Freedom

Friday was great. My kids are all done with school. They have graduated from Preschool, first grade and fifth grade. That is great. My kids are happy and Summer is here. YEAH!

On the other hand, I now have a Kindergartner and a 2nd grader and a 6th grader in my home. How crazy is that.

Duncan had a fun ending party with his cute teacher and we have loved her so much the last couple of years.

Dean went to classic skating in Layton with a friend and had a ton of fun after school got out. He did great at skating, not because he had done it before, but because he does great on his Heeleys.

Amberly had a great year and made a ton of new friends-with a specific effort on her part. She had a late-night with most of her class and I would do it again. 20 kids in the back yard with lots of time to run and laugh. I only spent $100 bucks-on food and prizes. We had hot dogs and hamburgers and played a few fun simple party games. When the sun went down, they played night games and roasted marshmallows. What a great time! The parents came about 11:00 and picked up all the kids. Really successful.

So on to Summer. Our favorite time of year. We plan on working hard- and playing even harder.

Looking forward to a great harvest.

Did I mention that we have been busy? We reduced the size of our garden yet again this year. After we bought this house we were finally able to plant our first garden. Too much shade from other yards at our last house made it impossible. We are learning by trial and error. We planted everything we planted last year in 3/4 of the space. We had alot of weeds last year. I could never keep up on them. So we used some handy blocks and put a border on it, which may also keep out the weeds. So... with some great soil and alot of good, hard work, our garden is in. We are hoping to avoid any last minute snow or hail storms, but this year it is sure to be a large gamble. In the picture you can see the progress of Mikes shop. It is moving along at a snails pace, but with large yard & roof projects out of the way he can concentrate more on his shop. At least that is the plan. Now, if we can just keep the dog out of the garden...

preschool fieldtrip

Duncan had his bike field trip last week and we really had a great time. We met at the park way and decorated their bikes. Mike was able to come along and ride with him since my bike is still "off limits". I walked part of the parkway and took some pictures... at some point Duncan and his pal came zooming past together, I kept waiting for Mike to come along-and it was a good minute before he came fast asking me if I had seen the boys. He had been caught in a traffic jam. Eventually he caught them, close to the end of the path... Mrs Loveland had told the parents to stay with the kids but had not told the kids to stay with the parents.

Afterward the kids treated themselves and us to Graham crackers they had smothered in frosting. Something that is quite hard and time consuming for preschool hands. Cute Kids!

Happy Mothers Day

We spent mothers day afternoon on a drive to Hyrum. Great little town. There is a canyon called blacksmith fork that we really enjoy. On the way we wanted to take Left Hand Fork to a beautiful little waterfall we have enjoyed in the past. The road was closed STILL. The snow is not melting very fast I bet the little fall is larger about now and would have been great, but still we turned around and went further up the road to the picnic site and enjoyed the sun and the breeze. It was great. We crossed the road and climbed the rocks. We loved our camera. Alot of fun...Sharing some snap shots with you.

Amberly Jo

AJ had a big week. She asked for a hair cut, she said bangs... I really love them! She made a great choice. Later that week she ran a 5k with her Grandpa Arrington and her cousins at their Elementry for the pta fund raiser. She had a 32 min time, which is really great for her first time.

Go Amberly.

May came fast and has really flown by... Holy Cow! Started with a little warm weather and yard work, was added to by soccer and school activities and was added to by a bit of feeling stir crazy. Our fruit trees are in bloom, along with our beautiful crab apple tree. We have torn out shrubs and flower gardens to put in grass - easier to keep up. I figure that pretty green grass is more better to look at than a huge flower garden full of WEEDS. So... Here are my trees in full bloom. They make me smile!

The Giver, by Lois Lowry

I read an incredible book yesterday, thoroughly enjoyed it. It was just a little shocking and eye opening. I have been thinking of it since, the story line is fairly simple, a Utopian society that revolves around sameness. Jonas, with his new knowledge figures the lack of feeling and depth of joy because there is no pain or sorrow. I look forward to reading the rest of the trilogy Which includes Gathering Blue and Messenger.

I checked out this book from my children school library. The wonderful librarian Dorthy D. recommended it. She reminded me that her library was really for the community and encouraged me to spread the word. She love to have families come and check out books for themselves and their toddlers. What a great resource and saves me a longer drive into town.