Sweet little Parker

Parker is such a sweet little boy. He always has a kiss and a hug for everyone. Tonight we were cuddling on the couch and he said, "Mommy, give me a kiss." So I kissed him on his cheek and said thanks buddy. But that wasn't good enough for him, he said, "no mommy on the lips." That surprised me because we don't usually kiss our kids on the mouth. But I kissed him and he said, "Now were married." And he just giggled and giggled and thought that he was so funny. Never a dull moment.

Rub-A-Dub-Dub four kids in the tub!!!

The days my kids can't swim outside they love bath time. And bath time has become even more fun with bath crayons. I love bath crayons. Who ever thought of them is a genius. We bought Parker some for his birthday and the kids have had so much fun with them. I do think that four kids in the tub just might exceed the maximum capacity. There's only enough room as long as no one breathes. But anyway the kids colored all over each other and the tub and it cleans up so easy. Wouldn't it be fun to be a kid for a day?

Parkin Baby Girl Has Arrived!!

Baby girl Parkin has arrived. She was in such a hurry to get here she came 4 weeks early. She weighed 7lbs. 10 oz. and is 20 inches long. And I must say she is absolutely adorable. Look at that cute little face.

Cute little profile.

I think that she looks like she is smiling. And I got it on camera.

Great job Amy and Matt she is beautiful. And Amy is doing great.

The Gardner Family Motto

So tonight for family night we intoduced a family motto. I asked the boys if they remembered the Lion King saying, Hakuna Matata. Bryson remembered, and told us it meant no worries. We told the boys in our home we were going to have our own family motto, Try A Little Harder. Each day all we have to do is try just a little bit harder to be better than the day before. So we went around the room and had the boys try to think of an event in the day when they could have done a little better, they each thought of something and then told us how the situation could have been changed. Bryson worries so much about being good and tells us OFTEN how hard it is to be good. He said that if he didn't have any brothers it wouldn't be so hard to be good. We decided to give the boys a challenge. Each night before bed they can earn stars for changed behavior, or better behavior. When we can earn so many stars we can go on a family outing. The boys were really excited for the challenge and tomorrow were going to make signs to put in each room to remind us of our challenge. Each day is a fresh start and I want to make each day better than the one before.

Frosting anyone?

East Canyon

We went to East Canyon for the Gardner Family Reunion. We just went up for the day and the kids had a blast. We visited with family, had dinner and had homemade ice cream. A Gardner party wouldn't be a party without homemade ice cream. The kids threw rocks in the water, explored, played on the playground and goofed off with cousins. It was a great start for the weekend.
Parker dumping the rocks into the stream. Its amazing how excited he is about ROCKS!!!

Abby found a rock of her own. She sat quietly for so long just picking the rock up and down. She was so dirty by the time we left.

Dan and Bryson on the swings in the RV playground.

Britton taking a leap of faith he will land on the tire.

Everyone at the stream asking me why I forgot their swimming shoes.

The simple things in life make it so fun to be a family.

Letting go

I have stopped nursing Abby and I feel a little silly because I'm kinda sad. I liked being the one and only one that could completely take care of her. I couldn't leave her with anyone longer than 4 hours because she wouldn't take a bottle. So she would come with Dan and I on our dates, or go with me on my errands. I liked that she would usually fall asleep in my arms and snuggle close searching for comfort. I miss her looking up at me with those big blue eyes and smiling because she was happy to be with me. Tonight Dan put her to bed and she did so good, she drank her milk and went to bed so easy. Time goes by so fast. I want to enjoy each day that I am given and make it the best day. I enjoy being a mother so much and I feel so blessed to be able to stay at home. I hope that I cherish each day that I have with these beautiful spirits. I know the Lord has entrusted me with these spirits for a reason and I hope and pray not to let him down or my kids. Its an amazing responsibility to be a mother. Sometimes I think that I get so caught up in the everyday duties of home and life that I forget what is really important. I love the summer time because we don't have a busy schedule, no school, no sports and so on, we just play together and enjoy being a family.