We're Not Silly, Mom...

We're Ninjas! 

Fall Leaves

One of my favorite things to do is to go for a drive in the canyon and look at the fall leaves. I decided we better get up there before we missed all the pretty colors, so I loaded the boys in the car and we headed for a drive on the Alpine loop. They had fun for the first part, but decided the road was a little too twisty for their tastes. We finally found a place to pull off to the side of the road and take some pictures. The boys loved playing in the leaves and finding "walking sticks" (which eventually turned into weapons of course.)

After our leaf adventure we headed to Chick-fil-A for some dinner and the kids had a blast in the play place.  And of course you can't go see the leaves without some doughnuts afterward!  I'd say the boys had a great evening.

Brigham City Temple Dedication

Today was the dedication of the Brigham City Utah Temple.  I am from Perry (right next to Brigham City) and so seeing a Temple built in Brigham City has been a wonderful experience.  The land where the Temple was built was the old Central Elementary School and my Grandpa Coombs was the principal for many years so the location alone has always been special.

Amy and Kevin before the third Dedication at the Brigham City Temple

In June my Dad and Mom were called to serve as Second Counselor and Assistant Matron in the Temple Presidency, which brought additional excitement and details about the Temple.  Every week we would hear stories of the Temple and its progress.  After weeks of practice with our boys (walking quietly in the store and not touching anything, walking quietly around the temple, and walking quietly at church) my parents were able to give us a tour of the temple.  The boys loved it and they we perfect little angels!

Today my parents spoke in the third session of the dedication.  They both did an amazing job of speaking about the importance of the Love of God and reminding us that even though Temples are beautiful the most important part of a Temple is the ordinance work done inside.  Amy and I were blessed to be able to sit in the Celestial room and feel of the amazing spirit.  To hear Elder Walker, Elder Perry and President Packer testify of the importance of temples and share their testimonies was overwhelming.  Then as Elder Nelson gave the dedicatory prayer and hear all the rich promises and blessings was a wonderful reminder of the blessings each of us have been given.  The most amazing part was when President Packer shared his testimony (it felt like he was looking right at Amy and me).  The spirit was very strong.

Our Dedication Tickets, Program and Amy's Handkerchief

Honestly, this was a once in a lifetime opportunity and I was so grateful to have this experience.  Although we were saddened that Matthew wasn't eight yet we are excited for the next Payson and Provo City Temples that will be dedicated and sharing this experience with the rest of our family.   We love Temples and I hope we can share that love with our children.

Four little monkeys

Depending on the day, these boys are either

1) Just doing tricks

2)Sailing on a pirate ship

3) Protecting their Jedi fortress from the Dark Side

4) Or just being monkeys

5) And this little monkey can't wait to be a part of it.

Lost Tooth!

Ryan lost his first tooth today!  It had been loose for awhile and he decided at school to wiggle it around some more and it popped out.  His teacher put it in a plastic baggie so he could bring it home for the tooth fairy.  He was pretty excited!

Zachary's Birthday

We recently celebrated Zach's birthday.  This little guy is four already!  He has been waiting anxiously for the big day, counting down almost a month in advance.  When we asked what he wanted most for his birthday, he immediately replied "My own lightsaber."  He always had to borrow one from Matthew who ended up getting two one year.  That's about all he would answer for a few weeks, until right before his birthday he decided on a small Lego set (of course) that he wanted because it included two small gray guns.  Easy enough!

He had a fun day.  First we had preschool at our house in the morning.  We are rotating this year with five other moms in our neighborhood.  Because it was the second week, we did B is for Birthday and had lots of activities planned around the birthday theme.  And cupcakes of course!  Later that day he said he was starting to feel a little icky and it became apparent that he had caught a cold from the other boys.  For some reason, colds knock Zach out a little more than the other kids, so he spent the rest of the day laying on the couch and watching some of his favorite shows.  At one point he said he was too sick to do anything, so I told him maybe we should wait until the next day to open his presents, thinking he would enjoy them a little more.  What was I thinking?  He instantly perked up and told me he was feeling much better.  It was really cute.

After Zach's birthday dinner of pancakes and eggs, we sang Happy Birthday and opened presents.  The lucky boy did end up getting his much talked about Lego set and lightsaber..

He didn't seem to be doing too well after presents, so we opted to wait until the next day for cake and ice cream.  Zachary loves Jake and the Neverland Pirates from the Disney Channel, so he requested a Bucky pirate ship cake for his birthday.

Some fun things about Zachary:

-He says willn't instead of won't.
-The other day we were playing a game and I told him I needed to take a quick break to help Andrew.  When I came back, he said, "I was just set-upping it Mom."
-He calls Matthew "Mafrew"
-He loves Legos, Jake, Star Wars, and cars
-He loves to play soccer with the other boys and he can't wait to be on his own team.  One day he was playing in the basement and I went down to check on him.  He was kicking a ball and making shots at the soccer goals.  When he saw me watching, he said, "I'm just practicing my angles Mom."  What four year old decides he needs to practice his angles?
-He's my dancer buddy.  We like to put on bouncy songs when we work and he has some great moves.
We love our big four-year-old boy!

Zachary's wish

Saturdays can get kind of busy with soccer games, yardwork, housework, errands, etc.  It usually ends up being kind of a lazy day for me in the getting ready department - ponytail, little to no makeup, the bare minimum.  I learned tonight that I might need to step it up a little.  As we were reading scriptures before bed, Zachary was sitting behind me playing with my hair.  One of them is always doing it while we read - I guess it is one of those sweet things they still hold on to from when they were babies.  After scriptures Zachary chimed up with this pearl of wisdom:

"Mom, I wish you were a princess."
"Oh really?  Why?"
"Because then you would be prettier."

To which Ryan responded, "She doesn't need to be a princess.  She already got married!"

To which Kevin responded, "Mom is a princess.  And she's pretty."

Thank you boys!