Menchie's For FUN!

 Not only is this the cutest group of girls you may ever see, but it's also some of Kambriella and Kesslyn's best friends AND our car pool group!!!

Kambriella was pleasantly surprised when I showed up at the school and whisked the girls away to Menchie's for ice cream (which out voted Sodalicious unanimously!) for a surprise end-of-school/birthday celebration!

They giggled and laughed and talked and hugged and ate ice cream and giggled some more...

then they went to our house and played for a while before it was time to go home. It was a fun little celebration in preparation for TODAY...VAY ~ CAY ~ TION!!!!!!!

I am signing out until we get home because internet service will be spotty or non existent...;)

but I can't wait to share all of the fun, adventures, and highlights of the time we will have together in Florida and the Bahamas!!! Happy Happy Summer!!!! See you in a couple of weeks!

XOXOXOXO

The LAST Day of School!

 Today is officially (but unofficially) the last day of school for my kids!!! :) Yay!!!

 Kesslyn finished last week, and Dallin's teachers said they won't be taking attendance after today...and the other kids schools go through tomorrow and Friday...BUT... WE ARE GOING ON VACATION TOMORROW!!!!! Aaaaahhhhhhhh!!!!!!!! (So today is our last day!)

 This bus will not have to pick Gavin up again until he's in 8th grade! The kids have all grown and gotten so much bigger and smarter over the last year and I am so proud of all of the good that they have been able to accomplish!

Kambriella is going on a field trip today and then little does she know...

...but after school gets out I will pick up our cute carpool and be taking them all on a Sodalicious run to celebrate the end of school and Kambriella's birthday, just since we won't be here around her friends on those days. I think it will make her so happy! :)

I love these kids..and we LOVE summer!!!!

BRING. IT. ON!!!!

Memorial Day Weekend

This is a rainbow that we saw right outside of our kitchen window on Friday afternoon, foretelling the beautiful yet rainy Memorial Day weekend we would be celebrating!

The first "pot of gold" that was found was on our overnight date...lots of time to talk, be together, eat yummy food, and "see" the temple right outside our hotel window. :)

We also went as a family to visit our 100 year old friend Bernice, who is definitely a "pot of gold" - a real treasure of a grandma to us...

We also got to go and stay the night at our cabin which is another "pot of gold!" We LOVE getting away to this quiet little piece of heaven and just being together, whether we are working or playing...it doesn't matter. There is just a good feeling that is there when we are all together. :)

We moved firewood and mowed the foot long grass, getting the grounds ready for some summer fun!

We also drove into the tiny town of Fairview for dinner and had cheeseburgers and ice cream, and then saw dozens and dozens of deer roaming around and wandering in the roads on the way back home... 

We went to the ward up there and met new friends ( I LOVE our new bishop's wife Carrie Willard:), and gave the children an opportunity to make new friends too...(which is SO good for them to get to do!) I loved that each of them was brave enough to go to class and be happy and "put themselves out there."

We also visited our friends the Affleck family who also have a property not far from ours...

Kevin took the girls on a little drive around the loop and made friends with Kesslyn...;)

Gavin and Ashton did too...

these are good people with good kids trying their best to DO GOOD...and we love them!

We also visited family that was out camping over the weekend too...

Kesslyn and Danny's daughter Malia are only 4 days apart in age and are "best sriends" according to Kesslyn. ;)

They listened to stories, played games, and ate treats together...everything that little girls should do! :)

I am grateful for family and for the memory of our loved ones who have passed on...especially my sweet dad who served in the military too for many years. We are so blessed to have not only a free country to live in, but also good people who are willing to give their lives for the cause of freedom. I am so grateful to be an American and forever indebted to those who have fought to give us that freedom.

I don't even have to worry about what I am teaching my kids, because I have the freedom to teach them whatever I want.

 Sooo....I choose to teach them to love God and their fellow man, and to obey the first 2 great commandments...1) Love God with all of your heart , might, mind, and strength, and 

2) to love thy neighbor as thyself.

We also spent a good portion of the day yesterday packing for our upcoming trip that we will be leaving on in just 2 short days!!! Florida, Discovery Cove, Harry Potter World, A cruise to the Bahamas, Atlantis and Coco Cay...Avatar land and the Orlando Temple...and a 10 year old birthday celebration  for Kambriella on the beach!!! BRING. IT. ON!!! :)  :)  :)  :)

Happy Memorial Day!

So thankful for the freedoms of this great land of America...the land we call 

HOME!

Happy Memorial Day!

We Lava Gavin!

 Last night was Gavin's final choir concert of the year!

I "Lava" You was their opening number accompanied by the ukuleles, and "I LAVA Gavin!!!" :)

 I am always so happy to go and support my kids in the things that they are learning and pursuing, and I am always so proud of them and their hard work at refining their talents. Gavin is a good little singer and gaining a love for music will be a love that will stick with him throughout his life! It is through music that the spirit speaks very peacefully too...right to your heart.

Great job Gavin! We LAVA you!!!

Preschool Graduation 2019

 Today was a special day for this little sweetheart!!!

Preschool graduation day!!!

 We got her school pictures back along with a bunch of treasures from throughout the year...

 It's been a good one and she has grown so much!!! She has loved Vision, Miss April, carpooling with Gabriella, and having play dates after school too...

 But her dad and I were both so proud of her and how brave she has become and how much she is learning!

 Last year at preschool graduation, there were no smiles, no singing, and no way was she going to go up to the microphone to say her part...;)

 ...but THIS year she did!!!

 Not only did she go up to the microphone, but she had to climb up on the podium all by herself and hop down after too...;)

 She sang her songs with her friends...

 ...did the actions and  said her part. :)

 Can you see it in her eyes trying NOT to smile?? Cute little stinker! ;)

 "At the end of the day we'll be a goof friend and try our BEST in all we do."

That was what she said in her part! (Although Clint said he couldn't understand her because she was being so quiet.:)

 And in one of the songs they said "I love YOU" and pointed to someone...Kesslyn pointed to Max :)

 Miss April was such a good, kind, and loving teacher! We will miss having her, but she is always just down the street and around the corner...THANK GOODNESS!

 I have said many times that I believe that it takes the village to raise the child...and I'm so grateful that we have April in our village! We LOVE her so much and all the good that she does for everyone around her all the time...Kesslyn was one lucky girl to have her for her teacher not only for 1 year, but for 2 years!

Now we are excited for summer and fun, and Little Farmers in the fall!!! :)

Drama Banquet

 Ultimate drama buddies, geeks, nerds, friends...whatever you want to call them (Anson and Dallin at the drama awards banquet last night)...but VERY confident in themselves and what they love, and I  LOVE THAT! Be you in everything you do! I am so proud of you Dallin!

Way to go out there and try new and hard things...AND having a BLAST while doing so!!! Love yooouuu!!!

Family Night Fun Night

For Family Night last night we played "couples Jenga" to learn about working together as a team, (like in a marriage) AND to have fun. :) 

(Although in this picture it doesn't look like the girls are having that much fun...I promise they are...they were just concentrating REALLY hard!!! :)

The girls and Clint and I won and the brothers were the ones that sent the tower tumbling down!!!

A Piano Recital and the E.R.

 Saturday was filled with the usual volleyball and basketball games, but we also got to enjoy a piano recital for Kambriella! I loved how her teacher took a few minutes before each student played their piece to brag about them and their accomplishments. :)

 Miss Sarah talked about how Kambriella is such a good student and how she loves to compose her own music! It is true, Kambriella will always spend time at the piano creating something new to go with whatever holiday is approaching...my favorites have been her Halloween songs because they sound so spooky..;)

 The recital was short and sweet and Kambriella did a great job on her song! It was a pretty and magical sounding song that took you to a fairy land or some other fun and imaginative place that a little girl would love to go...Kambriella loves playing the piano and she LOVES Miss Sarah! NOW she says she wants to learn how to play the violin too! This girl just seems to love it all!

 Also, yesterday after church I made Clint go to the emergency room to get some tests done on his stomach and other vital organs. He hasn't been feeling well for 3 days now and when it comes to something inside your body that you can't see, I don't think you should mess around....especially when we are supposed to be leaving on our 11 day trip to Florida and the Bahamas!!! The last thing we would need is to have some major problem on a ship out in the middle of the ocean, so I just figured it was better to be safe than sorry.

 They took his blood and urine samples and ran multiple tests and ultrasounds to rule out anything serious with his vital organs, and through the process of elimination, they concluded that it was most likely an ulcer, which didn't surprise me at all with everything work related that has been going on these past few months...or maybe I should say years...It's been such a blessing to see such growth, but at the same time it has been extremely stressful and a lot of weight for his "not so broad" shoulders to carry.

They prescribed him some medicine that will help with the healing process of his stomach but it will still probably be a few months before he feels all the way better since these things can take time to heal completely. As he was laying  there sleeping I watched him and told Heavenly Father how grateful I was to have him. I see all that he does to sacrifice for our family and I know how much he loves us and it makes me grateful and want to help him the best that I can. We make a great team, and I'm so glad he's on my side. And I'm so glad that he is ok and that his pain will eventually go away.

We need this trip so bad and I'm praying that those who will be in charge at work while he is gone will be able to carry the load and that Clint will see that others are capable of pulling their weight so that he doesn't have to be responsible for it all...

I'm so thankful for this family that we belong to, and that we are eternal. As we ended the evening talking about eternal marriage in our Come Follow Me lesson, Clint and I both bore our testimonies to our children of the family being ordained of God and that it really is the ultimate treasure both on earth and in heaven. Our family is what brings us the most joy, and we really do want to be with them for all eternity, and I'm so grateful that we can through the blessings of the priesthood, holy temples, and Heavenly Father's great plan of Happiness for His children.