Summer Break is ON!

The last week of school - it was rather crazy and insane.  Monday was the elementary school talent show - Evie was performing in it, so David and I went - and sat through all 2 1/2 hours of it.  Some of it was pretty cute and some of it was fun.  Evie did a great job!  Eileen and Anna had a band trip for most of the day and had a great time, but came home rather tired!   We had the Perkins family over for dinner - her husband is out of town and so we invited her and her kids to join us for dinner and FHE.  It was really nice!

On Tuesday, Evie had her year end STUCO trip.  She had a BLAST - they were gone all day and did all sorts of fun stuff. James had piano lessons that day, but Evie had to miss, since they still weren't back.

Wednesday morning, I met with the primary presidency to prepare and discuss.  What a wonderful group of women!! I'm so excited to get to serve with them.  I will be working with the cub scouts and 11-year old scouts.  It will be a blast!  I left that to go pick up Anna and Eileen who got out early, then headed home for a late lunch and a nap for David before getting the elementary school kids.  In the evening, the youth activity for the night was the seminary graduation, so Dan also needed to go, So I took the younger 4 kids to the pool for a bit.  The weather is finally getting nice and warm for the pool!

Thursday was the last day of school.  I met up with the other music ladies to figure out the music stuff for June, then  I watched the Perkins boys while their mom went to her PT.  Then we picked up the kids from school.  After dinner we headed to the local ice cream shop. They do free jr sno-cones on the last day of school.  The kids had a blast and we had some yummy cold treats on a hot day!

Friday was a day of packing and prepping.  We did laundry, packing and preparing food stuff and straightening up the house some.  The kids are so excited about this trip!  After dinner, we went to the pool again for an hour or so before heading back, putting the kids to bed and finishing the packing as much as possible.

Saturday morning, we loaded the food and kids into the car and headed off.  The trip went pretty smoothly.  David did as well as could be expected.  We stopped at a park and had a yummy lunch and stopped at IHOP for dinner.  After snacking in the car all day, I didn't expect them to eat much dinner, but they polished off pretty much everything!  We got in at a half decent hour and got the kids to bed before passing out!

Today we went to the Sable ward for church and it was wonderful to see old friends and catch up!  Then in the evening, Kay and Reggie came over for dinner and games.  It was so good to see them again!!!

Now we are looking forward to lots of fun time with family and friends next week!

Before the Storm

Apparently I didn't do a good job of taking pictures this week, but except for this weekend, this week was pretty slow - it felt a bit like the calm before the insano-storm.  Next week is the last week of school and I'm already exhausted looking at the calendar.

Friday night, we took Eileen to see Avengers: Endgame.  Eileen cried for almost the whole 3 hours.  But we had a great time together as usual.

Saturday morning, Anna and I went to go work out with Grandma, then I dropped Anna and Evie off at Sandi and Jon's house for Kai's birthday party.  We spent the rest of the afternoon getting the house and everything ready for Dan's birthday party.  His surprise birthday party was a success, we had a great turn out, but still ended up with a bunch of leftovers!

I got a new calling this week - in addition to being a chorister in Sacrament meeting, I will be serving the kiddos in primary as the second councilor in the primary presidency.  Last Sunday was the calling of the presidents of all the organizations, this week was the calling of the councilors.  It's all going to be wonderful!

Now we just gotta brace for next week and all the crazies of the end of the school year plus getting ready for our trip to CO.

Excitement!

Monday was beautiful - so we spent our Family Home Evening time working in the front yard together.  We put stone around our flower bed and around the tree and planted some flowers and got the front of our house looking much nicer!  It's so exciting!  

Tuesday I drove over to Frisco to meet up with Lori for lunch.  We had such a great time!  She could just spare a lunch break, but it was so great to get to see her! 

The weather this week started out great and sunny, but it took a turn for the cold and the last half of the week has been chilly and rainy.  David still always wants to take his walks, so unless it is actually raining, we are out and about most mornings and some afternoons.  Evie put him in Aaron's coat to keep him warm one afternoon and I just thought he looked so cute!  

Friday, we had friends over for dinner and games, but by the time dinner was over, we were all tired, so we just sat and chatted for a bit, but we still had a great time with them! 

Saturday was rather crazy.  Dan too James and Evie to the PJ's and Pastries thing at the elementary school, but there was hardly anyone there, so they got some donuts and headed home.  I had our Stake Women's conference in the morning.  I was singing during the meeting with a few other ladies - it went really well and they were a wonderful group to sing with!  After, Anna had a friends birthday party - she was there all afternoon and late into the night!  But she had a blast.  Dan took the van to get a movie player put in, while he was gone, James fell off his scooter and split his chin open, so I took him to the urgent care to get stitched up - just 2 stitches on his chin.  Evie was so cute and got very solicitous and nurturing with James while he went through this.  He was a little nervous, so while we waited for the doctor, I told him about my stitches and how it would all happen.  He was so brave and did a great job - Evie came to help and was fascinated watching the stitches get put in. 

Then in the evening, Dan and I went to the temple, we did some sealings and got dinner and headed home.  It was a wonderful way to spend an evening together.  

Today was Mother's Day.  Dan made my Heart Shaped Biscuits breakfast - it was wonderful - and gave me a neat book about women teaching in the church.  Church was wonderful and a bit crazy.  I've been called as a ward chorister and got to start today.  It was a lot of fun - David stood on Dan's lap and helped me direct the music from the pews.  It was really cute! 

In the afternoon, we played some games and took some naps and had fun together.  We learned and shared and read.  My mom came up for dinner and we had a wonderful time with her.  I am truly so blessed by the amazing women in my life! 

I'll finish by posting this bit of fun - David can be so fun to play with - and while he can also be a bit of a tyrant, he can be adorable too!  I'm so glad these kids are part of my family!

Big Changes

We have had a crazy busy week.   Monday night for Family Home Evening, we went to Eileen's induction ceremony - she was inducted into NJHS.  

They were supposed to dress up for the ceremony - so they put on these dresses - dresses that have been worn by both me and my mom!  

Tuesday was a typical Tuesday with piano lessons and institute.  

Wednesday was the full busy day with the kids - activity days, scouts and Young Womens.  It was a bit bitter sweet knowing that it was the last such event with our ward they way it is.  

Thursday we all headed to the high school for the year end band concert.  Both the girls bands performed very well - it was a fun evening and David loved clapping and pointing out his sisters on stage.  It was really cute - Eileen even had a little solo-type part and she did super well on it!!  

Friday, we had our ward family party - it was going to be a camp out, but the weather threatened rain all week, so it got moved to Melissa High School and we had a fun dinner together with a fun slide show remembering the ward fun time - but Dan and I left with the kids a bit early so we could get them to bed at a decent hour, and so by the time we left, we had just barely gotten to about the time we moved into the ward :)  It was a fun evening though!  

 Saturday morning was crazy busy, but at least we finally got to have a bit of a quiet night - We got up early to clean the church building, then I had a rehearsal for a musical number next weekend.  Dan took the kids to the library.  Anna and I went to work out with Grandma and Aunt Sandi.  Anna then spent the rest of the day with Sandi and her kids.  Dan and I took the younger 3 with us to Home Depot to get some stuff for our flower bed and then to Costco before heading home and starting dinner.  When Sandi dropped off Anna, we invited her and the kids to stay for dinner since Jon is out of town, then after we did scriptures and prayers, we sent the kids to bed, then I made a dessert for Sunday and then we crashed! 

As part of the Come Follow me program, we have been asking each of the kids (except David) to share something they have learned from the weeks's lessons.  It's been great having them participate more!  James told us about how the Lord doesn't care about what we look like on the outside - he cares about our hearts - so Dan got his face all dirty with frosting to illustrate the point - James thought it was hilarious!!  

This morning, we got up bright and early for church.  There was a big meeting with the two Melissa wards for the purpose of creating a new ward.  We are now part of the Anna ward.  It's exciting!  It will be a big change, but it will be amazing.  After church, we headed to our friends house for lunch and games.  We made a special gluten-free dessert to bring with us since half their family can't tolerate gluten.  It was a lot of fun!  

After, we headed home and some of us took naps, then we had a lesson about sheep and shepherds and apparently dinosaurs...  It was fun and a great lesson from Dan!  Then we spent the evening outside enjoying the amazing weather!  We played on the trampoline, played catch and then did our family scriptures and prayers out on the trampoline.  After getting the younger kids to bed, Dan and I played Code Names with Eileen and Anna.  the teams were Dan and Anna vs. Eileen and I.  We did 6 rounds and each won 3.  It was such a wonderful day!  Truly the Sabbath is a delight! 

Sunshiny Days

The weather here was a bit stormy early on, but it got beautiful and sunny for the rest of the week - so we enjoyed it!  David doesn't feel like his day is complete with out some bike ride or walk in the morning, so he goes a bit nuts when the weather is bad.  

Monday was the usual - laundry, shopping, folding and family night.  Tuesday was institute and piano lessons, Wednesday was mutual for Eileen and Anna - I dropped them off and made a Hobby Lobby run to grab some yarn to finish the last baby blanket for Dan's co-workers.  :)  

Thursday the weather was finally sunny, so David and I went on a bike ride to the park.  He had tons of fun and got to play with some other little kids there, plus Evie's class was stopping there for lunch after a morning field trip, so we got to see Evie and give her a hug before we headed home to get David down for a nap.  It was a fun day at the park.  David wanted to try the big swing - and he liked it until he fell off.   

Friday, was nice quiet family night together.  Saturday was a busy and fun day - Anna and I met up with my Mom and Sandi to go work out.  Anna's really been enjoying getting to come with us. Then we spent the afternoon cleaning up the house before we had dinner and got the kids all ready for bed.  Then Anna babysat and the kids watched a movie and had some treats and Eileen and Dan and I went to see Captain Marvel - we all really enjoyed it!  We had a great time together, then headed home and to bed! 

Sunday was a rather eventful day at church.  We got to listen to some wonderful talks in Sacrament meeting, then Bishop dropped a bomb before singing the closing hymn and sending us off to classes.  Next week we will have a combined meeting with Melissa First ward and a new ward will be made.  It's excited and sad all at the same time.  After, we had wonderful afternoon of baking and playing games and crafting together, talking about the gospel and vising friends. 

David is so funny.  He's gotten very good at communicating in some ways and is starting to put sentences together - he sings ALL THE TIME and it's adorable!!!  And he's started doing this when we say family prayers. 

I wonder where he learned it....

Easter Week

It's been a wonderful week!  Starting last Sunday, we spent some time each day talking about the week leading up to Easter Sunday - we went day by day and talked about what he did and what he taught.  It was wonderful!  

David is so funny - he loves stuffed animals and calls all of them "babies"  Our mornings generally are quiet and include lots of walks and bike rides - at least when the weather is not rainy.  

The kids love to play on the trampoline with mom and dad - and David especially wants me with him on the trampoline with him every day - even when it's wet. 

And when he does his hair get so super static-y!!! 

Tuesday was institute and it was wonderful.  Wednesday was young womens for Eileen and Anna.  Thursday morning, I spent at the grocery store with David getting stuff for Easter weekend.  

The kids had Friday off school (and they have Monday off as well) So we hard boiled some eggs and the kids had fun decorating them when David napped.  Then in the evening, Dan and I went down to the temple - we went this week instead of next because the temple closes on Tuesday for 2 weeks.  We wanted to make sure we got both trips in this month.  

Saturday dawned bright and sunny.  I took Anna and we met up with my mom and Sandi to work out. I think Anna had a good time - and we were all tired after, and sore the next day - After working out, we met at my parents house to celebrate Sandi and Taz's birthdays and do an Easter egg hunt and swim in the pool.  It was a bit cold, and non of the grown ups wanted to get it, so David didn't get to swim either, but the kids were all determined to go swimming and they loved it.  We had a nice afternoon together.  After the egg hunt, Sandi and my mom and I all went through some of the stuff from Grandma Penny before heading home. 

David LOVED the egg hunt. He kept walking around pointing at the eggs and saying "egg egg!!" and he loved picking them up and putting them in his basket.  The kids all had a great time and it was a fun morning.  After, we did our come follow me lesson and had dinner before putting kids to bed.  

David has loved having his siblings around this week - especially Anna - he can be heard all over the house any time he is awake calling "Anna Anna Anna!"  It's usually me who gets all this attention, so it's been funny watching him dote on Anna the last few days! 

Church today was wonderful.  We had some great talks and lessons on Christ and the Atonement.  The ward choir did really well - they sounded beautiful!  Our afternoon included napping and some family time talking about what Easter is really all about.  Then we watched the Tabernacle Choir's Easter program before sending the kids to bed. 

Music and Fun

We've had a busy weekend - though the rest of the week was pretty normal.  Monday was Family Home Evening, school, laundry and the usual.  Weather was beautiful for most of the week and David wanted to be constantly out side - he and I went for many walks this week!  

When we weren't going on walks, he wanted to be out on the trampoline.  He's so cute when he jumps on it!  On Tuesday I had institute and Evie and James had piano lessons. 

On Wednesday, Eileen and Anna had Young Women's activities.  Thursday was the calm before the storm, we had a nice quiet evening together since I didn't have rehearsal.  We had a Come Follow Me lesson and had a fun nice night together. 

On Friday the craziness started.  We had the sister missionaries over for dinner - which was right when we got home with the kids from school since they need to have dinner between 4 and 5 now.  So we had a quick dinner of pizza and root beer floats and salads, then I took Eileen and a couple friends from church and dropped them off at youth conference on my way to choir practice.  Eileen had a good time, though we didn't make her stay for the dances they had on both evenings.  I had rehearsal until late that night, but it went well! 

Saturday morning, I dropped Eileen and her friends off for the second day of youth conference on my way to work out with my mom.  It was a great work out, but I was tired by the end!!  I got home in time to see the kids for a bit before David went down for his nap and Dan took all the other kids but Anna to the library.  Anna and I worked on her doll's outfit for a bit, then I got ready for the concerts.  The concerts were amazing - it's has been such an amazing experience to sing with this group!  The music was amazing! 

This morning, I got up bright and early to rehearse with the ward choir and prepare to sing during our ward conference.  The choir did a great job!  Our bishop and stake president gave some wonderful messages, then I spent some time with Anna finishing up her doll's jumper and the rest of the afternoon recovering from Saturday!! 

General Conference and More

It's been a fun week!  We've kept good and busy.  Monday was the usual crazy laundry, school, Family Home Evening and such.  Tuesday was piano lessons and institute, then after, I went to clean the temple.  It went quickly since we had a great turn out, and it was wonderful to be able to serve in the temple!  Wednesday the kids all had their various activities at the church and had a great time.  Thursday I had a long choir practice getting ready for our concert next week!  I'm so excited!  It's always awesome when we finally get to rehearse with the orchestra! 

Friday was a fairly typical day, I hit the grocery store for a couple things for this weekend, and we had a nice evening all home together.  

Saturday morning I went to work out with Mom and Sandi - it was fun and tiring, but great.  I got home just in time for the first session of General Conference.  Evie made pancakes for us all for breakfast - she poured and flipped them all by herself - she was so proud of herself and she did a great job!  David loves pancakes. 

We made some 7-layer dip again for a snack during the second session.  David really likes chips and dip too...  We struggled to keep him from double and triple dipping and eating all of it.  He also loves olives and there were a couple extra that he had fun eating too.  

The first day of General Conference was amazing!  This is one of my favorite times of year!!  After, the second session and before priesthood, Eileen had her Theater Showcase.  The kids in theater had practiced and put together performances to show to everyone.  Eileen sang "Never Enough" from the Greatest Showman - I may be a bit biased - but I still thinks she was the BEST!!  

Dan went to priesthood session while I got the younger kids to bed, then after he got back, we watched the new Jumanji with Eileen. 

Sunday was another amazing day of General Conference.  We had a wonderful day of listening, followed by an amazing evening of talking.  James sat downstairs with us and watched all 4 sessions - at 7 years old - he sat and watched 8 hours of general conference as well behaved as any of his older siblings.  David was less well behaved - but still cute.  :)  Then after getting the younger kids to bed, Dan and Anna and I played Skip-Bo - and I got trounced - repeatedly.... 

Lots of music

Well this first picture is what happens when older siblings feel like providing blackmail photos for later - he has glittery eye shadow on too...

This has been a busy, but fun week.  Anna had Soccer tryouts, Eileen and Anna had band UIL and their bands both did really well!  I even got to go listen to Eileen's band playing.  Evie and James had piano lessons.  James had a class musical presentation that he had lines in.  It was really cute!  I had rehearsals for our upcoming concert on both Thursday and Saturday morning.  I went to work out after rehearsal on Saturday and - that was on top of the normal everyday life stuff.

We had an insane hail storm here - the sounds it made on our windows made us nervous about having broken windows - and I was sure our poor new van was going to be dinged up badly.  We had neighbors have their fences blown down and Sandi and Jon ended up with some bad hail damage - but thankfully, our van escaped any noticeable damage!!  Thank goodness for tender mercies!!

David loves going for walks outside - so since weather was mostly nice (during the day at least) we went on lots of walks and played in the back yard a bunch, but weather seems to be getting colder again, so he's not going to be happy about that!

Friday night, Dan took me out for a date - we drove 5 minutes to the Malt Shop so we could wait half an hour for milk shakes (they lost our order!) but they were sweet and gave us the bigger size for free.  And they were yummy and we had a fun time standing around and chatting!

My friend from Colorado has been making these gorgeous wreaths - and she sent me a couple - they finally arrived on Saturday, and we pulled them out and hung them up!!  The kids loved pulling them out and checking out everything about them. 

On Saturday, Dan and I ran down to Home Depot - we were looking at borders for our flower beds, but didn't decide on anything yet.  David found the riding lawn mowers and he loved them!  

We were sitting together for scriptures and prayers and David was teaching his siblings how to do baby shark by singing to them and moving their hands for them - it was adorable!! I tried to get a video of it - but as soon as I pulled out the camera, he had to come over to see it.  I turned the camera around and managed to still get him to sing to himself and I still think it's so cute!!  

On Saturday evening, we had friends over for a grown up's game night - we had a great time playing Code Names and eating yummy treats!  It's been fun getting to know Lia's family - and having friends in the neighborhood!

We had a great sabbath!  Our Sacrament meeting and combined meeting were wonderful!  We had a great turn out for ward choir - Suzie is doing such an amazing job at getting people to come!

Back to routine

This week has been getting back to routine after spring break.  I was sore still after working out with my mom last week - but it faded away in plenty of time for me to get sore again this week  :)  

David still wasn't feeling great and had a fever still on Monday, so I took him in to the doctors office just to make sure there wasn't anything that needed to be looked at- he's been particularly grumpy and that combined with the high fever made me worry a bit.  But it was nothing more than a virus, so we take care of him and wait for it to pass.  

This is the kids leading the music for family home evening. 

Dan's company had a big release this week - and since it was a software based release, it was mostly on his shoulders - so he has worked alot this week - including pulling an all-nighter at work on Tuesday evening.  Anna had a track meet on Tuesday too, but the poor kid didn't get home from that until nearly 11pm - so she was exhausted.  Eileen was willing to watch the kids so I could go to institute - but David was really cranky about going to bed and wouldn't let Eileen put him down - but he would let Evelyn.  

Wednesday, I ran down to Allen to stop at the Hobby Lobby for a skein of yarn that I needed to finish a baby blanket, then I met up with Dan for a quick lunch - but he's been rather crazy busy all week.  In the evening, we had Scouts, and Activity Days and Young Womens.  

Thursday evening I had rehearsal - it's been so much fun singing with this group - I'm looking forward to the upcoming concert - but I can't believe we are only a few weeks away!  

Friday morning, the elementary school was doing an awards ceremony for the UIL kids.  Evie was getting an award for getting 4th place in Spelling.  She did a great job!  Only 2 kids at her school placed at all and she was one of them!  David was a bit cranky by the end, but I could hardly blame him since we had to go straight there after dropping Eileen off and didn't get much breakfast first.  

In the evening, Dan and I went to the temple and did some sealings, then we met up with people from Dan's work - they wanted to do a going-away party for one of the ladies there.  We all went to a Karaoke Bar - Sandi and I had fun singing together and I gave the lady leaving her baby blanket (now on to the next one) but Dan and I were tired and while I love singing, we would both rather be home.  So we headed home.  :)

Saturday included some cleaning, working out with Mom and Sandi, enjoying the beautiful weather, a birthday party for the younger kids and grocery shopping for next week.  We had a good time together, and slowly but surely, Dan is recovering from his all-nighter.  :)

Today was wonderful.  Church was wonderful - the primary kids sang a beautiful musical number and they did a great job!  The talks and lessons were so great and I chatted a bit with some of the ladies in the ward about getting their daughters into MCO with Eileen next year.   Choir turned out well - we had a decent showing and they sounded great - even though I dropped a new song on them for Ward Conference in a couple weeks!  Our ministering brother stopped by to visit today - it was really nice to have one coming again!  He was a really nice guy - his family is new to our ward and his wife came to choir today!

Spring Break

Well it may be hard to tell from this picture, but the kids are on spring break this week.  Eileen and Anna really enjoyed their time in Colorado - They loved getting to see family and going on walks with Grandpa.  They loved getting to see old friends.  I couldn't get them to send me any pictures though (despite frequent reminders) But Grandpa sent me this one! 

Here in Texas though - we had a drizzly cloudy first couple days, but by Wednesday afternoon, it was clearing up and becoming a beautiful day!

Evie and James have been having a lot of fun crocheting.  They have used up a bunch of my leftover yarn, lost half my crochet hooks and made a TON of oddly shaped little crocheted bits that are all over the house, but they had fun and kept quiet enough to let me sleep in a bit!  :)  This is Evie's pig that she made up all by herself.  She then moved on to making a doll - I need to take a picture of it - she's pretty cute - now she wants to make clothes for the doll.

Thursday, we took a couple of Evie's friends down to the zoo.  It was my first time driving the new van in traffic and busy parking - the zoo was packed!  It wasn't too bad!  I didn't hit anyone!  The kids had a great time at the zoo and had fun looking at the animals and riding the carousel and then on the way home we stopped for some treats.  They all had a great time and It was a lot of fun!

Friday the girls were home - but they had been up since early to catch their flight, so they went to bed pretty early - Aaron really wanted to watch Newsies during his hour up, so he and I watched it together - he really seemed to like it!  

Saturday morning, Dan had to take the van in - there had been a recall on some parts, so we had to have it checked - it ended up being fine.  He took David with him to hang out while they were checking it.  I went down and met up with mom for a session with her personal trainer - it was fun - and great to spend some time with her - but I am SO SORE today!  :)   In the afternoon, after David's nap, we ran by the library so Aaron and Evie could change out books, and then we went to the park.  Even the kids who grumbled a bit about going seemed to have a great time - we went to a different park than we usually go to which made the younger kids happy.  David loved going down all the slides.  Even Koopa came and had a (mostly) good time.  It was a beautiful day and fun to all be together!

Church today was wonderful!  The choir sang today and they did a wonderful job!  The talks and lessons were great!!  This past week I helped a lady in the ward by taking care of her cat while they were out of town.  The cat was a real sweetie - she was a bit shy at first, but by the end, she would come up to me and let me pet her.  They were really kind and gave us some yummy bakery bread as a thank you!  We had a great afternoon, playing games, crafting together, making music, and listening to some conference talks.  (and a bit of a nap and some ministering)  All-in all, it was a wonderful Sabbath day!

David has had a fever since Saturday evening, and as a result, he's been cranky (he's usually very sweet) he couldn't make up his mind - he would ask for one thing and then change his mind the next second - but spent most of the time after his nap wanting to play the piano (and getting mad when anyone else tried to play) and wanting to play Anna's trumpet and singing.  He's already such a musical kid!!

A week with the Jones'

We've had a pretty typical week.  Monday was full of laundry and grocery shopping and school and such.  Tuesday was a school day and piano lessons and institute.  Wednesday was our ward's February Feast party night.  We brought some yummy potato salad and had fun chatting with friends and eating pizza.  We really have a great ward and we all had a fun time.  Evie invited a friend from school to come with us and Dan was excited because it meant that we got to use our van to carry our whole family and one additional person!  :)

Thursday evening, was the elementary school open house and art show.  We got to see the kids class rooms and a bunch of their work, and some of their art work.  We made all the kids come to support each other - I think Eileen and Anna were less than thrilled, but they dealt with it.  After, I headed down to choir practice.  We had sectionals this week - it was a great chance to dig into the notes and get things nailed down.  It was a lot of fun!  James gave himself a hair cut - it's interesting.... and needs to be fixed... 

Friday was the kids last day of school before spring break!  I babysat a couple kids in the ward for a friend, and we had a fun time playing and jumping on the trampoline - David was sad to see them go.  :(  In the evening, we picked up a babysitter for the younger kids, then took Eileen and Anna down to my parents house to get ready for their trip to Colorado with Grandma.  Then Dan and I headed down to the temple for a session.  We grabbed some dinner to go on the way home so we could get our babysitter home at a reasonable hour. 

Saturday was a unusually relaxed day.  I got to sleep in some, then we spent the morning enjoying the gorgeous weather.  The kids washed the cars, David and I walked up and down the sidewalk.  After David's nap, we went to Costco.  Dan finally got his TV that he's been wanting for 5 or more years now.  He's very excited!  :)  We had a yummy dinner together and we watched a video about the new Temple opening in Rome Italy.  Then Dan and I enjoyed the new TV by watching a movie together. 

I've been trying to make the girls send pictures of their trip - but most of what I got today was pictures out the window of the plane.  Eileen was excited to be able to see the plane's shadow.  So i sent her a picture of my shadow.   He sure is a cute shadow! 

Church today was wonderful - there were some wonderful talks given and a great lesson in Relief Society.  We had a pretty good turn out for choir and Dan made yummy lemon bars for a treat.  The girls were supposed to spend today at church in the Sable Ward and with friends from Aurora - but I can't seem to get them to send me pictures of much.... 

In the evening, we had some friends over for dinner and chatting - we had a fun time together getting to know them a bit better! 

Track and Family Fun

Monday was a momentous day - our old van finally died.  In fact, it died multiple times on the way home from school pick ups - thankfully they happened on small empty roads, so it wasn't a big deal and we didn't have far to go, so we still made it home.  That night while I folded laundry, Dan spent his evening getting us a new huge van.  We have upgraded to a 12-seat van and the plan is to have this last for the next 10 years or so until we can downgrade.  The kids have all been super excited to have a new van where they can spread out and not sit next to each other.  

Anna had a home track meet after school on Tuesday, so we bundled up and headed out to the field to watch her run.  She did great and got a PR in her mile time again - she's almost under 7 minutes for her mile!  We then booked it to piano lessons for Evie and James.  I had institute in the evening, but ended up having to leave early because I had taken the car, but hadn't left Dan the only key for the van, so he couldn't go pick Anna up from her track meet.  Her phone had died so we had no way to contact her and figure out how things were going, so I headed over only to find out that there was still a half hour left to go in the meet.  Oh well - I just wish I'd brought a warmer jacket!!  

Wednesday was the usual with Young Women's in the evening.  Thursday was much the same with me having choir in the evening.  After choir, I had a good time chatting with Jenny - it helped me figure out what options we might have for Eileen if we have her sing with the choir next school year. 

Friday we got to go to the Melissa Middle school play - they did Mary Poppins.  A bunch of the kids friends from our ward were in it.  They all did a great job and the kids all had a lot of fun - David even did a really good job even though he was up way past his bedtime! 

Saturday was busy, but fun!  Dan took the older girls and went to the temple - they met up with Grandpa Cox and did baptisms and then went to lunch after.  I took the younger kids and went to a baby shower (our ward is raining babies!)  I just barely finished up the blanket for her the night before!  We all had a great time!  In the afternoon, Dan went to go get a second key for the van so we don't have a repeat of Tuesday where I strand him with out a key....  Then Dan took the kids to the library so I could make dinner in peace and quiet and with out cute little boy help! 

Church today was wonderful - we really had a great Gospel Doctrine lesson on the Sermon on the Mount - it's amazing how much there still is to learn from it!  After church, we had choir, but we didn't have much of a turnout.  :(  Maybe because it's fast Sunday.  Before choir started - I found David sitting on a chair reading a book - it was so cute!  He is so full of personality!