Hailey is a whole hand!!!

Thursday July 8th was Hailey's 5th birthday!!!! Time sure flies when you don't want it to! I can't believe how big my baby is...she's growing into a beautiful girl - with just a dash of attitude ;) haha!

We got as much of the family together as we could and took her to her favorite lunch spot!HA!!! Proof my kids love each other!!! :)

On Saturday, we had the funnest birthday party ever at her gymnastics studio. They did an obstacle course, danced, had races, and played in the big foam pit! I was told by more than one child that it was the "best party ever!!" :) Yes, it was a hit!

After play, play, playing we blew out her candles and opened a few gifts :)

Parker is a good big brother, even holds her mirror so she can try out her new Barbie make up!!

Mom & Hailey at the end of a very good day...

'Twas the Night Before Christmas...

Christmas came and went in a hurry! Doesn't it always seem to do that? Well, unfortunately for us, Hailey was feeling a little less Hailey than normal this Christmas Eve, she had a fever and a tummy ache and spent most of it curled up on the couch waiting for the Motrin to work. So needless to say, we missed Christmas Eve services at Canyon Ridge Christian church, which is sad because they always do such a great Christmas Eve program to help keep everyone in the right Christmas spirit:( But after a cool bath and some new Christmas jammies, everyone was feeling better, so we left cookies and milk for Santa on the fireplace and read Christmas stories in bed instead! It was a nice quiet evening at home with much anticipation for what Santa might leave us under the tree! Hailey is old enough now that she was sooooo excited, when I was trying to get her to sleep she kept getting frusterated with her lack of fatigue. She kept putting her hands over her eyes and saying "Stop it eyes! Go to sleep! Mom, they won't stay closed!" She cracks me right up! Thank goodness her eyes eventually cooperated and she finally fell asleep!

Going to Town at Garehime Heights

The other night, Parker's school (Garehime Elementary, a.k.a. Garehime Heights) hosted their fall festival, ushering in the holiday season. Parker and Hailey COULD NOT believe that Santa had time to come all the way to Parker's school! How great was that? Well, for Parker and Courtney it was great, Hailey decided she really didn't know why she was so excited about talking to him once we got her to his lap! This was the absolute best picture I could get of her with Santa without a completely disgusted look on her face! The only thing she would utter when Santa asked her what she wanted for Christmas was "Derella" in a teeny, tiny whisper - Dad had to explain that that means Cinderella....her favorite princess of them all.

Parker, on the other hand, was so excited to tell Santa that all he wanted for Christmas was stacks and stacks of Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh cards....hmmmm.

And of course Courtney doesn't want much - just a new cell phone, a lap top, a new bike and oh, some new shoes and clothes if it's not too much to ask! Dream on sister!:)

So, a great time was had by all once we put Santa in our rear view. It was onto the arts and crafts booths and then a game of Twister, played on the BIGGEST Twister mat I'd ever seen!!

Ghosts and Goblins...

Parker and Hailey had a fun night knocking on doors and collecting their "treats". Poor Daddy had to work, so we hit the road, just the 3 of us, with some of our friends. Hailey and her little friend Becca were so adorable in their matching Cinderella dresses, riding in their daddy drawn carriage - (Becca's Daddy that is). And thank goodness Parker, I mean Optimus Prime, was there too keep us all safe from the bad guys! It was a fun, safe, night for all - well, except for Daddy...we missed you!

Baby it's cold outside!!

Ok, so it was like 56 degrees! But for us desert tortoises, that's like arctic weather! It only lasted 2 days...and now we've returned to the 80's! Anyway, the kids were hilarious all done up in their winter gear to go out front and play, so I had to share their ridiculous pictures so everyone could have a good laugh at our non-tolerance for the cold! :)

My baby girl...

Saturday night was my baby girls Senior Prom. Where have the years gone? And when did she get so grown up? She looked beautiful, like a woman! I'm so impressed with the young woman she's become, she really is such a blessing to our lives. The teenage years had so many ups and downs, I felt like I was riding Space Mountain - I never knew what was around the next turn. Now that she's 18, things are different. She's grown so much in just the few short months that have passed since she entered adulthood. She'll be graduating in less than 2 months and everytime I think about it, my eyes well up and my heart aches, because she'll be packing her room - all those childhood memories, and enough clothes to fill a boutique - and she'll be heading off to her future as a college freshman. She's been accepted to UVSC (which becomes UVU in July) in Provo, Utah, and she has actually voiced an interest in Nursing! I couldn't be more proud of her...When she was a baby, 18 seemed a lifetime away. Now that she's 18, does that mean I'm old??? I'm old enough to have an 18 year old? What? Now I have a headache!
And yes, she has a boyfriend that she "loves"! He came down from St. George to take her to her prom, that was actually pretty sweet. My biggest concern is that he is ALSO going to UVSC, and I'm not sure how much "attending" is going to be going on! I'm not ready for this!

Parker's T-ball