Happy Birthday Drew!

So today was such a busy day and we didn't even get to sit down to do presents and cake until 8:30 this evening. But Drew had a great day anyways. He was able to bring donuts to preschool and even got to have soccer practice, which is one of his favorite things. He also got to pick where to go for his birthday dinner which was Carls Jr.

He asked us for a lemon cake with lemon frosting and lemonheads on it. He even had lemonade for dinner. Do you think it's safe to say he likes lemons?

He was excited to get his first bike and can't wait to take it outside in the morning. This was exactly the bike he wanted because it had rockets on it.

Happy 5th Birthday Andrew. We love you!!!

Her first trophy

Madilyn had another piano recital tonight. She loves to play the piano and has learned so much. I think we get more nervous for her than she does. We know that if she doesn't play her songs perfectly, that she will be disappointed in herself and that is hard to watch no matter how encouraging we are. She did a great job though and we are always so proud of her. Madilyn has been particularly looking forward to this recital because she earned her first trophy ever for completing a series of books. She is now asleep with the trophy by her side. So sweet!!

This is her piano teacher Chris Richter. He is such a wonderful teacher!! Doesn't Madilyn look tiny next to him!!

On a totally different subject, Madilyn was fitted today for an fm system for her hearing aides. When she goes back on track, her teacher will wear a microphone all day long that will transmit the teachers voice directly into her hearing aide through radio frequency. It will be so much easier for Madilyn at school as she will hear her teachers voice above all other sounds. I love technology!!

Drew's suprise party

Grandma Sparks threw Drew a surprise birthday party while we were in California. She went all out by doing games for all the cousins to play and gave each kid tickets to put in their pockets and then redeem for a fun prize later. We had Drew's favorite foods, hot dogs and chips and just had a really great time with cousins and family. He even had a Spiderman pinata and a cool soccer cake and to top off the night, he got a new shiny and fast scooter. I still need to get pictures from my sister in law but here are a few that were on my camera.
Ethan helped himself to some icing before the party started. He's such a sneak. He wasn't even wearing any of the evidence. Thanks again Grandma, it was fun to celebrate Drew's birthday with family! You rock!!

Making faces!!!

While Grandma was getting ready for Drew's party, Chris and I took Madilyn and Drew up to Oak Glen. Drew wasn't really all that interested at being in Oak Glen so we actually spent very little time there. You can't go to Oak Glen though and not get a caramel apple so of course we had to get one of those. Well then we just got creative in taking up time. How about making faces at the camera!!!

Newport Beach!!

We had a great time at the beach when we took the kids on Tuesday and so we decided to go back again on Thursday. Madilyn's top priority was finding shells. She was so determined to find a whole sand dollar and on the last day, we found a whole one for her. She was thrilled!!

Ethan loved playing in the sand and having freedom to play around. He did a few face plants in the sand and he didn't even care.

Drew is our beach guy and fit right in with the beach scene. He loved the water and pushed Chris to go further and further. We were lucky to see dolphins out in the ocean jumping out of the water and having a good time. We were able to get out pretty far in the water because of a sand bar that had built up. Literally not more than 50 yards away, we watched dolphins surfing in the waves. I lived in Cali for 25 years and never had seen them that close before.

All you beach goers...what's the one thing you don't want to do? Feed the seagulls! Do not feed the seagulls! Ethan on the other hand thought it was fun to have the seagulls and pigeons around and fed them cookie the second day. The first day we were out in the water and a bird took off with some cookies and another took off with a diaper. Before you get too grossed out, it was a clean one. It was kinda gross to have so many dirty birds around but at the same time it was funny. Ethan enjoyed it.

We also went to Balboa pier and had lunch at Ruby's. As Madilyn puts it "some Mexican guy" caught a starfish while we were watching from inside. It was the biggest starfish I've ever seen, not that I've seen many. Just another fun beach experience.

I wish I could be a California girl...again

This was probably the first trip back to California where I really felt like I was missing my home. When we first moved here to Utah, sorry to those who have always lived here, but I hated it. I went home every chance I got. Those visits got to be fewer and farther in between and I got used to Utah. I would even go as far as to say that I liked living here. But after visiting this last time....I miss California, which I still consider to be home. Could a move be in the future for us? Eventually, I would like to move back, but the time is not now. Hopefully sooner than later! Madilyn and I were talking and she was excited I wanted to move back. She also threw in that she knew we'd be moving back to California because mom always gets what she wants. I just had to laugh!!!

The Wedding

So I don't have many pictures of the wedding but thought I'd make a post of a few of them now and then some more when I get more pictures. I believe girls started getting ready around 10:30 and the wedding didn't start until 6 and even then it felt rushed towards the end. It was a busy day. Madilyn was the flower girl and loved every second of it. She was all ready to go and then decided she was hungry. Room service to the rescue. Not exactly a gourmet meal for her first room service...more like a hot dog and french fries but it hit the spot, wasn't messy, and kept her content until dinner.

Madilyn looked so precious and ate up the fact that people kept telling her how beautiful and sweet she was.

Michelle was a beautiful bride and remained pretty calm throughout the day. We really like Brad and know that they will be so happy together.
I'll post more pictures on another post. There are stories to tell.:)

My little sisters wedding

My little sister Michelle got married on Sept. 20th at the Marriott in Marina Del Rey in Southern California. It was the most beautiful wedding and so much fun. It was the first time in many years that all my brothers and sisters and I were together. Her rehearsal dinner was at a restaurant across the street. Michelle looked so cute and you couldn't even tell how nervous she was for the day to come.

Drew was tired but was such a trooper. He just finally laid across 2 chairs and fell asleep.

I love my little sisters!

I can hardly believe that Summer is over!

Where has the Summer gone? You may have particularly been wondering that as my last post was sometime in July, I think. We have been busy with 2 kids on soccer teams (one of which Chris coaches), riding scooters at classic fun center a few times a week, doing the bounce house and the jungle, splash parks, going to the pool, playing with friends and so many other fun things. Madilyn is back in school but off track already and Drew started preschool. We have very busy days at the Sparks house. That's a wrap up of our summer though. The months have flown by and I am so not looking forward to winter.

Cascade Springs

We are finding all kinds of fun things to do this summer. It is the first time in a long time that we don't have to take a stroller or carry a kid in our arms and we are enjoying that. This morning we went to Cascade Springs just outside of Midway at the end of the Alpine Loop. It was so beautiful!!!

So many of the wildflowers were in bloom.

The kids love to hike and follow the trails ahead of us.
I thought what a great picture spot but of course Drew refused to smile.
Ethan's a homie! I kept fixing his hat to be in center but I guess hanging off to the side is the way he liked it. I'm not sure what they are doing here but it looks like Ethan is about to cause some trouble.

Slipping and sliding

We pulled out the slip n slide from the garage and the kids entertained themselves several times this last week playing on it in the afternoons.

Ethan didn't get to play with it the first few times because Madilyn and Drew played while he was asleep. He thought it was great!
And when he was thirsty, he drank! Oh and I do feed him even though his ribs are plainly in sight.

Ice cream with Gramme Sparks....kinda

So the kids got an ice cream card in the mail from their gram-me Sparks who lives in California. Beth is really creative and good at crafty things. She made this card. Isn't it cute!! The note inside said she wished she could take the kids out for ice cream and had money inside to treat them to something yummy. The kids were excited to go and get their treat and so we went this afternoon.

THANKS GRAM-ME!!!!

Madilyn's ice cream was strawberry mixed with gummi bears. Drew's was Raspberry with bubble gum or gubble bum to Ethan, and Ethan's was strawberry with rainbow sprinkles. It was definately a sweet treat!!!!

Enjoying the outdoors

For years I have been saying that we need an El Pollo Loco here in Utah and guess what!!! We got one!!! I heard one had opened in Lehi and we made the trip down to get some yummy food. May I also add that after Chris and I got married and weren't sure where to go next, we went to El Pollo Loco. So there's some sentiment there, I guess. Anyways, we went through the drive through and went up American Fork canyon for a picnic and some hiking. We are so blessed to have such beauty around us.

Isn't he the cutest thing? K so the kids bought some hubba bubba bubble gum at the store the other day and Ethan told them he wanted some gubble bum. "I want gubble bum! I want gubble bum"! So guggle bum it is. I Just thought that was so stinkin cute, I had to share.
My three cuties! My photogenic Madilyn
K so there's a story here. The water here is actually quite fast flowing but it is very shallow and fun to walk across the rocks. The water was also really cold and the kids weren't so sure they wanted to go in. I know I didn't, but I encouraged them. Madilyn went out a good ways and lost one of her flip flops. It was going high speed down into the resevoir and me with my quick reactions ran towards the flip flop trying to retrieve it before it was gone forever. As I reached down to get it, I hoped that I wouldn't be bending down in vain to not be able to grab it, especially since there were several people watching. Thank goodness, I was successful. Not so much because I'd be heartbroken about losing her shoe, but because I didn't want to look like a bigger dork than I already felt.

Happy 4th of July!!!

Happy 4th of July everyone! Hope you had a great day! We went to our ward breakfast at our stake center in the morning and then went to a Bee's Baseball game in the evening. We wondered how much we would be enjoying ourselves when we pulled up to the stadium and our thermometer read 102 degrees. It did eventually cool and and we had a great time!
We bought general admission tickets and sat on the grass with hundreds of other families. It was a busy night at the ballpark. They gave the kids these wackie thingies that make a lot of noise when you hit them together. I'm sure there is a a technical term for them but I don't know it. Well I thought "how fun" when we first blew them up but my opinion changed when I heard the noise that came from them. The kids played sword fight, baseball, and ninja with their "bats and swords". If one thing positive was to be said about them is that it kept them busy and the kids loved them.
Madilyn spent some her time just chillin' out on the blanket. Ethan on the other hand was a total riot! He got so excited when the crowd cheered and well sometimes, even when they didn't. He'd grunt YEAH! AWESOME! GO!! and he'd throw out his little arm with his hand in a fist. He also was jumping around everywhere cheering on his team. It was so fun to watch him and he kept our blanket neighbors laughing.
There was a firework show at the end of the night and again Ethan was hilarious. He saw a few fireworks in the area before our show started and he got so excited. He was yelling FIREWORKS! and he'd grab my attention by poking me and smiling and yelling FIREWORKS! When the show started, he was just on cloud nine, excited at each blast. It was great. Our night of fun wore the kids out and this is a picture of them on the way home from Salt Lake. Ethan dragged that bag of popcorn all the way out of the stadium and to the car. He woke up once when the bag slipped from his hands. He cried for me to pick it up and after I handed it to him, he fell back asleep. So sweet!

Aunt Michelle came for a visit!!

I love my little sister Michelle! She came out to visit us last weekend and we had a total blast with her. She is getting ready to be married in September to her fiance Brad who she loves and adores and who I harass for taking my sister back to her home in Hermosa Beach. I keep suggesting that after they get married, they move to Utah but I don't think it's working (for some reason). The kids had a blast with Michelle. They spent a lot of quality time with her. We went swimming, flew kites, blew bubbles, made art projects, did lunch, had a movie night, and went shopping. It was a busy several days and we sent her home with a gift. Ethan's cold. Sorry Michelle! We love you and can't wait to see you in September!

So I havn't been that great at remembering to bring out my camera. These pictures of them flying kites are the only pictures I took the whole time she was here. I promise to get better!

No longer a 2nd Grader!

Madilyn finished up school last week and because we are on year round schedule, she starts the 3rd grade in just a few weeks. It's CRAZY, I know. Every year I pick her up on the last day of school knowing that she is going to be SO sad to say goodbye to her teacher. Mrs. Ostler has been wonderful and it is sad that they have to say goodbye to someone they love when they have spent so much of the last year with them. I also have to add, only because I'm a proud mom who thinks her kid is pretty great;), that she had a perfect report card.

The kids went to the Red Butte Gardens for a field trip the week before school got out. Madilyn's allergies were horrible and her eyes were killing her. We are still waiting for her appt with the allergist.

Dad's Fishing Trip

Dad went on his yearly fly fishing trip to the Green River with the guys this past weekend. He had a great time, despite some nastly weather the first day of the trip, and very high flows out of the Flaming Gorge Dam. The flows actually went from 800 cfs to 4200 cfs and stayed at 4200 cfs throughout the trip.....that's a lot. However, once the boys found out what the fish were keyed in on, the fish started to get caught. The guys always do a fun contest to keep the fishing a little interesting ( although fishing the Green is always a great experience). This year they had a prize going to the first to catch a fish on a nymph, streamer and dry fly. Who would have thought the dry fly would be the fly to get. Four of the five guys went into the last day tied and wouldn't you know it, nobody got the last fly. Chris couldn't get that dry fly on. He caught a brute on a Rainbow imitation Streamer pattern, and all others where on the classic size 20 and smaller BWO Barr's emerger. Even though the Cicadas were out in force. Had to be the high flows out of the dam. All in all, it was a fantastic trip, with lots of laughs, amazing views, and probably the best fishing in Utah.

PS.....I had to hijack my wifes blog to post this trip, as I highly doubt I was going to get a featured post with pictures of Fish. Heather will probably catch this post tonight and either laugh, smack me....or just delete it. If you see this blog before it's gone, please feel free to send encouragements for approval on another trip for Dad next year.....

PSS...I have the best wife in the world for letting me go on a 4 day fishing tip, leaving her at home with 3 kids, one of which you've most certainly seen in previous posts is...not such a good boy all the time.

Do you recognize any of these people?

So a few weeks ago I got together with my friend Nancy who I haven't seen or talked to in about 10 years. We got in contact again thanks to blogging. It was great to see her and catch up on life. Here is a picture of us back in the day. Nancy is on the bottom right. Can you figure out the people with the red arrows pointing to them?This was actually a picture from the trip to Utah where I first got to know Chris about 11 years ago. Yikes!!!!

This is a picture of me, Tanya, and Nancy. The guys framed this for us as a gift. We just realized that Nancy and I both named our first boys Andrew and Tanya(middle) named her first son Andy after her husbands best friend Andrew. Isn't that a crazy coincidence!This is us now. Nancy has two cute boys Andrew and Josh and her husband just graduated from med school. She is incredibly busy with her boys and her church activities. I always admired Nancy for a few reasons. She is incredibly smart (I wasn't suprised she married a smart guy) and strong in her faith. I remember her being a leader, especially in her family and I just really remember her being so kind and easy to like.
So a trip to Thanksgiving Pointe or anywhere else for that matter wouldn't be complete unless Ethan found something to get into. What's on his face you ask? It's MUD! He ran through a puddle and did it over and over again until he finally fell in it. Boys will be boys we kept saying. After awhile he was covered head to toe in mud. I think his cute little face says "take that moma, and you thought you could stop me"!
It was great to see you Nancy and we'll have to get together soon!!