Dallin turns 12!

Dallin turned 12 on the 2nd of this month.  I am a little behind in blogging about it (sorry Dallin).  But the day was a great one.  He decided not to have a friend party this year, but a family party instead.  So that night we watched Hoodwinked Too and had snacks and goodies.  Dallin is such a sweet kid and always so thankful for what he gets.  He didn't ask for anything specific this year, so he got a few "surprise" presents.

With his birthday money from his grandparents (both sets), he got a ball called a Fushigi.  It's a special ball that looks magical, like it's floating in the air.  It's pretty cool.  It'll takes some practice, but he'll get it.....I have no doubt!

In this picture, he's holding a bouncy ball.  It's cool because it bounces really high.  Fun stuff!

Dallin loves "moon pies."  He savored these for many days, taking only a few bites at a time.  And he also got a lego/creature/thing to put together.  He loves those too.

I found this cool glow-in-the-dark sand art kit.  He was very excited about that.  He loves to create!

The fancy birthday cake.....that only I could make.  :)

Grandpa Johnson and Brandon.  Grandma came too, but I didn't get any pictures of her.  What's up with that?  Sorry Grandma.....  (Grandma and Grandpa Jones are on a mission right now, so they couldn't come for the birthday festivities).

Jacob wouldn't hold still for this picture, so we just had to snap it "as is."  Silly boy!

This picture is very blurry, but I wanted to include it because there aren't many pictures of Todd.  I should change that in the future, shouldn't I?

Eric, eating some cake and ice cream, posing for the camera.....sort-of.

Kyle and Ziggy.  Ziggy won't ever sit still long enough for us to get a good picture of him, but we always try anyway.  You can see how Kyle is trying to force him to look forward.....kids and dogs....what do you do?  :)  But I love Kyle in this picture!

On Sunday, Dallin was ordained a deacon in our ward.  We now have 3 children old enough to bless the sacrament.  I can't believe it.  How is that possible?

Last Sunday was his first time passing and he did such a good job.  And I've just got to say that I've come a long way too.  When Eric started passing the sacrament, I was a nervous wreck.  I was a little better with Brandon,  but I was quite calm with Dallin.  3rd time is the charm, right?  But there is nothing like seeing my boys pass the sacrament.  It is such a sweet thing to watch.  And so far, nobody has dropped a tray...my biggest fear.  I know I'm only jinxing myself now, so I'd better stop talking about it.... :)

Dallin also got his temple recommend the Sunday he was ordained.  Then Todd and I took him to the temple to do baptisms for the dead 4 days later.  It was a very neat experience.  Dallin was so excited to go.  I know he felt the power of the Holy Ghost that night.  After baptisms, we took him to dinner at the temple.  That's a tradition for each child's first time.   Eric and Brandon couldn't come with us that night, so we need to plan a time to all go together.  It was cool to hear Eric and Brandon ask Dallin how it was for him and they were truly interested in how he felt.  Brotherly love!  We'll take it when we can get it, right?

Happy Birthday Dallin!  We love you and are so glad you are a part of our family! 

First day of school 2011

Eric, my Senior!  Aaaggghhhh!

Dallin, my 6th grader!

Brandon, my 9th grader.  I was lucky to get one picture of him!  And I had to catch him off-guard for the smile....mom is so tricky! 

Kyle, my 4th grader.  I had to trick Kyle into smiling too.  These two just don't want their picture taken.

Jacob, my 2nd grader.

I don't even know what to say.  I can hardly stand it that my kids are growing up so fast.  Will I be able to remember all the cute things they do?  Probably not......so sad.

Vacation to Las Vegas July 2011 Part 2

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Okay, I have tried for days to try and upload some pictures, but it wouldn't work.  I finally got these ones to load......sometimes I really hate computers.

You can kind-of tell in this picture what we did a lot at my sister's house.  AJ (her little boy) had a book of planes, with a variety of papers in it and instructions on how to make different model airplanes.  Because my sister's house is a two-story, you can stand at the top of the stairs and throw down the airplanes to unsuspecting people below.  The kids had so much fun doing this.  There were paper airplanes stuck on their high window leldges and in lots of different places all over their living room.  I couldn't get the other pictures to load, so just think of it in your mind..... :)

The kids also played hide-and-go-seek a  lot.  When it's too hot in Vegas to go outside, you play indoor games. 

Cute little AJ.

No, I wasn't playing hide-and-go-seek, but I did pose for a picture....

Jacob and AJ taking turns on Jacob's DS.  Saved by electronics!

Dallin even squeezed in a nap.  Aww, cute!

Brandon and Alexis, playing instruments.

The most amazing host and hostess you will ever meet....Wendy and Anthony.  Thanks guys!

On the way back from Vegas, we stopped in St. George for the night and went to the Tuacahn to see the The Little Mermaid.  It was really good and definitely worth seeing. 

It was a fun trip, very relaxing!  We love going to my sister's house!

Vacation to Las Vegas July 2011 Part 1

We went to my sister's house in Vegas for our vacation this year.  We had tons of fun, of course.  It's hard to tell from this picture, but I'm holding up Todd's ipod (an old one, that he downloaded some songs on for me) and I'm wearing the old fashioned ear phones, the kind that go over your head.  I don't like the new earbuds.  I'm old school, I guess.  Anyway, I was rockin' it pretty good to my high school madrigal songs.

One thing I have always wanted to do in Vegas, but never have, is take a family picture by this sign.  One of these days it's gonna happen.....at least I took a picture as we drove by this time.  That means we're getting closer, right?

One of the highlights of the vacation was supposed to be going to the M&M World.  Sadly, it wasn't much of a highlight at all.  It was packed with wall-to-wall people and while it was cool to see all of the different products you could buy, it wasn't really worth the trip.

And just so you know, M&M's cost $13 a pound!  That is outrageous to me, so we took a picture of the "wall of M&M's" and then stopped off at Alberstons's on the way home to get a few packs.  That was WAY cheaper!  And guess what?  I'm pretty sure they tasted the same.

We did take a family picture by one of the giant M&M's, but it doesn't even look like we were having fun....and this was our second shot!  Brandon, Kyle, and Eric look like they're about to engage in a battle.  Not surprising, really.  (Just take the picture, so we can get out of here)....

One thing we HAVE to do when we go to my sister's is the chocolate fountain.  YUM!  The kids love it, and want us to get one.  But I keep telling them that if we had one, it wouldn't be that fun to do it at Aunt Wendy's house.  Good thinkin', right?

Yes, that is a gummy worm.  I personally didn't have any of those, but Brandon was "all over it."

Notice my healthy strawberry, with no chocolate on it?  Wow!  Pictures can really be deceiving, huh?

We did other things on our vacation as well.  We saw Harry Potter 7, and Todd and the older boys saw Captain America.  We went to Chuck-e-Cheese's for lunch one day and celebrated my sister's birthday too.  It was a much-needed vacation and very relaxing (my kind-of trip).

I will continue this vacation blog in another post, so I can get more pictures on there..... 

Happy 7th Birthday Jacob!

Jacob turned 7 years old on July 9th.  I wish I could turn back the clock of time.  My kids are growing up way too fast!  And there isn't a thing I can do to stop it.  I'll try not to dwell on that right now.....

We invited a few cousins and a couple of friends for Jacob's party.  This was an ALL BOY party!  No girls allowed (except me, of course).  We ate pizza for dinner.....

Then we came in the house to open presents.  What is a party without presents? 

Then we packed everyone up and went swimming.  My camera stopped working towards the end, so this is the only picture I got of the kids all together.....and sadly some of them had snuck off to use the bathroom,  so this isn't everyone who came.....

On the way home, we stopped at Arctic Circle for ice cream cones.  Where is Jacob?  I'm not sure....dumb camera stopped working again!

Oooh, I know....a little frightening.  But this is for posterity, so here we are!

On Sunday I made a cake and we celebrated Jacob's birthday as a family. 

Here is a picture of Jacob blowing out his candles....wishing for....? (he just informed me right now as I'm typing that he wanted a new swimsuit....news to me).

It was a great party ( a couple of days of parties, actually)....we had tons of fun and I don't know what we would do without our sweet Jacob!  We love you!  Happy Birthday son!