Ten Years of Bliss, Baby!!

Yes, we celebrated our 10 year anniversary on August 19th and boy what a wonderful 10 years it has been! We normally don't do a lot for our anniversary, maybe go out for dinner or something. But this year we decided to really celebrate. So in a few short weeks we will be going on our first ever cruise! We are excited that 4 other fabulous couples that are friends of ours are coming too! We have been planning it for a long time and I can't believe it's already here.
We also decided it was time to get a new bedroom set. Boyd promised me this when I was sick and bed ridden for all those months. My prison was our bedroom and I really hated being in there because of all of the negative memories. Not so good, considering you spend a good deal of time in there. But what pushed him over the edge was having trouble sleeping in our taco mattress and having back pain. I think it was a sign from heaven that it was time to upgrade to a king size bed. With four children that like to crawl into bed with us it was a must, right? We were able to get a really good deal from Down East Outfitters on a fabulous bedroom set from Pottery Barn and can I just say that I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!! It's crazy how much I love it. Boyd and I both love to spend time in there reading, talking, escaping from the children...it's fantastic. When we went to pick it up Emma was concerned because she said she really enjoyed cuddling in our old bed. But when she came in the next day to cuddle, she was so happy, she told me it was the "best, most wonderful, most comfortable bed she had ever seen." Those last few weeks of summer were so fun. The kids would bring books in and we would read stories, tickle and laugh! Who knew a bedroom set could be so much fun? Definitely worth the wait, thanks babe!
So, with these two huge, selfish purchases we agreed that we were set for anniversary gifts for the next 10 years so imagine my surprise to get a beautiful bouquet of flowers delivered with a card that read "10 years of bliss, baby!" I immediately called to tell him he was in big trouble and that he was the best husband ever, in almost that order.
We also got to have two date nights in a row, which is a miracle in and of itself. Our nice neighbors invited us to see Ryan Shupe and the Rubberband with them and it was so much fun! And then we were able to go to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner the next night (and do a little school shopping as well)!
But the best gift of all was the heartfelt letter from my sweetheart that I ask for every year and never get. It was mildly cheesy, which I can handle. Thank you babe-I love you!

Jonah took our picture right before we left for Ryan Shupe! He's really quite good.

"The" flowers

My little piece of heaven on earth! I have my own bedside table and everything!

The 1st Day of school!!!!!

Emma is a big 2nd grader now and she has several friends from the neighborhood in her class. On the way to school I asked if she was a little nervous and she told me "No, Dad gave me a blessing and so I feel just great!" It made me realize how much she is growing up and what a sweet girl she really is. I was really sad when I got home, which is really unlike me. I even shed a few tears for my sweetheart because selfishly, I will really miss having her home with me. Poor Boyd didn't quite know what to say, I think he was in shock because I have been so excited for school to start. Oh well, I guess you don't know what you got 'til it's gone!!


Jonah started Kindergarten and he has been telling me nonstop "Thank you Jonah go to school Mom, thank you!" He is in afternoon Kindergarten and we were surprised when they tested him that he tested out of the all day kindergarten program they have at our school. I was listening from the hallway when his teacher tested him the first week of school and again I was struck (meaning, I was crying like a baby) at how far he has come in 4 months. No English. Practically no social boundaries. Totally different country and culture. And yet he was answering most of her questions-at least the ones he understood, correctly. Although he is not where I want him to be as far a readiness for school, when I think of how far he has come is such a short time it is a miracle. We were not planning on sending him to Kindergarten this year but now I am sure we made the right decision. I'll post later about his "first day" without me there later because I don't want to diminish how well he is doing now. What a story.

Hudson started preschool with Miss Evelyn the week after Emma and Jonah and he was more than ready for his turn! He knew exactly where he wanted his picture taken and was very excited to see his friends. He also informed me when I went to walk him in that next time he would like to walk himself, which I agreed to. His preschool is three days a week and he goes in the afternoon when Jonah is gone which he enjoys. They really have fun playing together in the morning and are getting along so well. It's crazy to think my buddy is 4 1/2 and will be going to Kindergarten next year. Time is flying by and I'm trying to enjoy the small moments while they last, even if sometimes I feel like our life is a crazy one!

Super Face Painting!

My Mom and Mel were helping me out the other day while I went to Activity Days and I came home to...wild animals! Mel had bought a new book on face painting for our upcoming school carnival where she volunteered her talents and she wanted to try them out a little. The kids were thrilled! I have no artistic ability whatsoever so I guess she got the entire families share of talent in the art dept.

I'm TRYING not to go crazy!

Well, as you can tell from my lack of blogging life has been crazy. Summer will do that to you-but so will adding two children at once. I pretty much spend my days playing referee, chef, maid, counselor and occasionally fun mom! It's not really anything major going on, but lots of little things all day long. Sometimes I think I'm going to go crazy if one more person tattles. Then it happens and somehow I manage to stay somewhat sane. So we've started having time outs for tattling. I know my kids are just being normal kids so it's hard to fault them for that but sometimes I just need them to be exceptionally obedient kids, is that asking too much?
I do have lots of darling pictures and stories from the past two months and I'm sure once school starts we will settle into a new routine (that hopefully involves a little more down time for me) and I will have more time for this blogging thing. Until then, some prayers for my sanity would be helpful.

Gracie's first haircut-courtesy of aunt Mel!

Well, our little Gracie is now two and I think a little overdue for a haircut, but I just wasn't quite ready. But now that it's summer and my kids enjoy throwing sand in each other's hair I was ready to simplify my life. So, on June 24th Gracie had her first "official" hair cut. Of course we went to the best stylist on the planet, none other than Aunt Mel at Phazes.
In trying to figure out how I was going to accomplish two haircuts with three other small children in her salon was a little daunting. Until my Mom called and offered to watch the kids-what a lifesaver! Emma was first, she was overdue as well and then Gracie just hopped right up like nothing and was so sweet. She'll do almost anything for her Aunt Mel. As you can see from some of the pictures, she was quite squirmy (which I'm sure had nothing to do with Mom having the camera in her face!) Overall, I think she did great and she thinks she's quite hot stuff!!! Emma of course said it was not "exactly" like Mom's but still likes it! I love my girls! Thanks Mel and Mom for a memorable girls morning!

Lyman

Aunt Valerie invited our family to join them for their annual Lake Lyman camping trip in the Uintahs. It was so fun to be with my cousins and their families and the kids sure had a ball!

We had quite an adventure getting up there. Everyone that wanted to caravan met at Val's at 10 am, but true to Davis tradition we left around 11:30. It usually takes about 2 1/2 hours but due to about 6 ft. of snow about 5 miles from Lyman, we had to turn around and go up the other side of the mountain. So all in all, we ended up being in the car for about 7 hours. This might seem like a nightmare with 5 small children but the kids just watched movies and Sammy was his usual easy going self!

The kids enjoyed a variety of activities which included: canoing with Dad on Saturday and Monday (no fishing this trip because we ran out of room in the van-go figure), lesson by Aunt Val on the creation complete with a picnic and hike around the lake (for those who could make it-we opted out), dress ups, bubbles, shooting, games, coloring, a treasure hunt around camp, smores, getting really dirty and goofing off!

Because there was over 30 of us we were able to share the work load of meal preparation and clean up. This worked out really good for us because we were in charge of the dutch oven dinner on Monday night but the trip was cut short by Aunt Val falling and hurting her ankle. She's one tough cookie and was trying so hard to be brave, it takes a lot to get her to stop and she was completely unable to walk. Instead of leaving right after dinner or on Tues. morning, everyone got to work and we had the lodge and cabins clean in a few hours. We felt quite guilty about dinner because that was our ONE assignment, oh well, what can you do?

It was so great to be able to catch up with my cousins, play games and just enjoy nature. My favorite part about camping would have to be the camp fire. There's something so soothing about a fire, ahhh!

One other sad thing about our trip is that my parents and Jace were planning on joining us. Unfortunately, they ended up turning around right before they were there because they thought they had taken a wrong turn. They drove around for hours and ended up staying at another campground. Not to mention my Mom hitting a rock, causing transmission fluid to leak everywhere! We're glad they made it home safe but are sorry they missed all the fun-maybe next year!

I took a few hundred pictures because I'm kind of a spaz! It pretty much takes me that many shots to get a handful I really like. Here are a few of my favorites!

"The Lodge" is so large it could easily accommodate all of us! We decided to stay in the lodge this year instead of one of the small cabins because we wanted to be able to stay up and play games and not worry about the kids. It worked out really good because both Boyd and I could be part of the fun! And the kids thought it was great!

This was one of the friendlier rounds of Pinnacle. Poor Preston and Libby. When Andrew stepped in the canoe it tipped and water poured in!! They were such good sports though, no tears or anything. There really is a trick in getting in, you had better be in the middle.

Conner, Libby, Broden, Shaylee and Emma. What a cute bunch!

Aunt Val is the bomb! She did such a great job organizing the lesson, picnic, nature hike, and scavenger hunt. That is no easy task with that many young children.

Emma loved having girl cousins to play dress up with! They pranced around all day playing house and princess. Notice the Caden and Preston having a light saber duel in the background.

I think they are a little excited about going canoing. Hip-hip Hooray!

Isn't that gorgeous????

We were PACKED in so tight! Good thing Dad is a safe driver.

Our little explorer. Emma was so excited about the "nature hike". She collected all kinds of flowers, rocks, pine cones and leaves.

During the scavenger hunt, little Declan stepped right off the dock! Good think his aunt Lauren was there to quickly pull him out. He was not a happy camper, but I couldn't resist taking his picture!

We are so blessed to have such a happy easy going baby! Sammy was so content to hang out with everyone. With all the commotion going on, he still managed to sleep through it all! He loved all the extra attention he got, especially from Lindsey!

The treasure! Val had all the kids line up and go in order from youngest to oldest. I was impressed with how patient the kids were, what a great bunch!

After her fall, Val was promptly laid on one of the picnic tables and her boys took care of her. Good think she packed ice packs and Ibprofin-those were a lifesaver! Val was determined to make sure we cleaned good enough so her sons had to carry her around so she could check, what a nut!

Part of the treasure hunt included a trip out in the canoes. That was quite a site!

The Best Dad's EVER!!!!!!!!

I know Father's Day was nearly a month ago-but I wanted to post about our fabulous Dads!
We are so blessed to have such a wonderful Dad! He is so much fun and is always the life of the party. The kids always look forward to when Dad gets home from work and are always fighting for his attention. He is so thoughtful and loves to bring home "prizes" for his admirers. One of the kids favorite things is when Dad sings them "their" song at night. I am convinced he is my better half and I would be so boring without him in my life. We love you so much!!!

Boyd told me he wanted a scrapbook for Father's Day which was basically his way of letting me buy a digital scrapbooking program because that's basically the only way I think I'll get it done-isn't he great? I bought one a few weeks before Father's Day and spent some time figuring it out and even made several pages the week Boyd was out of town. However,I didn't realize until Saturday that Father's Day was THAT Sunday and not the following week. Ya, I'm a little out of it. Before you judge me remember-I just went from 3 to 5 kids. So, I was just going to bag it but with some encouragement from my cousins wife Lauren and some darling Basic Grey paper and chipboard she generously gave me I started a scrapbook at 10:00 PM. I stayed up until 2 AM making it-it's been a long time since I've really scrapbooked. But I think it turned out pretty good. I mean really, the best Dad in the world needs something to be remembered on Father's Day!!!

Grandpa Davis is always the center of attention whenever he visits. The kids pretty much attack him. He is always so much fun and even with his bad back he is always wrestling with the kids and playing with them. I guess he'll never learn. Anyways, I am so blessed to have such a kind and generous Dad. He always has such great advice and is so fun to be around. Love you Daddy!
We are so blessed to live within 15 minutes of both sets of grandparents. The kids love it when Papa comes to babysit and play. I hope my kids appreciate all their grandparents do for them. Those relationships are so important. Love you Papa! We love all the "Dads" in our life!!!