Easter Egg Hunt

Yesterday we had my side of the family over for an Easter Egg Hunt. We enjoyed pizza before sending the kids out to find thier eggs. They had so much fun and Harlee was the lucky one to find the $5 egg! I just love that our kids have so many cousins to grow up around. It was such a fun day!

Luke's egg drop

So it was 10pm on Wednesday night when Luke remembered he had to get his egg ready for the egg drop. The plan was that they were going to drop raw eggs off the roof of the school and they did not want them to break. So Luke's job was to come up with a plan that would keep the egg from breaking while inside of a box. We decided to wrap the egg in bubble wrap as well as filling the box with bubble wrap. It worked like a charm!! Luke's egg was safe from the big fall. If only he would have kept the wrap on when he decided to shoot baskets with it! What a fun idea! Luke has really had some great experiences this year. I am grateful for his teacher Mrs. Mangum and all that she does to get Luke excited about learning!

Pizza Lover

Well he fits in with the rest of the Childs clan! He was given the green light to eat whatever we did and he does not mess around. He tried pizza tonight for the first time. He almost ate a whole piece as well as a piece of crazy bread! I am sure as these kids grow up I will have to buy much more than two pizzas to feed us all! Love this messy face!

One Year Checkup

Yesterday Tag had his one year check-up with Dr. Stampfl! Aside from the three shots he did a great job. Here are his stats: Weight: 23.3 lbs which is 50% Height: 31 3/4 inches which is 75% and his head was off the charts- not surprising! He is right on where he is suppose to be with his development and teething at a very advanced rate. He already has eight teeth and is working on two molars! He can now eat whatever we have. Over the next few months he should say five words and start walking! Dr. D did confirm my fears however about his neck. He is still tilting. We go tomorrow back up to Primary Children's for his post botox check-up. His physical therapist Mary and Dr. Stampfl both feel like another round of botox might be the answer. So not what I wanted to hear but we will do whatever is necessary to get him to not tilt any more. They both feel that with the botox he would be in the right position to walk. With enough practice walking straight, they hope it would become a habit. I will have to update after I know more tomorrow. Just love this boy!!

Some of my favorite moments...

On Saturday I was cleaning up the kitchen, Tag was crawling around, and all the kids were laughing together. I looked up to see what was going on and they were all playing Super Mario brothers together. I LOVE these moments. I love to see that maybe it was not crazy to have them all so close together. They are growing up and enjoy spending time with eachother. Of course the happiness only lasted a short while before the bickering began, but I sure enjoyed it while it lasted!

Girl Time

At the elementary school they were having their first annual school play. They had gotten a sneak peak at an assembly and both Harlee and Luke really wanted to go. Luke had gone with Riley on Friday night so Harlee asked if we could go. So we decided to go to the matinee on Saturday. The play left a lot to be desired but I could not have enjoyed it more with my Harlee. She is such a loving little girl. She loved to sit on my lap and give me hugs. I am loving this now because I know as she begins to hate me during those teenage years the hugs will be few and far between. I am so grateful for her and for all the time we get to spend doing girl things!

Mimi's Birthday Lunch

My Mom's birthday is on Tuesday and we decided to forego the normal family dinner and celebrate at PF Changs for lunch. We also decided to just have all of her kids take her so we could enjoy a little bit quieter, less chaotic meal! We missed Tara but all of the others were able to make it. It was so fun to get together and talk about the fun times we had growing up together. I even heard a story of when Jenna and I held Cory down and made him try mustard! I so don't remember this! Sorry Cor! My Mom said this would be another tradition! Such a fun day.

Tag Turns 1!!

I know- I cannot believe it! I am still a little bit in denial that my baby is a year already. This has definitely been the fastest year of my life! So eternally grateful for this little guy. He is just such a joy and blessing to our family. He loves his birthday present- his own wheels! His brothers and sister love pushing him around and he laughs the whole time! He had his first cupcake! Despite the sad face in the picture he did love it! Happy First Birthday my sweet Tag!! We just love you so much!

Stair Climber

In Tag's physical therapy we have been working on pulling himself to standig and encouraging him to climb stairs. He is always interested in standing by the bottom step but has never tried to go up. That is until today!! I was so proud of him. It is crazy that I am excited about him climbing the stairs since I avoided the stairs with all of my other kids- afraid they would fall. Now I am clapping and taking pictures!! So proud of our little Tag! He is making such progress and we could not be happier.

Lucky Strikes Again

Another St. Patricks Day and another visit from our friend Lucky the Leprechaun! Luke made a great trap but was still not able to catch our clever friend. He did leave a note complimenting Luke's efforts, made his mark in the toilet, and left some green treats in the bathroom. The kids were so excited to find the goodies! For breakfast we had green eggs and cinnamon rolls with green frosting. Nash and Gray were a little unsure about eating green eggs, but once they tried them, they liked them. All day the kids made sure they were dressed in green so that they would not get pinched! It was a fun day and I love watching the excitement!

New Tramp

After a few years the tramp mat has seen it's day. We oredered a new one this week and it came today. I could not get the new one on fast enough- the kids were so excited! After only about 20 minutes we had a new tramp. The kids will probably want to jump all night! Love that they love to be outside and enjoy playing together. Tag played out in his exersaucer. Even with a snotty nose he loved being outside. I forsee many fun days the summer enjoying our wonderful backyard. *They each wanted a picture of their tricks! Luke's flip Harlee's flip Nash's Trick Gray's Trick

Finally Doing It

I love going to get Tag up in the morning and seeing his smiling face! It is even better now because he is standing up on his own ready to greet me! He has been working so hard in physical therapy to stand up on his own. It is so rewarding and fun to see him master these tasks! I am just so grateful for this little guy! How can it not be a good day when this is how you start it!

Luke's Leprechaun Trap

Last night Luke worked on a Leprechaun Trap for his school project. He said he worked for about 3 hours to make it perfect! He measured and cut and came up with a very creative trap. He taped the rope to the floor and said that the leprechaun would of course cut the rope. This would cause the wheel to turn and drop the cup, trapping the little leprechaun. So creative!! I love how his mind works!

1st Annual Red Rock Relay

Before the Race-Team "Childs Play" Keeping warm before my second leg Pass off from Joey to me- A kiss before each run- Great motivation!! Running in at the end After the race- We did it! Around Thanksgiving last year KC committed us to running the Red Rock Relay in St.George. This is a race with a team of six- each person running two legs of the race. It was going to be KC, Ryan, Joey, Jamie, Daryk, and me. Jamie backed out so Brenna, KC's friend, took his place. It started at 7 in the morning and we were ready! I had the first leg which was 6.39 miles. It was raining pretty hard which made the leg a little more difficult. I finished though and ran the whole thing. Brenna had the next leg, then Ryan, then KC, then Daryk, and then Joey. Joey started his leg near Gunlock. The roads were old asphalt with gravel on the sides of the road. So not ideal running conditions especially with the freezing cold wind in your face. Within the first mile Joey rolled his ankle. Even through the pain, he continued to run and motivate me all along the way! He passed the bracelet to me and I took the next leg. This was on the same crappy roads with lots of hard hills and wind. It was so difficult for me to breathe but I did it with my team stopping to cheer me on. Then it was Brenna who had the leg titled "The Wall". It was full of difficult and long hills. She did such a great job. Then Ryan took off for his over seven mile leg. He is one amazing runner. He averaged a 7:15 mile. He honestly could have kept going. Then it was KC's turn through Snow Canyon. By this time the wind had stopped and he got to enjoy a beautiful run! Kind of jealous but since he was the captain he felt he got first dibs on the legs! Next was Daryk and he did such a great job. He got to run through some neighborhoods, taking us back into St. George. The next and final leg was Joey. We were all nervous since his ankle was hurting so bad, so we decided to stay close. He made it about 3 miles and then the ankle started to hurt. We decided to take turns finishing his leg. So I went first followed by Brenna, then KC, and then Daryk finished it out. What a true team! We were all so exhausted yet we pulled together to help Joey when he could not do it himself. We finished the relay in 11 hours and 3 minutes. It was such a bonding experience and I cannot wait to do it again next year. The excitement of the race encouraged Joey and I to bring back the one half marathon a year goal! We are signing up to run the Big Cottonwood Half on Sept 14th! Nervous but excited. I love to have something to work towards and I cannot think of anyone I would rather train and run with than my best friend!!

The honesty of a four year old!

When I was getting ready this morning, Nash was with me in my bathroom. He asked me when was Tag in my tummy. I explained to him that is was almost a year ago. I went on to ask him if he remembered how big mommy's tummy was. The whole time I am talking, he is looking at me with a very confused look. Then he says, "But Mom, when Reese, Kayla, and Boston were here (as in last Friday when I was babysitting them) you looked very fat!" Awesome! Gotta love the honesty of a four year old. Nothing like a fat comment to start your day off great! I think I better put those running clothes back on!

One of the reasons why I do this...

Today afterschool, I kept hearing Luke and Harlee giggling in the office. I went in to see what was so funny and they were looking through some of the old blog books. They were each taking turns showing entries to each other. I love that I have taken the time to write things down. They are appreciating it now and I just know as they get older they will appreciate them even more. I think I will keep on blogging! *Luke had to find the page with Gray's little naked bottom on it. He had to make sure it was showing in the picture. Such a boy!!

Inspired...

This morning I had to go to Grease Monkey to get the car registered for the year. I had anticipated a little alone time this morning but Gray was having a rough morning and I decided to take him with me. It must have been inspired because when the boy wearing the cars shirt and shoes arrived, they had a Cars 2 sticker/coloring book. He spent the entire hour moving stickers from one page to the other and coloring pictures of his favorite friends. He was such a good boy. It is not often with five kiddos that you get one on one time with each child. This was a special moment and I really enjoyed this time with our little funny man! Love his poses.

Seven under Six

What a fun and crazy morning! We had the two neighbor girls over as well as Boston. So we had seven kids under the age of six. It was Boston's birthday so we decorated cupcakes, had a dance party to Harlem Shake and Ganghum Style, followed by an hour (yes I said an hour) of hide and seek. The kids had so much fun. I needed it to! I loved the reminder of having fun with my kids all the time- not just when the neighbors and cousins are over. I need to take a little time each day to play a little hide and seek! The cleaning can wait!!