killing two birds with one stone

its been a busy weekend followed by a busy monday so here i am on tuesday, posting a belated happy fathers day to my fathers and a happy anniversary to my sweets.

first to my dads:

i think that this is the only picture in existence of just the three of us, my dad, me, and matt's dad, on the day i began having two fathers to celebrate on this holiday. what a joy to have both of you in my life. i love to watch you love my kids. reading to, wrestling with, loving on. grandpa's in action. something i missed in my childhood but am evergrateful that my kids have you two.

10 YEARS!!! and what a long 10 it's been (he he, honey). after 10 years together here's my top 10 reasons why i'm 10x more in love with you today.
10. your mom. ok i know that's odd on a wedding anniversary i love you list, but she is wonderful and she did an amazing job in raising you. i see so much of her sweetness in you and am grateful that i get to reap the rewards of her parenting skills. thank you sue!
9. that after 10 years, we have yet to have a real fight. never a "you're sleeping on the couch!". never a "this conversation is over!" never even a raised voice, to me or the kids (except during soccer). you're amazingly even tempered and humble.
8. sitting through any lesson/talk you give. i love listening to you bear your testimony. it brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it. i knew i was in for a weepy fast sunday on days you conducted.
7. that your resume says "united states secret service, special agent". if only for a short time, you were one of those guys in a suit and sunglasses that everyone thought was the coolest guy on the block, in the family, in the ward, etc.
6. that you gave up all that coolness to be home more. you're still a super hot agent to me.
5. saturday morning crepes. i can't stand to make them and you do it without complaint. even though they take forever.
4. "talking" jogs. runs where we spend every minute drenched in conversation and sweat.
3. your cleaning moods. when they come on..i just step out of the way and let you deep clean whatever is in your path. i would go crazy if you refused to to housework and love that you're not "above" such things.
2. that you've fallen in love with our garden. that your nightly walk through gives you so much joy. who'd have thought?
1. megan, isaac, mallory, and eli-- the people that bind us together yet drive us crazy;) that i can see you in each of them and that you make sure that i can stay home to be with them.

is that 10 already? the list can go on and on but for the sake of i need to go see what that crash in the kitchen was, i'll end with this snapshot of our wedding day that so depicts us. me holding onto you and you feeling a little too uncomfortable with the pda;) happy 10th my love.

32 and 2

eli and i celebrated birthdays this week. i'm realizing that my birthday is going to get more and more overlooked as the years go on. i'm trying to not be too bitter;) actually, i did score this year with a letter from matt that had me in stitches. i haven't laughed so hard for a long time. i'd like to post it, but matt isn't complying. still, only my siblings would get most of it. growing up with my family brings many fond and funny memories.
we had grandparents out to dinner and cake and ice cream on saturday night. the kids love being with mine and matt's parents. it's good to be home so that they can. eli got a scooter and new crocs. i've been dying for new crocs as we lost one a few weeks ago and i'm so over tying shoes. he's so excited to have a real scooter that is all his--no one can come and take it away (at least theoretically). he rode it to the park the other day and was in 7th heaven and also ten minutes behind the rest of us.

fortunately you can't see his face too well. right now he looks like he got in a fight with a weed wacker. he's got scratches, cuts, and a swollen lip from just being a boy.

father's and sons goes south

isaac and matt have been planning on heading down to yuba lake with our fellow ward fathers this weekend for the annual outing. matt's only excitement in the adventure was the fact that he wasn't going to have to plan and prepare the breakfast for everyone. when isaac realized thursday night that he wouldn't be able to go on the outing AND play in his soccer game on saturday, he was faced with a major dilema. when he chose soccer, matt leaped for joy. in lieu, we had our own campout right in the backyard. we threw up a fire in the firepit and roasted shmarshies. SAFETY NOTICE: avoid two year olds holding sticks with marshmallows stuck on the end. extreme stickage may occur.

we then retired to the tent. where eli only lasted 2 minutes before he was removed back inside to his bed as he wouldn't stop jumping on everyone. that meant i was no longer a tent participant either. and by 2 o'clock am, rain forced everyone else back inside as well. oh well, right? it's all about the experience. we spent all day saturday trying to dry 5 sleeping bags, 2 blowup mattresses and a tent that didn't even get slept in all night!

i've repented

after the mom-forget-to-make-it-to-support-isaac-and-feel-awful-about-it snafoo, megan wasn't about to let me forget her big day (and neither was i!) megan's class has been rehearsing a class play for weeks and they performed it the day of their awards. she was a anchor on their "news from mothergoose land" performance. nothing like the colorado school plays that we are used to but fun to see her get out on "stage" nonetheless.
our tumultuous school year is over. the kids survived, made some new friends, and continued to do well academically (although i'm not sure our utah school is quite the same speed as our colorado one). on to summer!

mother of the year

it's the first week in june, the last week of school. 900 reminders of the end of the year programs and awards assemblies have been sent home. it's been on the calendar for weeks. i even checked this morning,wished him good luck and to look for me in the crowd. but at 2:30 where was i? not in the crowd. not even on my way. totally forgot!!!!! i'm a terrible mother

iris and columbine

so, after the onslaught of tulips in our yard this spring, we're excited to announce that we have iris and columbine coming out in full bloom. we have about 20 columbine that we've had no idea what they were until they finally bloomed as we've never had columbine before--such a beautiful, showy flower--but more importantly, blooming in our yard without any help from us. aahh!! the fruits of the labors of the those came before. i'm sure the people who bought our house in colorado aren't exactly leaping for joy now that the snow has melted and they're getting a full dose of those thistles--yuck! the bane of my existence! columbine, not so much :) hold out for the BLACK iris that has yet to bloom. i know, i'm dying to see what it looks like too.