Fathers & Sons

Every year, from the time the boys are 18 months and in nursery, Matt loads up the camping gear and his boys and goes on the Annual Fathers & Sons Campout.  They have a wonderful time every year and if they come home with clean faces and don't stink like campfire...I know something went seriously wrong!  But, that has never happened, so no need to be concerned!  You can tell as you view the pictures that they start off clean and by the end...their faces are clearly dirty!  Even Mason's nose, in some of these pictures, has nice big boogies running down it...so make sure to look closely!

Here are some of the hightlights of nearly every camping trip...

Fishing

Playing with Nature:  sticks, weeds, etc...

This year they made a rope swing ~

a real hit with the boys!

Is Camping complete without fruit snacks? 

We don't eat them often, so they are a real treat!  (Of course I am confident that it is the worst time to eat them...considering the possible lack of teeth brushing while camping!)

A little relaxing in the shade...

Hanging out with some good friends: 

The Dobb's & The Johnson's

Getting ready to eat breakfast, the next morning.

Making boats...

A nice country breakfast with pancakes

and the works...

Some sleepy, worn out boys!

I love this picture! 

You gotta give it to the men ~

making good use of their tools! 

A power tool camping?...for breakfast? 

Gotta love it!

This is the famous Grant Stoddard Teepee. 

Poor guy, has 3 daughters, but all the other boys love it!

The boys wanted to do some painting this year ~

Budding Artists!

Would you look at that! 

An Indian Paintbrush flower!

How fitting!

Tradition usually takes place at the

Jemez Mountains.

It is a beautiful area!

The finished Artwork!

Look closely...see the dirty face?  It is hard to see

through the cuteness!

What a treat it is for these boys to get to go with their dad on a special camping trip each year.  They have a great time!  We miss them terribly, while having a girl party of our own, and we know that they secretly wish we were with them camping as a family.  We love you boys!

Carter's 1st Grade Field Play Day

The last week of school, I had a great opportunity to help out with Carter's Field Play Day. There were lots of parent volunteers, so I had a great time taking pictures of Carter and his friends.

They started out with a tug-o-war. Class against class, boys against girls and many more.
Smile ~ if the girls are winning! :)

Dig in ~ if you feel your hands slipping!

Jump ~ if you come across an orange cone!

Run ~ if you want to pass the baton! Scream ~ if you get a wet sponge thrown at you! (Aiko-Carter's 1st grade girlfriend.)

Catch it ~ if you dare!

Wonder ~ if you don't know what to do!

Slow down ~ if you don't want to spill! (Levy)

Pour ~ if you have any drops left! (Alyssa P.)Skip ~ if you don't care! (Isabella-Carter's other 1st grade girlfriend.)

Go again ~ if you like getting soaked! (Trenton)

Walk ~ if you don't want to run! (Tyler)

Try ~ if you are brave!

Grin ~ if you can bare it!

Soar ~ because you can!

What a great day out on the field! Fun times, getting to know Carter's friends and watching them play and enjoy each other.

Mother's Day

Oh, to be a mother! There once was a time in my life when I wondered if this would ever be an option for me. I dreamed as a little girl, while playing with my baby dolls, about being a mother and having little babies to cuddle and take care of. Then when I was first married, I realized what a miracle it was to even get pregnant. It took over 3 years for us (with the help of fertility drugs) and by our 4th anniversary, we finally had a little baby boy. Oh, how our lives changed in so many ways.

Being a mother was so much more than I ever imagined as a little girl. I had no idea how much love I could feel, how much sadness, how many millions of emotions I could possibly go through as a mother. One thing I truly never imagined was how hard it would be to be a mother. To feel so responsible for everything your child eats, drinks, learns, says, does, wears, looks at, feels and experiences! To feel like a failure when things go wrong, and kids exercise their own agency as they develop their ability to make choices.

Almost 8 years and 4 kids later, those feelings have magnified in so many ways, but so has my confidence in the knowledge that I am not alone in motherhood. There is a Father in Heaven who knows these children better than I, and he has blessed me with them, for they are His. Because of this, He will help me understand them, get to know them, and love them for who they are. His children. How grateful I am for this help!

This day, I am honored to be a, their, Mother.

I ventured off to church with some of the kids and got to listen to Carter sing with the primary children. It took him many years to go up and sing on this day because he was so shy. I think the first year he went was when Chloe became a Sunbeam and drug him up with her, because she wanted to sing! :) It is such a special feeling to hear the children sing to their mothers, definately the spirit of Heavenly Father reassuring mothers of the great work we are doing. Chloe was sick so she stayed home with Matt and had a special suprise for us when we got home.

This was the sign on the front door as we entered.

Chloe was dressed up in her Mulan costume and was my hostess. She welcomed me to the K-mono Cuisine and seated me to the table. The rest of the family joined me at our fancy home-made restaurant. We ate delicious curry chicken and rice and had a great time talking about the day. The kids made my day special. Matt always helps them learn to appreciate what their mother does for them. I received a nice tomato plant from church and special letters from the kids. What a wonderful day, even with sick kids.

How grateful I am to be a mother! And how grateful I am for my own mother who showed me by her example how to be a mother. Love you Mom!

Organize Life

So, I have been thinking about how to get my life organized. I have always considered myself a pretty organized person with order as kind of a talent. I don't know what has happened, but I feel like every aspect of my life has become so chaotic that I don't know where to start putting things back in order.

Maybe this blog post could be something like...the reader chooses 1-3 things that helps you feel order in your life and post them as a comment. Maybe then I could post again with all the ideas and then try them out. Hopefully, helping anyone else who might be struggling with the same thing.

Any ideas???

Trek

Matt and I have recently been called to be Ma & Pa for our Stake Youth Trek. We are really excited for the opportunity. I have never personally been on a trek, but my parents went on several, including the one going right into the Salt Lake Valley. So, I feel like I should have some experience. Honestly, I am nervous and wondering if I am "strong enough" to do it.

We have been doing a lot of pioneer talk in the last week, so as we were driving home the other night Chloe started asking questions...anyone suprised? (Chloe is our million question girl.) The questions go in order without much pause for an answer...

"Are the pioneers still walking?"

"Are they all dead?"

"Are you guys going on a pioneer hunt?" (This one was my favorite!)

"Will people think you're really pioneers?"

Sometimes I wonder what the world looks like through her eyes. She has such a vivid imagination!

So, I am reaching out to all "trekking experts" to flood me with advice. We had our first training on May 2nd and we start the trek on June 3rd. HELP!!!!