More often than not, Kellan leaves for work just before dinner time.

That leaves me and the kids on our own for dinner and bedtime, right when they all seem to need me at the same time.

Needless to say it gets intense.

Today he had a day shift though.

I'm grateful he was here to even out the kid to parent ratio.

Plus, its nice to have some quiet time with him before midnight when I'm actually coherent.

A/C

So, central air is pretty much one of the greatest things ever.

I'm grateful for a landlord who believes it is a necessity.

Today I'm grateful my parents decided to stay over one more night because I love having their help and my kids love their attention!

Also, my house stays a lot cleaner with them around!

We will miss them when they leave!

Double blessings (I can't pick just one)

Today I'm grateful to finally get all 4 of my kids in the same picture frame (I think its been since Christmas).


Also I'm grateful for chocolate. Expecially dark chocolate. Happy Birthday to me, again. We like to drag birthday's out for at least a week.


Honestly, I think I could tunnel right through the rest of this cake!

The Zoo

Yesterday we took my parents to the Logan zoo. It was the first time we'd been this summer. It's not much, but the kids love it and its cheap so we go a lot. It was really fun to see the girls run from one favorite animal to the next.

Libby loved the monkeys and ducks. Good thing because most of what they have are ducks.


Sara the one time she actually paused long enough for me to take a picture.


Anne had to make a list of all the animals we saw. Sometimes I just can't get over how smart she is. That may just be my biased opinion though, maybe.


Truman chillin in the stroller, mellow as ever.


Looking at the tortise. Their favorite.

My girls reminded me tonight just as they were heading off to bed that we forgot to read scriptures today.

They were so adamant about it that we got them out and read.

I'm grateful they made sure it happened because I was just done and even though I new we should, I just didn't want to.

It made me realize that all the craziness that usually happens during scripture time is worth it.

I'm back! It was possibly the best Birthday ever!

We left yesterday morning and

-went to the Oquirrh Mtn. Temple (Gorgeous!),
-ate at Red Lobster,
-shopped,
-soaked in our own private hot tub,
-watched movies,
-went to sleep when I wanted,
-woke up when I wanted,
-more shopping,
-missed my kids,
-and came home in time to read them bed time stories.

Thank you Kellan for making sure I enjoyed every minute of my night away and talking me out of feeling guilty! I'm so grateful to get a break once in a while!

Papa and Evel

Papa and Evel are the endearing names my children have bestowed upon my parents, who just arrived! YAY!

We always love it when they come, but I've been looking forward to this visit for weeks and weeks.

Why? Because tomarrow is my birthday and I'm leaving for a night away from these chilluns with my husband!

I'm so grateful that my kiddos have such incredible grandparents on both sides, who insist that its a special treat for them to tend 4 children under 5 years old.

Today I'm grateful for...

...clean sheets

and bedtime.

*sigh*

Today I'm grateful for my kids' drawings. There are few things more delightful than seeing my children learn and progress. These are the pictures Anne and Sara drew for Family Home Evening today. We learned the story of David and Goliath. It so much fun when their art work becomes recognizable!

Sara's


Anne's

Happy Father's Day!!!

Of course today, am grateful for my Dad and Kellan. I could elaborate on why both of them are amazing, but I'll just say for now, that they are two of the most amazing men ever!

The girls loved making today special for Dad. They've looked forward to singing for him in sacrament meeting and making him cream puffs for weeks.

These two munchkins are always giggling lately. I'm grateful their such good friends. Hearing them playing and imagining together makes up for all the fighting and tattle tailing.

I LOVE Summer!

Because my house is small and my yard is big. Because watermelon is in season and side walk chalk is cheap. Because here in Logan you have to wait until mid-June to get consistantly warm weather.

Today was Kellan's day off, so we headed to Summerfest. We enjoyed the gorgeous weather, got all hot and tired, came home to a wonderfully air conditioned house, watched Emperor's New Groove, ate watermelon and drew with the sidewalk chalk outside. Ah Summer, how grateful I am for you!

Kellan made it through his first Stats test today.

We decided to try doing all of his classes online this summer and its been difficult to navigate through everything- deadlines, online office hours, how to turn things in, etc. Its a bit more confusing that it is face to face.

The last few assignments he really didn't understand and was having a hard time getting together with the teacher and tutors for some help. Finally, last night he was able to meet with the teacher who walked him through a few things and showed him where to find the test reveiw, which was all he needed.

This morning he took the test and felt good about it. I'm so grateful for the times when things work out for Kellan with school. He works so hard to do well and keep up even though he doesn't have as much time as he needs to spend on it. More often than not, he feels so discouraged and hopeless. Today it feels like everything is going to work out and maybe we really will graduate next summer.

I'm grateful for....

....leftovers. Which means tonight I don't have to decide what to make for dinner. As much as I love cooking, I hate figuring out what to make every night. Plus, there is a Relief Society "chewin' the cud" thing tonight, so I can just go without worrying what Kellan and the kids are going to eat.

Today I am grateful for a mom and dad who taught me to make tasty food.

There is nothing more satisfying that being able to create deliciousness from scratch. Growing up we never ate out anywhere. We didn't need to. Mom or Dad could make it better and cheaper with what was in our kitchen. I'm grateful they have passed that on to their children.

Now, about half the time my culinary experiments flop, but when they are successful its delightful!

That is an amazing blackberry pie which Kellan and I will be enjoying the remnants of in a moment. The crust turned out perfecto, bytheway.


And speaking of deliciousness....

Last Sunday a friend at church told me I have the most edible baby. I couldn't agree more!

Today I'm grateful for my husband Kellan.

Specifically for the fact that 7 years ago he didn't run and hide when he finally realized I was interested in him.

7 years ago today he returned the somewhat stalkerish phone call of some girl who didn't even leave her name or a coherent message, and invited her to go with him to Lagoon.

The result is 1 very happy girl, and 4 adorable blue-eyed redheads.

I love you Kellan!


Ah, good ol' Mill Hollow! What a hottie, eh!?

I've decided I need to post one thing I'm grateful for everyday.

Why? Lately I've struggled to feel happy and content with where we are in life.

It seems like I'm always waiting for things to get better for our family- the weather, Kellan's work hours, Libby's teeth to finish cutting, the house to get cleaner, school to be over so we can move to a bigger house somewhere more exciting, the kids to stop whining, Truman's schedule to be more consistent, etc. I'm constatly looking at someone else's life and wishing our family could be doing what they're doing and living where they're living.

As a result I've spent a lot of time feeling disappointed, picked-on, tired, and overwhelmed. Motherhood has been a burden. My kids are annoying and always preventing me from getting anything done. Kellan is never home enough, and when he is there is a to-do list a mile long so its hard to enjoy the time he is here.

Apparently I need help. Help to see things the way they really are, and not my imagined injustices.

So with out further ado, today I'm grateful for Sunday.

Kellan works at Macey's which is closed on Sunday. It's one of the few things I can count on. Kellan will be home all day every Sunday.

Today has been fabulous. We hid all of the last two weeks of laundry in our room that needs to be folded and just tried to enjoy our kids and our time together.

Already I feel happier.

Sara's B-Day!

Sara asked if it was her Birthday everyday from March until May. On Libby's birthday she kept asking if it was her birthday and we had to keep telling her she still had a week to wait.
I told her she could pick any cake off of Bakerella.com and she had to have these Hello Kitty cake pops. They were incredibly easy to make; however, incredibly difficult for someone with zero artistic ability to decorate as pretty as Miss Bakerella. They looked pretty good from a distance though.
Sara loves being 4 because its almost 5 like Anne. Everyday since her Birthday I think she has managed to announce her new age to at least one person.



Sara and my little sister Teresa have the same Birthday. Lets have a real smile Tee! The similarities between them are uncanny. Not only do they have the same birthday, but they also weighed 7lbs. 2oz. at birth, are the 2nd oldest, have one older sister, are terrified of cats(those things have teeth and claws!) and anything else with fur, love raw potaoes, and share a myriad of other personality traits.

Growing up, Teresa and my brother Kendall always made sure to get everyone special gag presents for birthdays and Christmas. Well, Kendall has continued that tradition. He found this special friend for Sara at D.I. for 3 dollars and just couldn't help himself I suppose. Make sure you turn your head sideways to read the note. Of course Sara loves this guy. Oh Kendall, I can't wait for you to have kids!

The boa around Yetti was another present. She insists on being called Fancy Nancy so some fancy boas were perfect for her.


The next weekend, Gramma and Papa Stevens took her shopping. She was in heaven, got some new shoes and clothes which she loved since she usually just gets Anne's old clothes.

Libby is 2!

So, we blinked and Libby turned 2! I swear time goes faster with each kid. She's such a big girl all of a sudden. We finally got her a big girl bed over Memorial Day, so Truman can finally move from the pack 'n' play to the crib. I know Truman needs it, but I'm still sad that Libby isn't a baby anymore. She's increbibly sweet when she's not busy screaming about not getting her way. Ah 2, such a lovely age. Anne and Sara had as much fun as she did. They reminded her about every 5 minutes that it was her birthday.