happy 10th birthday jackson

I can't believe my Jackson is 10!! Honestly where does the time go? It seems like yesterday he was born at 12 noon, 7 lbs 6 oz and 19 inches long....he was perfect! From birth Jackson has loved balls, golf balls, footballs, tennis balls, basketball, soccer balls...any kind of ball and he was always holding one. Jackson is a natural athlete for what he lacks in size his heart makes up for it. He plays and loves everything and loves being busy. Jackson loves playing and teaching his brothers sports and they can keep busy all day. Jackson has taught Landon how to flip scoop a lacrosse ball and how to shoot, it is so cute. Jackson is a great big brother! We are all so blessed to have him in our family. We look forward to many more birthdays we just wish we could press rewind once in a while because time goes by so fast. We love you so much Jackson!!

Here are 10 things that you may not know about Jackson...

1. He LOVES maple syrup on EVERYTHING
(Just call him Buddy)
2. His Favorite cereal is oatmeal
3. His first word was "Ball"
4. He hates to go to bed
5. He could eat pizza for breakfast, lunch and dinner
6. He hates mayonnaise
7. He had blonde curly hair until he was 4
8. He loves to knit
9. He loves BYU & Princeton
(we don't know how that happened, we have RED running through our veins)
10. He walked at 9 months and hasn't showed any signs of stopping

Happy 10th Birthday Jackson!!!

utah museum of natural history

cousin day at raging waters

Jackson, Ayden, Landon and Cohen

my toes

It has been a YEAR since I have been able to get a pedicure. Last summer I kick the door jam in my car and ripped off my left big toenail...boy did it hurt! I has taken one whole year for it to grow back and I was finally able to go get a pedicure and I am counting the days till I can go again. Is there anything better then having cute toes??

pictures sometimes say it all

...but I will give you more details soon!!!

from our kitchen to yours

For months now (actually years) my sister and I have been swapping recipes. She tells me about something she made that was great and visa versa. We came up with the idea of a family cookbook but it seemed like the only ones interested in it was us. I LOVE to cook and bake, it seems like some days I don't ever leave the kitchen. My friends and family are always asking me for great recipes so yes you guessed it...I started a recipes blog!! It is called Whisk US Away, doesn't it sound like a fabulous dream?? My sister Michelle and I will be blogging all our favorite family recipes. You can find everything from tangy teryiaki chicken to refreshing summer lemonade and yes let's not forget the delicious desserts!! So make sure to follow us so all of our yummy recipes are just a click away and visit us whenever you need something new to spice us your kitchen!!

my boys

4th of july camping

We were thinking of going camping over the 4th but with Ryan's sciatic back pain, rainy weather and a stomach bug this was what the boys came up with. Ryan put our small tent in Jackson's room and we set up our solar system star light while the boys piled in the blankets and pillows. They all fell fast asleep and nobody had to fight with bugs or wander around in the dark to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night :)

Jesus on the 4th of July

We gather ‘round to celebrate
On Independence Day
Pay homage to our country
As the children run and play.

With barbecues and picnics
And fireworks in the air
The flag we own is proudly flown
To show how much we care.

The stars and stripes spell freedom
She waves upon the breeze
While bursts of colors can be seen
Above the towering trees.

This is all quite wonderful
We revel in delight
But God above in divine love
Has brought this day to light.

With just a stroke of liberty
A touch of His great hand
He gave democracy to us
And helped this country stand.

The stripes upon our stately flag
Were touched by His sweet grace
Each star of white that shines so bright
Reflects His loving face.

So as you turn to face the flag
For battles that were fought
Be filled with pride for those who died
And freedoms that were bought.

But don’t forget to thank the One
That gives the bright display
The reason why we paint the sky
On Independence Day

Happy Independence Day!

remembering the cost of independence

remembering michael

I remember watching Michael on Friday Night Videos on MTV with my brothers and dancing with our old RCA TV blasted. We taped all of his videos on our old BETA tape machine and played it over and over in awe. Craig, my younger brother practiced his dance moves and is really good. Thriller changed the music video, it was a mini movie..do you remember the night it premiered on CBS? It was an event...I will never forget that night. I am truly saddened by Michael's death but thankful that his music was part of my life.

May you laugh, run, jump and play in Heaven, the way you longed to here on Earth. May you find the acceptance you so longed for...thank you for sharing your gifts with this world.

shootout

Last weekend Jackson participated in the Ski Town ShootOut in Park City. The shootout is a lacrosse tournament for teams from all over the west from Jackson's age group up to High School. I think there were 110 teams that participated. He was part of the Draper Dogs team and had a great time. His team had boys from Arizona, California, Nevada and of course Utah and even though they didn't play together long they did a great job. 5 of the boys that were on Jackson's Bengals Lightning team were also on his Draper dogs team. It was so much fun to watch Jackson play even in the wind cold and rain :) Ayden and Landon kept busy by playing on the rocks and cheering on their big brother. We had such a good time and we are so thankful to have Jackson as our son, he is such a great team player and has so much heart that it is so much fun to watch him. Way to go Jackson!!

before & after

is it just me or does Jackson look older now??

the dentist

The boys all went to the dentist last week for their semi annual check ups. We love our dentist Dr. Chester Smyth he is so great with children.....even our little fuzzy Landon. Jackson and Landon had perfect teeth, no cavities!! Ayden on the other hand had a bit of a problem.... Ayden's baby teeth don't dissolve so his permanent teeth on the bottom came in behind his baby teeth. He had to get his two bottom teeth extracted, he was a real trooper *it helps to have the root beer smelling calming gas* He was so excited to have the tooth fairy come and liked his new nick name...he is our little Shark Tooth...not bad company with Taylor Lautner but that's a post for another time ;)

song for the week....

lacrosse

undefeated

Jackson's last lacrosse game was yesterday and his team had an undefeated season!! It was so much fun to watch Jackson this year and he improved so much. He was 1 goal short of making his personal season goal of 30 total goals...Personally I think 29 goals is fabulous!! He had a great team and wonderful coaches. Ryan was one of his coaches and we all leaned so much more about the game and had so much fun getting to know the boys on his team. We are sad to see the season end but Jackson was asked to participate on a team for the Park City Shootout tournament in 2 weeks and we can't wait! Way to go Jax we all are so proud of you and love you so much!!

last day of school

I can't believe that school is out for the summer! This year has been great and the boys both had wonderful teachers!! We look forward to a fun filled summer with lots of sleeping in *not*, swimming, and hot hot Utah days. can you believe that Jackson will be in 5th grade, Ayden will be in 2nd and my baby Landon will be in preschool!! Where does the time go??? The school celebrated the last day with a dance festival and the boys did great! The weather was a little cool but the rain held off until they were done :) Way to go boys, we are so proud of you!!

our house

Just as my beautiful Peonies started to bloom and I got my flower garden planted we decided to list our house. We have run out of space..literally, every closet is stuffed and we can't fit 1 more thing into our storage room....even after 2 trips to the DI this week and I am sure there will be many more. With the boys being so involved in soccer, football, baseball and lacrosse we just don't have the space that they need to practice and they spend at least 2 hours a night practicing something in the back yard and we would LOVE to have a bigger yard. It is bitter sweet because we couldn't have hand picked better neighbors we LOVE them and being so close to Ryan's parents has been a real blessing. We had our 1st open house last Saturday and I am going crazy keeping my house spotless for showings with 3 busy boys to pick up after. We will keep you posted on what happens :)

space derby

Is there anything more frustrating that Space Derby...the answer is no. Jackson worked really hard with his dad on his "Bengal" spaceship and had a fun (sometimes frustrating) time making it. He was really excited for the Space Derby last Thursday night and when it was finally his turn the unthinkable happened....see video below.
We luckily weren't the only parents of disappointed, sad and frustrated scouts. I was frustrated a bit too because it was so obvious that the dads on the "winners" spaceship did the whole project....so I ask you, who is the Space Derby really for? I am so proud of Jackson and the other boys who made their own ships!! Way to go Jackson!!