Gardening

 Last week we had a weird random Wednesday off from school. That meant no work for me and lot of things to accomplish. The first task was getting the cooler veggies in the ground. It was an absolutely beautiful spring day and most of us were super happy to be outside!

Everyone loves to plant the garden except Sam and Seth. Sam loved that he "had" to be at work, and Seth thought he should be able to get out of it with his arms and all [2 weeks till those babies come off!!!], but alas I found him a job, spreading the fertilizer, keeping good songs on the radio, and keeping ice cold water on hand.

 The girls get the most excited and love looking through the seeds to see what we are going to do. 

 We planted 3 rows of blue, purple, red and yellow potatoes; sweet onions; purple carrots; spinach; lettuce; and peas. It took us several hours but we accomplished it and just in time for cool weather.

As I write this, the onions are up along with the lettuce and spinach and peas just poking their heads out. So exciting and we can't wait to eat it all!!

Happy 10th Birthday Kathryn!!

See this cute girl...she had a birthday and was so excited about it!! We have wonderful neighbors and they love to celebrate with all our kids. They are just wonderful and Kathryn was stoked that they got her flowers and a card. I love that grin on her face!!

 For breakfast she requested strawberry crepes--I swear my kids ask for that every birthday, it's like cookies and cake for breakfast but oh well, they sure love it!! As per birthday tradition she came home to her chair decorated and balloons. She was pretty lucky and her dad took her out to lunch to "5 Guys" (her choice) and loved that attention.

 Her birthday dinner was alfredo with salad and cucumbers. I can't remember why she was making this face but it's such a Kathryn face I had to throw it in there. She invited her friend Cierra over to play after school and had a great time with her.

 She was a trooper and waited till the missionaries were done teaching their lesson to a neighbor girl to have her peach crisp and ice cream. Way to step outside the box sista!!!

 Blowing out the fake candles because "somebody" forgot to buys some new ones--oops I have no idea who that would be!!!

 When she saw this birthday card from Aunt Jessica and Uncle Ken she was in heaven. She LOVES peacocks and it totally made her night. Aunt Emily even sent a birthday video from Mexico which had us in tears it was so fun. What great family we have (:

 My girls LOVE, LOVE, LOVE stuffed animals. They can never have enough. I don't understand, totally not a thing I was ever into. But they love to get each stuffed animals for their birthdays and Sarah found this super cute camel for her and she was in love.

 She got her book from last year, "Cress" ( a book series that we all love but she especially loves), and a twister game. I love to see those grins on their faces and I love that they are so easy to please. What a great kid!!

Here are 10 reasons we love Kathryn...

1. She has the best personality. She is so happy and is a great person to be around.

2. She is an includer (I totally made up that word, oh yeah!!). She can't stand to have anyone left out and it hurts her feelings.

3. She has a great sense of justice. She is very attune to things not being fair especially at school and she is always seeking to make them better.

4. She is a great helper. She is so good to pitch in and help wherever she needs too.

5. She has a wonderful talent for music. She is playing the violin and piano and excels at both.

6. She is so brave. She is not afraid at all to be in front of anyone. She stands up and fulfills her part amazingly.

7. She has an amazing memory. She loves to beat me at "memory" and can do it quite often.

8. She is so smart, even at Math (and even though she says she "hates it"). Her ability to do her work at school and do what is asked of her is wonderful.

9. Her grin. She always wears this smile that lights up the room and is so contagious.

10. Her ability to be herself. She is not afraid to be who she wants to be!!

Family Reunion--Day 3

 The third day was absolutely beautiful so Sam and I took off for the Lake in the distance for a walk. 

 There was a fantastic boardwalk to walk out to it and I thought it was just gorgeous, especially as you can see the lake slowly getting closer.

 What an amazing scene. Loved it, took my breath away!

 Plus to be there with this guy made it 10 times better. Love that man!!

 Everyone decided to come down later so after a walk along the beach, I saw this cute girl running towards us. 

 Exploring the water and sand bars.

 The kids decided to write their names in the sand, you know so everyone would know they were there... (they thought that was such a fantastic idea--it was so cute and they took it very seriously!).

 On the way back I couldn't resist taking some pictures on that boardwalk. Seth wanted to stay back at the house so we only had the youngest 3 but they sure are adorable.

 Luke always has to have a stick with him. Such a boy! (:

 Afterward we got tired and wet from the lake we headed to the park to play with some of the cousins.

 Then it was a walk back to the house. Sarah, Kathryn, and Bentley walked back with us and did pretty good. The hill at the end is a booger but they pushed through and made it back sweaty and tired.

 The guys had a ping pong tournament in the afternoon and Seth figured out he could play quite well with his casts. They worked pretty great and he even scored quite a few points.

 Aunt Jenny had the kids paint rocks. Boy was that super entertaining. They painted for hours, especially the girls and enjoyed every minute of it!

 While the kids were all busy the ladies worked on some craft projects too; easter eggs and a nativity scene. It was so fun to sit and talk and work (and drink pop) and we loved hanging out together.

 Thursday we packed up, cleaned up, and loaded up and headed home in the middle of a snow storm. Most of stopped in Burley at a fantastic little burger joint (Stevo's) and ate lunch together. We convinced Aunt Jenny and her family to stop by our house and stay one night with us. 

 The weather was beautiful and we had a blast hanging out and relaxing a little longer. The girls were in heaven with cousin Katy's skates and now want their own pair. 

What a great spring break we had. Loved spending time together as a family and having so much fun!!

Family Reunion--Part 2

 After convincing the kids that they really needed to go to sleep we had a great night (so glad the beds were super comfortable and I had my pillow--weird fact about Julie--she has to take her pillow with her every time she sleeps somewhere else).

Sam trying out the slides that go from the deck to the backyard. Boy I think he loved it!!

 The next day was filled with taking a walk to see the sights, eating a delicious breakfast, and enjoying visiting all morning. In the afternoon, Maria set up a family Olympics.

 The kids were stoked to be outside on a nice day and have lots of fun. The kids did a 3 legged race.

 Bentley and Sarah were awesome partners and won. By the way, Bentley just turned 8 and can you see the size difference!!?? 

 The contestants all lined up with their partners ready to begin.

 Luke was so ticked that he didn't win. Heston could care less but Luke left bawling (maybe from having little sleep the night before...). He sure struggles with not being perfect at everything but at least he's better than he use to be!

 The next event was the "balance beam". The kids crossed as fast as they could without falling off. The little ones were actually the best at it and loved the idea of walking on brooms.

We had a frisbee toss after that. This girl beat even all the adults. She was awesome!

 The highlight of the afternoon was the tug-of-war. First was boys against girls (grandkids anyway, minus Seth). The girls took it pretty handily but that's what happens when there are more girls in the family!

 Then it was boys against girls with the adults. Boy those boys pulled us right off our feet. We had no hope on that one.

 Then it was couple against couple. Brad and Jill won that over all and I think Sam and I were the worst. Oh well, it was so fun to watch!!

 At this point some of the kids were still so sad that they hadn't won anything so Sam and I challenged them to a tug-of-war against us. After putting up a good fight they beat us and were so excited. So neat to see how something so small brings such a smile to their faces!

 Trying their hardest against us.

 The last event was the long jump. Sarah won that one too. That girl has some long legs and I love this picture of her. So awesome!

 Luke jumping.

 Kathryn taking off.

 By late afternoon the kids took a break in the theater room so the brothers and my Dad had a business meeting (can't keep those things away even on vacation).

The rest of played games and discovered some super awesome ones (Telestrations). Seth stayed busy writing out his 21 journal entries that was suppose to be due before Spring Break and playing games with us. He was mostly excited about all the guys playing the obligatory Risk game because no family reunion can be complete without that particular game!

We ended the night sharing a memory about one sibling and one for each of our parents. It was so fun to hear what everyone remembered and bring up such good memories.