a gift for you

I just checked my mail and had a surprise waiting for me! My new Lime Ricki swimsuits have arrived! ( I was worried that they wouldn't come before our trip) What is Lime Ricki, you ask? Well... let me explain.

My sister gave me the heads up on this one. Thanks, Ani! This is a swimsuit company based out of Utah and there tag line is "hip and funky (modest) swimwear." They definitely deliver on their promise! I have never seen such darling and afdordable bathing suits. Their styles are so colorful and fun!

I just couldn't make a decision- so I ordered my top 3, thinking I would send at least one back. I just tried them on and NO WAY I am sending any of them back... they are too cute. Here is my most favorite. They fit well and the best part is that it's modest and covers up the girls.

So here's my gift to you as I leave on vacation.

Take a look... and enjoy your new swimsuit. Cuz I know you're going to buy one!!

You're welcome!

a celebration (x3)!

Tyler received the Rising Star Award at school last month. We are so proud of Tyler and what a good boy he is! He really is a great reader and I certainly hopes that he takes after me- and loves to read! I truly feel that reading is such a gift and it's something that I have enjoyed... well, since I can remember. I hope that all my kids follow in Tyler's example and succeed in reading. We are so proud of you, Tyler! Keep up the great work!



We celebrated Tyler's special award and had doughnuts for breakfast- the kids were in heaven! I never let them eat doughnuts!
Next on the celebration list was our amazing preschool graduate- Jacob! Jake completed 2 years at Tiny Tots and he has done so well. He really is more than ready for kindergarten- and can't wait to go to the same school as his big brother. Jacob is such an enthusiastic student and catches on very quickly. He has lots of friends and is so responsible. Good job, Jake! You are such a great student and we love, love, love you!

I love the look on Jake's face as he walks in for his program- lots of excitement and a little embarrassed!Singing his heart out.
I love that face. I could kiss it all day.


Last but not least was Tyler's kindergarten program. It was so cute and those kids worked so hard on their program- really...months and months. Honestly, I think Tyler was a little bored. Singing is not his favorite activity- but he was a good sport and did his part. It was cute and I loved watching him up there. My parents came for the big event also- and gave him a "graduate" balloon, that sure was a hit. He enjoyed that way more than the program!

Yeah for celebrations!
We always love having something great to celebrate!!

little giants

The boys just finished their 2nd year of T-ball. Aaron coached again- and we had such a fun team this year! There were 12 kids on the team and 6 of them were from our wards Primary. I might be biased, but I think my boys are really good! They can whack that ball way out of the park and catch and throw, with the best of them! Here are a few pictures from the season.

I love my little Giants!

last day of school and saving a life

Geez- summer has gotten the best of me and I have really fallen off the blog-wagon. Aaron was giving me hard time about it tonight- so I figured it was time!

Tyler's last day of school was a few weeks ago. (so was Jake's but I can't find his pictures at the moment). Aaron was nice enough to take the morning off so that I could go help in his classroom. It was really fun and I am so glad I was able to be there. All of the kindergarten rooms were a different station and the kids just rotated through about 10 stations. For the first hour and a half I was in charge of the Bingo station. I am a pretty good Bingo caller! Then I got to go around as a chaperon for Tyler's group of kids. After the stations the kids had pizza, and juice and then it was time to say good-bye and head home. What a fun morning we had!
Ty had such a great year with Mrs. Debruyne. He really learned a lot and has grown so much over the last 9 months. I am looking forward to him continuing his education next year, but I am not looking forward to him being at school all day. Whoa- that's along time! I sure am going to miss him!

After the kindergarten festivities, we rushed home, picked up the kids and headed over to the park for an end of the year Primary activity. It's a little tradition for our ward, to get together at the park on the last day of school, for games and popsicles. It made for a crazy, busy day- but the kids sure enjoyed it!

The next day was Jake's preschool graduation (another post!). After that my mom came over for awhile. I was busy in the kitchen and when I went outside, I found them all huddling over my mom's hand. Well, somehow, they had found a fly that was about 2 seconds away from being eaten by a spider. My kids rescued the little fly just in time and handed him over to Grammy- who took it upon herself to unravel him from the spiders web (the fly was totally wrapped up in a tight cocoon) and set him free. With the right tools, she managed to get him loose and everyone started cheering. That little guy just took off! It was so funny- but just like my mom to spend all that time rescuing a fly!

Happy day to you!

My excuse: we've been traveling and just got home yesterday. So this post is 2 in 1.

My dear husband had a birthday yesterday- which we celebrated by being in the car all day, driving home from his parents house... and of course, we can't forget Father's Day. He probably won't like this picture- but I think it's cute. This is his outside working hat. I think he looks adorable in it and I like it when he puts it on because it means he's going to get something great done in the yard!

(don't worry, we have plans to have a real birthday celebration tonight, and something else tomorrow and then something else Friday and even a little something on Saturday- phew, that's a lot of celebrating!!)

I just want my husband to know how thankful I am for him. He is an amazing father and husband and I can't imagine our life without him. The best time of the day is at 5:30 when we hear his key in the door. We all love that sound! I love him more than I could ever say- and am thankful that Heavenly Father put us both in Rexburg, ID in September of 1995 at Craigo's Pizza. Since that day, I knew I met the man for me. I am glad we can celebrate these 2 special days and let Aaron know how important he is to us!

We love you- Happy Father's Day and Happy Birthday
to the best, best, best Dad and Husband around!

you want it, you need it

I just have to give a plug to one of my new favorite healthy foods. It all started with their granola bars... I was looking for a healthy granola bar, with protein, fiber and also that tasted good. My sister told me about the Fiber One Bars, available at Costco. I decided to try them out- and yummy, the are delicious!

Since then I have tried almost all of the Fiber One products and I have yet to be disappointed. Their stuff is scrumptious! And the kids love it, too!

The granola bars are definitely favorites of ours. They have 9 grams of fiber! That's amazing. (warning: some members of my family have found that the bars give them some "gas issues". But that hasn't been a problem for me!) The cereal is amazing- coming in at 13 grams of fiber. You are supposed to get 25 grams a day- so that's a great start to meeting that goal. Today we tried the Pop-Tart type snacks, and they tasted just as good as the regular ones. Yum! The kids were in heaven- and in shock that I let them have such a yummy treat for snack- I'm mean and don't let them have"treats" for a snack- but these are healthy!So next time you're at the grocery store, try out the Fiber One stuff and let me know what you think! Check out this link too. It is full of yummy recipes that use Fiber One products.

yummy in my tummy

After mentioning, on Facebook, that my children and I were watching a movie and enjoying Peanut Butter Popcorn- I had some requests for the recipe. So tonight, pick out a movie, put on your jammies and enjoy the yummiest popcorn ever. You're welcome!

(ps- I am not a peanut butter fan and I still had to "hide" this from myself so I wouldn't eat the entire bowl. Just a warning)

Peanut Butter Popcorn

1/2 c. popcorn kernels
1 c. light corn syrup
1 c. sugar
1 c. peanut butter
1 t. vanilla
(I threw in a handful of chocolate chips just to be crazy, but it did make it harder for the kids to eat it and keep our NEW and CLEAN couch unscathed. And it did raise my stress level substantially higher- just saying...)

Pop popcorn. Bring sugar and syrup to a boil and boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add peanut butter. Stir until melted. Add vanilla. Pour over popped corn and mix. Makes 6 servings.


I got the recipe from this new book. I love cookbooks- and this one does not disappoint. Just made my grocery list for Saturday and there were many recipes on my list from this cookbook, including: Drizzled Lemon Muffins and Pecan Crusted Chicken Tenders and Salad with Tangy Maple Dressing. Can't wait to try them out!