Our little Scotty's growing up!

Tonight we went to a surprise birthday party for our neighbor Scotty. We are very lucky to have such great neighbors. It was so much fun---all the kids got to play in the water, and the adults got to chat!!! As you can see, it was a lot of fun!!!Our little Scotty is growing up. He is now 29 years old!!! Happy Birthday Scotty!

Brotherly Love

I caught Benjamin in the act of hugging little brother Dylan! Of course I had to take some pictures. They are such sweet little boys!!!

Piano Recital

Last night Brandon had a piano recital. On the way to the recital, little Brandon told me, "Mom, you and Dad are so lucky to have me. I like some things Dad likes, and some things you like. Daddy likes sports and so do I, and you like piano, and so do I." I told him I know we are so lucky to have him as our son. He said a lot of other funny & cute things that I will have to share later. It is great to see Brandon progressing in piano. I tried to video his piano, but couldn't get it to work, so here is a picture of him playing.

Ethan also just started piano and is quite excited about it. Since he just started, he wasn't included in the recital.

Teacher Gifts

Teacher Gifts Link (You have GOT to read this!)

I thought this was SUCH a great blog entry! I really appreciated the input! So many times we do end up getting fairly useless teacher gifts for the teachers who have done SO much for our children!!! I know I have been guilty of an "apple" themed teacher gift or two. You will have to read this blog entry from my friend Jen, who has been a teacher! This entry is in perfect time for those end-of-the-year school gifts!

I had to laugh as everything she said made such perfect sense, I just hadn't thought in depth about it before. I mean, really, what teacher needs another apple in her classroom, or what teacher wants a picture of your child to last for the rest of time. Let's face it. They get to look at childrens faces every day----as much as we feel they love our children, and they probably do, they probably aren't going to be keeping pictures of their students all around their home or classroom. They probably want to get away from those students and "apples" on their time off!!! So, our gifts should steer away from those themes!

Anyway, Jen, thanks for the great post!

Keeping the Sabbath Day Holy

Brandon came to talk to me a couple nights ago and this is what was on his mind:
"Mom, one day I really want to play football. I also want to always keep the sabbath day holy. I am so excited Mom, I found some teams that don't play football on Sunday. The AFL (Arena Football League) doesn't play on Sunday, so one day I can play for one of their teams AND keep the Sabbath Day holy."

It is interesting to see what is whirling through the minds of our children! Little Brandon was so proud of himself for finding a solution to a problem he had realized in his quest to play football. What a sweet little boy he is. I hope his dreams come true and that one day he can play football (and keep the Sabbath Day holy). I just love the pure hearts of children and their quest to do what is right. So sweet!

Roastin' Marshmallows in Daylight

The kids are always begging us to roast marshmallows, so we finally obliged! A great excuse for some family time!

Some of my favorite things!

Some of my favorite things: dirt and plants! I can hardly wait to dig into that soil and do some planting tomorrow. Now that the tulips are gone, it is time to plant some annuals to get some more color in the garden! I am glad I waited till now, cause the weather has been CRAZINESS! This last week it was freezing cold again, with threats of snow. Luckily, those threats didn't come to fruition, but hey, it was freezing cold. Not the best plant weather! I just love flowers, flowers, and more flowers! They are the gift that keeps giving all summer long!

Congratulations Diane!

Diane and Dan

My sister in law Diane, is finishing up her residency in pediatrics, and by June 30, she will officially be a Doctor. I am so proud of her and all that she has accomplished. Smart and beautiful! My brother really lucked out! Here is a picture of my brother Dan and his wife Diane! Such a handsome couple!!! Congratulations Diane!!! (How fabulous that she will be a pediatrician. I am sure we will be calling on her once in a while for some much needed advice!)

Sunday in Spring

My Little Sports Fan!

A while back, I bought a pen that you can use to decorate a car. I bought it at the Dollar Store, so I was a little wary of it---worried it might do damage to someone's car. After all, you never really know about these products from the Dollar Store. Anyway, little Brandon kept begging me to use it. Since my van is so frightening these days, I let him have at it. You can tell what is on his mind 24/7! SPORTS, sports, and more sports!

Who Needs Blocks?

(I know, life cannot get much more thrilling than watching your toddlers build towers with VCR tapes!!! This is not exactly the image that came to mind when I dreamed of becoming a mother, but luckily for me, it is all just part of that fun mother package!!!)
Building towers with VCR tapes



Do you also still have VCR tapes? I am probably one of the few people still using a VCR and VCR tapes. The reason being that VCR tapes are a lot more durable to little kid scratching! (Especially if you are letting your kids build towers with them!) Anyway, I now realize there are multiple uses for your VCR tapes. On a daily basis, my kids enjoy using VCR tapes to build towers and knock them over. Slowly through time, these VCR tapes are getting destroyed, and I am OK with that. Anyway, I had to laugh. Kids end up using what you have to play with. It's amazing the dual uses children can find in household items! Who knew VCR tapes could be blocks? Do your kids use any funny items in your house to play with?

A Huge Benefit to Blogging!

Jen, Bon, and Traci


Clearly, I love the blogging world. It has added a new dimension to my life (or maybe some people would call it an obsession!) Anyway, it has been so much fun. Through comments on my blog, and commenting on the blogs of others, I have become so much closer to many of the people that I have known casually. I have a lot of cousins that I have not known all that well, but through blogging, I feel some of us have become good friends. How fabulous is that! I have also gained friends that I would've never met through blogging. As a Mom, sometimes it is hard to find new friends---especially since friendship takes time, and it can be hard to find the time to make new friends. Another blogging benefit. You can "comment" on others blogs at your convenience. You can find time for those blogging friendships on a daily basis. Anyway, it was so great last night-----I had to work in Utah county, and afterwards got to spend some time with some friends. I was so excited to have some girl time, and also was thrilled because my friend Jen's Mom (Bon) was there. It was so great to see her and spend time with her---we have gotten to know each other pretty well through blogging. She is an incredible person and it was so fun to spend some non-computer time with her. Anyway, I hope that I get to meet in person some of my blogging buddies; like Amy in Texas, among others. This blogging world is just great. I encourage all you "lurkers"" (see link for more info) to not just "lurk" but to start your own blogs. That way we can start some conversations and become friends. I am not a phone person, so I have done so much better through emails and through blogs. Anyway, this blogging thing is super fulfilling!!! Has anyone else met "blogging" friends in person? Wouldn't it be fun to have a "blog" party (not block party) and invite all the blogging friends? I just love any excuse for a party or get together!!!

Our first baby

Well, my husband Brandon has been transferring many of my old pics from floppy disk to CD. So, I was going to do a slideshow of little Brandon's life for his birthday. However, seeing the drastic amount of pics we have of Brandon's baby time, I decided to do a slideshow just of his baby time!

Doing this project has brought back so many memories. I just love my little Brandon and will always remember the happiness he brought into our lives. We all know how it is with that first baby. That first baby is always the most incredible creation of all time. We are all so careful with our precious, new creation. We are so in fear that a binky on the floor will get the baby sick. Or, you should NEVER let a baby cry. I was so excited for his first Halloween, that I couldn't choose which costume, so he had three! I know, I was EXTREMELY enthusiastic and excited to be a parent. I definately went overboard!!!

Whoa, times have definately changed. Each baby is still SO precious, but as a parent, you are so much more relaxed. Binkies can fall on the floor without worry, and yes, babies cry and that's OK. And hey, each kid only needs two costumes (Just kidding, but you know how I love Halloween and dressing up!) Anyway, I remember those special first baby moments with fondness!

You think I am bad with pictures now, I especially felt the need to document almost every moment of Brandon's life in those early years. I mean, it's not like those moments are ever coming back. Just remember, you can never get the picture of your kids from yesterday, so you better get it today!!! (WARNING, these thinking errors may lead to you becoming a camera psycho like myself with pictures over-running your hard drives and leave your Picasa account almost at capacity!) Anyway, such special memories! Time flies. I wish I had enjoyed those early days more.....we definately should have gone on LOTS of trips....with only one child, or even only two. Anyway........

Sunday in May

Maddie, Dylan, and Benjamin

Ethan and Maddie

Ethan, Maddie, Dylan, and Benjamin

Little Brandon may have been a little constipated! (Just kidding!)

It's great to be 8!

On Saturday Brandon had a pizza/splash party!!! It was so much fun! Brandon had a great time with all his friends. I wouldn't be me if I didn't add a slide show!!!

You know you need to shave when.....

You know you need to shave your legs when your three year old son says to you, "Mom, there are whiskers on your legs!" Luckily, kids are always there to tell you how it REALLY is!!! (Thanks Benjamin!)

Water Babies

So, this weekend our waterslide will debut at Brandon's birthday! We had to do our test run today to make sure we didn't have any glitches! The kids seemed to love it, especially the water guns. The slides don't seem quite as fast or tall as the one from last year, but after we got cryptospiridia at the end of last summer, we got rid of anything water related as to not suffer another outbreak! That's why we got a new slide! Anyway, the kids had a blast. I am excited as this should make for a relaxing summer. The kids can play, and I can supervise all the fun. This will probably be the best gift that I could get this summer! Yeah! I'll give you two guesses where we got it!!! And the first one doesn't count!