Once Upon A Time...

Sadie turned three! A few weeks before her birthday I was driving in the car with Sadie and she began telling me what she was going to do for her birthday. She had the theme picked out...princess! I did my best to make her dreams come true.

I found this cute cardboard castle on Amazon. We all, kids and adults alike, enjoyed coloring it in and going in and out.

 I tried to get the kids to play a game. It was a version of pin the tail on the donkey but with princesses and castles. This group wasn't really interested in being blindfolded, or really interested in the game.

So I scrapped the other game and just went with the flow, free play it is!

We had tasty cupcakes and crown shaped pb&j sandwiches.

Grandma & Grandpa even called to sing her Happy Birthday, all the way from Sweden! 

Sadie now has a dress for each of her favorite princesses; Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella and Belle. She's absolutely adorable in them!

The food table!

Our knight in shining armor, Evan!

Princesses Amerie and Eva, we loved partying with you!

Sadie also celebrated her birthday in our Wednesday class. I made chocolate popcorn and oreos that were a big hit at snack time. Miss Jeanette let her get up on the table as we sang Happy Birthday to her and she was so cute being so timid yet proud.

Sadie is such a marvelous addition to our family. We love her girlish ways. Sadie is often mistaken for being older than her age because of her height and stature. She is fond of princesses and singing. She loves her brothers and cousins bunches. I can't believe my baby girl is three years old! Make it stop, make all the growing up stop.

Summer Fun - Sleep Overs

Another favorite summer memory are the sleep overs we did with our cousins in Oceanside. Anna and I switched having each other's oldest kids sleep over for a weekend. Needless to say, the boys all had a FANTASTIC time.

At our house we made churros for breakfast one morning and ate them in the back yard. Boys will be boys and the churros became guns...of course.

 When Anna had my boys she took them all (5 boys!) on base. My boys, especially Ethan, absolutely love all things military and having the chance to get on some real life military tanks sends them over the moon!

They also got to play with their cousin's cool Xbox games with the new Kinect. I heard rave reviews and I'm still hoping to get us one too. Video games are undeniably an integral part of our play so I love it when I can find ways to make it more active and less sedentary.

I took the kids to the beach when I had the cousins over (I think Anna did it too on her turn) and we rolled around in the sand and surf...some of us more than others! Thankgoodness for baby powder.

We jumped on our new trampoline.

Went to the park to fly in the swings.



And accessorized ourselves with colorful necklaces.

And I must not forget the bubble wars!

We love having Rasmussen cousins so close by and are going to miss them when they move one day. Wish we could gather ALL the Rasmussens more often.

Summer Stuff

Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability. ~Sam Keen

Summer 2011 is a fond memory now that we are in the thick of Fall soccer, school, and choir. We had a great time though. Just not having a schedule was the highlight of most days. We enjoyed having time at home to do some experiments and play. One of our favorites were the marshmallow art and vinegar blasts.

We had different sizes of marshmallows and the kids tried building people or structures by just licking the marshmallows. Then they decided to add toothpicks. I think the licking was the favorite part!

When they were done building they were allowed to eat one of their masterpieces before we through everything else away.

 Of course, I couldn't pass up another activity to do with my kids that involved twinkies and cupcakes! One of our favorite movies this summer was Despicable Me so we made some minnion cupcakes one day. The eyes were made with smartie candies. Mmm...I have a weird love of twinkies.

Lots of park days!

Then the vinegar blasts! I was too lazy to make a big volcano so we pulled out our glasses and had fun anyway. We colored the vinegar orange and added our baking soda to watch the reaction take place right in front of our eyes. It was magical. Over and over we added baking soda and watched the vinegar take flight and shoot right out of the glass. Thank goodness for paper plates to contain the mess!

I miss our summer days.

Road Trippin’

I have this weird love of Utah. I have really great memories (and some not so hot ones too) from my BYU days. I love being around all the Mormons and not feeling like a complete weirdo for having more than one child. I love how nice the people are, how family oriented most of the state is, and the mountains. I always forget how much I love hiking until I’m back in Utah. I was pretty outdoorsy when I lived in Utah, I miss that. So it didn’t take much arm twisting when Anna talked to me about carpooling for a trip in early June. We piled our kids in my car and off we went! Anna was a fantastic co-pilot. We both understand what its like to be the co-pilot (the constant snack hand outs, the movie changes, the  activity dispersmenting (is that a word?) etc.). She was really easy to travel with.

We split the drive into 2 days, stopping in Las Vegas to spend the night at Anna’s parents house. Thank you Christensens! The second day was our 6 hour drive and I have to admit that when kids fall asleep there is a certain peace that swells within my heart. Aren’t they angels? hehe…

Anna headed off to her brother’s house and I went to my friend’s, Mari and Josh. Ethan and Luke became best buds with Mari’s nephews (who conveniently live downstairs) Tyler and Travis. We went to the Bean Museum and checked out the cool animal displays. The kids got to pet a snake and check out some aligator hides. Capturing a picture where everyone stays still for longer than a second and looks into the camera was near to impossible. Sorry Luke!


Lunch at BYU’s duck pond proved to be prophecy fulfilled when Luke fell and scraped his leg. I had to take a picture and text it to Steve. Poor Luke, it was a nasty scrape.

Josh and Mari had a cool tire swing in their back yard. Ethan and Sadie loved taking turns on it.

We went on a hike up Provo Canyon on Saturday morning.

I actually got Sadie to wear her sunglasses for a little while.

Then the boys found walking sticks and even Sadie had to have one. They did pretty well on the hike, I was impressed.

Unfortunately, we had to cut our trip short when my boys got a nasty stomach bug and were throwing up. I got afraid I might catch it and not be able to drive home and then miss Steve’s birthday. And I don’t like being in someone else’s house with sick kids, especially since I wasn’t sure if this was contagious. We now think that maybe our kids get altitude sickness. Anyone know anything about that? So I headed home. We didn’t get to see everyone we wanted to or go to Temple Square like I wanted to but oh well. Maybe I’ll get enough courage to try again soon. The drive home wasn’t as bad as I expected. Thankfully no one puked but California definitely needs to make the drive between state line and Barstow more than two lanes! The traffic is ridiculous!

All about a boy

Boys and girls are different, we all know that right? They play different too but sometimes that play can overlap. Like when my sister found Ethan and his cousin Ellie playing. They were being really good parents and tending to their children. They have good models to emulate…haha. Ethan’s future wife will be happy to know that he is willing to help out with the feeding schedule…probably with a bottle though.

Sometimes skin gets dry and you need to lube it up with lotion. Especially little boys who let it go until their skin starts cracking. I felt bad I had never noticed it until he complained of some pain. This little boy let’s his hands “air out” after putting lotion on, he doesn’t want to get it all over his sheets. This was how we found him when we were going to bed and doing the rounds of checking on everyone. I went to bed with a smile on my face.

Ethan is a super hero with super hero strengths! Like extra teeth! Three front teeth for a while because his baby tooth just wouldn’t fall out. Its gone now but he’s still a super hero!

Lastly, a picture of all the Powers side cousins and my parents. They are getting big so fast!

65.5 plus 31

That’s how many miles I’ve run total in the five half marathons I’ve done since 2007. I did the Laguna Hills Half Marathon again this Memorial Day. This race really is beautiful, I think this will be my regular race on Memorial Day. I finished in 2 hours and 15 minutes. I was a little disappointed with that time because I was trying to beat my last time of 2:14 from January’s Carlsbad Half. Unfortunately, I had a hip injury that I wasn’t able to treat completely before the race. Oh well. Hopefully next time I can hang with the 2:10 crowd. My sister Evelyn decided to run with me just two days before the race! She didn’t train at all and still ran right by my side. She’s a stud, what can I say?

Finish time

Avg Pace of 10:09 and 1599 calories burned! Sweeeeeet!

Ev and I after crossing the finish line.

Luke did his own race today, the Sonora Elementary Jog-a-thon! He ran and ran and ran! Go Luke!

And sometimes he walked too.

When it was all over he had completed 31 laps, way to go!!

Then it was time to sit and sip some water and, like any good runner, eat a banana. But boys can’t help being a little goofy too, especially when its Luke, Matthew (his best bud) and Aaron. Its always more fun to run a race with friends.

I am a fan.

Am a fan of outdoor movie night at the Back Bay.

Am a fan of lunch dates with my hubs (and just one child).

Am a fan of moonlit walks on clear nights.

Am a fan of Mother’s Day cards from little boys (Luke), even if they wrote my age as 57 when I’m really 32.

Am a fan of little girls who want their babies buckled in the car in the seat next to them.

Am a fan of Saturday morning runs powered by a fantastic play list and no pushing a stroller.

Am a fan of seven year old boys (Ethan) who want to be scientists and soldiers and dads.

Am a fan of weight watchers weigh ins when I’ve lost 4 lbs.!

Am a fan of reading Conference talks by men of God that fill me with the warmth of the Holy Spirit and give me an extra push to move forward.

Am a fan of great country songs.

Am a fan of little league games and watching five year old legs (Luke) run the bases, throw the ball, and swing at bat.

Am a fan of taking over the kitchen so I can bake up tasty treats to give away…even if they don’t always turn out the way I envision in my head.

Am a fan of this little life of mine.

(idea for this post from marta writes)

Spring break ends with a birthday!

The last day of Spring break was extra fun…especially for Ethan. He celebrated his 7th birthday! Ethan was crossing off the days on the calendar leading up to his birthday. And when a package from his Tennessee cousins came in the mail, then a card from Bisa, he was REALLY anxious to party! We said good night to our six year old on Thursday and woke up to one happy seven year old. He chose Cookie Crisp cereal for his birthday breakfast. We gave him some Heely’s and a scuba set. So naturally, he wanted to go swimming! It was the perfect day for a swim. We gathered the cousins and dove in the water. After some R&R at home for lunch we headed out to Downtown Disney for dinner, Lego store for his last present (thank you Bisa for chipping in) and face painting!

I was literally shocked that Sadie sat through the entire face painting. I couldn’t believe it. She’s getting so grown up

Dragon masks for the boys and hearts (everyone picked their own design) for Sadie. When the lady told me how much I owed her my jaw dropped! Wow…that’s all I’ve got to say about that.

Ethan got to have a second party on Saturday with all his aunts and uncles and cousins from the Powers side of the family (we wish we could have all the Rasmussens too!). He chose pizza for dinner. I made a new one, pesto chicken, that is my new favorite! Then we cut into his Star Wars cake (which I am too embarrassed to post pictures of) and had ice cream.

We love you, Ethan! To the moon and back…and more.

Silly & Fun

Ethan titled today’s post for me and I think it fits.

Fun is when your great-grandmother comes to visit (in march) and wants to take a picture with all the cousins. Actually, it doesn’t look so fun for Ezra and Eva but they’ll get there one day. Bisa (pronounced bee-za) is loads of fun because she’s so good at spoiling them. Amo Bisa!

According to Ethan this next picture is silly because he’s looking down at the water. I would say its also fun. He gets to try “surfing” at the end of each swim lesson and that looks fun to me!

Ethan says this one is fun because he’s holding hands with Sadie on his way into school. Maybe its more fun in how much I enjoyed editing it with my groovy camera app.

Silly Sadie. She was napping with her dad but after a while got off his lap and decided to do this. Personally, I think the snoring got to her but you didn’t hear that from me. It made for a cute picture though.

Fun is for flowers and spring-erizing our front yard! I’m crossing my fingers and toes that I can keep them all alive.

Silly (and fun) is our Sadie who loves to wear the most random outfits sometimes. Cinderella dress over her pajamas and her hand-me-down rain boots. But don’t forget to accessorize with a back pack! I love Sadie’s fashion sense. I know I’ll be taking some pointers from her sooner than later.

Silly for podiums who scream, stand on me and take a picture! Se were at the Skirball museum in Los Angeles for an awesome Noah’s ark exhibit over spring break and Sadie saw these “steps” and said “take picture, momma!” so I did, I’m an obedient mom that way.

Silly is all about spring break. Ethan and Luke got to go spend the night with grandma in Oceanside during spring break and true to form they had a blast! Sadie was pretty upset to be left behind at first so I consoled her and took her down. She was in heaven playing at the beach, going swimming, playing on the playground and getting to do big kid stuff at the “hotel.” We noticed so many Utah visitors at the timeshare I almost felt like I was in Provo again…kinda got me homesick.

15

:: no matter what mood i'm in, i can always go for a: walk. a nice walk sometimes makes everything better.

:: my favorite go-to outfit would have to be:  my pink maxi dress with black shirt under, a silver necklace, and my greek sandals

:: a good source of inspiration is: a sunset. there’s something about watching the sun go down that fills me with purpose and hope in what’s to come tomorrow.

:: am so glad my parents taught me: truth. I often look around and notice so much that isn’t true. sometimes its hard to find the truth but I know where to look.

:: a song i like to dance to is: we can’t get enough of the Black Eyed Peas “I Gotta Feelin’” and Pink’s “So What” at our house right now.

:: i wish everyone knew about: not wasting. it breaks my heart when I see someone’s sprinklers running the morning after a good rain storm.

:: the best thing in my makeup bag is: I’m far from a makeup expert but I think mascara and some eyeliner does wonders for me. now, if only I could figure out foundation…

:: my dream spring break vacation spot is: italy

:: this may be a surprise, but i am passionate about: so many things. you’re not surprised are you? I seem to be passionate about cake right now…trying to shake it.

:: a favorite book that changed me for the better: c.s. lewis’ mere christianity. I love c.s. lewis and practically anything he writes but that book has left a permanent impression.

:: one of my pet peeves is: smokers…why do they think its ok to just throw their buts everywhere? I hate when I take my kids to the park and they find a cigarette but!

:: my favorite daily ritual would have to be: checking facebook, my email, and my favorite blogs. I love seeing what everyone else is up to.

:: i am trying to be better at: one thing? sheesh…um, gardening. I actually planted some basil, cilantro and a couple flower seeds. I hate planting seeds, I’m too impatient. I want immediate results. but I’m trying to be better at watering and waiting. hopefully it will pay off.

:: the most recent rad thing i found online was: blurb blog publishing…I need to do it.

:: i can't live without: my iphone, I’ll admit it. and I can’t wait to upgrade it this summer….yippee!