Ashlynn turns 4 and she is growing up!

Ashlynn's birthday was May 27th and we had a full day of celebration for her. She had her last day of preschool on her birthday so, she had a party to start the day off. Then, she had a friend water party in the backyard. Finally, we ended the day with cake and ice cream with family.

I can't believe how much she has grown in the last year. Ashlynn has not only grown up physically, but she has gained a little girl personality. She is so sweet and always talks with such emotion. My recent favorite story is when we were walking down the toy aisle. She was so mesmerized by the princess things, and she said "Oh mom, these are so beautiful!" with a little tear running down her cheek and then she said "Oh, why am I crying" and then she wipes her tear, makes sure no one saw her and goes on. It was so cute to watch. I know that this is probably a little foreshadowing of what is to come. Ashlynn always brings a smile to our faces and she will laugh at anyone's jokes. Even Matt's. We love this little girl so much and grateful she is part of our family.

Chalk Art

These are pictures of people's chalk art on Main Street in Bountiful. I can't believe the detail in some of the them. It was really impressive to see. The kids also wanted to join in and make their own masterpieces. The kids were watching some of them being made and learned how to use a towel to blend. So, they had their towels and went to work. Do you love their poses? They were having so much fun making up those poses. (The other girl in the photos is Moana. I watch her after school once a week.)

Zoo trip #2

It was Ashlynn's turn for her class to have a end of the school year trip to the zoo. I think I am done with the zoo for awhile. Spending two full days in one week. I've pretty much seen every animal enough to last me a year, maybe even 2 years. We still managed to have fun. Ashlynn was so excited to go because she wasn't able to go with Carter's class. Enjoy the pictures of Ashlynn having fun at the zoo!

This is her class. Ashlynn is the 2nd in on the right.

She loved this peacock. She was waiting for it to open its tail.

She would of waited all day if I let her.

Kids in the Kitchen...

I had a great Mother's Day! We had Richard G. Scott from the Quorum of the Twelve speak at our sacrament meeting. He spoke of his late wife that passed away several years ago. It was so tender to hear him to talk about her and the memories of their life here on this earth. There was a great spirit felt through out the meeting, even with the kids saying "Is it time to go yet?" Then, I got to take a nap which was much needed and then I got to enjoy a tasty meal from Matt and the kids. The kids picked out these cute little flower cupcakes and they were delicious!

Hope you all had a joyous Mother's Day!

Carter's spring fun...

The Kindergarten classes at Carter's school went to the Hogle Zoo for their end of the year trip. It was a beautiful day and we had a lot of fun! Other hightlights of trip were eating lunch at the zoo and riding on a big yellow bus. Oh, the simple pleasures in life. Carter and his friends measure up to the giant Ape.
Carter peeking through a ground hog hole.

Carter at play!

Carter has really enjoyed baseball so far this year.

This is Carter setting up to bat with Matt helping him out.

Isn't this the cutiest catcher you have ever seen. He is the smallest kid on the team and got behind the plate and stopped the ball with no problems. So cute!

Warmer weather is finally here!

Warmer weather has made it presence in Utah. Not sure how long it is going to last, but we will enjoy it while we can. Carter started soccer a few weeks ago and they were playing on a field with snow patches on it and the boys were wearing sweats with coats.

Carter has also started machine pitch baseball and Matt is coaching his team. They have their first game later this week. We were worried if Carter could even hit a ball pitched to him. He surprised us! We moved him up from tee ball because he wanted to play real baseball. So, he is the youngest on his team as he is playing with 7-8 year olds. He is doing great and he will only get better if he truly likes it!

We also got to visit Lagoon. Carter was excited because he is now tall enough to go on the bigger rides. Carter and Matt on the Bat ride at Lagoon.
Ashlynn being a great spectator at Carter's soccer game.

Carter on the far right keeping a eye on the ball.

Downata Hot Springs

On Saturday we headed up to Downata Hot Springs in Idaho with some friends (It was only 1hr 40min away from our house). It was a little chilly so we stayed in the 100 degree pool most of the time. They had a egg hunt in the water. You are probably thinking how...well the eggs had holes in them and they sunk to bottom and the kids had to go under the water and then take the egg up to the desk for a prize. The kids loved swimming again. Then we headed to the cabin and played games and had another Easter Egg hunt with our friends. (I love the picture above of Ashlynn looking out the cabin window while the Eggs were being hidden). I thought it was funny how Carter wanted to make sure that there would not be any bees at the pool. We told him that it is a little too cold for bees. Well, apparently it wasn't, the pool was swarming with them. There were a few victims of the bees, it was like they were dropping out of the sky. We still had a lot of fun and had a great Easter weekend.