The Father and His Three "Old Enough" Sons Campout!

The annual Fathers & Sons Campout was held last weekend. We had lovely weather and the boys had a fabulous time getting in the dirt, playing with fire, hiking, cooking over the fire, telling stories, playing catch, burning sticks and the occasional marshmallow. What a handsome crew! Good times were had by all!

Now thats some talented marshmallow eating. Notice how he is using only his teeth so that his lips don't get sticky. Very tricky!

It's Great To Be Eight!

Happy Birthday Seth! Seth turned eight on May 3rd. Here is a little Birthday interview:
So Seth:
How old are you now? 8
What is the best part of being eight? You get a birthday, and you get baptized. Oh yea and Cub Scouts- I've already got my Bobcat!
When are you getting baptized? June 21st in Farmington, Utah. You are all invited.
How did you prepare to get baptized? I read the whole Book of Mormon.
What was your favorite story in the Bof M? The stripling warriors- because they listened to their parents and not even one of them died.
What are some things you like to do? Play games, soccer, soccer dodge ball on the tramp, board games and card games, and wrestle with my dad.
What is your favorite food? Hawaiian Haystacks.
What is your favorite song? Called to Serve.
What is the nicest thing you have done for someone lately? I made Kaleb's bed for him.
What is the last chore you did? Dish part
How are you like your dad? Well Dad says I am smart- and he is smart too.
How are you like your mom? She is smart too.
What is your favorite book? Boxcar Children
What is your favorite movie? The Lord of The Rings
What is the scariest thing you have ever done? Gone straight down on a roller coaster- Sheikra at Busch Gardens.
What is the best present you have received? Well let see, the most important is my scriptures, but my favorite is the BB gun.
What is the key to happiness? Living the gospel.
What is most important to you? My family.






Seth wanted to do some fun things for his birthday. We went bowling, then miniature golfing and then took a few wild rides on the go carts.

For a cake he wanted a bug cake. If you look closely this cake is covered with worms. He and all the kids decorated it. We had a super fun couple of days.

Eight Great Things about Seth:
1. He is crazily funny.
2. He is always Happy.
3. He has skills- athletic and numchuck
4. He is quick to forgive.
5. He is very intelligent.
6. He is very handsome- his eyes always sparkle.
7. He is a great brother, plays well with everyone.
8. He wants to do what is right.
A conversation with Seth: One night I was talking to the kids about being leaders or followers. I asked each of the kids what they thought they were. Brig said he was a leader, Katry said she was a leader. Then Seth said that he was a follower- he paused for a second and then said, "I follow Jesus". And he does! We love you Seth!

Some Thoughts on My Mother!

This took me little longer to put together than I thought- BUT better late than never. Happy Mother's Day Mom! I love you!
Things I Heard A Few Times From My Mom:
1. Remember who you are
2. What would Jesus Do?
3. Pretty is as pretty does.
4. You have to sacrifice for beauty. (I remember the first time I heard this I had to wear panty hose that only came part way up my thighs)
5. No singing at the table.
6. Don't lean back in your chair.
7. You can do anything you put your mind to.
8.Always leave things better than you found them.
Things My Mother Did Better Than Your Mother:
1. Early morning scriptures- Mom was not initially a morning person- but it was important and so she did it.
2. Sew beautiful clothes- crochet beautiful afghans-embellish beautifully with silk ribbon embroidery. I got my love of creating with my hands from watching her make beautiful things.
3. Really tight- no hair out of place pony tails.
4. Gourmet meals- Always. Every meal is always well balanced with perfect color selections.
5. Magnifying every single calling and making it better. She serves with All her might, mind and strength.
6. Live the gospel
7. Forgiveness- She is better at this than anyone I know!
Something My Mom Couldn't Do Better Than Your Mom
1. Let someone else drive - without going crazy inside.
Things I loved to Do With My Mom When I Was Young.
1. Color- she always had beautiful pictures.
2. Read- whether it was her reading to us or all of us just reading and enjoying a book in the same room.
3. Hear her tell stories about family members and have her teach us songs like-Puff the Magic Dragon- especially on long drives.
4.Play -I Spy
5. Playing volleyball on the same ward team.
6. My Mother taught me how to cook, clean and sew and work hard . She prepared me in every way to be a mother- I am so thankful for that.
Things I Love to Do With My Mom Now:
1. Look at cookbooks
2. Cook
3. Watch movies
4. Shop for crafty things
5. Learn from her great example
Special Memories With My Mom:
1. Sitting on the lawn and eating a whole watermelon together on a Sunday afternoon and talking away.
2. Mom always made holidays and special days very special. I never realized how much work it was until I tried doing it on my own.
3. Finding a beautiful dress on my closet after a difficult break up with a note that said- Sometimes we need something beautiful to realize how beautiful we are inside. It still brings tears to my eyes.
4. Mom letting me cry my heart out at the swimming pool- after another disappointing relationship. She just came over and patted my head, then let me cry. She just let me know that she was there for me and then let me get it all out. It was the perfect response for me in that situation.
5. Mom always encouraged me in whatever I wanted to do. She was my biggest fan and my best cheerleader.
6. I loved that Mom placed a lot of trust in me- it kept me honest and more careful with my actions when I didn't want to be.
How My Mom Made Me Feel:
Like I was the most wonderful, talented person in the world. It was a real shock to go out in the world and find out I wasn't. :)

When it comes to Moms- I won the Lottery. Of course this is incomplete of all the great memories and things we have done together, it is merely a sampling of how much you mean to me and how much my life has been blessed because of you. Thank you with all my heart! Heather

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all you great moms out there. My cute hubby and kiddos are in making dinner- so I have had a chance to somewhat catch up on the last month of happenings around here. I even had a delicious breakfast in bed, beautiful flowers and the sweetest little cards from the cuties who qualify me to be a mom. I also got a nap and I get to pick all the family games today- Bonus! I love my family so much- they are my everything. I want to share a favorite quote about mothers. This is from a book I read, but I can't remember the tittle. The author is a woman named Polly. She absolutely sums up how I feel about being a mother. "I just want to keep doing the most important thing, the thing that I love above everything else. I just want to keep finding ways to do it better. All my life, for the rest of my life, I want to keep being the finest wife, the most loving and caring mother- and I hope, someday, grandmother, it is possible to be. To me, nothing else holds a candle to this in terms of satisfaction and importance. Anything else I do is just my way of saying thank you for the privilege of being a mother." Here are some more pictures of our latest creation on his first day in our home.

Surprise! Surprise! We couldn't believe our eyes!

SO ....There we were sitting in the front room chatting away- when a big RV pulls into our culdesac and stops in front of our house. Two of our neighbors own RV's so I figured it was one of them. So imagine our surprise when Brig announced that none other than our cutest ever Thompson cousins were jumping out of this home on wheels. Ahhhh! We raced to the door jumping up and down and so super excited. They drove all the way from Florida to spend the weekend with us. The Thompson's rock! Thanks so much for a fabulous weekend.

Friday night we headed out to Katry and Seth's soccer game and then came back for a Thompson's Special Pizza Party. Delicious! Then we all crashed!
We had soccer games aplenty on Saturday as well-Brig had a tournament in Louisville. So we all loaded up in the RV and drove on up. Brig's team thought he was super cool for arriving at the game in style. We are definitely spoiled now and will not be able to endure another tournament without the luxury of an RV. We played games and watched videos and took a nap. We also spent a few hours in a play place jumping on inflatibles. Party!

The Thompsons had to load up and leave all too soon- We cried as they drove off- but we have fantastic memories. Thanks so much for giving us a weekend we will never forget! We love you guys!

Grandma is Great!

Grandma came and stayed with us for 10 Fabulous Days! Thanks so much for the yummy meals, the clean house, all the fun games, the wonderful gifts, great chats, and allowing so many much needed naps. We loved having you here and our bonus day! Thanks for all your help! We love you!