Jared's golden Birthday!!!

Jared turned 9 on May 9 (mother's day!!!)....Jared wanted to watch the movie UP for his party.....I knew I couldn't commit to a big birthday party with a lot of kids if we were going to watch a movie.....Jared also wanted McDonalds for a b-day dinner....so, we compromised.....I told him he could either have a lot of friends over, and just do a classic b-day party, or he could invite 2 or 3 friends and we would watch UP and eat McDonalds.....he opted for that.....3 of the 4 kids he invited were able to come.....Logan, Aiden and Jaden....it was a fun few hours!!! I made a house with balloons on it, representing the UP house.....then, on Sunday, he opened presents from us, and from Grandma and Grandpa.....he got a new (bigger) bike, and he got some new clothes, and a remote control helicopter. We have had fun flying that helicopter around! And he and Kayleigh are enjoying riding bikes together!

Kayleigh turns 6!!!

While Matthew's dad and Peggy were here, Kayleigh had her 6th birthday on April 14!!! She wanted to go to Chuck E. Cheese!!! It was fun to watch all the kids (Grampy and Peggy included) have fun playing there!!! However, I am glad it is a once a year....if that....trip!!! Grampy, Peggy and I went over to Kayleigh's school with some cupcakes for Kayleigh to share with her class....and then, soon after Kayleigh got home from school, one of her friends from church and school surprised her and brought a present for her! They ended up playing barbies for a while together! I think she had a great day! Here are some of our pics from the day....enjoy!

Spur of the moment visit from Grampy and Peggy!

So, let me take you back to April 4.....it was a Sunday....general conference Sunday....also Easter Sunday......at about 11:05.....5 minutes after the first session of conference that day ended, we get a call from Bishop Hamann....he wants to meet with Matthew in between conference sessions.....he goes in and has a worthiness interview to advance to the office of High Priest....Bishop told him that usually this comes with a calling, but of course he does not have the authority to tell him the calling they are thinking about putting him in. Later that night, the stake secretary called to see if he and I could go in and meet with one of the Counselors in the stake presidency on Wed. night. Matthew called his Dad Sunday to see if he would be willing to come ordain him to office of high priest.....with no hesitation, his dad said yes....they would drive out, arriving here Friday afternoon......now, going to that Wed.....Matthew was asked if he would be willing to serve as the 2nd counselor in a new Bishopric that was going to be put in on Sunday....so, now he is serving as the counselor.....life is busy, but we are doing well. I am greatful to have a husband that is worthy and willing to serve wherever needed. He is a great man, and we have a wonderful new bishopric....(not that the previous bishopric wasn't wonderful!).....anyway, with that change, we were blessed to have Matthew's dad and Peggy here for a week.....it was a fun spur of the moment visit for us!!!!

We went out to the Ocean on Saturday....we brought them to a beach that has shipwreck remains from years ago....it was a fun trip.....we also brought them to the local waterfalls while they were here....and got entertained by the salmon that were jumping there!

Easter Celebrations

I love Easter......I love taking the week to use the book my parents gave us that talks about the event leading up to Christ's crucifixion and his resurection......I am truly amazed at HIS LOVE HE HAD FOR ME.....and FOR ALL OF US.....to do that for us. H

We decorated Easter Eggs on Saturday

The kids looked for baskets, and candy filled eggs on Sunday.

15 Years!!!

The kids had spring break March 29-April 2, so Matthew and I decided it was a perfect time to let them stay with Aunt Liz and Uncle Travis and Calvin and Miles, so we could have a little get away to celebrate our 15th anniversary (May 3)--we went out to the Oregon coast for a few days.....we hiked some beautiful trails, saw some amazing waves, and enjoyed just being together!!! Thanks Liz and Travis for your help with the kids!!!

Happy Birthday Matthew!

Matthew turned 37 on March 28. It was a Sunday, so the kids let him sleep in a little....while he was sleeping, they got creative in card making and book making.....we had fun letting the kids read their cards/books to him.....then for dinner, he really wanted some GOOD steak.....not sure if we really got the good stuff, but he did end up grilling some steak for dinner!! We also gave him some blu-ray dvds so we can try out the new bluray player on our computer (Matthew said that was his real gift....the fact that we spent a little more on our new computer for him to have bluray!....i couldn't just not get him something, so i was blessed to find a fabulous sale on some bluray movies!)

Jessica's New Pet

Jessica bought herself a new pet.....a guinea pig....she named Rosalie(yes, from Twilight)......she has committed to paying for the food, etc. for her.....I have to admit, I think she is my favorite pet we have ever had! She is very content to let the kids hold her and pet her, and yet when they let her run around in the hallway, she puts on a fun little show!!!