Jam packed Thursday.

Yesterday was a big day in all kinds of ways. 

Birthdays. 
Last day of school. 
Dance festival. 
Cody's mission call. 

Very big. 

Here's a taste of the day's happenings:
 

Will and his awesome teacher, Miss Boone.

He and Jonathon waiting for the dance of the 5th graders...

...which ended like this.

See how my camera focused on the head in the foreground and blurred the rest? Awesome.

Will got a birthday hug from a proud sister...

...and we made a final visit to Will's newly hatched chicken, Leroy Chickalicious.

And finally, we trekked to Salt Lake, to witness Cody opening his mission call, to...Lubbock, Texas, Spanish speaking (another blurry shot).

                                                  

 On the way home, Will's last birthday wish of the day was to sit on top of his friend, Sinclair, for a photo-op. We obliged.

And now, on to Friday....

William Michael Labit and Randall William Brown.

Not only do they share a name, 

but a birthday as well... 

When Will was turning 5, I had a sense of  melancholy as the day approached. A little jokingly I said to him, "Will, what am I going to do when you turn five? All my babies will be gone." Tears  filled his eyes and he said, " I won't turn five if you don't want me to..."  Then tears  filled my eyes and I said,"Of course I want you to. Five is the best age ever!" 

Somehow, today, 5 has become 11 and I am still digging  my heels in trying to slow down time. As if I could. But today I won't cry. Every year is something big to celebrate. I couldn't be prouder of the young man he is becoming. Happy Birthday Will. We love you!

And speaking of proud- Will shares a birthday with my brother Randy.

He is a force to be reckoned with in the world of camera men.

And he is kind of like having a rock star 

as an uncle...

But most importantly, he is an incredible brother.

Happy Birthday Randy.

We Love You.

2 Books in 4 Days.

This one I have read before. 

Twice.

 I love it (obviously).

This one, I happened to read a good review on and decided to try it. I read the first few pages and almost put it away. 

I am so glad I didn't. 

Soon, I couldn't put it down. 

Summer is for reading, right?

Once upon a time we had an amazing dog...

...his name was Buddha.
 We loved him so much that we could hardly remember life before him.
Our world practically revolved around him.
He was almost perfect in every way. Then he passed away.
It was kind of traumatic for our devoted family. 

 We couldn't imagine ever replacing him. 

And so we didn't.

But 5 years later we are kind of dog-hungry.

And so we are looking.

However, we have one family member who is holding out.

He remembers how children have big desires but little follow-through.

And that walking the dog soon becomes more of a chore and less of a thrill.

And so he asked for a contract.

One that commits dog owning children to have some responsibility.

Will eagerly drew one up .

It eventually was signed by all but one child.

Grandma Tomi is negotiating to take over his responsibilities :)

I only worry that a new dog will have big shoes to fill.

Buddha is legendary in our home.

Wish us luck.

Today we celebrated the dynamic sister duo that is Tomi and Judie....it's been awhile since they have been together for a birthday celebration so we tried to make the most of it.

Both of these women have contributed so much to the happiness of our little family-

Judie has been a constant in our lives for the last 10 years, providing amazing Halloween costumes, conference breakfasts, and lots of love and support to the kids.

Since moving here about 8 months ago, it's been fun for the kids to get to know Grandma Tomi more fully. They love her! She spoils us silly and we love having her here with us after so many years across the ocean.

And so, though I can't remember how old either one of them is, it is with great happiness that we celebrate their birthdays right here in Provo, Utah- 
in person.

Happy Birthday!!!!

The Voice of Provo...

Local celeb, Ryan Innes, visited Spring Creek Elementary yesterday.
I've seen him in concert several times and he is awesome (think Billy Joel style piano playing, and a Ray Charles-esque voice).
He was voted off The Voice this season after making it to the live rounds...
Sad, sad. 
 

However, yesterday, Will came home with his autograph scrawled onto his skin....

Sure wish I had been given a heads up...

Fifth Grade Spirit Week.

Oh, the last days of elementary school.
So little to do that you wonder why they can't just end right after testing.
However, for the kids, these days are probably the most fun of the whole year.
No stress, no homework.
This week was spirit week for the fifth graders.
Each day had a theme, and each day Will obliged.

Monday- teacher student swap day.

 Though I have never seen a male teacher at our school in a white shirt and tie, it's the only way to get the message across I guess...

Tuesday-favorite book character.

 It appears that the only difference between a  male teacher and  Harry Potter is a cloak and glasses...

Wednesday- Dress like your brother day.

 I jest.

It's actually Nerd Day.

 Will looks just a little too comfortable in this role :)

Thursday- favorite movie character.

Life of Pi's Richard Parker, obviously! 

Friday-Royalty Day.

 There is some serious snootiness going on here....

And so, this ends the week before the last week of school.

Ready or not, summer is here.

Someone Has A Sweet, New Ride,

Notes From A Weekend.

Our weekend activities consisted of, but were not limited to,

  the following:

Elijah spent a good deal of his weekend filming a video for drama that some how involved this book review....

Friday night was spent playing many rounds of Hearts, not only using face cards, but Jack Daniel's ones to boot...(I blame the husband).

Beth trekked to DI and bought her self some "mom jeans." She promptly cut them off and has been wearing them as often as possible ever since.

Jake celebrated his 10th birthday (for about the 10th time), on Sunday...

...and Will is anxiously awaiting his 11th birthday which takes place in about 2 weeks. Believe it or not, we still have 3 more birthdays to celebrate before this month is over!!!

And that's the weekend wrap up.

Onward.

We Are Just About CRAZY Around Here....

The last month of school always seems to move in break neck speed.
I drag myself out of bed each morning and try and muster the energy to hit the finish line at the end of each day.
I am exhausted I tell you, but the light at the end of the tunnel is coming quickly.
I am officially ready for school to be done.

Here is what's going on in our lives this week:

The garden was planted and I can already see little green plants pushing their way to the surface. The week has been unseasonably hot and so the little seeds were highly motivated to get going I think. This year I planted brussel sprouts, broccoli, zucchini, water melon, cucumbers, and, of course, tomatoes. With that lineup, it looks like I will doing most of the consuming from this garden.

Michaela has been working like a crazy woman. So glad that she chose Subway as her place of employment. They have been very generous in giving her plenty of hours. Have I mentioned how great it is to have her home?

Bethany has been thrown into a busy student government schedule already. This weekend she has just about every minute dedicated to school activities. Luckily, her Provo Beach Resort schedule is not too busy yet. 

We haven't seen much of Elijah this week as he has been helping at the regional lacrosse tournament that Timpview was in charge of  this year. Timpview didn't go very far in the tournament but had major hosting duties. When he is home, his nose is buried in To Kill A Mockingbird  trying to get it finished for the end of term.

Hannah had her final band concert this week. She has come a long way on the clarinet. They sounded terrific! She is also working hard to finish up term projects and trying to stay motivated to the bitter end :)

Will is basically cruising these last few weeks. His busy schedule ended a couple of weeks ago and now he spends most of his free time plowing through cat warrior books. Does that series ever end? Seriously, I think he has read a couple dozen in the past few weeks! 

My schedule this week was/is something like this:

Mon- School skate night where I ran the chip and soda booth.
Tues- Band concert at Centennial
Wed- Multi-Stake youth activity
Thurs-Elijah's alumni lacrosse game
Fri- Dinner with the Stake Presidency
Sat- Ward Family History activity
Sun- Well, you know Sundays...

Michael's schedule? Crazier than mine. I see him for about 10 mts. in the morning and 30 mts. in the evening....

We are seriously ready for summer around here.
Bring it on! 
 

Scenes From A Mothers Day...

...and oh, it was a great one!!! 

 

One Night, Three Awards.

The girls Lacrosse season ended with a bang. 

Well, really with a bang-quet where
last night they celebrated big.

It was a tough season, leaving lots of room to grow.

Next year, senior year for alot of the players, 
promises to be a great one.

Beth grew a lot this year as a player. She was fierce and competitive, something we have seen hints of in past seasons, 
but out in full force this one.

Last night she earned a few awards:

From her team captains, she earned "The Beast" award in reference to her accidently breaking the nose of an opposing team player (fierce I tell you). 

From her coaches she earned the team's"Best Defender."

And regionally, she earned an award for being one of the region's top 10 best defenders. 

Way to go Beth!
An amazing season for an amazing girl.

Here's to next year.

If There Is One Thing Prom Has Taught Me...

...it's that I am super awkward when it comes to

 taking pictures of my daughters and their dates. 

Seriously. 

I can't get it over with quick enough. 

And I end up with lightning quick, 

in the living room, 

see-you-later pictures. 

Hmmm, I guess I will have to work on that.

Life In a Snapshot.

Michaela:

Freshly home from BYU-I, she is  now officially employed at Subway.  Though we certainly enjoy our share of Subway's offerings, it's kind of sad she can't put all that ice cream scooping talent to good use.

She is attending a singles ward and seems to be unphased by all of the cliche' goings on. It helps that half of our  
former bishopric now shepherds that singles ward.

We are thoroughly enjoying having this fangirl around again.

Bethany:

Just finished Lacrosse season, where she was a force to be reckoned with... As someone on the sidelines said about her: "She's a game changer!" She certainly leaves everything on that field -so proud of her. 


She is just about ready for Prom tomorrow night...if only we could find shoes!!!! Uhg.

The same week she won her election, she had a little scrape in the parking lot, which left the truck looking like this:

She also has a summer job, working at Provo Beach Resort.

Elijah:

Elijah had found his inner Lacrosse player. He's caught the same vision of Lacrosse as his sister. They both have invested a great deal of time and energy into the sport. He will be playing in a tournament today in Pocatello.

He finished his State Pantomime competition with straight Superiors. We are not sure where his theater talents will take him next year-that remains to be seen.

Elijah has a summer job as well, working for Seven Peaks. Let's hope he hangs on to his retainer for awhile so he can actually enjoy his earnings this time around. :)

Hannah:

Hannah is now sharing her bedroom with the newly returned college daughter. She is awesome like that.

As the first year of middle school comes to an end, I have to say she adjusted quite well and has the grades to prove it.

She keeps herself busy spending alot of time with her friends and has just been asked by her band teacher to audition for the symphonic orchestra next year. Maybe the clarinet is her thing....

Hannah does not  have a summer job and therefore will get to spend lots of time doing fun jobs around the house!

Will: 

 
Just about everything extra curricular Will had going on, and believe me it was alot, has now come to an end. Choir, cello, chess and Freedom Leaders is now over for the year. In all is new found free time, he has renewed his passion for reading and is now devouring the Warrior Cat book series...he is literally reading one a day.
He just finished all requirements to earn his Webleos badge as well as his Arrow of Light. I can't believe he will be 11 this month.

Will's summer job is the usual: spend as much time outside with the little pack of neighborhood boys.

And so, there you have it. The proverbial plates are spinning in the air and we are doing our best to keep them up there. 
However, we seem to be sweeping up pieces continually.

And that's okay.