{Seven}

Kamren's birthday was awhile ago...Yeah!, Yeah!, Yeah! One of these days I am going to catch up!

But for now, at least I took some pictures! This girl is so natural in front of the camera it is ridiculous. I took more pictures of her non smile, than her cheeser face because she has awesome lips and looks so content when she doesn't smile. I love to take this girl out. She is so easy to photograph and practice on.

She is an amazing little girl that I feel so lucky to have in our home. Here are {7} things about this little beauty:

{1} She has an amazing memory! She has all the articles of faith memorized, can tell you a talk she gave in church over a year ago, and never seems to forget anything.

{2} She is crazy smart! I beamed with pride, a couple weeks ago, when I was helping in her class and I watched her finish her work and then go over and help another little boy. She was so patient and so determined to help him.

{3} She loves her little brother! She is such a mother hen, just like Karlin. If something is wrong with Daxton, they are both trying to help him and make him happy. She loves to read to him, she tries to teach him how to do things, and she loves to make him happy!

{4} She loves to sing and play the piano! Her piano teacher keeps telling me she is going to have to go back to the Suzuki books with her because she is more interested in singing the notes, than she is in playing. I often times find her playing piano with one hand and holding her Karaoke microphone in the other hand singing away.

{5} She is her own person. It is not very often that this little girl wants us to snuggle her anymore, which is sad! She is very independent and just fine with doing her own thing most of the time.

{6} She loves to read! It was very long ago that she would tell me that she gets bored with chapter books, but lately she is loving them! She always has a book in her hand where ever she goes and I love it when I find her laughing at something Junie B. said. I am so glad she loves to read. She set a goal with her teacher to read Harry Potter books by the end of this school year. I don't know if she will go quite that far, but I am happy she is setting her sights high.

{7} She has an amazing testimony. She is the one in our house that is most connected to spiritual things and wants to always do things right. Often times on Fast Sunday, though she is not even 8 yet, she will fast with her sisters because she wants to. I can't even remember fasting as a youth, let alone before I was 8!

We love this little girl more than words can say! I can't wait to see where she is headed and am so excited to watch her grow up!

Cedar City 31 MIle Relay

We had so much fun doing this relay race in Cedar City! I am so glad that everybody could make it and that we had a great co-piolot/nurse/navigator! Thanks, Teresa! We ended up getting 13th overall, with a time of 4:17:56, and 4th overall in the women's! Darn it! One spot away from winning a little money! Oh Well!

We had to be up Cedar Canyon bright and early! The drop off was 6:30 AM! It made for an early morning, but what a gorgeous view we got!
Heather was such a trooper! She fell shortly after starting her first leg and STILL continued to run through the second leg! We were all worried when she ran past us with blood on her hand and shoulder, and a banged up leg, but you would have never known it by how fast this girl was running!
Mindy was definitely the Speedy Gonzalez of the group! I never knew this girl could run so fast and I train with her! She took first place out of all of the girls on one of her legs! I was mighty impressed and mighty glad she was on our team!
I still feel bad about the leg Julie got! It was the 6th leg, and apparently the hardest leg out of the whole race! She actually got a t-shirt for finishing it! It didn't have only 1 big hill, it had 3!!! She was amazing! Heather says she will do that leg next year, and we are holding her to it because I don't want that leg!
Brooke ended up doing 3 legs! For being hurt, she was quite the little runner! I was shocked when I heard she was running again!

As for me, I did great the first leg(#5). Finishing in 28.04, for a 3.5 mile leg, that's not too bad. But for my second let (#8) I was tired and I will admit I walked!!! Yikes! I finished in 29:43, and it was only a 2.9 mile run! My hamstrings were killing me on this killer, slowly inclining the whole way, run! I made it thanks to my team stopping and yelling for me and Teresa being my water girl!

It was so much fun! I can't wait to do it again next year! So you all better be in again! We can totally win money next year! We were so close!

Growing up

Daxton seems to think he needs to do big kid things lately, and it has really got me thinking about him not being such a little guy anymore! He came to me Sunday, so proud that he had done one of the buttons up on his church shirt. I told him it must be because he had just turned 4 1/2. He thought that was pretty cool and continued to button the rest of his shirt up until he had done all of them. He was so proud that he went to church and told a friend of our all about it.

Today, we had a conversation in the car that continued the "growing up" theme. He asked me how many more days he had until he was a grown up? I told him he had 13 1/2 years, and he looked at me stunned and shouted," 13 and a half years?!!!!", " That's a long time!" It does seem like a long time, until you have teenagers who you remember vividly being toddlers and now they are on missions or working all the time.

He also came to me today with his homework and showed me that he could write his name all by himself. When did all these little "grown up" things happen to my little man?!!! I have moments when I am ready for him to be a little older, when I am ready for him to not follow me around everywhere I go, or need my constant attention. But moments like these last couple days make me remember that I am not ready for him to grow up! I thought I wanted to put him in preschool on Tuesday and Thursday too. Thinking how great it would be to not have to pull him along with me to the school every time I have to do something for the girls or the PTA, but I need to live in the moment and just enjoy him before he too, grows up on me! He is such a sweet, loving little boy and I am so grateful that he isn't actually going to be big for several more years! I have a lot more snuggling to do with this cute little man!

He still is a giant tease, though! Just like his dad!

Library Splash Pad

All summer long we have talked about taking the kids to the Library splash pad and the carousel, but it never seemed to happen. Until it is late August, and it is still 110+ degrees outside! Then we decided that it would be a great way to cool off for FHE. The kids were super excited, since their mean mom had never taken them to the carousel! How was I supposed to know that it only cost $.50 a kid?!!! I want to know how they even make money on such a thing, but who really cares how! My kids loved it and I loved seeing their happy faces!

Shocking picture of Tony, huh?!!! I think I am going to hide that thing on Monday nights from now on!

After that, we let the kids play in the splash pad....I wish we had splash pads when we were kids! They would stay there all day if we let them and never get bored! They are so fun to watch!

This girl is the funniest! She was sky high and having a great time doing her own thing, as usual!

Chocolate Diet

This girl is one of a kind and always seems to amaze me! A while ago, as I watched her double fisting 2 chocolate lava cakes, I jokingly told her that I would buy her the Lego set, Deathstar, if she would give up chocolate for a year! I NEVER thought she would even consider it, let alone actually take the challenge on! I was wrong! So after our family camping trip, Tony and I left the kids at my moms while we went on Trek and Kenzie started her "chocolate diet" I believe the actually start date was July 12th....we will probably need to know that date when her year is actually up!

She has done so well! There have been a few tempting moments, but she has definetly found a way to compensate! Using carmel chips instead of chocolate, eating strawberry pancakes instead of chocolate chip, enjoying carmel syrup instead of chocolate syrup! She is figuring it out! She also is trying and liking a lot of new things that weren't even on her radar because she always went for chocolate.

At first, Tony thought I was crazy for even offering this to her. He even has tried to play the devils advocate on her a couples times. He is kind of changing his mind after seeing her be so strong as so dedicated to not eating chocolate! I have no doubt she will make it the whole year.

I think that this is a lesson that will help her more than just to give up chocolate. Chocolate is just the vehicle through which she is learning the real lesson here! Having self control and being able to control your appetites and cravings is an important lesson to learn. I wish I would have learned it as a child. Maybe then I wouldn't give into every treat that I want, hungry or not!

She says her eyes are turning a lighter shade of brown from the lack of chocolate! I am very proud of her for her commitment!

First Day of School! Yeah!!!

The first day of school is aways kind of a bag of mixed emotions for me! I am so excited to get back into a routine and have them doing more than asking me to entertain them, but I also miss seeing them for those 6 1/2 hours! I am so happy to not have to stop fights every time I turn around, but those moments when I see them playing together nicely, or one of them helping Daxton, will be missed! They are all such unique and great kids and I feel so fortunate to be their mom! We are also so excited about the teachers they got, thanks to both Kamren and Kenzie having the same teachers again. Karlin also has Mr. Keeler, who is an awesome teacher! Here's to another great school year!

First day of school!

Tony made a pretty good crossing guard!

Daxton is going to get used to waiting around at the school for his mom! What a good little man!
After we dropped the girls off, it was Daxton's turn to go to! He is going to the Washington Rec Center this year! I am so excited that he is happy about going there! They add a lot of extra activities like gymnastics, karate, Zumba, and cooking to the curriculum. I know it will be good for him to have all the extra activities. It was hard for me to leave him there and walk out the door, but I am adjusting well to my free time! :)
After school, I took them all to Sweet Tooth Fairy for Cup shakes! Yum! I recorded each of them telling me what their favorite thing about their first day was. They all liked recess the best! Shocking!

18?!!!!!

I am not quite sure when it happened that we had another child become an adult, but apparently it has! Kaylee turning 18 is quite a shock to my system! It is strange that she is not the cute little toddler asking us for her milk/juice and repeatedly changing her mind. Or the little girl who will only let her dad hand her anything in the car, but it has happened.

She wanted to go to Anasazi grill for her birthday, expensive taste! :) We had a great time, even if she wan't too keen on her siblings climbing all over her! She tolerates them and I guess that is all we can ask for!

I love the annoyed look in this one! Typical reaction to them being silly!


Tony and Kaylee have this thing they do where they see who can give the cheesiest grin! Tony wins this time!

Happy Birthday, Kaylee. I hope being an adult is good to you and that you make wise decisions that will make your adult life a little easier! We love you!