It's Party Time!

Last Saturday Jantzen celebrated his birthday with his friends. He chose to have a Wonder Pets theme and was really excited for his party. His friends that were there were...Jaron, Kennedy, Sadie, Tate, McClayn, Bailey, Emma Lynn, and John. I printed out some Wonder Pet coloring pages and bought crayons for the kids to color when they first got there. After doing that for a little bit we decided to start playing the games that Jantzen picked out.



The first game that they played was "pin the tail on the donkey". Jantzen was supposed to go first, but he started being a stinker and didn't want to do it so we let Jaron go first. After Josh talked to Jantzen a little he decided to give it a try. The kids all got two turns and did a pretty good job, although I think some of them cheated. After that they played a "cake ring toss" game. This one was a little hard for most of them. Only a few got the rings on the candles, but they all seemed to enjoy it anyway.



Then they played bowling. Jantzen was so excited for this one. He did pretty good, but it was Jaron that really got in to it. Emma Lynn threw the ball so hard that it missed the pins and hit Kennedy in the stomach...it got her pretty good. All the kids laughed, even Kennedy.



After all the kids had a turn at bowling it was time to break open the pinata. It was too hot to do it outside so we hung it from the stairs. Luckily it was a pull string pinata so I didn't have to worry about the kids swinging a stick in the house and breaking a window or hitting a wall. Jantzen went first...nothing happened. After all the kids had a turn it still wasn't open. There were two strings left so we let Jantzen pull them both. Finally the candy came out. I'm kind of glad that it was Jantzen that got to pull the magic string. I made sure to have extra candy so everyone would get some. I ended up sending the kids home with a ziplock bag full of candy.




Next it was time to open presents. Jantzen was so excited for this, what kid wouldn't be. I first got a picture of him with all his friends before he could open presents. Everytime he would open a present and see what it was he would say, "HOLY COW!" It was the cutest thing ever! He was so happy with every thing he got.



The cutest though was when he opened Jaron's presents. He had been wanting to open his the whole time, but we made him wait until the end. After he opened them he was sooo happy, he jumped up and gave Jaron a huge hug and told him thank you. It was so precious. I love the way these two boys love each other.



Finally, it was time for cake. We ended up getting a cupcake cake for him this year. I think it turned out really cute! We all sang "Happy Birthday" to him and then chowed down. All the kids had two cupcakes each. I wish they would have eaten more because there was still left overs for us...not what we need.






The party turned out pretty fun for all the kids and it wasn't too stressful for me, which was a good thing. Jantzen gor a lot of new Star Wars toys...he was so happy! I know he had a good time and after everyone left all he did was play with his new toys all night.

4th of July Fun!!

To continue on with our busy fourth of July weekend we went to the Knolls, just west of Tooele. We took Josh and Jaron's bikes to ride. Jaron was super excited because he was going to get to ride with Austyn. Getting out there seemed like it was never ending, but when we finally made it I was a little frustrated. It started raining a little and the wind was blowing. Luckily Jann and Spencer brought their toy hauler so we could hang out in there if we needed it. The rain cleared out pretty fast and out came the sun. I did end up hanging out in the toy hauler just to get out of the heat and enjoy the AC.

Jaron got geared up quickley so he could get lots of riding in before we had to leave (we had fireworks to go to that night). I think he wanted to show everyone how good he's getting, especially Austyn. He rode a ton the whole time we were there, more than he usually does and he's doing awesome! Doesn't he look so cute? He's growing up way too fast!

Josh started to gear up so he could ride with his friends. He was super excited for this weekend because he doesn't get to ride with his BFF's very much. When we lived in Utah they rode all the time. I had to take this picture of him getting geared up because he was wearing flip flops with his socks and he thinks it's the ugliest thing when people do that...I just had to make fun of him!


After Josh was dressed we got Jantzen ready to go for a ride with him. Jaron let him borrow his helmet since he doesn't have his own yet...his will be coming soon. Josh took Jantzen for a ride because that's pretty much all he wants to do when we take the bikes out. I think he's more excited to ride than Jaron is sometimes. He does, of course, get Jaron's hand-me-down boots because they are expensive and they are still in good shape. I think he looks really cute in them. He didn't want to take them off for most of the day. It was funny watching him try to run in them.



I got a picture of a "Josh sandwich" with his BFF's Spencer and Ryan before they took off to ride. They went for several rides in which they were gone for a long time. I know they were having fun though. It's good to see Josh having a good time with friends. He works so much that he needs a break every once in a while. It would be nice if we could do this more.


Here is a picture (courtesy of Jann) of them all riding wheelies. Josh is in the middle. I was video taping so I didn't any good pictures of them doing this.


While the guys were gone Jann and I hung out and chatted while the kids played. They made supercross tracks in the sand and created jumps to go off on with their dirt bikes. I only got one picture with all the kids together, except Zeben took of right before I snapped it, and before I took it Austyn grabbed Jaron's hand to hold for the picture. He was so embarrassed! I told him he needs to get used to girls liking him...if he wasn't so cute and nice he wouldn't have this problem. We also took the kids for a walk and they ended up playing in the sand, literally. Jaron and Jantzen were burying themselves and then Austyn came and squeezed in between them so she could bury herself next to Jaron. It was so sweet, but I don't think Jantzen thought so. He just looked at her like, "what do you think you are doing?" He usually gets to be by his brother so he's doesn't know what to do when a girl comes along.





When Josh got back from his last ride he took the boys for one more before we had to leave. Jantzen loves to ride on Josh's bike and Jaron did pretty good following him. It's nice to have something that the boys can do together that they enjoy so much.


I got some cute pictures of Jaron and Austyn on their bikes before we left. Then they wanted to get a picture of them standing together. They were so cute to watch on their bikes.



We had a great day out at the Knolls. It's always nice to get away from reality and enjoy ourselves with good friends. I'm glad that my health was good enough that we could go. I know Josh would have been really sad if we didn't get to. It was nice for him to get to spend time with his friends and enjoy a good ride.

After we were done at the Knolls we headed up to Brigham City to watch the fireworks. We were hoping to get in a shower before we got there, but we were running late so we ended up not getting one. We were all dirty from riding so the picture of us at the fireworks was a grungy one.



Here is the "Goddard Boys", Josh with his two brothers and the only Goddard boy grandkids. I think Jantzen was the only one that was happy to have his picture taken.


We had barely made it to the fireworks...they started a few minutes after we got there. The boys were loving them. Jantzen thought they were really cool and when I asked him what his favorite ones were he said, "the green ones", that didn't surprise me at all.

The next day we went to Caleb's baby blessing, we barely made it there too. We had such a busy weekend and we didn't get much sleep in. It felt like we were constantly on the go, but we had so much fun. It was great to get to see family and friends that we miss because of living so far away. Now, if we could just get caught up on all the sleep we missed...I don't think it's going to happen, but it was worth it. Thanks to everyone for the fun weekend!

Birthday Fun in the Utah Sun!

Friday night after the boys went fishing with their grandpa we had a birthday party to go to. It was for Austyn, the daughter of our good friends Jann and Spencer. She was having a Tinkerbell themed party and the boys were excited about it.

A lot of Josh's close friends were there so he just hung out and talked with them the whole time while I visited with the girls. It was fun to catch up on what's going on with everyone that we don't get to see much of anymore since we live so far away. I enjoyed the cool breeze while sitting on the cool grass.


There was a bounce house for the kids to play on so that's what Jaron and Jantzen did most of the time we were there. They didn't want to make a magic wand or get their picture taken with Tinkerbell (Jann's sister dressed up like her, it was really cute). They were having a blast so I didn't want to disrupt them. I think I should get one of these at home, it wore them out so much that they slept really well that night.




One of Josh's friends has a son also named Jaron (it's even spelled the same way) so I just had to get a picture of the two of them together. This is only the second time our Jaron has been around another Jaron. I think it's pretty cool!


Here is a picture of Jaron with Austyn. They walked around for a long time holding hands, it was the cutest thing. Jaron insisted that she was the one that grabbed his hand, but I know that he didn't mind at all. Jaron thinks that he is going to marry Austyn when he gets older, maybe it's because when he was younger Jann and I decided that we were going to arrange their marriage. I told Jaron that he gets to choose who he's going to marry, but that it would be cool if it was Austyn. He thinks she's cute so it's a possibility.


After the party we went to eat at Javier's with Spencer and Jann. It was so yummy! This was our favorite place to eat when we lived in Ogden so every time we come to Utah Josh insists on going there. It was a great day being with family and good friends. I hope we can do this more often.

Fishing Fun With Grandpa!

For the 4th of July weekend we went to Utah for Caleb's baby blessing. We decided to make a fun family getaway out of it so we left on Thursday. We didn't make it out of Vegas until around 4ish...a lot later than we were planning on. Unfortunately, we had several stops to make on the way so we didn't get to Tremonton until 3:30 in the morning on Friday. Josh and I took turns driving because he had only gotten about 3 1/2 hours of sleep in the last two days. A big thank you to my parents for getting us a room at the Hampton Inn, that way we didn't bug them that early.

We had so many things planned for the few days that we were there and the first thing we did was take the boys fishing with my dad. Jaron loves to fish and Jantzen has never been. Josh hates to fish so the only time the boys get to do this is when they go with grandpa. Jaron was telling Jantzen all about it so he was getting excited.

We didn't get up until around 10am...we were really exhausted! We picked up grandpa and headed to Pioneer Park in Brigham City. Jaron and grandpa got things situated and then it was time to wait and see if they get a fish. It was a nice day for fishing...the weather was perfect! You could actually breathe and not feel like your lungs were on fire.



The fish didn't seem to want to bite so the guys just hung out and waited. They were patient for a while and then Jantzen got bored so Josh took him walking around. This is one of my favorite pictures from that day.


Jaron decided he was going to try a little bit longer to catch something, but it still didn't happen. He said fishing wasn't any fun unless you catch something. Josh had to remind him that fishing is a relaxing thing to do and you have to have patience because you don't always catch a fish.


I think the boys had fun, I know it would have been more fun for them if they had caught a fish...maybe next time. Even though I didn't get any pictures of a fish, I got some cute pictures of the boys with their grandpa. It's nice that they can do fun things like this, especially since they don't get to hang out with grandpa King very much, maybe one day we will live closer. So, the only fish that we caught and ate that day were some Swedish Fish...and boy, they were yummy!

School's Out...Finally!

We have finally made it to the end! Year round school sometimes seems like it takes forever to end, maybe it's just the early schedule we've been on, but we survived another year of it...Yeah!!

On Wednesday Jaron had his awards assembly at school. Josh was able to go this year which made Jaron really happy. He received an award for math and reading (they are the only academic ones they give out). He came so close to getting a "Perfect Attendance" certificate, but he missed it by a half day. He had come home sick about a month ago. I think he still should have gotten one because technically he was there every day. The same thing happened to him last year. He was recognized by his teacher though for having come so close. He was also nominated by his teacher to participate in the school spelling bee that will be held the end of July. He did it last year and came pretty close to being a winner. Hopefully he will do good again this year. We are so proud of him for everything he has accomplished this year.




Today was his last day of school. He was so excited for it to end. I think he was starting to get burned out, but he still did good and went everyday. He made a lot of new friends this year and kept in touch with ones he had made in past years.

Here is a picture of him with Kristin. They became pretty good friends towards the end of school and he informed me today, by whispering in my ear so no one would hear him, that she likes him. I think he likes her too.


School was dismissed at 10:50 am so all they did today was play games. They all brought one to share and when I showed up Mrs. Norman was playing Twister with them. They all seemed to be happy, I wonder why. They ended their school year by playing on the computers. Jantzen got in on the action and played Poptropica like most of the other kids did. He really enjoyed himself. I think he's going to miss hanging out with Jaron at school for lunch and recess and especially playing on the computers.




Overall I think Jaron had a great time at school this year. We got his report card as we left and he did awesome! He got straight A's and we were informed that he is reading on a high fourth grade level, not bad for a 2nd grader...way to go Jaron! I am so proud of everything he did this year. Not only was he successful in his school work, but he was a great friend to everyone and because of that everyone wanted to be his friend. He's such an awesome kid and I'm so happy that he is a part of our family. Good job Jaron!

The Sickness Just Won't Go Away!

A few weeks ago Jantzen had strep. About a week after that I got it. It had been a few weeks since we got over it so we thought all was well in the Goddard house...no, it wasn't. I guess we were just the beginning of the sickness. Taylor is staying with us until the end of the school year and last Friday I had to check her out of school because she was sick. Turns out she had strep.

Well, today I got a phone call from Josh at 6:30 am saying he wasn't feeling good and he was coming home from work. He never misses work even if he doesn't feel good so I knew that he really was sick. After I took the kids to school I took Josh to the Urgent Care. We knew it would be a long wait so I dropped him off and ran some errands for Jantzen's birthday. When Josh was done he had waited for almost three hours and found out that he has strep, not to mention that he hurt his back last night at work so now he has to deal with both things. That's right, it just won't go away! He got a shot, plus has to take an antibiotic for the next week. The doctor also told him he can't share any drinks or kiss anyone for a week. That really sucks!

So now Josh has been sleeping on the couch for the past 3 1/2 hours. He's not going to work tonight or tomorrow so he can get better. Jaron is the only one who hasn't gotten sick yet and I hope he doesn't. The way things are going here I think he is doomed to get it too. Hopefully Josh will be better soon so we can get back to our normal lives and if Jaron gets it we better not have anymore sickness in our house for a really long time!!

Happy Birthday To Us!

Last week Josh and I celebrated our birthdays. Our birthdays are the 1st and 2nd of July so for most of our marriage we have celebrated them together. This year we were going out of town on Josh's birthday so we celebrated on mine. We went out to dinner with the kids and then came back to our house to have cake. We are at that age now where we have more fun celebrating with our family rather than going out by ourselves, plus I think it's more fun for the kids.


I bought two different cakes because I like white cake and Josh likes chocolate better. Jantzen decided on the color of frosting we got for the words. Josh likes pink and I like green, so that's what we got. We invited some family over to help us eat the cake since we were leaving the next day...it wouldn't be good when we got back and I hate to waste good cake.


Everyone sang "happy birthday" to us and we made our wishes (hopefully they come true). Then it was time to eat...Yeah!!


Josh got new riding boots and I got a Scentsy candle and, after I'm done being pregnant, Josh is taking me shopping for new clothes and shoes. I'm glad we have our kids to help us enjoy our special day. I love celebrating my birthday with my best friend and I look forward to spending many more years celebrating together. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO US!!