Move Over Yankee Doodle!

God Bless America!

I'm pretty sure Jace 'showed up' Yankee Doodle today at his Kindergarten Patriotic Program. He makes me laugh!

Here's a quote from Easton, "Mom, it's too bad Jace can't whistle..."

Jace and Garet...being goofy. Love the hats! Good job guys!

How LUCKY am I??

It is quite possible that I feel like the luckiest person alive today! I was the 1st person to comment on Danelle's "Pay it Forward" blog post! SCREAM!! Danelle is my awesome artist friend from my childhood. Danelle, THANK YOU!!! I LOVE my gift!! Seriously I think my family might have thought I'd lost my mind when I saw this! I don't know how you knew how to create the PERFECT gift but you did. I LoVe bLuE and of course books...and the hair is amazing!! I love all of the little personal touches you added...like the "A" on the book.

The pictures don't really do it justice...I probably should have removed it from the glass but I didn't want to risk messing it up at all. (if any of you want to see it I'd be happy to show it to you in person)

This collage was made entirely out of product boxes:

Hair and Tree: Cocoa Pebbles

Face: Golden Grahams

Arms and Feet: Jello Vanilla Pudding

Pants: Popsecret Popcorn

Shirt, Book, Headband: Strawberry Crush Soda

Isn't she amazing!? Thank you thank you thank you again! Love you Danelle!

Daylight Savings....GRRRRR

Okay am I the only one out there ready to move to Arizona? Seriously! I HATE Daylight Savings! What is the point? More hours of daylight...sure. But what about:

~Kids who can't go to sleep at night

~Kids who can't wake up in the morning

~Bags under my eyes

~Dinner at a ridiculous hour because you're not hungry at the regular time

~6th Graders who fall asleep on their desks

I could go on all day. So...if it weren't for the 4 seasons in Arizona being: kind of hot, somewhat hot, sweltering hot, and melting the soles of your shoes hot.....I would be packing my U-haul!!

Colby's Birthday at Disney!

If you ask me there is absolutely no better place to spend your birthday than the "happiest place on earth"! We were lucky enough to talk Dad into treating us to a day at Disneyland for Colby's 32nd birthday. How can you pass up getting into Disneyland for FREE on your birthday? I mean really!

Birthday Boy

The longest line we waited in all day was the line to get in to Disneyland. It was crazy! Thankfully once we were inside it was remarkably uncrowded! Yay!

Sage and his Daddy on the spinney rocket ride. Just watching this one from the sidelines makes my stomach turn! I'm a wimp!Sagers and GramsLove this picture of my brother. He is a good sport about everything. We had so much fun!Colby, Sage, and our Jungle Cruise CaptainMe and the birthday boyThis is how Sage felt about The Pirates of the Caribbean....not a big fan if you can't tell. This is Nemi and her Dad's "scared faces" right before we hopped aboard Splash Mountain. Which by the way I got the FRONT seat on. Ya...I was pretty much soaking wet for about 3 hrs after that ride! Good times!Cute little familyNemi, Sage, and Grandma in front of Sleeping Beauty's CastleGrandpa's girlSage sporting his Spiderman SunglassesMom, Colby, and Sage on Buzz Lightyear. We rode this one twice in a row. It was a favorite for sure!Thank you mom and dad for treating us to an unforgettable day! We had so much fun! And...Dad...that really was the best $50.00 hotdog I've ever had! :)

Grandma's Funeral

I flew to Arizona, then drove to California with my Dad & Colby and his family. Even though we were going for such a sad occasion we had fun seeing all of our cousins, uncles, and aunts that we hadn't seen in so long. Grandma's funeral was really nice. It seems like funerals are always sad/happy family reunions.

Me and Nemi on our way to California. Super windy!

Colby striking a pose

Colby and Dad at the viewing

Our family

Major Spiderman Undie accident in the parking lot. I was there for moral support

Mom, Autumn, Nemi, and Sage

Sage was such a good boy. It was a long day

Graveside serviceDad, Louise, and BarrySage was determined to pull the flags out at the cemetery. Colby had to chase him all over the place. Lil' Devil! :)Uncle Jeff, Mom, Uncle Craig, and Grandpa OttoAll of my cousins together

Brian, Christopher, Ryan, Autumn, Colby, MichelleAll of the grand kids and great grand kids with Grandpa Otto

Christopher, Autumn, Ryan, Mandy, Keith, Colby, Nemi, Michelle, Sage, Grandpa, and Brian

All of the boys with Grandpa

Christopher, Keith, Brian, Grandpa, Colby, Ryan

Grandma Otto

My sweet tiny Grandma Otto passed away today. I'm still in shock. In recent years she had started to decline, but because I hadn't had the chance to visit her I never got to see my Grandma anything other than healthy, active, and alert.

My Grandma was an amazing little lady. Going to Grandmas was always such a treat. Icecream "Pushups" and 7-Up were always in stock in Grandma's Refrigerator/Freezer...and you didn't even have to ASK!! A dream come true!

My Grandma and Grandpa were always very active. I remember LONG walks every evening out in the California sunshine. Grandma loved to travel. She was amazing with a map. I think if "The Amazing Race" would have been around 15 yrs ago, she and Grandpa would have taken 1st place with no problem! They were world travelers. She never went on a trip without sending postcards while she was gone, then a care package to the kids when she returned. My kids have T-shirts from Grandma Otto from all over the country!

One of my favorite memories of Grandma was watching her put her makeup on before going to work at the Library in California. She always wore green or blue eyeliner. She would let me choose which color I wanted her to wear. I thought she was beautiful and felt important to be making such a big decision! Walking to pick Grandma up from work at the library was always fun too. Grandpa built a stroller that Colby could ride in and I could stand on the back of so our little legs wouldn't get tired. I remember thinking how lucky Grandma was to get to work in a LIBRARY! I'm thankful to my Grandma for instilling in me a love of books.

I am going to miss my Grandma Otto more than words can say but I'm so thankful for the amazing legacy that she left behind. I hope to be half the woman that she was. I love you Grandma...until we meet again....

Grandma Otto, Autumn, Camry, Mom

Grandpa Otto, Autumn, Camry, and Grandma Otto

Easton and Camry with Grandma. Giving them their T-Shirts she picked up on one of her many trips.

Grandma and Jace. She was always so good with babies. I'm so thankful that all of my kids got a chance to meet and know their Great Grandma.

Happy Birthday Mom!

Happy Birthday

to the best mommy ever!

Hope you have a great day! We love you and miss you!