4th of July

 This year for the 4th we had some friends over.  It was pretty fun and all the kids were so great!  With 27 people there and 14 of them being kids I think it went really well.

 We kicked off the night with a BBQ.  To keep the kids busy we had bubbles, water guns, glow sticks, and chalk.  It was a great group. I put Cole in charge of the kids stuff and he did such a great job of helping out and keeping the kids busy.

 We let the kids run wild.  It was pretty fun to watch them and see how excited they all got when the fireworks started going around.

We had a really good firework show.  Jake and Jared came over later and brought some of their fireworks too.  It was really fun.  I hope we can do it next year too!

I couldn't help but feel so grateful that night.. what a wonderful country we live in!  Truly the best nation on the earth!

If Only.....

If only, I didn't try to do so many things at once, maybe then I could finish something completely.

If only, I didn't set myself up everyday thinking, "Okay, today the kids are going to be great and I am going to  keep them busy."

If only, I would just sit down and make the menu for the week....maybe then we would have a decent dinner around here for a change!!

If only, I could stretch my patience muscle day by day, maybe then I wouldn't be so darn weak in that department.

If only, I could always keep my eye on eternity, then maybe I wouldn't get so caught up in the "little things"  of the day.

If only, I knew how to use my comma then I wouldn't always be wondering if I am putting then in the right spot!

Today was an okay day.  Maybe tomorrow will be better!!!

Funny Pictures

 Mike did these of the kids and it gave me a good laugh!

 Carson's expression on his face matches perfect for his part.

Look at my cute little rocker baby!

Date Week

 I Love this wonderful man of mine.  He has spoiled me all week!  This night we did a little shopping, a little dinner, and then just played in the park with the camera for a bit.

 I can't believe we have four kids together, have been together for 11 years and we still know how to have fun together.  He is so good about our weekly date nights and is always such a gentleman!  Thanks babe for our night outs.... I NEED them!!

 The next night we went to dinner and the temple with the Anderson's!  Sure love this couple and holy cow did we all get a good laugh that night at my expense.  (A story that must never be told!)

 A couple days later we meet up with Jake and Jared and spent 9 hours at Lagoon!!   Mike and I have talked about doing this for awhile now and I am so glad we finally did it.  It was such a blast!   It was such a perfect day to go.  We didn't have to wait long for the rides, it wasn't terribly hot, and all we had to worry about was what did we want to eat, and what ride was next.  It was so great playing like a kid again.

Our favorite rides were Wicked,  Rattlesnake Rapids, and then the ride that takes you up super high and then drops you!  So much fun.  The next night was July 4th so I will do a post on that next....another great night.

Then last night ( yes, I am starting to  feel guilty for leaving the kids so much) we went to Freedom Works presentation and Glen Beck was a speaker there along with Senator Mike Lee, Mia Love, Ted Cruz's dad and some others.  It was pretty fun.  We were worried we were going to get rained out but just got sprinkled on.  Tonight we are going to Man in the Moon and I can't wait!

This week has been dream like.  The stars aligned so we were able to do all this.  So fun!  Mike is leaving for the next four days so I hope this great feeling will remain and get me through till he returns.

Summer 2013 So Far

 We kicked off summer 2013 with a pretty great start!  We got to have Maddy and Bella come stay a week with us.  It was so fun having them here with us.  The kids all got along so good.  They played in the water, went to parks, stayed up late and just had a really great time.

 These two girls were pretty fun to watch!  Miss them already.

 Summer cuts came this year.....the "buzz" !   I didn't want to mess around with fixing hair and Mike asked the boys at just the right time, and they said yes.  Here is Carson looking like the Airbender to me.  Love that little flared nostril, "I'm gonna kick your butt" look.  

 Here is Cole sporting his buzz with Uncle Jake.  We went to Dimitri's one afternoon for lunch there.  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this little place.

 We got invited to go to the Zoo with our good friend Jeanna and her kids.  Uncle Jake came along with us and thank goodness he did.  I sure LOVE having him back in our lives again.  Its been really neat, not to mention he is really good with helping me keep my little angels in line when we go out!

 This is Cole's look for the summer.  He is pretty cool looking right?

 Morgan was very fascinated with this apes nipples...or nibbles as she calls them.  She really cracks me up!

And what would summer be without lots of chores.  When the boys act up and Mikes around, they are put on rock duty.  They are such great boys.  I love watching them grow.

Summer is going really great.  I hate that I am having a hard time keeping up with blogging.  There is so much going on and they kids have lots going on too.  But I am really enjoying this summer.  Late nights with sleeping in and no hassle of a school schedule in the way.  Its refreshing.

We have done other things as well but I am not the best at taking pictures, or even remembering so this will have to do for now.

My First Women's Conference

This was my first time going to Women's Conference and it was my first time on the BYU campus. Can I just say I LOVED it!  First of all, the campus is gorgeous.  Its almost like the temple grounds.  And I can't believe how big it is.  I loved being up there.  It kind of made me regret graduating from the college I went to.  O-well.

I attended both days and was able to get a hotel!  (Thank you, thank you, thank you, my little, honey!)  The first day was a little overwhelming because of being clueless to what I was getting myself into but by the second day I felt I had it down.

Things to remember for next year:

1. Try and pick my classes closer together.
2.  Pay more attention to the schedule and don't assume functions will go on both days.  ( I.E. Sharing stations I totally missed out on!)
3.  Work on one of the service projects while there.  
4.  If I am going to run between classes pack lighter.
5.  Pack plenty of snacks to eat on the go.
6.  Stay in hotel for two nights instead of one.
7.  Bring a friend.

I can't even begin to say how much I walked away with.  It was so uplifting and I have lots to ponder on and pray on.  I can honestly say my testimony was strengthened in so many ways.

Liz if you are reading this so glad you were there to be my guide and show me the ropes.  It was fun being with you again!

Wow, is all I can say.  I am counting down till next year!!!

Entertainment Center

 This is a picture of what our living room looked like before...before I painted, before I cleaned, just before the magic happened!  I have been following a blog for awhile now and I swear everything this girl does I copy she can be found here.  Love, love, love her! I got the idea for the entertainment center from her.

 So step 1 was to buy some Ikea bookcase, 5 in total, and put them together.  I wish I would have added wallpaper like Jen did but I went with a gray spray paint instead.  (I will change that later!)

 Step 2 screw them together, put a top on them and add molding to make it look a little more custom.  Please take note of the new house color in the back.  No more tan!  Hallelujah!

 Step 3 add the doors and put my stuff back!  I am not a decorator, never have been.  So I have a HUGE learning curve to overcome...but this project was really great and I love the lighter, cleaner look than the previous.

 It is so fun to make a space prettier, more functional, and doing it for a good price is always something to smile about for me!

So this little project has taken some time but has been lots of fun.  But the problem with projects they lead to other projects...