Josie's 6th birthday

Josie had a great 6th birthday. She had her favorite Texas families over for dinner and cake. Earlier in the day we took pictures of her in my wedding dress. Karen takes photos of her daughter Faith every year in her dress and I thought it was a great idea. So, every year on her birthday we are going to take photos. She is growing up so fast. Karen took some photos of her outside in the yard that were so adorable.

1st day of school

Well today was the kids first day of school. It was very bitter sweet. The kids were excited and ready to be back on a schedule, as was I. However, I am always sad to give up my kids for 8 hours a day. Luckily, they all have great teachers this year.

Josie, walked down the hallway, almost in a skip. When she got to the end of the hall where her class is located she saw her teacher. Josie said good morning and her teacher told her how happy she was to see her and how glad she was that she was in her class. She was very sweet. Josie then told her that she was going to go in the class and see if there was anything she needed help with. I just looked at her teacher and smiled. Josie is very helpful, sometimes a little too much. A good friend of ours works at the school and was in and out of Josie's class and said that she did great. She said that she obeyed all the rules and didn't speak out. She said she was ver sweet. When Josie came home from school she asked me if she could have a "pass" for tomorrow. When I asked her what a "pass" was she said, "you know, you can pass and not go to school the next day." She said that she was too tired to go another day. Poor girl, she has a lot of years of school ahead of her and it is not looking good if she is already looking for a "pass".

Jackson and James were a little embarassed that I was walking them to their class. Apparently, once you are in 2nd and 3rd grade you no longer need your mom to walk you to class on the first day of school. It's not cool or something. I gave them each a hug and a kiss around the corner from their classrooms so that I wouldn't embarass them beyond belief. They both had a great first day and are excited about their class for the year. They are pretty quiet about things. My mom called when they got home to see how their first day was and they didn't elaborate much for her either. They just said they liked their class and they had fun. That was about it.

I hope they have a great year. They are all great kids and students. I know they will be great.

Recap on the year thus far

Alright, I am going to add some things over the next couple days that we have done over the past 7 months just to catch everyone up on our lives. We have been very busy, at least it feels like it. We are still living in Katy, Texas and loving it. I only wish that I could move it about 12 hours closer to Arizona. We have great friends here and love our ward. We have been very blessed since we have been here in Texas and we will miss it dearly when it is time to move on.
In January Wes took a new job with a company by the name of Leica Microsystems. The sell cancer diagnostic systems to hospitals. He used to be in this field with another company a couple years ago and so he already had great relationships to the people he will be selling too. He really likes his job and the people he works with and I think he is in a great position for advancement. The company is still fairly young and is still learning the business a little bit. Because Wes already knows what does and does not work, I think he is a huge assett to the company.

Our Trip to Arizona

We decided to go to Arizona last minute a couple weeks ago so that Wes could pick-up his new truck. I am so glad that we went. I had such a great time visiting family and friends. I am so grateful for Tiffany's patience with me and my family for soooo... long. My kids loved spending so much time with their cousins. We also got to see Loyd and Marci's kids, including their sweet new baby. All of their kids are so sweet and so much fun to be around. While we were in Arizona we went to a place called Jeepers (I think) Adventure Land. They have a bunch of indoor roller coasters for kids. My kids thought they had died and gone to heaven.

They had so much fun until the end of the ride when they seemed to get a little sick. I know it is probably wrong to laugh about it but it was the funnies thing I had ever seen. They were on a ride that spun them around and around, which they had been on several times during the day, and Tyson, Jack, and Natalie got so sick we thought they were going to lose it. Natalie finally jumped off the ride before it stopped because she couldn't take it anymore. The poor kids. I went on one spinning ride earlier in the day and I thought I was going to lose it. I have no idea how they all lasted so long. The pictures should speak for themselves. The kids had a great time with their cousins. I wish that all of their cousins could have been there.

Jack & Buddy playing more baseball

Jack and James (Buddy) were asked to play on a select baseball team again this year and Wes and I finally agreed to let them play. They are called the Westside Sluggers. We haven't won very many games yet but we have a great group of boys and they are learning a ton. I know it is just a matter of time before we start winning some games. Jack is playing 2nd base right now and Buddy does great in the outfield. We have a great time going to their games and cheering them on. They are getting really good and they love playing. The parents on the team are so much fun to hang out with and the coaches are awesome. It has been a great experience for all of us. I get into the games a little more than I probably should, according to Jack, but I love it. I can't wait to watch them when they are in high school and college. The boys practice all day every day. It doesn't seem to faze them that it is 98 degrees outside with 98% humidity. However, I am really glad that I have boys that work so hard for something that they love so much. I know that it will pay off in the long run for them.

Katy Rodeo

On February 21st Jack, Buddy and Josie rode the sheep in the Katy Rodeo. It was very muddy but they all did great. Jack was the first to ride and his sheep drove him straight into the fence post. He tried to act tough but he was in a lot of pain. Josie was the second to go and she did really well for her first time. She fell off pretty quick in a big mud puddle. She cried for a while but once she realized that she could be cleaned off she found her smile again. Buddy was the last to ride and he did awesome. He held on the longest of anyone in the competition. However, when he landed he fell in a huge puddle of water. All in all everyone had a lot of fun. We can't wait until next year.

Blake's 1st Birthday

Blake turned 1 in January. Happy day!!! I think he was more in awe about how excited everyone else was for him. While he was eating his cake Jack and Buddy tried to help him eat it and I pushed their faces into it. It was hilarious!!! Blake had a great birthday.