Well, this is it!

We are finalizing our packing and moving on Saturday. This has been an emotional week of goodbyes and exhaustion. Although we will miss this house, we will miss this place and the people we love SO much more! Here are my final favorite memories made in this house:

• The day I came home from a play date at the park and discovered water pouring off the back of the house. I had put a load of laundry in to wash, before I left, and forgot to close the lid. The water never stopped running and completely flooded the house.
• Teaching a year of Joyschool out of my house...hectic, but fun!
• Celebrating birthdays, new births, and baby blessings. I still can't believe how much the kids have grown!
• Christmas morning.
• Planting grass, outside in the dark, in the backyard, the night before Taylor's first "friend" party so they could have grass to play on.
• The day an "FBI Agent" knocked on my door, showed me his identification, and asked to view my property because they were investigating someone who lived in a similar house. Without even blinking I let him in. After he left, I started freaking out, realizing what I had just done, and worried he wasn't really an "FBI Agent" and would come back to get me. He never came back.

Now that all of the pictures have been removed from the walls and the drawers and cupboards have been emptied, I realize I'm movin' on! It has been a long road, but the path is clear ahead. We're taking our memories with us and look forward to the new ones we have yet to create and will discover...we'll see you there!

Beach Days

I love the beach! I love how the air feels on my skin, the sound of the waves and birds chirping in the background, and enjoying the sun while the kids happily play and entertain themselves for hours. Oh, I'm really going to miss this! Only 6 more days of this beautiful place and then we say goodbye!

Girls Night Out

My good friend Karen arranged a Girls Night Out for me on Friday night. As always, we had a great time just being together and enjoying one anothers company. These are the women that I laugh and cry with, share stories with, talk for hours on the phone with, meet for playdates at the park, last minute trips to McDonalds with the kiddies, and spend all summer at the beach with. Becky was so funny. She knows me all too well. As a going away present she gave me two books, "Chicken Soup for the American Idol Soul," and "Chicken Soup for the Country Soul." What am I doing to do without these great gals? I will miss you all!

It's Blake's Birthday!!

Who knew 2 years could fly by so fast! Blake is pure sunshine and spreads happiness wherever he goes. Here is what we love about Blakey:

• He is adventurous. Sometimes this can be a bad thing, but he is always willing to try new things.
• He is always happy and friendly. You will never see him without a smile on his face.
• He gives the best kisses and hugs.
• He is a good sleeper.
• Every car, truck, train, or bus he sees he calls a "choo-choo."
• It just melts me every time he says "mommy, daddy."
• He loves to wrestle and throw fake punches in the air. Again, this isn't always a good thing, but sometimes it's cute to watch. Especially when he makes the growling noises that go along with it.
• Whenever I ask him "Blake, where are my kisses," he points to his cheek.
  
• He loves to play baseball or as he says "beesbll."
• He loves to sit on the couch with his brother and sister and watch movies.
• He gets really excited whenever he sees animals.
• He loves to be outside swimming, riding bikes, playing in the sandbox...he is just an outdoor kid.

We love Blake and we are so happy he is part of our family. Life wouldn't be the same without him!

Happy Birthday, buddy, we love you!

To My Man!

Happy Father's Day, Devon! Thank you for making the last 13 years of my life so amazing and memorable! Here are a few of my favorite memories:

• Spotting you in the 8th grade, wearing your BYU sweatshirt, and thinking you looked so cute!
• Having you "flirt" with me in 9th grade seminary by telling me I had "split ends"
• Swing dancing together
• Driving around for hours listening to Chicago's Greatest Hits
• Driving to our look out place, "Twin Peaks," and talking for hours
• Sharing the big ice cream brownie sundaes at Norms
  
• High School Graduation
• Trips back and forth from Rexburg to the O.C.
• Getting Engaged
• Getting Married
• The time you were bit by a spider and thought you were going to die. In fact, you captured the spider in a cup and traveled with it all the way to the E.R. just in case it was poisonous, so the doctors would know what kind of spider killed you!
• The days each of our children were born
• The way you sing the itsy bitsy spider
• Watching you play games, interact, and love each of our children
• The way you look at me
• The way you kiss me and tell me you love me

You are the man of my dreams. Thank you for making each day of our lives exciting and memorable. I love you!

Taylor's Dance Recital

Today was Taylor's first dance recital! It was so much fun getting her dressed up in eyeshadow, blush, lipstick, mascara, and curly hair! She and her class tap danced to "Sherry Baby." I will totally admit that I love having a girl! The boys are fun too, but I really love all of the girly stuff that comes along with having a girl.
Taylor was so cute. I wasn't sure how Taylor would do up on stage in front of all of those people. It wasn't too long ago that she wouldn't go up in sacrament meeting with the primary children to sing because she was "too scared."
She remembered her entire routine and did a really good job. Way to go Taylor!
I still can't believe our little girl is 6! Seriously, how does time fly so fast?

Taylor's Last Day of Kindergarten!

I still can't believe I have a daughter who will be in the 1st grade next year! Wow, this year went by fast. Yesterday was her last day of Kindergarten and we all celebrated with an end of the year picnic. Taylor and, her teacher, Miss Rosie!
Olivia, Alyesha (and her sister), Taylor, and Avery
Everyone make a funny face!
Blake having fun pretending he's a kindergartner too!
Taylor and Mrs.Lidner
The girls outside their classroom after saying goodbye to their teachers.

Blake running down the dirt hill. I can never get him to hold still long enough to smile at the camera.

Before the party Blake put on Devon's baseball hat and pretended the tennis raquet was his bat.
Luke and Blake having a good time.
One of the numerous times Blake went down the slide.
Taylor and Alyesha
Luke and his best friend, Jack!

Memory Lane

As I contemplate leaving this home we have lived in for the last 5 years, my mind has been overflowing with memories of laughter, love, tears, joy, friendships, sorrow, fear, and other feelings that have filled these walls and made it our home.

So. Please indulge me as I take a walk down memory lane and share my thoughts with you over the next 2-3 weeks.

It was a normal morning. The 7am alarm clock (two kids crying) awoke me and started my day. The smell of pancakes filled the air and my lips still felt wet, remembering the kiss my husband gave me as he rushed out the door to work. As I layed my 7 week old baby on the boppy, to give him some "tummy time," my sweet 2-year old, Taylor, was also pulling at my nightgown begging me to retrieve her Care Bear toy from the car. After laying that cute baby on his tummy, I walked out the kitchen door, and into the garage to retrieve the much needed toy.

As I attempted to re-enter the house, the door was locked! I was in my short, ugly, nursing nightgown, in the garage, barefoot, without a bra on, and no keys to unlock the door. My 2-year old had locked the door. As I tried to talk to her, through the door, and explain to her that she needed to try to unlock the door and let mommy back in, all she could say was "hee hee, not yet mom."

I completely panicked! Two children under the age of 2, alone in the house. I opened the garage and ran around the back of the house to see if maybe one of the doors or windows had been left unlocked or open. As I peered through the window, Taylor was dancing around, and Luke (on his tummy) was crying and sliding farther and farther down onto the boppy. I began to scream and cry. I thought my baby was going to suffocate! I ran back to my car hoping my cell phone had been left in it. Sure enough it had. As I called Devon, screaming and crying (totally hysterical!), I continued to try and coax Taylor into unlocking the door...she couldn't do it.

By this time, Luke was completely face down into the boppy. Devon had turned around to come home, but was still quite a ways away. He told me to break the window. I grabbed a loose brick from our planter and pounded it into the window several times. It didn't break as easily as you see it happen on t.v. After breaking the window, I squoze myself through the tiny hole, cutting my feet and legs, to rescue my baby. As I picked him up, he was breathing and asleep!

As I sat on the floor, crying, and cuddling my babies, Devon raced through the door. At first, all he saw was me, still crying hysterically, and blood all over the floor. He thought for sure someone had died. Once, I settled down, he realized we were all o.k.

That is definitely a memory that cannot be forgotton about this house. The screen in the back window is still torn and we keep a hide-a-key in case a similar incident should occur. Needless to say, someone was definitely looking down on us and watching over us that day!

June Fun!

This collage is a brief overview of our first week in June.

• Luke finished his first year of preschool.
• Blake pretended it was his preschool graduation party as well
• Taylor and Avery dressed up in their dance recital costumes and performed for us.
• The kids discovered, once again, that eating the cake batter is much better than eating the cake itself.
• We said our first of many goodbyes to Darci and Brett! A day at the park and they treated us to a night out to our favorite Hibachi steak house. What a treat!
  

Family News!

Our lives have been quite busy the last 2 weeks, hence the lack in blogging. So. Here is an update...

• We put our house up for sale May 1st.
• I have scrubbed floors and tubs, polished sinks, taps, and mirrors, vacuumed, dusted, washed/folded laundry, and picked up toys approximately 28 times in the last 30 days.
• I have cooked dinner approximately 4 times in the last 30 days.
• Watched American Idol, Greys Anatomy, and Lost Season Finales...loved them all!
• Planned to attend Grandpa's 80th birthday party
• 2 nights before the planned trip, Devon came down with food poisoning.
• Despite his aches and pains we still traveled 12 hours in the car to be with family.
• We enjoyed family (especially kissing our new neice) , the mountains, bubble baths, geodes, good food, and more.
• We had an offer on our house.
• We countered the offer, they countered back, and we accepted.
• Escrow closes June 27th.
• We drove 12 hours home.
• Taylor had a stomach ache all the way home.
• Taylor had a visit to the E.R. to find out she was really constipated...poor girl!
• We are now planning a move to Utah.
• I have cried and cried, but I am trying to count my blessings and see the good in all this.

So, that's our news! this will be a stressful month full of lots of tears!