Happy Birthday Josh!

Josh is 16! I can hardly believe my sweet brown eyed little boy is old enough to date, drive and get a job!  I'm incredibly proud to be Josh's mom!  He is an exceptional student and is currently attending the advanced learning center for 2 classes each week.  He loves to experiment and I constantly find myself saying, "You can't do that by the gas can!... you're going to kill the cat... no more dumpster diving for parts..." 

Josh has a big heart and I love watching him strive to reach his potential. 

For his birthday dinner he chose roast, potatoes, rolls, salad and corn.  For his cake he chose a score bar cake.   I adore you, Josh.

Stop growing up so fast... I mean it.  :)

Happy Birthday Caleb

Happy birthday to our sweet Caleb! Caleb would have been 11 years old this year. Oh how I miss this precious boy. Though I long to hold him, I know he continues to be true to his mission. I know he is keeps a careful watch over our family, and I know he is close when we need him most. 

 His life will always be celebrated on this day- and always. 

I love you more than I can say, Caleb. 

Happy Birthday!

This year for the boys special Caleb trunks we gave them a small picture of the Payson temple to put inside. We also gave each of the boys a picture of the Payson temple to keep in their bedrooms, a temple tie tack and a letter from Caleb. 

We also like to give them a coupon from Caleb to make a memory as a family.  This year the coupon was an invitation to attend the Provo temple open house and then an all you can eat dinner. 

We love the temple and all it represents. The temple is a constant reminder to me that our family is forever and that our time apart is temporary. 

 

The Leonardo Museum

Over Christmas break we took the boys to the Leonardo museum in Salt Lake.  They had a mummy exhibit that Mitchell couldn't wait to see!  The exhibit was fascinating and we thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the museum while we were there! 

 

Merry Christmas!

Dallan's birthday is on Christmas Eve so we love celebrating him as we also prepare to celebrate Christmas day! Dallan chose to have french toast for breakfast and cheese cake for his birthday cake. We ate at Culver's for his birthday meal the previous day and spent Christmas Eve eve at my parents house.  We all enjoyed a festive dinner together.  Then my dad read the Christmas story while we acted it out. We ended our time together singing Christmas carols and sharing what our gift to Jesus was going to be this year. I was really touched by the sweet thoughts that were shared. After we left my parents house we went to the cemetery to light some candles on Caleb's grave and sing some carols. This is one of my favorite traditions and helps us all to remember the reason we celebrate.

Vegas Bowl

Who would have guessed that BYU would play UTAH in the Vegas Bowl?  

Who would have guessed that after Utah completely dominated the first quarter that BYU would make it an exciting game?

Who would have guessed that even our boys who are not sports enthusiasts like their parents would be just as excited as we were when the Cougars started to get close?

Even though the Cougars lost we had a great time at the game and having a little weekend getaway together!

Thanks BYU!

Happy Birthday Mitchell

Mitchell turned 9 years old! Oh how I love this not- so- little guy of mine. He has a soul filled with sparkles and a mind that is always hungry to learn. He loves all things historical and is currently fascinated with blob fish, unicorns, and random jokes. One of his favorite gifts was a "make your own mummy" kit. For his birthday dinner he chose taco soup.  He also chose a score bar birthday cake and insisted he put the candles in himself. 
I love you Mitchell! 
Thank you for being such a delightful son!

Christmas Performances

Mitchell had two wonderful Christmas performances! He was able to perform in a Christmas program with the Utah Valley Children's choir. His favorite song was the Shepherd Song when they sang something like, "Nothing much happens to guys like us, we just sit watching the sheep..." He also enjoyed singing with his school class at the Sing Around the Tree program! 

 Matthew had a great time playing the cello at his Christmas Orchestra performance. He also loved that he got to have a special part with his best buddy.

Happy Birthday Matthew!

 Matthew turned 14 this year!  I love that our Christmas season begins with Matthew's birthday!  Matthew is such a responsible young man!  This year he started teaching piano lessons, and he has 8 wonderful piano students.  He also continues to take music lessons.   I absolutely love listening to him play the piano.  He is a brilliant young man with the cutest twinkly smile.  

For his birthday dinner he chose his favorite pasta bake with garlic bread and salad (okay, I added a salad.  Anyone who knows Matthew knows he'd rather die than eat it)  For his cake he chose his favorite pudding dessert.  He even requested that I make two so he could have one all to himself.  I wasn't able to oblige since in order for me to do that, he'd have to eat some salad. ;)

I love all that you are becoming, Matthew. 

You are dear to me.