Happy #8 Nicholas!

Wow, I can't believe that this handsome boy is EIGHT years old.  It seems like he was born yesterday, full head of hair and all.  We love our Nick for so many reasons.  He is sweet and sensitive yet stubborn and determined.  He is a great athlete and a great friend.  He makes me laugh and smile sometimes until my stomach hurts.  He truly is wonderful kid.  He is a good student and and has a big testimony for such a little body. We are so excited that he has chosen to be baptized in a few weeks.  He has been working hard and preparing himself for the big day.  It is crazy to think we are going through the baptism process with another child.  Life really does speed along and we hope that Nick knows how much we love watching him grow.  The birthday this year was a hit!  It started with a friend party at the bowling alley complete with laser tag, arcades, bowling, pizza, cake and presents.  He has lots of friends in the neighborhood and this was the perfect place to keep 10 rowdy boys entertained!  His actual birthday was celebrated with dinner at the Pizza Pie Cafe with Grandma & Grandpa Holland.  I think it was a great few days for him...until next year.... Happy #8 Nick!

What Mom's Do...

I would give anything to just drive to the airport and get on a plane right now. Tyler travels for work on occasion and for him that requires him packing a suitcase, driving to the airport, and boarding the plane.  For me it requires accomplishing the entire list below...

Though I am extremely grateful to have the opportunity to spend time away with people I love, it requires doing a lot for the people that I love and am leaving at home.  I have checked a few things off this list today and will continue to plug away at it until take off in a few days.  Until then, I am sweating like crazy (no joke) as I try and leave the house in a semi organized fashion with laundry done and the pantry and fridge stocked.  I guess that is what mom's do!   

You Are What You Eat?

I guess we are all YOGURT at our house.  Didn't realize how addicted we are until I cleaned out my fridge this morning.  Yogurt is kind of a staple food at our house these days.  My picky eaters will eat it and I figure it is better then some other things I could feed them, right?  

Austin's First Day!

Finally!  The fact that Austin's pre-school started 2 whole weeks after the rest of the kids was torture for all of us.  With Nick gone all day, Austin was completely lost which made my life very difficult.  Needless to say, the first day could not come fast enough for ALL of us.  He loved pre-school last year and was excited to see Mrs. Hansen on the first day with and added bonus of his best friend, Kamri, who joined in the fun with him this year!  I love the schedule and the learning that school brings.  He looks forward to the fun things they do each day and always comes home excited.  We have been lucky to have great pre-school teacher's for all of our kids and I am quickly learning that they really do make a difference! 

Date with Kylee!

In an attempt to gain "cool mom" status I joined a number of other cool mom's in the neighborhood and purchased tickets for Kylee and I to see Salena Gomez in concert.  As you can see from her birthday post, she was thrilled!  The much anticipated day came and the girls met early to primp, glitter themselves, and make posters professing their love for the singer.  I laughed all day as the excitement unfolded.  Kylee danced her little heart out and sang the words to every song.  She smiled through the whole concert which made the night 100% worth it.  I love spending time with my Kylee.  She is growing up so fast and is growing into such a beautiful and independent girl.  The night was loud but priceless!  I enjoyed it so much that I might even grant her next request for concert tickets....we will see.

Pinewood Derby...

We finally had our first taste of what the pinewood derby is all about.  What I concluded was making a car is stressful!  Making the "perfect" car was the talk of the neighborhood for weeks.  Nick was stressed, I was stressed, and Tyler was stressed.  We ventured out to the local hobby shop where we had heard they sold pre-cut cars.  If you know us well you know that we don't own a saw and even if we did it would likely be a disasters to use it.  So, the pre-cut car was purchased and Nick was thrilled....until....dad came home.  Tyler was certain that we had purchased a car that was too narrow and would surely loose so back to the hobby shop HE went with Nick to purchase a "winner".  We painted it blue as a tribute to the Aggies, but to our surprise, Nick requested he paint BYU on his car given the Aggies loss the night in football the night before.  Ouch.  That hurt his poor dad's feelings but after all, it is supposed to be NICK's car, right?  So blue and BYU it was.  His car did not win but it did not loose either...he finished in the middle of the pack.  Phew.  I am pretty sure they should have pinewood derby for grown men.  There is no way the winning cars were actually made by 8-11 year old boys but it was a fun adventure and we have learned a few tricks to make our car a winner next year!