Last day of kindergarten.....EVER!

Its so crazy that my BABY is done with kindergarten. Yes, next fall all of my kids will be in school ALL DAY! It's unreal that we have arrived at this point and VERY exciting! I drive to the school multiple times every day so this will bring a refreshing change! Rylee has LOVED her kindergarten experience. She has learned so much and is quite the little reader! She's made many friends and over come some fears. She connected with Mrs. Nill right away and has loved having her as a teacher. 

Mrs. Nill retired after her last day after teaching 30 years! I asked her if she was having a hard time with letting it go and she happily said no and that she had big plans! She is so cute. (If we move, she could be our neighbor! More on that later!)

 

Museum of Ancient Life

Last year at this time, it was really disappointing to learn that along with everything else, field trips had also been canceled. I was ecstatic for the kids when we found out the 5th graders would be taking one. Carter also got one to release the fish that they had grown and hatched from eggs at the resivour. They were the same day and I committed to going with Mollie's class first. 

These bones are always so amazing and awe inspiring. 

This was my favorite display...wall of skulls! There were all sorts of different animal skulls together so that you could see them all in relation to each other in size. So fun! 

We had a cute little group of girls to explore with and they only pretended they were scared. 

 I'm so glad things are normalizing! And I'm also so glad this year is coming to an end.  Happy end of school!!!!

A busy May day

With Chad's new schedule, he had to work one Saturday. I was grateful the games and things didn't overlap, but I was VERY busy running kids. We started at 8:30 dropping Carter off at Football camp with Jamal Willis. He played for BYU and the 49ers. He had alot of fun and said he came home faster. :)

We then ran to Brielle's game and her team won! 

Then off to Mollie's last game of the season. She played super hard but they didn't pull out the win. We sure love our soccer family!

Between the 2 soccer games I was glued to my phone watching the ground breaking for the NEW DESERET PEAK TEMPLE in TOOELE!!! It was so refreshing to hear stories of faith and see all the progress that has been made to get this ball rolling! After M's game we ran out to the temple site and took a picture. In a few years, a big beautiful temple will be behind these kids! 

We had a few hours to run home and get Rylee all pretty for her tumbling recital! She is so adorable! And she rocked all her passes! 

She begged for a treat necklace so I had to deliver! 

She was so super excited!!!

Mother's Day!

All i really want every year for Mother's Day is to be together as family and for my kids to be well behaved!! And my kids were so good on sunday! It made me really happy and proud to be their mom. Chad had a few meetings in the morning so it was just me and the kids. I wouldn't be a mom without these precious amazing souls! 

Once we got to church, we found Chad and did a family picture at our church building. 

I was super spoiled and gifted a smart watch. I love it! I can run my step music from my phone, track workouts, heart rate, sleep and other things! I love it!

Chad and the kids were so good to me. We spent the afternoon doing a puzzle. The bishopric put on an ice cream social for the women in the ward in the afternoon and it was so fun to just get together to chat. Chad made me dinner and it was delicious! And then we just relaxed for the evening. I'm so grateful to Chad and my kids who realize how important motherhood is and take that day to honor me and show me love. I was showered with many homemade cards from the kids. I'm honored to be given the special responsibility to be a mom and trusted with this sacred gift. I'm grateful for my mom and mother in law who love us so much and have sacrificed their lives for our benefit. Moms are so great!
 

Camry's 2nd Brithday

Can't believe this little sweetie is 2! Camry had a Taco Two-sday party and because of sports we had to miss it. So we down a few days early and went to the aquarium and park with Jord and his family. We didn't even know an aquarium was in Idaho Falls and it was small, but pretty cool. Everything was hands on so we got to feed and touch alot of animals!

The girls LOVED being in the bird cage and feeding the birds straight from their hands!

I've never seen a porcupine but I got to feed one on this day! It was funny how it acted like a puppy begging for food. 

The iguanas were super fun too and Camry fed them and wasn't even scared at all!

There was a sloth that had a jungle gym hanging from the ceiling and a turtle walking around on the floor. There was also a chatty parrot behind the counter! So fun!

We grabbed some lunch and headed to the park. We gifted Cam a tea set and brought her this fun car cart to push her dolls around!

She's such a cutie!

We went and saw Jordan's new house and relaxed a bit, and had a tea party, before going to dinner with my mom at my new favorite place...Mackenzie River!

 It was a quick trip but we had a nice stay in a hotel and ate good food and spent time with family. What more can you ask for?!

Warming up!

We've had some warm days here and its starting to get all of us in the boating mood! Especially Chad! He has been working on the boat any chance he can get. Cleaning, vaccuming, polishing and anything else that needed done. He's got our boat looking nice and shiny!! 

One day we hit the 80s so we of course needed to have a sprinkler on the tramp! We tried out a new one grandma gave us and it was awesome! We are loving the sunshine!!!!

 

Vaccinated

This last year has been crazy, uncertain and scary. News of a vaccine for Covid spread quickly. First, elderly and medical workers were offered the vax. Then older adults, then teens and now it just opened up for 12-17 year olds. Soon it will be available for kids. 

There are so many voices right now saying what is right. Some believe it will do more harm to our lives. Others won't associate with you if you aren't vaccinated. There is a clear line right now of what vaccinated people are able to do or not able to do. Some restaurants will only allow vaccinated people in and stores will allow those vaccinated can now shop mask free. There's opposition on both sides. Some close to us have even asked us not to get the vaccine. 

Is it safe? Will it cause infertility? Will it save my life and protect me? Will it kill me in a year? Is it safe for children? Or will it cause infertility later? 

Ultimately it came down to MY choice and MY revelation. For quite some time I've been pretty hesitant to get it. One day I just felt so strongly I should get it. So I made an appointment. Chad was hesitant but went along with it. l

Do i believe there is an evil power out there to control us and the population of the world? You bet I do. Is this it? I don't think so

. Do I think this will do more good than bad? Yes. 

Is it good for everyone? I don't really think so. 

Do I think its too soon to vaccinate kids? You bet I do. I won't be hopping on that train anytime soon. How sad would it be if a choice I made for them caused them to be infertile and not be able to have such a beautiful gift of family that has brought me so much joy in life. 

I've never been so conflicted about something in my life! But I've tried to take the prophets counsel seriously of finding revelation for myself. And for me, it was right to do it. I want to be able to travel and live as normally as possible. I'm working with the HS cheerleaders where i'm sure germs will run rampant as they have in the previous year. Again, I want to protect myself and my family. 

Mollie's soccer coach had Covid and was so sick and was in the hospital. I thought if you were younger and healthy it wasn't so hard on you. But that scared me a little. While the future is uncertain still, I'm trusting that the Lord can speak to me and guide me to what is best for me and my family. 

Since having this shot, I've felt at peace about it. And i feel good about my choice. I wasn't sick besides having a slight headache and maybe a little off for half the day. AND where my bandaid was has left a mark in my skin ever since...so weird. Other than that, no other side effects. 

I hope this will all be over soon. That sickness will leave and life will return to normal!