Lately

Just cute.

Too cute.

We haven't been to the zoo in a long time. In fact, Carter couldn't even remember going to our zoo and Hazy had never been. We had such a good time. The kids loved the animals and the fresh air. I loved watching them have a good time.

These little people bring me inexplicable joy!

Coloring.

Lego. Carter has been doing an awful lot of building lately. He's a really creative builder. Our train table has turned into a Lego table.

Lily has been sewing. I'm pleased to see her develop her skills and talents.

Hazy is a little girl with initiative. She pinpoints what she wants, and finds a way to make it happen. I came downstairs the other day and found the back door wide open. I went outside and found Hazel jumping with noodles! She had pulled a chair into the pantry, climbed up to get a box of noodles, taken it outside and dumped it on the trampoline. She was chewing on raw noodles and jumping away!

She thought it was great fun!

Two!

Happy 2nd birthday, Hazel!!


How can my wee baby be two already? Where does the time go? I want to push pause and keep her this sweet, happy, snuggly, innocent thing for as long as possible.

She sincerely is a joy. She's like Mary Poppins...practically perfect in every way. She even unloads the dishwasher. Yes, you heard me right. She unloads the dishwasher. And puts her toys away while singing, "Clean up, clean up. Everybody do your share." And she snuggles me. Oh, I wish I could keep her in this stage for just a little while longer.

We started the birthday off right...with a partay in the morning! Crepes for breakfast...

...and a pile of presents!

Look at the excitement and intrigue on her face!

It's a lovely necklace from her GreatPapa Sperry. Thank you, Papa.

More excitement. She really knew how to respond when opening her presents. It was so cute.

All dolled up! She loves this dress.

These two cute little girlies are Hazel's favorite pals. They were born within ten days of each other. We had a really simple birthday party and invited these girls, along with their moms and siblings.

Cupcakes! Hazel anticipated her birthday with balloons, cupcakes, and a party with her friends. A side note, see the tablecloth on the table? It is my mom's. She had it on our table for all of our birthdays growing up. I love that tablecloth. I love that it's a real linen rather than a plastic cloth. And I love the continuity found in having it at all our family's birthdays over the years. I made a banner to match it. I love that little banner. I had fun making it and hope it will have the same effect as the tablecloth, linking family members together through our birthday traditions.

We finished off the night with a dinner party at Red Robin!

She got shy when the servers sang to her. She snuggled in to me and hid her face...peaking out every now and then. She liked the whipped cream!

Just for fun, Daddy's boots. I thought it was so funny when she wanted to put these on. She couldn't step into them herself so I helped her out. Once she got them on, she felt pretty proud to be in Daddy's boots.

Mother's day

Mother's day was very sweet. Aaron and the kids took good care of me. I love my kiddos immensely. Sometimes it feels like my heart will burst.

I also enjoyed thinking about my sweet mom. My gratitude for her grows more as the years move on. She is wonderful!

I call it an eskimo kiss. He re-dubbed it the ladybug kiss.

Another great treat: my brother and his family are staying with us for a couple of months this summer! We got to have Mother's day together.

This is Kelly's first Mother's day. Her little boy is so cute. We love having him here. He's so easy-going and laid back. He just fits right in with all the kids here.

First day of first grade!

My cute girl is a first grader. We were in a rush to get out the door this morning. I told Lily to go stand by the front door while I ran to get the camera. When I popped around the corner, this is what I saw! Last minute adjustments to her adorable new shoes! They sparkle and have Hello Kitty on them. I am in love with them! I wish they had a pair in my size. I'd wear them too!

My girl is growing up!

The summer came and went so quickly! Although we started school weeks after the other local schools, it still feels like it snuck up on me and arrived way too quickly.

I used to worry that I'd get sick of my kids in the summer and try to hurry them back to school in the fall. I don't feel that way. I love having them home and miss them when they're gone. I'm excited for Lily's adventures in learning and fun, but I'm so bummed I don't get her home with me. After I dropped her off and drove away, I felt a little teary.

I had wonderful plans to have a special breakfast prepared and get Lily to school early so she'd have time to greet and play with friends. However, I'm not as on the ball as I wish I were. Those things didn't happen. I will follow my husband's good advice and focus on what I did do, rather than what I didn't get done. So, in an effort to focus on the good: I wrote Lily a "first day of first grade" letter, washed her hair all fresh and dried it, made her lunch, and got her off to school, with a baby sis and jammied brother in tow.

Now I'm going to continue unpacking and organizing...wish me luck!

Fun lunch!

What kid wouldn't love to eat these fun lunches?









Mine!!

Carter ate the cheese, threw the meat (you can see it off to the side), gave the pepperoni pieces to Lily, and left the bread. Lily devoured the pepperoni and ate the rice and cheese. She politely told me she didn't care for the meat or the bread. At least she said it politely.

It's done!

Hazy's blessing dress is done! I've been working like a mad woman on it all week. I enjoy making a blessing outfit for each of my children. It's a special event in their lives and it means a lot to me to create an outfit uniquely for them. It's done and I love it!!

We will bless her tomorrow in Sacrament meeting. Three of her cousins will be blessed the same day: one in Texas, one in Idaho, and one in Wyoming.

Sweetness.

Precious.

Darling.

I love this soft blankie. It was mine when I was a baby.

I couldn't stop thinking about my sister, Jen, today. When I kissed Hazel's feet during diaper-changing time, I thought of Jen. When I looked at Hazel's sweet soft cheeks in these pictures, I thought of her again. She loves babies fresh from heaven. I wish she was here to meet Hazel and snuggle and kiss her. Really, I wish that of all my family members.

While I took those photos of Hazy this afternoon, my other jewels were doing this:

Lily was watching a movie after school.

Carter was sleeping peacefully.

I'm a happy mama.