Park CIty Adventure

We spent the weekend at a GORGEOUS "cabin" (that's what they call it, I would call it a mansion) in Park City, UT. It was such a neat experience to be there with two sisters graduating! Here are some of the highlights...

Being on campus was awesome, but it was a little sad to go stand in the field that used to be our home. This is where Tom and I met, fell in love, had our first kiss, etc...now it is only a nice grassy frisbee area. Kinda sad. I am standing where U Hall (room 303 to be exact, yes, I am a few feet too low, but I am not that tall!) was 10 years ago, and Tom is standing where Q Hall was--he can't remember his old room number.

The cabin was gorgeous! We spent a lot of time in the kitchen as we always do at Peterson functions, and this was a nice kitchen to work in!

Cousin bath time!! I love that all of them have the EXACT same color of hair...too weird! (Look, I didn't even have to edit out pieces!)

Rousing games of:

London Bridge

Elephant Jump

and Ring around the Rosies.

What family function would be complete with a few new bruised? None that involve my family, that's for sure. Unfortunately for Owen, most of those incidents landed right on him! Poor kid with a fat lip, a fresh goose egg/purple bruise on his forehead, and a trip to the emergency clinic because he was struggling to breath. WOW! Eventful weekend for you little buddy!

Most importantly, time with family!

Congratulations Nicole!

WOW! After 13 long years of work my amazing sister graduated from BYU! I have said it many times, but I want the world to know how incredibly proud I am of her! What a huge success! I am pretty sure that I would have quit a LONG time ago. Watching her go through all the trials has really showed me how much I love, appreciate, and admire her. These last few months have been especially hard, but she didn't give up, she didn't even slack off for a few days. I hope that those three boys of hers grow up knowing what an incredible mommy they have. I hope that she always knows what kind of a legacy she is leaving behind of hard work, endurance, faith, hope, and intelligence! WAY TO GO NICOLE! I love you so much!

All the graduates lined up on the administration building parking lot prior to the processional for Thursday night's commencement.

Yup, that's her in the sunglasses with the cell phone! This is a zoomed in look at exactly where she was! I was super excited when I found her!

I got TERRIBLE pictures at Friday's commencement...I am hoping that Matt has some better ones for me?!?

Congratulations Susie

On Friday morning we got to watch Susie graduate from BYU. I love Susie! I am so excited for her! She has worked hard, including the day of graduation. She struggled through losing a friend on Wednesday, and she held strong! I am so impressed at what an incredible person she is! Aunt Susie will always be special to my family because of the role that she played in bringing my second baby safely here, and she continues to make an impact by being an incredible example to my little ones. I am grateful for her example, her love, and her spirit! Way to go Sus!

I didn't get great pictures in that huge place, but we know it's her!

April Showers, and showers and showers

These are pictures of the same tree in our backyard (for those of you that didn't have to survive this lunacy). It was crazy!

Friday, April 17

Saturday, April 18

Sunday, April 19

Monday, April 20

The snow that had been almost 11 inches deep was nearly completely gone by Monday afternoon.

Grandma's 80th

We got to celebrate Grandma's 80th birthday a little early this years because several of us were going to be out of town for the big day. It was the normal Sunday craziness, but with a little extra cake and a few extra friends! Love you Grandma!

Eva Rose

My newest niece came this week! CONGRATS DANNY AND ANNAROSE! Evangeline Annarose was born on April 14! She is so cute! We are so anxious to meet her!

Good News

Owen went in for a recheck today! He has gained about a pound in the last month, which pops him up 5 percentile points. He is now a very proportional 10% height and 10% for weight! YAY! He is also back on his RTA meds with no problems. Another check in 6 weeks and we may be back to normal health! YAY!

Bolder Boulder

I am going to run the Bolder Boulder...don't laugh! I'm serious! It is my first real race! I had to publish it so that I don't wuss out. Now the world knows, and I can't bail!

Paparazzi

Dinner Options

Last Friday I was sick of making dinners that nobody ate. The kids never eat, but Daddy hadn't been home for dinner either. It just isn't worth the effort when nobody eats. On Friday I gave myself a day off. I took the kids to the store and told them that they could pick something special for dinner. I walked them up and down the frozen food aisles, filled with such delicacies as frozen chicken nuggets, Kids Cuisines, and all sorts of microwaveable concoctions. Tori finally made a decision "ASPARAGUS!" I still had to cook...

Easter

Easter was fun for the kiddos this year.

On Saturday we dyed eggs.

The night before Easter Tori asked a LOT of questions about the Easter Bunny that I wasn't sure how to answer. Darn this inquisitive age. On Easter morning all questions were forgotten, and replaced with candy, movies, clothes, etc. She could not have cared less about how he got in, why he hid the eggs, or who helped build the treats. All she needed to know is that there were eggs everywhere! Tor and Liz had fun hunting, and Owen slept in. He woke up for the yummy breakfast after the egg hunt.

We got everyone dressed and ready a little early to take pictures...then the camera wouldn't work, the memory card was full, etc, etc. We got a few priceless memories,

then some beauties were taken in the foyer at the church.

I try at Christmas, Easter, etc., and I never learn that my kids don't do this very well. Someday my wild dreams of beautiful holiday Sunday pictures will pay off...until then...

Egg Hunt

Last Friday our ward (combined with our old ward) had an Easter egg hunt. We took Sophie with us and all three of the girls were great. They hunted very independently (unfortunately for me). I didn't get many great pics because I was trying to chase all three girls while keeping an eye on my guy, but they had fun, and it was worth the few minutes of running to see the excitement on their faces. Liz and Soph were especially fun to watch. Even though most of the eggs they found were sitting in the open grassy area, it was like a new little treasure every time they spotted that shiny plastic! Too cute! Owen sat quietly in the stroller watching all the action and eating crackers..

General Conference

I'm a week late, but here is a synopsis of our conference weekend.

We invaded the Monson home for the Saturday morning session of conference. This kids seemed to really get a lot out of it like...



or...






The Priesthood session was a little more productive...at least for the boys.




The Sunday session was much quieter . We appreciate Nana and Papa's hospitality, and their yummy food. Thanks for putting up with us. We don't have pictures, but it was a much calmer scene. On a more serious note, I found conference to be so comforting. The world is in such turmoil. I have felt scared and insecure. After listening to the speakers on Sunday I felt much more calm, and I felt a deeper resolve to study the scriptures and find my peace there. I am thankful for the peace and knowledge that I can receive daily in the scriptures, and from the mouths of our prophet and apostles on a regular basis.

So pretty!

I knew it would happen, but I thought it would be his sisters, not his father!

The Result is IN!

Jenn: "I need to talk to you." (Shut and lock bedroom door) "I want to show you something."

Tom: "So...I'm looking right here...right?"

Jenn: "Yeah...(tearing up slightly)"

Tom: "So, two lines, is yes...right?"

Jenn: "Yeah...are you ok?"

Tom: "I..."

Jenn: After waiting several very LONG seconds..."You are such a SUCKER!!!"

Happy April Fool's babe! I hope you forgive me soon, but it was TRULY hilarious!