Change at Last!!!

First Day of 2nd Grade

First Day of Preschool

Right Before Dance -Love the PINK

At Dance Class - forgot the "good" camera

At Dance with Azelynn and Haley - CUTIES

Kendalyn is already into her 3rd week of school, but Adri just started yesterday, so I thought I would wait and do it together - thus saving precious blog space:)
We are LOVING school - really, all of us. It was really time to get back into a routine and get away from each other a bit - we were all getting summer - cabin -fever. Kendalyn is now in 2nd grade and she loves it. I really can't believe how old she is getting - it has happened so fast. Adri started her second year of preschool with Miss Penny and was so excited that she has been asking me for 2 weeks "when is it my school?" She also started her first Ballet class on Monday and was so thrilled to go. She was so cute to watch - I just loved seeing her smile continually. Grady had his first mommy-and-me music class today,(sorry no pics:) but I can't say he loved it. He just kind of walked around and looked at babies and people - such a silly boy. I liked it though - it is fun to meet other moms and hang for a bit with our kids. I love watching my kids doing things for the first time and seeing the joy they get out of little changes in life - it is so great to have CHANGE - I love it!!!

Happy 31st Spence

So I just wanted to give a shout-out to Spence on his B-day, since he is off camping for a few days. I was having a hard time with a gift this year and I couldn't help but think that it has only been 10 years, and I still have a ton of b-days to think of in the future - ugh! I will try not to get cheesy and sappy but you never know:) Over the last 10 years, I have gotten to know Spence just a little and there are a few things that I have learned about him:
1 - He is VERY organized and can't stand to have anything (and I mean anything) out of it's perfect spot
2 - When I am out of town, he will ALWAYS clean the house perfectly and have it smelling good when I return - (I love this one:)
3 - He loves sports - watching and playing and is a HUGE Utah fan - I have since been converted as well.
4 - He loves to play games and win - yes, this has been a source of some contention in our home, but he has learned to tone down the competitive side with me a bit.
5 - He is kind of a money Nazi (is that okay to say?) - by this I mean that he likes to track everything we have spent, and then put it in some money program on the computer. He really loves this so I just go along with it and it is good for me since I tend not to think about things like that
6 - He is a great dad and husband and I know there are a zillion more things I could write about Spence that are funny and fabulous, but I think it would bore all but me:) I love you babe - Happy Birthday!!!

Breaking Dawn - a few days of nothing but GOOD reading...

SPOILER ALERT!!!
Such a Great BOOK!
Okay, so I have been a bit of a "bad" mom since Sunday, because darn-it-all these books are so impossible to put down. I have not wanted to do anything but find out what is going to happen to the Cullen's these past few days. I have even had dreams about Indians and Vampires! But, I am so happy with this book... It couldn't have turned out better in my mind. I loved the pregnancy even though it was a bit weird-didn't see that one coming. I was so sure Bella had no shot at actually becoming a vampire, that I really wasn't in a rush to read this last book. But WOW - I am so happy. I really wasn't a Jacob fan at all before, but he came in quite handy for this one. And Bella and Edward can now live FOREVER with their little fam - YEAH - let me know what you all thought! Were you all "bad" moms as well???

A Little THURGOOD Fun!

We had my family's annual Thurgood Family Reunion this year in August. This only includes my immediate family members and is always a blast! We all decided to go to Phoenix this year to visit my brother Chad and his wife Patty and their cute kids, because they ALWAYS have to come to us. Anyway, to make things a bit more bearable, Spence took Grady on the plane (a very wise decision), my sister Cindy also flew, and me, Kendalyn & Adri, my mom and dad, and my brother Brent (who has no wife yet:) all went in my big car, and my brother Troy and his fam drove in their car! It was quite the drive (over 13 hours to get there), but so fun. The girls were great (thanks to the DVD player), and we had fun just being together. We had a blast in Phoenix and really, it wasn't THAT hot (just over 110 each day:). I love you fam - can't wait for next year!!!

Adri (Otherwise known as Bongos)!

If you know anything at all about Adri, you know she is just a tad on the goofy side. She likes to talk, act, and be CRAZY. My bro. Brent even taught her how to say Crazy with a rolled rrrr - and she does it all the time. Anyway, the other night after she had gone to bed, she came out to tell us that her ear hurt. It being the Olympics and all, we had no intention of going upstairs for an earache right??? We told her to go get a drink and it would feel better. Well, she gets a drink, but then at the top of the stairs she says to us "water don't make it better" - completely matter of fact and kind of ticked off too, and we died laughing. We really couldn't stop because she is right after all, water won't help. And just the way she said it was so funny. Anyway, we love our sweet, CRAZY Adri...

Park City

So, a few months ago, Spence and I decided that we would go to Park City for one of our family vacations this summer specifically for the close factor(no plane ride)and being that Grady is, well Grady:) What we didn't realize, was that we were going to Florida in June and that it was not going to be very relaxing trip (Grady). So when it came time for Park City for a week, we were really not in the mood for no sleep (Grady) and continuous running (Grady), but we did it anyway. It did turn out to be a very fun and short trip though (we came home 3 days early). My brother Brent (visiting from N.Y.) and my sister Cindy both came up and stayed for a few days and we had an excellent time with them. The best part would have to be the day we spent on the Alpine Slide/Coaster/Bungee Trampoling/Rock Wall Climbing/& other fun rides. The girls had a blast and even Mr. Grady Boy seemed content to sit in his stroller. All in all a good trip and a lot of fun to be had in Park City - who knew...

Hmmmm!

So, lately I have decided that boys are so much more crazy and wild than girls. Plenty of people have told this to me before, but I never really realized just how true it was. I mean, I could have the girls sit on my lap and read a book or do a puzzle and they loved it. They would even watch short Elmo clips at this age,(almost 16 months) but oh no, not Grady. He is 100% always on the go. I am so tired every night by his constant activity, that I can't wait for Spence to get home and takeover. Spence and I literally don't want to go anywhere that will require our attention for long, because we know it has to go purely to Grady. His nap is my only saving grace and boy do I love that nap. The only bad thing is that he is just recharging and is even stronger when he wakes up:) If you know me, you know that I am excited about the day when he is older and "easier", so Spence always sings me the song "Don't Blink" as a reminder about how much we will miss this age (will I really?)and I know that I will- I mean, just look at this cutie...

My Few Minutes on T.V.!!!

Grandma and I on our "soft"seats - really a hard bench


The "girls" during a commercial break


Me, Melissa's sister, her mom, Melissa, Todd, and Grandma(sitting)

So, last week, my cousin's wife (Melissa) was on GTU (Good Things Utah) doing a recipe, it is a morning talk show here. She has written a few cook books, and the latest is 101 Things to do with Gelatin. Anyway, I have always wanted to go to the show, so this was my chance. I took my cute Grandma with me and we had a blast. I loved being in the audience and seeing how everything works - so fun. Melissa ended up doing a great job and she looks great on T.V. too. Grandma was lucky enough (she thinks it was unlucky:), to sit behind and in front of some birthday girls in the audience and they show them at the end of the show, so Grandma was on camera for quite a while. She didn't really like that, but it was fun and my kids loved seeing us on real T.V.!!!

Fun with the SNOW's!

Landon, Adri, Kendalyn, Samantha, Julie,- Grady was having a nap!



We had Samantha and Kendalyn taking these shots for us - pretty good right?




Five years ago, when we were living in L.A. we ended up going to a South Pasadena ward, and we were lucky enough to meet some great friends- the Snow's being one of them. Kendalyn and Samantha had to be friends because we were - and they still love to see eachother. We have tried to connect once a year since then, and I think we have only missed one year (am I right Holly?). Anyway, Holly is from Idaho, so they usually pass through here, and luckily, they came a couple of weeks ago and stayed the night and went to church with us (they even came to the WHOLE thing:). We always have such a great time with them and a ton of laughs. We have 6 (soon to be 7 - not me, Holly) kids between us and it is fun to see them together. Anyway, we miss you guys and just wanted to say THANKS for stopping in...

A Happy 4th!!!

We had such a great 4th of July this year! My parents (from Idaho), my Grandma Petterborg, and my sis. Cindy, all came to celebrate with us. We went to the Kaysville Parade,(that gives out more candy than I can comprehend) which we have only been to twice in our 5 years here. I loved being up front almost as much as the girls. My parents and grandma had a little more of a distant view, but in the shade at least. We had such a great relaxing afternoon and then a dutch-oven cookout that night - YUM! We had fireworks on the street with the neighbors (a tradition), and then we went to the Kaysville fireworks which is set to music and so great. Such a fun day and such fun people to share it with - thanks fam...

The Host!!!

Wow!!! So, I think I may be the only Stephanie Meyer fan left that hadn't read this book weeks ago, but there you go. My friend Amber let me borrow it last week, and I really couldn't put it down. I LOVED it! Thanks Amber. What a crazy, and fascinating concept - just thought I would share the love.