Gratitude

When Brooke says family prayers at night, you can be sure something cute will come out of her mouth, because she is just a happy, grateful-for-everything girl. Tonight she said that she was grateful that she got to play and read books today... something we all wish we could do, right? A few nights ago she said, "I am grateful that me and Autumn got to have different lunches today. I am grateful that I got macaroni and cheese and that Autumn got a sandwich." Wouldn't the world be a better place if we could all find small and simple things to be grateful for each day, like playing, reading, and eating? I am grateful for my children and the plethora of things they teach me every day.

Fond Memories

Dave and I were looking at our old picture folders and came across a video of Brooke when she was just barely 2 years old. She was in nursery and had just memorized "I am a Child of God". Watching it made me get nostalgic for our time in Riverside, family housing, and the "good ol' days" before all my kids grew up so fast. I love listening to her little voice... she gets mixed up toward the end and repeats herself, then she notices her reflection in the tv and watches herself sing. It is way cute!

Our progress on the downstairs

We are not done with our downstairs project, but I wanted to post pictures of our accomplishment so far. We still have to do the caulk around baseboards and door jams in the family room, and the spare room has yet to begin.

We really love the floor, and how the new wall/window turned out. I can't wait to put pictures and knick-knacks in them!


We are really happy with it so far... I will post more pictures when we finish the entire project!

Can we fix it? Yes, we can!

We are in the process of renovating our downstairs. When we moved in, we decided that the downstairs family room would need some improving (firstly, the teal carpet!) and 1 1/2 years later... we are doing it!

We decided to completely knock out the closet in the 4th bedroom to make about 3 more feet of space in the family room. We also are putting a beautiful laminate floor in the entire downstairs. So far, we have knocked out the wall (which was fun!) and reframed and drywalled the new wall. It is quite a big project.


We still have a lot of work. We have to get everything ready to paint, paint everything (ceiling, walls, trim), and do the floor... but we are super excited to get it all done. I will post more pictures when we finish!

City of Rocks

Last weekend, we went on a camping trip with seven other families from our neighborhood to celebrate the close of summer and back to school.
All told, we had 16 adults and 17 children (16 of which were under the age of 8!) We went up to City of Rocks National Reserve in Idaho, which was about 2 hours from Logan. It was very scenic, and there were rock formations all around our campsites.

The kids loved to climb and explore. Friday evening, we spent some time socializing around the campfire, and eating desserts, and having fun. Saturday morning, after breakfast and breaking camp, we went on a hike. It was lots of fun. The hike was pretty long, but the kids did great!




On the drive home, we stopped at a little diner with one other family and had lunch. It was quite the place... old style dining at its best.
We had a good time, and have to thank the families that put it all together... you know who you are! Thanks!

Ciera and Chloe started back to school today. Ciera is starting 4th grade and Chloe is starting 2nd grade. They got new courier bags for school... they didn't want backpacks. They are growing up so fast! This morning they got right out of bed and got ready for school (without much yelling on my part), and then rode their bikes to school! We are so very proud of them and know they will have a great year.

Cabbage anyone?

The third graders all brought home a cabbage sprout at the end of the school year in May. It was part of a scholarship contest. All the students were to bring it home, plant it, and care for it all summer. At the end of summer, they were to take a picture with their cabbage to see how big it had become. They bring the photo with them to 4th grade, and then each 4th grade teacher picks a winner from their class to submit to the state level. One winner is picked from each participating state to receive a $1,000 scholarship. Ciera's cabbage grew and GREW all summer, and today we picked it and weighed it. It weighed 63 lbs! Anyone want some cabbage? (Not really... after we picked it, all sorts of critters started crawling out. There were slugs, roly-poly bugs, catterpillars, and wasps! Too bad... we could have had enough cole-slaw to last a lifetime!)