A MOM AM I

I wouldn't be a mom if it wasn't for my kids. I love you kids.
I am lucky to get to be your mommy! I love it when I hear your cute little voices call my name. Will you do it forever? Some days I wish I could freeze you, so you would never change, but I know that's not the way. I have loved you both at every stage of your lives. I am looking forward to all the stages to come, and the memories we will make.
I love you.

To the Mothers in my life

Mother's day is tomorrow, and I have been thinking about some of the mothers in my life, who have directly influenced me. Of course my mother is the one I think of first, but I wanted to add some others. I am so happy I get to be a mother, and am thankful for my saintly mother, and her patience, time, and the way she always made things special for me, weather it was staying up all night to make me a prom dress, or waiting for me after dates. And then in later, helping me with my own babies, and staying up all night with my colicky new born so I could get a few hours of sleep. What would we ever do without moms?


This is my mom, I love her so much, and am so happy that I was able to be raised by her. She is a wonderful example to me in so many ways. I cherish our friendship, and the things she has taught me. I don't know what I would ever do without her. I want to thank her for being a fantastic Yaiyia to my kids. They love her too. She always makes things so fun. You are the best mom ever! I love you.

This is my dear sweet mother-in-law, Margaret. She raised such a wonderful son. He is a wonderful husband to me, and Father to my children. She has done a terrific job with him, and made him into the man he is. Thank you Margaret for your kindness to me, and welcoming me into the family. I love you very much, and am lucky to have you as a mother-in-law.

This is my grandma. She is the only Grandma ever in my life. I love her so much. I am always excited for her to come home from Arizona. Every time we chat on the phone she makes me giggle. I want to thank her for doing such a great job with my mom, and loving me and my family. I love you grandma!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY WAYNE!

My dear sweet Wayne,

Happy Birthday! I love you so much. You have brought so much happiness and joy into my life. You are a great friend for me, and I love the way you parent our children. You are the best husband I could ask for. I am thankful for you every day of my life. I miss you when you are gone, and am happy to see you when you come home. You are a great example to me of the way a person should live their life. You are patient, kind, gentle, loving, hard working, fun, happy, smart, and the list goes on and on. Thank you for all you do, and all you are. I knew I loved you form the day you sweetly handed me my tent in Moab ten years ago.
You make my life complete.
I love you today, and always.
Your loving wife,
Risa

Handsome Happy Wayne

How many dads do you know that would dress like their 2 year old son for Halloween??? Especially in that tight Spiderman suit!

Thanks for teaching our kids to love the outdoors.

Thanks for supporting our kids in all they do

Thank you for working so hard for us, and winning fabulous trips for us, and spending time with me.
Thank you for all the memories.
I love you!

Moab

Climbing to the top of double arch.

We reached the top!

Cute little Evia.

Moab has this great park, and we practically had it to ourselves.

Wayne and his cute Dad.

Our awesome camp site. The kids loved climbing all the rocks.

Wayne brilliantly thought of bringing Conrad's sand toys. He was in Heaven!

Sophie built Wayne a sand birthday cake.

Wayne getting ready for Amassa Back. He LOVED it, but lost his seat the next day on Slick Rock.

The kids love their Aunt Heidi!
She lives there now, so we got to see her a few times.
We love and miss her.

Projects are fun! Especially new paint!

So, blue is a bit tricky. It looks kind of bright in this photo, but is a little more subdued in real life.

I was very nervous at first, but ended up happy with the end result.

Painting the dining room, also helped tone down the blue, and now they work nicely together.

Love my new plate racks! The blue wall looks crazy in this shot!

Another angle of the dining room.

Fishing with Pumpah

My dad called the other day, and said the fishing was, "hot," at Farmington pond. He asked the kids and Wayne to go. They were so excited, and each caught around fifteen fish! Conrad has not stopped asking to go fishing again. It must run in the genes.

Sophie's singing program

Soph had a singing program on Friday. She was awesome, and was one of the only kids who had fully memorized her lines. She said them with the proper inflection too.
We were so proud of her.

Sophie with neighborhood friends who were also in the singing group.
The program was called "Bugz."

Conrad is an Orange Belt!

Congratulations Conrad on receiving your Orange belt! You are awesome!

Disneyland

Final night in front of the Castle.


Waiting for the Parade on our final night.

Playing in the fountain in California Adventure was great fun.

We love Monster's Inc.

Sophie in the flowers.

Conrad didn't like Jack Sparrow at all. This was the best photo I could get!

The kids LOVED the Peter Pan ride best.

Sophie wanted to meet Fairy God Mother last year, and didn't get to. She was so excited that she got to this time. Fairy God Mother was ever-so-sweet.

The kids both picked a souvenir stuffed animal. They took good care of the the whole trip. Sophie got Minnie, and Conrad picked Pluto. They fed them and slept with them.

This is one we have never seen - The Queen. She was not the most pleasant :0)

Flick and Atta. We waited to meet these ones, and they were very fun and full of energy.

With mom in the tea cups.

Pluto came to meet us before the parade.

Conrad has a strange obsession with mermaids. We went to lunch at Ariel's grotto, and the kids got a crown to decorate. Conrad decorated it for Ariel, and insisted on giving it to her. I think he was disappointed she wasn't in tail. He says what he likes about mermaids is their tails.

Sleeping Beauty drinking fountain.

Strawberry Jam

Conrad helped me make strawberry jam today. I have never done it, and so I bought 3 different styles of pectin. I had no idea how many strawberries to buy. I ended up with 22 cups of strawberries, after they were all mashed! I started to get worried that I had too many, but it all worked out. I bought the regular kind of granulated pectin, low sugar pectin, and gel pectin. I have to say, that the regular stuff works the best. The texture, consistency, and flavor are the best. At least now I know, and will just stick to the way mom did it growing up!

Dino Park

The kids and I went to the Dino park with 9 other girls in the ward, and their kids on Monday, because there was no school. We had a great time, and they both enjoyed climbing the giant turtle. Conrad has decided that he would like a dinosaur of his own. We will just have to see about that! He cried when we left after 3 hours, and begged to come back again the next day. It is a good thing we have an annual pass!

More Easter fun...

The Baker family at Easter Dinner. It was fabulous, and we had way too much food, but it was fun. The kids liked the jello easter eggs best - thanks Bethany!

Sophie was so excited to get to hold baby Evia. What a cutie!

So... I tried my luck with a bunny cake, and this is how it turned out. I like using the royal icing (made with meringue) It is very forgiving, and can be patted on or spread on.