While mom's away, the kids will play

.

Lance and I thought little Lou looked so cute in her church clothes that we tried to get a good snap shot in, but she wouldn't cooperate so I put the camera on the bed and finished getting ready.

I think the boys felt a little neglected because when I got home and started looking through the pictures, these are what I found-









They made me laugh out loud. These boys are crazy, sweet and hilarious and I feel so blessed to be their mom.

Brian Head Vacation

We went to Brian Head which is by Cedar City, UT in July.
There are some great places to hike in the area.

The grandparents had to catch all the action.

Now, those are some cute children.

This is a cute family.

Cedar Breaks National Monument.

Breckan standing by some "warning" sign.

We were at a pretty decent elevation.

When you tie-dye shirts you have to wear a garbage bag.

We did a lot of swimming.

And a lot of playing on the grass and playground.

This was a great vacation. They didn't even have AC at Cedar Breaks Lodge where we stayed. It was 70's during the day and 50's at night. This I believe is how man was intended to live. Anyway, we had a great time and the Turner family is so fantastically awesome. (Posted by Lance)

Say No to Coffee

The last couple of months we have been reading from the Doctrine and Covenants Stories. They are great for the boys and keep their attention better because of all the pictures. Recently, we had the word of wisdom lesson which is accompanied by a picture of steaming hot coffee. Breckan LOVED this lesson. Talking about any form of food gets him really excited.

The next night, after we read the next chapter, Breckan asked if we could go back and look at the coffee again. This went on every night for weeks.

Recently, Breckan has decided he wanted to say family prayer all by himself, without assistance from Lance or I. I couldn't believe how in depth he got. He was very thoughtful and didn't want to forget anything. Now he wants to say the prayer every night, which sometimes causes the other boys to whine because he is a tad long winded. This was his prayer tonight.

Heavenly Father, please bless Dad.....Mom.....Dallin.....Ryder.....and Ellsie.
Bless the Prophet..........and the bread and water........and Miss Jenna.
Thank you for my house.
Please help us to not drink coffee. Amen.


What a sweet boy he is. A little obsessive/compulsive....maybe. He is very thoughtful and loving, and as I type this at 9:30pm he is sneaking into my bed behind me. I need to go snuggle him now!

Weekend Rituals

Every weekend after lunch-

Lance: "I'm tired, aren't you guys tired?"

Boys: "No"

Lance: "Let's have quite time for a minute and when we get up we'll do something fun."

Boys: moan, complain, whine etc....




Ten minutes later-

Family Pics

Shannon Biancamano took these fun pics of our family. Tell me which one you like best!

Thank you Shannon, we love them!

Seriously?!?

Yes, that does say the temperature is 122. That is due to my car being in the garage, it really is only 116 today. Anyone want to come visit? :0)

Happy 4th of July!

“I should like to say a few words about America…. No land is without its beauty, no people without their virtues, and I hope that you who come from elsewhere will pardon my saying a few words concerning my own native land, America. I know that she has problems. We have heard so much of them for so long. But surely this is a good land, a choice land, a chosen land. To me it is a miracle, a creation of the Almighty….
“I was stirred in my heart by the words of our late, great President Harold B. Lee, who, speaking to a group such as this, said:
“‘This nation, founded on principles laid down by men whom God raised up, will never fail…. I have faith in America. You and I must have faith in America if we understand the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ.’ (Deseret News, 27 October 1973.)
“I doubt not that we shall have days of trial…. But I am certain that if we will emphasize the greater good and turn our time and talents from vituperative criticism, from constantly looking for evil, and lift our sights to what may be done to build strength and goodness in our nation, America will continue to go forward with the blessing of the Almighty and stand as an ensign of strength and peace and generosity to all the world.” [Gordon B. Hinkley,"Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled," BYU Speeches of the Year, October 29, 1974, pp. 267-68]

Spokane

Family Vacation....my question is this, is it really truly a "vacation" when it includes four children under the age of six. Don't get me wrong, I love my kids and love taking them to see their grandparents, but am I the only one who silently chuckles at the title?

To start off the trip, we flew out of Sky Harbor with the kids and suitcases in tow, and by the looks we were getting at the airport I swear we looked like this-

Lance and I had a few good laughs watching people react to us.

We finally made it Spokane and it was so nice to be home. It is really pretty up there right now. I grew up there and Lance went to law school at Gonzaga so he loves to go back.

My kids LOVE to visit their grandparents. The first night we were there they discovered my mom's jetted tub and had huge bubble baths every night.



We went to visit my Grandma and Grandpa Morrill and introduce Ellsie to the fabulous woman she was named after. My grandparents spoil my kids rotten and we love them dearly!




We also got to go see my cousin, Brandon's new home. My kids loved playing with their nine, yes nine second cousins and were so upset when we had to leave. Did I mention they have a trampoline room? How can I compete with that?

Sheila made us yummy banana splits.

Here are some of their cute kids.

We met up with my brother Matt, and his daughter Ava, the next day and went downtown where we fed ducks, rode the carousel and walked down by the falls.

I love this Ava girl! She is so funny. This is her making her "silly face."

Every trip to Spokane, Lance has to make sure the boys get to "feed the goat." For the 20 years I lived there I didn't know about the goat, but there is a metal goat that has a button you push and then it eats your garbage. Random I know, but that is Spokane.

It was also great to be home with my dad on Father's Day. He made the trip really fun for the boys. He made french fries with them from scratch and they were SO good!

Breckan is hands down grandpa's biggest fan, and not just because he makes the best food, which he does, but also for what he has in the backyard.....

WARNING to Lance's mom, the images you are about to see might be upsetting if not disturbing for you, you can stop reading now.

Dad made Breckan's little dreams come true. On the last day we were there, I told Breckan we were going home soon and he said, "But I not go for a motorcycle ride with Grandpa yet." Who can say no to that? Breckan loved the Harley.

Thanks to Mom and Dad for the wonderful time. We miss you guys already!

Turning in Circles

This month has gone by so fast, I feel like I am turning around in circles. This was one of my favorite games growing up. Jenny and I would put on some music ( Juice Newton) :) and spin until we fell down.

Well, I really feel like I want to fall down, but there is sooo much to do all the time. I am not complaining, I love being the mom to my four kids. I am also very grateful that I have a partner in crime to spin with. Lance is great at keeping things moving smoothly.

This last month, Lance took the boys on the father-son campout. What this meant for me is a whole weekend at home with Ellsie. It wasn't so relaxing for Lance, but he claims half the time he had no idea where the kids were.........perfect.

They all made it home though and they seemed to find a lot of dirt to bring with them.

Of course they had smores, Breckan's favorite. And since dad was in charge, they had them for breakfast too!

All their best friends were there. This is Ryder with his friend Cody Lunt.

On May 11, it was Lance's birthday. The kids LOVE birthdays of course and wanted to make it very special. They all picked out presents and wanted to make a chocolate cake, dad's favorite. Lance says this really was his best birthday so far because the kids are at such fun ages. Everything is so fun to them.

Ryder graduated from pre-school this past week. Miss Jamie had a very cute ceremony and his friend, Olivia, made adorable cupcakes with graduation hats on top.

He has LOVED going to pre-school. Every night he would ask if "tomorrow is preschool" and if I said yes, his next question always was, "is it show and tell day?" Show and tell was every Thursday and every Thursday for an entire year, he chose to bring the same thing.....Jakey.

Jakey has been Ryder's favorite toy, and a member of our family for four years now. Many of you may recognize this dog because it comes with us wherever we go. Jakey has seen better days....he lost an ear in a battle against the washing machine two years ago but is loved no less.

Ryder will actually add him into everyday conversations or prayers. "Jakey is going to stay home from the splash park because he hates water," or "Please bless mom, dad, Dallin, Breckan, Ellsie and Jakey," but not in that particular order.

So it was no surprise to me to show up on the last day of school to see Ryder with Jakey, and a graduation hat on Jakey! I guess Jakey was there most days!

CONGRATULATIONS RYDER AND JAKEY!!!!! We love you both!!!

And last but not least, Dallin FINALLY lost a tooth! He was soooo excited. He had a very successful visit from the tooth fairy and he couldn't be happier.

Cute little gap, I love it!