Hiking With Dad

Garry heard that it was the peak time for wildflowers in the canyon, and so he took the girls hiking. I stayed home with the baby and my allergies.

Unfortunately, since the spring was so cold, the wildflowers were not there. But they still had a great time hiking with Dad!

Have Fun!

Growing up, Saturdays were busy work days. My parents worked very long hours during the week. My Mom would leave the house a little after 7 and not be home until 5. My Dad would be gone even earlier and come home even later. So Saturdays were a day to get things done.

Living in suburbia, I had started thinking the same way. It's Saturday. We have stuff to do. There is always a room that could be painted and, oh, laundry. Always laundry. And we have an area of the front yard that desperately wants some mulch, some plants. . .anything other than dirt.

But Garry feels very strongly that Saturdays should be fun. At first I thought that this was his way of getting out of the work that really needed to get done around the house, but he said that he wants the kids to have fun family memories.

So I think that we have struck a compromise between working hard in the morning and playing in the afternoon. On one of our 'fun' Saturdays, we took the girls golfing and then out for sno cones. I enjoy mini golf because it is one of the few sports I can beat Garry at.

Remember When?

Remember when I used to blog about things right after they happened? Yep, me too. Not sure what happened, but I think it might have something to do with four kids and working from home. . .that might be it.

Can we pretend that it is June and we just had Father's Day? I hope that Garry had a good day. He loves all things associated with Father's Day. He loves his Dad. He loves being a Dad. And he got to pick out his own present (a BYU hat) so surely the day was perfect!

Field Day!

Before Emma starts First Grade tomorrow, I better finish blogging about Kindergarten. She had a Field Day before the last day of school. Garry volunteered and was put in charge of the Tug of War. Emma is in pink, third one in, pulling with all her might ;) She had a good day.

I remember Field Day growing up. We had a Tug of War. And a picnic with our parents. Good times.

And One More

While I was pregnant, there was a night when the moon was the closest to the earth than it will be again in. . .in, well, a long time. News report after news report suggested that we go outside and enjoy it. I was excited. But, being very pregnant, I was exhausted. I forgot about it, went to bed, and missed it.

I was really upset and so the next day Emma put all of these pieces of paper together and drew me a big, big moon. I love it. Sooooo thoughtful. She's a good girl.

My Favorite Drawing

Macey drew me another picture a few weeks ago. It's a picture of us, together. I love it. She's so big, she can already take me or leave me most days, depending on whether there is someone more interesting around. I understand it because I was just like that -- but I don't like it. So I treasure things like this.

Long Wait Over

A few weeks ago I blogged about how Macey did a self-portrait for her Pre-K "yearbook" that included very large pockets. Bless her heart, here's the picture. Man, I love this kid.

Happy Birthday, Granny!

Garry's grandma celebrated her birthday a few days ago. Garry and the girls took over a yummy chocolate creme dessert. Yummy. She has not been feeling well lately and does not remember us from visit to visit, so I am glad that the girls get to spend time with her and that Garry is always there with a camera so we can document it and share it with them when they get older!

A Few Words. . .

A few words but a lot of pictures of Braden. Oh, I love this boy. He's growing so fast that I have started worrying a little bit and trying to get pictures of him and each outfit so I can remember when he was small. Because with kids, time is funny. Days last forever but years go by so fast. He got the above stylin' outfit from his Aunt Rachelle. The onesie is designed to look like a tie.

Garry got him this when we were in Park City. So cute.

Garry's boss got him this little outfit he wears often to church. Okay, let's be honest, Garry's bosses wife. . .I used to be her visiting teacher.

Mr. no neck. Braden is a calm baby. Just a mellow fellow. He is not anxious to do things like roll over or sit up. He's taking it all in.

A polo onesie from Grammy. So cute in blue, of course!

Another outfit from Grammy. He's stretching. . .not threatening to punch out the camera if the flash goes off one more time.

My dear friend Shauna got him this. I love it. It says Dirt Magnet. It reminds me of my Dad ;)

Last Day!

Before Emma starts first grade in a few days, I thought I would post her last day of Kindergarten. She loved Kindergarten. She loved recess, she loved the bus, she loved learning to read and writing in her journal. She loved her teacher, Mrs. Rowberry. She just loved all of it.

I am so proud of how well she did and how hard she tries to learn.

In the next little bit I will have TWO kids in school, though one for just a 1/2 day. My life is going to really change, and though sometimes that might be sad, I am excited for it. I think that I will be a much better Mom if I can just get a chance to catch my breath.

Am I A Trophy Wife Yet?

My good friend Tara has a blog where she outlines how she does amazing things around her home -- like remodeling her entire kitchen for $5.00 using only a gum wrapper and a pair of tweezers. Feeling inspired by her downright craftiness, I decided to tackle my porch.
My porch was sad and lonely and clearly said that someone uncrafty lives within.
I started by finding this little storage bench at Deseret Industries. Sadly, I spent more than $5. But I thought it was cute.

I spray painted it black and I found flowers at WalMart (I know! WalMart?!?!) and a cute little container that says "Welcome". I also spray painted the star black. And I cleaned the door for good measure.

Here's my after photo. And here's my complaint -- the black really shows the dirt and dust that land on everything around here. But, I think it's an improvement. So, Tara, am I a trophy wife yet?

The Week of Emma!!

This year Emma attended Sunshine Generation once a week. They learned songs and dances and would have a show every few weeks. The end of the season ended with a bang and it was "The Week of Emma"!!

She sang at a Friends and Family show.
They later performed the same show at the Country Fair.

She was able to be in a parade. That's her on the far left in the sunglasses.

She also volunteered to sing a solo and was able to do a solo performance twice.

I say it all the time, but my kid was honestly the best one up there. She actually learns the songs and the dances and she enjoys performing. I was a little disappointed with the Sunshine Gneration program here in South Jordan. The other kids do not seem to sing or learn the words, and so they are dancing and basically lip sinking. It's frustrating.

Emma loves to sing, she loves to dance, and she loves, loves to be on stage. So we are thinking about taking her out of Sunshine Generation and just putting her into Community Theater.

She Did It!

While Garry's Dad and Stepmom were in town visiting, we took an afternoon and went up to Park City.

After hitting the outlets and Garry's favorite Mexican restaurant in Heber (Heber? Go figure. . .) we went to the Alpine slide.

Braden, Molly and I stayed at the bottom on the mountain and paid way too much for a hot chocolate and a candy bar. But Emma went with her Dad and Macey agreed to go with her Grandpa.

Macey is scared of most things, even normal slides have her a little worried, so I was very proud of her for tackling this and then asking to go again!

Grandpas!

The beginning of June was action packed with soccer games, my niece's baptism, Macey's dance show and Braden's blessing. Because of everything going on, my kids were able to enjoy having both grandpas in town. How fun!!