Happy Birthday Jonathan!

Jonathan turned 2 years old! I still can't believe when I was pregnant with him that we were crazy enough to want to be surprised about the gender of the baby. Even when the Ultrasound Technician asked me, "Are you sure you want to wait to find out?" I immediately said, "No!" But Wade laughed at my response and said, "Yes, we're sure." Because we HAD decided together, but at that moment, I was like, "Hey, we could change our mind and have him tell us right now." :) But I am so glad we were surprised because it was pretty special to finally find out we had a son.
Jonny has always been ALL BOY...until recently that is, when he discovered princesses. haha Kim says that just means he has a sensitive side. ;) He is crazy about trains, animals (especially horses), dinosaurs, cars, balls, and playing outside, usually in the dirt. He's our little monkey, climbing and getting into anything and everything. He's full of energy and joy, and amazes us everyday by how much he's learning. We love you Jonny. Happy Birthday buddy!

Random Fun

This post is so random, but filled with lots of fun memories we enjoyed over one weekend.

After we returned home from grocery shopping at Harmons, Jonny got carried away with the Bob and Randy stickers. He's such a character! I still don't know if he put them on himself, or if his big sister helped a little. What do you think?

On Friday and Saturday, I planned a Scrapbook Retreat at our house with some of my favorite girls-Kim, Becky, Christine, Alix, Jenica, and Kristal. Since it was Kristal's birthday, I made her a princess cake, and when she arrived, we all jumped out and yelled, "Surprise!" It was awesome! While we were partying away and working on our projects, Wade and the kids went to Tooele for the night. He was so happy to have that one-on-one time with his dad.
Saturday afternoon was the Zions Bank Bowl-A-Thon. So Wade and the kids bowled their little hearts out to raise money for youth programs. (more pictures coming soon!) I joined them for the last ten minutes after my Scrapbook Retreat was over. It was fun to see Emily so confident at bowling. With help from the bumpers, she scored over 100! :) Go Ems!

That night, Wade and I picked up my great uncle and aunt and took them to dinner to Cowboy Grub. I can't believe we have lived here for 4 years and have never been there before. It's got to be Salt Lake's best kept secret! The food was really good, but the best part was being there with my Uncle Roy and Aunt Arba. After almost 70 years of marriage, they're still so in love and show it. You can't help but want to be more loving to each other after watching their example.

Sunday afternoon, I drove Uncle Roy and Aunt Arba to Orem to visit my Grandpa Callister in his assisted living center. They were so happy to see each other! If anyone knows my grandpa, you can believe he was in tears throughout the entire visit. But so was Roy. It was neat to feel the love that exists between the three of them. They shared story after story with me about my grandma. Arba said that when she lived with my grandma and grandpa when they were newly married, that she NEVER once heard them speak unkindly to each other and that they showed greater love to one another than any other couple she knew. What a tribute!

Quick trip to Logan

Our family made a quick trip up to Logan last Saturday to attend the wedding of one of Wade's best friends from high school. Before we left, I had fun trying a new hairstyle on Emily.While we were in Logan, we stopped by to visit my good friend, Brittany Beasley. I love this girl! We served together in the Relief Society Presidency in the college married ward in St. George. Since Aiden and Emily are only months apart, it was so sweet to see them play together and for Britt and I to reminisce about how we were pregnant at the same time four years ago.Just for fun, here's a picture of Emily and Aiden from February 2006. Can you believe how much they have both changed?

After the wedding, oh man, we had the best time dancing! Wade and "the boys" busted out their dance moves. He really enjoyed being with his high school buddies again. I was glad we could be there to support Craig. And it was good to see Caleb and his girlfriend. But hands down, we had the best time with Tyler and Heather that night! There's just a cool bond that exists when you're parents. We were all busting up laughing at our crazy kids!

Here's Heather and Sophie on the dance floor. That little girl sure can groove!

Sophie taught Emily how to spin and they didn't want to stop...they just kept going and going and going for like a 1/2 hour. Too cute!

Wade and Jonny joined in on the fun and they were all spinning together. The girls were like, "Hey, that's our trick! Who taught you how to do that?" ;)

I was a kid once, too

Thanks everybody for your advice about what to do with Emily during quiet time. After seeing my mom's comment about the messes Jocey Anderson and I used to make, I opened up my scrapbook and actually found some cute ones. It helped me realize that I was a kid once, too, and that life is too short to get upset over the little things.

Jocey lived next door and was my best friend growing up. We had a lot of crazy adventures together. This particular day, we turned this cardboard box into a car and pushed each other around the house for hours!

And here Suzie Fatheringham and I are sneaking into the frosting. Like my mom said, I guess it serves me right that Emily and Jonathan make their fair share of messes. I was the same way. :)

So this afternoon, when I found this surprise waiting for me after quiet time, I just laughed. Emily must have had a blast making a playgym out of her bedroom furniture. She told me, "My bed is a slide now, mommy. And it's fun."

And that's exactly what childhood should be...fun.

So no more mean mommy. I'm just going to chill and let it be.

Don't read this if you're hungry...

I made this cute Dinosaur Cake for the Scout Dessert Auction last Saturday. Every little boy there had his eyes glued to this cake. I was really excited when it sold for $60! Wahoo!

Wade made his famous no-bake cookies...so yummy! Pumpkin Cake Delight

Jenica promised she would make it for me someday since we're buddies...and I'll hold her to that. It looks delicious!

Chocolate Booty
Sugar Cookies

Fruit Pizza

Dutch Oven-Baked Strawberry Surprise

Double Chocolate Cake

The lady who made these cinnamon rolls is a baker at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, where The Garden and The Roof restaurants are located. Since I teach her voice lessons, she's baked me dinner rolls before, and I told her if she makes me some cinnomon rolls just like these, she won't have to pay for lessons for a whole month! :)

This one's for you, Jodi! An older couple in our ward bought this cute Easter cake for $50 and then walked over to our table and set it right in front of Emily and said, "This is for you, sweetheart." She was ecstatic, and Wade and I were so grateful they did something like that for our little girl.

Here's the Ashton family appreciating my dinosaur cake. The clean-up crew ;) Don't you remember doing that after ward activities when you were little? They are definitely having a good time!

Crazy kids jumping around on the stage = perfect ending to a fun evening!

Monkeys and Fishies

Last Tuesday, Jenica and I went for a walk around the neighborhood with the kids. While Emily was the "leader" in front, Jon and Addie trailed behind, holding hands, and giggling. They were too cute!

The next day was the last Wednesday of the month, so it was FREE DAY at Hogle Zoo. Since Elaine and I have been teaching the kids about wild animals in preschool, it was a perfect field trip opportunity. We arrived just as the gates were opening and enjoyed a few hours of fun before it got too busy.

My little monkeys swinging on the railing in front of the monkeys.

admiring the Zebras
Addie and Jonny took turns pushing each other in the stroller. Sometimes, they were both in the stroller, and other times, neither of them was in the stroller. Half the moms there were pushing empty strollers because this is the "I do it myself!" stage, right? ;)climbing on the tiger Whenever we go places with friends, the girls like to walk together and hold hands. Sweet Etta will usually start it, and Emily just loves it.
Jon wanting to climb up and play with the squirrels

Thursday, we played at the pool and Jon was quite the fishy. He loved the water! Here he's trying to "get da bubble."

1....2....3....

Jump!

Draper Temple

Wade and I attended the Open House for the new Draper Temple on Friday, Feb. 20. It was a special experience to be able to take our children and show them how brilliant and beautiful the temple is-inside and out. We also had our little friend, Addie Hiatt, with us, so you can imagine the big smiles we got from everyone as we walked through the temple with three young children. They thought Addie and Jon were twins and would comment on how reverent they all were. (Thank goodness we had practiced!)

It was sweet to see the children's faces light up as we entered the Celestial Room, and they saw the awesome chandelier hanging from the ceiling. The room was so gorgeous and peaceful, and it felt a lot like heaven being there with our little family.

I'm so grateful for the blessings of the temple that make it possible for our family to be together forever. I don't know where I would be without the Gospel. It gives me hope, even in the scary world we live in, and it gives me joy, knowing our Heavenly Father has a plan for us.