Mother I Love You, Mother I Do...

Well, another Mother's Day has rolled around. I usually love Mother's Day because the kids make a big deal about it, and this year was no different. They all make gifts for me at school and then bring them home on Friday and ask if I want them right then. I usually tell them to put them away and give them to me on Sunday, but this year I got them on Saturday because everyone was just too excited. Silly kids! They were all so proud of what they had made for me, except for Jorden, who told me that he HAD to make his gift for me because his Tech teacher at school made them all make one! Man, I need to send a thank you card to that guy!! :D Tim got me the Crazy Daisies that I always like to have on Mother's Day -- they are so fun and colorful!

I woke up this morning to a pancake breakfast that Jillen made for me all by herself! And she was so proud that she didn't even burn any of the pancakes! Let me just say, I was glad for that too!! :P Tim usually "helps" the kids make me breakfast and then bring it to me in bed, but last year the kids did it all themselves. What a nice way to start the day! Then I fixed up some little treats that my Primary kids were going to give to their moms and then got ready for church. The little kids were singing in Sacrament Meeting so that was fun to hear. Then after we got home Tim and I headed over to my friend Melissa's house to pick up Tim's truck that she was so nicely storing for us! (Thanks again Melissa!!) On his way home Tim stopped and got me Panda Express for dinner, which meant that I didn't have to cook!! Yeah!!

Me and the Kiddies - Easter 2005

Me and Jorden -- February 1997

Me and Jillen -- May 1999

Me and Jayden & Jillen -- June 2000 (Yeah, no make-up, I had just gotten home from the hospital after having him, I was a little tired. :P )

Me and Jensen & Jorden (again, no make-up...at least this time I was still in the hospital! :D )

(Wow!! I really need to take more pictures with the kids! :o )

The only damper to this lovely weekend is Jensen...she has been so sick ever since Friday afternoon. She threw up Friday after geting home from school, but I figured it was just car sickness, which she gets quite often after riding the bus home. But then Friday afternoon she got sick again and then kept it up all night and all Saturday. When she got up this morning she seemed to be doing better and by this afternoon she was able to keep some Gatorade and crackers down. But while Tim and I were gone and Jorden was babysitting, she got sick again and then it happened again later. Poor little thing!! I guess she won't be going to school for a day or two. If she's not any better by tomorrow then I guess I will be making a doctor's appointment for her. So far no one else is sick, so I'm hoping that means it's not a flu bug. It's been so long since we had one, I guess it's about time for it to roll back around.

Now, on to the real reason for this post!! :D I know most people think that they have the best mother ever, but they are wrong. Sorry everyone, but I lucked out in that department! My mom is so great!! I was reading my sister Brooke's post and I have to say I agree with everything she had to say. I guess I should just copy it and paste it here! :P My mom has always been such a fun mom. All my friends used to love to hang out at my house because my mom always had fun stuff for us to eat or good ideas of what we should do. Our house was always available for get togethers and my mom never minded having a house full of teenagers, even though I know it must have been hard especially since she had little kids that needed to sleep! My mom would always drive me and my friends to dances and games, even though my brother Brett was a baby and she was exhausted! I remember being away at college and she would send little packages and all of my roommates thought she was the coolest mom because none of their moms ever sent anything to them, and my mom would send enough for me to share. I can also remember boys that I had crushes on in high school telling me that my mom was the coolest mom around and that they all wished they would have a wife like her someday. Um, hello!! They say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree... Oh well!! :D My mom is such a great Granny to my kids too!! She always sends them cards and packages and they are so excited when they see something in the mail from Granny and Grandpa because they know there is gonna be something good in it! I remember all the holidays growing up when she would do fun little goodie bags for us -- she made them so fun! I remember the first time I did them for our kids Tim asked me why I was doing them. I just told him that my mom always did it for me and I loved it, and I knew that she did it because she loved me, so I wanted my kids to feel the same way I did. She is truly a wonderful mother and grandmother and I am so glad to be her daughter!!

My Mom!! Her Senior Year of high school and her with me.

Me and my mom - Homecoming October 1989. In Snowflake it was a tradition that the students, especially the athletes, buy a Mum for their Mom. Luckily my friend Laura had my camera for the day so she got a picture of me trying to pin the Mum onto my Mom. Luckily my mom knew what she was doing! Oh, she also had to pin the boutonnieres on my Homecoming and Prom dates for me! :D I didn't want to risk the blood stains on their nice shirts that surely would have resulted from me doing it! :P

My mom and Jorden - April 2006

My Mom and Jillen - July 1999

My Mom & Dad and Jayden - July 2000

My Mom and Jensen - December 2002

Me, Brooke, Brianna, and my mom with Ellee -- December 2007


I also need to wish Tim's mom a Happy Mother's Day! She is a really great grandma to our kids too. Every time she would see our kids when they were little she would sing songs with them and teach them about shapes and letters and colors. The kids loved it! Tim always talks about what a great cook she was when he was growing up, he loved everything that she made. He still calls her to ask her for recipes...ya, I don't have too many of those. If it doesn't come from a can, a bag, or a box then I probably don't make it. :) She has always been so welcoming and loving to me and I appreciate that! After hearing so many of my friends compalin about their mother-in-laws, I know how lucky I am! She raised Tim to be a good husband and I'm very grateful for that!!

Tim's Mom and Jorden - February 1996

Tim's Mom and Jillen - June 2000


(Man, I really do need to brush up on my pictures!! :( Another thing that my mom excels at! :D )

I hope all the mom's out there had a wonderful day!!

A Photo Buffet...

Well, nothing too awfully exciting has happened around here lately, but we do have a collection of pictures to share. Enjoy!!

Oops!! She did it again!!

And I don't mean Britney Spears! :D Well, Jensen lost another tooth! And just like with the other tooth, she yanked it out herself! But this time she was much braver and she actually let the Tooth Fairy take the tooth!! Oh ya, she decided to keep the first one. I guess it's a good thing that Fairy didn't stop by on the 3rd night afterall!! :P

Oh, so THAT'S what you're supposed to do when you have a hole in your mouth! Good thing that tongue is there to plug it up!! Silly Girl!!

Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!!

So a few weeks ago Jillen and Jayden caught some caterpillars outside and decided to keep them as pets. Oh what a fun few days they had with all the caterpillars races, custom built bug houses, and aphid finding missions. Then the caterpillars stopped moving. I figured that, like usual, they had died. There they sat in their little jar with what looked like mold growing on them. The kids insisted that they were building cacoons, but they didn't look like any cacoons I had ever seen. I figured I would leave them for a week or so and then toss them out once the kids forgot about them. Then, wouldn't you know it, the other night where there once had been 2 fuzzy little caterpillars, 2 gray moths emerged! Jillen was so excited!! We took them outside and one flew right out of the jar. The other needed a few more minutes to get it's wings ready and then it was off! I was sure suprised!! But it was a nice surprise! :)

Fun With Ellee!!

The kids were so excited when I told them that Aunt Brooke, Uncle Elliott, and Ellee were going to be in town for a few days. They were all hoping that Ellee would get to come play, and so was I! We don't get to see them too often so it was going to be a treat! We offered to watch Ellee for a few hours so that Brooke and Elliott could go out on a date and we were a little worried at first that Ellee would cry because she had been asleep and she doesn't know us too well. She was a little nervous for the first few minutes, but then she spotted the little truck on the front porch and she never looked back! Lucky for us we had Jillen, the Baby Wrangler, to keep her entertained. What funny girls!!

She was even giving High-Fives!

And Knuckles!! :D

This was about the biggest smile she gave until her Mommy and Daddy got back, then it was a laugh fest! She sure is a cute little thing!!

In The Army Now!!

My brother Beau has been at Army Bootcamp for the past 2 months and we finally got a picture of him in his fancy camo uniform! Let me tell you, Jayden is sure jealous!! He was wondering where Uncle Beau got his cool clothes and why I hadn't gotten any for him! Goofy boy, he already has about 100 different camo patterns on everything from shirts to pants to shorts to shoes to pillow cases and even his backpack! Beau graduates from basic training next week and then heads off to Texas for more training. We are sure proud of him and all the fun he has been having! But I just want to know -- why don't they ever smile in those military pictures??? We wanna see some teeth, baby!! :D

Another One Bites The Dust!!

Well, the most exciting thing for me this week was the end of my school semester!! I always look forward to when I get to put my school books on the bookshelf. I don't get rid of any of my Interior Design books because they are really good resources and I may use them in the future, but boy, there is a lot of money sitting on that shelf!! It's hard to believe it's been 4 years since I started going to school, and that I will be done in December!! :o It's a little scary too... ;) Only a few classes left and then I'll be finished...for now. :)

Well, that's our life this week. Next week I am gonna try and remember to do a 12 of 12! It's been a while since I did one and I kinda miss them. :P If anyone wants to joy me, go for it!! It's super fun!!

Jensen and Her Birthday...

So Jensen had a pretty good brithday, or at least she says she did! :) Here's proof --

Jensen and her cake. This was the most girly cake that Wal-Mart had, but she was happy with Nemo, especially since it was chocolate inside! :D

She always loves when everyone sings to her...

All the kiddies, waiting for the cake!

Jensen and her birthday presents that she picked out. So yeah, I'm a lazy mom. Since I never know what the kids want, I just take them to the store on their birthday and let them pick out a few things. It might not be a surprise but at least they get exactly what they want AND I don't have to fuss with the whole wrapping paper thing! We both win!! This year she went for Little People, Puppy in my Pocket, a Baby Animals Sitcker Book, and some new sandals since our puppy chewed up her other ones. Plus Aunt Brooke, Uncle Elliott, and Ellee gave her some more Puppy in my Pocket things, and she got cards and money from Granny & Grandpa, Auntie Bri, Uncle Justin, & Britt, and Uncle Blake & Aunt Laurissa.

Thanks everyone!! It was a super fun day!!

Jensen Is 6 People!! Woo-Hoo!!!

Happy Birthday to You... (sniffle)

Happy Birthday to You... (sniffle)

Happy Birthday Dear Jensen... (sniffle)

Happy Birthday to You!!! (sniffle)

Today our little Jensen is 6 years old!! I can't believe how fast time has flown by! What a sweet girl she is! We love her fiestiness, her caring manner, her ability to talk non-stop for 12 hours a day, her determination to do things herself, but most of all her cuddliness and goofiness. What a joy she is to our family! We are sure glad she decided to come and joy us.

We Love You Jensen!!!

Happy Birthday Baby!!!

(I'm still gonna call you that even though you are obviously a big girl now! Good thing you said I could! :D )

She's Not A Baby Anymore...

Well, I think it's official...our Jensen is not a baby anymore. :( For the past few days she has been telling me that she thought one of her teeth was loose, but then she said it didn't wiggle so I didn't pay much attention to it. Well, this morning as I was getting ready to get her dressed for church she came out of the bathroom and said "Hey look, my tooth came out!" I said "WHAT?!?!" and sure enough, she was standing there holding it in her hand. Apparently she felt it wiggling so she went into the bathroom and looked in the mirror. When she saw that it was moving she just grabbed it and pulled! No tears, no blood, nothing! Wow, what a difference from Jillen and her all-day-tooth-loss-cry-fests that we are used to! :D She is pretty excited about getting to use The Tooth Fairy Pillow that all the other kids have gotten to use. Good thing my Grandma Loe was such a thoughtful grandma, making me a tooth pillow that has lasted through not only me but all of my kids! That cute little pillow has seen a lot of teeth, and hopefully will see a lot more. Let's hope the Tooth Fairy has time for an extra stop tonight! :D

Boy, she sure is an independent little girl!


Jensen, the tooth, and the infamous Tooth Fairy Pillow! (Well, part of it anyway!)


The Tooth-Less Wonder!!


Who would have thought I would ever love Brown Eyes so much? Not me, that's for sure!


She is so excited to show her teacher and friends tomorrow at school that she's toothless! And now we wait for that Fairy...

*UPDATE*
Well, just as I was thinking how grown up she is, bedtime rolled around. We had the tooth all tucked into the tooth fairy pillow and I told her to go put it underneath her pillow on her bed. She was in her room for quite a while before she finally came out, on the verge of tears, and handed me the tooth fairy pillow. I thought maybe she had dropped the tooth or something so I asked what was wrong. She said, with trembling lip, "I decided I don't want to give my tooth to the Tooth Fairy. I've had it for a really long time and I'm just not ready to give it away. I don't want her to come." I know I'm a baby but it was all I could do not to start crying right there! :( I asked if she wanted me to write the Tooth Fairy a note and ask if she would leave the tooth. That's what Jillen has done with her last several teeth because she wanted to keep them and in an effort to get her to go to sleep I came up with the note idea. Jensen said that was fine, but she was still a little nervous and worried that the tooth would be gone. She just wanted to forget about it all together! Then she thought about it for a while longer and finally said, "Okay, write a note to the Tooth Fairy and ask her to leave the tooth tonight, but tell her that she can come back in 3 days and get it because I will be done with it by then. I still have to clean it and wash it and get all of the water out of it. See, it has a big hole in the bottom of it and I think there is water inside. My tooth still needs me, it's not ready to go yet. But it will be in 3 days." :D I have no idea where she came up with that but the note got written and an invitation has been extended to the Tooth Fairy to return in 3 days and take the tooth, if she wants to that is. ;)

Oh, this sweet girl, there's never a dull moment with her, that's for sure!! :D

Happy Birthday Brooke!!!

Happy Birthday!!!
Happy, Happy Birthday!!!
Happy Birthday!!!
Birthday To You!!!
Hey!!!

Happy Birthday Brooke!!! We love you and hope you have a great day!!

Brooke as 'Cousin It' --- Brooke and Bri Playing Dress Up -- about 1988

Brooke and Brett -- Sorry Brett... -- 1988

Brooke and Jorden -- 1996

Brooke and Bri -- fun things to do with underwear :) -- 1993

Getting ready for a big date -- October 1997

Brooke with Jorden and Jillen on her High School Graduation -- May 1999

Brooke and the Kids just before her mission -- May 2002

Brooke and Elliott on their wedding day -- December 11th, 2004

Brooke and her flowers, which aren't nearly as pretty as her!

The Hinckley Family -- Ellee, Elliott, and Brooke -- December 2007

Happy Birthday to my sweet sister!!

I love you and I'm so glad to be your sister!!!