Shelby turns 5!

Shelby wanted a Diamond Castle party. So I did what I could considering this Barbie movie is over 3 years old and they don't have Diamond Castle stuff anymore! So I made this cake...

Then we decorated mirrors (that's a big part of the movie)....
Shelby had her cousins Elayna and Brianna over, as well as Emily... They made Heart necklaces...

... we also potted flowers (I don't have a picture of that). Here is my cake again. I made this way easy Marshmallow fondant, and it was SO fun to do! This is my attempt at making a Diamond Castle cake! (Thank you Caitlyn.. Shelby's friend from Idaho... who gave Shelby this cake topper as a farewell gift!) Shelby loved it, and so did I!!! I love making cakes for birthdays, and now that I found this recipe... my imagination is having a party!!


These pictures upload in a very non-order way! But we also had little sandwiches, which I used a cookie cutter to cut the bread, cheese and bologna. None of the girls ever liked bologna sandwiches before, but they all ate them up! I guess if you cut everything out in flower shapes, then they are more fun to eat! It was a fun party.

Celebrating our Countries

My absolutely beautiful girls!!! What a blessed mother I am!

Hailey got on the table and dumped all the Parmesan cheese out. She had a great time playing in it!

So for Canada Day, we went down to Princess Island Park for the festivities. We enjoyed our time in the sun and with our cousins.. but were kinda disappointing in the lack of patriotism we felt. Oh, there were lots of flags and people out, but it just isn't the same as the USA. None the less, we are grateful to live in this free land and have all the freedoms that our America enjoys. We are truly blessed.
Hanging out with the Lee's listening to an awful performance on the stage! We just had fun laughing at her! (bad, I know!)

Because of the sorry July 1st we had, I did my best to make July 4th good. First of all, I was in tears the entire day, just thinking about being in Idaho Falls, and doing all the traditions that we did. So we tried to do them here. We put up the tent like we always do, brought out the mattresses, tv and fan. We had a Family Home Evening on America. We sang the anthem and said the Pledge of Allegiance. Then watched our movie. We attempted to sleep out there, but being in Canada is a little different than Idaho. When the sun set around 11pm, the temperature dropped, and we all froze. So we all came inside! :)

Inside our tent.. yes, I flew the flag that day too (on our porch). I also made a flag cake we had for dessert. Such a fun day!


And here is the clan. We are pretty much always together. It can be crazy, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

Our 11 year Anniversary

This year I was in charge of our anniversary. So at the very last minute, I decided to take us south to Cardston and Waterton. These pictures are all out of order, oh well. First we went to the Temple and did sealings.. kinda just to remember the promises we made when we got married and remember the blessings that await us as we live our marriage and lives righteously. Then we headed to Waterton to camp. It was SOOO beautiful and refreshing and wonderful. I couldn't be happier to be there with the most amazing man. I am so blessed to have Chad as my eternal companion.

We hiked into this waterfall. On the way in, some hikers were coming out and said, "did you see the bear?" Ummm, no. We got scared for a minute and turned back for a short while, but decided to push on anyways. It was well worth it. Such a beautiful waterfall. We never did see the bear on that hike, but on the way out of the canyon, we drove by it!! Gotta love seeing bears in the wilderness!


And of course we couldn't pass up the chance to fish in the crystal clear river. He didn't catch anything, but it sure was nice to be out there!

Here's the picture of us in front of the Cardston Temple.

Emily's Birthday

Emily turned 7 this year! Crazy! We went to Grandmas for a family party. She was lead by a string to the backyard where she was surprised to find a bike! Thanks Grandmas for a wonderful party and gift!!


Daddy helping her learn and Riley watching! Go Emily Go!!

This is the only picture I have right now of her friend birthday party. All the other pictures are on my phone and I can't get them off right now, so we'll do a catch up later. But Emily wanted a Chef Party! It was so fun. I made all these aprons, and the kids made their hats. Then we each made our own pizzas, smoothies and cupcakes! It was so much fun! Her friends were Caleb, Loren, Sydney and Jocelyn.. and of course Shelby!!

The four cousins! Laying in Riley's bed watching a movie.

Hailey.. growing up so fast!

Don't forget the helmet! :)

New Piano - Mother's Day

Well, my wonderful mother gave me the family piano. I couldn't be more thrilled and happy. So many hours as a child I spent on this piano, and now it is in my home! I can't wait to teach my children how to play and see which one will love it as much as me!

For Mother's Day this year, Crystal and I decided that we would treat my mom to lunch (since she always treats us on our weekly Wednesday lunch get together) So we went really different and got East Indian Food. It was.. interesting. Not my favorite, but definitely good. We are so blessed to have my mom as our Mother. She is special and wonderful in so many ways, I couldn't begin to list them here. I'm so grateful that I am living so close to her and have her in my daily life. Love you Mom!!


This is Emilys school project that we made. She got to do some research on Zebras (the animal of her choice)! It was fun to create this together.

Such pretty girls I have sitting at the piano. Reminds me of when Crystal and I would sit and play all our duets, or sit and sing our favorite hymns.