March/April 2018

It's crazy that spring has sprung and we're celebrating Easter already.  We did some major spring cleaning this month and even had the inside of our house painted.  It feels more and more like our own house, with every home project completed.  We had some fun events this month, like going to tour daddy's work, Easter egg hunts and of course, celebrating Easter.  I love that the boys understand the true meaning of the holiday and that we are able to teach them about the Savior and all He did for us.  We are truly blessed!

Easter

We had a wonderful Easter.  This year we participated in Pomerado Christian Church's Easter Egg Hunt and devotional.  This is where Foster goes to preschool and they had a really wonderful event where the kids created small garden tombs to represent the Savior's tomb.  They heard a storybook about Easter and their Pastor gave a wonderful devotional, perfect for children to understand.  Then we headed outside for the Easter egg hunt.  It was a very memorable day.

One pose for mom and one pose for fun

One pose for mom and one pose for fun

Home Renovations

Here are the before and afters of our small renovation that made a big difference!

Before and After

Take Your Kids to Work Day

Scott took us to the Solar Turbines employee family party, to show us where the magic happens everyday.  The boys were very impressed by the size of the machines and also by Scott's office.  They were mostly impressed by the amount of thinking putty he has in his office.  We counted 15 cans. Scott even let them take some putty home with them as a souvenir (that I later found stuck in the sofa.) The boys left him notes on his white board and loved learning about what he does all day long. We are all so proud of his hard work and giant hardworking brain!

Bella Has a Birthday

Our Bella Girl turned 8 this month.  Both the boys asked if Bella would be baptized this year which I thought was both cute and hilarious.  We love our Bella and all her weirdness.

Nighttime Cuddles

The scariest photo of all time, when Bella and I did a Face Swap.

Always sleeping with her tongue out.

Other Fun Happenings in March

James participated in the Patriotic Play where he mostly stood there without singing.  He hasn't quite gotten his performance wings yet but we are sure they are coming!

On Foster's suggestion, Scott and Foster decided to be twinners at church.

We explored Balboa Park with friends, checking out the Japanese Tea Garden and The Museum of Art.

Foster is becoming a master avocado picker for Grandma.  He climbs to the highest branch

and is quite good at camouflaging as well.

February 2018

February was a big month for us.  We celebrated Valentine's Day and took an impromptu trip to Southern Utah to visit Ferron and Price.  Foster started gymnastics at Gyminny Kids and James went on a field trip to Sea World.

Southern Utah Trip

Aunt Alta passed away in February so Mom and Dad were headed to Ferron for the funeral and they invited us to come along.  Scott had to work so it was me in the driver's seat for 12 hours.  We made it there in one piece and we all still liked each other when we got there!

The ride to Price was beautiful and we made some delicious stops along the way.  Including stopping at Cache Valley Creamery for some ice cream and cheese curds.  It was dairy heaven with a beautiful view of the farm.  

The boys and I spent Saturday in Price on our own while everyone went to the funeral.  We had so much fun exploring the small town.  The boys loved the dinosaur museum and we spent a long time looking at everything there.  The boys each picked out a small souvenir at the museum.  James got a dinosaur card game and Foster picked out some rocks for his rock collection.
Then we headed to Sherald's Drive-In for the boys' first drive-in experience.  We had such a great time discovering all the fun a small town has to offer.  We even stopped off at the tack and feed store to hold baby chicks.  It was a wonderful day with the boys that I'll never forget.

Sunday we went down to Ferron so the boys could see where Grandma and Grandpa grew up.  We took the tour of the town, stopping at the cemetery to see some of our relatives and then driving up the canyon a ways.  We showed the boys the homes where both of their grandparents lived when they were young.  We even visited an Alpaca farm which was the highlight.  All of us wanted to take an alpaca home with us.  

Visiting the Ferron Cemetery

Exploring Ferron Farmland

The boys loved spending time at Aunt Charlotte's house.  They spent most of their time downstairs in the basement with the player piano.  We had dinner at Aunt Charlotte's a few times during the week we were there and the boys still ask to go back to Aunt Charlotte's house.  

We also enjoyed the hotel where we stayed.  The boys and I had our own room and a lot of times we would spend an afternoon playing James' new dinosaur game or watching Foster swim in the pool.  Every evening we would get in bed and watch the Winter Olympics together.  It became our nightly tradition on our trip.

On our drive home we stopped in Las Vegas for the night.  I treated the boys to some candy at the biggest candy store we'd ever seen.  We also walked down to the Mirage to watch the Volcano erupt.  The next morning, we had breakfast at the Bellagio and walked through the Chinese New Year Exhibit.  It was such a great trip, I relish anytime I have with my boys and it was fun watching them thoroughly enjoy every minute!

James Goes to Sea World

I was able to accompany James to Sea World on his first grade field trip.  The boys had so much fun running around the park and seeing everything from sharks to killer whales.  The highlight of the day was a private Killer Whale show for all of the kids on the field trip.  The kids all stood up against the glass and were drenched by the end of the show.  They loved having the killer whales splash them with water.  I guess it didn't bother them that it was fish water.  

Valentine's Day

We celebrated Valentine's Day with a steak dinner at home.  Every year, the boys love getting their Valentine shakes which are drinks made from vanilla ice cream, cherry 7UP, whipped cream, sprinkles and a licorice straw.  We all exchanged boxes of Sees Candy and cards.  I am lucky to have three Valentine's every year!

Foster Starts Gymnastics

Foster is loving his weekly gymnastics class.  He tries hard and has fun.  I love watching him and I'm so proud of him.  His coach is fairly serious, making sure he ends each move with the correct pose.  Foster has the pose down perfectly, the moves, he's still working on.

January 2018

Happy New Year 2018

James Turns Seven

Our first baby boy has been here seven years and I can scarcely believe it.  He is such a joy to all who know him.  His sweet tender heart and observance of those around him, make him a wonderful friend and son.  He is an expert in dinosaurs, sharks, reptiles and Godzilla.  He loves searching for bugs and lizards with his best friend Jacob.  He is a fast runner, getting faster all the time and loves running Mega Milers at school.  On any Saturday, you can find him playing with his dinosaurs or transformers in his room, racing mom or dad on family walks or playing with Bella and Foster.

James and his best friend Jacob

James has become very competitive with his running.  Always trying to beat the fastest runners in his class.  Now he is one of the fastest runners in his class.

James loves going on dates with MiAni.  These dates usually consist of lunch at Chik-Fil-A and Target where he gets to pick out a toy.  These two have had a special relationship since he was born.

James is our silly boy who can often be spotted in the front yard playing with dinosaurs or being the dinosaur.  On this particular day, he had just received his Indominous Rex costume and couldn't wait to scare dad when he got home from work.  He did a pretty good job too!

Here are some stats on James:
Favorite Food: Spaghetti, Cheeseburgers, Salmon, Pizza and Pineapple
Favorite Restaurant: In N Out Burger and Luna Cafe
Favorite Friends:Hudson McEwan, Jacob Whitehead, Levi G, Zach L, Jack Davis and Charlie Circuit
Favorite thing to do:Play with his toys in his room.
Favorite place to go: Target to shop for more toys to play with in his room!
Favorite Movie: Transformers
Favorite TV Show: Eye Witness Video, Nigel Marvin
Favorite Treat: Anything made of chocolate.  Especially chocolate milkshakes and chocolate ice cream
Favorite Toy:Dinosaurs, Transformers, Legos

For his birthday we went to In N Out after school with his buddies, Jacob, Hudson and of course brother Foster.

Mom also took James on a special date to the zoo, just the two of us.  We rode skyfari and saw all of his favorites; including the Chinese alligator.