Let the Summer Begin!

Last week Brennan went to the 9th grade dance. He looked so spiffy! I remember my 9th grade dance. I swear it was just a few years ago. Never Say Goodbye by Bon Jovi was the last song. Wow, how times have changed.

I caught Bren playing his guitar before the dance. Oooooh I love that boy. (I know he is big and hairy, but he is still my little boy.)

On Memorial Day we put up a new above ground pool. McKinley and Ashlyn wanted it so bad they paid half!

So once the pool was set up, Conner filled it with water while the girls frolicked in the spray.


Let Summer Begin!!!
P.s. on a down note, Conner has not heard back from the theatre, but some of his friends have, so we are thinking it's a no go. Conner is disappointed, but hanging tough.

Crossing our fingers.

We are crossing our fingers this week for Conner. Last Saturday he auditioned for "The Music Man" at our local theatre. They had hundreds of people try out, and Conner (and I) were thrilled to find out that he had a callback. Tomorrow he will go back for and show them his dance moves. He is very excited. He has never been in a show on "the big stage."

I am especially hoping that Conner makes it in, because he didn't make Madrigals at school. I guess this year they are taking less kids. Anyway, he was heartbroken all of spring break, so this would really boost his confidence. I will keep you updated as to if he makes it in or not. Cross your fingers for him.

Love it or Hate it???

So here is the door. I can't decide if I love it or hate it. I've gotten mixed reviews from the kids. What do you think?

Granny Annie's

For about a year my little sister Joanna has been trying to get me to try a restaurant near where she lives. This morning Will had to run up north for work and I tagged along. We wanted to grab a late breakfast at a place we had never been, where Will had heard it was really good. He couldn't remember the name of the place, but drove right to it.

I laughed out loud when he pulled up, and I saw the name. Granny Annie's. This was the restaurant my little sis loved and wanted me to try. It is like an old fashioned diner style.

Because it was during work hours Will spent half the time on the phone. Pretty typical, and I take him when I can get him. :) The food was super yum, although I'm guessing between the cholesterol and the sodium our lives have both been shortened by at least a year.

Brooklynn ate all my hash browns and put a big dent in my pancake, which is saying a lot since the pancake was the size of a Frisbee!!

Finally!!!

When we first moved into our home almost 7 years ago, I swore the first thing I was going to change was the hideous front door. It was then an ugly turquoise. We painted it to an ugly black. The worst part about the door, was that the window would ooze glue every summer. I don't know how it didn't run out of glue... but all summer long we would have these awful drips of glue running down the door. If you look closely, you can see them.


So last week we FINALLY had the doors replaced. I am so happy with the new doors.

They have only been primed. I'm excited to see them all finished. I'm still trying to figure out a color for the front door. Or maybe I just stay white. Any suggestions?


We had the back doors replaced as well. Less for vanity's sake, but more for safety. They were just one good slam away from falling apart. (Will had already glued the window to the door in one place.)

These new ones have the blinds build right in. It is so nice not to have to worry about little dirty fingers getting the roman blinds filthy.

I have been working on the cabinets in my bathroom. I'll have to take some pictures and show you. I am waiting for some money to fall from the sky so I can do a granite counter top. Someday.

Bye Bye Birdie

This past week Conner's school musical theatre department put on their show for the year. Bye Bye Birdie.


Bye Bye Birdie is not my fave musical, but they did a really cute job. The kids were all really talented, and seemed to be having a blast!

Here is Conner with the boy who played Conrad Birdie. He sang so well my mom thought he was lip singing to a pre-recorded track.

Here is Conner with some of the friends he has done other musicals with.


The whole family went on Saturday night to see the closing show. Brooklynn thought it was funny to see Conner up on stage.

Parker (our good family friend) was a lovely town drunk.

Conner played the part of Harvey Johnson. The nerdy teenager who can't get a date to prom. He was hysterical! Her he is with Parker and Talon who played Albert, one of the leads.

These guys worked soooo hard. Great Job Everyone!! Conner, I love you. You make a great nerd!

Four Weddings...and a funeral

After much speculation from the children, and other family members... we have been given the %100 from the ultrasound tech. It is official. We will be having four weddings, followed closely by Will's funeral. Think Pink. (and lots of it!)



We had thought for sure that it was time for a boy. After all, the last time I had a baby boy was 14 years ago!! But... that was not what was in store for us. So, we are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our fourth daughter. It will be lots of fun, and probably more than a little crazy. Brooklynn will have a little sister and playmate, and I will have one more reason to buy cute little dresses and bows.

We Survived....but just barely!

We had McKinley's Birthday party tonight. There were 100 girls here. Okay, it just felt like that many. Do you have any idea the amount of noise that 12 year old girls can make??? Will and I are clinging to life, but I think the girls had a great time.







Happy Big 12 McKinley!

Code Yellow

Just in case any of you wanted to know, I learned what a "Code Yellow" means at a Kohl's department store. I'm sure it's been keeping you up at night. I, myself had never given it any thought until yesterday.



My two year old, Brooklynn was getting very fussy in the stroller/shopping cart thing that Kohl's has. I let her get out, and told her that she needed to stay where I could see her. That was my first mistake. Did I really think that she would listen?? She stayed close by for about 10 minutes. Then I turned to look for her and she was gone. Totally gone! I walked through all the aisles of shoes calling her name. Nothing. I expanded my search, perusing the main walkway. After about ten minutes of searching, I saw her clear on the other side of the store. I called her name, thinking that she would react with joy in finding her mother. Nope, not my Brooklynn. The independent little thing ran the other way! What a fun game!

I quickly went to find her. Nothing! After about 10 more minutes, I went to a store employee to tell him I was a neglectful mother, and my two year old was missing. He then issued a "code yellow." No, the code does not mean that there is terrible mother in the store, more concerned with cute shoes than the whereabouts of her child. It is the code for a missing child.

I was so impressed with the employees. Within 60 seconds I saw an army of employee's scouring the racks for pigtails and plaid shorts. Roughly eight minutes later, they found her. Happy as can be in men's clothing, playing in the mirrors. Of course by then she had a stinky diaper, so I looked like an even worse mother. I was so happy to see her. I was glad that I saw her across the store, so I didn't totally panic. No sight of her for almost 30 minutes would have left me one hysterical mother! Ahhh, the joys of motherhood.

Finally!

Today is a big day for McKinley. She finally, and I do mean finally turned Twelve. She can finally go to Young Womens, she can finally wear make-up, and she can finally go to the Temple.


And that is exactly what she did today. Before the light of day, McKinley and her dad headed up to the Temple. The computer cropped it, but you could see the moon in the top left corner.

She had a wonderful time at the temple, and then they headed to IHOP for some breakfast. Of course they sipped on hot cocoa.

I can't believe my oldest daughter is twelve. I still remember crying when Will brought her into my hospital room after she had been given her first bath. She looked so sweet and precious with the little pink bow in her hair. I am proud of the beautiful young woman she is becoming. Love you Kinley!

The big leagues

Last week I felt like a Kindergartner going to college. The National Genealogical Society was holding their annual conference in Salt Lake City this year.

My darling hubby surprised me by arranging babysitting for Brooklynn so that I could attend. It was amazing and at the end of every day I felt like my brain was exploding. I learned so much about different records that I have never looked at, and new ways to research on the internet. I have already found some information on the church that my 5th great grandparents were married in. Amazing! I can't wait to dig into some probate records.

There were tons of people there. I heard just under 3000. Some of my classes had at least 500 people in them. It was an overwhelming experience, but truly wonderful.

I am soooooo thankful for a sweet thoughtful husband who totally made it possible for me to attend this great conference. He even got me a cute care package full of munchies to last the four days of the conference so I would never be hungry in class.
Thanks Will! You're the greatest.