Digging for gold!!

St. Patricks day is one of those holidays that sometimes gets over looked at our house.  I usually try and make food that has the green colored theme.  One year I made a ham with green sauce to go with it.  The sauce ended up looking like slime and wasn't appealing.  I did green pancakes another year and that wasn't bad.  I colored the milk green and the kids refused to drink it.  I think they associate the color green with veggies and that is why they turn up their noses.  This year I decided to come up with a new tradition for the day of Green.

I had the kids head to the backyard to look for a green rock.  Halle was the first to find it buried in the garden.  She got to dig out the first shovel full of dirt.

Mckenna having her turn to dig.  I made sure I buried it deep enough that they would all get a turn.



Parker was the one to reach the buried treasure which was a bag of golden chocolate coins.  Our crazy kids with their treasure.  It ended up being fun for them and didn't take much work on my part. 





Fundraiser highlights!!

A little over a week ago was the fundraiser for my sister-in-law Lisa.  They held it at Rock Creek Pizza which is owned by Rose and Dede who are family friends.  They had a really good turn out.  There was a line just to get into the restaurant.

 It was great to spend the night hanging out with the family.  We got to share a table with our cute niece Aubrey and our nephews Ethan and Cole.

We always enjoy the yummy pizza from Rock Creek.  It was even better knowing the money was going to help out Lisa and Cody.

They had a crowd out front to watch the owners Rose and Dede shave their heads.  They wanted to show their love and support to Lisa.

Lisa's hair has started to fall out in patches from her treatments.  She decided to have her head buzzed too.

There was a band playing and the kids had fun dancing most of the night. You can see in the background the items people donated to be auctioned off.

It was great to see so many family members and friends.  My sister-in-law Amy's sister Kim came to show her support.  It was great to see her and catch up.  She told me that her in-laws are actually in the same ward as my in-laws.  It really is a small world.  We made several connections that night.

It was fun to hang out with Heather. She always enjoys holding Addy.  If you look closely you can see Addy is wearing her "Cancer Sucks" pin in honor of Aunt Lisa.  Our whole family wore them.  It just looked cuter on Addy.

Here is a picture of Rose (the owner) hanging out with Lisa.  You can see that they are both sporting their newly shaved heads.  It really was a memorable night. It was great to see all the support and love that was shown to Lisa, Cody, and their kids. 

A wish come true...

Halle has wanted a princess party with her friends for awhile now.  Last Saturday was the big party.  Here she is all dressed up in her new belle outfit.

I found her standing like this at the window.  You can tell she was excited for her guests to arrive.  It was funny because the first two girls who showed up were also wearing a belle costume. 

I started out by reading them a very fairy princess story.  We played several fun princess theme games.  The first was passing around snow whites poison apple.  If you had it when the music stopped you had to fall down into a deep sleep.  We also played a game where we hid Cinderella's glass slipper and the girls had to find it.

The girls had fun decorating their own princess crowns.  We got a group picture with some of the cute princesses.

Halle was happy that her friend Eva came to her party.  Thanks to Kathleen for making the long drive to bring her.  It is great that our girls have become such good friends like we are.

Mckenna (snow white) instructed the girls on how a princess should dance.  They had the best time dancing to Disney music.

They even had their own conga line. I love the huge smile on Halles face as she led the line around the room.

We wrapped the party up with cupcakes and presents.  It really was a magical day for Halle!

Fundraiser for Lisa

Hey Everyone... Many of you know my younger sister Lisa Calderwood is battling brain cancer. She was diagnosed with a Grade 3 Anaplastic Astrocytoma (a very diffuse Malignant Brain Tumor) in January. Surgery was only able to remove half the baseball sized tumor and she is currently in her 3rd week of radiation and chemo. As you can imagine the bills are unimaginable. To help with the expense of her treatments (Chemo alone is +$300/day and she has to do it for at least 1 year....you do the math!!!!) there is a fundraiser being held at Rock Creek Pizza Co. in Sandy (10255 S 1300 E) this Saturday where all the proceeds from everything sold all day are being donated to help Lisa and Cody out. Rose and Dede (the store owners and great family friends) will also be shaving their heads at 7 pm!! We will be there with Lisa and her family from 6-9 PM this Saturday. Come by, say hi, enjoy some music and some of the best pizza ever!

Check out her website where you can learn about her, her family, her prognosis, and her upcoming fundraisers (a 5k run in Midway, Utah on April 21st) at www.runningwithlisa.com

Happy Birthday Halle!!

Halle turned five years old on Friday! We had a fun filled day together.

She even got on her apron and hat to help me with the cake.  She helped decorate it with candy.

 Grandpa Ken found this dollhouse for her that was unfinished.  Grandma Sue painted and decorated it just for her.  There is even a picture of her hanging above the fireplace.  She really needed a place to put all her barbie furniture.  Kenna and I had fun helping her set up all the rooms with furniture.  It was such a thoughtful gift and she loves it.

We gave Halle a princess Belle dress up.  I splurged and got her the one from the Disney store.  They are better quality and last longer.  She has worn it everyday since she got it.

I made her a candyland cake this year.  I found a picture of one in a magazine at  my doctors office.  I found it way back in the summer and was so excited to be able to make it

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Halle making her birthday wish.  She has grown up so much lately. It is hard for me to believe that in a few months she will be off to Kindergarten.

Halle got a little party hat with one of her dolls.  Mckenna thought it was just the right size for Addy.  I had to throw in this picture just because it was so cute.

Halle was happy to have some of her cousins at the party.  She always has fun playing with cousin Aubrey.  They had a great time trying out the new barbie house.  We love you Halle!