Easter 2014

Our Easter weekend started with the town's annual East Egg Hunt. I am always shocked at home many people show up at this event. There are probably 200 kids with somewhere between 1000-2000 eggs. We meet at the baseball field at Hunt Park in front of our house and all the kids line up on one of the lines. When they say "go" all the kids and parents just mow over all these Easter Eggs. It is over in under 5 minutes, no exaggeration. Bentley found a piece of chocolate on the ground, London got 1 egg, and I think Macy got 3 or 4 eggs. I was kind of irriated at the other parents because they were all picking up the eggs for their kids and putting them in their baskets. I saw lots of kids with 20-30 eggs a piece and then theirs mine with 6 all put together. I wasn't very happy about that and neither were they. We decided we'd go home and just have our own. I'm not sure if we'll go back next year at this point.

 At church the next day we met some members visiting America from Wales, England and Kathleen and I decided to invite them over for dinner. Marie was coming back from Utah and we weren't planning on having dinner over there, so Kathleen and David were making roast and potatoes and I was making a ham and funeral potatoes. We figured with both meals we would have plenty to feed everyone. After church we all met at Marie's house (it's bigger and has more room in the backyard then either of ours) for dinner and an Easter Egg Hunt. Our friends from Wales were planning on just staying for a quick dinner since they needed to get down the mountain to Scottsdale, but ended up staying for 4 hours. They had been in an SUV for a week and their kids were going a little stir crazy. We had lots of eggs for each of the kids and they enjoyed this Easter Egg Hunt much better then the town one.

 Bentley was more into playing with the teeter totter then the eggs.

The men all chatting. 

 The whole group!

 I had hard boiled some eggs to do at Marie's house, but by the time we remembered we had already packed up everything else to go so we just did it at our house.

 Bentley loved the eggs, but he just wanted to lick off the dye! He wasn't very happy when I wouldn't let him.

All-State 2014

Every year each High School Region has what's called Regional Choir and Auditions. His students audition for Regionals to make it into the Choir and if they make Regionals they get to audition for All-State. The All-State Choir only lets 50 kids in each section, which really isn't a lot considering how many kids actually audition (hundreds!). This year one of his students Savana Shumway made All-State and her sister Cierra made it as an alternate. The All-State Choir lasts 3 days and this year was in the valley. I usually take this opportunity to go hang out with my Mom in Buckeye. 

I had a few errands I needed to run so while we were there we headed off to the mall to take my wedding ring in for it's 6 month check-up. Each time I take my ring in I'm a little nervous that it's going to have a loose stone or something and it would have to be sent into a local jeweler for a week or so. I handed the lady my ring and after checking it out she let me know that the center stone had been dinked and one of the prongs was misaligned. They would have to send it in the their corporate jeweler for a new center stone and setting and I probably wouldn't have it back for 6-8 weeks. :( Sad Day!

The kids were getting super ansy at the mall so we went off to the kid play section while I wallowed about my poor ring.

After a super long day at the mall and shopping, Bentley came and cuddled with me on the couch. I love these little moments.

 That Saturday we decided to go hang out with Kyle while he waited for the Choir to perform so we could follow him back to Holbrook. On our way out to ASU where All-State was being held My Mom and I needed a few things at Sam's Club so we car-pooled into town so that my Mom could go back home without me having to go all the way back to their house to drop her off. We almost get to Sam's and my Mom realized that we had forgotten the boot covers for Fiddler On the Roof that she had made (more on the musical later) :). She turned around and headed back while we headed into the store. 

I had been in the store about 10 minutes and I was just walking around the clothes to see if I could find any cute summer clothes for Bentley. Bentley kept trying to open my wallet and play with my mom and throw my keys on the ground and I was kind of getting to the end of my rope with him. I had put my keys, wallet, and phone in the kid seat next to Bentley and he picked them all up and threw them on the ground and then started yelling "Phone!". My wallet opened up and everything went everywhere. Like any Saturday, Sam's was packed and now my cards and random wallet stuff was all over the floor. I scooped everything up and threw it all in the diaper bag in the basket and told Bentley that No he could absolutely NOT have my phone after throwing all my stuff on the ground.

I started walking along the books trying to waste time until my Mom came back. I went to open the diaper bag to get my phone to call my Mom and see where she was when I realized I didn't pick up my phone from the floor. I took everything out of my diaper bag just to make sure and there was no phone. I hurried back over to where Bentley threw my stuff and still, no phone. I kind of started panicing. As a lady passed me I asked her if she would use her phone to call mine and see if I phone rang anywhere in my bag. No ring, no phone. I walked around the books and the clothes at least 3 times before I started crying. I had no idea how to get ahold of anybody, didn't know how to get to where Kyle was, and I could NOT afford a new, out of contract iPhone.

At this point I'm walking around aimlessly looking for my phone and trying to keep all three kids in the cart. I was so angry that when Bentley yelled "Phone" I didn't look for it right away. I bumped into a Sam's employee and asked if they would keep an eye out for my phone and let the other associates know. What felt like an hour went by and I still didn't have my phone. I really needed to go, my Mom wasn't back, and I didn't want to leave without my phone! I was walking threw the clothes for probably the 30th time when one of my old Young Women's leaders came into the aisle. She was super excited to see me and asked how I was doing and I started crying. I told her what happened and asked her if I could use her phone to call my mom and my husband. My mom was around the corner and would be there in a few minutes and Kyle told me that he was really sorry and that we would "figure it out". How were we going to "figure out" where my phone was?! IT'S GONE!

I was convinced some mean person stole it. I was so mad and so sad. I had set up Find My Phone on it, but I had turned off my Data because the kids had turned off my WiFi and my Data was almost gone. He couldn't turn on the beeper for it and we couldn't see where it was on the map until someone turned on the Data. He set it up to where it was locked and if anyone turned on the data it would tell them who to call and lock it so where they couldn't have access anymore.

I asked the Sam's Club employees another 10-15 times whether or not they had found the phone and we decided we weren't doing any good anymore and I just needed to get on the road. If someone found it they had all the resources to get it back to me. It was so hard leaving Sam's Club without my phone! Not only did I have to give my ring up for more than a month, but not I didn't have a phone. It sounds so ridiculous now, but I was so sad!

Off the ASU we went. Here is the amazing Choir. Look at the all those kids!

 While the band and orchestra were playing we hung outside with Kyle and one of his former students Tyler Foree. It was fun to sit and relax a little bit after the whole Sam's Club crying ordeal. There was this cool tree that the kids kept playing on and Bentley found himself a cute seat in it. While he was sitting here Macy told us that "He is just so cute!"

About 2 hours had passed since I lost/someone stole my phone and I still hadn't heard anything. Kyle's phone only had about 5% battery life left and I was certain that I was going to have to go on eBay and buy some stupid flip phone and just be old school again for another 2 years when I could get a new one. I was holding Kyle's phone hoping that someone would call it when all that hoping paid off and it rang. Even better it said "My Hot Wife" as the caller!! (That's me by the way). I was SO excited!! It was my Mom on the other line! Apparently when Bentley threw all my stuff, my phone landed in a lady's cart. She picked up the phone thinking it was her niece's phone that had fallen out of her purse or something and didn't think anything of it. When she got home she walked into her house and say her niece already talking on her cell phone. Uh-oh. She found "Mom" in my phone and they worked out a way to get the phone back to me.

I can't even explain how relieved and happy I was!! Yay! My awesome parents even went and met the lady and drove to ASU to deliver my phone. What an eventful trip it was!

Pooper Scoopers

Everyone around here is enjoying our beautiful lawn in the backyard. It has made such a difference for our backyard! Our floors aren't covered in dirt all the time, we rarely get stickers inside anymore, and it's so much better to look at than weeds! Even our dogs love it! I mean love to poop on it. I put the kiddos to work and had them go be my poop scoopers. I set the timer for 10 minutes and had them get to it. When Kyle got home we showed him the pictures and London let him know that "This is a stinky job". Good job girls!

Conference Morning

I always get so excited for conference. Not only do we get to hear the words of the Prophets and any other exciting news going on in the Church worldwide, but we get to have church in our jammies! What more could you want?! Well, only half of church in our jammies. We've tried to make it a point to dress up and go to the chapel for at least one session for conference but this year one of the kiddos wasn't feeling well so we decided to just stay home. This morning started out like this...

Our routine kind of goes like this... London wakes up Kyle, he puts a show on for her and gives her some cereal, Bentley wakes up, London gets him out of his crib, then goes out to watch some cartoons with the girls. This particular morning it didn't go so well, so Bentley came and laid with me in bed instead.

I love when he comes and lays with me. He usually stays for 10-15 minutes until he says he's hungry, then I get up and make the kids some real breakfast. Kyle probably has a different version of that, but that's my morning :)

I don't know about the rest of those that watch General Conference, but sometimes it's hard for me to stay away the whole time. Of course the words are amazing and there are awesome messages- but if you put me anywhere quiet for 4 hours I'm bound to sleep. To keep me awake I like to do busy work. I've really been trying to learn how to do the girls hair in different ways and since I had some time I decided to take another stab at braiding. I love this way London's hair turned out!

 BentBent was feeling a little left out so we did something fun for him.

With a family with two girls we go through a lot of bows around here. Conference was the perfect time to put my fingers together for some busy work and stock up on some bows. They turned out pretty good!

While doing all the busy work, I really loved the general messages of conference. I've mentioned this to Kyle before, but I really feel like the messages of conference lately have really been to be spiritually prepared. For a while we went through being physically prepared with food storage and savings, but now the war is all on a spiritually level. There were several talks about how we need to be converted to the Gospel of Christ and not just go with the motions. I also appreciated the talks about how to protect the family and our home. This world is becoming more and more accepting of things that aren't acceptable to our Heavenly Father and will not bring us true happiness. As these things become more prominent in our society is it even more important that we know good from evil and right from wrong and not just what is legal and illegal. I love the reminders and wisdom that comes from general conference. It gives me hope and confidence and that war as already been won, we just have to decide whether or not we will be on the winning team. I have a testimony that we have living prophets on the Earth today and those witnesses words and the same as the Lords. We are so lucky.