Mowing the Lawn

The first time we mowed the lawn around here it took and hour and a half, so we decided it was worth the money to get a ride on mower. There was a deal at the time, so we got this little trailer that hangs off the back for free. The kids love it.

And Dylan can't wait till he's big enough for his turn.

Dylan's First Steps

Dylan's been taking steps for a few weeks, but he's starting to walk more than crawl. He'll walk from one piece of furniture to the next, and when he takes off to go somewhere he'll walk until he falls or decides crawling is faster and then crawls the rest of the way. The funny part about the timing is that he is following in his brother and sister's footsteps...they both walked at 13 months too. He's having fun figuring it all out, and we're so proud of him.

Soccer Stars

Parker and Natalie got to play on the same soccer team this year, and it was so fun to watch them. Parker was super aggressive and smart, and he was often seen kicking the ball all the way down the field toward the goal. He scored 1-2 goals in just about every game, and he had a lot of fun. Natalie was more motivated by treats and being out there with her team, but she did a great job running after the pack of kids and occasionally got a piece of the ball. She loved feeling a part of the team and being out there with her with her big brother. Love those kids!

Superheroes and Princesses

After Parker and Natalie had their dance recital, they still had a few weeks of class, so they made it a lot of fun. Parker's class dressed up as their favorite superhero and did all sorts of superhero type things.

{These 3 boys have had a lot of fun this year.}

Natalie's class dressed up like princesses, and they danced to their hearts content to all sorts of princess music and such.

So fun.

A Few Phone Pics

Natalie's preschool class did a little Mother's Day performance, and it was definitely a highlight. She was adorable and the songs they sang were so sweet.

Parker had his kindergarten well check at the doctor and the poor guy had to get 4 shots. He was so brave and was happy to get some Hawaiian Ice with me when we were done.

Just my cute and happy baby boy!

We went to the Kidz Expo last week and the kids had fun. Parker climbed the rock wall, they got their faces painted, jumped in the bounce houses, Natalie took her picture with the princesses, and Parker took his picture with the storm troopers.

We've also had fun going to Farm Country and the Dinosaur Museum with Jack, Audrey, and Lauren lately. We've kind of made a habit of meeting them there every Monday afternoon. We're all loving that.

So Much Fun at the Zoo

Parker's gone on some fun field trips with his preschool class over the last 2 years, and I've had fun going on some of them with him. This one was definitely a blast. It was the last one of the year, and the zoo was a great way to celebrate. The weather was gorgeous, the kids were happy, and it couldn't have been better. I decided to leave Dylan with my SIL (thanks Jill), and I brought Natalie with us. We loved having Jade hang with us that day too. Jade and Parker have been carpooling together this year, and they've become great friends. Something I love since Jade's mom has become one of my great friends too. Anyway, the zoo. Really fun day!

{pics from my phone}

My Favorite Ski Buddy

Parker and I have had so much fun skiing this season. We went just about every Monday afternoon at Alta, and I think it's something we both looked forward to each week. I have been so impressed with how quickly he picked it up. He's completely comfortable and in control. He loves to go through the trees, and he goes after the jumps, which scares me every time. Several of the days we went there was a lot of powder, and he did awesome in it. In fact, one day I wanted to try a new run, so we went to a blue that ended up being knee deep powder for him and somewhat steep. It was a lot for him, but there was nowhere to go but down. He did great and he was really proud of himself when we made it to the bottom and looked back up at what we had done. I was super proud of him too.

Here's a few videos I took with my phone on the last day.

I'm definitely going to miss my afternoons with just Parker. There really is something special about having one on one time with my kids.

I'm So Grateful to Be a Mom

This Mother's Day was wonderful as always. I got to sleep in, and I was woken up with back massages and pancakes. I loved seeing/listening to Parker and Natalie sing Mother's Day songs in church. I still just think it's so cute to see them up there singing their little hearts out and knowing the words. Brian's Mom was in town this weekend, so that made Mother's Day extra special. We had a lot of fun with her here.

At one point during church on Sunday, I really just felt overwhelmed with how grateful I am that I have this opportunity to be a Mom. Nothing has helped me learn and grow and progress nearly as much as my role as a Mother. I'm honored to be trusted with these 3 gorgeous children, and I'm grateful for the mistakes that they put up with. I've shared the burden I feel as a mother before, and that hasn't changed. But, I'm grateful for it and how much it teaches me. Parker, Natalie, and Dylan have blessed my life more than I could ever describe, and I love that I'm the one who gets to know them in only the way a Mother does and learn from them every single day. They amaze me! I also know that though being a Mother is difficult, more difficult than I can handle at times, I'm not alone at all. I know that my Heavenly Father is helping me every step of the way, and if I let him, I can be an instrument in His hands as I help these small children become the incredible beings they're meant to be.

My Little Performers

Natalie's highlight of the week is her dance class every Tuesday, and I think the highlight of her year was last night. She and Parker had their dance performance, and they were both adorable. Natalie is in a tap/ballet/jazz class with a bunch of 3 & 4 year old girls. Her teacher is awesome, and as I've mentioned, she loves it. Last night after the show, I asked her which was more fun, dance class or doing a show. She immediately said, doing a show because I get to wear make up, and a pretty costume, and dance on the stage. Love that girl!

When I took Natalie to her class I realized that there was a hip hop class at the same time with a few boys in it, so I asked Parker if he wanted to do that too. He said, only if there are other boys in the class. He's had a lot of fun too, and he did awesome last night!

Parker's Hip Hop

Natalie's Dance

Hee Haw

Last week we met Mary, Jack, Audrey, and Lauren at Hee Haw Farms, and the kids all had such a blast. They loved the slides, riding the horse, holding the animals (that was really cool since you don't usually get to do that at most petting zoos), going on a hay ride, and just being together.

It's so fun to watch them all play together since they all have their own buddy.

Thanks for taking us Mary. We had a blast!

We Finally Found a Use for this Thing

This house has a baday, but we haven't used it nor to we really have any plans to. Well, a few days ago, Brian was taking a shower and Dylan was playing around in the bathroom. He noticed that his water pressure kept getting lower and higher over and over again. He wasn't sure why until he looked over to see Dylan playing in the baday just as happy as ever. He'd also put some empty Easter eggs in there for extra fun.

Easter Sunday

The Easter bunny sent the kids on a scavenger hunt to find their baskets this year. And, those lucky kids found them on top of a new picnic table.

Such fun! They were so excited about it that they wanted to eat breakfast out there even though it was a little chilly.

Church was especially great, and Parker and Natalie did so well singing with the Primary. Honestly, they knew the words and sang the whole song, which made me so proud at such a young age.

After church, I told them they had to let me take some pictures in order to have an Easter egg hunt...I know I'm mean, but someday they'll thank me, right?!

It was fun to have an Easter egg hunt in our new house with such a big yard to do it in. The kids loved it.

I have to write down the funny conversation I had with Parker and Natalie on Saturday night before Easter. On Monday, we'd had a Family Home Evening lesson on Easter and why we celebrate it, and we'd really been trying to talk about it all week to help them realize that it's about so much more than eggs and candy. Then on Saturday night when I was putting them to bed, they were talking about how the Easter bunny was going to come, and I said:

Me: You remember who we celebrate Easter for right?

P&N: Yes, Jesus.

Me: That's right, because he was...

P&N: Resurrected.

P: That means that we will be resurrected too.

Me: That's right, after we die we'll all be together and we'll be resurrected.

N: (very concerned...) I'm going to die?!

Me: Not until you're a really old Nana

N: (even more concerned...) Nana's going to die?!

Me: No, Natalie, nobody is going to die.

Pretty funny that here we are trying to make sure our kids understand the true meaning of Easter and it turns into scaring our 3 year old about death. Well, we're trying.