Our Little Garden ~ and some self-reliance

Here is a sample of what we have been growing out in our garden...

It is so fun to see what has sprung from the ground from just a tiny little seed, AND it feels really good to have a small feeling and appreciation for learning to be self-reliant. ;)

But even more fun is the yummy treats you can make from scratch with the ingredients you grow! 

This zucchini bread was so yummy!

Now what to do with all of my jalapenos! :)

 

#22

The other day my nephew Cohen was playing a soccer game IN RIVERTON!

Sooo....Dallin and I just had to go and cheer him on!

And guess what???

Cohen wears my favorite number - #22!

That's the day of my birthday, so naturally, it's my favorite number! :)

I felt pretty cool getting my picture with #22. ;)

And these are the things that we do for family.

We love and support each other, and cheer each other on both in life and on the playing field.

Dallin and Cohen have been best cousins for life and I'm so lucky to have both of these amazing young men in my life! :)

 

Being Prepared

We have been a busy family!

Busy with starting school and birthday celebrations, busy with service in callings and ministering, and even coming out here...to our cabin!

We have had this place for about 3 years now, and still have so many hopes and dreams for the future and what we want to do with it.

But so far, we have already built many wonderful and lasting memories here.

We have decided to become a little more self reliant up here at the cabin and spent a few days cleaning out the garage, setting up storage shelves, and we even bought some storage bins to begin a food storage up here too!

We have started out with some of the basics and want to eventually build this up to where it would be a place we could come if there were ever a natural disaster, or any other reason to need a safe place to go.

It feels so good to be prepared, "for if ye are prepared, ye shall not fear."

With the state of the world and all of the unknowns we face, it is comforting to have a good feeling of being self reliant. Not only is this place a safe place, but it is a beautiful place too, surrounded by God's creations, and some very good "down to earth" people for neighbors. 

We feel blessed to have this little piece of land that we can call our "home away from home."

Plus, every time we drive out there we see so many animals and things that you just don't see everyday in the city...like cows walking down the middle of the road, and an elk farm, and dozens of wild turkeys...

It's a fun thing for our family and we feel grateful and blessed to own this little piece of heaven out here in this beautiful valley.

So grateful for the blessings so freely given to us from a loving Heavenly Father.

See ya later cows! :)

Meant to Shine

Today is a special day, and I hope my heart can handle all of the emotions that are swirling around inside of me!!!

Today, Kesslyn goes to Kindergarten!!!

She is a little sweetheart and she is my baby, and I think I am going to miss her SO much!!!

But I know she will  move mountains and make a bajillion friends, and I honestly cannot wait to see her shine like I know she is meant to do.

Watch out world!

Here comes Kesslyn!!!  :)

 

Happy Birthday Kesslyn !

For Kesslyn's 5th birthday she wanted a "Rainbow Unicorn Mermaid" party!

Soooo....This momma pulled off the "best birthday ever" with just a few simple pleasures that any 5 year old little girl would love. :)

The party started with Kesslyn picking up her good friend Gabriella, and then we went to Build-a-Bear to build their very own stuffed animals! (Complete with a real heartbeat, a fancy smell, and lots of love sewn up right inside!)

After the workshop we ate lunch in the food court of the mall...Chik-fil-A for Kesslyn and Panda Express for Gabriella!

As we were walking out of the mall, I looked down at these little girls and felt my heart ache just a little...Kesslyn is NOT a baby anymore!!! ;(...she's getting too big!

We played at the play ground...

...and then we went and picked up Kesslyn's Rainbow Unicorn cake from Kierra's friend Emma Geertsen (a.k.a. the Red Rolling Pin. ;)

Emma did such a beautiful job and this little girl of mine was in rainbow unicorn heaven!!!

Not only was this cake a beauty, it was soooo delicious too!!! (And trust me, I am a cake connoisseur...:)

Seriously...Kesslyn was tickled by her rainbow unicorn cake! She couldn't stop staring at it. (But neither could I!) It was so well done, a true work of art, and I am definitely going to hire Emma to make all my cakes for me from now on. ;)

Kesslyn and I took a few pictures with her cake and then packed up the car to go to Tiffany and Colby's house as soon as all of the kids got home from school.

(And I forgot to mention that Kesslyn took her little lion from Build-a Bear with her everywhere she went too...she named her Crystal Cove. :)

We made it to Tiffany and Colby's house for the rest of the birthday fun...

Balloons, presents, family...

Kesslyn wanted to swim in the hot tub like a mermaid...;)

...so she took her new wind up dolphins in there with her! :)

She was also happy to see her cousin Lexi show up to wish her a happy birthday too. :)

After we ate pizza we sang Happy Birthday to Kesslyn and blew out the candles!

It was almost a shame to cut up such a beautiful cake, but that's what we did! Kesslyn made a wish, and we all enjoy Emma's scrumptious creation. ;)

For the final bit of fun for the evening, we all went down to the theater room and watched the original Mulan movie and ate yummy buttery movie theater popcorn. :)

We had planned on watching the live action movie Mulan, but it hasn't come out yet, but Kesslyn was still so happy with this one. In fact, Kesslyn was so happy with everything that happened all throughout the day. 

She has such a grateful little heart and it was so much fun for me to see her with such a big grin glued to her face all day long. She told me sooo many times how happy she was and how this was "the perfect day."

She truly is an angel in our family. She brings so much happiness with her wherever she goes, and it's contagious too. :)

Kesslyn got everything she wanted and then some for her birthday!

(Everything that is, EXCEPT for Tank. ;)

But almost! ;)

He did try to sneak in the car to go home with us. ;)  ;)  ;)

Happy happy birthday sweet little Kesslyn!!!

We LOVE you!!!!!

Kesslyn is 5 !

4 years ago today this sweet angel turned 1!

And TODAY...she turns 5!!!!!

I love Kesslyn so much, and I am so grateful for this little caboose!

She brings a smile to everyone in our family everyday with her singing and dancing, and the funny things she says...it's so hard to believe she's growing up and getting so big...right before my very eyes!

As I type this, she is still sound asleep in her bed, and THIS is what she will find when she wakes up!!!

We are going to go and have a fun day that we will tell you all about tomorrow. :)

 Happy 5th Birthday sweet Kesslyn!!! :)

We LOVE you!!!

XOXOX

Kindergarten Assessment Day

Today little Kesslyn went to meet her new Kindergarten teacher Mrs. Rizer, and had her Kindergarten assessment...I sat at a different table filling out paperwork and listening to Kesslyn's enthusiastic responses to the questions.

This made me so happy because she sounded SO  happy and confident, and it made me feel better as a mom getting ready to send my little 4 year old baby off to school everyday!(Although she will turn 5 on Monday right before school starts.;) You wonder sometimes if you have done enough to help them prepare, but as long as they have confidence and a positive outlook, they blossom and grow! I am excited to see her succeed in this next phase of life.

(I just still want to hold her in my arms for as long as I can!!!

She earned a pencil and a Smartie after meeting with her teacher, and so...the fun begins!!!

I also went to breakfast this morning with my friends for our annual traditional "Mom Breakfast" to celebrate the kids going back to school. Me, Laura, April, and Lisa had a great time talking and catching up, and realizing that life is passing right before our eyes, and we need to cherish every moment.

So that's what I'm trying to do!

Happy Friday!