Conner's Sandbox

So, this is Conner's Sandbox. I was so excited when we moved into our house to have a completely finished yard with no dirt for the kids to get messy in. You see, I HATE DIRT! I hate messes of anykind but especially the ones that require washing and hosing of kids.

Conner and his buddies Hailey and Valerie discovered HEAVEN! Behind our church is a volleyball pit filled with sand. For days he would come home from school telling me he was going to the church yard to play. He finally wised up and took his sand bucket one time and brought some sand HOME!

Oh boy, yes he is a total boy and loves his dirt! I really missed the mark with this boy. He loves to color, play playdough, play legos and video games but dirt is his true love!

OOOPS!!!! Watch out for the noggin!

Just a warning, shoes and a trampoline plus two rambuncious boys are not a good combination. I swear Kaden doesn't need to play football to have a constant injury to his head. Somehow it just always gets in the way!

I don't know if you can tell from the picture but he had some pretty bad swelling on one side of his head, I was pretty worried about a concussion but I'll never know if he had one or not......I just kept him awake, gave him some Motrin and kept asking him questions till he totally crashed about 3 hours later. I sure do love this kid....injuries and all!!

What a beautiful Fall!

I just love these 3! They make everyday worth it!

I have to be the luckiest girl in the world to have this amazing man to spend eternity with! Now if we could just relax and enjoy life a little more.....you know, let the work slide a little.

I'm Back!!!

I feel like I can never write a post without a picture so I never say anything, well that's gonna change. It's been since JUNE since I last posted and a lot has happened since then. I'm not going to try and catch up but just hit the high points.

Kenzie is a Sophomore at Burley High School, in the marching band and jazz band and she LOVES them both so much!!! She has grown into such an amazing, beautiful young lady! I'm so proud of her. Kaden is in 7th grade at Burley Jr. High. He is doing great in school as usual except one particular class....drama! What? He's very dramatic! :) I think it has a lot to do with the new teacher they had to hire last minute for this school year. He loves to read, read, and read some more! I am running out of books for him to read. I think he's read every fantasy fiction series ever made. He is such a great kid and Loves to hang with his friends every chance he gets. Conner is in the 1st grade this year! He loves recess and school lunch! Who likes school lunch? He starting to read and although he doesn't love it yet.....his big brother is a great example. Wow, all my kids are in school, I never thought I'd see this day. It does get pretty quiet around the house during the day but I am able to get a lot done AND grab a nap almost every day.

Jeff is busy as usual but he did make time for some fun this summer. We got a boat and we took it out every opportunity we got.

Life is good! We are all healthy and looking forward to a Wonderful Holiday Season this year......snow and all!

My easily entertained child!

I think since, and because of my illness, Conner has learned to really entertain himself. Of course he loves to have friends around but if not, he's okay with that too. He will draw for hours, on ANY piece of paper he finds especially his homework. What a doodler! Loves Legos! Loves video games! Loves playdough! Only problem, he doesn't love cleaning up! He just makes me smile!

Are you kidding me?

This kid can fall asleep ANYWHERE, and has! You name it, while sitting reading, on the stairs, in the bathtub, while brushing his teeth and this one....within about 10 minutes after leaving our house....just on our way to dinner!

Kaden's Special Day!

What a special day for our family and Kaden especially! He's been anxiously waiting for this day for a long time. On May 2, 12 days after his 12th birthday at approximately 12:00 pm, he received the priesthood! It was so neat to have his dad ordain him and have both of his grandpas there. Definitely a day we will all remember! Congrats Kaden!

Temple Square

Makenzie and Kaden are very familiar with Temple Square because we went there so often when we lived in Utah. Conner on the other hand hasn't been there much. Since we were already in Utah we decided to go spend Sunday on Temple Square and show him around. During Conference he asked us if it was "real" if the people were real and the place that they were. What better way to show him how "real" it is than a tour of the Conference Center. Wow, that building is so beautiful and so amazing!

This is one of my favorite ways to signify our Eternal Family! Wrapped in the arms of our Saviors love! How blessed we are to have these amazing opportunities so close to us and so available to our children!

Our first Lagoon trip of the season!

What better activity can there be to do after Tax Season ends? Why head to Lagoon of course! This will be the 3rd year that we have had season passes and the best part about this year is that cousins got them too!!! My kids just love to be with their Boehlen cousins and they are super excited to be able to go to Lagoon with them all summer (because the cousins live in Farmington)!

The weather couldn't have been more perfect! It was an absolutely gorgeous day to spend outside! That was some great luck!

Remember the Days!

While Kenzie was gone to dance competition in Boise, her best buddies Camille and Sierra, decorated her room! She was very shocked and very happy when she came home to her surprise.
It makes me reflect WAY back when I was in high school. I remember doing fun things like this whether to celebrate something fun with friends or asking out "that special boy" for a dance. Why does life have to become such a responsibility? The spontenaity and fun of that time of life is so short lived! I hope my kids enjoy every single minute of it!

Elder Carey, we'll miss you!

Elder Christopher Carey (my nephew)

Stephanie Carey (my neice) and her boyfriend Bobby

My nephew Christopher has been called to serve in the China, Hong Kong mission. We had my whole family (my parents and four girls) together up in Seattle for his farewell. What a great weekend, the Carey's sure know how to put on a party!!!! Chris will be an amazing missionary and already had his first baptism when he was a senior in High School. The people in China will be amazed by his height too, like 6 ft. 6!!! Good luck Elder Carey, we'll miss you!

Kitchen Mini-Remodel

When we bought our house I knew the kitchen was one of the first changes I wanted to make! The large, inefective light box, the small island and dark, dated countertops had to go. I absolutely LOVE the finished result! Recessed lighting and pendants over the bar! Unercabinet lighting! New granite sink and beautiful faucet! Fabulous new giant island and new countertops! We still need to finish the tile backsplash and change out appliances to stainless steel as they quit working (that may be a while) but I am loving cooking in my new space!

Christmas Eve

It was a quiet Christmas Eve at our house. We enjoyed a great dinner together, Kenzie did an amazing job on our program, onto Christmas pajamas and then off to bed!

A Few of My Favorite Things

I took this idea from my friend Julie's blog. I just love seeing a group of things that make me happy!
Although Christmas is over, now I can look back at all the things that made me smile for a few weeks!