Camp Rock

Callie's birthday was a success last week. She has been waiting for so long to have it be her day. It's hard being so young and seeing everyone else in the family have a birthday before you. On each of our birthdays she has asked how long it is till hers. We tried to make the day extra special for her because she waited patiently through Andrew, Alexa, Leah and my birthdays without much complaint. We decorated the house, had pink donuts for breakfast, and a new outfit for her to wear. She was a happy little three year old. Opening her new clothes. A Dora skirt, of course. I've really gotten soft in recent months to actually be the one to buy clothes with cartoon characters on them!
Her other presents had to wait till Dad came home from work. Actually, Andrew came home and Callie was gone with Grandma at the Bear Mill making a cute pink birthday poodle.
Jordan and Parker came over in the morning and played for awhile.


We had Callie's birthday party on Friday night. I think she had a great time. She was really looking forward to having friends come over to be with her. I let her choose the menu for dinner: pizza, soda, cupcakes, popsicles, strawberries, grapes, and Hershey kisses (which I forgot to put out; luckily, she didn't notice). We watched the premiere of Camp Rock on the Disney Channel. These girls were hilarious. As soon as the movie started they were dancing and screaming and yelling. It was really loud in our house. They eventually lost interest in the movie, which we knew they would, and mostly just played together. However, since Friday, my girls have watched Camp Rock once a day. So, it was no great loss on Friday- we've made up for it. More Dora stuff... do you see a trend? Her favorite present was a Camp Rock pillow.... the picture of it wasn't great, so I didn't put it up.
A Dora purse from Aunt Andrea. And, Dora underwear. Now, if she would just USE the underwear. Ahhh.... what am I going to do with her?
We looked everywhere for Camp Rock plates, napkins and stuff but couldn't find any. We settled for Dora. Have you had enough Dora yet?
Callie and her cousin Amber waiting for pizza.
The movie started and they were crazy! And, when the Jonas Brothers actually came on screen they were even more crazy. How did I, of all people, get girls who are such girlie girls? I'm surprised no one got hurt with all the jumping around they did.
This was in the beginning of the movie when we had high hopes they would actually watch it. We knew better, of course.
Pink cupcakes with pink frosting with pink candles. Another request from Callie.
Callie's new nightgown after the guests have all departed and she wound down from her eventful day. Happy Birthday, Callie! We love you so much!

Three Years Ago...

I can hardly believe it has been three years since Callie's birth. She came a week and a half early, much to my distress. Yes, I was willing her to be right on time. We were living with Andrew's parents waiting for our house to be done. It was, of course, behind schedule. I knew if she came right on time we would be in the house; any sooner and we would not. So, of course, all my baby stuff was packed in the back of our storage unit when she decided to come. It was around 2 AM when I woke Andrew up and we left for the hospital. She was born at 6AM. We had to borrow a car seat to get her home and clothes to get us through the first week. The house was finished on her due date and we moved when she was just a week old. Through all the craziness of her birth, you'd think it would have been a hard time. But, I remember it was easier than I had expected. I felt great and she was such a good baby; I never had any trouble with her. We were so blessed. Callie is so special. There always has been something about her that is endearing. You can't stay mad at her no matter what she has done. Her smile is contagious and she can melt almost anyone's heart. I love her so much and am grateful to be her mother. Happy Birthday, sweetie!
She weighed in at 6 lbs. 7 oz. We thought she was small... until Leah came along. Yeah, crummy picture of me. Remember, I was in labor in the middle of the night. :)
Living with Andrew's parents had its perks that first week. I never had to worry about cooking meals and there was always someone to take care of Alexa when I needed it. My sister and her girls came to stay that first week, too. (Remember, we were supposed to be in the house by then...) I still remember one of the first nights that my sister stayed up with Callie for hours so I could sleep. I will always be thankful for her. I have such a great family.
Callie was always the best sleeper. She is the one child I could lay in her crib awake and she would just lay there till she fell asleep. She is still a great sleeper.

Happy Birthday Callie, Brielle and Benjamin!

It's always so fun sharing a birthday with others. Happy Birthday to Callie's cousin Brielle, who turns 8 today and will be baptized tomorrow. We wish we could be there. And to Benjamin, our favorite 6 year-old! We have been playing with Benjamin since before Alexa was born. We love you and miss you still. Hope your day was wonderful!

Brielle showing a recently lost tooth.


Benjamin, Alexa, Christian and Callie on their last visit to St George.

OK, I know this is a small picture... those of you who know the Disney Channel will recognize these three boys. My girls are in love with the Jonas Brothers. I'm not kidding. I've got Callie telling me that she wants to marry them and kissing the TV when they come on, Alexa telling me that she loves Nick's curly hair (funny story- we saw him on TV not too long ago and he had gotten his hair cut so some of the curl was gone. Alexa looked at me and said, "What happened to his hair?! Oh, I can hardly look at him." Yes, I am totally serious.) And the real kicker is the new Disney movie that premieres tomorrow- Camp Rock- featuring those crazy boys. Tomorrow is Callie's birthday. She wants a Camp Rock party. So, we are indulging her three year old request and having friends over to catch the new movie. She has been talking about it for weeks... literally. And, whenever we hear one of their songs on the radio (which they know all of them), she asks me to turn it up and she "rocks out". That is what she calls it, not me. WHAT HAVE WE GOTTEN OURSELVES INTO WITH THREE GIRLS?!?!
We'll take pictures of the madness going on at our house tomorrow night. Don't you wish you could be here?

Amber is 8!

For the last eight years, I have had the great opportunity to share my birthday week with my niece, Amber. Her birthday is the day after mine, so we frequently have family gatherings to celebrate our birthdays. Today was one of those great occasions. Amber is amazing- she has lived through more in her little lifetime than most people ever do. Amber was born with Down Syndrome, she is in remission after a long fight with Leukemia, and has had heart surgery to repair holes in her heart. Amber is sweet and loving and concerned for the welfare of everyone else. We are lucky to have her as a part of our family. Today, she was in all her glory. It was so fun to see her so excited about a day devoted to her. Michelle told us that today in church she went around and greeted everyone before Sacrament Meeting and informed them it was her birthday. She was genuinely thrilled at every birthday present she opened and her whole face was glowing. Happy Birthday, Amber! We love you so much! (By the way- the last three pictures here are specifically for Aunt Andrea who couldn't be here today. They are of Amber opening Andrea's gift. We missed you, Andrea!) Amber and the crew of kids... actually I don't think this is even half of them. Well, maybe half.
The two birthday girls... and a bunch of other people who couldn't be nearly as important as Amber and I. OK, that's a little harsh considering two of the other people are my own kids. The girl holding Callie is actually Michelle and Steve's neighbor, Andi. She is everyone's swim instructor and we LOVE her. Callie especially has taken to her. We wish she lived on our side of town so she could babysit for us.
It wouldn't be a birthday if Alexa wasn't helping someone open their present.
Littlest Pet Shop Go Fish. They tried playing before we left... it was a valiant attempt.
Workbooks to do over the summer for letters and numbers. Amber informed her mom that they HAD to do them. And, Michelle said they would because Andrea said so. It was funny.

Happy Birthday to Me...

Yesterday marked the 29th anniversary of my birth... I suppose we can call it a birthday. It was a good day. I went to library where I spent as much time looking through books as I wanted (no, it's not odd- I go to the library with the girls all the time and never get to leave the children's section- I hate that. I really wanted to go and look at a book that was more than 50 pages long), I went shopping and spent as much time as I wanted doing it, Andrew and I went to a movie (Indiana Jones... what did you all think of it? Was the alien thing a little weird?), and then we celebrated with the girls. One of my better birthdays, I think. I spent most of the day wishing that it was my 30th birthday. I know most people have an aversion to getting older- I really don't. With three kids, I think it's time for me to be older. I certainly can't be 23 anymore. So, even if I don't feel older (or even look older for that matter), I am glad to be aging and for life to be moving on- as it should. The girls are all in their Pajamas with wet, out of control hair- maybe we should have planned the eating of the cake for a better time....


Leah can't quite figure out candles yet. She had a hard time with hers on her birthday too. And, in typical Callie fashion, the flame was out before I really got the breath out of my mouth to do it myself.

Our Little Fish

We started swimming lessons this last week. Callie is taking lessons with her cousin Amber and Alexa is taking with her cousins, Breanna and Cade. To my surprise and pleasure, the girls are both doing great. Alexa will FINALLY (this being her third year of lessons) swim underwater from the side of the pool. The really great part about lessons is that they are back to back, so we get lots of playtime at the pool too. The spa has a great kids pool and three other pools to choose from, so we are never bored! It is never crowded, which is a bonus as well. And, we love hanging out with our cousins three days a week. Amber and Callie playing in the pool after their lessons were done.
Breanna, Haylie and Alexa before their swim lessons started. Haylie was filling in for Cade on Friday while he spent time with his Grandpa and other cousins.

Pretty in Pink

We wear a lot of pink in our house- I guess that goes without saying. It is a rare day that one of the girls isn't wearing the color. Recently, the color pink has taken a new meaning in our home. About a year ago, my sister Siri's niece, Ashley, was diagnosed with a rare form of brain tumor. She is Alexa's age and because of this, we had several opportunities for the girls to get together and play when we would go up North. Alexa loves Ashley. There wasn't a single day in the past year that Ashely wasn't mentioned in her prayers. She passed away just over two months ago. Her parents and family members asked that in memory of Ashley people wear pink to the funeral. Hundreds of pink bows were tied around trees in her neighborhood to remember her as well. We did not go up North for the funeral. However, we all wore pink on that special day to remember her. And now, every day that we put pink on in our home has become a time to talk about Ashley. We talk about how we can be more like Ashley throughout our day. She was an amazing little girl. We were blessed to be able to spend time with her and her family. If you want to read Ashely's story, click here.

Up, Up and Away

On Saturday morning when Alexa woke me up, I could hear the familiar sound outside- it was once a strange sound, but now is welcome and fun. Even my kids know what the sound is. Ever since we moved into our house nearly three years ago, this hot air balloon has become a part of our weekends during the spring and summer. It practically floats right over our house and my kids love running outside to see it. The noise is, of course, the hot air that fills the balloon. It floats low enough that we can even see the flame. Alexa wanted a picture on Saturday because Callie wasn't awake to see it. By the time I grabbed the camera, it had floated farther away, but it had been right over our backyard. So fun!