I keep them around for the laughs...

Okay, that isn't the only reason, but they do keep me in stiches. Here are my favorite funny moments from each of my kids recently.

First, and the one we are still laughing about, is Zachary. About a week ago we were driving home from Girls' Camp and all the kids were exhausted, so they were asleep when we pulled into town. We drove around a big corner, and all of a sudden, Zach says "Woah!" and then mumbles very quickly, (still mostly asleep) "twinkle, twinkle little star" and then wakes up. I am laughing just typing this, it was sooo funny!! We still tease him about that one. He may never live it down.

Next, is a pre-teen moment courtesy of Miss Madison. Yesterday night she came into my room and said, "Mom, I have lots of mosquito bites on my legs and they are itching really bad." And I said, "Where did you get mosquito bites?" She said, "from Girls' Camp" (which was over a week ago). I said, "No, you don't just have mosquito bites now from Girls Camp." so I leaned over to inspect her legs as she pointed out the small, itchy red bumps. As I looked closer, I noticed that she had tried to SHAVE HER LEGS!! When I asked her, she told me that she had shaved them in the shower earlier with just water! Ouch!! She is still learning that lesson. I told her not to be in such a hurry to grow up!

Last, but not least, I was talking to Andrew tonight after dinner, and out-of-the-blue he says to me, "If you take something back to the store to get your money back, you might not get your same money back that you paid, but you will get the same amount." I am not sure where that came from, but I thought it was very astute for a six-year-old. He often makes me think, "where on earth did you come up with that?" Such a clever boy!

Seems Like...

I am always playing "catch-up" with my blog! Summer has been busy here. I have been working a lot on my new jewelry line: interchangeable watches. I have a blog & an Etsy shop set up, but I am still in the beginning stages.

Cory has been working hard as ever and we are looking forward to him having some time off next week. We are planning at least one trip to the lake as well as a few days in Salt Lake. I promise, I will take lots of pictures!

The kids have been playing with friends a lot. They like to play night-games outside and the other night I finally had to send everyone home at 10:15!

A couple of weeks ago, we went up to Salem (by Payson) for a Family Reunion. It was for Cory's Grandma's family. We hung out at the park, ate lunch & the kids played on the playground. Then we drove up to the Hogle Zoo with Cory's sisters and their kids. Our nephew, Brayden was celebrating his 2nd birthday, so we spent the afternoon at the zoo. It was fun. One of the elephants was celebrating her 48th birthday, so it was pretty packed. It was hot, but we had a good time. We got to see the White Alligator, which was cool even though it looked like it was dead. It was a really long day because we drove up and back in one day, but everyone had fun.

Vote For ME!!

I am a finalist in a beading contest! Please, vote for me!! To vote, go to: www.beadingdaily.com/beadstar. You can only vote once per e-mail address. (and it will set a cookie on your computer, so if you know how to clear your cache & you have more than one e-mail address, vote away!!)
I am #12 in the "Stones" category. You have to vote through each category to get to mine, but that's okay, because my sister is also a finalist!! She is #15 in the "Crystals" category, which is the first one you will come to! So, exercise your right to vote and start clicking now! :o)

New Blogs...

If you haven't already...pop over and check out my jewelry blog: http://www.sterlingandstones.blogspot.com/

Also, I have another new blog, but I haven't done much with it yet. You will want to check in on it occasionally because there will be big news coming shortly. It is: http://www.whichwatches.blogspot.com/

I have an earring giveaway going on now through Saturday on the Sterling and Stones blog, so don't miss out!!

Time to play "Catch Up"

A lot has been going on over the last few weeks, and I have been severely neglecting my blog. First, on Friday the 16th, Madison and Andrew competed in the District Science Fair. They were so excited (Madison was very nervous) and they had a fun day. Andrew took 3rd place in the Kindergarten group. He won a medal & $5! He was SOO excited about the money! When they announced the winners, they started with Kindergarten and started with 3rd place, so he was the first one called up. It took us quite a while to explain to him that he didn't win 1st place, but he didn't really care. He got 5 bucks!! :o) Madison was disappointed that she didn't win, but she did a really great job. The competition in 4th grade is much tougher than Kindergarten, and she was very lucky to have made it to the District competition. They had a long day, but a great time!

As soon as the Science Fair was over, Cory's mom took the kids, and Cory and I took off for a weekend in Park City. Cory's team with Nabisco paid for a 1-night stay (but we were able to talk them into paying for another night for us, since we had so far to drive). We had mediocre food, saw "Prince Caspian", did a little shopping, and hung out in our hotel. We had a nice room that we shared with another couple from St. George (he works for Nabisco also) and had a very nice time. It was great to get away for a couple of days and just relax. I like Park City, and would love to have a second home there someday, but there is no way we could ever afford it. The place that we stayed in is like a bunch of small suites/hotel rooms that people own. It was right on Main Street, so obviously "prime property", but the lady at the front desk told us that our room (2 bedrooms/baths and a small kitchenette/LR) would sell for around $750,000!!! That is 3/4 of a million dollars for a hotel room! Yikes!

Monday the 19th began the last week of school. Cory also had the week off, so it was nice to have him home. Madison had a class talent show and Cory and I went to watch. She sang a couple of songs (along with a CD) and also played the piano. She did a very good job & was so cute. Andrew had a class program on the 14th that was so fun. They sang a bunch of songs. I sat in a really bad spot, so I was barely able to see his head, so the video isn't too great. But, he did a good job and the kids were all so cute. On Thursday, the 22nd, Zach's class did puppet shows for the parents. Zach was so funny. He was the narrator in his puppet show, and he kept peeking his head out of the curtain. Silly! Thursday was also Madison's birthday and the last day of school! The kids will miss their teachers and their classes a lot, but they are so excited to be out of school for the summer, and to move on to the next grade in school. I can't believe I will have a 5th grader next year! Next year will be Madison's last at elementary, then onto Jr. High!! Yikes! Madison got lots of fun stuff for her birthday. We gave her some new clothes and a bunch of Littlest Pet Shops (her favorite toy right now). Thursday evening we all went to dinner at Wingers with Cory's parents for Madison's birthday. Then, on Friday Madison had her friend party. She had a "Fiesta" (that was all her idea) and had 7 of her girl friends come. They decorated candy bags, had chips and salsa, made shrinky dink necklaces, beat up a pinata, played freeze dance, had cake & ice cream, and opened presents. All the girls had a lot of fun.

It was so rainy and cold all weekend, it even hailed quite a bit on Friday, so we couldn't really do anything fun for the Memorial weekend. On Sunday we drove over to Minersville and had lunch at Cory's sister's house and went to the cemetery to put flowers on Cory's grandparents' graves. It was a nice day and the weather wasn't too bad.

On Sunday we are having a huge joint birthday party for Madison, Andrew, Zane, Lily, Grandma Joleen, Amelia, and Uncle Steve in St. George. Amelia & Justin & my parents are driving up Saturday to meet Abi & me in Las Vegas for a bead show, and then they will come up to St. George for the party! It will be so fun!! I will post pictures next week.

So, I think this wins as my longest post ever. I feel much better getting all of that down. Enjoy the pics!

gone fishin...

Cory took the boys to Lake Powell last weekend to do some bass fishing and ride around in the boat. He has been so anxious to get the boat out on the lake this year. His dad and bro-in-law Caleb went also. The boys had a blast! They each caught 3 fish, which were the first fish either of them have ever caught. Andrew was the first one to catch a fish, and Cory said he was pretty excited.

Zachary was too chicken to touch any of his fish, so there are no pictures of him holding up his fish! But, they both had a great time. They had fun hanging out on the beach and playing in the water too.

Andrew learned how to cast his own fishing line, and Cory said he walked up and down the shore line just casting & reeling in & casting again. It was pretty cute!By the time they got home on Saturday night, they were totally exhausted. They had a fun trip, and I am looking forward to the next time when we can all go together!

It's official...

I always knew I was the black sheep of my family (the only sister with a name not starting with "A", the only brunette in a sea of blondes, etc.), and this weekend it was proven once again! My little sisters, Amanda & Amelia, both graduated from ASU, making me the only one in my family NOT to have graduated college (including my parents, and 3 bros-in-law)! :o) I am so happy for them and all the hard work they put into getting their college degrees. Now that I think about it, I guess Cory is sort of the black sheep in his family too. He is the only one in his family that DID graduate college (including his parents, and 2 bros-in-law). So, at least he makes up where I lack, right? Anyhow, congrats to PanPanda & Meme!! I love you both & wish I could've been there to celebrate with you!