Matthew as a Troll

The end of the school year is so busy but so much fun. I got to go to school last week to watch Matthew in a little play in his first grade class. He class did a couple of little plays and he was the Troll in "3 Billy Goats Gruff". I know I am a LITTLE biased, but he seriously was the BEST one (and not just in his play, he was the best in all the plays). He used a silly/deep voice and was very animated. I think it helped that one of his best friends was the third goat. The video of his play is a little long (and I even cut out the beginning because you can't hear the narrator) - but you should really watch the first few seconds so you can hear Matthew say his first line,

"I don't charge a dime, I don't charge a nickel, I'll just eat you up like a crunchy pickle".

He really did a GREAT job!

Outside Fun

Despite the snow yesterday, we have had a FEW nice days this Spring (of course, in the background of these pictures, the sky is very dark). We took advantage of one of those nice days this past Saturday and took ALL the kids out on the trampoline. All the kids had fun. Brecken even played with the twins. The twins loved being outside and bouncing - but they did NOT like the grass at all! If you look closely (or not that close) you can see Kesley's crazy hair - partly due to the static from the trampoline and partly because she has crazy hair.

Dallin & Matthew's Piano Recital

Last week Dallin & Matthew had their piano recital. Matthew only started playing the piano a few months ago so it was his first recital. The theme was Favorite Things and they each got to play 2 of their favorite songs (that their teacher Lisa helped them pick). They each played their favorite Primary Song - Dallin played "Called to Serve" and Matthew played "Follow the Prophet". For their second songs, they each played a duet with their dad. Ed and Dallin played "Charlie Brown" (without the music) and Ed and Matthew played "Star Wars". They all did a GREAT job! It was so much fun to watch them. Below are the videos of all 4 songs (the duets are the best - and they are all pretty short).

Here are Dallin's songs:

Here are Matthew's songs:

You have got to be KIDDING!

Yes, that is SNOW! And yes, those pictures were taken this morning! And yes, it is May 24 (Happy Birthday to my little Gavin - Ed is out of town until tomorrow so Gavin thinks his birthday is tomorrow)! I can't believe this crazy weather. I think we have had MAYBE 5 days where the kids have been able to wear shorts. But not today - today it is jeans, long sleeves, and jackets - AGAIN!

Matthew says, "Why does it have to be snowing in the middle of spring?"

Dallin says, "I don't like Mother Nature."

Poor little Brecken doesn't understand. He loves to play outside. So he has just been standing at the back door watching it snow - and being very confused!

Gavin's Pre-School Graduation

Last week was a busy week for us (and for many of you). School is over this week so there is a lot going on. One big thing that happened was Gavin graduated from pre-school! He has gone to Ms. Suzee's pre-school (just like Matthew & Dallin) for the past 2 years. He has loved going to pre-school and has learned so much. He was so excited to graduate. He sang all the songs with so much enthusiasm and when they called his name to get his diploma, he RAN up to get it. He is just such a fun, happy little guy! I can't believe that in a couple of months he will be in kindergarten!

Cheesecake with Caramel Layer, Oreo Crust, & Toffe Chips Recipe

Here is a simple but really yummy cheesecake recipe. Cheesecakes are fun because you can do so much with them. I took a plain cheesecake recipe I love and added a layer of caramel on top of the crust and drizzled with chocolate and topped with toffee chips - so YUMMY! I also love that you can make different sized cheesecakes. This time, with one recipe, I made 24 mini-cheesecakes (you can buy mini-cheesecake pans lots of places - I bought mine at Kitchen Krafts) AND a 6-inch cheesecake (shown in picture on recipe card). I made the mini-cheesecakes for a friend's baby shower and the 6-inch for a friend's birthday. I actually made half of the cheesecake with the caramel and toffee and the other half without. The pictures below are from the shower with close-ups of the fun mini-cheesecakes.

8 Teeth at Once

Oh what fun it is for when babies get teeth - we are lucky enough to be getting 8 teeth at once! Both Cameron and Kesley are getting their top 4 teeth. They started coming in right before they got tubes - and they are still coming in. They don't seem to be hurting the twins as much, but they are still chewing on EVERYTHING! It cracks me up that Kesley is getting her fangs faster than her middle teeth - especially her left fang! Now if they would all just come in - all the way in!

11-Months Old!

I was so frustrated that it took me so long to finish the twins 10-month old pages, that I tried really hard to get these done sooner. Of course, don't come look at the piles of clothes I need to fold (at least they are clean), the mirrors I need to clean, my dirty floors, and on and on and on - not to mention the 120 others things that happened before this that I need to scrapbook. Oh well. There is only so much I can do.

I was so happy with these pages (I made them in Memory Mixer) until I exported them to .jpg. The dark at the top and bottom of each page is SUPPOSE to be the paper in the middle of the page but more opec (I lowered the opacity). I emailed MM and it has something to do with some update made to Macs and Leopard (I have NO idea). So, in MM they look great (at least to me). When Ed gets back in town, I will have him look at it. But I had to post these so I could feel like I got something done. Enough of my ramblings . . .

Aren't my babies ADORABLE! I can't believe how much fun they are and that they will be ONE YEAR OLD in less than a month! They really are fabulous babies!

Salsa Recipes (Black Bean & Fruit)

On Saturday, we went to our friend's house for a big party (JT just graduated from the Executive MBA program at the UofU - congrats). Michelle T. asked me to bring black bean salsa and fruit salsa so I thought I would post the recipes. They were both on my old blog but I don't think they are on this one. They are both so yummy and always a huge hit - perfect for all those fun summer parties. Hope you enjoy them! These pictures are from the party - I just thought the twins were so cute - okay, so Kesley is making a funny face but I loved her new flower headband (thanks for making it Sherri) so I had to share.

Mother's Day (part 2)

Sorry - these pages aren't anything new or exciting. But I just can't get enough of my sweet babies. And they were so adorable on Mother's Day! I should work on something else, but for some reason, I am stuck on these pictures (yes, there are even more to come).

Mother's Day (part 1 - updated)

I LOVE being a Mom! It is so hard (as you all know) but it is the BEST job in the world! I can't imagine doing anything else! I couldn't ask for better kids! I love them more than I ever thought possible! They are my life and I LOVE them!

Of course, trying to take a good picture of me and all 6 of them is nearly impossible - but we did try - we didn't succeed but we did try. I did manage to scrapbook a little more of my Mother's Day (I was lazy and used the same layout for pages 3 and 4 as I did for pages 1 and 2). It started by Ed taking care of the twins in the night and getting up with all the kids in the morning so I could sleep in - and then breakfast in bed with all sorts of fun cards, poems, and presents, including a sock puppet show! And don't forget ALL the beautiful roses they gave me! I couldn't have asked for a better Mother's Day!

Ed and the kids were very good to me!

Happy Mother's Day (a day late) to all - especially to my wonderful Mother!

Gavin - Star Student

Almost 2 weeks ago, Gavin was the star student of the week in pre-school. It was so much fun to go to pre-school and talk about him, show some of his favorite things, take treats, and see him with his little pre-school buddies! Gavin helped me make the mini-cupcakes that we took. He wanted to make BOY cupcakes and GIRL cupcakes. He is such a great helper and they are so easy to make (thanks Michelle T. for telling me how to make them). Here's how you make them:

* Make a Betty Crocker Butter Yellow cake mix according to the directions on the box (do not overbake)

* Divide into four parts (more or less depending on number of different colors using)

* Color each fourth a different color using Wilton food coloring (yellow and blue for the boys, pink and purple for the girls)

* Fill cupcake liners with tinted batter

* Frost with homemade cream cheese frosting (1 stick butter, 1 8-oz cream cheese, 2 Tbsp vanilla, 4 cups powdered sugar) and

* Top with sprinkles

They were a HUGE hit with the kids!

The treat bags were filled with some of Gavin's favorite treats:

Jolly Ranchers

Tootsie Pops

Blow Pops

Microwave Popcorn

Thanks for being such a great little boy Gavin! I love you!