UpGrAdE...

We finally had to upgrade to 4 bar stools! The kids have been fighting in the mornings on who got to sit at the bar. Halle LOVES to eat breakfast with Brinley and Zach before they go to school! It really is cute when they are all eating together in the mornings! So, to make it more pleasant I decided to get 1 more bar stool to make it even! I thought Halle would be a little older when we got another one, but seeing as how she hates to sit in her high chair and thinks she is big like the other kids now I gave in! We don't like her sitting there cuz they have no backs on them, she has only fallen once... we'll keep our fingers crossed!

MoThErS DaY!

Today is Mothers Day and I couldn't go to bed without saying thank you to my wonderful family! I love my husband and kids dearly and don't know what I would do without them in my life! They make me laugh, and smile everyday and for that I am grateful! Morgan and I truly have the BEST kids in the world! We are so grateful to have them in our lives!

I really do love Mothers Day! It's kinda like my birthday, it only comes once a year, and for that WHOLE day I feel loved and appreciated! It makes all of the other days worth it! ;) Not that I am not appreciated on the other days, but I don't get the royal treatment like I do on Mother's Day! Seriously! Morgan and my kids always make it so special for me and that is what I LOVE!

We had 9:00 church this morning so I didn't get breakfast in bed, but it was my request to not do it so that we could be on time for church! We were still a little late, but we went TOGETHER and that's what matters! I was getting ready in the bathroom and Halle woke up, so I took her in the kitchen with me to get her sippy and the kids and Morgan came walking in holding an iPhone and they had recorded a message on it of them saying "Happy Mothers Day"! I about died! I was so excited! I have been having problems with my phone for over a year now (ever since Halle was a baby and loved to suck on and play with my phone) and I think Morgan was sick of hearing me complain EVERY day about it! It really was bad though! And very annoying to say the least! Well, he fixed that problem for me! I am just excited to have a phone that works now! Thank you honey!

I always love what the kids make in school for Mothers Day! I think it is so thoughtful of their teachers to have them make something! This year both Brinley and Boston made me a book that had questions in it that they had to fill in! They were so cute and funny! I loved reading what they wrote! On one of the lines it said "My mom weighs ___ pds. Boston wrote 95! That made me pretty happy! haha! Boston was SO excited to give his to me! They also colored some pictures for me at home and EACH wrote me a letter! I loved it! That is always my favorite part! I was pretty emotional all day long, I would cry at the drop of a hat! I have allergies right now and I woke up with puffy, watery eyes to begin with, they looked fabulous by the end of the day especially after crying all during church! During sacrament meeting my eyes were watering and I had to keep wiping them, there were a few times when I had to keep telling myself that it was due to allergies when really I knew they were tears running down my face.

Me and my sweet kids! I just love them to pieces!

Thank you for making me a mommy!

Reading the kids cards!

Brinley took a picture of me and Morgan!

Check my eyes out! Nice.

Me and my new iPhone!

It's white!

Morgan made a yummy dinner! He grilled chicken marinated in Ranch dressing! So good!

Then he made hot fudge sundaes for dessert with Brownies, ice cream, chocolate, carmel, whip cream and bananas on top! I was so full afterwards!

He always makes me feel like a princess on Mothers Day! Thank you for making it such a special day! I love you!

Last but not least, I can't not mention my own mom on Mothers Day! I have the best mom in the world! She was able to come down for a few days this week and stay with us, and it was so much fun! We were able to hang out together for the first time after her moving back from St. George for the winter! She came down for the UVU game on Wed. night since it was RMSB night and my dad was throwing out the opening pitch. We missed it because of traffic, so she was pretty bummed! I did the best I could to get her there, I even dropped off Boston at practice early and headed down, but the construction traffic is so bad right now in Utah Valley that it detained us a bit! We still cruised and got to the field at 6:01 but we were too late! It was fun to hang out that night! On Thursday I was busy running my kids all over, so it was nice to have her here to stay with Halle! Zach had 2 basketball games that night that we all went to (that's kinda why she decided to stay since she hadn't been able to see him play all winter) The games were in Sandy and didn't get over till 9 so she stayed the night again.

On Friday she took me to lunch for Mothers Day and then we went to the nursery to go pick me out some flowers to plant! I haven't planted much, so she told me she would help!

It was so fun, and added so much to our yard! My favorite thing she got me was a beautiful hanging flower pot! I love it!

My sister wanted to go to the Tulip Festival since this was the last weekend it was going on and my mom hadn't been either, so we were able to go do that before she left to go back home! I took Halle with me and we had a great time! Halle loves being outdoors, so she was in heaven! She loved the big fish and all the pretty flowers!

Thanks mom for coming and spending a few days at our home! We always love having you here!

GrAtEfULL...

I couldn't help but share this blog.

I am feeling very grateful as I sit here tonight. It was a crazy busy day today and as much as I was complaining that my kiddos didn't get to bed until 11:00 tonight I am grateful that I was able to hug and kiss them before they went to sleep.

Click here to read about a mommy who isn't able to hug and kiss her kids anymore. I just learned of this story last night when my sister was here. This is one of her students moms sister. This man just lost his wife and child. He now has 3 young children to raise. What a sweet family.

MoRgAn's B-DaY #36!

Last Friday was Morgan's birthday! He turned the big 36!

Zach was supposed to be playing in a baseball tournament that day but it got cancelled because of the weather! So, he had the day off which was nice! He was able to do some things he wanted!

He started off the morning by going on Brinley's field trip with her! The 3rd grade went to the Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point. I have taken the kids every year, but Morgan has never been able to go, so it was fun for him to go with her! Afterwards they went back to the school and they found Zach and Morgan took the kids to lunch. (Something else he doesn't get to do) They even came home and got Boston to join in the fun! They went to Taco Time cuz it was close by, but still Yummy! I love that place!

Halle was really into opening the presents! She got so excited for each one, so Morgan just let her open them!

The girls gave him a Willow Tree to add to my collection! :)

It is called "My Girls".

He loved it!

Morgan with the kiddos! He loves them so much and would do anything for them!

He is such a good daddy to them!

After we were done opening presents he wanted to take the kids to go hit at the field, they were gone for a couple of hours! I stayed home with Halle cuz it was too cold and we watched Charlotte's Web! It was her first time seeing it, and she loved all of the animals!

Even if there is no practice the kids love to go hit and throw with their dad! They can't get enough! Morgan got to stay home with Halle in the afternoon while I went into Boston's class to help with the Easter party! I think they may have even got a little nap in together!

It was a perfect day for him, spending time with the ones he loves the most!

I tease him that he is a "home body"! But he LOVES it!

Me, on the other hand I like to go OUT and party!

I made his favorite cake of course, the one his mom would make for him growing up!

It is a Chocolate Oatmeal cake, and is very rich and yummy!

Getting ready to sing Happy Birthday...

The whole gang...

Happy Birthday Morgan! Hope you had a fun day!

Thanks for everything you do for us!

We love you!

ZaCh'S FooT!

Zach had some planter warts on the bottom of his foot a few months ago and I had taken him in to get them removed, well the really big one right in the middle of his foot got infected and was red and puffy around it so I took him back in to have it looked at, and it turned out that he actually had to remove it again! It was really painful and he could hardly walk on it afterwards!

It healed up nicely and looks good now, I think this kid just needs to give his feet some rest!

He's not having anymore pain in his ankles anymore. The doctor tweeked his orthotics a bit and his feet are feeling good! Yeah! Let's keep it that way! :)

Da GiRlS!

Brinley really is the best big sister Halle could ever ask for!

I don't know what the two would do without each other!

I am so glad that they are sisters and that Halle could join our family!

She is exactly what this girl needed!

Brinley is so much help with her, and I never even have to ask! (well, sometimes I do) She just does it naturally! This was spring break week and I had 3 huge piles of laundry on my bed that needed to be folded so I asked Brin if she would take Halle for a walk outside in her stroller, and she fell asleep!!! Something that NEVER happens! So, double bonus for ME! I got my laundry folded and my baby was asleep! We carefully carried the stroller inside and let her sleep peacefully where it was WARM! The boys were at baseball so I helped Brinley clean her room and go through some of her clothes! It can look a little scary these days! :)

My cute baby! ASLEEP~

Brinley and Halle watching Toy Story 3 (I'm sure)

Halle always wants Brinley to put her animals by her and put a blanket over all of them!

And of course her wish is granted!

My cute little girl! She wanted to lay on the counter after I had got done doing the dishes one morning, I had set her up there for something and I think she just loved that it was clean, and nothing was on it!

So cute!

Playing hide-n-seek!

Love those smiles!

Sisters by Chance

Friends by Choice!

I love this quote, even though I truly believe that they chose to be sisters...

SpriNg BrEaK- Part 2

So, I'm glad we started our Spring Break with a weekend getaway! The week went by WAY too fast and ended up with the last 3 days of Zach playing baseball! It was a good week, I love to have the kids home, and Halle loved it too! The kids are a great help with her, but she still loves her mama! Monday the kids had friends sleepover and spent the day hanging out which was SO nice! They don't get to do this enough with our busy schedules!

On Tuesday we took a trip to the mall to get a few things, it was a fun afternoon! We met Morgan for lunch and he went back to work so we could shop! Boston had to leave for baseball practice which I wasn't very happy about, but we all met back up at the UVU game that night! There were lots of people from Lehi there that night cuz my friends work was giving away tickets, it was fun for the kids to run around with all of their friends! It started snowing the last 15 min. of the game! It was great!

Wednesday Zach's baseball team started playing in the Spring Break tourney that was held in Salem, we went to most of the games, but it was freezing cold! Definitely not baseball weather! We were there Friday night when they won the championship so that was fun! Those boys played a mean game and were down 5-1 and came back and won 13-5! It was so much fun to see them energized and loving the game!!!

Saturday was Super League and I think the boys were all worn out! So were the fans! haha!

They lost both of their games and called it a week, playing 8 games!

Way to go Tigers!

I just have to say that as I am typing this there is a storm outside right now! It is supposed to SNOW tonight! I can hear the wind blowing like crazy!

Will SPRING ever be here?

Going to eat in between games in Salem.

Subway anyone?

The kids thought it would be fun to ride in the back of Daddy's truck!

This is Brinley and her best little friend from school Kayla.

She moved right after Christmas, so doesn't go to the same school anymore,

but they still keep in touch and love when they can see each other!

We had Kayla come stay over Friday night, she endured all the games with us!

I think her and Brinley would have fun together wherever they were!

CHAMPIONS!!!

Love this kid!

SpRiNg BrEaK- Part 1- Grand America

On Friday the kids got out of school for Spring Break, Morgan had the day off cuz Zach was supposed to be playing in the Pizza Factory Tournament for baseball in Spanish Fork... but because of the rain/snow they cancelled it! So... that meant a weekend with NOTHING!!! Which rarely happens at this house! Morgan and I went to lunch that day while all the kiddos were at school and took little Halle with us. Which is also a rare occasion! :) And at lunch I presented him the idea of taking the kids for a night's stay at a hotel somewhere close. (which is another rare occasion) we talked about doing it sometime this week while they were out of school. Boston had a talent show in his kindergarten class that day that we were all able to go to (he was so excited cuz Morgan and Zach were going to be gone and weren't going to be able to come, but since Zach's games got cancelled they got to!) He did 50 push-ups to the Jimmer song for his class! He was so cute! On the way home in the car the kids were SO excited to be out of school, and I just looked at Morgan and said, "Why don't we go TODAY"? We came in the house and he called to make sure they had rooms available at Little America and gave me the thumbs up! So, we gathered the kids and told them that we were going somewhere for the night and to pack their bags with a set of clothes, swimsuits, and pajamas, and that we were leaving in 15 min! They were all so excited! Even Halle was screaming and waving her hands in the air just cuz the other kids were! So, everyone including myself grabbed a few things together and off we went! We are usually not spontaneous like this, so it was fun to have a little adventure!

We pulled up to Little America and went to check in only to find out that they had overbooked their rooms and didn't have any left!!! So, we got to drive across the street and stay at Grand America! It was fun to be able to stay the night at a hotel, but to have it so nice, made it even better! We went and checked into our room and put on our suits to go swimming. To get to the pool you had to go through the spa and check in with your room number, when we got there we found out there were some other families who had the same idea we did! But that was o.k. we stayed longer than any of them, and had the pool mostly to ourselves! The kids got to experience a sauna for their first time! Morgan went with the boys and then stayed with Halle so I could take Brinley in! I figured the hot tub was hot enough for her, I didn't want her to overheat! The kids loved the sauna, and the boys even went back for more when I took Brinley in! We were explaining to them what saunas are for, and everytime Boston would come out he would flex his stomach so it was hard and say "Mom, I think I lost weight! Do you think you did too"? Funny little guy, I wish it were that easy!

After we had enough heat for the night we went back to the room and ordered pizza in, it was about 8:30 and we didn't feel like taking everyone out. It was much more relaxing to lay in bed and watch Disney Channel with the kids!

This was the first night in the hot tub, everyone looks a little "toasty"!

We stayed on the 19th floor. The kids wanted to go out on the balcony and it FREAKED me out! I am a little scared of heights, and it just made me nervous, Zach was making fun of me!

Halle enjoying some pretzels...

Brinley and Boston enjoying the robes waiting for the pizza to come! Morgan and I called them but they got them first! The kids kept saying they wanted to see what room service was like. When the pizza came we told them that was their room service for the night! :)

I'm realizing that everyone looks so tired in these pictures! I think the swimming, hot tub, and sauna wore them right out!

Morgan getting a little R&R!

Mommy and Halle

Brinley was doing splits on the wall...

Halle was trying to join in...

Wish I were that flexible!

Halle had a hard time going to sleep with everyone in the same room, it gave me a little glimpse of what our trip will be like when we go to N.Y. in July!

Once she went to sleep she was out, so that was good!

Brinley tends to get a little "extra energy" at night! After everyone else had fallen asleep, she went in the bathroom and was determined to get her tooth out that has been loose for nearly 2 months! After helping her for about 30 min. and not having any luck I convinced her it was time to go to sleep! This was about 12:30 at night!

We loved the big magnified mirror! I always wished I had one in my bathroom at home!

Our nights sleep wasn't the best! Everyone was a little "squished" without our own beds, but it was fun for a night!

The next morning we went and grabbed breakfast at McDonalds and came back to the hotel to go swimming. We had the whole place to ourselves for a couple of hours! It was great! We had so much fun swimming with the kids and just being together!

After we checked out Morgan took us over to the Conference Center and we were able to go on a tour. We are so lucky to have this so close to us! I had never been on a tour before, it is pretty amazing that you can walk in ANY time and someone is there ready to take you on a tour! No scheduled times or anything! There was another family in our group that was from Canada. They had 3 kids with them. I always think to myself that we don't take advantage of what we have surrounding us. The kids thought it was awesome to go inside the Conference Center that they see on t.v. every General Conference! It looked SO big when you were inside!

It snowed pretty much ALL day long, so we weren't able to go on the roof, which probably was a blessing since I am scared of heights, it just makes me sick to my stomach. Then I didn't have to worry about one of my kids falling over the edge!

Afterwards we walked over to the Joseph Smith Memorial Building and watched the movie "The Restoration" about Joseph Smith. We had seen it years ago when we lived in Phoenix (even though Morgan doesn't remember) when I think about Joseph Smith, I don't think about everything he went through. It really was a personable story about his life. The kids really learned alot by watching it! Boston and Halle both fell asleep during it, so it was nice to be able to sit there and actually watch it with Zach and Brinley!

After the movie we ate at the Nauvoo Cafe. It was so yummy, we had never eaten there before.

While we were standing in line to order Halle burned her hand on one of the ovens and was screaming! They gave us a little cup of water for her to put her little fingers in. We had to leave and go out in the hall and get her to calm down before we could order!

The kids standing by the Joseph Smith statue!

It was a fun way to celebrate the kids being out of school for a week! Now we get to be at home and hang out! I'll be posting about Part II!