BBQ for the Birthday Boy

My little man is ONE!!! We had a BBQ with some family and friends to celebrate. I like to do first birthdays kind of on the big side. I feel like its a celebration for the parents just as much as the kid. Its a "we made it through the first year" party. My very favorite part is the cake. I don't no why I just really think it is the cutest thing to watch. And since Ren eats like he has a hollow leg, I knew he would love this tradition. Courtney and I worked really hard on this cake and I think it turned out pretty darn good. (Its a basketball in case you cant tell.) A couple weeks ago I asked Macie what kind of birthday Ren should have and she said a" boy basketball one" with out hesitating, so thats what we went with. She is kind of obsessed with birthdays right now. So she was super excited to have a party for Ren. It turned out to be a really nice day for June which I was really grateful for because the only place big enough for all the people we invited was the back yard. And I was really worried about everyone sweating their brains out and having no fun. But it turned out to be really great.

Four Year old Favorite's

Q and A with Macie Hazel Wright:

What is your favorite thing to do at school?

Play and snack

Who is your favorite teacher? Miss Kindra

Why? cuz that's you mom, your my teacher too

Who is your best friend? My best friend Natalie

Why? Courtney always brings her to play at my room

What is your favorite food? Peanut Butter

What is your favorite book? the one that ren is silly

What is your favorite treat? lollipops

What do you like to do? family walks with Jojo and Grannie

Where do you like to go? Courtney's house to swim

Who is your favorite animal? lamb and scat

What do you like to wear? Ballerina swimming suits

Who do you love?

my mommy ...and i love to hug my baby brother

Where does dad work? At KB home and at the airport

What does he do there? I always watch movies there and say hi to his friends

What do you like about grandmas house?

It looks fantastic

What games do you like?

play tug of war with Jojo

Whats your favorite color? brown..... like chocolate mmmm yummy

Whats your favorite movie? Scary movies

Why? cuz they are so scary that I don't like them I just like lamb movies

This little girl sure is hilarious and I love her TONS! She is turning into such a little lady and a definite girly girl but I wouldn't have it any other way.

All Dressed Up For Easter

Macie is such a Girlie Girl right now. She refuses to wear anything but dresses. She wants to be a princess all the time so for Easter I couldn't resist making her happy.

And my Renzo is just such a cutie! I just love his little personality. I really got lucky with this little guy!

These two are getting to be such good little friends! I really love to see them play together.

Feeling Down....and Up

I have been feeling really down lately. It just seems like life is really hard right now. Everyone is going through something and in most cases more than one something. I am not sure if this is mostly due to the state of the world in general or if its just part of growing up and dealing with grown-up things. But its hard and its just been really getting to me. This is mostly because I tend to worry about things and people that I have absolutely no control over. But I cant help it. I just want everyone to be healthy, happy and have no problems. I mean is that really so much to ask? :)

So......I was really excited when my sister Breanna came up with a plan that involved both of my sisters, a weekend visit to see my best friend from high school and a session of conference. A full weekend of girl talk, giggling and reminiscing. We had tons of fun! It was great to see Aimee and meet her two little cuties! And Conference was....well...AMAZING. I really needed a lift and it provided exactly that. We were able to attend the second session on Saturday so we were there for all the sustaining. There was something truly amazing about being able to raise my arm and show my love for our prophet while he sat only feet away.

I got one more boost tonight as we were able to attend a double convert baptism in our ward. A few weeks ago we were able to have these to sweet young ladies in our home while they were taught by the Missionaries and that was truly a treat. Its been years since I have been able to sit in on a discussion and I forgot what an amazing spirit the Elders carry with them. Its been a blessing to get to know Jocelyn and Becky and be a part of their journey and new life. There was such an amazing spirit there with us tonight. It has made me excited to look for someone else to listen to the missionaries just so that we could have them in our home again.

I am grateful for this last week and the ups I have experienced. The downs are easier to handle when I know there are ups just around the corner. I am also grateful to be part of a church that has so many ups around every corner. They are always there for the taking if we just choose to partake.

Thing 1 & Thing 2

Vaughn went to Orlando on business earlier this week and he just couldn't resist bringing these back for the kids. After baths last night Macie wanted to have a photo shoot. She is really into taking pictures lately but will only let me take them if she can take some too. She cracks me up up because she totally imitates what I do. She was saying "Hold still"...."Smile, smile"...."Say cheese"...."Ren, look at Macie"...it was adorable!







Here are some of the ones she took:

Scat and Freinds

Macie was never a blankie girl. She has always wanted "someone" to sleep with but most of the time any of her dolls or animals would do. She will go through phases and love one more than the others for a week or so but never really much longer than that. That is ...until Scat the cat.

A year and a half ago Courtney gave Macie a bag full of her old Beanie Babies and from that moment on they were all her favorites and all equals. She has barely touched a baby doll since then. She definitely prefers animals and of course small, soft, cuddly ones are best. Then a few weeks ago Courtney let her choose another Beanie from the bin. (Courtney was quite the collector way back when.) Macie looked through all of them and fell in love with Scat. This Kitty has not left her side in two months except for when she goes to church and school. I would catch her rubbing noses and talking in whispers to Scat. She even started talking in a weird little voice that was supposed to be Scat. It was absolutely hilarious!

Well....last Sunday we lost Scat. We took her to Grandma's house but didn't make it home with her. For the first time in her little life Macie had a meltdown at bedtime because she didn't want to sleep without Scat. We have searched everywhere and still no Scat but Macie is handling it well. I am actually really proud of her because after the first night there were no more tears over it.

The other night Macie was at Courtneys house and she was telling Courtney about how Scat was gone so Courtney (being the awesome aunt that she is)let her pick an animal from the bin to replace Scat. She picked a cute little deer. I was a little worried about her getting to attached to the deer and having this whole ordeal over again in a few weeks.

But last night we were at the Hospital visiting Grannie and when we were about to leave, Macie did something so sweet. She said that the deer wanted to stay and cuddle with Grannie and keep her happy. So she tucked the little deer into the covers in Gannie's arm and kissed the deer and kissed Grannie good night. I was really proud of her for realizing that the deer makes her happy so maybe it would make Grannie happy too. I wonder what she thinks about this whole situation but at least she is warming up to Grannie being in the hospital bed and I know that means a lot to Kathleen.

Also, I think from now on we will have a rule about sleeping with different animals so that she doesn't get overly attached to any one animal.



P.S. Macie took these pictures of Scat a few weeks ago cuz she really did love her sooo much.

A loss for words....

I have been avoiding the whole blogging scene for the past few weeks because I am at a loss for words. And I suppose also because I was afraid of the words. I knew that so many of you would be posting beautiful thoughts about Kathleen and the truth is I didn't want to deal with the emotions. I can be strong if I have to be for a while but I have to be strict with where I let my mind go. And the hard thing about this situation is that there are so many unknowns, what ifs and wait and sees, that its hard to not let your mind wonder.

I have spent the last hour reading and crying. I am jealous of how beautifully you all are able express your thoughts and feelings. But I would like to add a few simple thoughts of my own.

When I tell people that I live with my in-laws the response is almost always the same. There is a slight tilt of the head and an "ooh" with a hint of pity in the voice. Followed by "how does that work?". And the truth is it works well. I don't think many people could have our situation and be able to say that, so i am grateful. Most people would think that living with their in-laws was a burden but I think of it as a blessing. I have been able to get to know Lo and Kathleen on a level that would not have been possible under other circumstances.

And now as we sit and worry and wait I am especially grateful for every conversation that I have been able to have with Kathleen over the last year and a half. She is truly an amazing women. I have enjoyed listening to her stories of motherhood, wife hood, and sisterhood and I have come to look to her as an example of what I would like to be one day.

I have also been very touched by what I have seen in the love that exists between Kathleen and Lo. Very often they go to bed much earlier than we do and most of the time all we hear is the buzz of the T.V. in the hours that follow. Every once in a while though HUGE bursts of laughter will come from the room. Sometimes Kathleen will come out to tell us how hilarious she thinks Lo is but most of the time we just here them both laughing. I find it to be absolutely adorable that after all these years they still are happiest just sitting and talking with each other. So many couples grow apart through the years of raising kids that it so refreshing to see a couple so in love with each other even after all the hard years. They give me hope.

I have said to Vaughn many times in the past seven years that I feel like I married up. I feel lucky and blessed everyday that I was a able to join a family as amazing as this one.



We love you Grannie!! Hope you are home with us soon!!