Alex's Big Day

Alex loves his birthday.  He has been so excited to turn 7 and we had a big day planned for him.  Alex is our only child to have a summer birthday, so we usually like to celebrate with outdoor activities.

This year included a very large blow-up bounce house and lots of kids to play on it.  Alex had a fun birthday party, with water balloons, snow cones, cupcakes, ice cream bars, a pinata and lots of fun presents from his friends.

After the party, we figured since we had the bounce house all night, we might as well keep the party going.  So we had neighbors, family and anyone who wanted to jump, come on over.  We played all night on the bounce house!

Alex's party continued on Sunday with a family party with yummy food, a fun skateboard cake and even more presents.  Alex got spoiled with a longboard and a new bike this year.  He loves both but promptly wrecked on his longboard on his first try down the hill.  Luckily he had his helmet on.  I figure he will get better with practice!

 

I can't believe my Alex is 7 years old!  He is already talking about getting baptized next year and is so excited to take that big step.  I am so proud of my little Alex.  He really is such a sweet, nice boy.  Alex loves to cuddle and gives awesome hugs.  He is such a thoughtful boy and is my best kid to help around the house.  He is always willing to help with chores and loves to help his daddy with projects, especially if there are tools involved.

I am so thankful that we were blessed with such a sweet, loving boy!  I love you, Alex!  Happy 7th birthday!

Happy 4th

With all of our recent travels it was nice to have a day off - at home.  That doesn't mean we weren't on the go a lot of the day, but much of the 4th was spent around the house.

One of our favorite 4th traditions is to go over to Alicia's ward for their annual breakfast.  Lots of food for us, lots of fun for the kids.  They always have games for the kids with many little prizes for the winners.

I think Alex and Dylan's favorite part of the breakfast is the "train" ride.  One of the guys creates a train and pulls it behind his lawnmower every year.  The boys can't get enough of this thrill ride around the parking lot.

A little later in the day we had a fun visit with Jeff and Jeni Wright and their cute little family. Since they live in Virginia it isn't often we can get together. It was a short visit, but great to catch up and hear what they've been doing for the past couple of years.

The real party came after the sun started setting. My kids are way into fireworks - ok, I am too. This year's show didn't disappoint. We went over to the fireworks stand earlier in the afternoon and hooked up with some pretty cool stuff. Add that to a package our neighbor Hal gave and we were ready to light up the night.

After our show ended, we laid out in the front yard and watched the big stuff from the country club. One of the best parts of the 4th from our house is the view we get of the fireworks from across the street. They really go all out. It must have lasted 20-25 minutes and we enjoyed the entire show. A great end to a fun day.

Photo of the Day

Love this picture that Alex took of Dylan.  What a fun kid!

Capitol Reef - Stand in Holy Places

A few months ago I decided I wasn't going to attend Youth Conference this year.  It was scheduled at a terrible time for me to go.  We had a family vacation scheduled for the day the conference ended and I knew it would be a lot of driving, for a pretty short trip.

Then, I started looking into the hike they were going on in Capitol Reef.  I really wanted to go.  I haven't really hiked much in that part of the state and it looked amazing.  I decided I would attend so I could go on the hike.

Conference started on Thursday and we drove, and drove, and drove.  The Boulder Mountains aren't exactly close to Salt Lake.  Still, it was a fun trip and I got a kick out of listening the Deacons' conversations.  These guys can really get going on all things soccer, school, and Taylor Swift.

On Friday we woke up early and set out for Sulphur Creek.  It was a beautiful walk through the towering red rock.  The hike was about 5 miles, but most of it was pretty flat and after the first mile you were inside the canyon walls.  I had a great time walking and talking with the kids.  You can really learn a lot about someone while on a hike.  It was nice to hear about what's important to our YM/YW.


When we stopped for lunch the fun kicked in.  One of the best parts of Sulphur Creek is some of the waterfalls you encounter along the trail.  We had a great time sliding down the rock into a pool at the bottom.  Of course I couldn't resist and went down a couple of times.  It's what I love about hiking in canyons!

We went back to camp and everyone settled into to fun games and good competitions.  There were some marathon games of Mafia and a few intense card games.  The kids had a great time hanging out with one another.

I think the highlight of the trip was the evening devotional and testimony meeting.  I've been to Youth Conference pretty much every year since I've been married and this testimony meeting took the cake.  Every testimony meeting is special, but this was one of the five most spiritual meetings I've attended in my entire life.  The kids really poured out their souls to one another and to our Heavenly Father.  It was something I'll never forget.

After everything was over the hike was merely an afterthought.  The conference was all about the kids and the great leaders I work with.  I can't say enough about the incredible people in my ward.  In the church we like to use the term ward family and that couldn't fit this group any better.  I may have gone to Youth Conference for a hike in Capitol Reef, but I left with a deeper love for our Youth, our leaders, and the Lord.

Father's Day

Today was a great day.

At church the kids sang.

I got a treat.

We had presents (including a new tool set for the shed).

I  took a nap.

Nothing beats Father's Day.