Interior design trend

I'm trying to improve my room and bathroom a little by painting and adding some curtains, and a few simple decorations. I got a few swatches of fabric the other day and asked Richard what he thought of this for curtains. His response was, "Well, I think they're a little small." LOL! He's just funny that way, like the other day when someone called to talk to me and they said, "Is your wife around?" He said, "No, actually, she's tall and thin." I love being married to a man who makes me laugh. Love you, Richard!

I love Grandpa, yes I do! I love Grandpa, how about you?

Emma's birthday is next Friday and we are busy planning her little party. She has wanted to invite Grandpa Kevin for months now and I think it is the cutest thing ever. She knows that it will be a bunch of little girls doing girly things, but she wants him to come and help and serve cake and ice cream. I think it means more to her than any of her other friends. She even wants a cake that says "I Love Grandpa Kevin"...none of that "Happy Birthday Emma" stuff. She also told me we could put streamers and signs all over the house that say "I Love Grandpa Kevin". He will be at the party because he is awesome that way, but I think we'll just do regular decorations and cupcakes with sprinkles. If we did it all the way Emma has in mind he may be having to sign autographs by the end of the party! I just think it is so special and what makes it extra special is that it is genuine and it is her biggest birthday wish!

September happenings

The kids school decided to have a 5k instead of the traditional fundraisers this year. I thought the idea was brilliant because I really hate fundraisers! I think they had a decent turnout, but hopefully next year will be better. We had a good time and Landon toasted all of us. He won 2nd place in his age division and some cool prizes! Emma ran the 1k with her friend, Allie. Daniel was a good trooper, Kate was in the stroller and Richard and I are not good runners, but we did okay! Maybe next year we can improve!

Emma and her cute friend Allie (who is in 7th grade) who takes such good care of Emma and plays with her all the time- she is the best!

I took this picture going up the road while Landon was already on his way back down the route- I told you, he really toasted us!

Daniel and his friend, Crosby, at the turnaround halfway point

Two weeks ago my sister-in-law Michelle and I made chili sauce. This is a specialty that my Mom used to make. It is a fall ritual we just had to continue! I helped my Mom many times before, but I had never done the entire process completely on my own! It was a learning experience for us, but I think we did okay and I hope it turned out like it is supposed to! It was a full day process and we had a lot of fun, despite all the little mishaps along the way. Michelle burned her arm so bad with boiling water- she sacrificed her arm so the bottles wouldn't break as we tried to lower them into the hot water bath. We were both screaming and laughing and we know that Mom would have been laughing right along with us. This will definately become a tradition. If you have never tried this chili sauce, you simply must! I don't know how anyone can have roast or meatloaf without it. Don't buy it at the store- it's nothing like what we make!

The main ingredients- LOTS of tomatoes, green peppers and onions

The stuff that makes it delicious!- Vinegar, sugar, nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon, ginger and cloves! It is so good, and it makes the house smell amazing while it is cooking!

This is right after it happened, but it looked way worse the next day and she was in a lot of pain! So sorry, Michelle!

Happy Birthday, Sweet Mom

Today my Mom would have been a beautiful 55 years old. Words can never adequately express how much or how deeply I miss her. She was more than just my Mom, she was my best friend. It was this day one year ago that she found out she had 3 months to live. 3 weeks later she was gone. Those last 3 weeks of her life are so vivid in my mind and I find myself reliving each day as I reflect on what happened last fall. She loved the fall. This picture is from 3 years ago when we went to Disneyland with her. She was a real trooper, even though she had started chemo and her hair was falling out in chunks all over the park! We are getting ready to go to Disneyland again next month and we are really looking forward to it. We are so glad we had the opportunity to have Mom and Dad come with us last time. Happy Birthday, my dear, sweet, spunky, beautiful Mom.

Neverending

I remember my Mom used to have 2 laundry days per week. She would sort, wash, fold, iron and put all the laundry in neat piles on each of those days. I feel like I do laundry every day! It takes me one day to sort it into piles, another day (or two) to wash and dry, another to fold, another to put in neat little (big) piles and another to get the kids to actually put their laundry away. Then I still have all of ours (mine, Richards and Kate's) to put away, which takes another few days, or until I need the baskets to repeat the whole process again! So the other day I was not amused by this conversation:

As Richard was getting dressed for the day, he opened up his underwear drawer, which had been completely empty the day before and exclaimed, "Oh, wow, it's like MAGIC!!"

"For YOU!!"

Daniel's big day

Yesterday was Daniel's baptism and it was truly a wonderful day. There was another girl in our ward being baptized as well and her sister gave the opening prayer. Landon gave the closing prayer, and both their Grandpa's spoke. My dad spoke on the Holy Ghost and did an excellent job, as always. He really made his talk on the kids level and I know they really listened and felt the Holy Ghost. Landon, Daniel and Emma sang "I Will Follow God's Plan For Me" and we had so many family members there that came to share the special day with us. Daniel had requested hot dogs for lunch, so that's what we had! We also had lots of side dishes and desserts and a great time visiting with everyone. Towards the end of the gathering Daniel said, "I think this is the best day of my life." I know by being baptized he will have many other "best days" because of this choice he made to be baptized and to be a member of the church. We finished off the day at the pool (see previous post) with cousins, aunts and uncles! We are so grateful to all who spent the day with us! I feel bad that I didn't take more pictures of Daniel with everyone there, but thanks to Great Grandpa Hague we got a few pictures at the church!

Goodbye summer

I've been wanting to post about our pool all summer, and finally remembered my camera yesterday. We live one block from the Lehi outdoor pool and it is what our summer is all about! We have it down to a science- the stroller is always stocked with our season passes, money for treats, goggles, diving sticks etc.. We hang our towels in the garage to dry off for the next day and we're off again! We have absolutely loved this pool and its like having our own pool without all the hassle or upkeep- it's great! The boys are old enough that they can go on their own and will spend hours there. We go 3 or 4 days a week and I seriously don't know what I'd do without the pool! The kids have all taught themselves to swim, although I still have to stay with Kate every second. It closes for the season tomorrow and we were glad we got to spend the day there yesterday- it was wonderful! Until next summer, farewell, dear pool.

Richard and the girls- the kids love it when Dad gets to come to the pool. He's way more fun than me!

Landon, Daniel and their friends Colton and Jacob

The waterslide! Emma is the only one that won't go down it, but Kate even enjoyed going down it with me this year.

My swimming buddy- thank goodness the other kids just keep themselves busy!

Kate doesn't usually last as long as the other kids, so we usually end up getting a snack to recharge and dry off!

Kindergarten!

Emma started kindergarten yesterday! She looked more like a 2nd grader walking into school a full head taller than most of the other little pipsqueaks. She is hoping for some homework as soon as possible! She got the one teacher I wasn't very excited about, but we'll see how things go and hope for the best! So it's just Kate and me in the mornings, but that time goes by fast, and it's almost impossible to get anything done with a 2 year old!

I wanted to do something different with her hair, but she insisted on this hairdo. A ponytail clipped up in the back and these long ringlets hanging down in front. I figured it wasn't worth any tears, so she won!