baseball play-offs!

June 13th was a BIG day for Noah and the "Cubs". They had the final game of the play-offs, a double header, against the best team on the South Davis baseball league (in their age bracket). They had a long day starting at 8:00 am-12:00 noon. They had rain, they had some sun, and MUD! Noah did great until the end of the game when his thumb got hit by the machine pitch while up to bat! OUCH! He still tried to hit the last pitch but missed (I wonder why?) He was in a lot of pain! But what a game! They did great but lost to the other team! Still, to be second is GREAT! His team really came a LONG way and worked HARD! Noah now thinks baseball is the sport for him and wants to play it, and I quote, "for the rest of his life!" I have to put in here that I am a ball of nerves when I go to his games!!!!! Soccer was hard but not as bad! I feel like I have an ulcer after I watch his baseball games! I know, I know, he's EIGHT! But I can't stand the stress and I feel like I am bad luck being there!!!! Every time Kelly takes him and I stay home with the kids, he hits his home runs and just does great! Does anyone else get this stressed? Any time my kids perform I get this way. I can't look at Bailey when she plays the piano for recitals because I am so nervous!!! I hate to see how I am when Noah is playing high school ball!!!!

spring flowers in june

I was relieved to see so many flowers blooming in my yard this Spring! Plants that I thought were dead and gone are in fact still there and now thriving! I love to walk around the yard and check up on them, make sure they are doing ok, and admiring their beauty! When we put in our landscaping last summer we missed the Spring blooms! The Irises are a beautiful, unexpected color. I love how tall they are and the dimension they give to my flower beds! I am most excited for my Peonies! They are one of my very favorite flowers!!!! The day has finally come when they have bloomed! I need to plant about 12 more perennials and I think we're good for the year! I can see why so many people get so much joy and satisfaction from gardening! It is fun to nurture a plant and see it grow! All our hard work last year paid off!!!!

Long summer days...

Don't you have fond memories of those long, never ending summer days from childhood where you played outside until 9:00 at night? Or later? Care free fun, imaginative play, exploring, riding bikes, hide and seek...Tonight the kids got into one of their peaceful, play acting modes where they all have a part and they all get along! I relish those times since they are far and few. Bailey was first Bella, Noah was Jacob, Sam was James and Jenna was Victoria? Seems fitting. They are the cutest vampires/werewolves I've ever seen! Then it turned into Pocahontas/ John Smith. Sam sported war paint made of who knows what! Then they all took off their shirts! (Except for Bailey, of course). I got some pictures of them on the playground burning the last of their energy at 8:00ish. But they kept on going till the sun went down! They had FUN together and I had to capture this blissful moment!

Bread... check!!!

In a previous post I mentioned that my culinary goal for this year was to learn to make GOOD bread. Well, after my trip to CA, my friend Jennefer gave me her recipe for wonderful Artisan bread that is soooooo easy and absolutely delicious! So my first attempt turned out pretty good but I had one loaf that was slightly raw in the middle (only because it was the first one in the oven and the pizza stone wasn't preheated enough). My second attempt (because I am a perfectionist) was wonderful, chewy on the inside, crusty on the outside! I love this recipe! I will post it on my family's recipe blog for anyone interested. I no longer HATE yeast breads! Now I have checked off bread and have a new goal....eclairs!!!!! Wish me luck on that one!

summer movies!

One of my all time favorite animated movies!

The Time Traveler's Wife!!!!!! Love Eric Bana!

Who DIDN'T love Star Wars as a child? Or adult? I did!

The Proposal staring Sandra Bolluck. This one looks light, funny and predictable but got to see it anyway!



I can't WAIT for these movies! Kelly and I don't get out to movies near enough! Anyone game?

We want mo Moab!

I can't believe it took Kelly and I this long to finally take a trip to Moab with the fam! It was actually good that we waited until the kids were at this age range because they really ate it up! What a spectacular place! I think I sounded like a broken record throughout the entire trip with my ooohs and ahhhhs! Here are the highlights:

• Rodeo. Cowboys, country music, Circ Du Sole girls doing tricks on horses back, Smokey the Bear.


• Staying in a wonderful town homes that was perfect for our family!


• Eating at Zax Pizza and wraps/smoothies at Peace Tree.


• Canyonlands-Mesa Arch!!!!! AMAZING! (there I go again) Kelly & Bailey walked over the arch and I almost had a heart attack!


• Horse back riding with Bailey in gorgeous area and seeing Castle Rock in the distance!
• Movie Museum at Red Cliffs Lodge-all movies, commercials, videos filmed in Moab area!


• ARCHES! Delicate Arch, even though Jenna hated that hike! Garden of Eden, Parade of Elephants, Devil's Garden, Balanced Rock...


• Meeting up with the Werslands!!!


• Kelly and boys loved their night river run, dutch oven cooking, light show, history...


• Chasing lizards, pretty cactuses, eating "lemonade berries", watching a big horned sheep bound up the cliff.
• Seeing dinosaur foot prints (Allasaurus), dino scales imprint on rock, petroglyphs galore!!!!!
• Visiting the unique Hole in the Rock 5,000 squ. ft. home built into rock!!!! So COOL!


• 4-wheeling out to Dead Horse Point.

• THE ROCK SHOP!!!!!!! My kids love rocks, stones, fossils!!!! We went 3 times! I don't want to know how much we spent there!

We need to go back! There is so much to see and do! I really want to see Zions and Bryce too! It was an unforgettable trip! We all LOVED it! So. UT is gorgeous!

Bailey's first cup!

Tonight was a special night for Bailey. She had her piano recital and played beautifully but also she received her first Federation cup for 3 consecutive years of superior scores! She was so excited about this and kept it a secret from me so that I would be surprised tonight! There were only 3 cups given tonight. Bailey loves music and has been very diligent with her practices. She has a wonderful teacher and looks forward to her lessons. I'm proud of my girl for doing her best and dedicating herself to music. It brings us great joy in our home to hear her play. In fact, when I am stressed, I will ask her to play for me to calm my nerves! It always does the trick! I hope Jenna will follow in her footsteps! Bailey's next goal is to sing in a choir!