Kambriella Turns 8!

Can you believe that this little sweetheart is 8?!! :)

Kambriella's birthday (June 2nd) fell on a Friday this year and was also the last day of school!!!

What a PERFECT day for a PARTY!!!

She woke up and literally bounced down the hall to my bedroom squealing and jumping with delight...

We let her open her presents before she left for school...

She got new swim suits, towels, and flip flops to enjoy at our pool, and then everything she could dream of for her special baptism day! :) Scriptures with her name engraved on them and a fun rainbow colored scripture bag and books for her baptism...

She also got a new Belle doll in her pretty white party dress :)

After school was out, she came home and waited for her friends to arrive...then we all drove downtown to Salt Lake to the Lion House for our traditional 8 year old birthday party!

This is a fun tradition that each of our kids have done on their 8th birthday...it is a special way to remember such an important birthday...the age where they get to be baptized!

Here we all are exploring the Lion House with our hostess Katelyn, who told fun stories about Brigham Young and the pioneers...

We learned that the girls would keep their hair from their hair brushes and make art out of it!!!

Kambriella got to wear a special little crown (that she also got to keep:) and sit in the "Queen" chair. :)

They played Button Button Who Has the Button...a game that the little pioneer children used to play...

Here is Kambriella waiting for her turn to "receive" the button...

Then we played "Hide the Thimble"

The girls had fun and were so good at this game! :)

Then, all the girls sat around the table and told what they loved about Kambriella...all of the girls had such nice things to say and I know that it made Kambriella feel so very special! :)

Then, all the girls got to sit around the table and pull their own taffy, a favorite treat of the pioneers...

ALL SMILES!!! Clockwise around the table starting with Kambriella..Elsa, Mya, Mia, Jaydan, Paige, Ashlynn, Emery, Sara, and Cambri. :) Cute girls, good friends. :)

After pulling taffy all the girls got to eat a lion house roll with honey butter, pretzels and carrots with ranch, and the best raspberry lemonade you ever did try!!! Kambriella got to take the first bite and then ring the bell for all of the other girls to dig in! :)

After they were all done eating it was time for cake and ice~cream!!!

Happy happy birthday sweet Kambriella!!!

...and of course the birthday girl received the first slice...

...and ice~cream served up by the BEST DAD EVER!!! :)

In the tradition of the Lion House Birthday parties and Lion House cake, they bake 1 gumball into the cake! If the birthday girl gets the gumball in her piece, then everyone has good luck for a whole year!!! 

And GUESS WHAT??? It was in Kambriella's piece!!!

We then moved to the parlor where Kambriella opened all of her darling presents 

from her sweet little friends...

...and Clint modeled her most fashionable ones... ;)

Paige and Kambriella...such good friends!

They also played a little game as she opened her presents...each girl had to disguise their voice to try and have Kambriella guess who the next present would be from... she guessed everyone's voice EXCEPT for Kierra!!! She really tricked her!!! :)

AND...Kambriella received a white baptism dress for her American Girl Doll from Grandma Trickett that she LOVED!!!! If you can't tell...

All the girls LOVED Kambriella and had such a fun time at the party!!!

Also, another tradition from the Lion House is that they give the birthday child the choice between a porcelain doll or a stuffed animal lion...and Kambriella chose the porcelain doll that looked just like her!!! 

Blonde hair and blue eyes!!!

All the friends outside of the Lion House...

LOVE!!!

MORE LOVE!!!

We also stopped at temple square and took pictures in front of the Salt Lake Temple...

...yet another birthday tradition! :)

...and you know the saying, "girls just wanna have fun??"

YEP!!! That's it!!! These girls had NOTHIN' but fun!!!

I LOVE YOU KAMBRIELLA!!!

Happy 8th birthday!!! XOXOXOXO

Carew Graduates! Class of 2017

 Graduation Day!!! June 1st, 2017

Carew James Trickett...YOU DID IT!!! :)

 Alex, Kylie, Kate, and Carew...

Friends, Seniors, Silverwolves...

 ANNNDD of course we couldn't have a picture without Kesslyn and Kambriella!!! ;)

 Kate and Carew have so much to look forward to... College life at Utah State University, and a mission to Italy, Rome!!! Oh the Places You'll Go!!! :)

 Alex and Carew got to walk next to each other...

 ...and were sooo excited to see...

 ...that they would be paired up and walking with ...

 KATE!!! :)

 Alex, Carew, (another girl I don't know), and KATE!!!

 It was so fun to see the grand hall filled with a spirit of excitement and enthusiasm for such a momentous occasion...loving family and friends and some of life's "biggest fans" were there to cheer on and support these outstanding students...

 "The Brothers"...they look up to Carew more than he will ever know!!!

 And loved by the "little sister" too... :)

 We are sooooo happy for you Carew!!! You really do have so much in store for you!

Kate and Carew (minus the graduation gowns :)

For Carew's graduation present we decided to spoil him with some things that he could use for his mission...I wrapped up the biggest part of his present hoping that he would think that was all he was getting. ;) I wanted to trick him...but he is too smart. ;)

 Clint and I both wrote him a letter and put it with the picture of the Savior...and then he opened it and saw his new luggage! (I knew he would be able to guess...;)

 5 suitcases all stacked inside of each other for traveling to ITALY!!!

Then he FINALLY got to the inside of the last suitcase only to find...

 A book and some money from Uncle Harold and Aunt Marty...:) along with some white shirts and ties, socks, scripture stickers, an AWESOME Noah's Ark CTR ring engraved with the words "Build Your House Upon the Rock"...

 ...and his Italian scriptures!!!

 Elder Carew James Trickett...

(See the Italian words?)

 Moments like these make me soooo happy! Father and son...growing closer together, walking in the same paths and following in his father's footsteps...it seemed like these days would never come and now...they are finally HERE.

 We truly do love you so much Carew! Way to reach these accomplishments and milestones in your life! 

WE LOVE YOU!!!

I don't know how it ever happened...but I forgot to take a picture of one of the very most special parts of his gift...It was another CTR ring...If you look closely you can see it on his finger...

This was an Italian CTR ring that reads 

"Scegli il Giusto"

Choose the Right.

On the inside of the band I had engraved

 "Elder Carew James Trickett~Called to Serve~ Italy Rome Mission 2017"

My heart is full of happiness and gratitude for the many blessings that my family is experiencing right now, and I'm so grateful for the good choices that bring good gifts to us from a loving heavenly Father. :)

After Carew's graduation we went out to dinner, opened his gifts, and then he was off with the rest of the Senior class from Riverton High to the Boondock's all night GRAD party!!! He rolled in around 3:45 am and went straight to bed! What a fun exciting time..soooo happy for you Carew!!!

Wedding Prep, Party Prep!

Yesterday was a girls day full of visiting the castle for last minute decoration details...and lucky for me, my sister Tiffany got to come with us to help watch the little sissy...I really think Aunt Tiffany may just be Kesslyn's favorite person on this planet!!! :)

We also hit the mall for shoe shopping for the bride, and we looked around for an outfit for the mother of the bride...this is FUN STUFF!!! Kesslyn definitely agrees! ;)

 I also worked on preparation for the rest of this full and amazing weekend...graduation is today, and Kambriella's 8th birthday is tomorrow!! Her baptism is on Saturday, and seminary graduation is on Sunday!!! This time for our family really is soooo full of soooo much good and my heart is continually overflowing with gratitude! I feel so loved and blessed...:)

Happy Day! :)