Layla's Done with Soccer

This was Layla's original team. It seemed like every week there were more and more kids. The one to her right is her friend, Taylor.

These other pictures are from yesterday's game. It was her last game. She did better and better each game and had a lot of fun!

I love her tongue hanging out!

Yesterday's weather was strange. It was cold and a bit windy. It would be sunny for a few minutes and then snowing! Thought we were maybe back in Wyoming! :)

What's a good soccer game without the loving support of family? This is Seryn and her friend Coby. Coby is Taylor's brother!

Popcorn on the trees

Okay, I put a picture at the top of all the trees here a couple weeks ago. I've never seen anything like this before! We call them popcorn trees and they are EVERYWHERE! Unfortunately my allergies are going CRAZY! But they look neat.

April

What a month!!! We've been so busy! And while I've been on the computer, I've been working on my book. And, three days ago, I finally submitted it!!! Whoo Hoo!!!!
But I'll start at the beginning!
We got to have Easter at our home this year. We've always been with family for Easter and it was a BIG change. But we had a nice time. We colored eggs on Friday night, the Easter Bunny came Saturday morning, and we did our Easter dinner on Sunday after conference.


Seryn has also been learning to ride her bicycle! She had great balance last year but was too short! This year, she's a little taller and doing well! She demanded Shane put the pedals back on, so he did, but not the training wheels. He's been able to let go a couple times and she can go by herself a short ways. I don't think it will be much longer now!


It's been so nice lately!! So warm! One day it was in the mid 70's! I took the girls on a bike ride, which is always fun! We did a couple last fall and I'm excited to get to do them more often!


Some of you know that I attended the LDStorymaker's Writer's Conference this weekend! It was TONS of fun!!! I learned lots and got to meet some neat people! I even met some of my favorite authors and friends! People like Joyce DiPastena, author of Loyalty's Web and Illuminations of the Heart. And Sarah M. Eden, author of Courting Miss Lancaster. And Liz Adair, author of Counting the Cost. Tristi Pinkston, Hearther Justensen, Nicole Giles, Kari Pike (mother of Aprilynn Pike), Tina Scott, Aubrey Mace, Marsha Ward, Stacy Anderson, (just to name a few.) I met TONS of other people and authors. I had so much fun! This picture is of my online writing group ANWA (well, those of us who attended the Whitney Awards Banquet last night.) ANWA (American Night Writers Association) is one of the best things I've ever done as a writer. They are so supportive and helpful and just a lot of fun!!!

(I will have more pictuers on my writing blog in a day or two!)
Since I was gone, and being in Provo, Shane was in charge of the girls. That's something our family has never experienced before. He's never been in charge for two whole days before and found it more challenging than he thought! And Lylli learned how much her mom helps her remember everything for school!
So, we're doing well and I will try harder to keep up better on my blog!

Rice Krispie Easter Eggs

If you ever need a fun, crative, food craft for Easter, this is it! I did this for Lylli's party today and it turned out great! The kids thought they were awesome! I molded rice krispie treats to look like eggs. Then I let them dip them in colored sugar and frost them with frosting. You could use candy too if you wanted! They were lots of fun. These are the left-overs I just sugared here at home! Happy Eastser! (I'll put the full recipe on the recipe blog!)

March MADness!

As most of you know, Lylli just got done with gymnastics and Layla has started soccer! (Videos take forever to load here, so look on my facebook page for videos!) She has been LOVING it!

She's the only girl on her team but has lots of fun! She does have a difficult time "stearing" the ball. (Her words, not mine!)

Last weekend, our ward had the annual pinewood derby. The cubs did their thing first and then the ward did theirs. There were quite a few cars and everyone had a great time! Shane raced and I took LOTS of pictures for our ward blog!

We all know how competitive Shane is at these sorts of things. Well, he didn't like what he did to his first car, so he bought a second one. He also went to the store and bought the stuff to make a 'practice' track. He did enough research to build it and then used it to determine where to put his weights, etc.! He also had a couple guys in the ward come over and practice too! He had a great time and ended up getting 4th place! He also won an award for the most memorable car! (He colored it with a sharpie marker!)

Shane's car is the one on the left!

The girls at the pinewood derby showing me their frosting faces!

Spring

A couple weeks ago was Casper's spring break and so my mom came down for the first half of the week and my mother-in-law came down for the second half. It was fun to see them both, but I mostly forgot my camera. But here are the girls blowing bubbles with Grandma.

Today the girls wanted to play with playdough but I couldn't for the life of me find it! So, the girls and I made some. It turned out pretty good.

It has been so nice the last several several days. In the 70's. So today, Layla asked to have a picnic outside for lunch today. So, the girls ate outside. They had a GREAT time!

Lylli's 'boy' friend

Lylli came into the kitchen one day last week with her jeans and boots on. She rubs her hands up and down the sides of her jeans and says, "I think Josh likes me." (Josh is a boy in her class.)
"Why do you think that?" I say, trying to figure out why my daughter who likes to wrestle with boys is suddenly interested in what they think of her.
"He says I look cute in these jeans and boots." She smiled.
Then she proceeded to make her lunch.
A little bit later in the car...
Lylli was talking about her friends and was talking about Josh AGAIN. Apparently they are in the advanced classes together.
"I never know what to say around him, Mom. He makes me kind of scared."
"Scared?"
"Well, not really scared..."
"Nervous and fluttery?"
"Yes."
"Is he cute?"
"Yes."
Finally, I couldn't help but ask, "Do you like Josh?"
Her shy smile is one I've NEVER seen before. "I think so," she said and giggled.

And so...it begins! Lylli has always liked boys to play with and because they're fun! Now, I think we're are looking beyond that. Shane is terrified!