Stop and smell the ... Tulips

A couple weeks ago we took my mother-in-law to the Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point. It was my first time, and I was very impressed. I love nature, and even though all of the nature was man made and designed, it still gave me an appreciation for the natural beauty of the earth.

Sarah was in charge of the camera for most of the trip. Here are some of the pictures she took.




Mike chose his favorite plot of earth in the place ;)


Some pics of the kids




And of all of us

An end of an era...

As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. Michael Jordan retired after a successful basketball career (and then did it again and again) John Stockton left the game after cementing his place in basketball history. Phil Jackson retired after winning numerous NBA championships. (and then came back and did it again) I will never see Jerry Sloan mouth a swear word at a ref again after he retired. Kobe Bryant finally quit. (wishful thinking ;)

And so it was that last week ended my short, yet incredibly "successful" career as coach of PK13, also known as the Blue Jays. Though it saddens me to see this come to an end, I have so many memories to take with me. Holding the hands of cute little Brexlyn and Eli that gave me flashbacks to Sarah's first year. My squad of super three year old boys that were so excited to get the ball that they would steal it from each other as much as the opposing team. Spending each game encouraging my son to kick the ball, and being completely ignored. ;) Giving lots of high fives and shouting Ra, Ra, Ra Blue Jays. Giving stink eyes to the coach that stood in front of our goal and blocked our kids just because we were "winning." Having my friend tell me her son was playing soccer in the backyard and before kicking the ball said, "this ones for you Liz." Getting to watch Sarah score four goals in the first two games and telling me how happy she was that I got to be her coach.

I'm not sure if I'll check the assistant coach box again, but I had a ton of fun coaching my kids this year and am grateful the other parents didn't seem to mind either.

Here is a picture of our team. A couple kids were missing, and one refused to be in it, but we had Corbin, Sarah, Eli, Steven, Malcolm, Dax and Brexlyn. (not pictured, Cohen, Chris, Ethan) The coach gets their own picture, so my dad and niece Angelina joined us.


Here is Sarah



And Steven- You may notice a difference in his attitude between the group picture and his single picture. I bribed him.


If you're ever bored, and want some excitement in your life, check the little box. :)

Happy Mother's Day Weekend!

This Mother's day was really special for me, because I got to spend it with my mom. I'm not sure when the last time this happened was, so it was a treat for me. My mom lives in another state, and I don't see her as much as I would like. I wish she would move closer. (hint, hint)

The weekend mainly revolved around my sister Kristal and her husband Brandon graduating from the University of Utah. (Go UTES!) Kristal received her bachelors in elementary education and got hired as a second grade teacher in Salt Lake City. Congrats Krissy! (in case it seems strange that I'm getting pictures at my sister's graduation, my mom gets a little camera happy)






After that we headed to the park for my niece Ashlyn's b-day party.




The next day my family came to support my short lived coaching career. (or to see my kids play, either way) I'd like to think that Adam is looking at my coaching skills, smiling, and thinking, "someday I hope she coaches me." ;)




Sunday was a very special day. My precious little niece Isabel was blessed in our ward. Ash and Dave asked Mike to perform the blessing, and it was very sweet. Isabel is a beautiful little baby and is blessed with great parents that love her and are completely obsessed.




My niece Angelina came out with Ashley for the weekend. She and Sarah love spending time together; they are a week apart, and lost their first teeth at about the same time.


Happy Mother's Day to my mom, and all the other wonderful mother's in my life!

Who gave her permission?

I'm not sure where she got permission to grow up, but I know it wasn't given by Mike or myself. We got her school pictures back and she looks older. I used to think that I'd be happy when she went to kindergarten, because I would get more time with my boys and she'd be having fun, but I know I'm going to be sad.


Yesterday she had her dance pictures. Her outfit is similar to the one she wore two years ago, but she looks so much older.

Here she is two years ago


A couple weeks ago I started paying Sarah an allowance for helping me around the house. She also mops Mike's parents house each week and I giver her money for that as well. She was excited to not only earn money, but to also be able to pay her tithing. We filled out a slip and she asked to take it to him immediately. I told her she could wait a couple days until church. She was very proud to be able to hand the envelope to the Bishop even if it only contained some change.


I'm not sure where her inspiration for this outfit came from, but she loved it. She's started to care about what she wears. She asks for my opinion in the morning and in true big girl fashion hardly ever accepts my suggestions.


I know I can't stop time, but I really wish it would slow down. I only have my kids all to myself until they're five. That isn't long enough. I really need to make sure I'm taking advantage of every day I have with them, because five years isn't very long and then they're in school. I hope this doesn't sound too negative, I just really love all the time I have with my kids, and am going to miss it when it's cut due to school.