Happy Birthday Brooklyn!!

April 27th was Brooklyn's 9th birthday!! NINE- I can't believe she is 9!! I remember her birth like it was yesterday. She decided that she wanted to Hogle Zoo for her big day.

(A little side note so that I remember. We ended up having a crazy week before her birthday! Sean's grandpa was going in on Friday the 26th for an Angiogram. Since Sean's parents are in South Carolina, I had promised Sean's mom that I would go down and sit with grandma while the procedure was done. My sister-in-law Chantel left Smithfield at 4:30 A.M. and headed down. Gracie and Ella had a sleepover at my parents house and Sean dropped Brooklyn off to school and my mom picked her up after- thank goodness for family!! Sean's grandparents were so surprised and grateful when Chantel and I walked into the room. We waited for awhile for grandpa to be prepped and then it was finally time to take him down for the procedure. We said good-bye to him and went to the little waiting room and got situated for the hour wait. It had been about 5 minutes and we hear, "Code stimi to the ER, code stimi to the ER." We mentioned that that hadn't sounded too good. About 5 minutes later, a nurse comes in and tells us they had had an unforeseen medical emergency. Our hearts dropped- we couldn't imagine what could've happened to grandpa in that amount of time. I think he noticed the looks on our faces and then told us that someone was coming in with a heart attack. Oh my gosh, I almost had a heart attack!! Anyway it ended up putting them about 3 hours behind so when they finally got him in, he ended up needing to have a stint. So we hung out for the day until Sean could come down and spend the night with his grandma. Despite him having to have the procedure and stint, it was actually a fun day- no responsibilities and I got to sit and visit with Chantel and grandma all day! I got into the valley around 8:30 P.M. and was exhausted! The gals and I ended up staying at my parents again, woke up for Gracie's 9 A.M. soccer game, got ready and headed to the zoo.)

We had a GREAT day!! The weather has been so yucky this spring and this was one of the first good Saturdays, therefore meaning the zoo was packed!! We managed to have a fantastic time even with the crowd. Brooklyn saw that they rented wagons and decided that she wanted one so my brother Brian who is a great uncle and gives the kiddos anything they want and his wife Sher went and rented one. It was classic when I looked up and saw my dad pulling Brian in the wagon! The kids ended up have a blast in it. Some of the favorites were the monkeys, polar bear, and giraffes. There is also this cool exhibit there now where they have Lego sculptures. There is a life size polar bear made out of Legos. We have such a great family that loves us and the gals- they were willing to drive down and spend the day with us at the zoo.

We stayed at the zoo right until closing time and walked over to a little park and Brooklyn got to open her presents there. All she wanted was the McKenna (American Girl) DVD and leotard for gymnastics. She got spoiled from everyone else there. The next day, pops made her a cake so she could blow out her candles and we had cake and ice cream. Happy Happy Birthday Brooklyn!!! We love you so much!!!

April Come and Gone...

Well, April has come and gone. We had a great month! Gracie started soccer this year and has LOVED it!! The weather has not been ideal- freezing, snowing, raining, windy all the kind of weather you want to sit outside in and watch games. She has been fun to watch progress this season. When the season started, she wouldn't touch the ball, she would run around with everyone, but didn't touch the ball. But her past 2 games it is like she has come alive. She is kicking the ball and getting in the middle of things to get to the ball. She has 1 game left and can't wait for next season!

Brooklyn participated in an after-school jump rope club. She loved it and learned so much. It was fun to watch the new things she would learn every week. To show the routine they learned they had a little program at school. It was fun to see her routine and to have the whole school cheering for them.

Easter Festivities

WOW!! We had a GREAT Easter week- make that Easter month!! I just love this time of year- everything is turning green, the kids can play outside after a long winter, and we get to celebrate the final week leading up to our Savior's Crucifixion and Resurrection. The gals were so excited about Easter they could hardly contain themselves. They loved talking and watching videos about our Savior and we really try to get it in their minds that that is the real reason we celebrate Easter.

We started Easter on Saturday- that is when the Easter Bunny visits our house so we can keep Sunday to focus of Jesus. The gals woke up EARLY, but I had put things to entertain them in their room and we made them wait! When they finally got to look for their baskets, they were so excited. The Easter Bunny brought them a new outfit and shoes for their Build-A-Bear friends. We waited for Ella to wake up and she found her basket and loved the bubbles and sidewalk chalk she got. I took the gals to Lee's to see the Easter Bunny, got Ella laid down for her nap and then we dyed the eggs. After that, my parents had their egg hunt for the kiddos. Paula, Kami, Kyle, and Marijka came out to watch. It was so much fun and the weather was perfect for hunting eggs outside. The next day on Easter Sunday, it was my turn to teach Sunday School. I am glad that I was able to teach that day and got to testify that I know that our Savior lives!

On Monday, since it was Spring Break week, the dads were able to take the day off and we headed out to Sean's grandparents house for the day. (We actually ended up going there on Friday to visit with Sean's uncle and his family from Vegas. So it was a bonus to get to go there twice in 3 days.) Sean's grandparents also spoil us and the gals! The weather was kinda yucky, but we did manage to get the hunt in outside in between raining spells. I am so grateful for them and everything they do for our little family! Sean's mom as been here for a couple weeks and the gals have had so much fun having her here too!

March

Our March was pretty mild this year. Nothing too exciting to report. Gracie was totally enthralled with Leprechaun's Day this year. She came up with all sorts of traps to try and catch the sneaky little guy. She was never able to, but loved the pieces of gold that he would leave. And was thrilled when he left some Lucky Charms to eat on the actual day.

Sean was called as the Cub Master in our Ward. (He hates scouts- he didn't like it as a boy and still doesn't. So he was less than thrilled with this calling. He has a HUGE target on his back since he has 3 daughters. :) But he had his first Pack Meeting. I have been teasing him about the call so I needed to get a picture to document it- and of course he wasn't cooperating. He was less than impressed when he had to hold up his 2 fingers to get the meeting started. He was having a hard time doing it and then looked down and saw me laughing at him and almost lost it.  But, he did a really good job and the counselor in Primary told me it was the best Pack meeting they have had in a long time. He was really excited when he didn't have to do any cheers. There is a guy on the committee that really likes to do that and Sean was more than happy to let him.

February in a Nutshell

I don't know how I managed to get 2 months behind on this blog, but since I print it, I am going to catch up. We had a great February. The gals loved getting all dressed for Valentine's Day. Brooklyn had a Valentine's Day Tea at school and had a blast. We had our traditional heart shaped pizza for Valentine's dinner.

 Gracie has been saving her money for a LONG time to go to Build-A-Bear, so we headed down to SLC and spent the night. Brooklyn finally got to have a sleepover at Brian and Sher's. We decided that we were going to go to the Aquarium in the morning and then hit Build-A-Bear. I don't know if I just stress my self out so much about staying in a hotel, but I woke up with a migraine. Not as bad as the one I got home in Boise, but enough that I knew I wasn't going to be able to do what we had planned. I told Sean that I thought we should just hurry and go to Build-A-Bear and then head home. But he wasn't keen on that- he decided that he would take the gals to the Aquarium by himself. He is such a great daddy- I don't think I would've taken them by myself. I hope they realize how great their daddy is. I stayed at Brian and Sher's and slept while they went. After the Aquarium, we made it to Build-A-Bear- it was all Gracie had hoped it would be. As we walked out, the snow started and we dealt with that the whole way home. I have never driven through Sardine Canyon in that bad of snow. There were whiteouts and icy roads. I have never been so glad to see come around that bend and see the valley as I was that day!!

Brooklyn named her bear Ella

Gracie named her bunny Sparkles

 We also celebrated my mom's birthday before they headed to China