School Year in a Nutshell

I suppose it's time to write about the end of the school year -- I think I'm still just coming to terms that another year is over.
The kids joined their new classes in late November and each of them, thanks to their teachers and friends, had a smooth transition.
Beckam went from Miss Faerber's class in NC to Mrs. D'Haenens class. He loved school, learned a lot and didn't even mind going from all day kindergarten to 1/2 day. At his graduation, Beck even got a little teary-eyed and told me that he was going to miss school.

Jillian went from Mrs. Andrew's class to Mommy and Me Preschool.  Bless her heart, she never complained about being stuck with me as a teacher and when people would ask her about preschool she would happily exclaim, "There's only one student in my whole class and it's ME!"

Mac went from having Mrs. Parks in NC to Mrs. Nicholls in UT.  Mac seemed to have the smoothest transition into school and friends.  Right from the start he found a great group of friends who made being the "new guy" not so bad.  It also helped that he had his cousin, Camdyn, in class too.

This was the first year that Mac got to compete in the Hershey Track and Field day.  He ran hard and did well, but mostly enjoyed hanging with his buddies.

Jaxton had Mrs. Baker before the move and then got Miss Hicks here.  Jaxton always came home with the best, most dramatic stories from school and if he could tell that he had a captive audience, then he'd tell you story after story all about his day.  Jaxton was also lucky to have Colton in his class to help him ease into a new class.

For the last day of school, the big boys wanted to do something funny, so we buzzed all their hair off except for a strip in the back.  Jaxton loved it but Mac was a nervous wreck about it and couldn't wait to get rid of it.

On the last day of school, I helped put together a surprise water fight for the kids and some of their friends.  The mom's and little kids were ready to attack the big kids when they arrived at Benny's house.  It was a great way to start off the summer.  I also had a treat/surprise bag for each of the kids to celebrate the beginning of summer.

So far we've had an awesome summer and we're looking forward to the rest of it! We're hoping school doesn't come too quick!

Boys Growing into Men

I'm scared that before I know it my children are going to be grown and moving out of the house. I have know idea how the last seven years went by so quickly and how my sweet Beckam could be turning SEVEN years old.
Thankfully on his birthday I got to wake up to this little face next to me.  Beck is my only kid with dark eyelashes and lots of freckles -- I never tire of looking at that face.

Nate and I were asked to speak at church on Beck's birthday and considering that we have 9:00am church and that we rolled in from out of town late the night before, it was quite the busy morning.

Funny face vs. cute face

After church we had cupcakes and ice cream with Nate's side of the family. At one point Beckam walked into the house and everyone started chanting "Be-ckam, Be-ckam!" as loud as they could.  Apparently Beckam was so surprised at all the attention that he got really excited and even had happy tears in his eyes -- sweetest thing ever!

The next Sunday we were in Logan to celebrate Father's Day.  How grateful I am to have a husband who loves his kids and does his best to raise them and provide for them.

The kids and I wrapped each of Nate's gifts and then wrote what they loved about him on the front of each one.

I'm equally grateful to have my dad in my life.  What a rock he is.  I couldn't ask for a better guy to call "dad."  In my mind, he is a product of all things wonderful.

It won't be long before this boy will be off on a mission, get married and have a family of his own.  My hope is that this little boy will grow into . . .

a man like these two. How awesome that would be!

Happy birthday, Beckam Lee -- we love you forever and ever!  And happy Father's Day to Nate, my dad and all the other wonderful fathers in my life.  How grateful I am for each of you.

Be Still My Heart

Jilli had her first REAL dance recital. She was as beautiful as ever dressed up in her costume -- her favorite was the red lipstick, which she applied several times to both her and I over the last couple of days.

She had a wonderful group of supporters who drove 4 hours round trip to watch her dance for a total of 3 minutes -- now that's love!

When it was time for Jilli's big stage debut, she was quite nervous.  Later she would tell me that she kept whispering to herself, "Just do your best and forget the rest" over and over (thank you Tony Horton and the P90X workout videos for instilling in my child those inspiring words).

Nerves or not, as soon as the music came on she danced with the best of them.  Her graceful butterfly arms were the most beautiful up there.

My heart was so full watching my lovely daughter up on stage doing something she (and I) loves.

And since I'm not above bribery, I let her pick out a toy beforehand that she would receive if she danced big and beautiful so that we could all see her.  She got the toy.

We also celebrated with dinner out afterwards.  Jilli never made it long enough for her dinner to arrive.  It's tough work being a dancer.

And just for the record, the boys think it's completely unfair that Jilli gets showered with gifts from everyone for performing once.  They reminded me that they perform in ballgames weekly and all they get is a "thumbs up."  Sorry boys.

Because of Him -- Easter 2014

Easter time is always my favorite time of the year. It signals warmer weather, new life and of course the resurrection of our Savior. This time of year brings me so much joy! We celebrated by making, eating and giving away egg nests (they were delish), as well as playing Easter games and making bunny ears.

And as always, we dyed eggs.

Friday afternoon, we headed up to Logan to spend the weekend with my family.  The kids found their Easter baskets Saturday morning and then the rest of the day was spent going to lunch, going to a movie and hanging with family.

Sunday we went to church with Michelle and her family and then sat in as Mason received the priesthood.  From there we met Chad and his family to do the same for Camden in their ward.  I was so happy to be able to witness two worthy, special boys be given something so sacred.

Here's our Easter cuties, decked out in their Easter best.

And here's our attempt at an Easter family picture.  I'd say it was semi-successful, at best.

How grateful I am for a Savior that made all of this possible.  I'm thankful everyday for Heavenly Father sacrificing his Son and Christ sacrificing his life.  My heart is full because of HIM.

ThirtyFour

The week of my birthday was spent caring for Jaxton and Mac who had strep throat and Beckam who was throwing up. Just when I thought everyone was going to be healthy in time for my birthday, Nate got strep -- and let's be honest, when Nate is sick (bless his heart) everyone suffers with him.
My parents to the rescue!
As soon as my parents heard that Nate was sick, they jumped in their car and drove two hours to take me and the kids out for a birthday dinner. My parents are saints, seriously!
After my parents headed on their journey home, I began feeling sick and sure enough, I was up all night and the next day throwing up.
Probably not my best birthday ever, but one thing is for sure, I will always be thankful to my parents for making a bad day into a much better one.

My 34th year has no where to go but up from here, so at least that's comforting.

BaSkEtBaLl

A bit late on this post, but it happened nonetheless.
Basketball season. The greatest time of the year, according to my boys.

Mac did great! We were lucky enough to get him situated on a team when we were still living in NC. His teammates not only played great ball together, but they also immediately became his besties at school. I look forward to watching this group of boys play basketball together for many years to come!

Mac still remained the "go to" guy and was often trusted with the ball when the game was on the line.  He's a fierce competitor, who loves to win and is still working on losing gracefully. :)
He also played competitive Spring ball with a different team, but the season was shorter and he had to miss a few of the games for family events.

Jaxton had an advantage over the players in his league -- in NC he started playing regular games with refs in Kindergarten and here this was everyone's first year actually playing a game (they still don't take score and have refs).

He loved playing point guard and bringing the ball down the court.  He's a great shooter and very selfless.  The coach had to remind him a few times to quit passing all the time and just shoot it.

Even though Beck played regular games last year in NC, here in UT the kids his age just attend weekly clinics.  Beckam really liked these clinics and he continues to be a very accurate and careful ball handler.  He's also gaining the same love for the game that his older brothers have.

In the blink of an eye . . .

I'm not sure what happened.
One day I became a first time mom as this little guy entered my life, but before I knew it . . .

he had turned into a toddler.

Then I blinked and he had become a preschooler

and before I could catch up with time, my Mac was turning ten years old.

10, double digits, a decade, ten years old.

Words can not accurately describe how much I love this kid. One minute he's driving me crazy and I'm not sure how I'm supposed to raise this kid, let alone get along with him and the next he's got his arms wrapped around my waist telling me he loves me. I love his crazy passion, his drive, his motivation to the be the best. I love his white/blonde hair, his blue eyes and his freckled nose. I love the way his eyelashes curl perfectly, his sense of humor and that he has Nate's feet.  He's such a complex, competitive, awesome kid!

Happy birthday McCade Nathan.  I'll always be your biggest fan!