Vegas and Solar Eclipse 2012

Eric's sister, Kristen, had her baby this month so we planned a weekend getaway to meet our new little nephew. It was a fun trip. We hung out with the Sundells, Eric's mom and Amber, celebrated Bryan's birthday eating the most delicious tacos EVER poolside, experienced being the dunked on a dunk tank for the first time,  mountain biked (Eric), walked the strip [Eric got to take part in a magic act], visited and swam with my parents at The Tropicana, and drove home at a leisurely pace to experience the Solar Eclipse near Kanarraville, UT.

We took Amber to our favorite little hike near St. George, at Red Cliffs Recreation area.

 It was crazy to see all the contraptions people had made to view the eclipse. Some homemade, some store-bought. We didn't buy anything fancy, but had 3 pairs of sunglasses in the car, and that worked well enough.

 Even crazier than the contraptions were the insane amounts of vehicles parked within 15 miles of Kanarraville. In the middle of nowhere, cemeteries were filled, roads were lined with cars and cars and more cars with people sitting out looking at the sun!

MAY

I've always loved May. Mostly because May was always the end of school and beginning of summer break, which meant lots of school days full of parties, not a lot of homework, and classroom time spent visiting with your classmates and cleaning out your desks. Another reason is because both me and my sister have our birthdays in May!! Our May so far has been a good one.

I ran a 5k. Good since I've ran maybe 5 times since Ivan was born, 3 of those times being about a year ago. Rachel got me excited about signing up for it, but as soon as I started to train for it my "bad" ankle started hurting so I decided to stop. I still had intentions of going to the race but just walking. However, my ankle felt better the week of the race so the night before I decided I was going to run it. Eric and I went out and found me a new pair of running shoes and in the morning Eric dropped me and the kids off.

 Reese woke up 15 minutes before we left and Ivan had to be pulled out of bed, hence the sleepy faces. I did good at the race. I was able to run the whole way, and I actually finished quicker than I had planned.

We had our annual friends Cinco de Mayo party

And I turned 26!!! I thankfully remembered to renew my drivers license that morning, I read a good portion of a book I'm really into right now, "Heaven is Here", and then when Eric got home he took me and the kids to an Italian restaurant for a divine dinner and then to the Park City outlets to do some shopping. Eric themed my birthday gifts around survival this year. I got a gun and a filtering water bottle. VERY excited about both!!

Micah is good to be our photographer most the time. He always has his iPhone with him so when he takes pics he instantly emails them to me. Thanks Micah!! They came up for dinner and a walk last month. I love the picture of Reese asleep and Ivan snickering.

Zoo

I bought a zoo pass this year, which was totally smart!! It was the best deal and we've already used it multiple times. Both Reese and Ivan love seeing the animals (as do I). The best part about the pass is that it allows you to bring a few guests with you. 

Terra is my friend I met in Heber right after Eric and I got married. I get along with people really easily but I've always only had few friends that I'd consider "best friends". It's not that I'm stuck up, it's simply that there are certain people I really click with and it feels effortless to hang out with them. Somehow I'm completely at ease around them and feel like I can discuss even my most secretive thoughts with them. Terra is one of these few. She is what I miss most about living in Heber. She and her kids, along with her sister, and my friend, Kristin came to the zoo with us last month. I love seeing Reese and Terra's girls play together and I'm excited for when Ivan and Ryker start showing more interest in each other (they are only 1 month apart).

 Reese got a bag of pom-poms in her Easter basket this year. I thought we could use them for a craft or something but she LOVES to make shapes with them on the floor and will stay entertained with them for quite some time. This is her and a heart. Don't mind Reese and her usual outfit (only undies).

Ivan, why the rambunctious face?

 Oh, because somehow you were able to climb up onto the computer desk and climb behind the entertainment center.

Happy Birthday Eric

This year was a big birthday for Eric. 35!! So, I thought I'd try to make it extra special by making it a weekend celebration. On Friday I threw him a surprise party. Normally I invite friends for dinner on his birthday, but seeing as it was an extra special birthday we had games too. We played Minute to Win It and it was a blast! It was seriously so funny too!

One game consisted of putting a speedometer on your head to see how many steps you could get in 1 minute and another required you to put nylons on your head with a ball in the end to knock over cups on the ground. There were lots of competitions/games and each of them provided a good laugh.

 On Saturday, his actual birthday, Eric was inducted into Pi Alpha Alpha, which is the National Honor Society at the University of Utah. The ceremony took place at Rodizio's so we got a babysitter and made a date out of it. On Sunday we celebrated one last time, at my parent's house, with a BBQ and triple berry pie.

I'm so extremely in love with Eric. We've faced a lot of trials over the last couple of years, ones that I feel have made our love run a lot deeper than I knew possible. We've also had a lot of good times and made some GREAT memories!! I'm glad he's the one by my side as we go through this crazy adventure of a life, because honestly, with him by my side, even the craziest days are filled with happiness! I love you birthday boy!

sometimes I just need to type...

April has gone by fast! 
- I'm reading "Heaven is Here" by Stephanie Nielson. It is a lovely book and makes me really grateful for my life, especially for Eric, our kids, and the gospel.

- Now that Eric has a job we go on one date a week. I love spending uninterrupted time with my man! ...And coming home to kids that are excited to see me!

- Eric is loving his job. He got to fly on a black-hawk helicopter the other day. Dream come true!! He is busy but enjoys the challenge and the constant list of things to get done.


- There are so many things competing for my time! Some WAY more important than others, but all interesting to me, and thus, in the competition for my attention. I'm trying to learn how to focus on my family more than anything else. I get annoyed with a cluttered house, but I've decided that each day I'll un-clutter something but not fret about everything all at once all the time. If you have kids that are at the age of (and excited about) dressing themselves, climbing on cupboards to get food, getting art supplies out, and capable of finding buckets of toys and dumping them out you know houses don't stay organized for very long. My goal is to spend my time on/with the most important things in life. I want to feel confident that I'm doing my best as a mother. Who knows, maybe in the long run, my house will be better off since I can spend a small amount of time really focusing on one area and get it thoroughly organized before moving onto the next task.

- I'm excited for the May Ensign to come out with all the conference talks in it! I love reviewing them and having them in a 'take with you - readable' format so I can really ponder things as I go through.

- Eric's birthday is this weekend!

Easter 2012

Easter was a lot of fun this year! Reese watched the movie "Hop" 6 times in the 3 days leading up to Easter so she was super in to the idea of the Easter bunny coming to her house to leave treats. She even asked on multiple occasions if the Easter bunny was going to poop jelly beans on her car. Sure enough, he did!

We watched Mormom messages about Christ's resurrection and had an FHE on the Monday before Easter to talk about his resurrection and what it means for us. I love watching as Reese grasps these incredible truths! So, on Sunday, although we did do Easter baskets in the morning, we then went to church and continued to focus on the true meaning of Easter as well.

That evening we went to Lindsay's house for an Easter dinner/ Easter egg dying & hunting/ Birthday for Linds! I'm so glad all of our kids get a long so well. I swear Reese LOVES Oliver! They played together the most that night!

 The dads all got really involved in the egg dying! Eric even searched the web for a while on Easter morning to see what we could bring to make it more fun. He came up with: rubber bands, white/clear crayons, paint, and stickers.

Ivan is OBSESSED with keys. He has a MAJOR breakdown if he finds keys somewhere and I take them from him. It is serious! The plastic keys are fun for a while, but real keys keep him entertained - well - probably all day if I were to allow him to have my keys for that long.

All these ladies are extremely amazing people. I enjoy being around them and learn so much from each of them. It is always a great time when we all get together.

And the kids....they all play really well together, and are each so stinkin' cute!




 
We all adore Lindsay! I'm sure anyone that knows Lindsay adores her. She is such a genuine friend! Happy Birthday Linds! Thanks for sharing your birthday with the Easter party, and always welcoming us into your home!