Um....

Where do I even start?! We went to Idaho and Utah for the month of June and when I got back, it just seemed too much to catch up on, so I didn't. Now, obviously, it is even more, so I don't know what I was thinking! Oh well. I guess I have to start somewhere. So, without further ado, here is a smattering of pictures from our time at the Ranch. We didn't get any photos with Ryan and his fam or many with Aaron and Bonnie's. Our time at the ranch was definitely crazy, what with us being carrier monkeys for hand foot and mouth disease that spread through the rest of the family like wildfire! We tried to stay quarantined as much as possible, hence the lack of pics for a lot of it. 

Bruce got a surrey that he can attach to his horses and take us all for rides. The kids loved taking turns with him in the front driving the horses.

Griffey was excited to see this giant, real-life tractor.

Bruce also has this and one other carriage which were awesome!

Teaching Treyton how to clean his guns.

Fuzzy, but Aaron holding Emery. We can't wait till they have their new baby any time!

This is where it all started: on the road in the middle of the night and Griffey would not stop screaming. We realized when the sun came up that it was hand foot and mouth and that anytime he tried to swallow his spit he would scream in pain. Poor kid. By some miracle, Emery didn't get it.

Treyton ended up getting it pretty bad and itching all over like crazy. Jayci had it when she was a baby, so she just got a fever and a really really mild case. Unfortunately, the worst hit was Mandi and her kids who were visiting from Arizona. Poor Chloe ended up with a spiking fever and seizures and Adelyn wouldn't eat and was throwing up.  She had to cancel her flight back. I felt awful!!!

Griffey was convinced that their black horse, Bear, was in fact a bear. It was pretty funny.

Due to some severe food allergies, we couldn't allow any goldfish on the premises. My kids didn't mind the restrictions, but a few days into it, Griffey just had a melt down crying for "my goldfish!" I was laughing pretty hard.

Treyton's first visit where he got to drive the four wheeler. He is in boy heaven up there. See that dirt wall in the background? That is his favorite thing to do at the ranch. He spends hours out there climbing, digging, and finding worms.

Teaching Chloe the art of beyblading.

Mandi and Adelyn getting creative in the kitchen. Mandi makes some amazing food with the few ingredients the girls can eat between the two of them!

Playing games with Nana.

About two seconds later, Adelyn is ripping Emery's flower out. She is not a fan of anything on heads!

Griffey's best friend out there: Abby. He goes around all day yelling for her.

Kristi and Adelyn. It was fun having everyone there, even for only a few days!

We loved getting to visit the ranch and being with family! We were only sorry that 1, it was short and 2. we spread the disease around to everyone.  Just a little something to remember us by!

5 & 6

 Both of my girls had big milestones recently: Jayci turned 5 and Emery turned 6 months!! I am so incredibly lucky to have these two amazing little girls in my life. First, a bit about Jayci:

She is literally the BEST girl I know!! She is so incredibly sweet, says the most random, funny things, is extremely smart, very polite with good manners, loves her family, tries to obey the commandments, and is one of my very best friends. I just can't say enough how much I adore her.

Some things about Jayci at 5:
*Is in the 50-75% for weight and 90% for height
*Can read chapter books by herself
*Loves to make homework and "flashcards" for herself. She still writes a bunch of her letters and numbers backwards and I just love it.
*She loves to play on the tramp and ride Treyton's scooter.
*She still loves Tangled and other Princess movies but has branched out into Beyblades and Power Rangers, courtesy of her holder brother.
*Griffin is still her very best friend.
* Still says 'Breakfixt" and is makes me laugh every time.
*Still goes into her own world and is a bit oblivious to anything else!
*Adores her daddy like none other!
*Started having allergic reactions to certain foods this year. Poor thing. Her favorite food is cantaloupe and she can no longer eat it!
*She never throws fits. Instead, she just puts her head down and silently cries. It literally breaks your heart!
*Her favorite color is Gold.
*She loves to listen to Adele, Katy Perry, Justin Bieber, and any song with a strong beat. She sits in the back of the car and tries to sing them all. Its pretty adorable.

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Nate built Jayci this amazing doll house for her birthday.  She loves to play Woodzies and My Little Ponies in it.

Jayci got to be start student last week. We put pictures of her favorite things on her star and decorated with rhinestones. Nate and I got to come to her class, where she introduced us and explained her star to everyone.  She even did a ballet move. It was so fun for her to feel so special. We love her!

Next up is Emery:

She brightens my day from the second she wakes up! She is all giggles, smiles, kicks, and squeals. This girl is so sweet and so much fun. I don't know what I am going to do when I don't have a baby in the house any more, but I am sure enjoying every single second with this one!

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This one is for you, Linda. Baby toes!

 At 6 months, Emery:
* Is 75% for weight and 90% for height. Apparently we have tall girls!
*Sits as long as her arms are supporting her.
*Is an ambi-roller.
*Squeals, giggles, still is a silent laugher, says dadadada and mamamama.
*Loves being thrown (not high at all) in the air.
*Loves the sound of her own feet kicking her crib, the floor, basically anything.
*Still wakes up TWICE a night to nurse, but she is WAY too cute and too good of a baby to refuse her.  She eats and goes right back to sleep. She never fusses or wants to play, so I assume that she is actually just hungry.  Hopefully it goes away now that she is starting more solids.
*Is adored by every single person in her family. None of us can stop kissing her whenever she is awake!
*Got her ears pierced and she is adorable with them! Nate picked them out and they suit her perfectly.
*Sleeps with a Googely-Eyed giraffe that she snuggles given to her by her Papa.
*Loves to go on walks in her stroller.
*Favorite toy is a toothbrush to chew on.

I LOVE MY GIRLS and am the LUCKIEST mom in the world!

One of those...

It was another, "What was I thinking?" mothering moment this morning.  It started out innocently enough. I got out the art easel and some paints so Griffey would be busy while I did a few chores. Yes, I know. Really, Alyson?! You are going to leave your 2 year old alone with paints? Well, in my defense, Jayci was in the kitchen, too. What? Is my 5 year old not old enough to be responsible for a 2 year old with paint?! After I had vacuumed the bedrooms, I came back into the kitchen to check on them to find Griffey eating the paintbrushes and rubbing his paint-covered hands all over his arms. Score one for me today!

The Funeral

Nate finally told Treyton today that his crab died. There were tears...and sobs.  He was so upset, so Nate told him we could bury it out in the backyard. Treyton really wanted to take a picture of him, so I told him we could print it off and hold it while we buried him. Well, things kind of snowballed from there and we ended up with a complete funeral service for the crab.  Treyton loved it and Nate thought it was so ridiculous, but it definitely kept Treyton's mind off of the fact that his crab is actually dead!

The "program" and the mourner.

Up close. Treyton's prayer was pretty cute, asking that the crab would be safe and have fun in Heaven.  He also wanted to sing Hermy's favorite song, "Samuel the Lamanite".

Jayci helped "pour" the crab in the hole while Nate hummed "Taps". I started laughing but Treyton got a little upset, so we held it together for the rest of the funeral.

 

 

 

RIP Hermy

Jayci's Rainbow Party

Jayci turned 5 while we were traveling home from our family reunion last week.  This was her year for a friend party, so yesterday was the big day! I spent the morning at soccer games and pictures (which started at 8:25!) and sped home to get ready for the party.  By some small miracle, Nate's attending was super fast rounding yesterday and he made it home by 1!!! I am SO glad he did, because there was no way I would have survived the 15 little kids by myself. I really dodged one, there.  Anyways, I spent most of Thurs and Fri night enlisting Nate to help me decorate and get everything as ready as could be. Jayci had been begging me for a rainbow party for the last year because she was dying to make a rainbow out of fruit...go figure. So, that is what she got! Here are some of the decorations:

Jayci and Treyton spent some time making decorations on our chalkboards, so I incorporated those, too. They were pretty excited to feel like they contributed and their work was on display.

The Entryway

An overall picture of the party area

The Mantel with the pinwheel  banner that said Jayci

Jayci's rainbow contribution

I loved how the tablecloth "canopy" turned out

We had coloring sheets and crayons for after we read "What Makes a Rainbow"

Next, we played "Pin the pot of gold on the rainbow" with reeses minis. Next up, I had different color of the rainbow necklaces for everyone. I handed them out and we went out back to play "Rainbow Tag".  There as a rainbow catcher in the middle who called out colors and if your color was called, you had to try to run from one end of the backyard to the other without being caught. The kids LOVED this and everyone wanted to take a turn in the middle.

Then we came inside so everyone could make their own rainbow skewer, complete with "clouds" (aka marshmallows) on each end.

We also made rainbow catchers to hang up at home

Next, Jayci wanted to do presents, and since it was her party, I let her do it! I love how little kids crowd around to see what she got. People were so sweet and she got some really fun gifts!

Next we did cupcakes.  I made this really great "cloud frosting" that I found on pinterest. It was SO good. Really marshmallowy and perfect! And I found a cake "misting" spray in  blue that I could spray them with. I love how the mist made them look. I'll be using that stuff again for sure.

Next up was making rainbow necklaces.

This was definitely a hit. The kids had fun making all different patterns with their froot loops and licorices.

The birthday girl!

We bought a special rainbow shirt a few months ago that she has been saving for this occasion. Jayci was so excited to wear it with her matching bow I made this week.

The two hours went by really fast and we had lots of fun. It was super crazy, but I'm glad I planned more activities than we actually needed.  There wasn't a dull moment! And Jayci told me this morning, "It was even better than I imagined it would be!", which was about the best thing she could have said. I seriously love this little girl and am so glad we had such a fun, memorable party for her! Thanks so all who helped out, who came, and who made it so great!