My sweet 15 year old son

My second son turned 15 yesterday and I wanted to complete a birthday tribute to him. It's amazing to me that he is already 15 as it seems like just yesterday he was born. How time flies and my kids seem to grow faster every day. Following are 15 things that you may or may not know about this special kid.

1) He does not like to have his picture taken.

2) He always volunteers to do things and doesn't need to be asked to help.

3) He comes and tells me "I love you" before school every morning.

4) He is great with kids, especially his little 6 year old sister.

5) He is a peacemaker and never wants anyone to argue.

6) He is really funny and can make anyone laugh.

7) He is taking a Senior level math class and has the highest grade.

8) He loves to yo-yo and can do just about any trick.

9) He is about to get his Driver's License - yikes!!

10) He is very strong and can wrestle most people to the ground without effort.

11) He is a great skateboarder.

12) He's sensitive and not embarrassed to hug his mom :).

13) He loves the movie "Avatar" and has already seen it twice.

14) He's hard working and loyal.

15) All the girls are crazy about him because he is such a cutie!

I am so happy to have this guy as part of our family. He makes us all smile and knows how to lighten any mood. He makes me proud to be his mom. I love you buddy and I hope you had a happy birthday!!

Wow 12 already!!

Today we wish our third son a happy 12th birthday and in the spirit of the day of his birth, here are 12 things that are special and you may or may not know about this sweet young man!

1. He was born with red hair (it faded as he grew, but we were sure surprised).

2. He had colic as a baby and the doctor said he liked to cry (weird but true!)

3. He plays the saxophone.

4. He is our social butterfly and seems to attract tons of friends.

5. He is very competitive (especially when he plays games)

6. He can beat just about anyone at foosball.

7. He is always eager and ready to help.

8. He is a great student and often makes the honor roll.

9. He loves video games, music, and playing board games.

10. He's got a great contagious smile and cute dimples.

11. He always wakes up happy no matter what.

12. He loves to hang out with his dad, it's probably one of his favorite times.

It was a wonderful day when this little guy joined our family. He gets along with everyone and bring so much joy to all of us. Happy Birthday son, we love you!!!

Pumpkin Patch Fun

We love to go to Linder Farm's Pumpkin Patch each year to pick out our pumpkins. We have been so busy we couldn't go until last night. I was so worried that we were going to freeze, but the weather was so beautiful yesterday that the pumpkin patch was perfect. We were missing our oldest son, who is so busy with swim team and marching band right now that we barely see him, but we picked a pumpkin out for him so he would have one :). We saw several others families there that we knew, so it was fun to visit. After we picked out our pumpkins, my little girl rode the new ride they have this year, a swing that about made me sick watching, but she loved it. She is a real daredevil and I am so glad she is not like her mom. Finally we ended out the night at the snack booth for popcorn, donuts, and hot chocolate. YUMMY!!!!

Homecoming Dance

My oldest boy went to Homecoming tonight with his "special" gal. I had to capture it all of course. We took a few shots at her house, they were cute pinning on the rose and ten putting on the corsage. He wanted to take the Mustang to the dance and his dad was happy to let him. We then went to the temple grounds to take some pictures with the rest of his group. It was beautiful background for the pictures and the cloudy sky made for perfect light, however, the girls were freezing in their short sleeve dresses so we had to make the photo session a quick one. We did have enough time for a few silly shots though. I love the one of them all looking off in the distance like they are in deep thought and then of course the one of Skyler picking up his date - right after this picture he pretended he was going to drop her. What a funny kid!! I hope they are having a great time at the dance. Oh to be young again - sigh.....

The Homecoming Answer

So the answer to homecoming was cute. We were about to go to sleep and the dog started barking and wouldn't stop. This generally means someone is at the door and so we looked out the upstairs window and saw 4 giggling girls behind the trees in the middle of our cul-de-sac. Then one by one they came in dark hooded costumes and rung the doorbell and said "Delivery for S" and then handed him a pizza with balloons on top. There were 3 pizza deliveries and they spelled out "Y-E-S". I ran downstairs to take a picture and S had already eaten 2 pieces of the "Y" pizza and so the pictures aren't as good. What can I say, teenage boys will eat pizza even if it is 11:00 at night!!

An Invitation to Homecoming

My oldest son is a Senior this year and he is determined to live it up this last year of high school. Homecoming is about a month away but he wanted to make sure that this special girl did not get invited by someone else. So he got on the ball and asked early. He wanted to make a grand gesture and decided to fill her room with balloons. He purchased over 500 balloons, but after he and I filled 200 and put them in both of our cars to transport them, we realized that we were at our maximum so off we went.

Her mom laughed as we filled her room as much as we could and then hung the sign that read "We will have a ball if you go to Homecoming with me" and then below in smaller writing it said "pop the balloons with the x's on them to find out who". He put his name in one of the balloons and in the rest "not this one" and "keep looking". It must have been loud in her house as she was popping all those balloons to figure out who invited her. I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall to see all of that!!!

Everyone Needs a little Time Out!!

Each year I get the chance to attend a women's day at the Boise Centre on the Grove where I hear wonderful musical, inspirational speakers, and I get to spend some time with the girls. This year was especially wonderful because it was both Friday night and Saturday. I leave this conference feeling rejuvinated and determined to be a better person. I call it my spiritual battery recharge session. I was missing my BFF Queenie this year, but I know she will join us again next year. Thanks "Time Out" for another great year!!!