Jake's a Bear

Here is Jake at Pack Meeting. Dad is holding Jake upside-down as is the tradition when the cubs move up in rank. Bro. Sheppard is putting on his new neckerchief and I'm putting the clip thing (what is that called???) on upside-down. When Jake does a "good turn", he can turn his neckerchief holder thing-a-ma-bob right-side up! Jake loves scouting and he has exceptional leaders who make it so fun to be a scout. Congrats Jake!!

The scout then gets to pick a favorite cheer that everyone does for them. Jake chose the Pole Vault cheer.

This is Mom's favorite part of the night! The scout leader usually tells the boy to give their mom a hug whereupon the rest of the cub scouts immediately begin chanting "kiss, kiss, kiss". Ahh the joys of positive peer pressure. In all fairness, Jer should really be getting the hug as he is the driving force behind 99.9% of the accomplishments of this scout. But when it comes to free hugs, who's counting?

Future Cub Scout!

Father's Day

I wanted to backtrack and post some pictures from Father's Day. Jeromy is an amazing father in so many ways. He loves our children and always makes time for them. He took Breanna to a Princess Ball on the Eve of Father's Day. They danced to High School Musical, YMCA, and the ChaCha Slide among others, ate treats, got their picture taken and had a "ball"! After the ball, they went to Olive Garden with Brittany and Jon and also ate with Chad and Kate! Breanna loves her Dad and there's no place she'd rather be than spending time with him....especially at a Princess Ball!

On Father's Day, Jake and Breanna showered Jeromy with presents, most of which were books. They definitely love their Dad!! Luke loves him too....he was just snoozing when we took these pictures!

Dancing Queen

This was a big weekend for Breanna because she had her dance recital. She took 2 classes this year, ballet and tap. She said she liked her ballet costume the best, but she liked her tap dance the best!
She did a fantastic job on both dances and had the brightest smile during her performances. She has been dancing around the house all year long, so we were so glad that she finally got to perform on stage. We are so proud of you, Bree for sticking with these 2 classes and doing such a great job this weekend!!! Next year she says she wants to do Hip Hop and Jazz!

Luke's Walking

Although Luke's technically been taking steps for over a month, we can officially say he's walking now. He is so tickled with his new talent. Jake and Bree can't get over it either. I'll hear shrieks from the other room and think someone's lost a limb, but no, Luke's just walking again. We're all just so excited for him!!!!

This was the first video we took of him really walking. Love how he grabs the camera at the end and zooms in on the sploodgie on his shirt.

Here he is all cleaned up! Watch out Luke, Jake's coming to get you!

And here is his other new favorite thing to do. "This toy box could use one more toy....ME!"

High Adventure Scuba Dive

How cute is this picture??? After weeks of training and months of anticipation, the day finally arrived! These guys are so ready to dive!They squeezed in a trip to the Temple to do baptisms. You guys look sharp!! If it weren't for the huge tent, you'd never guess these boys had been camping! Britain, Christian, Jed and Bishop in front of the most beautiful temple!
Talk about a well rounded trip....not only did they manage to fit in physical and spiritual activities, they found time to brush up on their history by spending a few hours in Old Town. They visited the Mormon Battalion Visitor's center. Jed has a striking resemblance to the statue, huh?

Jeromy was very pleased to report that they ate like kings. From the Dutch Oven lasagna to the food at Bishop's favorite Mexican Restaurant, everything was deelish!

Memorial Day Weekend Adventures

One highlight of the weekend was that we got to see Elder Ricks and Elder Cotter, who lived in our NY ward when we lived there. Talk about crazy coincidences... they were both called to serve in the mission that Jeromy grew up in. It was such a treat to see them!! Whenever we see friends from NY, we feel like we're with family again, and this visit was no exception! It sure made us miss NY!

After visiting with our cute missionaries, we headed up to the cabin. Here we all are: Jeromy, Camie, Mike, Tyler, Jaimee, Kaylee, Grandma, Luke, Grandpa, Jake, Breanna, Tiffany, Troy and Makayla. It was surprisingly cold for the end of May....there was snow on the ground the day we arrived. Needless to say, we spent the majority of the time just hanging out, watching movies and playing games in the cabin. It was fun!

Here are Jake and Grandpa in their element. We had three TVs side by side in the great room. And they were all simultaneously being used. One was for the Wii, one was for the kids DVDs and this one was for Jake and Grandpa!

We had this great idea to take a picture of the cousins. Weren't they cooperative? Good thing they're cute. Tyler, Kaylee, Jake, Luke, Breanna, and Makayla.

Luke's favorite thing to do was to spin on this hot pink sled. He also had fun hanging out with his cousins, Makayla and Kaylee. It was fun to have so many babies around!

On Memorial Day, we headed down to San Diego. The first thing we did at Grandma's was to head out to Grandpa's orchard and pick all the ripe fruit. Breanna headed straight to the lemon tree and harvested a bag full. Grandma got her juicer out and they made the most delicious lemonade ever!! YUM!!
Luke was loving EVERYBODY this trip, but most of all his grandparents! Every time one of them walked out of the room, he would verbally object. When they walked back into the room, he would hold his out arms and start grunting for them. He's definitely working on those brownie points! Breanna and I spent the next morning working on her extremely loose tooth. With the help of some string, we finally managed to yank it out! Something mysterious happened though.... Breanna woke up the next morning to find the tooth fairy hadn't taken her tooth or left her any money. Hmmmmm.... So, Breanna ran and woke up Grandma to tell her what had happened. It was a complete miracle because Grandma "discovered" that the tooth fairy left the money inside Breanna's pillow case. That tooth fairy can sure be tricky (and forgetful). Thank Heaven for Grandma!

We spent all day Wednesday at Sea World with Jackie and Grandma. Here are Jake and Jackie on Ship Wreck Rapids....they look like they are having a nice dry ride..... But not for long! We met them at the end of the ride and they were both soaked!

Jackie and Luke were cracking up while we waited for Jake and Bree to explore the pirate ship. Jackie would count, 1...2...3, and swing him down. When she brought him back up, he would start "counting" 1...2...3, but his counts were just grunts that mimicked her counting. It was so cute!

Breanna and Jake fed the dolphins (thanks to Grandma). It was super crowded, so the kids were so happy that they got to touch this dolphin!Then we set off to feed the Sting Rays (thanks Jackie!). Grandma decided Luke should pet his first Sting Ray. He didn't even flinch. He loved splashing his hands in the freezing cold water and when this Sting Ray swam up to him, he just reached out to say hi!

We spent the rest of our vacation swimming and playing games at Nat and Stan's. We had sooo much fun!

Crazy Hair Day Strikes Again

All of you moms with kids that aren't in school yet, get ready because Crazy Hair Day will soon be coming your way. I recommend keeping a good stock of mousse, hairspray and of course lots of spray in color on hand, because one morning, you'll find yourself feeding your kids breakfast when out of nowhere someone will cry out, "Today is Crazy Hair Day!". So when you're shopping for all your back to school supplies this fall, forget the notebooks and pencils. Think gel and neon hair spray.

When are they going to be here????

I have been bombarded with this question from Jake and Breanna for days now, but hooray -the day finally arrived! Our good friends from NY stopped by for a visit today on their way to see their family. We got to see baby Eli for the first time and he was completely adorable. So smiley!!! Luke was kind of curious about this new baby, but he did great with him. In fact, he only poked Eli's eye out once. We miss living close, but are so glad we get to see them a few times a year!

Chuck E. Cheese Bash

We celebrated Jake's 9th birthday at Chuck E. Cheese. Jake and his buddies all had a great time tossing those tokens into the games, hoping to earn millions of tickets. The boys seemed to really enjoy it and were even good enough sports to dance around with Chuck and the other party goers. I'm so glad they got to be goofy and have fun.

Love this picture...thanks for the bunny ears, Roy!! I can't believe my baby Jake is turning 9. Sometimes I really wish I could freeze time. Although I occasionally reminisce about my sweet, smiley baby, I am really enjoying the fact that our conversations get richer each year. It is so enjoyable to have him come home from school and tell me things he's learned. And to watch him think through different scenarios and understand new things is just fascinating. I think every age is so wonderful and I can't wait to see what great things are in store for us while you're 9!! You would think that after 9 years, I would be amazing at birthday cakes. I'm not. So, I am grateful to Michelle and Jessica who advised me to go with cupcakes! So easy! Thanks, Michelle, for letting me borrow your cute cupcake thingy! Jake wanted a Pokemon cake....who knew you could have one by just tossing some Pokemon cards on the top! Ta-Da!So, what kind of things does a 9 year old get on his birthday? Jake was spoiled with presents from his awesome friends. He came home from the party and spent the rest of the day organizing his Pokemon cards, playing with his Phlat Ball Tornado, remote control race car, Indian Jones Legos, Rapid Fire Nerf Ball Shooter, and eating his gigantic box of sour skittles (Yum - I had to test some out and I highly recommend them.) And to top it all off, he got a few gift cards that he can't wait to go spend. Thanks everyone, for the great gifts!!
Jake digging into his presents. Tristan kept a close watch, and approved each gift. By the way, thanks Jeanne for all your help today!!

Just a side note, today was Luke's first time at Chuck E Cheese. He was overwhelmed with all the lights and sounds and just the busyness of it all. Here he's with Breanna on that one ride that you pedal and it goes up and around in circles. From the look on his face, I'd say he's really enjoying himself! Are we having fun yet???? Jer took him on all the kiddie rides and despite the 'deer in the headlights' look here, he had a great time!

The Diaper Fairy

Last night, I was really busy with the usual stuff, dinner dishes, homework, and getting the kids ready for bed. Breanna was playing with Luke and informed me that he had a poopy diaper. I said, "OK", and made a mental note to get right to that. Then the phone rang, or something else interrupted my train of thought and I forgot about Luke. A few minutes later, I walked by our guest room, and I smelled Luke. I thought, whew, I still need to change him.... so I followed my nose and got a big surprise. Breanna had Luke up on the bed and had just finished putting a clean diaper on him! She has, in the past, asked me to let her change him, but I never have(mainly because I envision Breanna up to her elbows in poop). So, when I went over to check out the scene, I fully expected to find traces of her good deed everywhere, but to my delight, the only evidence I could find was in his dirty diaper. She did a perfect job! I even checked his bum to see if she got him all clean, and there wasn't a bit of poop anywhere on his sweet little cheeks. Bree, you completely amaze me!!! I think I just may have a permanent position for you!

Mother's Day Tea

Breanna has been excited for weeks about the Mother's Day Tea her First Grade Class was hosting. Yesterday, the day of the tea finally arrived. She dressed in her favorite dress and she actually asked me to curl her hair (a first!) She also asked me to wear my purple dress because the hat she made for me to wear would match a litte bit. The tea was wonderful! Breanna served me delicious food (4 plates of it - the classroom aide had to help her bring it to me) and the entire class serenaded me and the other moms! It was so sweet. I felt like Queen for the day and had a lovely time!! Thank you Bree! I am so lucky to be your mom!!

Mother's Day

First let me just start off by confessing that I have been extremely weepy these past few days. I well up with tears over the slightest thing....I think it started when my mom sent me a Mother's Day gift, the book, "Just Who Will You Be" by Maria Shriver. It just confirmed what I already knew, I do indeed have the most thoughtful, kind, amazing mom in the world. Hence, the weeping.

So I'm starting to realize that all this blubbering just may be about Mother's Day in general. I can hardly look at my kids without getting choked up these past few days. I love them so much and am so grateful that I get to be their mom. They literally teach me so much everyday. They help me recognize my many weaknesses and make me try to be so much better. I love the ways that they are different than me and how that makes me see life in a way I would never otherwise imagined. I love the many ways we are alike as it reminds me how we are truly connected and without a doubt meant to be together.
Then I think about how they came into my life and about Jackie and Rachel, and the flood gates completely open. I love these 2 women more than I could ever hope to express. I am able to be a mother because of them. I am forever grateful to them for making the impossible possible for me. Few people can even begin understand what this feels like, but it is a feeling of overwhelming love and awe.

I am so blessed to be a mom!