing his casting...funny!
Alyssa & Kelsey pretending to fish!?  They are so giggly!
Jaycee's EXPENSIVE but stinkin yummy birthday cake!!!  The only way to go when you have to bring the cake camping!  ;)  Poor girl's birthday has been during Memorial Day Weekend 2 years in a row-she said she's sick of "camping birthdays!"...funny girl.  My grandma gave her a cute stuffed animal monkey-when Jaycee opened it she said, "That's not my favorite!" and refused to play with it.  EMBARASSING!!!  She said thank you after she opened the rest of her gifts-she had to wait awhile to try again!  What a stinker!
Lifeflight landed in our camp...thank heavens not for someone we know....neat to see the amazing landing/take off.
Since Casey WAS the scoutmaster we happen to have a couple of canoes on our rv pad that haven't been claimed...he had fun paddling around the lake with the kids.  I didn't trust him enough to get in with him-he'd for sure think it was funny to dump me in the water!
Dang it!  I thought I turned these!  Shay & Jaycee posing.
Shay kept catching so many weird things-she's such a tom boy!!!  This is her lizard-she also caught a snake and some crawdads and some bugs.
Casey & I with Sawyer & Jaycee....

We had a fun weekend away camping with my fam!  My kids and husband sure love to camp and I sure love to be with them!  :)  I am a lucky girl to get to hang out with these amazing people!

Sawyer's Graduation

Love love love love love love love this cute boy!!!!
Gma N
Gma O
The love of his life...Karli...he's been in love with her since the day he met her!  :)
Isn't he handsome???  Such an awesome kid!

Dang it!  These posted backwards...I need to learn how to use a stinkin computer!  Today was Sawyer's graduation--I know it's just preschool but it was SO SAD!  His teacher Miss Karen is incredible-she has taught him so much and helped him be so much more outgoing.  He is already reading so well and is so ready for kindergarten...he's going to love it.  Last year when he "graduated" he wanted to be a garbage man~that's always been his dream job~today he wanted to be a soldier.  I think I prefer the garbage man now!  ;)  Sawyer is my sanity-my sweet, easy going, almost always happy boy-I am so grateful for him!  He brings balance to all of the emotion with all of these girls!  Dead spiders and bugs and all of those things too-but he is such a blessing.  I only wish he didn't know what a speed limit sign was OR how to read them...that's driving me bonkers this week...but he's sure fun!

Jaycee's Graduation

Jaycee "graduated" from preschool today...she still has one more year so it was just a little "for fun" thing but it was so much fun!  They sang so many cute songs.  Jaycee is SO animated and had a lot of fun singing her songs-the harder I laughed at her the sillier she got.  It was one of those moments when I realized just how awesome she really is-she's so much fun!!!  When they received their diplomas from their teacher they had to say what they wanted to be when they grew up.  ALL of the other girls wanted to be a princess-tiny bit of peer pressure because everyone else was saying that!  Jaycee does her own thing-her answer?-she wanted to be a MOM!!!  So sweet.  Driving home from preschool she slammed me right back to reality....I said, "Jaycee-you did so good today!"  Her answer...."I know it!".  That's my Jaycee!

"Shafts in the whirlwind"

Casey & I had the awesome opportunity to attend a fireside at our stake Sunday night by Richard & Linda Eyre.  We both learned so much and felt determined to try harder to be better parents to our awesome kids.  They are such a blessing!!!  Linda Eyre shared that their "motto" for their family was Helaman 5:12.  I've always loved that scripture but have really thought about the amazing words in that verse this week.  Powerful!  I keep thinking about the phrase "shafts in the whirlwind"....we all have experienced 'em....and they are different for every single one of us.  In the dictionary I have one of the definitions for shaft is:  "Something directed at someone or something in sharp attack."  Sorta scary, huh?  It brings peace to know that we all get to choose how to build our "foundation"-that the promise is if we choose to build it on our Savior-if we turn our focus to Him-that we CANNOT fall.  I am grateful for these words as I watch my kids live in such a crazy confusing world at such an uncertain time.  It's awesome!!!

Don't quit your day job Clint!

So.....anyone ever had your butt kicked by a 12 year old when you are a little bit older than 12?? Not saying that's what is happening  in the picture~just wondering if it's ever happened to you!?

My first glimpse at being a mother in law

Funny story.  It's hilarious to me so I'm sure all 3 of you that read my blog are dying to hear it!  Lastnight after Alyssa's dance we stopped at Harmons on our way home to grab some diet coke-it's not pretty when that is all gone around here!  Alyssa has her first boyfriend-he's darling-but it's sorta freaking me out of course!  His name is Dallan.  Dallan's mom Tiffany was at Harmons and she knows me & Alyssa-we said hello and visited for a second then she yells down the isle to her husband, "Honey!  Come here quick!  This is Dallan's girlfriend-you have to meet her!"  I am sure Alyssa just wanted to DIE-she just smiled and giggled and I died laughing.  When he joined us Tiffany said, "Isn't she so cute?" at this point Alyssa's face was bright red and she giggled a little more.  Dallan's dad asked if he's nice to her and she answered "yes" so quietly...then Tiffany said, "K-know that we are always on your side.  You tell us if he doesn't treat you right!"  Freakin hilarious!  That's what she gets for having a boyfriend...so funny. 

 Dallan asked me to be his friend on Facebook last week-crazy-love him to death but it's weird to have my first glimpse at being a mother in law!  I know it's all totally fun and normal-I remember all the boys I had crushes on-I just am not ready for this!  I'd go back to changing diapers any old day!  Here we go!  I'd love to say this little ride is sort of like Soarin Over California-it feels more like The Tower of Terror at this point.  Too late to get off now, right?  They come as sweet beautiful babies....who's gonna tell me how to be a mom to teenagers??

Oquirrh Mountain Temple Cultural Celebration

Can you find cute Alyssa in these pictures????  :)  We started practicing for the Oquirrh Mountain Temple Cultural Celebration back in March....it was brutal in the beginning and I seriously wondered if this was a realistic thing to expect from these teenagers.  Our Stake was assigned the 50s-super fun-most of our kids are in the choir and a few are dancers.  They all have "partners" which is hilarious....dancing together is kIlLiNg them!!!  Seriously so funny!  This week we had 2 rehearsals in a field and it was amazing to me!  So humbling to see that when Heavenly Father's hand is in something-when we are doing His work-that He truly does bless us!  These kids are seriously INCREDIBLE!  They have come so far and learned so much and their dance looks awesome!!!!!  I didn't have the opportunity to serve a mission but it totally reminds me of the experience people have with learning a foreign language in the MTC-they learn it faster and easier than anywhere else.  I believe I have witnessed a similar thing with this.  So humbling!!!  SO....practices are over....they have 2 HUGE dress rehearsals at the Conference Center the next 2 Thursdays and then it's showtime on the 30th!  I'll have to get pictures of them in costume-the poodle skirts are so cute!  They will be dancing around two cars from the 50's...I'm anxious to see how they get those on the stage at the Conference Center!?  Neat experience but June will hopefully be a tiny bit less stressful and way less busy!  Is that possible?

Happy Mother's Day!

I love Mother's Day.  I love the homemade gifts from my cute kids.  I love that they sing to me in Sacrament Meeting.  I just love the blessing of being a mom!  It's what I wanted to be most in life.  Just a mom.  Here I am-I get to hang out with 4 amazing people-I get to teach them and love them and clean up after them and cook for them-and I learn so much from them!   It's all I dreamed of and more!

We are always late to everything-ALWAYS!!!  We never get to sit on the "soft seats" at church because we are late every week.  EVERY SINGLE WEEK!  Our church building is right across the street from the beautiful Oquirrh Mountain Temple.  We have taken pictures of our kids in front of the temple during each stage of construction so I had a goal to be at church 45 minutes early so we could take pictures by the temple today.  We actually got there 25 minutes early so the pictures are taken at the back of the temple but they are still fun AND we were on time for church.  Soft seats are the best!  We have had so many incredible experiences with this temple.  Just watching it being built has been amazing.  We got to be there when Angel Moroni was placed on the top.  Our bishop asked us to contribute a monthly donation to the construction of the temple-that has been such a blessing to us-he told us it would help us feel like it's "our" temple because of our sacrifice and it's incredible how true that is.  I get to be involved with my young women with the Temple Cultural Celebration....so cool!  It's been amazing.  Casey & I get to usher at the open house and do other volunteer assignments-it will be such a neat experience.  We feel so blessed to live so close to this beautiful temple.  Casey & I got shakes lastnight and just sat in the parking lot of the temple and visited-so neat to be there and feel the Spirit.  I am so grateful my family will have such awesome memories of this.  Sawyer told his buddy the other day he wants to get married in the "Ogre Mountain Temple"-cute.  I am grateful for the knowledge I have the families really are forever....that the blessings we are promised are true...I can't imagine not spending all of eternity with Casey & our family.  

"Hopping Into Kindergarten"

 I just realized I forgot to post these pics!!!  We had Kindergarten Orientation a couple of weeks ago....it's always such a bittersweet thing!!!  I really thought this time would be a piece of cake.  Sawyer is almost 6 (we held him back a year because he has a July birthday!), it's my 3rd time doing the kindergarten thing AND we just did Jr High Orientation for Alyssa so that should totally put "kindergarten isn't a big deal" into perspective, right?  Wrong!  I still got a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes!  The first day of school should be super fun!  LOL  It's fun that Sawyer is growing up.  He is such a good boy-almost always fun to hang out with-super easy going.  He's an AWESOME reader!!!  He blows me away.  He reads everything wherever we go. He has so many cute little buddies in our neighborhood that he will go to school with-I am so grateful for that!  He will totally love kindergarten and I will totally miss him!

 It's so nice that we don't have to buy diapers and we're almost done with car seats HOWEVER I'm not sure I'm ready for these kids to grow up!!!  I wish we could freeze time right where we are just for a little while.  It's going too fast!

*His school did the cutest theme "Hopping Into Kindergarten"....they got a little rubber frog, frosted a frog cookie, and got a Five Green & Speckled Frogs book...so fun!

Is there an award for this????

My cute niece Kinley came to play--her mom Angie did her hair cute and even put clothes on her. Go Angie!!!  Jaycee got herself dressed-there's always a first with her outfits, never seen this one before-and even did her own hair.  Alyssa & Shay always looked like Kinley~Jaycee has no interest~her ideas are always better than mine~I guess I have no idea what the style is for almost 4 year olds!  On days that it matters and I do get her ready for the day she will conform(only after I win the battle) until we are home and then she changes her clothes & rips out her hair.  I threw in the towel with her a long time ago-I hope that was the right choice!  Sawyer is the blessing in it all-he'll always be on my team-he just rolls his eyes and laughs at her.  He's so sweet & easy going!  SO is there an award somewhere for letting your kids have a choice in what they wear when they are home OR am I going to totally pay for this the rest of Jaycee's life????  It's gonna be a long summer...it always brings out the best in her...summer clothes options are so fun!  ;)

DANG!!!!!

And sometimes we think WE have bad days!  ;)

Happy Monday Everyone!

Lunch with old friends

Today I had the awesome opportunity to hang out with 2 amazing girls....we were friends in high school & college and now lots of time has passed!  It was fun to spend some time with them-to catch up and hear about their lives-it's neat to be with people you haven't seen for SO LONG and feel like we just hung out yesterday.  We ate at Training Table just like the good old days & ended up at Sconecutter later on for shakes-again-just like the good old days.  Made me feel like I'm sorta young again-it's weird we are all married and have kids.  Christie-the one in the middle-has lived out of state all over the country her whole married life.  We occasionally touch base and then lose touch again.  She has always been amazing-and was always such a great friend to me.  Kristy lives here but I never see her.  I am grateful for the time we got to spend together today!!!  I have always been so blessed to have amazing friends!  We stopped at my house to drop off my car and Casey took this picture-of course in front of the antelope-whatever!  I am the only one out of all of us that is lucky enough to have dead animals hangin around!  :)  Love you guys!!! 

Stinky Cheese

So...Wednesday night when Alyssa & I were at Young Womens Casey did some yard work....love it!  This is the sidewalk to our house...lovely, eh?  Anyone seen the Stinky Cheese episode of Everybody Loves Raymond???  'Nuff said. ;)