Taylor's Teenage Life

Taylor has been keeping very busy.  In February he started working at Arby's and was averaging 5 days a week there.  He was having to work basically every weekend but he was so responsible with his obligations there.  He is now working at Wal-Mart and seems to enjoy it for the most part.  Unfortunately, he's been stuck working every weekend there, also.  He's quite the trooper about it, but it's hard from a parent standpoint to see your child having to be SO 'grown up' and not being able to do more of the fun things of being a teenager.

He got asked by his girlfriend to Girls Choice and he was having a hard time finding someone to cover for him at work so he didn't get to answer her until the last minute.

He's pretty smitten by his girlfriend Emily and he likes to spend time with her every chance he gets. Emily moved over to Logan with her mom for the new school year but they talk every night and see each other frequently still. 

She asked him to their Sadie Hawkin's dance and they had a great time.  Taylor said their dances are much better over there with less drama.  :) 

He had the opportunity to go to All-State Choir. They stayed 2 nights in Salt Lake. He's having a lot of fun just being a teenager! 

Happy 7th Birthday Kambri

It's so hard for me to believe that my baby is 7!  Where has the time gone?! She is such a joy to have in our family. 

 

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In honor of the BIG 7 I've made a list of the 7 top things we're loving about Kambri right now or things she likes.

 

1.  We love to listen to her talk in Chinese.  She amazes us with how well and how much she has already learned.

 

2.  I love her peppy/spunky attitude. (When used at the right times, of course.) She has a way of saying things with just the funniest facial expression that leaves us laughing.

 

3.  She is a love bug!  If someone is hurt or sad she's so good to comfort them. I love when she will sit and rub my back, it's so comforting.

 

4.  She loves playing games or watching shows on her Kindle, she takes it everywhere!

 

5.  We enjoy listening to her read.  She has such a love for it and it shows in her level of reading.

 

6.  She likes to spend time with me, no matter what we're doing.  She definitely loves her Mom!

 

7.  She likes Monster High, Barbies, playing babies, and painting her nails!

 

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She was so excited for these spiral curlers.  Who would've thought that a 7 year old would love such a gift?  We'd seen them at Peach Days and she wanted them so bad!  Of course she got a lot of other fun stuff but for some reason this is all that was taken the night of her family party.

 

 

She had a super fun party with lots of her friends. They each got to pick out their own nail polish and we painted/decorated nails, played games and all the normal party stuff.  Most of the girls that came are in her Chinese class so I got them talking a little in Chinese and they all thought I was hilarious when I tried saying anything in Chinese!  They're so smart with how well they pick it all up.

 

We had one of those parties that you never think are really going to happen.  I planned for like 8 girls (they never all show up, right?!) and ended up with 11.  Which meant having Shaun scramble to the store at the last minute to make more party bags.

 

They all spoiled her.  She got so many fun things!

The cute girlies at the end of the party

We sure love this girl and are glad she's part of our family!

Back to School

Summer is officially over and school has started.  I think we've all been ready for this change and to get back into a routine.  Funny how when school first gets out you're so excited for a more relaxed schedule and then when it's time to go back to school you're so ready for routine again!

Lots of changes and firsts at our house this school year!


Taylor and Hollie get to ride the bus together!  It will be nice to not have to take them to/from school this year.  They're so cute.  They've made a deal that whoever gets up first will check to make sure the other one is up and going.  This may just be the nicest thing they've done for one another in a long while.  :)

Taylor is officially at Box Elder High School.  HIGH SCHOOL!  He's a 10th grader this year and I can't believe how quickly everything is changing.  He got his permit in July and LOVES to drive.  Can't believe he's old enough for all of this.  This first trimester he has quite the courseload but I have no doubts he'll do great! 

Hollie is in 6th grade at the Intermediate School this year and has been so excited to get a locker, in fact she stayed after school on the first day so she could get it all decorated! :)  (I SO remember doing the same when I went in to 6th grade.)  She has already made new friends and likes that they get to change classes.  So excited for all the possibilities this year will hold for her!

Kambri is in 1st grade and in the Chinese Dual-Immersion program this year!  She's very excited and each day comes home and teaches/shows me something new she's learned in Chinese.  Kambri told me I didn't need to walk her in to school, that she's a big girl...I didn't give her a choice and told her that Shaun and I would be walking her in for her first day.  Sometimes that independence is heart breaking, especially of my baby! 

She had to have a special picture taken that showed her with her backpack better;  such a funny girl.

So here's to a fabulous 2013-14 school year!  I spent the first day of school sleeping and reading;  it was wonderful!  This will definitely take some getting used to with having Hollie getting off to school earlier and Kambri being in school all day now.  I'm so excited for each of them and the things they will learn this year, friends they'll make, and the memories they'll make!

 

5th Grade Events with Hollie

(Ok, SLIGHTLY behind- we're now in 6th grade- better late than never right?!)

 

Hollie registered to do the Beehive Mile that was held at Watkins Park.  She had a great time doing it and even held back at the end because a friend of hers was having a hard time due to asthma.  I was quite proud of her.  She likes to be a part of so many different things, things I was much too intimidated to do at her age.

 

Before the race

 

After the race

Then on top of it she decided to be in the 5th grade talent show! She sang a solo, "Let Me In" from Rigoletto with me accompanying her on the piano.  She did a wonderful job, she has a beautiful voice!  I'm so glad she doesn't let fear get in the way of doing these kinds of things.

 

I'm so grateful that all of my kids have a love for music!

 

Then of course she had to do the science fair.  Shaun is a good dad and agreed to help build a volcano.  They had a great time figuring out the perfect combination of vinegar and baking soda.  I'm not sure that she really cared about the logistics of a science fair as much as she just wanted to make something.  But regardless she had fun!

 

 

Now onto a new school and new adventures!

After the Sealing & the Luncheon

We had 5 minutes that we were allotted to take pictures in our white clothing on the temple grounds.  (Truthfully it turned into more like 20, they were patient with us.) 

It had been raining before we left for the temple but thankfully we had some dry weather while doing pictures and for our luncheon!

Lindsay, Mark, Haddie, Zoey & Rylee, Mike & Brenda, Lacie & Jennifer were outside waiting for us.  It was so wonderful to come out from something so beautiful and see the rest of our family (minus Chris who was busy catering at the fire station for our luncheon).

 

Shaun's Aunt Sandy and cousin Anne came in from Arizona to share our special day!  We were so grateful to them for making such a big deal out of our sealing.  It was so nice to see them!

This is our wonderful cake made by Connie Archibald.  She made our cake when we got married and it is the most delicious cake you've ever tasted.  I'm not a big cake person, but this one I crave and she was gracious enough to make us another one.  It was perfect (except Kambri's name being spelled wrong.) :)  On the other side of it, it said Families are Forever!

I wish we would've gotten pictures at the luncheon but unfortunately I don't really have any. 

We had a lot of family who volunteered to help with food assignments and it all came together very nicely.  A huge shout-out to Chris who did a marvelous job as our 'caterer'.  I was quite stressed about how I was going to get from the temple and then to the fire station to have everything ready to go for the luncheon, so he willingly accepted the position as our catering service.  He puts on a heck of a spread, much nicer than I would've ever done.  He has a knack for that sort of thing. 

We were so grateful to all of those who came to the luncheon and having some extra time to visit with them.  We were spoiled with many sentimental gifts that will always be a constant reminder of our Sealing Day!

We feel very blessed to have had the opportunity to be sealed with our family in our very own Brigham City Temple and are so glad that so many of our friends and family were present!  Our new Eternal Family is truly one of the greatest blessings we have been given!