Memorial day

I always enjoy getting together with family for Memorial day.  It was fun having my cousin Rachel and her cute family with us this year.

Rachel took these pictures of my kids and I love them.  My boys were just chilling while we decorated the graves.

Aunt Amy brought paper and crayons for the kids.  Mckenna did this rubbing of my Grandpas grave.  Addy was adding her scribbles in this picture my cousin took.

 My Dad brought this family heirloom for all of us to see.  It was my Great Uncle Wright's masonic beret.  Parker took a turn trying it on.  My Uncle Wright told us a little more about his namesake.

 

It is always fun to hang out with my cousin Kate.  She is having a baby girl in August.  I am so excited for her.

 The whole family went out to eat lunch at Olive garden.  Addy was happy with her chocolate milk and chicken nuggets.  I love my sweet baby girl!  I can't believe she is already two and a half.

 

We went to find our ancestor Jesse C. Little's grave at the Salt Lake cemetery.  He was a part of the Mormon battalion.  They tell his story every time we visit the San Diego visitor center.

My Dad brought an airplane wind chime  that was made out of metal.  We boosted Mckenna up to hang it from the tree.  It looked cool up there.  We will have to wait and see if it is still there next year.

My cousin Emily is so cute with my kids.  She was running while carrying Addy with the boys chasing behind her.

We also went and saw President Hinckley's grave.  We also saw the graves of Heber J. Grant and David O Mckay.

Our next stop was in Sandy to visit Grandma Foster's grave. Kev shared some memories of his Grandma and how he misses hearing her laugh.

 

We also went to see my Mom's grave.  It was her 55th birthday that day!  I miss her so much.  I find comfort in visiting her grave and remembering her life.  I saw my friend Cari while I was there.  She was visiting the grave of her husband.  I was so glad to give her a big hug and tell her how much I admire her.  She is left to raise four little kids on her own.

 

The highlight of the day for the kids was going swimming.  My Dad opened up his pool.  It was our first time swimming this year.  It was a great way to welcome fun summer days.

Thirteen years later

We had our thirteenth wedding anniversary on Sunday May 18th.  We decided to spend the Saturday before celebrating.  I have always wanted to hike to the "Y" since we got married.  It had been years and I had forgotten how many switchbacks there are. 

 

We enjoyed the view and the breeze as we sat on the Y.  You can see the whole valley from up there. 

 

There were all kinds of wildflowers in bloom as we hiked back down to the car.

We got changed and went to lunch at the Foundry grill at Sundance.

 

We had a nice quiet lunch together.  I had fish tacos and Kev had a Reuben sandwich.  We shared a brownie sundae for dessert.

 

We went to the Provo temple and did a session.  It brought back good memories of when I first went to the temple.  We had a fun day with just eachother.  We spent our actual anniversary at home with the kids.  We had steak for dinner which we all love and also sparkling cider.  We also watched our wedding DVD together.  I love my husband and am grateful for the thirteen years we have spent together.

Mother's day!

Hayden made me this sweet picture at preschool.  It was made with his little fingerprints.

I got to hear him sing on the Friday before Mother's day.  I love my curly haired boy.  It was a little sad knowing that this would be his last preschool program.  He will be off to Kindergarten in the Fall.  It has gone by fast.

I woke up to breakfast in bed on Mother's day morning.  I always enjoy seeing the kids smiling faces when I wake up.  Kev made extra food this year because he knew that the kids would want to eat with me.  It was fun seeing all the presents they had made me.  Halle wrote a book all about what she loves about me.  Her handwriting and spelling have improved so much this year.  This picture at the end was my favorite.  Hayden filled out a questionnaire at school.  He said that, "I was four years old and really tall."  It made me laugh to hear that he thinks we are the same age.  He also said, "that I look the prettiest on church days.  Parker made me a coupon book and a keychain with his thumbprint on it.  Mckenna gave me some starbursts.

A picture with all my cute kids around me.  It had been a hard week for me leading up to Mother's day.  I was left feeling overwhelmed and emotionally drained.  Church was just what I needed that day.  I was able to go to Relief Society which is a big deal because I am in Primary.  Mother's day every year is the only time I get to go.  Our RS president got up and spoke to all of us.  She said some words that really stood out to me.  She said not to listen to what the world has been telling us.  She said to remember how much are Heavenly Father loves us and is aware of us.  She went on to say that the work we are doing as Mother's is most important.  It was just what I needed to hear.  I knew it was a tender mercy from my Heavenly Father. 

Kev and I went to pick out a peach tree for Mother's day.  I had really been wanting one.  It is about nine feet tall right now and already has green, fuzzy peaches on it.  We should get some peaches in August of this year.  I am really looking forward to that!

My little brother is 30!

I can't believe that my little brother Mike turned 30 this month!  It seems like just yesterday we were kids and I was carrying him around the backyard.

He is all grown up now and has a family of his own now.  We had a party to celebrate at my Dad's house. 

 

Mike chose BBQ ribs for his bday dinner.  Loni's ribs are everyones favorite dinner.

Mike opening up his presents.

 

I found this shirt and had to get it for him.  Mike loves Nintendo.  I have many fun memories of playing duck hunt, Mario brothers, and battletoads together.  He still has his "old school" Nintendo and plays it with his kids.

It was a fun night with family enjoying good food and celebrating Mike.  I am so thankful that they moved back here a little over a year ago.  It has been a HUGE blessing having them close by.  We love you Mike!

Derby time!!

Parker was excited to participate in the pinewood derby again this year.  He and Kev worked hard together to get his car ready.  His car is the black one with flames on it.

We got good seats right up front to watch the race.  The kids were anxious for the races to begin.

Parker getting ready to race his first heat.  His car is the second from the right.

You can just see the excitement and anticipation on their faces as they watch their cars.

 



Parker won two out of the four heats he raced.  You can see his car crossing the finish line.  He came in 11th place out of 30.  He was a little disappointed after taking first place last year.  He was a good sport about it though.  We had fun cheering on all the boys.

 

Parker received the title of "the most electrifying car"!  We brought his car from last year and raced his one from this year.  His blue car still took the lead.  It was a fun night for our whole family!