Brittany and Shawn Gilley....

My little sister is now a married woman as of last Saturday!! Although the wedding and reception didn't go as planned, it was still a beautiful day. They waited until the end of May so that they would be able to have an outdoor wedding in my parent's backyard, only problem was that we had record lows and lots and lots of wind and rain. The ceremony was held outside under a tent but it was only 41 degrees and the wind was very cold, so after the vows were exchanged we moved everything inside. It's a good thing my parents have a big house!! The photographer had to get creative indoors because the rain was pouring and we didn't even have a 15 minute window without rain all day. I felt bad for Britt because it wasn't going as she had always planned it to go, but she held herself together and I still think she had an amazing day. I do have to say that she was the most beautiful bride I've ever seen. She was just glowing!! We are also excited to have Shawn as part of our family, he's such a good guy and after meeting his family we know where he gets it, they are all so nice. They have that 'southern charm' about them being from Louisiana! Congratulations to Britt and Shawn on a beautiful wedding and best of luck on a beautiful life together!

(Be prepared for a lot of pictures)

Getting ready....

She is stunning....

Jack was the ring bearer...

Abby and Olivia were the flower girls....

Here comes the bride....

The bridal party...

First time as Mr. and Mrs. Gilley!

The candy bar....

Abby and Olivia became good friends....

The groom's family....

Groomsmen....

Cutting the cake....

Trying to stay dry....

Waiting for the rain to stop....

All that was left of the wedding set up....

A new son-in-law!

Sisters!

We moved the dancing inside to my parent's entry.

And they're off!!! Headed to Cabo for some sunshine!!

Congrats you two love birds!

donkeys and lost boys....

Olivia and KJ had their Spring dance recital last weekend and it was very entertaining!! They have been working hard all year getting ready for this performance. I don't know that KJ would like me to call him a dancer though, so we'll make sure and say that he's a 'Break-dancer', in an ALL-BOYS class! The performance was called 'Pinocchio' and Olivia's class were the donkey's and the cutest little donkey's I've ever seen and KJ's group were the lost boys! Their teacher's even performed with them....flips, head spins, and all kinds of moves that I wish I could pull off without pulling muscles or breaking my neck!

Here are some of the pictures I captured! I'm still trying to get the videos dowloaded...

Olivia just loved the spotlight, can you tell? She especially loved getting her make-up done!

The Lost Boys! I didn't get too many action pictures because I was too busy video taping their performance.

I was so proud of my little super-stars!

And not to leave Jack out of the spot-light....here was his best move of the night!

Kids'll be kids....

What do you get when you have 3 crazy kids, a warm Spring day and a neighborhood pond?? You tend to get something like this....

We were out for our nightly after-dinner dog walk and we usually take a pit stop at this pond to let the kids throw rocks in the water and KJ had this brilliant idea to jump in. His brother and sister soon followed. Turned out the water was just as cold as I told them it would be, but they didn't seem to mind. At bedtime prayer I realized that this was definitely the highlight of their day as they all mentioned this 'magical' event in their prayers! This is another thing I love about having kids, they keep life sporadic and unplanned!

(I'm also glad that I had my cell phone camera to capture their excitement!)

Mother's Day

I have to admit that last night I went to bed a little bit sad. I knew that in the morning it would be Mother's Day and that with Dan out of town, it meant that I may just be forgotten this year. I'm not saying that I expected my kids to spoil me today, but come on, they are 7, 4 and 3 years old, how much can they really do!?! When Dan is home I get totally spoiled....breakfast in bed, I'm not allowed to cook or do dishes or even clean the house and I figured with him gone, it would be just as any other typical day would be. I let the boys sleep with me last night. They love to do that on the weekends when Dan's gone. Around 8:00 this morning (yes we got to sleep in!), my sweet little Olivia crawled in to bed with me and cuddled up close. We all lay together for a good half hour or so and I realized right then that I didn't need to be spoiled, my kids were my gifts, the best gifts I could ever ask for. They are the reason I even have the chance to celebrate this wonderful holiday we call Mother's Day. I was right, they did forget that it was Mother's Day! Right up until my dad rang the doorbell and brought me breakfast in bed! Seriously....can that be any more thoughtful?!! I just cried. I was not forgotten! My kids and I enjoyed the yummy food together!

Nice face KJ!

The boys look really enthused about giving me their gifts!

Later, we went to church and all the kids went up on stage and sang a couple of really cute songs to all the moms. I just have to try to explain the way that Jack sang up there. Picture this in your mind if you can! Jack worked his way right up front....front and center! He had his backpack on of course (he eats, sleeps and practically bathes in his backpack). He didn't really know the words to the songs but pretended that he did. So he looked like a very animated version of a Japanese movie with English dubbed in. His lips did not match the words, and he had extra fun using his tongue to lip sync! He really was trying and it was so cute! We could not stop cracking up. We were crying we were laughing so hard.

Since Jack's Asperger's diagnosis, there have been days when I wonder what it would be like to have Jack just be 'typical' and then I realize that if he were, he wouldn't be my Jack. The Jack I love totally and completely with all his quirks and his funny personality. I wouldn't change him for the world. I know he was meant to be in our family. He has taught me more about life and patience in his short 4 years than I will ever be able to teach him in his lifetime. All my children have taught me more about love and life than I ever imagined they could. I always knew that I wanted to be a mother. I am grateful for the gift of motherhood, it brings me so much JOY! I hope my kids know that I love them to the moon and back and always will!

At the end of the day I was totally spoiled! Homemade gifts, cards, chocolate, flowers, pottery, a gift card and a delicious dinner at my Nana's house! A great day! The only thing that would have made it perfect would have been if Dan were here. But, he made sure to let me know he was here in thought!

And not to be forgotten, a BIG thank you to ALL the mother's in my life. My own mom, my mother-in-law, my Nana's, my sister....all Amazing women who exemplify what it truly means to be a mother!

I was able to spend the evening with all of these beautiful women! I love them! My mom, my little sisters, my Nana, and my aunt Tawni and Katie!

This is my super cute and newest cousin Brinlee! I just want to steal her!!

I took this of the boys exploring today at Nana's! Boys will be boys!

And as for the dishes.....they will just have to wait till tomorrow!

party.....party!

We had a very busy party weekend! Friday night we had a surprise party for my parent's 30th Anniversary! Dan flew home for the weekend, we had invited their closest friends and of course the family that lives here in Boise was there as well! It was very casual and laid back, just the way my parents like it! We had about 35 people there. My parents are the best! Congratulations Mom and Dad on 30 years of marriage! We love you guys!

The next morning I threw a bridal shower for my little sister Britt. It was just a small family party so it was also a low-key, intimate, fun, morning brunch. We had a crepe bar and quiche and lots of delicious goodies! Britt's wedding is coming up soon, she's going to be the most beautiful bride! We love you too Britt! (and we're excited to have Shawn in the family!)

We LOVED having Dan home for the long weekend. We miss him so much around here. Not much longer till we move to Colorado and can be settled again. It's really true when they say that 'absence makes the heart grow fonder'.