California Dreamin'

We got to spend almost 2 weeks back at home in good old Lake of the Pines, California. We usually only get to go home for Christmas, so it was such a treat to be able to do all the fun summer things this time with the kids.

If Rhett looks a little puffy eyed, it's because unfortunately on our first night there, he got bit by something in the middle of the night on his upper right eye lid, and it swelled up beautifully. I cringed with every picture we took of him and that it was for Sunday morning! :(

McKenna has turned into such a beautiful little girl now. So much personality.

DIVA!

We were able to go visit a few local museums that were open for everyone to walk through. This one had some fun, old fashioned games on the front lawn for the kids to enjoy. Even my "big kid" got in on the action.

Rhett and his cousin Timmy really got a kick out of the tug of war game.

"Look at how big my muscles are now!"

The boys also got to have a feel for fetching water and hand washing clothes. I hope that it gave them a slight appreciation for the chores that they have to do today. The lady of the house told them that at their age, they would have had to clean out the bed pans! :)

One of all of our favorites was the gold mining. We learned a lot about how it was discovered and the conditions that the miners had to live in.

Each of the kids were able to try their hand at panning, and each walked away with a few gold flakes to call their own.

Seeing as it was a hot summer in California, we spent a lot of time swimming in various friends pools, the river and of course the lake.

This wonderful pool is at the home of some good friends. We were able to relax and cool off for an afternoon with them.

What's a little fun in the sun without some goodies to eat too? Rhett, McKenna, Timmy and friends, Emily and Kyle enjoying some cupcakes.

Damon even got luck and was invited to participate in a Scout Merit Badge Certification for canoeing. Issac went along to help and out they had a great time!

We went on a day hike to some hidden falls and came across this man and his horse which of course was a big hit with all the kids. We hiked to the river front just below the falls and enjoyed a packed lunch while the kids took a dip.

For another outing, we decided to go bowling. We all had a blast, from my dad all the way down to McKenna. It was a pretty high tech bowling alley that could put down and pick up the bumpers when it was one of the little kids turns. Alicia proved to be the big winner, ending the game with a "TURKEY"!

The best of cousins!

Wesley, Rhett and Timmy showing off their out of this world, super human strength!

I love this picture of these three. We have many just like it at various different ages and stages of their lives. I really hope that they will always stay close to each other.

One of the big highlights to the trip, was getting to go up to our friends million dollar home and play in their gorgeous pool. The hot tub, which is in the middle of the kiddie pool, has an infinity edge.

Do they look like California babes or what?

Then the main pool which is connected to the kiddie pool, also has an infinity edge. It was the most amazing view and we all agreed that we would have been plenty happy to stay right where we were.

Just over the edge there, down below, is a lap pool. This is definitely going on my dream list! :)

The pool, as you can see was amazing, but then we got to have a tour of this amazing house! I honestly thought that I was walking through my dreams! I am so happy for the owners though and glad that they have their dream! Thanks to Angelique and family for sharing it with us, if only for a brief moment in time.

We spent just about every night staying up late and playing games, but we only got to go out, just the adults once. It was a fun evening and good to build relationships up.

We started with dinner, then because Alicia wasn't feeling top notch, ended up playing miniature golf, which I think was pretty perfect. The whether was great and we all had a blast.

Brandon and Alicia! Brandon actually plays golf, and took his game seriously!

Then of course Grandma couldn't resist taking some more pictures of sweet little McKenna. She is so photogenic!

Rhett had to get in on the action too!

I just love how close these two are. Rhett is such a good brother and McKenna does her best to take care of her big brother. I love my kids!

We had a wonderful trip and got to visit with so many old friends. It will be really hard when the rest of the family moves out here and we won't be going "home" for visits any longer. I LOVE where I was fortunate enough to grow up and love that my kids have been able to experience and see so much of it. I love spending time with my family though, so I can't wait for them all to move out here! I miss them all so much!

My little Man!

I can hardly believe that Rhett is old enough to start school. I now have all my boys hitting the books.

Rhett was a willing participant in my first day of school photo shoot, but the older two boys were not quite so excited about the idea. Funny how they change as they get older, especially boys!

He was so excited to start school and be just like the big boys, but he was also sad to have to leave his little sister behind.

While taking pictures to correctly document this momentous event, McKenna was not going to be left out. I can't believe how big she is getting as well. Where does the time go?

As per Rhett's request, I had to post a picture of his "super cool" new back pack.

Divine Design!

So, we decided to update Wesley's bedroom and make it a little more age appropriate, since he is 12 years old now and starting junior high (UGGG)! Any ways, we started out just wanting to paint the walls a light blue and thought that it would lighten up the basement room and then we could accent with other colors in the bedding and such. Since the room is in the basement, and the house is older than dirt, one of the walls was still covered in that awful wood paneling. We would have loved to tear it down and put up sheet rock, but $ and time is not with us at the moment. Issac wanted to just paint over it, but that was not going to cut it for me. This idea just popped into my head.

We cut down some thin pieces of wood in different sized squares and rectangles, and then covered them in alternating and coordinating colors of blues with some accents of white and green. I LOVE how it turned out, though the pictures didn't. It ended up taking us about 15 hours of working together to finish the project, but feel like it was well worth it. I plan on making curtains from the darker blue fabric that we used on the squares to hang in front of the closet. I just can't seem to do anything simple and easy. :)

Such a pretty 3!

I can't believe that my little princess is turning 3 years old already. It truly feels like just yesterday that we brought home this tiny, beautiful little angel. It has been the funnest, most rewarding experience to be McKenna's mom. I have absolutely loved having a little girl after all these boys. Pink, lace, baby dolls, princess things, bows, ribbons ... the list goes on and on and I love it!

My little princess loves to get all dolled up when we go out. She loves to look pretty just like a princess.

I love that I finally got a girl and that her hair is finally long enough to really start playing with. We had so many people stop us and comment on how cute she was, especially her hair!

Our first stop was McKenna's first trip to the nail salon. She LOVED it, and they all loved her. They couldn't believe how well behaved she was and for so young. She got to pick one of her favorite colors to paint her nails. I think that I have found a salon buddy for sure! :)

After a long, hot day of shopping for new shoes and clothes for the little miss, we decided to cool off with some ice cream. Always a favorite activity for all of us! McKenna picked the birthday cake flavored ice cream which I thought was very appropriate!

Then, McKenna got to go out to dinner with just Mommy and Daddy. We went to Bajio Mexican Grill, and she ate more of the Pork salad than I did. We had to talk her out of going to McDonalds. We've been letting the kids pick which restaurant they want to go to, but Issac and I just weren't feeling McD's.

After dinner, we let McKenna loose in Toys R Us and she ended up picking out her very first bike. She was so thrilled and took to it right away. At first she kept pushing backwards which would cause her to brake, but then after about 10 minutes of Issac working with her, she was off and, "going reaby fast mom!"

So, to top it all off and in true princess fashion, we had to have a princess castle cake. I was a little unsure if I wanted to attempt this, especially so soon after making the wedding cake, but how could I let my little princess down. I am not thrilled with how it turned out, but it was my first try. I'm sure I will have plenty more opportunities to practice as she grows.

Pink and Purple Princess Castle of course!

When it was all said and done, my little princess was a very, VERY happy 3 year old princess! I can't believe that she is so big, but I am so proud to be her mom and to have been there for all of her 3 years, with many, many more to go. Happy Birthday Kenna Bear! I love you!! XOXO!!

4th of July Weekend!

Well, one good thing about the 4th of July falling on a Sunday, is that you end up celebrating the whole weekend and then some! :) On Saturday morning, we woke up early and went to a pancake breakfast in the park and then joined some good friends for a parade.

The whether was perfect, so we decided to take the kids to Lagoon for the afternoon. We were afraid that the lines might be outrageous, but it was actually really slow and empty. We were able to walk right into Lagoona Beach, and then didn't have to wait in any lines either. Rhett was finally tall enough to ride on the big rides, so he chose to try out all the big roller coasters for the first time and absolutely loved them, especially the one's that went upside down.

We loved having some good family time to spend together. I just love my kids!

A full day of activities can really take it out of you though. Issac needed a little rest to get him through the rest of the day's activities.

We ended the night with some fireworks from the next town over. The kids love being able to sit on top of the car and snuggle under blankets.

Sunday, we went to church, then took naps, bbq some steaks, then we let the kids do some sparklers and pop its in the driveway, then watched all the other neighbors that had the big stuff. We ended the night with some root beer floats and some very happy kids.

Monday morning, we woke up and started everything all over again. We went to another, much bigger and better parade, played in the park, and then watched what I think is the best fireworks show I have ever seen. It was such a great weekend of celebrating. Happy 4th of July!

Trousseau Dreams!

As soon as I was called to Young Women's, I knew that I had to introduce Trousseau Dreams to our girls. For anyone who had the misfortune of growing up without this experience, I am truly sorry! It was a lot of work and a big undertaking since I basically had to do it all on my own, but I am so glad that I put the effort into it. There were days when I thought that we may have to cancel or postpone, but I think that it turned out great! As promised, here are some pictures of the big night.

This was my first attempt at making a wedding cake or anything close to it. I learned a lot and am pretty happy with how it turned out. It tasted great too, which is a big plus because I ended up bringing a ton of it home. The kids are thrilled because Issac told them that they can eat as much cake as they want! :) Top layer was coconut cake with a key lime filling, second layer was lemon cake with a raspberry filling, and the bottom layer was chocolate cake with a hazelnut filling. I covered the layers with a marshmallow fondant, so the whole thing tasted yummy!

We had tables set with name cards and everything. Besides the cake, we had a chocolate fondue station with strawberries, apples, bananas, marshmallows and pretzel rods.

We asked the mothers and leaders to allow us to display their wedding dresses and pictures. We ended up with 9 different dresses to show that spanned quite a few years and eras. It was really fun for the girls to see how styles have changed. There were some beautiful, modest dresses!

Our colors for the night were purple and white. As I said, the evening was a huge success. Our key note speakers were a newlywed couple that did a fabulous job, and the parents put a lot of thought into the gifts for the girls and really touched all of us. I am so happy that there is such a special activity that we can bring back year after year to help our girls stay focused on their goal of temple marriage. It was an amazing night!

* Special thanks to my amazing husband who helped me not only with the physical time and hours put in helping with the prep work and set up and take down, but all the emotional support and help that he gave to get me through it all. I love you baby! You are still my HERO and my Prince Charming!

Summertime.... finally!

It seemed like summer was never going to make it to Utah this year, but no worries, it has finally found its way. To kick off our 2010 summer fun, we had our first of many trips to Lagoon.

It was a perfect day to play outside and spend some quality family time together. Happy kids = happy parents! :)

My little princess?

McKenna is such a sweet little girl. She "wubs pink and poopal!" She "wubs mommy and daddy"! She is deathly afraid of dogs, ants, cats and spiders. One of her favorite past times though, is digging up "baby wormies"! She loves to have a bow in her pretty hair, and daily askes for her "hands and toes to be painted pretty"!

McKenna, although not quite 3 years old yet, suprises us on a daily basis with just how much she seems to understand, remember and accomplish. I really don't recall any of the boys doing things that she can do at such a young age. We have to be very careful with what we agree or promise her, because you can bet that she will call you on it and make sure that you hold true to your word.

But the best part of our sweet little princess, is that she loves to be goofy and make us all laugh. "Kenna is fummy mom"! How can you not wub this cute little face? You are our little princess!

We love you McKenna!

No Rest for the Weary!

Well, the thought of having some down time was a nice thought. I was out of Primary and Scouts for a whole month before I got called to Young Women's. I have to admit though, I was thrilled. Of all the callings, this is one of my favorite places to be. We only have 10 girls total, but only about 4 or 5 that come on any kind of regular basis. Today we had 6 leaders and 2 girls for my lesson. It has been really fun though getting to know the girls and making plans with the leaders. What I am most excited for though, is that I am going to introduce Trousseau Dreams to the ward. I have just over a month to plan everything out. I'm a little overwhelmed, but totally looking forward to it. I just hope that it all comes out right and that the girls will feel the spirit and have the desire to marry in the Temple some day. I'll post pictures of everything when it happens. I am going to attempt to make the wedding cake! Wish me luck.

Just the girls!

Ok, so it took me way too long to post this, but it is crazy how many different project I have going on right now.

Women's Conference was amazing! We stayed in the dorms and were lucky enough to get two rooms connected with a bathroom, so we all got to stay together. We were fortunate to hear some wonderful speakers, attend the fun concert with some really big names, and had a blast talking, catching up and laughing together. We all loved it so much that we may just make it a yearly tradition from now on. It was the perfect mini vaca that I needed with my mom and my sisters! Love them all!