Happy Birthday week to Conner

Happy 12th birthday Conner!

Kallie gave Conner an awesome present! She let him take Caleb to Raging Waters for a day! They had a blast together!!
(Thanks Kallie)

This was Conner's birthday cake. Conner had football try-out and weigh ins the week of his birthday, so upon Conner's request we didn't get him cake this year. Instead, we got him this beautiful, healthy fruit bowl. He said it was delicious!

Conner is growing up so big and tall. He is such a handsome young man. We had a great time together taking pictures.

The title of the above pictures is "I am a tough running back.... oh yes I am!" It is his football face.

I say this every year.... but man, I can't believe he is another year older. Conner can make me laugh when no one else can. He is such a gentleman all ready, and he is only 12. He is smart and nice. He is thoughtful and sure of himself. He is a delight to have in our family.

Happy Birthday Conner.... I love you!

Conner - a deacon

Today was a beautiful, special day. Conner was ordained a Deacon. WOW!

Many thoughts come to my mind when I think of what a fine young man he is. I feel incredibly blessed and thank Heavenly Father for allowing me to be his mom. I am lucky!

Jammin in the PJ's

Zander LOVES music! He loves to sing! He loves to dance!! He loves to JAM!

Check out this funny clip. He even stops for a minute when the girl sings because, "I can't sing girl parts..... I am not a girl!"

Best Parade Ever!

Garrett got to participate in the Highland Parade this year with his football team. His team were the Champions for the 1st and 2nd grade age group last season!

Each of the big football boys had water guns to squirt the crowd and candy to throw. Gar was so excited!!!

The rest of the family got to experience the parade first hand. Cosmo was out on the streets for high fives!!

Stockton got his shot at breaking a brick with his fists. He broke it right in two with one punch!

Garretts group weren't the only ones with water. We all got sprayed plenty of times. It felt so good in the hot sun!

We also got SO much candy! It was like early Halloween time. We had so much candy, we could barely make it back to the car with it all. Of course, Stockton found a way to make it happen.

It was the best parade we have ever been to, hands down. Next year, we will come with empty pillow cases for the candy!
Way! Way!! FuN!

Happy 24th!

Boys and Fireworks!

Don't get me wrong, I love fireworks.... but for some reason the boys love to light them. They had a blast and I got a good firework show!

I guess I shouldn't say ALL boys like fireworks. Big, Tough Zander wouldn't come outside to watch or even participate. He told me he would rather do to bed.... so he went to bed early that night!

SO COOL!

Garrett's little feet got all dirty. I guess that is another thing that go hand in hand together.... boys and dirt!

We had a nice night together lighting fireworks and enjoying the holiday! Happy Pioneer Day!

Lindon Pool!

We found a fun place to cool off in the hot sun! The Lindon Pool has something for everyone!

Conner and Stockton rode the wave stimulator. It was almost like boogie boarding in Hawaii.... almost!

We all had a great time!

I {Heart} Faces - Beach Day

Spending an day on the beaches of Hawaii has got to be the best way to spend a day.

Conner enjoyed all the powerful waves. He would jump into the water and let the rough waves wash him up on shore.

Looking at this picture reminds me of all the fun we had together as a family. Also.... how much I want to go back!

Check out the other amazing entries for this week!!

Open House

We were able to attend the Oquirrh Mountain LDS Temple!! We all had a very nice time! It was the first time the boys were able to tour the inside of the temple. It was an amazing experience!!

I feel so blessed to have so many temples so close to us. I think living in Utah we are spoiled. For most people outside of Utah, and especially outside of the United States.... their challenge is find ONE temple close to them. We face the challenge of choosing which one we would like to go to!! It was great to walk around inside and talk to the boys about different things. They each found it intriguing. Even Zander attention was focused on the beauty!

I {Heart} Faces - Feet

This week the category on I {Heart} Faces is Feet!

Zander loves to jump into the tub and relax. Peek -a-boo feet!

Check out some other incredible feet entries from this week...

Kallie - Miss InCreDibLe!

Summer is always filled with plenty of great stuff.... swimming, playing, soaking up the sun.... just being a kid! At our house, this summer has been EXTRA great! The EXTRA is because of an incredible friend, Kallie!

Kallie is our nanny! And might I add.... we absolutely LOVE her! Anyone who can handle 4 crazy kids, sometimes 5, and ends each day with a smile, is one InCreDibLe person! Today is Kallie's birthday! Happy Birthday Kallie!

Kallie doesn't just work 9 - 5.... she comes to family activities on weekends. It was so much fun to eat Strawberries and Cream together.

She cooks fun stuff with the boys. They have made banana bread, cookies, and even took an attempt at Rice Krispies.... they called them Pretty Rice Kristpie Klumps..... and they tasted marvelous!

The kids have done a varity of the things. Seven Peaks, Ragging Waters, Slip and Slide, building forts, riding bikes down to the store, going to the park, and many other incredible adventures.

She even took the boys over to Grandma and Grandpa's house to pick raspberries and mow the lawn.... Zander told me that everything is always more fun if Kallie is around.

Being a working mom can be difficult at times. With Kallie around for the summer, my life has been a lot better in many areas. I know the kids are safe and having a good time. I know I can work and not have to worry about anything!! I appreciate her so much!!!

Thanks for an incredible summer. Happy Birthday!

B.F.F.'s

Good friends are hard to come by. I believe long life friends are even harder to come by.... and guess what? I am so lucky to have long, life, GREAT friends!!!!

I have some of the greatest memories from High School. Each memory was made with at least one of these incredible ladies. Sun tanning on top of parents garage.... I had to wear sunscreen while the others got to turn the lovely bronze color. Drive by's (no more needs to be said). Toilet papering.... and getting caught. Sharing clothes, shopping, laughing, crying, Dairy Queen fights, Chick-fil-a everyday. Late nights and sleep overs. Even vacations together!! They laughed at my jokes, cheered me on when I wanted to give up, and a large part of the person I am today is because of the things I learned from them. I couldn't ask for a better group of friends growing up!!

And even though life moves on and time is spent with family, work, and everyday stuff..... I cherish the times we are all able to get together and reminisce about the good 'ol days!!!
I love you girls!

Stacy, Jen, Brooke, Shatie, Me and Becki

MUSTANG

Look what I got to do....

I would recommend it to everyone! Definitely something you should add to your bucket list.

Oh... and no, I didn't go out and buy a convertible Mustang.... it was a rental.
But yes.... I want one now!

I {Heart} Faces - Sports

This week on I {Heart} Faces the theme is Sports in Action. Since I have 5 kids, I have plenty of Sports photos.... it was hard to choose just one.

In the end I chose this one of Garrett. He is an amazing little football player. He is usually the smallest one on the field, but he has a real love for the game. He isn't afraid of anything... especially these 3 big giants.

His team went to the finals and WON! Garrett is counting down the day for football this year. We can't wait for another season!!

Mowing Grandma and Grandpa's Lawn

Summer is filled with fun, sun, water, and even some hard work. This summer we are missing some amazing people in our lives.... Grandma and Grandpa J. They are serving a mission in Russia. I suppose the closest we can get to being with them is helping out by mowing their lawn this summer and picking raspberries. The boys have been great helpers and most of the time they are eager to go over and be put to work. Niel is usually the one who leads the group over, but this past week he was out of town. Kallie (our incredible nanny) took the boys over this past week and they all got to work!

Conner mows and Stockton looks for sprinkler heads. It is a perfect match for the two!

Zander picked some raspberries. He got SO tired though. One bowl was about as much as his little hands could handle.

Kallie jumped right in and helped with the picking (did I tell you how awesome she is)!!! Garrett and Stockton helped pick some too.

They filled two bowls and still left a bunch more. Anyone interested in some raspberries?

After a hard day of work they got a special treat at Macey's. I am proud of the boys for being so willing to help out on a hard job!

We miss you Grandma and Grandpa!!!

I {heart} Holidays

I absolutely LOVE holidays. The reason I love them so much is because it means I get to spend time with the ones I love...... and sometimes, if I am lucky..... I get to spend time with the ones I love that I don't get to see very often.

This past Fourth of July holiday brought many cute faces that I rarely see!

Alayna, Arianna, Patrick and Ang were all here from California. Aren't my niece growing up to be so beautiful?!
Bry and Brooke were here too. Even though I see them more often, it still seems like I don't see them enough!

We all got a special treat because Jen, Spencer and family were in from Oregon. We all got together for a BBQ. Andy and Tysa came too. Even though they live down the hill from me, I had yet to see their new baby Meikel.... adorable! Kam and Steve, Elanie and Russ are always great company to be around. I just love my family!!

And here I am.... holding Jen's newest addition.... Elliott. I think she kind of looks like me! Maybe I should just keep her!

Happy 4th

I think we managed to squeeze just about everything in this year for the Fourth of July!

Ward Breakfast bright and early
Parade with all the family

Seven Peaks

Family BBQ

We went to the Provo Temple/MTC field to watch the fireworks!

The field was nice and big to play around and then we played cards and lite sparklers while we waited for the big Stadium of Fire show!

It was a perfect way to spend the holiday! The only difficult part was trying to get out of traffic. I guess everyone else had the same brilliant idea as we did!

Happy 4th!

Lacrosse

Conner added another sport to his list of favorites to play..... Lacrosse.

He spent the entire month of June with a lacrosse stick in his hands.... practicing his cradling.

I had never seen a lacrosse game before, so it was very entertaining and fun to learn a new sport.

The game is pretty intense. Conner uses his strong body to push people out of his way and get the ball.

Conner called it Hockey on grass!

He had a great time playing and we had a great time watching. Can't wait until next season!