New Beginnings

This has been an exciting back to school year for us as Cameron has now reached the dear ol' age of Kindergarten! He shares such enthusiasm for going to a big kids school, it's adorable to watch. Austin on the other hand has now switched schools and has headed into his 3rd grade year. In our neck of the woods our school district does things a little differently than others. We don't have the typical "neighborhood schools" that house K-6. What we have are 3 elementary schools and each school is dedicated to certain grade levels; K-2, 3-5, and a whole school for the 6th graders. It's kinda weird, but it seems to work. Unfortunately this means that Austin & Cameron will always be at separate schools from each other. The good news is, both have landed awesome teachers this year and I am excited to see the growth that each one of them makes.

A Stinging Mess

Last night Austin had the unfortunate experience of being stung by bees, not just once or twice, but 7 times! It happened at the Cub Scout Pack meeting in the back of the church. Of course he wandered into the wooded area, where the boys have been cautioned to stay away from, but they are boys and unfortunately, sometimes, they have to learn the hard way. Grayson was also victim to the yellow jackets and came away with 3 of his own. Poor guys! Thank goodness we had so many well prepared Scout leaders there to help us remedy the situation.

So this morning I lathered Austin up with Hydrocortisone cream and sent him to school with a note to call if he had any issues. One hour later the Vice Principal called and said Austin was itching like crazy and needed me. I pulled him out for the day and have been pumping down Benadryl every 4 hours and rubbing him with cream. Sadly, the affected areas don't look any better at all.

Live and Learn

Sometimes I wonder if I'm the only one out there who feels like they are always playing catch up??? And why, when I know how hard it is to catch up, do I let myself fall behind??? This is me!

This past year I have had a really hard time with balance in my life. Then of course there's something monumental about a lack of balance in one's life that leads to a lot of unnecessary stress, and I have definitely felt on overload. Back in the beginning of August I made the decision to leave my part time job and put family first. Not only is it gratifying to be home in the evening with my family, but it's amazing how much time I feel that I have now. So there's no excuses now why I should always feel behind.

It recently hit me how much I miss scrapbooking and blogging. Blogging to preserve my thoughts, and scrapbooking to showcase our family pictures. I am disappointed that I have let so much time pass in doing something I love so much to do, but hopefully lessons learned means wisdom from making the same mistakes again. Hopefully!

Road Trip to Utah

I love a reason to travel and so when I found out Ryan was getting married in Utah, all I could think about was, Road Trip!!  Spencer was not able to take off more than a couple of days so I opted to drive with the kids early so we could spend some time with my parents in Utah.  I invited Caylin & Megan to go with us to which they were very excited.  The first day we drove as far as Meridian, ID and spent the night with our friends, the Cluff's.  It was so much fun to see them and their two little girls they have had since moving away.  The following day, Sunday, we arrived in the Salt Lake Valley.

Each day we spent in Utah was a blast!  We went to a kids waterpark called, Cowabunga Bay.  After leaving the waterpark we had to track down my absolute favorite ice cream joint in the world called, Iceberg.  I think the girls were pleasantly surprised when they got to experience Iceberg shakes.  Other activities include; spending time with my sister, Brittany; a visit to Wheeler Farm; a family BBQ; swimming at the community rec center; movie nights; a picnic in the Canyon; and of course all of the fun events involving Ryan's wedding.  As much fun as all of these activities were, I must say that two of the highlights of the trip include; Spending time with my brother Cory who happened to coincide his visit with mine; and going on a special daddy-daughter date.  My Dad and I went through a live session in the Salt Lake Temple together, a first for me.  That was a special thing to do with just him.  Spencer flew into SLC on Thursday afternoon and then he drove us home on Sunday.  This road trip was so much fun, I really was bummed when it ended! 

Ryan & Ashlynn's Wedding

When Ryan and Ashlynn announced that they were getting married I don't think there was a person around who wasn't thrilled!  Ryan has always been a man of good character, who knows how to make excellent decisions, and I am so grateful for the example he has been for my boys.  His wedding was going to be an exciting event.  Ryan and Ashlynn decided to get married in the Oquirrh Mountain Temple in South Jordan, Utah.  My Dad lives in West Jordan so the location couldn't have been more perfect.  The ceremony itself was wonderful.  What a neat experience it is to be so far from home yet surrounded by the people you love.  That is a Temple sealing for ya!  The reception was held later that evening in a beautiful reception hall in Gardner's Village.  Everything was done with class and the newlyweds couldn't have looked happier. 

Cameron showing off his one arm push-ups in front of the ladies.



Austin's Baptism

Turning 8 in the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is a big deal.  We believe that at 8 years old a child is very capable of making wise choices and is therefore responsible for their actions.  They are also old enough to understand what it means to be baptized and who Jesus Christ is.  When a child turns this magical age they have the choice to be baptized and confirmed a member of the church.  We are so proud of Austin who chose to be baptized and take upon him the name of Jesus Christ and always follow him!  This was a very special day and I hope he will always remember it.  Two talks were given at his baptism.  Ryan spoke on baptism itself, and Grandma Waite spoke about the Holy Ghost.  Grandma Waite gave Austin a compass as a reminder that when we have the companionship of the Holy Ghost we will never veer off course, or get lost.  To this day he keeps the compass in his scriptures.  Austin was baptized and confirmed by his Father.

Nehalem Bay Camping Trip

Family camping trips are always fun, and we were especially looking forward to this one because Ryan was bringing his new fiance with him.  And not only were we graced with Ashlynn's presence, but our nephew, Travis, came too.  Everyone loves Nehalem Bay because it offers surf on one side of the park and a crab filled river on the other.  Fun for everyone!  The guys were successful in their crabbing and Spencer had a fabulous idea to create a Mongolian Grill type dinner, which was so good!      

Children's Museum Field Trip

Preschool is so much fun! Here we are at the traditional end of the year field trip to the Children's Museum. Every kid's wish, every parents worst nightmare. Okay maybe that's just me! I personally find it stressful, but we wouldn't miss it for the world.

Memorial Weekend

We spent our Memorial Weekend this year in Spokane, WA visiting Spencer's brother and his family. Uncle Dan's house is always so much fun! They boys get to reunite with their cousins and have crazy fun. The highlights of our trip are:

Watching the boys shoot a pellet gun out of the kitchen window at the annoying starlings in the yard.

Spending the afternoon at the YMCA pool and having a blast.

Laughing at these three crazy kids playing with bubbles in Aunt Artie's tub.

And the most entertaining moment for me was standing back and watching Spencer and Dan compete against each other on the Wii fishing game. They were pretty into it.

Series Completed

Today I finished reading the Harry Potter series for the first time! Yes, I know I am a little behind the times, like 10 years, but I did it...whoo hoo! Reading, and finishing, a series is a big accomplishment for me. It all started about 10 months ago when I decided to give the books a try. I honestly didn't think I would be into them but I was captivated right from the start. I was also motivated to finish the series because I didn't know how it ended. Back when Deathly Hallows came out, I wasn't into the whole "Harry Potter frenzy" so nothing people shared stuck with me. So in the end I can honestly say that I loved the series! I loved the story! And in my opinion J.K. Rowling is the most creative and entertaining writer I have ever read. 5 stars from me.