Happy Birthday McKay!!

I think every mother feels the same as I do on their child's birthday, where did the time go? Really. I want to know. McKay is 10 today! My sweet first born. He will always hold a special place in my heart being our first. This morning as I was standing in line waiting to pay for my donuts for his special birthday breakfast, thoughts of what I was doing 10 years ago this day flooded my mind and I almost broke down right then and there. It was 10 years ago today that I began my journey of firsts. The first time I became a mom, the first time I really experienced pain, both physical and emotional, the first time I truly experienced indescribable joy and eventually the first time I experienced heartache. I could go on and on. McKay is such a special spirit and I knew it from the time he was born. So full of energy, always striving to do what is best. Trying his hardest to please his parents and he succeeds every time! He is such a great brother, friend, cousin and son. I love him with all my heart. Hope you have a special day dude! We love you to pieces!


2 years old at Halloween!





1st day of Kindergarten





McKay has ALWAYS been a thrill seeker! Here he is at 2 years old on his first roller coaster.... he can barely see over the top!



McKay and Grandpa reading scriptures. He has always LOVED his Grandpa and Grandpa!



Such a great friend

California Vacation

Ah, Where do I begin? Last week, our family took off to sunny southern California. We had an absolute blast and didnt want it to end. Although there were a few hiccups, all in all, we had a great time.

We left bright and early (ok, so it may not have been so bright at 4:30 am) Saturday morning. Our plane left at 7:20 AM!! We had great intentions of getting the kids to bed Friday night at 8:00 and ourselves in bed shortly after at 9:00, but being so excited to leave, the kids had a hard time falling asleep ( as did I) . I think around 10:30 they finally gave in. I myself wasn't able to fall asleep until 3:00 AM!! We woke the house up at 4 and were out the door at 4:30. They didnt mind a bit though and were troopers all day.






We arrived in Long Beach to a wet and very cold California! WHAT??!! We spend the day at the Swap Meet and had great fun eating Churros and waiting 45 minutes for a Hot Dog! The waiting part wasn't fun! Later that night, we met up with a friend from high school and his sweet family for a BBQ. It was great to see them. I hadn't seen Ryan for 6 years and it was great to catch up and reminise on old times. Here is a picture of the gang! Thanks Kagy's for a great time!





Sunday was Fathers day. I have such an incredible, loving father and I am so grateful I got to spend the day with him. What a fun day we had. Church in the morning where Marcy gave the most incredible talk about Fathers and then went on to teach Relief Society. She has such a gift. One I wish I had! After church was dinner. Let me just explain a little bit about my mom. She loves to cook. And she is GREAT at it! Every meal was homeade by her and preceeding dinner, was ALWAYS an appetizer of some sort. One of my FAVORITES was a baquette with pesto mayonaise, topped with fresh sliced mozzerela, home grown basil and sliced tomatoes drizzled with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. YUMM!! No wonder I gained 5 pounds while there! Thanks mom for spoling me!!




My Daddio and his girls!


My handsome honey and his 3 boys!



Family picture on Fathers Day



My dad talking to my brother on Fathers day. This picture is funny because he is laying on 2 air mattresses which were on top of a table. Hey, with 6 kids running around the house for a week, this was the only place he could find to relax!







The next 3 days were spent at California Adventure and Disneyland! We had a blast. Thank you Marcy for watching Gabe on Monday so we could be kids again and ride all the rides and not have to worry about diapers, strollers and switching children. It was heaven! It was Carters first time riding California Screamin and Tower of Terror. I didn't even think of turning the flash off on the camera when I took this picture of Carter's first ride, but if you look carefully, you can see his face! He looks terrified, but LOVED it and rode it a total of 3 times! Just like California Screamin, he loved Tower of Terror! The picture is classic (I was able to turn off my flash for this picture)! Everyone else is SCREAMING and Carter is as cool as summer's morning (as my brother would describe him). Just sitting as if he is enjoying a movie. We had so much fun. The park wasn't to crowded and it was the perfect temperature.

Were going to Disneyland!!! OK, Actually California Adventure!



Carter right before launch on California Screamin! He was SOOO excited!! I had to sit this one out to get a picture! Classic! He is sitting near the back.


Can you see him? He is on the bottom right hand corner.


Grizzly Bear Rapids... before!










Gabe LOVED Disneyland and did surprisingly well without a nap! It was me who had a hard time! While there, we celebrated Carter's 6th birthday! He got a cool b-day button and 60 dollars to spend at the park! WOW! He loved all the attention he got! Almost all the employees at Disneyland wished him a happy birthday. Happy birthday buddy! Hard to believe your 6 already! Love you to pieces dude!


Donut Birthday Breakfast!


Gabe LOVING It's a Small World


McKay less than thrilled to be riding It's a Small World!





Friday was mom's birthday. She is 60 years young! You would never guess she is 60! She keeps up with all of us and doesnt stop for aminute, Not to mention how beautiful she is. Really. I dont think she has one wrinkle! On Thursday we celebrated by shopping and took her to dinner. After dinner, we went back over to the house and surprised her by having some of her closest frineds there for cake and ice cream. Happy Birthday mom! We love you!

Friday was spent getting ready to come home. The most horrible day of the trip. I always hate packing to leave. We did, however manage to go to the pool and see a movie. We went to see The Proposal. Is was hysterical! I loved it!

Gabe with Aunt Marcy in the Spa. It's as if he turned to mush once he hit the hot water! AHHHHH!!









Saturday we headed for home, but not before we went to Laura Smiths wedding. She was married in the Los Angeles temple on the 27th. We headed up to LA at 8 in the morning and didnt get home until 3. It was a great day at the temple and so good to see old friends. When we got home, we put our suitcases in the car and headed for the airport. I had a pit in my stomach the entire day. We made it to the airport and got right on the plane and headed for home. We did everything we wanted to do except see friends and go to the beach. Maybe next trip. 6 days was not long enough. We made great memories and had so much fun being together. It was a much needed break. Until the next trip....

The Rodeo and the Rain

Last night, we took the family to the Strawberry days Rodeo. During the day, the weather wasn't looking too promising, but thought we would try it out anyway. The first hour, the weather was great! No sun, but still warm enough and the rain was holding off. The kids were enjoying themselves watching mutton bustin, the cash cow and the milk cow. Soon after, it started to sprinkle. No big deal. We can handle a little drizzle. We all huddled together to get warm (Carter insisted on leaving his jacket in the car and McKay said he didn't have a jacket... hmmmm) and continued to watch the festivities. About 5 minutes later, it started POURING!! One of our friends sacrificed their poncho and jacket for (thanks Sterling and Kellie) so we kept dry. Gabe was LOVING it! I am not sure what he loved more, pulling the hoodie off of Kellie who was sitting in front of us and watching her get all wet (sorry Kellie) or watching the rain fall. I figured as long as we all were happy and dry, we would stay. Well, about an hour of sitting out in the rain, I was getting sick of it and Carter was getting really cold! So, we packed it up and headed for home. As soon as we pulled in the garage, yup, you guessed it, it stopped raining! Figures. It always happens. At least we got 2 hours at the rodeo, enjoyed a hamburger and of course strawberries and cream!!! It doesn't get much better than that!


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Do you see how wet we were?

Aunt Blythe and Uncle Rob

My little bro is married! These two love birds were sealed in the Timpanogos Temple a few weeks ago on May 21st. It was a beautiful day. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me and all I got the entire day was a picture of them just leaving the reception. They were beat! I just love these two so terribly much and I am SO excited to have a new sister!





This picture just captures how Rob feels about Blythe and is just way to precious not to post. Rob loves her to no end. I am so happy they found each other. They bring out the best in each other and I am so grateful to her for making my brother so happy. Welcome to this crazy family Blythe!

Want to know what happens when..........

Your lawn mower breaks and is in the shop for 3 weeks??



You loose your baby in the grass! Can you see him? Look close. It will be so nice to be able to get to the trampoline without having to use a slingblade! Ok, it's really not that long, but still, it will be nice to have a perfectly manicured lawn again. Oh, and in case you were wondering, our front yard looks great! Philip borrowed our neighbors mower to take care of the front. There is no way Philip would let the front lawn get like this. Just the back that nobody sees!

Your A Good Man, Charlie Brown

For the past few months, McKay has been participating in Center Stage Youth Performers. Every Spring, they put on a Broadway show. This year, they put on Your A Good Man, Charlie Brown. Man, they did such a FABULOUS job! I can hardly believe these kids are between the ages of 7-18! They are incredible! I am so proud of McKay. Every night, I cried like a baby. I was just so overwhelmingly proud of him I couldn't contain myself. I was told I was not the only mother who cried at every performance. They had 8 performances in total and by the final night, McKay was exhausted! They had to be at the Covey Center by 8:30 in the morning some days and wouldn't get home until after 10 pm! And they still had school.... (OK. truth be told, I let McKay stay home to recover and get some much needed sleep..... Philip wasn't to happy with me- like they say, Mom knows best:) The last night, they were all in tears, giving each other hugs and crying on each other's shoulders. What a sight to see. They were so sad it was all over. I spoke with the producer who told me the cast members were so close with one another. She hadn't ever had a group this close and loved each other they way this cast did. McKay made such great friends and has developed a hidden talent! That boy can act! He played Spike, one of Snoopy's siblings. You know, the one who has a mustache, lives out in the desert and decorates a cactus for Christmas? That was McKay. He also played Bruce, one of the school kids. A double roll! What a star! Tonight is a cast party and he can't wait to see all his friends again. It's going to be weird not having somewhere to be every second of every day! Life sure has slowed down since the show ended. To be honest, I really enjoyed being so busy. Mainly because McKay enjoyed it so much. I was willing to do whatever I needed to make him succeed and enjoy himself.

One night, Mrs Deaver (McKay's second grade teacher) and her husband, along with Ms Pulley, McKay's current teacher came to support him. What awesome women they are! I love them dearly and am so grateful for them and their support for McKay. It truly made his night! Also, Aunt Marcy and Spencer flew up from California to see it and Grandpa Valadez drove up from St. George. My parents had tickets to come up, but my mom injured her knee severely and had to have surgery to repair it. The doctor wouldn't let her travel. She was devastated she could be here. After all, she is the one who got him interested in plays and theater. For years (some even before I was born) my mom has produced several plays and musicals. When McKay was 3 she started taking him to plays. When he was 4, she produced Fiddler On The Roof and McKay got to go backstage!! He was thrilled. The rest is history. Ever since then, he has been fascinated about plays and theater. Mom, we know you were there in spirit and would have been here if you could. Don't worry, we have it all on tape!! Don't I just have the BEST family in the entire universe!? I love them all so very much! Thanks to everyone who came to support McKay. It truly meant a lot! Your awesome!

When all is said and done, I am so grateful McKay has found something he loves doing. As a mom, that is all I ever want for my kids. To be happy, healthy and loving life! Until the next play...........


Aunt Marcy, Spencer, Carter and McKay




A Book Report on Peter Rabbit!



Action!!







The Deaver's... Doesn't McKay have the BEST teachers.. and don't I have the best friends??!!



McKay and Dad



Mom and her boys (minus Gabe)



An amazing supportive teacher!



Spencer and Carter... best friends for LIFE!!!



The Family.... (minus Gabe)

Four Steps

Guess who took four steps today??



Yup, this 13 month old, 16 pound peanut! Hard to believe his tiny little legs can hold him up! I am not sure whether or not to be happy, sad, nervous or just plain terrified of what is to come in the next few months. Only time will tell. Good job little buddy!