Fire Station Tour

To pass off a Cub Scout requirement, Treyson and I went to a neighborhood Fire station, along with some friends.

First, we toured the inside of the fire station. Treyson was most interested in where they slept and the weight room. They are required to work out every day.
Next, we toured the garage where the boys got to use the fire hose.

Check out the fire engine and equipment.

And talk about home fire safety.

They mentioned not opening a door if it was hot and if you are on a second floor to open a window and throw something out like a stuffed animal. That way they know there is a child on the second floor they need to rescue. The boys kept saying they could just JUMP out the window. The firefighters kept reassuring them, that it would only take minutes for them to be there and that they SHOULD NOT jump. I hope they listened. :)

At the conclusion of our tour I asked, what were the most important things we needed to remember. This is what they said; 1. have a home evacuation plan, 2. check your smoke detector batteries every 6 months and 3. know the emergency phone number. You know.... 911.

When the firefighters asked Treyson if he knew the number he said, "Yeah, 991." Oops a little more training needed in that area.

As we were finishing our visit with the firefighters, they received a call and had to go. The boys were excited and full of questions as the fire truck turned on it's siren and drove away.

PS- Keri, Thanks for arranging this!

Teacher Appreciation Week

In appreciation of my kid's teachers, I made these.

I love gifts that are cute AND useful.

I wrapped them in a brown lunch bag and stapled these tags to the outside.
We LOVE our teachers!!!

Photo Cube

A wooden cube, a little paint, some Mod Podge, scrapbook paper and B&W pictures, equals a cute Mother's Day gift for my mom.

Happy Mother's Day!

You'll have to imagine what the final product looks like.. I forgot to take a picture. Oops!

The Graduate

Last Tuesday, was Abree's last day of pre-school.... an exciting and sad time for me. I'm excited for her to go to Kindergarten, but I'm sad that my baby is growing up. In the Fall, I will have several hours to myself EVERY week day. Oh my, what shall I do??? I think I'll figure it out. :)

A "Race for the Cure"

Last July, I started "running" for the first time in my life. I consistently "ran" (walk/jogged) about 3-5 times a week until about November/December. At that time, I was experiencing some minor health issues and took several months off to recover. During those few months I gained back 10 of the 30 pounds I lost. NO GOOD.

With a little motivation from a good friend, I decided to start running again. This time I decided to do the "Couch to 5K" program. Using this program, you are supposed to be able to go from your couch to running a 5K in 9 weeks! I am hopeful, but realistic, to know that I started WAY out of shape, so it may take me a little longer than 9 weeks to complete the program. I'm ok with that.

Three weeks into C25K, I was presented an opportunity. "Scentsy" offered to pay registration for anyone who wanted to participate in the "Race for the Cure" 5K. I knew I wasn't ready to run a whole 5K, but I couldn't pass up FREE registration and an opportunity to hang out with some cool people in our ward. So I signed up and ran extra hard the few days before the race.

Many of us met early at the church and then headed to the fairgrounds to get picked up by a shuttle bus to the actual racing area.

There were A LOT of people waiting for the fairground shuttle. It looked like we might not all make it before the race started. We were slightly concerned.
Someone was on the ball, and sent for extra shuttle buses. We got on, and arrived in good time before the race.

"Yay...we made it on!"

It was a chilly overcast day, with a little breeze.
Good for when you were running. Bad for when you were sweaty from running or waiting around.


Even after arriving at the starting line, we waited.... and waited and waited. We spent more time waiting, then running that day. :) Oh well.
Finally, there was a count down and then we were off... kinda. At first, we shuffled around trying not to trip on the person in front of us. Eventually the crowd thinned enough to jog. I jogged a little and walked more. I was definitely NOT prepared to run the whole time yet.

After the race, we enjoyed a breakfast of bagels, yogurt, milk and fruit and then we headed home.

Successfully battling the returning shuttle bus crowds, I arrived home to see my children scurrying around. I was met by 2 of them on the front porch. Treyson was funny. He said, "So mom, how was your race?...ummm...Is that a new shirt?...ummm... What's in your bag?....ummm." I asked him if he wanted me to wait outside for a few minutes. He thought that was a good idea. He and Abree kept me company until "the coast was clear".

On the sidewalk, leading to our front porch, Taylee had written encouraging quotes from each kid, in chalk. They had also drawn me some chalk pictures.

When I finally got to go inside, this is what awaited me...

"Yay! Mom!"

Taylee had drawn the sign. It was so cute. There was a little note telling me to look closely and try and find each one of my kids in the sign. I found Abree in the A holding a sign that said, "Go". Treyson holding on to the M (with an M sign). Taylee riding a roller coaster around the O (with an O sign). Rylee singing in the last M (with an M sign). Putting it all together it said,

"Go M-O-M".

Across the bottom, were pictures of other racers and me crossing the finish line. There was so much detail and thought put into it. I LOVED it!

Also awaiting me were these yummy chocolate cookies and a CLEAN house! My kids are awesome. They even let me take a (mostly uninterrupted) nap, before continuing on with the rest of the day.

My kids keep referring to the 5K as a marathon. I try to explain to them that it is no where near as big as a marathon.... 3.2 miles compared to 26. They will be so disillusioned when they actually figure it out some day. :)

Taylee Turns 11!

Taylee started her day off finding a "heart-attack" all over her school desk. I snuck into her classroom the night before, so she could be surprised in the morning. Then she and her class, went on a Civil War re-enactment field trip. The field trip took up most of the day, which made for a great day at school.... or not at school as the case may be.

For her birthday dinner, Taylee had requested BBQ chicken and peas (who knew?) and an ice cream sandwich Butterfingers cake.
The cake consisted of layers of ice cream sandwiches, Cool Whip (with vanilla pudding mix) and crushed Butterfingers.

To finish, I "frosted" it with regular Cool Whip, then topped it with crushed Butterfingers and a chocolate drizzle. Sound yummy? Check this recipe out.

I wrapped Taylee's presents in the Sunday Comics. She thought it was SO COOL.

She's so "green" and doesn't even know it. :)

Her dad knows the way to her heart.... he gave her a set of "Percy Jackson; The Lightning Thief" book series and a "Daddy-Daughter Book Club" coupon. They plan on reading the series together and then having their own fun by discussing the books and how they differ from the movie.
I wasn't invited and I'm totally fine with it. Greek mythology and the fantasy genre are totally their thing, not mine.

He also found this "Pirates of the Caribbean" book for her.

Roller blades was another one of her favorite gifts.

Have I ever mentioned that she's an adrenaline junkie?

Happy Birthday Taylee!

You are a unique, wonderful part of our family. You've brought adventure, creativity and spice to our lives. We love you very much.