The end of another year

It seems like just yesterday I was sitting in the school gym watching Alex sing for her Kindergarten graduation and now it's Johnny up there standing tall and proud (Watch him here).  He has grown so much this year being in school and has developed a confidence that affects his every day life.  His hyperactive side has dwindled down somewhat to let his sweetness really shine through.  He still loves to wrestle with his Dad and can run laps around us all when he wants to.  But he makes me smile everyday with his thoughtfulness as he takes other's feelings into consideration when making decisions.  He is always quick to serve or compromise if he knows it'll put a smile on someone's face.  He is an example to us all and I'm grateful to have him as a part of our little family.

Alex is trying to figure out her role as a friend, daughter, sister and individual.  She wants to stand out and be in charge of her life and show that she can do it on her own.  She also wants to make sure she's supported by those she loves and looks up to.  I think I know her ins and outs, ups and downs and then she surprises me with decisions she makes.  Like choosing to do her end of year project on bats when most of the other girls were picking dolphins, snow leopards and pandas.  She insists of making the treat for Activity Days all by herself but still gets excited when I come to help out in place of a missing leader.  I hope I can find the medium between friend and disciplinarian that will help her develop into a strong yet meek young woman.  Maybe we can make that journey together as I am learning from her every day.

Good times!

Some catching up to do.  Two weekends ago we packed the kids up and headed to Utah for the weekend.  Bret and Jolene were sealed to their little Tyler in the Salt Lake Temple.  It was the first time I have been able to witness such a sealing and it was such a sweet experience.  You could tell on his face while we were all in the temple that Tyler knew something special was happening that day.  What a sweetheart!

While I was in the temple my good friend Sarah watched my kids for me.  I went over early so we could catch up and the kids could play.  Her first two are the same ages as my kids.  It's always nice spending time with olds friends!

Right now the kids are in the backyard in their swim suits, the sun is shining and there isn't a cloud over our house, yet it is raining.  Strange.  For Memorial Day yesterday, since Brad and the kids were all home we treated ourselves to a breakfast buffet.  Alex piled her plate with bacon and kiwi while Johnny ate cereal and a few bites of other foods on the side.  Eating out is wasted on my kids.  Oh well, at least I didn't have to do the dishes.  Then that afternoon we set up a badmitten net in the backyard and played between yard work.  Sometimes it's nice to just stay home.  I say that as we begin a summer of trips where we will be on the road quite a lot.  First up?  CALI!

Time to Celebrate!

We definitely had reason to celebrate this weekend.  After 5 years of night school, Brad has graduated with his MBA!  Whoo Hoo!!!  We will be celebrating this for a looooong time, but to start off the celebration I threw him a little dinner party in his honor.  We are so proud of him and so excited for this new chapter in our life.

Then Saturday the kids had more soccer games and inbetween games we went browsing through the hot tub sales and ended up buying one.  Woo Hoo #2!  It was delivered today and I can't wait to try it out!!!  We got spoiled with our last one that Brad's parents gave to us when they moved here about 8 years ago.  It finally died (beyond fixing this time) over the winter and we have missed it tremendously.  Yay for a hot tub!

And to top it all off, I got my own special day where I was allowed to kick back and relax.
What a wonderful weekend! 

Laurels

I got to go with the Laurels in our ward to the temple last night and take some pictures.
What a fun group of girls!

Check their pictures out on my photo blog.

Easter Morning

Last night Alex got to stay up and help the Easter Bunny get the baskets ready.  She was such a great helper she even hid a bunch of extra eggs around the house for Johnny to find in the morning.  It's cute watching her play a role in making things special for him on the holidays.  They were so cute in their new spring outfits their Grammie got them.  My favorite part is Johnny's tie, although he will only wear it for pictures and then it comes right off.  We had stake conference this morning and I pulled a couple of eggs full of jelly beans and about a dozen bouncy balls out of Johnny's pockets before we left.  I can only imagine what church would've been like if I hadn't frisked him before we left.  In a little while we'll be heading over to their cousins house for Easter dinner, an egg hunt and to celebrate his buddy Ethan's 6th birthday.  I'm just glad the sun is shining!  Last year it was raining and we had to have the egg hunt indoors.  Not very springy. 

Happy Easter!