{ Cabin Weekend! }

The Buchanans are here and we have been having a blast! The kids really love their cousins and look forward to every time they get to see each other.

Laura got here on Monday night and we drove down Tuesday after school for dinner and a quick visit. It is always so fun to watch the kids reunite. As we were getting closer to Nana and Papa's house Ayden kept telling me how excited he was. Then as we were driving up the street he said "Mom, I'm so excited my bones are shaking!" As we pulled up Connor was waiting on the front porch. The boys ran to each other and just as they got close enough to touch, they stopped, looked at each other and said "Hey Ayden", "Hey Connor" without even touching and headed off into the house to start playing. It was so funny! They are apparently too cool for hugs these days.

That night we ordered pizza and let the kids play for a bit. My kids weren't excited that they had to go home for school the next day, they wanted to sleep over. But I knew that we would be missing school on Friday to stay at the cabin so I exercised some self control and took them home.

Thursday after school we left for the Cabin. The car was loaded and the kids were pumped! We got there just before dinner. Laura was the cooking queen this weekend, she made such delicious meals. That night was pizza rolls. As soon as dinner was over the kids headed straight for the hot tub.

We couldn't get the bubbles to work so it was pretty much a giant warm bath, but the kids didn't seem to care.

{ Myla was happy just watching }

{ The ladies }

{ I love this shot because Papa is taking a picture of Myla in the background but it looks like he's taking a picture of our butts! }

Friday we let the kids play all morning and then headed into Heber for lunch. There's a restaurant called Dairy Keen "The Home of the Train". The kids love it because there is a train that cruises along the top of the restaurant that you can watch while you eat.

There is also a train outside that you can eat on, but it was too hot so they had to wait until dessert time to go out there.

{ crazy baby }

After lunch we headed across the street to the park and let the kids get some energy out before heading up to the cabin.

They started doing some races and even Papa joined in!

{Sophie and Connor racing}

Friday night Logan headed up after work and it was great to have him there. We had a delicious dinner and the kids went in the hot tub again. After the kids were asleep, the adults all went in the theater room and watched Source Code. We saw it right when it came out and I liked it better the second time.

Saturday morning Sophie had her first soccer game. Since Logan is the coach again, we thought it was important that we drive back home for the game.

Sophie has 2 of her very best friends on her team and I think it's going to be a great season! The girls love their jerseys and named their team "Red Lightening"! Sophie is so fast and so aggressive! She is going to be an excellent soccer player.

After the game we checked on Boston and headed back to the cabin. When we got back the kids were dying to head out on the 4 wheelers! I am usually very nervous about that kind of stuff, as is Laura, but we decided to lighten up and let the kids have some fun!

{2 cuties waiting for their turns on the 4 wheelers }

Even the adults got involved. When Nana said she wanted to go for a ride, Papa decided to step it up and ride one too! It was classic!

{ The boys teaching Papa how the drive }

{ and he's off! }

{ So cute }

{Seesters}

It started to rain pretty hard which creates a really cool mood when you are in the mountains. The kids played with Uncle Trevor on the porch. Then, of course, Mom had to join in on the fun and try to make everyone laugh.

{After bath time, I gave the Buchanan kids some haircuts. Andrew is just so cute! }

That night we had baked Mac n' cheese for dinner. And after the kids went to bed we decide to play some games. We started off with a little oreo madness!

We played catch phrase. It was so fun! Once we got into a rhythm we decided to spice it up and describe our word in an accent of some kind. It was hilarious!

Sunday morning was crazy because lots of people were going different places. We decided to take our kids and go have a fun day in Park City.

{ goofy kids }

{ Sophie the model }

When we got back the kids went for a few more 4 wheeler rides and we had a BBQ for dinner. Of course the big girls had some fun while making the dessert . . .

{ Love these 2 girls }

We were originally going to leave Sunday night so Ayden could get to school in the morning, but we were just having too much fun. The cabin sucks you in and you never want to leave. Not only is it extremely comfortable, its so wonderful to be in a house with people that you love so much. We did miss Michael so badly though and wrote him a note while we were there.

The kids decided to have a dance party on the porch. They were so fun to watch.

The weather was beautiful.

{ playing a follow the leader game }

I challenged Jenny to do her backhandspring!

Laura turned on a song I danced to back in 1997 and I just had to see how much I could remember.

{ Check out my hair! Crazy! }

That night Logan put the kids to bed by reading them a story in all his many voices. And that wasn't the stilly part, the only book he could find was a potty book! They kids were in heaven! And bed time took a little longer than usual.

Laura decided she wanted a haircut so we played beauty parlor again and then sat around visiting until the wee hours. I love my family and I'm so grateful we got to spend the weekend with them!

{ 1st day of Elementary }

Today was Sophie's first day of Kindergarten!

{She wanted to show her backpack like Ayden did}

I can't believe she is so big. She is such a smart and brave girl. She has been so excited all day. I put her in afternoon Kindergarten because she is usually a late sleeper and because I like to have my afternoons to get stuff done. But this morning she was so excited that she woke up early and was in the shower at 7:30 when I came home from the gym! At that point I knew it was going to be a long time before 12:30 rolled around.

I am so excited about Sophie's teacher Mrs. Kagie. She seems so incredibly nice and works so well with the kids. This is only her 3rd year teaching but you can tell she is very organized and has a lot of energy. Sophie loved her right off the bat.

My friends who have girls in morning Kindergarten told me they got very emotional when they dropped off their girls. For both of them it is their first child to go to Elementary School. I thought that because I did this with Ayden last year it would be different for me. I was wrong. I got very emotional standing there as she waited for her teacher to round up the kids, lined up with her class, and headed in for the first day of school. I'm so proud of her for being brave. She is an amazing person and I love her so much.

Congrats, Lew! Happy First Day of School!

{ Ayden Sean }

I have been meaning to write a special post about Ayden and I decided that today is the perfect day.

It is his first day of first grade!

{ He was very proud of his Utah backpack and had to have a picture }

Ayden is a very special boy. He is very smart and incredibly charming. He has won the hearts of most of his friends' Moms because of his ease in talking with adults and his story telling. I am always hearing from other Moms about how he sat at the table and talked their ears off while the other kids were playing. He just likes being around adults and having conversations with people.

Ayden is all about the fun. Before one activity is over he has moved on to the next making sure there won't be a lag in the fun. Some of his favorite activities are:

Riding his bike (with a friend)

Making up dances (with a friend)

Building a fort (with a friend, or Dad)

Jumping on the tramp (with a friend, or an uncle for that matter)

Going to Cherryhill (with a friend)

Having a late night (with as many friends as possible)

Needless to say, everything is better when you have a friend to do it with.

{ Sleeping in a fort with Dad and Sophie }

Ayden is a very good big brother. Not as much to Sophie, because I believe he feels like they are the same age, but more so to Myla. She adores him. She gives him voluntary kisses almost every time she sees him. When I went to pick him up from dance the other day she saw him across the room and squealed in delight before booking it across the room to him. He looks out for her and he helps me with her when I'm getting ready or just need a break for a minute. He tries to take care of Sophie and plan activities with her, but their personalities clash too much and it usually ends in a fight. He is also very sweet to his friend Brock who is 2 1/2 years younger than him. They love to play together and I always say he's the brother Ayden never had. He looks out for Brock and is takes care of him.

Ayden is incredibly talented. I know I have posted a lot of pictures and videos of him dancing, but I want to remember how early his talent really started to bloom. Not only does he have a lot of natural talent, he works very hard at it. When he decides on something he wants to master, he will not stop until he has reached his goal. He is incredibly driven.

Ayden is very picky. He likes to choose his own clothes, own food, own hairstyle. He has his own ideas of what is cool and what is weird. I bought his some cargo pants last year to wear to school and he refused. He said they were weird and everyone would laugh at him. He only has a hand full of things he is willing to eat and he never tries new things. I guess I can't be surprised about that one though, right!

Ayden is very entertaining. He loves to come up with silly little sayings or make crazy faces to get us to laugh. He can be such a ham! I know that's why he loves to dance though, because he shows his personality through his face and by moving his body.

Ayden is my special friend. He can tell when I'm not feeling well or I'm sad and he will always come give me a hug and kiss and ask if I'm okay. I often tell him that I don't want him to grow up because big boys are mean to their moms, but he promises me that he won't be when he grows up. He can be a sassy pants sometimes, but he is never unkind to me. And often when Sophie is, he tells her to apologize and tries to make up for it by saying something nice to me.

I will always have a soft spot for this little guy. I'm not sure if it's because he's my only son or because he's my first born.

But I am so thankful he's mine.