Stake Conference

Today we had a special Stake Conference.  Elder Rasband from the Quorum of the 70 had come to speak.  Well my almost 8 yr old, Raegan made me a proud parent.  When she had heard Elder Rasbands name announced as a speaker, she leaned over to me and asked, didn't he just speak at General Conference?  You never know how much you teach your children...we had her and the other kids take notes on at least one speaker and the prophet during General Conference.  Rae and Jarom were my above and beyonders with this task and took notes on several...Elder Rasband being one of those.  I'm always amazed at how much my kids soak up.

Angry Bird Party

Jarom had his party, and I think it went really well.  He had 5 friends over and had a blast.  That is all that matters...

They created Angry Bird pizzas with pepperoni, olives, sauce and cheese

Left around the table: Tom Rowlinson, Tyler Cotrell, Jarom, Sam Thorne, Sam Phliger, Tyler Bake

yes two Sam's and two Tylers

Andrea Bake always does a great job.  Jarom enjoyed putting drama to the last candle...

Pinata time

We also did an egg hunt for the golden eggs...points were in each egg.

Balloon Toss to hit the pig target of +5, +10 or +15 points

Almost hit the target

Finally a free-for-all with the balloons

Sam tagged Sam pretty good!   Jarom about to be hit by Tom!

Everyone was in on the fun.

Finally we had added up the points and Tyler Bake was the big winner of the prize...well everyone placed and received a prize.  It was a great day!

Trying Something New...

 Those who know me well, know I'm always up for a challenge.  Again if you know me, you also know that I really don't like doing birthday parties.  I just don't like all the "competition" that goes on out there among kids and parties.  But I felt like Jarom needed a good party with his buddies before we move out.  Thank you to Lisa Carlock for motivating me and to Pinterest for some ideas. 

This week I have been working on a few projects.  I'm still the same 'ol cheap skate, and I love making things myself, but I really think this will be a lot of fun!

Using a big balloon, newspaper, flour and water, I am attempting to make a pinata...3 layers should do it

Solved my drying issue with this awkward object...broom, and a sack of potatoes.

white washed and covering with tissue paper

 

Let's just hope this can withstand five, 11 year-olds

Spray painted leftover easter eggs a nice metallic gold

check out all that gold!!

Filling the eggs with point #'s and filling water balloons, I think these guys will have a simple, yet awesome time!

14 Years And Counting

 

 April 25th, 2012 marked our 14th wedding anniversary.  Trent had, way back when, purchased tickets for us to see Les Miserables at the Fox Theater in downtown Atlanta.  Little did he know he would be out in Utah working when our anniversary rolled around.  I wasn't going to let our tickets go to waste, so I invited my good friend Melissa Coe to enjoy the entertainment with me.  It was her first time to the theater and her first contact with this story.  So I was glad she could enjoy this with me.  It was a beautiful and wonderful night.  Happy 14 years my wonderful family.

Enjoying the spectacular decor...

TCR Elementary Talent Show

I failed to post this back in March.  Tarin had participated in a talent show with her good friend Catalina Reisinger.  I wasn't close enough to catch them in their performance of dancing to a High School Musical song...but they were so cute. Using my crappy phone for a pic really doesn't do well, but I'm proud of her to get up in front of a large audience.  Great job Tarin Pager.

Plumber Mommy

Although I know my way around drains and sinks, pipes are a whole new learning area for me. The kids bathroom had a loose spout in the shower/bath, but talking to a plumbing store I think I was able to work it out. But our laundry room sink had a new twist. Whom ever the crazy person was that did our pipes in the wall must not have know his hot and cold placements. I knew for years it was switched but thought it was just a simple switch of the little pipes. Nope. New buyers wanted it fixed so I finally got down and looked at it. Instead of busting out the wall and doing major pipe work, I just decided to purchase longer tubes and criss-crossed them behind the sink. Did the trick...why I didn't do it sooner...I don't know. But I had to pat myself on the back...

Flowers Everywhere...

Although most of the blooming around here is about over, my bulbs are just now in full bloom! My irises are always perfectly timed for Easter and last well over 2 weeks!

My birthday flowers just ended, but I caught a little broken one in the morning light before drying out.

My Amaryllis Bulbs are also just now popping out and are so fun to see. I'm going to miss my baby flowers around here. But I know they will make someone else happy.

Mail Junkie

Ammon is my mail junkie. He must check the mailbox at least 5 or 6 times daily...it would be at 7am when the kids get on the bus, or even 7pm when he knows the mail'lady' already had come for the day...he's obsessed! But that is only half of it. When it does come I always hope there is at least something for him to get. Airbox days are filled with a few minutes of tears...tears of betrayal (it seems). But when we do get mail, he has to open something, even if it is important. As you can see, yesterday was a good day for him, full of junk! But of course he leaves it behind for me to gather up. His favorite mail is when those fake credit cards come...he has a nice collection...

Happy 35..I Mean 25th...

At some point in your twenties, you don't really want to be reminded that you are getting older...I'm way past that point. But birthday's can also be a fun day and a celebration of life. So I don't view them as getting older, but a day of recognition. We all deserve at least one day a year to have a gravitational pull that centers on you. I may not have a huge foundation of friends that kidnap me or destroy my car for fun, but I do have several key people in my life that make it worth it.

Thanks to my husband for the pretty flowers. Being far away he knew he couldn't do much, but really it was a nice surprise. I really wasn't expecting anything. Especially since the only thing on my agenda for the day was cleaning out sink and shower drains for our house inspection the next day...crazy how gross those get!


Thanks to my kids for all their hugs and thoughts. Rian made this note for me and left it on my pillow. Jarom mentioned he would have loved to spend something on me but obviously couldn't get to the store...I told him, his loving heart was all I needed. All I need is what I have! I am very blessed, and I know the Lord continues to bless me and my family. Thanks also to a few others who had dropped by and wished me the best. Love you all.

Easter Morning

I think my kids were pooped taking pictures the past couple of days...because this was the best I could get...poor Jarom, this was pure agony for him. I guess the fact that I had a choice of being really late to 9am church or get some great pictures...well, the reason for the season took priority. We were right on time. So these were the only jewels I was able to get. Yep, Ammon was a real treat, hence the bed head...some battles you need to choose which to fight...

T and Rae were ready first so I was able to grab a quick one...the cat walking by helped with the smiles.

I really didn't want to be in on this post, but Trent insisted I post a pic of what I looked like since he is out of town. My faux strawberry blonde is really shining through right now...

Beaching It...Topped Off With Some Camping

My favorite pic of all...

Again, I have been reflecting a lot on all the wonderful things that we have enjoyed here in the southeast of the country. One of which is having the gulf coast so close and awesome camping/hiking. So those last few days of Spring Break, I thought "Why not!" Thursday was full of storms, so we waited til Friday morning. 5am we were up and driving. By sun up we were past Columbus, GA and in Alabama. The kids were so good in the van. I was so proud of them. We did stop in Chipely, FL to secure a campsite as a walk in, because everything was reserved! We scored, what I thought, was the best campsite...more about that later.

By 11am we had made it to Panama City Beach. You know, even though Destin is only about another 30 mins. I don't care what anyone says, I think Panama City is just as nice. Hotels would be another story, but the beaches are just as white and the water is just as clear...sure there are some crazies out there, but you will find that anywhere. I have sooo many pictures, but these are only a few...

Because there were storms, the water was a bit chilly and waves were very consistent...but as you can see that didn't stop my kids from running and jumping in!

Once in awhile, they would emerge for a warm towel or some lunch, but otherwise they were busy having so much fun.

playing in the sand

jumping waves

wondering around for some alone time

helping each other
...Ammon loved being on the sandbar with Rian

loving everything the beach offers...

enjoying each others company

collecting shells
...so many shells, luckily some had "gotten lost" before leaving

Such a perfect day to be together and enjoy nature

Camping

About 4pm we decided we had enough sun and sand in the pants that we cleaned up and headed back to Chipely, FL to our campsite at Falling Waters State Park. You should be able to find a review I posted, because this place was perfect for what we were needing. It was clean, had bathrooms and even showers, it was peaceful, a lake for swimming was nearby, RV hook ups for charging my phone and camera battery, very well maintained campsites, playground nearby and the rangers were super nice. I would recommend this place to anyone. Probably not so much a teenager place, but perfect for our family.

Like I said we stopped in earlier that day to secure our spot and good thing we did. Later we found out someone had reserved an RV spot and it was too small for them and our spot would have been given to them if I hadn't already reserved it. It was a cute older couple from Canada, and after we left they were able to move in for the rest of the weekend.

I wasn't able to get any pictures the night before, for obvious reasons, I was the only adult to get fire, dinner and set up the tent before dark. Truly, I loved every minute! The kids were surprisingly helpful and willing to help out in every way. Jarom and Tarin helped with the tent, Rian and Jarom helped with the fire and everyone helped out with Ammon duty. That boy was everywhere. I was proud to show the kids my passions of camping and allow them to learn some great skills. The only reason for the sour faces in the pictures, because mom is taking another picture...I know right, they will thank me later!

yep neighbor was a bit close, but it wasn't so bad...Dinner and Breakfast included aluminum foil meals of hamburgers and pancakes and skillet. Yummy! you can see our lovely towels and suits drying from the beach day before The bathrooms were fabulous. Usually I love to rough it a bit more, you know REAL camping, but this time around having real running water and toilets was a nice convenience.

After packing up and loaded up we dropped by the state parks main attraction, the water fall and sink holes. Seriously, this place is well maintained! Boardwalks everywhere and trails were neat and tidy. The sink holes were neat, but nothing super exciting. Just reminds you how powerful nature can be.

Yep another picture together...hey I need to be seen once in awhile too...

There were several sinkholes around, but this is of course the main attraction. Not much rain fell here lately, so the water was sparse. But it was still amazing to view. Nature is so spectacular and mysterious. I love it all.

Couldn't leave without a crazy picture of my wild animals... Love my kids and would do this again in a heartbeat! Love them so much! What a great weekend.