BUNCO!

I thought I would post a picture of the table setting from the Bunco party I hosted a few weeks ago. I centered everything around pumpkins including the food and prizes. Thanks to my friend Nicole, the glittered pumpkins for centerpieces were a huge hit. I think all twelve of us had a good time, and as far as I know, I am the only one that got sick (a flu bug...not really from the food)!

Happy Halloween!

I realize that I am 6 weeks after the fact, but with some serious nagging (thank you Laura), I am back! Here are some snapshots of the kids at Halloween. Shelby...fairy, Libby...princess, Cooper...knight, and Cache...vampire! We had a fun day with school parties, then off to our ward trunk-or-treat, and finished with a few homes of family members and friends. What a spooktacular night!

It's Always Fun When Grandma Comes!

We had so much fun with Grandma here over the weekend! It was nice to have her stay longer than usual! We were able to enjoy each other more and not feel so rushed to squeeze everything in. Here are some highlights of her visit...

We all had lunch at the school with Cache and Cooper! The boys thought it was a very special treat!

Shelby painted Grandma's toenails and fingernails SEVERAL times! "You just can't have too much polish!" said Shelby.

We played with bags of raked leaves on the trampoline. Grandma and I even joined in! We felt like kids again!

Eight is GREAT!

Cache celebrated his 8th birthday on October 7th! He had a great day and there was a special feeling in our home knowing what this birthday meant. Cache is very anxious to be baptized. He had his interview with the bishop tonight and in his words, he only got one question wrong...I think he passed!! He got new scriptures as one of his gifts and has been reading them like crazy. He has even mentioned to me on several occastions that he has felt that special feeling when he reads. What a GREAT kid!

California Here We Came

Like not showering today until my cleaning was done ( I have showered by the way...), I'm not going to bed until I've done some blogging! I am taking control of my life! It seems like I have been pulled in a hundred different directions lately. Don't get me wrong, I don't think things are going to slow down at all, I am just going to try to simplify and get caught up on everything I have wanted to do!

With that said, here we go...


We had a blast in California. We played every second our eyes were open and the kids had so much fun. It was so nice to be away as a family for over a week. We played at Disneyland, California Adventure, Sea World, and Legoland. It was so fun to go with cousins too! What great memories! Here are some highlights...


One Happy Family! I'm hoping all our dreams come true like they said they would!

We all got to eat lunch with the princesses. Each princess came to our table, signed autographs, and took pictures. Here is Shelby with one of her favorites...Cinderella!

We tricked Tony into riding this one. He said he enjoyed it when it was all done!

Cache & Cooper enjoyed every ride they went on and I think we might have rode every ride!

We even went on the giant ferris wheel pictured here (well, the kids and I did anyway, Tony doesn't do well with heights.)

We ate like kings and queens the entire trip! One of the kids favorite places was Rain Forest Cafe. They loved their rainbow slushes that Daddy splurged to get for them!

Our friends let us borrow their 2007 Ford Expedition for the trip. It was dreamy! Complete with navigation, DVD, and a sunroof which Libby played peek-a-boo with.

First Day of Preschool

Shelby had her first day of preschool! What a big girl! She absolutely loved every minute of it. She loves being with her friends Colton, Drew, Brenley, and Elsie. Her favorite part is coloring and singing time. She is going to have a great year!

Birthday Cake

We decided to do a birthday cake for Libby on Sunday when more family members could be there. She did a great job blowing out the candles and knew exactly what the money was all about from Grandpa and Grandma Traveller. She kept trying to put it in the pockets of her dress! After a long day of church with no nap, she actually wasn't even interested in trying some cake! (She has since had some.) It's official...our little Libby is two!

Grandpa Comes to Visit

Grandpa Hobbs came to visit us for Labor Day weekend. We had a lot of fun with him! After spending Saturday morning cleaning up our Burley Houses, we found a fun spot to ride 4-wheelers near one of Tony's pits. Everyone got a chance to ride and Shelby even learned to drive by herself. Monday we took a bike ride along the canyon trail before Grandpa had to head home. We'll have to take all our visitors there. It is beautiful!

Libby Turns 2!

Happy, Happy Birthday!

I can hardly believe our baby girl turned two today! I think she definitely understood that today was her special day. She had fun opening presents and got lots of great clothes, a princess tent for her and Shelby to play in, and her own baby car seat and accessories! We plan on having cake and ice cream on Sunday with Grandpa Hobbs and the Traveller clan. The smile you see was a permanent part of her face today. What would our lives be like without Libby!?! Thank goodness for surprises!

Back to School

Cache is the the 2nd Grade with Mrs. Beck as his teacher!

Cooper is in the 1st Grade with Mrs. Freeman as his teacher.

It was back to school time for us this past Monday. The boys were very excited to start learning again as well as see their friends. I shared in their enthusiasm as I realized we would have a little structure again and I might be able to get caught up on a few things! They both got great teachers and even have good friends in their classes. Shelby and Libby have enjoyed having Mommy all to themselves, but also get excited when it's time to pick up the boys! I can't believe I have two in school all day! I do find that I miss them....just a little!

Lake Tahoe Weekend

Well, I returned from beautiful Lake Tahoe! The race was challenging, the company very entertaining, the scenery beautiful, and I had a blast! Things went well at home too. Grandma Hobbs came to visit and cared for everyone while I was gone. From the sounds of things, I think the kids had as much fun as I did. The weather warmed up enough at home that the girls were able to play in the sun and the boys got a chance to go on their 4-wheelers.

Our Lucky Four

In trying to set this up, I realized how few photos I've taken recently. I guess I need to do better! The most recent photos I have of the kids are from March. They are all sporting their St. Patty's Day shirts! Every time I look at these pictures, I'm reminded how LUCKY Tony and I really are to have them!