Girls Weekend

Last weekend I had the opportunity to go to St. George with two of my best friends, Lara and Savannah for a much needed girls getaway. Our hubby's were so awesome and willing to brave the single parent life while we were gone.

We left Friday afternoon and on the way to pick Savannah up guess what I did...I hit a pigeon with my car! Several of them flew up right in front of me out of no where as I drove, slowly I might add, and one of them didn't quite make it fast enough to avoid my massive SUV. Lara and I heard a "thud" and our response was to scream like little girls. I saw the poor pigeon fly over my SUV, but I didn't see it on the road behind me. I'm hoping that means I didn't kill it. Luckily it didn't do any damage to my car, except it left a couple nice white marks on the hood and bug guard.


After my close encounter with the pigeon, I continued on my way to pick up Savannah and guess what...I almost hit a cat, but I didn't, thank goodness! That would've been messy and gross! It just wasn't my day to be out driving. I made it the rest of the way without any more near animal death experiences.

Once we got to St. George we unloaded our bags in our room and got ready to go out and have fun. This was our room at the "Green Valley Spa". It was so nice. There was fluffy soft beds, our own personal mini kitchen, a nice big bathroom, and our own personal patio that led to the pool.


Our first stop out on the town was dinner at "The Pasta Factory". It was by far the best pasta I've ever eaten and the bread sticks were awesome! I'm definitely going there again someday.


After dinner we went to see "Charlie St. Cloud" with the lovely Zac Efron. It was a really good, but happy and sad movie. I cried, I laughed, I drooled, I loved it!


We went back to our room after the movie and got ready for bed. We didn't end up doing any swimming because I forgot my swim suit and we were too busy chatting about anything and everything. We stayed up until 2:30 am before we finally decided we should go to sleep. I haven't stayed up that long in forever, but I enjoyed all the fun girl talk we did.

I don't know if it was the fact that we stayed up too late or if it was because we didn't have any kids or husbands around to wake us up, but we didn't get up to get ready until 10 am. I actually slept better than I have in years. I think it was because I didn't have to worry about keeping an ear out for my kids if they needed me during the night like they do on occasion.

Before we left we had to get a picture of us in front of our room. It was funny trying to get this picture because we had to stack a couple tables on top of each other and use a rock to hold my camera lens where it needed to be. We did finally accomplish our goal.


Since it was almost noon we thought we'd better eat breakfast/lunch before we headed out to do some shopping. We decided to go to Ihop. We all ended up getting the same thing, cheesecake pancakes, scrambled eggs, hash browns, and sausage. I didn't eat my sausage, but the pancakes were to die for, they were sooo good!


After we ate we headed out for a long day of shopping. Our first stop was Tai-Pan. I've never been to the Tai-Pan in St. George and the last time I was at one of those stores was when it was just a warehouse in SLC and I was picking out flowers for my wedding...that was sooo long ago! I was able to find some cute things for my house and I'll definitely be coming back to get more.

We found this awesome sign there, don't you just love it...we did. This picture is courtesy of Denise (Josh's mom). She works there and it good to see her and visit for a little bit. (Please ignore my hair...Lara curled it for me and it was cute until the wind ruined it!)


After spending way too much time at Tai-Pan we left and went to several more stores (I think it was 7) before we got tired. In between we did take a break and enjoy a super yummy smoothie at "The Orange Peel". It was delicious and refreshing. It was getting late, so before we headed home we ate dinner at "Twentyfive Main Cafe & Cupcake Parlor". We all enjoyed a different version of a panini sandwich and a yummy salad with I don't know what kind of dressing, but it was good. Lara and Savannah also enjoyed a cupcake, but I was too full and I think I'm all caked out from my family's birthdays in the last seven weeks.

This is the best picture I could get of the restaurant without taking one inside.


After dinner we headed home. It was sad to have to end our weekend so soon, but we had an awesome time together. This weekend was a very much needed break from reality and I'm so happy that I was able to go, even though I did miss my family. I hope that we can make this a yearly girls getaway.

Thanks for a fun weekend girls. It was so nice to stay up late and chat and just hang out without having to put kids in time out. You guys are the best!

1st Day of School

Today is Jaron and Jantzen's 1st day of school. Jaron is now in 4th grade (Wow, I'm getting old!) and Jantzen's starting kindergarten. Last night Josh gave them both their father's blessings and then they went to bed a little earlier than normal so they could get enough rest. They've had a summer full of a lot of late nights.

They were both so excited this morning. They got up and ready for school, including having their beds made, all before 7am. That's usually when I'd wake them up to start getting ready. It made me happy that I didn't have to fight them getting up, but why can't that enthusiasm last all year long. I'm hoping it will be like that all week, but I'm not holding my breath on that.

Jaron and Jantzen were also excited that they got to wear their new school shoes in the house. They were running all over the place! Unfortunately that's the only time they get to, according to them.

When we were all ready to go, we headed out the door for our annual 1st day of school pictures. I had to get one of me and Jantzen because I have one of just me and Jaron on his 1st day of kindergarten. I love the enthusiasm he has for school.


Here's my super cute school boys with their nice back to school haircuts...


...and all three of my super cute kids. Jaedyn was just chillin' in her stroller reading a "Bear in the Big Blue House" book the whole way to school. I think she's getting ready for school too, except she has a few years still before she goes to preschool.


The boys are excited to be back to riding their scooters to school with their "scooter gang". I didn't get a picture of all the kids together, but it's quite the sight to see the whole bunch of them riding together.


I got one more picture with all of us together before Jaron and Jantzen went their separate ways. It's going to be a little crazy this year having the two of them at separate ends of the school. I told them I will have to alternate days with who I walk to class, they are both okay with that. I decided to go with Jantzen today since this is his first time at the school. This is when it would be nice to have two of me so I could go with both of them, but I'll make it work. Besides, it's not really "cool" for Jaron to have his mom by him, giving him a goodbye kiss in front of all his friends, so he might not want me to walk him to his line at all...we'll see! Isn't that my right as a mom to embarrass my kids? I think so.


Here's a group shot of all the kids in Jantzen's class that he already knows, courtesy of primary. It'll be so nice for him to already have a bunch of friends in his class. Notice which kid is the tallest...that's right, it's mine. At least he's a boy though and not the tallest girl like I was all through elementary.


Here's a picture of my silly Jantzen with another Jansen. They are in primary together so they already know each other, but how crazy is that to have two of them? I hardly ever hear of another kid having that name, but to have them both in the same kindergarten class is fun. It's a good thing their names are spelled different, for their teachers sake.


This picture needs no explanation!


Jantzen's teacher was talking to the kids a little before they went in their classroom, explaining what she wanted them to do, then they lined up and were ready to head off to class. Jantzen gave me a goodbye face and then was gone.



I wasn't sad for school to start today or for the fact that my baby boy is now in kindergarten. The boys have been getting on each other's nerves and need to be separated for a few hours. Besides, they both love to be with their friends, so I know I don't have to worry about either one of them. I know it will be hard when Jaedyn goes to kindergarten, not only because that means that I'll be REALLY old, but because I won't have anyone at home to entertain me.

I can't wait to hear how Jaron and Jantzen's first day of school went, but for now I'm enjoying the house being super quiet while Jaedyn's napping.

Mastering The Stairs

I have known this day was coming for a while, but I was hoping it wouldn't have happened yet...

...Jaedyn has learned how to crawl up the stairs!

That's right, my life has gotten a little more crazy now that she's getting more mobile. I wasn't expecting it when it happened. She's always just sitting at the bottom of the stairs watching her brothers run up and down, wishing she could do the same thing. Now she can, well, not run up and down, but I'm sure she'll be there soon.

It was last Thursday night while I was decorating the house for her birthday party the next day that I thought to myself, "It's so quiet right now, what's going on?" I was in the front room and I turned around and this is what I saw...


She apparently was tired of waiting for me to take her upstairs so she could see what her brothers were up to, so she decided to do it herself. She was so proud of herself and she wouldn't let me help her, she had to do it on her own.




As soon as I said something to the boys, they quickly had to come check things out. Jaron, being the older protective brother he is, had to get right behind Jaedyn to make sure she didn't fall. She did really good and didn't want his help. She is also trying to go back down the stairs, but we need to work on that with her because she just tries to go head first. I know she'll master that soon too.


Crawling up the stairs is all Jaedyn wants to do now. I will sit her on the floor in the family room and go to do something and she quickly high tails it to the stairs, laughing the whole way! Sometimes she'll stop and wait for you to look at her so she knows you're paying attention, then she'll take off as fast as she can...it's so cute!

The boys are really good about following behind Jaedyn to make sure she doesn't fall down. That's one thing I really worry about because of the tile at the bottom of the stairs. The railing makes it kind of hard to have a gate to block her from going up or down so we have to improvise with other things such as...the box to her car seat or the kids' card table. Those haven't worked out very well. She quickly learned how to move them out of her way, so yesterday I had Jaron use the card table and a tote full of toys to block the stairs. That worked a little better, but Jeadyn tried to move it without much luck and became extremely frustrated! However, she did move things out of her way a little bit. This little girl is so strong and determined to get what she wants. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

I'm not sure I'm ready to have three kids running up and down the stairs, but I guess I don't really have a choice now.

Pretty, Sparkly Ears

For part of Jaedyn's birthday we decided to get her ears pierced. Now don't think this decision came easily, there was a lot of discussion about it first. Ever since Jaedyn was born Josh has been very clear on the fact that she wasn't going to get her ears pierced until she was 18 years old. I, on the other hand said she could get them done when she was 8 years old because that's how old I was when I got mine pierced.

Now, after several months of thinking and pondering about what age Jaedyn would be when we decided to permanently put holes in her ears, Josh came to the conclusion that she would be so cute with earrings now because she has beautiful dark brown hair. And lets face it, she's a gorgeous little girl and sparkly earrings would only add to that! So he gave in and decided he wanted her to have them now.

On Saturday we took her to Claire's to get her ears pierced. The whole way there Josh was worried that she was going to cry and was thinking maybe we shouldn't do it now. I kept telling him she'd be fine, she gets shots and I think those are worse! When we got to Claire's, I signed all the paperwork and then the girl there started preparing Jaedyn's cute earrings that we picked out for her...14K white gold CZ studs.

Jaedyn just watched in anticipation of what was going on while Josh was getting nervous and wasn't really wanting to watch, but he's the one who decided to hold her while she was getting her ears done. Meanwhile, Josh had passed his anxieties about this onto Jaron and Jantzen. Jaron kept asking if this was going to hurt her and if she was going to be okay. I had to keep reassuring all of them that she'd be fine. The boys decided they wanted to hide and plug their ears, so that's what they did.



I asked the girl if they could do both ears at the same time and she said they legally can't on babies. I guess that makes sense to me. What if the baby moved while they did it and her ears got pierced in the wrong place or she got hurt worse?

And so it began... On the first ear Jaedyn didn't even flinch, but on the second one she cried...not for very long though. I think she cries longer when she gets her shots than she did with her ears pierced. She's a brave little girl.



So, here's my pretty little princess and her sparkly new earrings. You can't even tell she had been crying for a minute. She was smiling and laughing pretty much right after she had her ears done. She's such a good girl, how did we get so lucky?



Here's a close up shot of her earring, so cute!


Jaedyn looks even more beautiful now that her ears are pierced. She doesn't mess with them at all. The only thing she hates is when we have to clean them, but luckily we only have to do that for 6 weeks. Have I mentioned how much fun it is having a little girl? I just can't get over how beautiful she is.

Happy 1st Birthday Jaedybug!

Last night we celebrated Jaedyn's 1st birthday with family and friends. She had a ladybug themed party because we call her our little "Jaedybug the ladybug". We were all so excited to celebrate her special day with her.

Here's the invitation I made for Jaedyn's birthday this year...


I had a lot of fun decorating the house for her party. I made all her decorations this year and I think they turned out really cute. I made her a birthday banner with her name, some tissue flowers that I had hanging in the kitchen, and some little ladybug centerpieces for the tables. I even made her wrapping paper. I glued black dots all over the red, it was so cute!


I also made ladybug hats for all the kids, except the boys. They didn't want the antenna's on their hats, so they got plain black ones.


Here's the princess in one of her birthday outfits just playing around. She's getting really good at walking with her baby stroller. I think she knew the party was for her. She was being so cute, playful, and of course, she was so happy.


For dinner, Jaedyn got to enjoy some big kid food instead of baby food...I think she really liked it. Here she is eating her dinner with her cousin Caleb.


After dinner I changed Jaedyn into her birthday tutu so she could open her presents. I would've had her wear it the whole night, but she couldn't crawl in it very well. It turned out so cute, thanks Savannah for making it for her, she loves it!



Jaedyn got a lot of fun toys from everyone. With the help of her big brother Jaron, she opened up her presents. She got a new baby, teddy bear, cutsy cars, a toy jewelery box, a toy purse, clothes with hair bows, a tea set, a lady bug blanket with a pillow and stuffed ladybug, "Jessie" and "Mrs. Potato Head" from Toy Story, an animal puzzle, princess carriage with blocks, a princess wand, and...


...a ladybug "Pillow Pet" from mom and dad. She loved it and so did Jantzen. He played with it and all her other toys all night.



When her presents were all opened, it was time for cake and ice cream.


We stripped Jaedyn down to her diaper (I didn't want red and black frosting all over her nice white shirt) and put her in her seat. We then sang "Happy Birthday" to her. You can see in the picture that while we were singing, she tried to swipe some frosting off her cake...she's so cute! She also tried to grab the flame on her candle, but I blew it out before she could touch it.


These were Jaedyn's birthday cakes this year. I actually made her ladybug personal cake...I was so proud of myself for how it turned out. It was a yummy strawberry flavor. I ordered her big cake from a bakery because I'm not that good at decorating. It had cute little ladybugs on it and a super cute picture of Jaedyn in her ladybug skirt and it tasted really good.




She didn't hesitate to dig right into her cake like the boys did on their 1st birthdays. She did get some help from her daddy, which I think he really enjoyed.



I just love this picture. She's being so dainty while sucking frosting off her thumb.


Jaedyn devoured most of the ladybugs body before she was done. She didn't make a huge mess with her cake, thank goodness. She just had a frosting face and hands...isn't she so adorable? Apparently I didn't clean her up good enough though because the next morning I found some cake and frosting in her ears. I guess she was saving some for later.




This poor ladybug didn't stand a chance with her!


Before everyone left, I got a picture of all the kids in their birthday hats I made. Don't they all look so cute?


And yes, I guess you can say this is Jaedyn's other birthday outfit...a diaper! I didn't want to get her redressed after cake since she was just going to go to bed.

Jaron was Jaedyn's little birthday helper all night. He loves her so much and I know she loves her big brothers too!


So, here's the story with the first birthday cake we got from the bakery...ugly isn't it?

I ordered Jaedyn's cake from Sam's Club bakery and when I did I told them I wanted the frosting white instead of the orangeish yellow color they had in the picture. When Josh picked it up and brought it home, this is how they made it. I was so FURIOUS!! How can they mix up the colors when I specifically had requested white? I quickly called the store and spoke to the cake decorator and she said, "Yes, I see that you wanted white frosting...I'm sorry" That's it, I don't think so! After being hung up on I called back and vented my frustrations to a manager. At first he tried to just give me a refund, of less than what I paid for the cake in the first place, but that wasn't going to fly with me! I told him I wanted her cake remade and done right this time. He said okay and after an hour and a half I got a new cake with white frosting on it. I kind of liked how the first cake was decorated, minus the orange frosting, better than the second, but it was still cute and it looked so much better.

Needless to say, we ended up with two 1/2 sheet cakes, so we sent a lot home with our family and friends to enjoy.


I think Jaedyn had an awesome 1st birthday. I loved how everything turned out (minus the drama with the cakes) and it was fun getting to share this special day with our family and good friends. We are so lucky to have this beautiful little girl as a part of our family. "Happy 1st Birthday Jaedyn", we all love you so much!