Birthday Surprise

Mike surprised me with a birthday party! He made the main dishes- bacon wrapped chicken, salmon and other yummy food. Everyone else brought salads. He even made me an ice- cream cake and it was yummy!

Grandma with some of the little ones:

Ashlyn and Addy- matching cousins!

Grandpa is always getting attacked:

After the little girls played, we looked over in the great room and saw

this ingenious way to use kleenex:

Silly Matthew making everyone laugh:

Horsey Grandpa:

Ok...Erika and I didn't get the "Crazy Picture" memo:

I told my fam all I wanted for my bday was some snapshots of me with my siblings. We always forget to take them when we are together. So we had a little photo shoot:

Mike making the Cheer- down- in- front pose:

Have to compare this next one with the one above. Mike decided to be "mental" in one of them:

Hayley doing a poem for me for my birthday:

Presents:

Love that hubby of mine! Always so thoughtful and goes above and beyond- ALWAYS!

All-Nighter at the ER

What a night we had about a month ago...we played some neighborhood games with some friends (Fugitive) and I sent Nathan off with some people as they were going down a creek bed and I wasn't up for that. When I saw Nathan next, the adult that was with them said he had a bloody nose. We went in the seminary building bathroom and assessed the situation. It was obvious he needed stitches both under his nose and the back of his head. He had ran and hit a sharp metal pole and cut his nose pretty bad, then fell back and hit the back of his head on the rocks. It was pretty deep under his nose (you could almost peel his nose back if it would have been any deeper- I know- Gross!), so I figured he needed a plastic surgeon. We went to the local ER anyway, just to see if they could do it, but they wanted NO part in that! So they sent us to Primary Children's for a plastic Surgeon. We got home at 5am! It was exhausting! He ended up with staples in the back of his head and 2 layers of stitches in his nose. The plastic Surgeon couldn't believe how brave he was, just squeezing my hand and not screaming or flinching. Big tears came out of his eyes when he was in pain, but he had the best attitude. On the way up, I said, "Oh- why did I let you go down that ditch? Stupid!" He said, "Mom- what's done is done! You can't do anything about it now!" Later I asked him if the glass was half-full or half-empty (our Home-teaching lesson earlier that month) and he said, "Half-full, because we have to have experiences in this life so we can learn". You are right Nathan, and you teach me every day! He was a trooper!

Totally deserved the frozen slushy afterward! So did I (and they gave me one too!)

Fun times at home

The 3 younger ones have had such fun at this new house. They still have a big pile of dirt to play with since it hasn't dried up enough for the builders to come back and grade the yard and pour more cement. They also enjoy a good tea party!

Bathtub fun...

Rub A Dub Dub, 3 kids in my tub!

McKenzie's Junior Prom- Finally posting!

I am finally getting around to posting a few things...First off, McKenzie's Junior Prom. I was so thrilled she'd be able to go to Jr. Prom- I didn't let her go to dances where we lived before! She had the best time! They spent all day on 2 different group dates, then she came home and we only had 45 min to get her ready! AARGH! The kids had to be back to the school for one last Promenade practice at 7pm. Her date was waiting in the entry while we glued the last couple fingernails on... (She had to do quick temporary nails since her piano teacher requires short nails). She was going to get ready with her friends, but it was a good thing she got home to get ready, since there wasn't much time. Mike and I both did her hair while she did make-up. Also it was one of Mike's dreams to meet the date and have the flowers pinned on in our home so he could be there. It was a sweet moment!

It was raining when she left, so her date decided to pull into the garage so her dress/hair wouldn't get wet. We laughed because he pulled to close to our car and then he couldn't get out to help her in the passenger side, so Mike opened the door for her.

PROMENADE: (for those of you that don't know what this is, it's a tradition at MHS that the Juniors are introduced with their partner and do a dance for the parents, then the Dads or Moms get the first dance of the night with their daughter or son.) WHAT FUN!




Prom Queen and King:






McKenzie and her cousins and their dates:

Party at our house

McKenzie said she invited some kids over for a party Friday night. I came home from work at 7:30 to find a Ton of teens playing games and dancing and having a great time! I was cracking up at so many things they did. It was really fun. We used to have parties almost every weekend when I was that age and I SO looked forward to the weekends so I could hang with friends. McKenzie is like that too, when she's not busy with other things going on. My other kids asked the other day if she is still living with us... she's been gone so much! They were kidding, though!

Prom Dress Shopping

McKenzie, Sydney, Addison and I went shopping for Prom dresses in Provo. It was fun, but a long day. We cannot divulge on the internet which dress McKenzie picked out because this Saturday will be Prom, but here is one she tried on...I forgot to take more pictures because it was a blur trying to find "the one", but she found the last one that was the right size. She had to wait for a girl to try it on first, then when that girl decided not to get it, McKenzie snatched it and was thrilled to find the one that would be PERFECT for her. Now on to the accessories, hair, nails, eyebrows, makeup. Wow- this thing is a lot of work to get ready for! But she is excited. She had a really nice date and I know she can't wait. I can't wait to see her do the Promenade like I used to at the same High School I went to. What fun! Addy had to get in on the action too:

After, we treated ourselves to dessert at ColdStone- even before dinner! What's a girl's day out for anyway!

Actual Prom dress pictures will show up next week- stay tuned!

Bradle's birthday- #14~!

We had a family party for Bradley's 14th Birthday. He was a Valentine baby and when he was born, he came out thinking. His eyebrows kept turning down in the middle like he was thinking deeply. That's SO like him still. Always thinking deep and processing everything about him. We had a good time and he LOVED his gifts of dartboard, woodburning kit, money, candy apple and a gift certificate for CHICKENS when he gets the chicken house built with his Dad.



The adults hanging out:




The teens hanging out downstairs...

Little kids LOVE Bradley. He always plays with them and they hang on him like little monkeys. Here he is walking with them clinging on his legs. Maybe that's what I should to do to get a good leg workout!

Bradley's cake...not too exciting, but it did have orange on it which seems to be his favorite color:

My sister and her hubby, Greg:
The littler kids eating cake: So much fun! And so much sugar!

I thought I took a pic of Bradley eating his cake, but when I clicked on the picture closer, it was a candle. He's always doing silly things on the sly!

Opening his gifts.
While the kids were playing, Mike caught a few shots of us 3 sisters skating around the island on the wood floor in our socks. I think we DID find a new aerobics routine!
Bradley enjoyed his party and we are glad we have family around to party with! He was saying now he can go to dances...I can't wait to see how that goes!

Bonfire...

Bradley's favorite thing to do is have a bonfire with the boxes and packing materials. I'm getting a little worried about his pyromaniac tendencies...He loves a fire! But then, what 14yr old boy scout doesn't love fires, BB guns, and pocket knives? I've had to learn to CHILL about some of these things. He's a good boy, though!