May catch up

 We officially have a first and third grade graduate. The top picture is their first day of school, the second picture is their last day of school. Same smiling faces just a wee bit taller :)

 I got home early and decorated the front of the house for them, They came running and smiling from the bus.

 Running through a wall of tissue paper and balloons, always a good time!

 The other big news is that both Dewey and Luke tested for and earned their Orange belts. It was so neat to watch them do it together. I'm proud of all the hard work they have both put into this. I'm excited to see how far they take this.

 And last but not least....Birthday time for our favorite hubby and dad.

 We had a small party for him at work, which of course the boys couldn't miss.

 I asked Luke and Kolby what they thought their dad would want for his birthday dinner. Hamburger was the unanimous choice. So we went to a little hometown fast food place for greasy food and jute box dancing.

Happy Birthday Dewey!!!!! We love you!!

Mothers Day

 What a wonderful Mothers day!! It started with Luke inviting me to a Mothers Day program at his school. Each of the kids in his class had written a letter to their moms. They each got up and read it out loud. It was so very sweet. They then sang a few songs including the "Frozen" song. Luke has mentioned at least 50 times how much does does not like this song. If I'm being honest he probably did not like doing any part of the program. Which made it all the sweeter that he did it knowing it would make me happy. When it was over he came and gave me a big hug and a flower.

 We woke up Sunday morning to nine inches of snow. So we headed off in search of sun and fun. As it happened Las Vegas had both. We started at Circus Circus Adventure dome. They have roller coasters and a bunch of other kid loving stuff. We went up to the counter to buy tickets and they said they would have to measure the boys. Luke came in just under 48 inches which meant he could not go on the rides but wanted to. Kolby came in just over 48 inches, he could go on the rides but didn't want to. So change of plans. We did the Batman laser room, which was fun. We divided up into pairs and had to go through a room of lasers up, over, and around without touching them.

 We played 18 holes of miniature golf. It was the first time the boys had even played, they both loved it. They both did really well.

 Luke and I attempted the rock wall. Sort of a fail on my part, I failed to tell Luke not to look down. He made it a little ways, but one look at the ground and he was done. I worked out my kinks and rusty rock climbing skills and made it to the top.

 You know the carnival games that NOBODY ever wins? Luke won! This was the ring toss game, through the little red ring over a bottle top. We all played for fun and low and behold Luke's ring stuck. He is now the proud owner of a minion roughly the same size as him.

We ended up at Caesars Palace, Cheesecake Factory. The boys loved the aquarium while waiting for our table. DELISH lunch/dinner. Luke declared the cheesecake we shared to be the best thing he had ever eaten.

A simply perfect day. I am a blessed mama for sure!!!

Goodbye Skip

 We said goodbye to our wonderful dog Skip on April 26th.

 Skip was found as a stray running the streets of Salt Lake City by one of Dewey's friends. Dewey promptly rescued him and they were each others constant companion for 14 years. Skip was without a simply the best dad ever. He listened and would "heel" and "sit". He never dreamed of leaving the yard. He knew "his jobs" were to help feed the horses and chickens in the morning and at night. He would let you know us know if we were running late for either one.

 He was a calming influence and very best friend to Bailey and then Zoey. Neither one of them were ever very far from Skips side. When he could no longer jump on our bed he started sleeping on the end of Kolbys bed. Kolby LOVED this and looked at Skip as his own protector.

 Whenever the boys were outside playing Skip was never far, snow or sun it didn't matter. He would spend hours during the summer happily"herding" flies. He was a once in a lifetime dog.

We were blessed to be able to have Skip in our lives for as long as we did. He will live forever in our hearts.