Madison and Maliya had band concerts this week and they both did so great! It was Madison's first concert ever and she rocked it.  This was Maliya's 3rd year of band concerts and she was chosen for a special solo, which she rocked.  It's so fun to watch these two share their talents. I especially love when they practice together at home and can't wait until they start playing duets in church!

These were from when Dawson and Marissa came. Fun times.

 

 Tryazon for the win!

Tonight we had probably one of our most fun Tryazon parties. Seriously.  We got to try 2 new games and we LOVED them both.  I think they'll quickly become family faves.

Our party was made even more fun by the people who joined us, of course! We had the fabulous harpers, our wonderful elders, and the Stuarts, new friends who we were finally able to coordinate schedules with who are just wonderful!  So yea, it was a crowd, a party, and it was great.

We started with an easy potluck dinner (brats, sides, treats, drinks, and then dove into the games.  The kids were even more crazy than normal so after only a few minutes of them running crazy (playing Jail??) we quickly herded them downstairs and then got back to our games.  First we tried Flip 7 and then Wonky.  Both were super fun.  Both simple, easy to learn, but not at all boring.  They were the perfect balance -- Involved enough to be fun but not so difficult that your brain hurt trying to figure out what to do.

Flip 7 is sort of like black jack.  You get dealt a card and then go around the circle and get to decide if you want to 'hit' and try for more cards or 'stay' and keep your points.  I was super awesomely bad at the game and kept busting.  I decided it was just because I was being a good host and allowing everyone else to feel like winners, ha ha ha.  Actually it didn't really matter how I did because the first time we played Jackson (Stuart) totally killed us all.  The game was over in like 5 minutes! The second time lasted a little longer but Dan and one of our elders kind of wooped us all as well.  Regardless of getting beat soundly, I still really enjoyed it.  We all did. And what's super great is that Nick and I are looking forward to trying it with our kids. We're pretty sure they're going to love it to.  Anytime we can find a game that us AND our kids like ... we're sold 100%.

Wonky was a mixture of UNO and Jenga. Really.  Sounds confusing? Maybe. But it wasn't. It, too, was very simple to learn but not so easy that it was boring.  It was fun! And so unique.  (Lots of times games just feel like they're the same as everything else you've tried so it was fun to get to try out something totally new.) You play a card and then stack the coordinating WONKY block and try not to let it fall down. First person to use all of their cards wins.  Nick was our winner, probably because of his mad dental skills, maybe because of a little bit of luck.  We enjoyed the game immensely and are also excited to try this one out with our kids.

We're so grateful for the fun party opportunities that Tryazon gives us.  We're also grateful to TheOpGames. They partner up with Tryazon quite often and we've been able to try a lot of their games (for free in exchange for honest reviews).   We had a blast this time and look forward to the next party!

#flip7 #wonky #wonkygame #unstablepartygame #greatestcardgame #theopgames #gamenight #tryazon. @theopgames  @trayzon

Tennis Banquet.  

Alexa Jo was such a great coach. She made Cole's intro into team high school sports a really good one.

History Day! I got to spend a little time with each kid.  I watched Madison do calligraphy, Max do art and play in p.e., and Maliya give a presentation. It was fun being with all of them!

Halloween!  Marissa and Dawson came this year and we had so much fun with them.  Everyone (but me) dressed up (Nick - Naco Libre, Marissa - alien, Dawson - astronaut, Maliya - cowgirl, Madison - Grimm Reaper, Max - Ninja, Cole - army guy) and went out for almost 4 hours!  Luckily it wasn't as cold as expected, and because we started early we were able to stay that long and be home before 9, so it wasn't a super late night.  We got a ton of candy and then came and did our neighborhood + about 5 houses in the neighborhood next to us and doubled our candy. Craziness.  Everyone, including Dawson and Marissa, ended up with SO much candy.  (Except for Cole, who went with a friend this year. He was a little disappointed.). Nothing too crazy happened, with the exception of Max telling a nice old lady to 'trick or die'.  Good times.

(Side note - Nick TOTALLY got into his costume.  It was the best.  He said 'something about being in a cape just makes me want to jump around' ... and that's what he did! He jumped and posed in front of doors and made comments and just had fun. It was so great.)

Halloween was on Thursday night.  On Friday we spent the day with Dawson and Marissa at Bananas.  We stayed for 5 hours! (With a one hour break for lunch at Sam's). With the exception of us making Max angry when we made him drive his own go kart, the day went really well. We did lazer tag, the arcade, go karts, the bounce house, bumper boats, and mini golf. After Bananas we met Alex at Enstrom's and then went home for games and dinner and shows. It was a good day.

We stayed home on Saturday. Relaxed in the morning. Played games.  Played football and volleyball.  That night it was actually nice out so we hung out at the firepit and had cookie s'mores and played 2 Truths and a Lie.  We ended the night with a round of Medium and then some shows. Then we said goodnight and goodbye to our visitors because they had to leave early the next morning.  We're so grateful they came for the weekend (they're in Fort Collins for an internship right now so they're not too far away).  We had SO MUCH FUN with them!

 

Max was so mad that I wouldn't buy soccer pictures when they took them a few weeks ago. I couldn't, they're just too expensive!  I was excited, then, when the company sent me an email with these watermarked photos.  Second best thing, right?  (The bottom right picture was sent to us by Max's old Ninja coach. Every time she sees him when we get Madison from gym she gets excited and says hi and then he tells me afterward that he has no clue who she is. :) She's super nice though.) 

Cute Madison and Addie with their activity day crafts!  And our annual teach Halloween gifts.  We made coasters them with these fun signs that Max and I found at Hobby Lobby for 90% off, woot woot!  (Max and Madison's coasters were super cute!)

Pumpkin carving!! We did it after stake conference today (outside in the gorgeous weather!) I thought everyone's pumpkins turned out super fabulous.

Side note -- after pumpkins we visited our sweet friend Roberta for the last time. She passed away shortly after we stopped in at Hope West and saw her and chatted with her kids Kristie and Rodger.  We love her so much and have enjoyed being able to get to know her kids better over the last couple of months (though Cole and Nick already knew Rodger pretty well) and are praying for their peace right now.

After that visit we went to our stake hymn festival. It's put on every other year, with the choir and orchestra practicing for months ahead of time.  This was our first year going. Wow. I don't even have words.  Such talent. And gosh the joy and happiness and the spirit that I felt.  Tom and Patty joined us and they loved it too ... and I will definitely be going every time it's put on from now on.  I love music and am very grateful for the countless hours that was put into that performance. 

Madison had her first gym meet yesterday! It was just for fun, to get the kids used to participating in a meet.  She was SO nervous beforehand and SO mad at me and Nick for making her go ... and then afterward asked if she could for sure go to the next one:). She loved it and she did GREAT! She really did. It was fun for all of us to get to see how good she's gotten.  She works hard at gym. That, plus her natural talent, have really propelled her. It'll be fun to see how far she goes with gym.

Right before the gym meet we went to a fun trick or treating event put on by my friend Darcy. She has a real estate company and they totally decked out their offices Candy Land style.  It was super cute and Max, Madison, and I enjoyed walking through (while the others played tennis at the park).  (Max dressed up as the Flash and Madison as the Grim Reaper.)

 

This weekend Cole, Maliya, and Nick took a quick trip to Provo for the BYU football game.  They drove down after school on Friday in the snow, ate dinner, and then went to the 8pm game in super cold weather!  (Nick said they weren't actually cold until the 4th quarter when it was 40 degrees.) They got to see a super cool drone show + Cosmo did a crazy escape out of the box magic trick.   They got hot chocolate and a Cougar Tail. And they loved watching BYU score for the win in the last 19 seconds!  

They didn't get back to their hotel until about midnight and so they slept in a bit, went for a late breakfast at Waffle Luv, and then came home.  Back before it had been 24 hours. It was a quick, fun trip!

While they were away, me and my littles played! We went to dinner and played at McDonald's, wandered Below 5 and bought cute little stuffed animals (they were SO excited to get to wander the store without me!), watched shows and ate a ton of ice cream, and then they had a movie-sleepover in Max's room. The next morning we slept in and relaxed and then went to the ward fall festival, which was fun, especially since the weather was perfect!! We stayed for about an hour and then came home to our homies.

(That afternoon Max had a blast at his friend Emerson's fall party!)

 

Fall Break 2024

Las week was fall break and we started it out with a bang -- with visitors!  When Nick and I went to Santa Barbara, we met a super nice couple, Carolyn and Russ Bullen. They're considering moving and we encouraged them to come check out GJ since both Comfort Dental offices here are considering adding a doc.  They thought about it and last week decided to take us up on our offer!  

Carolyn and Russ, along with their 3 adorable girls (Eliza-3, Nora-5, and Gwenny-7) got here last Sunday just in time for dinner and stayed through lunch on Tuesday and we all had a blast.  When they arrived (on conference Sunday) we had dinner w/ them and the missionaries and then played a round of Liar's Dice (our new missionary tradition). After the missionaries gave us an impromptu 30 second lesson on how Liar's Dice related to President Eyring's conference talk, they headed home and the rest of us played a fund round of White Elephant (with Dollar Tree socks, my favorite!). Then we let the kids run off their energy for a bit before watching a short show while us adults chatted.  It was a great night.

On Monday morning I drove the Bullens around town and did my very best to make GJ sound like the best place ever ... because it is!  We ended at Nick's office. We all went in for a few and then us moms and kids left Russ to chat so we could go and play at a nearby park.  After about and hour and a half we all met up at home for lunch and then, highlight of the day, we went and swam at the Merrell's! 

After swimming we went home, cleaned up, and then shooed Russ and Carolyn out the door for a bit of a date night. They went to dinner and explored Main Street while the rest of us had a quick Digiorno's dinner, did some running around (surprise surprise), and then crafted (haunted house posters!).  Carolyn and Russ got back at about 8, just in time to get the littles started on a movie and the adults and bigs started on cheesecake and games.  It was another great night.

On Tuesday morning we all hiked Devil's Kitchen.  Beautiful weather, easy but fun hike, happy kids.  Good times.  Then we came back, had lunch, and sent them on their way.  It was a super quick trip but was so much fun.  We really loved having them and are crossing our fingers that they'll want to move out here.  Madison and Gwenny especially .  They became fast friends and were in tears when it was time to say goodbye.  Fingers crossed and prayers being sent that they'll join us and that they'll do it soon!

On Tuesday afternoon, in order to distract ourselves, we went and checked out the new splash pad downtown.  It was a little underwhelming but Madison and Max still had fun.  They also enjoyed playing around on the cool playground and climbing structure next to the splash pad.

On Wednesday we had a pretty chill day. Madison, Max, and Maliya (poor Cole didn't have break until Thursday) played outside some and inside lots (screen are addictive!) while I had my weekly CMU AT Family Time and then ran some errands.  That night Max enjoyed his last soccer practice (Nick joined him for the kids/parents scrimmage) and the rest of us enjoyed our church activities.

We started the week with a bang and then Nick and Maliya ended it with one too!  They actually currently are.  They're in Denver enjoying free box seats (thank you Comfort Dental) at the Broncos vs Chargers game.  (They're not allowed to support the other team, but they're doing it in their own way. Per Nick, they're the only two not decked out in Bronco's gear + they're secretly fist-bumping each other any time the Charger's and past Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh do well, ha ha ha.). 

Nick and Maliya drove out to Denver yesterday afternoon, after we all watched Max's last soccer game.  They started their trip off right with dinner at a Brazilian Churassco (Maliya's choice, go girl). Then they went to their fancy hotel and watched college football all night.  I think they also made sure to get some tasty ice cream/shakes (Nick's must have!).  Lots of meat and lots of football was basically the dream day for those two.  They'd do it every day if they could (they do the football thing every saturday!).

This morning (Sunday) I think they chilled and then went and participated in all of the pre-game stuff (the game didn't start until 2) at the stadium. Per the pictures, there was some cool stuff done on the field like horseback riding and airborne guests.  Then they settled in to watch the game and enjoy endless food.  Good food.  Like prime rib.  Once again, lots of meat/food and lots of football. Another dream day. They'll be home tonight and I'm looking forward to hearing all about this special girl-dad date.

The rest of us have been doing what we do when Nick is gone ... lots of game some, a little bit of mom-kid time (when I can convince them to get off of their screens, ha ha ha slash groan), dinner at Sam's club (if you can call soda and pretzels and slushies dinner?), errands, projects (Madison made her own cute Halloween decorations and Max put together his first big school project, a report on Ares), church, relaxing, staying up late, and the highlight -- attending cute Addie Davies' baptism. Oh! And today was Treasure Hart's homecoming! Oh my goodness that was definitely also a highlight, seeing her and listening to her fantastic talk. She has always been full of light and love and happiness but now she is on a while new level. Wow wow wow.

Per tradition, here are a few random pictures to end the post with...

I got an email with these pictures, reminding me to order.  I am way too cheap to order individual class pictures and so I figured I'd just save these instead.  Don't worry, I did order class pictures, so we will have something to save that actually allows us to see the kids' faces.

Conference activity pages, snacks, and service! CMU volleyball! And loving where we live because it's beautiful!

Crazy hair day!

Sad story.  Max asked me multiple times on the way out the door (Nick drove them) to promise him that it was actually crazy hair day.  And I did.  I tried to show him the email I'd received from Madison's teacher but couldn't find it and so I just told him over and over that it was. And then the kids got to school and an aide told them it wasn't! And they stressed and got teary-eyed and fixed their hair.  And you know what?  I called the school after Nick told me what had happened and they confirmed that it WAS crazy hair day, but that not everyone really knew. And I felt SO bad that my kiddos had started the day feeling upset and nervous and sad and I was so frustrated with that silly aide. Arg.  I really was so sad for my kids. Luckily they got over it (and hard things make us tough right?) and had a good day (they still got to enjoy crazy sock day).  A story for the books I guess!

 

While Nick and I were gone, the kids had a lot of fun with Grandma and Alex.

(She didn't let anything slide ... and she made them do a good job cleaning ... but they had tons of fun too. It was probably the much needed balance that I strive for but never quite get. Good job Grandma!)

They had one crazy day with volleyball, gymnastics, and tennis all happening at the same time. Other than that, they stayed busy but it was fun stuff.  Visiting the pet shelter, swimming at the Merrell's, going for ice cream (Grandma's treat!), ordering pizza, pigging out on ice cream and a dessert buffet, playing games, opening Grandma's goodies bags (those are always favorites!), etc. It's always fun when Grandma comes.

Maliya got this award from her volleyball coaches.  She was pretty excited about it and for good reason.  

I'm proud of her and how hard she works.

Yesterday we made a quick day trip to Provo.  We got into town at 11:30, ate lunch at JDawgs/McDonalds, went to the BYU women's vb game for an hour, went to Lexie Harrison's wedding, ran to the BYU creamery, dropped a gratitude journal off at BYU (for a psychology professor), and then drove home! We drove for 4 hours, played for 5, and then drove for another 4. It was a long but fun day.

Something fun --- as we were walking into the vb game a man caught our attention and told us he had a ton of front row seats that we could use!  Turns out he's a BYU donor and, we're guessing, buys front row seats every season that he uses to just make peoples' days.  How cool is that? (We googled him ... Corbin Church ... he and his wife do humanitarian work, help with cancer research, support BYU students, and teach BYU students. Super cool people!) And it totally did make our day. It was SO cool being right up front!  And Madison made it on the jumbotron! And Maliya got to dance with Cosmo! And Max convinced Nick to buy him some gigantic BYU bling.  It was possibly the most fun we've ever had at a BYU volleyball game.

Another something fun --- just being there for the wedding. Lexie was one of my YW when I was the president. I love that girl so much and am so grateful it worked out for us to be there for her ceremony. She just makes me happy and I hope she's going to be so so happy.

Our temple! Isn't this a beautiful picture? 

We can't wait for it to be done!

We're loving watching Cole play tennis (not loving the heat though!). He and Brayden get better every game. They're fun to watch.

Max and Madison find creative ways to entertain themselves during Cole's matches.

Miss Maliya and her team WON THE CHAMPIONSHIP this week!! Woohoo!  They worked hard and played well and had so much fun.  They've also improved a ton and have been so fun to watch.

(I had to grab a picture of Maliya, on the court, plugging her ears:))