I have to admit...

...I bribed him. 

After seeing him read the same books over and over again-

I paid him money to start this series.

Mother of the Year- 

that's me.

 

 

Bladder Control.

On Sunday, we finally got around to the family celebration of these two siblings' birthdays.

With the wedding and all, they kind of got put on the back burner.

It was a momentous birthday for Laura....

...because she turned that wonderful age of 50.

The age that I will be turning in just a few short months.

Apparently, it's super funny to give adult diapers to a 50 year old.

No thank you.

Luckily, Michael is still a youngster and diapers 

won't be in the picture for a couple more years.

Happy Birthday.

May your days be merry and bright, all year long.

And dry. Definitely dry,

tbt.

Orlando Temple Trip-Summer of 2014.

Hannah and Elijah's expressions have more to do 

with me taking another picture and are not a reflection of their temple experience. :)

A Weekend to Remember.

The second best thing about Cameron getting married, (Cameron getting married would be the first best thing, obviously) is that we got an ever so brief visit with the Halliday clan. Well, most of them. They pulled in early Friday morning and exited late Sunday night.

After a briefly awkward re acquaintance, 

these two were once again inseparable.

 Never an awkward moment with this bunch-

Molly and Bethany always pick up right where they left off.

Molly will once again be spending the summer with us...

Nikki and Merrily...

Bethany and Mikki and Malia...

Mother and sisters of the groom...

Crazy cousins of the groom...

More crazy cousins...

It was so sweet to see Cameron, Mr. Tough Guy, 

so emotionally overwhelmed

 by the greatness of the day. 

He broke down a little during the mother-son dance. :)

 First dance as husband and wife...

And the evening was capped off Hawaiian style.

A fire dancer had a couple of the toddlers in hysterics-

but the rest of us were highly entertained.

Such a great day!

Congratulations and best wishes Cameron and Lynnea.

Happy Wedding Day.

A new Labit family has been created.

Congratulations Lynnea-

you are now a member of the 

Always Misprounced Last Name Club 

for the rest of your life. 

We couldn't be happier to count you as one of us. :)

And the Birthdays Just Keep Coming.

 Michael turned 48 today.

Forty. Eight. 

Every once in awhile when I see a glimpse of us in the mirror I say,

"Who are these people and how did we get so old?"

I know the answer...

 

... I blame these guys :)

Oh well, it's too late now-

Might as well make the best of it.

So Happy Birthday honey--

At least you aren't 50. 

(like your wife is going to be...)

 I think these Floridians said it best:

Spring Break.

Spring Break started out a little "iffy" for us. Because of big layoffs planned at Michael's work that week, we had very underwhelming plans in case we were out of employment. Kind of puts a damper on things...however, things worked out, we are still employed and all is well. Here is a rundown on our week-- 

1. We helped Judie move in to her new place. 

We all were a little nervous about her being on her own, but she found a nice place in an assisted living center...things already have not worked out so well, but that's a story for another day.

2. We helped Janis do some spring cleaning. (Nothing says Spring Break like lot's of service, am I right?)

3. We went and saw the movie Freetown. Can't say enough about how great that movie is and how it brought back a flood of memories of our Africa experiences...

4. We took Buddha to have a "procedure" done. Nothing is more sad than his happy face on the car ride to the clinic, and his dejected face on the car ride home...

5. We went to the temple and did some baptisms for family. Since the Provo Temple baptistry is so busy, we went to the Jordan River temple. It was lovely. And very time savvy...

6. We ended our week at Lagoon. Because we hadn't been there in several years, it seemed like an ideal time. The weather was perfect, the rides were awesome and the company was fabulous. :)  

We won't mention the car's dead battery when it was time to go home. 

 Bethany, reunited with Rodney, the bunny of her senior year who now lives with 

Janis and is called Esther. Somehow in the process, Rodney changed genders?

Gorgeous flowers outside the temple. 

Spring has sprung.

 

Bethany had to document Buddha's misery...

Though I love roller coasters, I am old. My equilibrium just aint what it used to be...

I did every single one despite that ugly truth.

I did not do Rattlesnake Rapids. Getting wet in 60 degree weather would send me over the edge.

No one else seemed to care about that issue.

All in all, Spring Break was pretty okay.  

Especially the part about still having a job. :)

Happy Birthday To My Dad.

Proud owner of Grandpa's Soda Fountain and Ice Cream Parlor-

but humble in every other way.

Love you Dad.

Easter.

 Really there is nothing better than Easter and 

Conference falling on the same weekend. 

Conference sure helps you stay focused on the Savior 

all weekend long.

But in between all of that awesomeness we found time for secondary Easter activities...

...such as decorating eggs.

We decided to forgo egg dye this year 

and stuck to decorating with paint and glitter.

I loved being able to watch the Priesthood session live this year.

In the amazing choir, I thought this boy looked a lot like my son over there in Washington.

   That is until I compared it with this choir picture-

not so much.

 On Sunday we had Easter dinner at the Backus household- 

I took about 2 pictures.

Then I discovered that Will got a hold of my camera....

and so I ended up with these lovely memories:

Perfectly captured the day I think...or not.

Luckily, I got this awesome shot of these two cousins 

thoroughly enjoying their time together:

Or not.

One more try...

 Yep, just not happening.

Oh well-

Despite that lovely daughter of mine-

Easter was wonderful.

My love is deeper, my faith is stronger, and my time well spent.

The Anatomy of a Carrot Cake.

Just because you have the best carrot cake recipe this side of the Mississippi 

doesn't always mean it's beautiful.

But it's always delicious.

Happiness= Conference weekend + Easter +Carrot Cake.

Tears.

After two and a half years of intertwining 

this little family with ours, they have moved on. 

Florida called their name and they decided to answer. 

Needless to say, our house is in mourning. 

It's quieter- a little too quiet once again. 

It's time to figure out our new normal.

We'll get there.

 

Scarlett...

Remember her birth story???

Valentina...

Audrey...

Valentina aka Bethany Jr.

Valentina and Sabrina....

Yup- it's a heart breaker....

Florida, be kind.