"Hoppy" Easter!

We had a great time celebrating Easter. My family came up for a surprise visit on Saturday so it was fun to see them again. We were able to color eggs and have an Easter egg hunt in our back yard. The kids loved being able to find the eggs. It was so cute watching Owen and Vanessa get so excited. The Easter Bunny came and brought the kids some fun things. They got there Sunday Easter Clothes, candy, a book and toy. They looked so darn cute in their Sunday Outfits.

Having fun coloring eggs!

I love the look on both of their faces!

I made Vanessa's skirt and added the embellished flowers on her shirt.

I also made a tie for Owen to coordinate. They turned out adorable!

My family left Sunday after church and they we headed down to the Carter's for their annual family Easter Egg Hunt. There were lots of eggs to find and Vanessa and Owen filled their baskets to the rim. I am sad to report that we did not find the silver or golden egg this year. Oh well, I guess there is next year.

We had a blast being able to celebrate Easter and the best part is being able to remember what our Savior has done for us and to celebrate the resurrection. I am truly grateful for his amazing sacrifice and the gift of being able to live again.

Packing again!

Yes, can I just say we like to move...NOT! We are again starting to pack up are things and beginning the moving process. But this time is for good (well at least for 10+ years). We have put an offer on a home in Clinton and it has been accepted. We will be moving into Mark's parents basement for a few weeks until we can close on the home. We are so excited about being able own our own home! It just stinks having to wait. Hopefully the time will pass quickly. The home has 5 bedrooms and three bathrooms which includes a master bath..YEA!!!! It has the potential to have 4 bathrooms. It has a cold storage and a storage room and a pantry in the kitchen. I am in HEAVEN!! The home is in great shape. We decided that we want to paint and put new carpet in to make it look even better. At lease we don't have to putty any holes or fix any leaks. It will be a great home for our little family!

Family Visits

We went down to Delta last Saturday to visit my family. I brought the camera but I realized that I forgot to charge the battery so I wasn't able to take many pictures. I was upset because we were able to do a lot of fun things while down there. We first met my family at the middle school to watch Reagan play soccer. It was super fun watching him and being able to sit outside and enjoy the sunshine. I am happy to report that I got my first tan line of the season! After the game we went back to my parents' home and ate lunch and got ready to go swimming. The kids love swimming. Vanessa had a blast splashing in the water. Owen decided to fall asleep on the way to the swimming pool so we let him nap while Grandma watched him. He did wake up while we were still swimming so we got him dressed and put him in the pool. He wasn't too happy about that. I think the cool water was a cruel wake up call.

After swimming we headed home for dinner, got changed and then went to the movies. We saw Rio. We thought it was a pretty cute movie. Owen loved watching the birds. We were pretty tired by the time we got home. It was sure a fun filled day.

On Sunday, we woke up early and went over to visit my grandma before going to church. It is always so good to see her. I found out that she would be receiving a special award for service by the governor of Utah. She would be going up on Tuesday to a special dinner to get the award. I am super excited for her! She is such an amazing woman and I look up to her in everyday. She has been such a great example to me and to all those she associates with! I hope to be like her someday. Congrats Grandma for such an amazing award!

After church with my family, we headed to Manti to attend Mark's cousin, Adam's, mission farewell. He will be a great missionary and we are excited for him! It was so fun to be able to see both sides of the family and get to visit with them. We are so grateful to have such wonderful families! We love them dearly.

We Have A New Niece!!

Hailey Mae Thomson was born Tuesday April 19. She was a month early and weighed a surprising 7 lbs 10 oz! She is such a doll and we can't wait to be able to hold her and hug her! Congrats Michelle and Jeff on another beautiful girl!

Jazz Game Surprise!

Yesterday afternoon, I got a call from Mark asking me if we had any plans for that night. I told him that I had enrichment and he asked if I needed to go because he wanted to take me out on a date. He wouldn't tell me where we were going. I was super excited! A surprise date is always fun and exciting! Well, he picked me up and we dropped the kids off at his parents house and headed down to Salt Lake. He had me close my eyes while entering Salt Lake and placed two tickets in my hands! I was so excited!!! We were going to be sitting on the 10th row from the court! I have never been able to sit that close before. Mark was able to get the tickets from his boss. He went a few months ago with a co-worker and I admit I was a bit jealous. So when I saw that we were going I got really excited!

We made it just in time and grabbed a bit to eat. Watching a Jazz game so close is so awesome and different. The players are huge and the game was much more exciting to watch. It was the last game of the season for the Jazz and we were praying for a win. They made us nervous a few times but in the end came out with a win! It was so much fun being there with Mark and such a great surprise! Thanks babe for such a fun night! Love you so much!

Playground and Bowling

We were able to go and play at the park in between the bad weather we are having. The kids really had a lot of fun running around and sliding down the slides. Vanessa was finally brave enough to climb up those scary ladder things that are always at playgrounds. Personally, I hate them because it scares me to death to watch her climb up them. Also, as soon as Owen saw Vanessa climb up them, there was no way of keeping him off of them! The little tike has no fear. He just climbed right up them. I have no pictures because Miss Paranoid Mommy had to be right by him to make sure he didn't fall. Can I say anxiety attack. Anyways, the kids really enjoyed the time outside and the exercise.


That night, we took Maimi bowling. I felt really bad that we weren't able to do much else while she stayed with us. We had a great time bowling. The kids loved being able to push the ball and see the pins fall down. It has been awhile since we have been so that made even more fun. I love being able to get out and do something together as a family!

Boutique

So the past few weeks I have been busy making some car seat canopies and nursing covers to sell at a Boutique. It sure kept me busy and I really had a lot of fun making them. I was able to sell the majority of them but I have a few left over so if you know of anybody who is looking for one send them my way. If not, I guess I get to keep them for myself. I don't mind that either cause they are adorable. I told Mark after I got all of them made that it made me baby hungry! Uh oh!

A Visitor From Japan

This past week we have had the opportunity of having an exchange student from Japan stay with us. Mark's parents are hosting her and they asked us if we could watch her while they go to Hawaii. It has been really fun having Maimi here with us. The kids love playing with her and it is nice to have an extra hand around to help out here and there. It has been a really neat experience and I have learned a lot about here and her customs.

We had a really nice day on Friday so we were able to go outside and draw with chalk. It was so warm and I loved being able to play with the kids outside and soak up some much needed sun. But it wasn't to last. The past few days have been cold, snowy, and wet. So we have had to think of things to do inside.
We were able to celebrate April Fool's day with her. She thought it was so much fun eating dinner with odd things and she loved the clear Kool-aid that we had for dinner. The kids loved it too!
We had an interesting experience this past weekend having her here when watching General Conference. We had the opportunity to talk with Maimi about the church and what we believe. I really feel that a seed has been planted in her and that this experience of being in Utah will help her accept the gospel when she goes back to Japan. She is a sweet girl and I am so grateful for this experience.

Tattered to Flattered!

So I have been doing a few projects here and there. I went to the DI and found some lamps for 5 dollars. I have been looking for some lamps for Vanessa and Owen's rooms and our room. So I slurged and bought four lamps for $20. I then ran over to the Home Depot and bought me some spray paint. I took them home and started on them. I primed them first and them started painting them. They turned out so darn cute!

For Owen's lamp I found a dinosaur applique pattern online and printed it out. I had some extra material from when my friend made his bedspread cover so I used it to cut out the dinosaur. I put in on the lamp cover (which came with the lamp. It just needed a good washing) and ironed it on. It turned out so darn cute. It looks great in his room but it will look even better once we get our house and I can paint and decorate it all I want!

Vanessa's lamp just needed a good washing and some color. I spray painted it a aqua blue to match her bedspread and that's it! I like the lamp shade that came with it but I think I might try and find another one and put some rosettes on it.

I haven't got our room lamps done yet but they should be done soon. I am really liking how they are turning out. I will post them as soon as they are finished.

Here is what they looked like before:

And after!

The Many Adventures of Mr. Owen

Yogurt Lotion and Head Cream
So the other night at dinner, Owen decided that he was going to use his yogurt as lotion and head cream. He was very thorough and got every inch of his little head covered in the stuff. I can see how yogurt could be easily mistaken as lotion. I couldn't get upset because he was really having a lot of fun and it was just too cute!

Future Tennis Star!
Oh, you made your Daddy so proud! He had so much fun swinging and playing with Aunt Arianne's tennis racket. Mark hopes this is a great sign of what's to come.

Nothing is off limits!
Owen loves to climb and crawl in any kind of space. He had so much fun trying to make his way through the hallway bench. He is just so mischievous and so much fun!

Make up!

While doing my make-up, the kids came in and wanted to join me! Vanessa wanted to be a princess that day so I did her hair like Belle and then I put on some pretty pink eye shadow and lipstick. She looked very beautiful. Owen wanted to be like Flynn Rider so he went ahead and gave himself some facial hair. What a handsome little man! He had a lot of fun with the eye liner pencil. He was upset when we had to put it away.

Playing catch up yet again...

Well it has been almost 3 weeks since I posted last. Time really does fly by. Things are staying quite busy around here. I have been busy getting some stuff sewn for a boutique this weekend and trying to keep up with the kiddos. We also are watching a foreign exchange student for the week while Mark's parents are gone to Hawaii. It has been super fun having Maimi with us. The kids just love playing with her.

Let see, the kids are just growing like crazy. Just a few days ago, Owen went poop on the potty, twice! He is only 20 months but is showing lots of interest in going potty! This is awesome!! I am hoping to have him potty trained by two if all goes well. Vanessa is as cute as ever. I just love talking with her and listening to what she has to say. We have definitely have been blessed with sweet children.

Mark has been busy updating our computer so that is another reason why I haven't posted for so long. I will have to post the pictures on the blog when I can find where he has put them :)

We got an offer back from the bank on the Roy home last week. We have been thinking long and hard about letting the offer go on the home. We felt that it was not the right home for us. We never wanted a split entry home and it was a bit too far out of the way from stores and other things. We got a strong impression that we should focus on the Clearfield home. So we took our offer off the Roy home and are now just waiting to hear back from the bank on the Clearfield home. I sure hope it was the right decision. I hate having to choose from two good things. We are hoping to here back from the bank in the next 2 to 3 weeks. So if all goes well we could be homeowners soon!