Happy St. Patrick's Days

The nice thing about 2pm church (ugggh) is that it leaves plenty of time for holiday festivities.   

We started the morning off with green eggs and ham.  

Then we had a pretty mellow Sunday. 

Lunch was chicken pillows with broccoli 

 Here they are ready to church.  Sure do love my cute little bunch!  

Spring Break Shenanigans

Its weird to think that Spring Break has already come and gone.  

The kids only have 49 days left of school.  Wowza...its sure gong by fast. 

I sat the kids down and explained to them what Spring Cleaning is.  

That its jobs that we don't typically do on a weekly basis.  

  I didn't do a daily chore list like I typically do.  

They just had to keep their room clean, 

pick up their belongings throughout the house 

and then the "Spring Clean" job for the day

I ex-ed out all the t.v.s and computers.  

The tape could only come down once EVERYBODY's  job was done.  

We got a lot done.  

We organized their closets one day, 

the coat closet, pantry and the bathrooms and craft area on other days.  

The kids weren't crazy about the no technology rule the first day or two, 

but they eventually learned to accept it and did great with their jobs.  

One day our adventure was to have a "Late Night" with friends.  

They got to invite a friend over.  

Make individual pizzas and watch a movie.  

Ky just finish Alex Rider the book so that was what they watched.  

They all loved it.  Even {B} and her friend.  

It's about a teenage spy.  

We had popcorn and treats and it was a lot of fun.  

The next day we went to the library and they got to pick books for them to read during spring break.  

My kids have really started to love reading and it makes me so happy.  

We also got Ice cream and received a letter from our Missionary.  

After reading for an hour the neighborhood friends started coming over.  

We had a full noisy house, but it was fun.  

The next day I took the kids hiking.  

I love this spring weather we have been having. 

It was a perfect AZ day to hike.  

They lasted a lot longer then I thought they would

I was surprised how long we hiked.  

It sure was fun.  

We stopped at McDonalds for an icecream cone on our way home.  

Next we met up with our friends and headed to Peter Piper Pizza. 

 Our next adventure was camping in the back yard.  

 We had a BBQ, roasted smores and had lots of fun.  

We had two tents set up.  

 Everyone slept great.  It was the best sleep I've had in a while. ??? Go figure.  

Spring Break flew by and I was really bummed to have to send them back to school.  

I love that we had so much fun with very little money.  

There is a quote I heard that became my own personal goal for spring break 

"If you want your children to turn out well, spend twice as much time with them, 

and half as much money."  

I was feeling like I needed to spend money to make it a great break.  

Turns out we spent very little money and made some great memories.  

I could even see the kids felt good looking back at their work they accomplished each day.

I sure have great kids!  Love them!!!  

Sweet baby girl

The other day I had to run a quick errand.
I turned the corner and saw this cute sign with an adorable baby on it.  
I had this sudden surge of happiness and gratitude fill my body as my heart said "ohhhh....I have one of those" instead of "ohhhh....I want one of those"  It was an incredible little moment.

I went for years having that yearning in my heart.  It is so nice to now feel complete and at peace with our little family everytime I see a darling little baby.  I love and cherish each one of my kids.  Although the wait for my sweet little caboose was one of the toughest most heart wrenching experiences I've gone through I think of everything she has already taught me. Even before her birth she increased my testimony of faith in the Lord, the power of prayer, personal revelation, and blessings come from serving the Lord and going to the Temple faithfully. She has a special little spirit that I can feel already and I'm sure she will have many more things to teach me.

She is a great strength to me and her happy disposition has brought me so much joy.  If I am having an off day or discouraged that my to do lists or "projects" are not getting done all I have to do is hold my sweet girl and she reminds me Family is truly what it is all about, and what I want more than anything.

She is our little peacemaker too.  When ever one of the older kids is angry or whining Ry and I have them come hold the baby.  She instantly calms them down and they forget what they are even upset about.  (Just recently discovered this trick and I LOVE it)

She is such a good little sleeper.  When she is really tired and about to fall asleep she hums.  It's like she's fading off and it last anywhere from 2-10 minutes.  It is seriously the cutest thing ever!!!!

{A} has become mobile and gets further and further everyday.  She can sit on her own and can hold her own bottle.  She LOVES her brothers and sister and has her own personal entertainers from about 3:30 on.  :) you can see that she feels like she is just right there involved with everything.  

 I am sooooo thankful for this sweet little angel who has completed our family.  

I truly am blessed!  

Birthday guest

My cute sister turned the BIG 4-0!  

The week before her birthday her husband called and told me he was surprising her with 

a trip to Arizona and wanted to know if it were ok for them to stay with us.  Ummmm...YES!  

I was soooo excited I could hardly contain myself.  

He pulled her out of church and didn't tell her where they were going until they were on the freeway.  

He had me text a funny little message asking about who was an their way to AZ.  

It was so fun to be in on the surprise.

I probably drove Kendall nuts with all my texts reminding him about her

  meds, gifts and such, but he did awesome.  

I am so impressed.  

He packed everything and did a good job too.  

It was soooo fun to get to watch her open her packages.

Her sweet Missionary Son even sent her a package. 

 Here she is with her mission journal.  

What a great idea.  

When my kids got home from school we had a little family party.  

 we decided each candle was worth 10 years.  :)  

My kids absolutely adore Christy. 

They were beyond excited when I told them she was coming.  

It was so fun for them to be in on the Birthday celebration. 

 That night we headed over to Lisa's house

 (Christy's good friend) for a yummy BBQ.  

I got to make the cake and went with a Peanut Butter chocolate cake. 

We got to spend the next day shopping, talking, eating and being together,

 and let me tell you it was just what I needed.  

Man I have missed her.  

Unfortunately she got sick that night, but I sure had fun with her.  

I absolutely adore my sister.  

What a great example she has been to me throughout my entire life.  

So excited for what the next 40 years bring. 

Happy Birthday, Christy dear!  

love and money

For date night this week we kept on our dating on a budget theme. 

We started out grabbing a bite to eat at Moki's.  Inexpensive but oh so good.  Mmmm.... 

Next we drove to the Gilbert Temple.  

It is coming along nicely and is such a beautiful peaceful place.

Then we started reading this book together.  

I am a HUGE Dr. Phil fan.  

Not so much his new show, but the original Dr. Phil shows where he 

really helped people and seemed to be less about the ratings.  

Not really a fan of the teen pregnancy or druggie episodes.  

But lately I have been listening to re-runs of his early shows while I craft, and he's really quite good.  

As much as I absolutely adore my husband we of course have our own issues we struggle with.  

I LOVE that the main theme of this book is not about how to change your partner or get them to do what you think or want them to do. 

 He explains that a good marriage starts with "You". 

He talks about how we can resolve our own issues to be a better spouse.   

I have had a lot of personal issues and struggles {especially in the last 5 years}.  

I feel like I am finally on the mend and beginning to feel like ME again. 

I am excited that I have such a supportive husband who is willing to work on our marriage with me.  

I sure am blessed.  

After reading for a bit we went and got some ice cream and listened to

 our FAVORITE show "Dave Ramsey".  

What a great night, we worked on our marriage AND our budget.  :)  

Girls/boys Night Out and a Broken Arm

We were able to get a super good deal on Suns tickets so Ry surprised the boys with a night out.  

He did not tell them where they were going and boy were they surprised.  

 I wasn't sure if {J} would like it because he really is not interested in sports at.all...but he had a BLAST.  Ry said he got into it and loved it..

They all had a blast and would love to go back again.  

While the boys were gone I decided to take the girls over to the park.  

 {B} rode her bike and I pushed {A} in the stroller.

Little did I know that right after I took this picture she would fall and get seriously hurt.  

She got about half way cross the Monkey bars and fell.  I watched it and I could tell she landed hard.  

She cried and said she could not ride her bike home.  After holding her for about 5 minutes I put her in the stroller with {A}.  Then I pushed the stroller while holding her bike.  I'm sure I looked quite comical.  

She could move her arm and fingers so I knew it wasn't broken.  We got home and I let her soak her arm in the bathtub.  Then I gave her some med for pain and tucked her in bed.  She fell right to sleep.  

The next morning she still could not lift her arm above her head.  She could write so I wasn't sure if I should keep her home or not.  Ry and I decided to keep her home.  

 I called the doctor and he told me to take her in so they could x-ray it, so we did.
The ER doctor was adorable with her and had her laughing.  He would move her arm and she was obviously very tender.  He said it looked like a bad sprain and maybe torn muscle.  The x-ray showed the bone broke just below the shoulder and then buckled on itself.  (like crushing a tin can) and a slight fracture in the wrist.  He was soooo surprised she wasn't screaming in pain.  He told me he was going to but her arm in a sling and splint the wrist until the orthopedic surgeon looks at it.  When he left to get the supplies I looked at {B} and she had big crocodile tears streaming down her face.  I told her it would feel better soon.  Then she said sweet and sad as can be.  "But Mommy, I don't want them to split my arm in half"  :)  poor little girl.  I explained what a splint was and she was back to her happy self.  We are home now and just taking it easy reading lots and lots of books.  {I LOVE hearing her read bytheway} After they fixed her up I took her for ice cream (she picked a box of ice cream sandwiches) and I said "No more monkeys swinging on the bars".  That made her laugh and she has been repeating it to everyone ever since.  :)  

Rocket Launch

The big day of the school Rocket Launch field trip finally came.  

 Ry was one of the chaperons and he and {J} had a lot of fun.  

 This is the rocket we bought with {J} on our date.  

 His rocket did awesome. 

 He was able to launch it three different times.  

After they finished the rockets they went to the park and enjoyed a picnic.  

What a fun project and fun field trip.  

{R} is such an awesome hands on dad.  

He took work off to be there for {J} and he took the day before off to go be a guest speaker in Ky's class. He talked on Argentina and took in things from his mission.   

I got to go watch and he did great and was very cute with the kids.  

I am very grateful to be married to such a hard working guy.  

Although his schedule is CRAZY busy with work, off duty, court and church callings.  

He always manages to make his family a priority and helps make our kids childhood as best as it can be.  That is what I have been trying to completely focus on lately and it's been so fun.  Glad I have a good supportive guy by my side helping us achieve that goal. He means the world to me.  

carwash, rocket and ice cream

It was J's turn to join us this week for date night.  

As we are trying to get 100% out of debt, we have gotten creative with our dates.  

Our car needed a bath big time so we decided to combine the fun with the practical and  turned it into a fun date. 

{J} loved getting to wash the car, and he did a great job at it too.  

such a cute little worker

They sure make a cute team!

After the car wash we headed to Hobby Lobby and bought a new Rocket Kit to put together for {J}'s upcoming rocket launch at school next week.
Then we went over to Culver's for ice cream and some completely random hilarious conversations.  
{j} sure is adorable and has such a good heart.
I am grateful for the one on one we do as a couple with each of our kids.  
 I am so Blessed!