just like Dad

Our kids are SO lucky to have such a great Dad! He talks with them, tickles and wrestles with them, laughs with them, and teaches them so much! I thought it'd be great to document some of how I think each of the kids are like their wonderful Dad.

*Alivia- she is very musically inclined; she loves to perform and be in front of a crowd; she gets anxious sometimes; school comes pretty easy for her. All of these things are "just like Dad".

*Jackson- is a hot sleeper, just like his Dad. He'd be fine with just a sheet on most nights of the year. He loves nature, the outdoors and learning about animals. He likes to snuggle with Mom or Dad.  All of these things are "just like Dad".

*Levi- I am frequently told that Levi looks "just like his Dad" or "he's a mini Josh". He's frequently told he has a large head, just like his dad; we say that's to hold all of his big smart brains. Levi is very musically inclined too- he's always humming or singing and really enjoys practicing, learning and playing the piano. All of these things are "just like Dad".

*All the kids- they all love listening to music with their Dad. They seem to love his taste of music more- so than Mom's taste in music, specifically country. Why is that? Anyway, we're trying to educate them on the classics and the "oldies but goodies" and I'm happy they're getting that education. I love turning on the radio and Levi will say "Hey, that's Hall & Oates!" Love it.

Because we live where my husband grew up, I very frequently have people tell me that "this child" or "that child" of mine looks JUST LIKE HIS/HER Dad! I had one lady tell me that Alivia is the female version of a little Josh, and very regularly I have people tell me Levi is a "Little Josh" and some people say it about Jackson too. How funny!

I think Daddy and I have similar looks and features and some people think we could be related through blood. In actuality I think it all depends who you've been around, because when we go back to MY home people tell me my kids look JUST like ME or this side of MY family or THAT side of my family. Kinda funny.

All in all, I love how I can see different traits and characteristics that they get from their Dad. He's not perfect but he's a good good man, a great father and husband and a man worth emulating and listening too. I chose well. Thank you for being such an amazing kind, loving, and fun Dad. We love you!

{feb & march} random Alivia moments

Well, this girl completed her 1st season of Swim Team and had a great time. We went to the Awards Banquet and she brought home these goodies. Nice! Can't wait to do it again babe. I love watching you swim and that you LOVE it so much.

This pretty girls took this selfie on my phone before church. You're so beautiful Alivia, and the wonderful thing about is that its on the inside, as well as the outside. You are a wonderful little lady.

Found another selfie on my phone from St Patrick's Day.

You're our Irish Princess for the day. I like that you still like to dress up. You looked so cute going to school that day. :)

Oh Alivia, always a fun girl. :P

Girls weekend

{March 24-26, 2017} The boys were having their weekend at the Cabin so we decided to make the most of our girl time!

Photo 1: We're all set to go see the new Beauty & the Beast movie! We really liked it! Of course they added some new parts, which Alivia didn't like and thought were a little creapy, but overall it was good. 

Photo 2: After our movie we had dinner @ Olive Garden. No girls weekend would be complete without pasta and breadsticks! #itsagirlthing

Photo 3: The next morning I took Alivia and some of her friends from church to the Stake Activity Day Girls activity.The theme was "Daughter of a King". They had a bunch of classes and workshops with crafts and a coordinating lesson. They did a really nice job and I know the girls had a good time. We even had some finger foods before we went home, complete with cucumber sandwiches (not sure what 8-11 year olds are going to eat those?) and a fruit kebab. Very nice and a special morning.

We'd been searching for "a princess dress" and we found it! Thank you Kohl's Cash! She looks so beautiful! 

We topped off our fun weekend with a playdate at our house with her friend, watched the Women's Session of Conference on the couch later and of course we had a slumber party in my bed (since the house was so quiet).

We had a really great time together. Alivia even wrote me this sweet note as we took notes for Conference.

Aw thanks Babe, I love spending time with you too. You are an amazing young lady and I love you so much! Can't wait to do this again.

Baking with Mom

March 2017

I try to bake with the kids on Saturday or Sunday. I love having them there helping and learning and they enjoy licking the beaters when we're done. :)

One Sunday we made a big batch of cookies to deliver to friends. They can hardly stand it until I'm done dishing them out so they can lick the beaters and things.

Alivia's scraping out the last of the goodness from the mixing bowl. Mmmm!

This is another day about a week later when we made cookies again. We had a snow day so OF COURSE we had to do some baking. It's kind of a necessary duo- snow day  = baking yummy treats after you play in the snow.

Thanks for the help kids. I remember helping my Mom with baking and I too loved licking the beaters; of course this only applies to cookie dough, brownie, bread or cake batter is not worth it; please remember that. :)

return of the micro machines

We were at Grandma's house one day and she'd been cleaning through her basement of treasures. She came across her boys' (our Daddy's) old MicroMachines. I remember those from way back when! I thought they were cool too!

Well the kids were new to them and were excited to get them all out, examine all their little details and race them.

They are SO TINY!

I love these "throwback" moments when we can share part of our childhood with the kids and they can experience it for themselves. Nice!

swim meet Saturday

January 14, 2017

It's a Swim Meet Saturday kind of day. Alivia and I were just hanging out waiting for her turn to swim. We visited the snack bar for some goodies, had a little down time and cheered on her teammates.

Then it was time for action! 

She swam the 50 free placing 5th at 39.96 seconds

She also swam the 50 back (seen above) placing 4th @ 53.41 seconds.

She also swam in the 200 free relay. I didn't get the time but they finished strong although they were racing girls in the 13-14 category rather than the 11-12 year old category they are IN. Way to go girls!

This was the last official swim meet of the season and we won again! That makes us the First Capitol Swim League Champions! Woohoo! Way to go DAAC! Thanks for a great season. We'll be back next fall!

Mommy Daughter Date

{9.27.14}

It's time again for our bi-annual General Women's Broadcast. We made a special date night of it. We got all dressed up, went to dinner at Olive Garden where we loaded up on Chicken Scampi, house salad and breadsticks, then we went to the women's social and finally listened to the broadcast. It was a fun night being together but I think it all might have been a little too much for my girl. She was exhausted after all of it. ;) Baby steps. 

Here are the talks were were lucky to hear. Watch, listen, print or download them here.

• Prepared in a Manner That Never Had Been Known, by Linda K. Burton
• Preparing for the temple.
• As temples are prepared for the people people need to prepare for the temple.
• Parable of  the 10 virgins- liken to us preparing for the temple.
• Listed ways of how we can "add oil to our lamps"- family prayer, scripture study, deeds of kindness, chaste thoughts...

• "Where much is required, much more will be given."
• Covenant Daughters of God, by Jean A. Stevens
• She shares the story of her parents courting and marriage and then shares this thought-
• There is no doubt the details of your story will be different than hers. But principles from her life apply to all of us. When daughters of God focus on the temple and on their sacred covenants, God is able to send blessings in personal and powerful ways. Like my mother’s example to me, your choice to believe and keep covenants will leave a rich legacy of faith for those who follow you. 
• Sharing your Light, by Neill F. Marriott- I loved listening to this Sister with her cute Texam accent. :)
• Elder M. Russell Ballard writes: “We need more of the distinctive, influential voices and faith of women. We need them to learn the doctrine and to understand what we believe so that they can bear their testimonies about the truth of all things.”
• The scriptures teach, “That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light.”⁴
• Elder D. Todd Christofferson said, “In all events, a mother can exert an influence unequaled by any other person in any other relationship.”⁸ 
• ^{My days were full of forgettable things like folding laundry, reading children’s books, and putting casseroles together for dinner. Sometimes in the harbor of our homes, we can’t see that by the simple, consistent acts—including family prayer, scripture study, and family home evening—great things are brought to pass. But I testify that these very acts carry eternal significance. Great joy comes when those little boats—our children—grow into mighty seafaring vessels filled with gospel light and ready to “embark in the service of God.”9 Our small acts of faith and service are how most of us can continue in God and eventually bring eternal light and glory to our family, our friends, and our associates. You truly carry a circle of influence with you!}
• Living the Gospel Joyful, by Pres. Dieter F. Uchtdorf (one of my FAVORITE speakers!!)
•  Your Heavenly Father has high aspirations for you, but your divine origin alone does not guarantee you a divine inheritance. God sent you here to prepare for a future greater than anything you can imagine. The promised blessings of God to the faithful are glorious and inspiring.... It takes more than a spiritual birth certificate or a “Child of God Membership Card” to qualify for these incomprehensible blessings.
•  I think, that we imagine that God has all of His blessings locked in a huge cloud up in heaven, refusing to give them to us unless we comply with some strict, paternalistic requirements He has set up. But the commandments aren’t like that at all. In reality, Heavenly Father is constantly raining blessings upon us. It is our fear, doubt, and sin that, like an umbrella, block these blessings from reaching us. We need to accept that the commandments of God aren’t just a long list of good ideas. They aren’t “life hacks” from an Internet blog or motivational quotes from a Pinterest board. They are divine counsel, based on eternal truths, given to bring “peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come.”⁶ His commandments are the loving instructions and the divine help for us to close the umbrella so we can receive the shower of heavenly blessings.
• ONE OF MY FAVORITE THOUGHTS from this Session-
• Yes, God loves you this very day and always.
  He is not waiting to love you until you have overcome your weaknesses and bad habits. He loves you today with a full understanding of your struggles. He is aware that you reach up to Him in heartfelt and hopeful prayer. He knows of the times you have held onto the fading light and believed—even in the midst of growing darkness. He knows of your sufferings. He knows of your remorse for the times you have fallen short or failed. And still He loves you.
  And God knows of your successes; though they may seem small to you, He acknowledges and cherishes each one of them. He loves you for extending yourself to others. He loves you for reaching out and helping others bear their heavy burdens—even when you are struggling with your own.
  He knows everything about you. He sees you clearly—He knows you as you really are. And He loves you—today and always!

It was a wonderful session, filled with the Spirit. These messages strengthened me, and lifted me up and they inspire me to do more and be better.  :) Thanks for a great night Alivia. IT.WAS.AWESOME.

Why I scrapbook

I am a record keeper. My favorite, most creative way to do this is through scrapbooking; you can combine your pictures and pretty pages along with the story and it makes it more interesting than just putting the pictures in an album with no explanation. 

I've been scrapbooking for about 20 years (sheesh that makes me sound old) and I really enjoy it. It keeps evolving; this industry has changed so much in that time frame and I'm happy to say I've learned from all the changes along the way.

I have an excellent memory when it comes to names and numbers, but I'm not so good at telling you what I are for lunch 2 days ago. This is why I scrapbook- not only so I can remember these precious memories but so my children can know and remember them too. 

Getting out our scrapbooks is one of our favorite things to do, especially on Sundays. The boys love just looking at the pictures and remembering those moments and Alivia loves readings what I wrote about her. 

She was looking through her preschool album saying "oh I remember that!"

As they looked at their albums it made my heart smile. :) This is why I scrapbook- to see them enjoy them and remember those moments. I love that you can see Alivia's smile from under her cheekbones. :) She kept her album out for a few days and looked at it day after day. She really enjoys them. I know the boys will too once they learn how to read my handwriting (which is always a work in progress).

{frozen} hair like Elsa's

I have always loved playing around with Alivia's hair. She's not always as enthused about it, unless she's distracted with something else OR she wants me to try something new.

Here are a couple of recent do's we've done in honor of "Frozen".

This may just look like a regular french braid, but it's a little different. I followed the instructions from this You Tube video of Elsa's braid. As you braid you go back and pull a little out of the previous couple sections, continue braiding then go back and pull a little out, etc. until you get to the end and it LOOKS like a loose braid, but it still has good structural integrity and is mostly just "fluff" for the look. ;) 

Alivia was pretty excited to have "Elsa hair" for church. It turned out pretty good.

Our next "Frozen hair do" attempt was based off of this video for "Elsa's Coronation Updo". 

Very pretty, and pretty simple. Alivia thought it was AWESOME! Woohoo! Go Mommy ;)

Note: It was a little tricky getting ALL her hair up in that bun at the end and we used a BUNCH of bobby pins. I tried this hairstyle again and that time I only did half as much hair in the bun and the rest I curled and let hang down long and beautiful.

So much fun having a little girl with BEAUTIFUL, LONG hair. :) Lucky she likes it too!

{night out} General Women's Meeting

{3.29.14} Alivia, my sweet mother-in-law and I were able to attend the very first General Women's Meeting. In the past there have been different broadcasts for different age groups- one for girls ages 8-12, one for teens ages 12-17, and one for women ages 18+. They combined all these meetings into the General Women's Meeting, a new semi-annual event.

We were excited to share in this momentous occasion and think of all our family I and friends participating worldwide! (There was even a dessert bar before the meeting, which really helped sweeten the evening.)

There were great talks given by our Church leaders but this one was my favorite. "Sisterhood: Oh How We Need Each Other!" Sister Bonnie Oscarson- YW pres

Below is a snippit of her talk. Watch the rest of it here.

Here are some of my favorite quotes from Sister Oscarson's talk (mostly paraphrased because I wasn't fast enough to catch all of it)-

• To be sisters implies that there is an unbreakable bond between us. 
• We as women can be particularly hard on ourselves. 
• Story of mom and daughter serving a sister in need.
• There is no age barrier when it comes to Christlike service. 
• When YW come in to RS they need a friend to sit by, to put their arm around them and a calling and assignment. 
• If there are barriers it is because we have created them. 
• Oh how we need each other. Sister Marjorie pay hinckley. 
• I invite you to not only love each other more but to love each other better!

It was a fantastic evening being together. I can't wait for the next one in September!

Christmas cookies with Grandma

{12.14.13} Grandma invited all her grand kids over to make Christmas cookies together again this year!

Here is Alivia, Grandma and Jackson rolling out and cutting the sand tart cookies.

An overhead shot of Jackson and Grandma hard at work.

Here are the 5 big cousins rolling the peppermint patty balls in sugar. Looks like they're having fun!

Levi did a good job rolling his cookie out too! And look at this sweet face he gave me when I said "cheese!" ;)

Our tally at the end of our hard work was about 12 dozen various cookies and 7-8 dozen peppermint patties, which we split 4 ways, thankfully. ;)

We made:
Grandma's Sand Tarts
Peppermint Pinwheels
Candy Cane Kiss Cookies
Chocolate Chipper (M&M) Champs, and
Easy Christmas Peppermint Patties

We had such a fun morning together (grownups and kids alike) and we played and visited well into the afternoon. It was just so nice being together, then the snow started and broke our party up. Good thing Christmas is coming soon so we can get together again!

monkey joes

Monday morning we joined a BUNCH of our friends at Monkey Joe's.  I'd never heard of it before but WHAT A FUN PLACE! We were even able to get a playgroup rate so it was even better! (Adults are free)

As you can see below, its a BIG place with a bunch of inflatables perfect for sliding, climbing, and bouncing. The kids had a blast! The only stipulation is that they need to be in socks, otherwise they make you BUY socks there.

 They even had a couple inflatables especially for kids 4 and younger.

This one below is one of them. Jackson is on a sea monster or sea dinosaur. You can see a snail in the background too, etc.

This shot is a double slide (one set of steps and slide on each side of the palm tree). You climb up one side and slide down the other.

Like I said, there are a couple inflatables specifically for littler ones, but they could go on any of the others, its just that they're a little more involved and more apt to be bounced around by the bigger ones.

The slide below on the right, Jackson climbed up a couple times but for some reason never slid down, he ended up walking back down the steps backwards. But the shot below this one is of the slide on the left. Later he tried that one and did that over and over again. Goofy boy.

See the cute Monkey Joe in this shot? It was a cool place. Lots of bright colors and such, very clean. They use a special Swisher cleaner on all the inflatables and kill 99.9% of germs (hopefully).

Alivia was coming down the slide as I stood there ready with my camera. I asked her to pause for a picture and this is the look she gave me.  :P This one's a ham!

Jax and his sweet little cousin A were climbing up and over these walls on their way to the slide, but as he neared the slide, he changed his mind and back over the walls he went to get out.

Lil' Levi was an angel for me, as usual.  He's such a good boy. He was smilin' at ALL the ladies, despite being SO tired. I thought this was a funny shot of him laying on my lap with his little hand under his chin and fingers in his mouth. (He's working on getting his TOP teeth now! Slow down boy!) Of course, he fell asleep once we got in the car.

This one shows Alivia climbing. Notice the guard in the black and white keeping the kids safe. There was at least one at each station, aside from the 4 and under ones (the parents' of the kiddos playing were watching over those). 

I'm so glad we went. It was about a half hour drive through pretty countryside (I went the back way because that's what GOOGLE Maps had me do. Yet, when I touched it to chart our way home it told me to take the freeway.  Why is that?)

It was a fun time. The kids were great.  They were exhausted, hungry and thirsty by the time we left but I'd prepared for that.  We will definitely come back!

I had to include this. The morning we were getting ready to go. Alivia asked how long it was going to take? I told her a half hour (or so). Then she went over to the table, got out her paper and crayons and wrote up this map. (I think that's what it is.) See- it says half hour, in the middle is a compass, and below is the place we're headed. I think it's her version of a GPS. Pretty cute. Of course it inspired Jackson to make one too. Mommy helped and he colored it in. And, as we drove up, they were both in the back, holding their maps as to help me find my way. :) Thanks guys.

miss curls

I can't help but document these gorgeous CURLS! We did her hair in sponge rollers Saturday night for church on Sunday. Aren't they gorgeous?!

And I even used the BIG pink ones, not the little ones and they still sprung her hair up to her shoulder tops!

By the end of the day, they'd relaxed a bit and were just about perfect.

It was funny- throughout the day you could notice she had a little extra bounce in her step. :) She liked feeling them bounce along with her. Pretty little lady.

way back in May...

Somehow I forgot to finish this post and post it.  Better late than never!

These were just some little moments around the house.

The kids were playing with the water table when a WATER FIGHT broke out! They had a GREAT time dumping water on each other and seeing how far they could throw it.

They got soaked! And LOVED it!

We topped it off with some Lemonade popsicles. Mmmmm...

Often I put Levi in my front pack while I vacuum (it's not an easy feat, but it counts for a workout while I vacuum). He's generally pretty happy and content to be in here, but after a while I noticed he seemed extra heavy. And this is why- bless his heart. He'd fallen asleep like this! However uncomfortable it looks I guess it is possible. Don't worry. I carefully took him out and laid him down in his crib to sleep.

Levi is VERY ticklish, like Mommy, and he loves it when Daddy tickles him. This is one such instance. I wish the pictures had the audible giggles to go with them. I love watching, seeing, and hearing him laugh!

its a jungle out there!

Earlier this month we went over to visit our cousins in Phily! We thought, "Sure. 2 moms, 6 kids, let's go to the zoo!" What were we thinking? But honestly, I don't think it could have gone much better. It was definitely doable and I'm sure we had some divine assistance. THANK YOU!

We were only able to see about 1/3 or less of the zoo but we had a great time. We saw zebra, hippo, rhino, the big cats, penguins, the reptile house, tortoise and horses.

Me and my caravan

The 4 big kiddos

Some big tortoises munching on some salad

Our sweet boy dozing in his seat as we strolled around. Honestly, he did great! He napped a bit, ate his lunch, bounced along in his front pack, and snuggled back in his seat for this nap. It was an exhausting day for all of us. Oh and the temp was about 87* or so. It was warm but there was a breeze, hallejuah!

The boys watching these cute penguins swim around and then slide down their slide.

Jackson was fascinated by this turtle. He could have watched him all day. I think its sweet how he has his hands on the glass and followed him around. (Our little secret: If we ever WERE to have a pet, a turtle is one of the few I think I could do. That or a fish. Don't tell the kiddos! I don't think Mom's ready for a pet right now. I'm working with the circus I have!) Hahaha I wouldn't have it any other way though :)

Miss Alivia was our navigator for the day. She got a map as we walked in (all the kids did actually) and she kept a hold of it the whole time. She wanted to know right where we were, what was up ahead and how to go to see what we wanted to see next. She did a really good job and I was really proud of her.

I've always had a thing with maps too. I remember on family trips always wanting to hold or see the map and help with directions, if needed. I think it's cool to see Alivia has that too! Which is pretty cool for a girl, considering boys seem to naturally have a better sense of direction.

These next few shots are at "The Treehouse" which is for zoo members only. Luckily, my sister-in-law IS a member. What a cool place. The kids could have played here all day.

Jackson's favorite part was these fish eggs he crawled all over! He LOVED them!

The girls hopped a ride from a friendly caterpillar

This HUGE Monarch butterfly that hung WAY up high was gorgeous! I can't quite capture its beauty but you get the point.

This was some giant honeycomb with giant bees. On the lower few rows the honeycomb is hollowed out so the kids could crawl through. This was a very cool place, like I said.

Mommy & Levi enjoying some time in the front pack as the other kiddos ran around at The Treehouse.

A & S at the base of this HUGE tree. Amongst the "roots" were all sorts of trails and pathways and there's even a staircase in the tree trunk. Or so I hear.  I stood guard in the front half of The Treehouse. This place was big and with 5 kiddos walking or RUNNING around there was a lot of keep track of.

They had these giant eggshells the kids enjoyed playing in.

They took turn laying down while sucking their thumbs and saying "Mama".

After about an hour of playing at The Treehouse, I coaxed the kids out with the lure of ice cream treats for all! They were hot and tired from all their good running around so we set off to find a cool treat. But on our way we saw this HUGE rhino. It was funny to watch him. He walked up to his shaded area, did a 180 and then backed up into it (because it wasn't wide enough for him to turn around in once he was in). As I watched, I couldn't help but here the "beep beep beep" of the big trucks as they back up.

We did FINALLY find ice cream treats for everyone before we headed back to the car, completely, hot, exhausted, and sticky. After a yummy dinner and some play time, we threw the kids into the tub, dressed them in their jammies and jumped back in the car for the 1 1/2 hour drive home. 2 of the 3 kiddos slept at least half the way. The 3rd kiddo fell asleep as soon as she hit her pillow at home.

Ahhh, home sweet home