Swimming & Sparkles

Candace and the kids are in town for 2 weeks!  Yeah!  Insert happy heart here!  

{ <3 }

We have hung out, had lunch, caught up, eaten sweets, and enjoyed the "normalcy" of being together again!  

Tonight before mutual the kids went swimming in her in-laws pool!  It's so amazing!  I love their pool!  

And hot shot A and hot shot B can jump off the diving board now.  HOLY CRAPPERS!  They are growing too fast!  

Taylor was Burke's tug boat!  

Candace's SIL Lauren comes up from Utah and does "glitter toes" for all the swimming lesson mom's!  She did mine to!  I picked the pink I loved the best and guess what it was called?????

Tourmaline!  Haha!  That's the street we live on!  

{Eggs and Cake}

Saturday we celebrated Easter and Graden's birthday as a family. It was quite the bash! My sister Jennifer filled and hid over 300 eggs for this PARTY! Along with 3 coveted golden eggs! One of which Taylor found! With a little help from Mom! Graden has really enjoyed playing Donkey Kong on the Wii. So I asked Jennifer to make a DK cake for my boy. This is what she came up with......

As you can tell....He loved it! I always feel bad eating such awesome cakes!

We also played some music outside and the cousin's got their DANCE on!

Here is my sweet 4 year old. He asks me everyday if he is still 4. Yep!

Here is a picture of all the cousins including the Frogley kids (Keaton, Kole and Evi). Although I cannot see Kole in this picture, but I know he is up there somewhere!

Comparing some legs. One of these kids is going into Nursery in a few weeks. The other one is not even one yet! ;)

The Browne's stopped by on Friday night to say goodbye. I tried to keep it as low key as possible. I know my girls were really bummed and did not want them to get upset. We kept it casual. No tears! Just hugs!
I talked to Candace last night and they are doing well. They had help moving in and the Bishop's wife has already brought dinner! My friend Tricia's husband works for Apple as well (Scott's boss) and they had them over for Easter dinner. It makes me feel good knowing that there is a ward wherever you move to take care of you!

Miss you CanDance!

{FOUR heavens sake}

I specifically told Graden to quit growing. Then yesterday he went and turned FOUR on me. Seriously? Four? That cannot be right!

Let's play "Did you know".......

Did you know that I got pregnant with Graden AFTER Jason lost his job?

Did you know that I was so violently ill that I could not stand up straight for almost 7 weeks?

Did you know that I had to go to the ER just to be filled up with liquids so I wouldn't die of dehydration?

Did you know that we sold our house and moved while I was pregnant with him? Packed up an entire house 7 months pregnant and had TWO Two and a half year olds!

Did you know that while prepping for my c-section I had an allergic reaction to some medication they had given me and I stopped breathing?


Did you know that every single night this is the face I see?


Did you know that Jason and Graden are best friends?

We are so lucky to be Graden's parents. He is a very good boy. He can be kind and mean all in the same 10 minutes. He can be hilarious daily. He hates bedtime. Loves tubby time. Sometimes loves Primary. Loves BBQ chips. Hates almost everything for dinner (But does not complain). Loves Burke, until he wrecks whatever he was playing. Loves his sissies, until they boss him around one too many times. Loves to snuggle me at night to avoid going to bed. (And I soooooo fall for it every time)

We had a very low-key celebration last night. A few gifts, cupcakes, dinner, and Chase came over to say hi!

Chase got him a fishing pole that I already had to super glue back together! (It was that popular) And two pictures in frames. It was awesome. I wonder how many times he will ask to go to Chase Browne's before it sets in that they moved?
I headed to mutual after the little party. Stacy had prepared a lesson on Finding Christ. It was awesome. At the end we blew out eggs. To represent the empty tomb Christ was not in, although still sealed closed. Let's just say that being in a bathroom with a bunch of teenage girls is really.........LOUD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Father's Day~

WHAT? You heard me! Happy Father's Day Jason and Scott! It's only been 6 months since Candace and I got your gifts! I ran into a really good deal for Fast Lanes indoor Go Cart racing in May. I was able to talk Candace into getting them too so we could go together! Nothing like an expiration date to motivate you! Dec 31st! Woo! We almost did not make it!

Jason was the only one that had raced before. Although Scott was a Pro. Candace and I were the only girls in the race. We did pretty good too! I actually had a TOTAL blast! Who knew I was a Speed Demon? I kept up with those boys pretty darn good! As well as the other 8 dudes we did not know.

Candace and I are going to start a street gang.

This is going to be on our posters:

Giving my stud a Victory kiss before the race. What victory you say? Marrying me!

Whooza....

Whooza is the kind of word that sums up the last 48 hours. I am really not sure where to start. Let me roll back about 3 weeks..........(pretend the screen gets fuzzy and you hear charms like in a dream....)

I was asked by my visiting teacher, Stacey Miner, to attend Mia Maids @ mutual that week. She was very vague about why I was coming. I agreed. I love mutual. And Stacey. While I was there she relayed a story about her cousin in Utah. That story can be found HERE. She then uncovered a box that had several copies of JESUS THE CHRIST by James E. Talmage. She then challenged the Mia Maids and myself to read this book. We need to finish by April 6th 2011. (Insert Whooza here) She told the girls that she was not sure why she felt prompted to invite me to mutual and participate in the challenge. I agreed to read the book along with the girls. I went straight to the Craft Warehouse and got super cute owl paper and made each of us a bookmark. I gave them to Stacey at church the following Sunday.

FAST FORWARD TO YESTERDAY~

Well actually, this last week. I'm sure so many of you sit and wonder why I never talk about my calling. (not) If you know me, you can insert another WHOOZA here. This last year has been the biggest challenge of my life as for callings go. I'm not going to go into it. I will however go into the best part of my calling. Candace was the 2nd counselor in Primary. We were called the same week. She had a baby a few days old, I was very pregnant. We both thought the Bishop was crazy. But we accepted our callings. It took a few months but we became VERY good friends. Like, take to the grave type of friends. Like, I'll watch your kids even if they are puking friends. Or, I want to tell her a story before Jason kinda friend. These are the friends that are few and far between. And I only have a few. I'm weird with friends. Always have been. We had gone on a GNO to get ice cream Saturday night. Kinda impromptu. We talked about everything. Including how we have come full circle this last year. And the fact that we were actually excited about this upcoming year in Primary. I told her that I try not to think about other callings. Especially Young Women's. :( That is where my heart is.

Now onto Sunday....Hang in there.....I swear this story has an ending.....

I woke up thinking about Sharing Time. Then the phone rang......DUN DUN DUN.......jk. It was Brother Botkin. He wanted to meet with me. (Stomach in throat here) I hung up the phone and ran to Jason. I started asking a thousand questions that Jason had no answers to. When he got here I just sat on my coffee table. Numb and Dumb. That's how I felt. And I think I wanted to barf a little too. :) He released me from the Primary Presidency. (Whooza) Then called me to be the Mia Maid advisor. (Triple Whooza) Remember the start of this story? About reading the book with the girls? And Stacey not knowing why I was supposed to be there? ("spiritual" WHOOZA)

There were a lot of tears at church that day. A lot. Mixed emotions. Gratitude for a Father who knows my heart. Guilt for leaving a friend. Bewilderment for thinking I knew what was a head of me. Excitement for the Mia Maids. I am sure people thought somebody died. Those kinds tears were shed. I just don't think people realize the year Candace and I had. The mountains we climbed and valleys we crossed.

So the moral of this post? I can't remember. But I know that I will go, and I will do the things the Lords commands. I know the Lord provides a way he wants me to obey. ~

Browne and Blue BaLlOoNs~

dork. (with cute hair)

We decided to take the family down to Ann Morrison park on Saturday night for the Spirit of Boise Balloon Festival. They were going to do a "night glow" of sorts. The previous few mornings they launched the balloons at 7:10 am. Sorry, but that was too early for this clan! So I knew the night one would fit us much better! We went with our favorite family The Brownes. We cannot get enough of them!

Oh how I wish this was a giant Pepsi bottle. Then all my dreams really would have come true :)

Me and my sweetheart. This was taken on his phone. That explains the "glow". My "glowing"days are OVER!

Daddy and Taylor

Me and my girlies (as Chase Browne would call them).

Daddy and Natalie

Oh!!! Mommy and Burke-Boy!

Daddy and mini-love!

Daddy and Doofus. I mean Graden.

You know the "idiot face"? Well, this is his ugly, hairy cousin, "I ain't turnin' around face". Nice.
THE BROWNES! LOVE THEM!
Candace and my daughter in law..... Oppppssss! Candace and Reagan!
Me and Candace! The bestist bestie in the world!

Chase and Dott. (Scott)

Watching the balloons get filled up!

My sweet eternal family! Oh how they take up every inch of my heart!

1,2,3....BURN! That's what you yell for them to fill the balloons. Not that we want them to actually burn! It was beautiful!

In action.......awesomeness!