This week has been one of rejuvenation. I have enjoyed the week tremendously. It started out by getting to use the Spa Day which I received from Jon's work. I got a babysitter and spent a few hours getting a massage and special treatment. It was wonderful relaxing in the serenity room without distractions. I'm thinking I could use this more often! If only I had unlimited funds :) We also spent lots of time at the pool this week soaking up the sun. The girls are fabulous swimmers and Dean is so brave floating around with his arm floaties on. Thanks to Stevie the lead tech the girls have a guy they can jump and play with while I sit on the edge with Lily and watch Dean. On Thursday I took the girls to gymnastics, then on Friday after pulling Jon on a 6 mile run at the Lake which I think he thoroughly enjoyed, I took the kids to the zoo with my friend Amanda Hess and her kids. They loved running around with friends and Autumn has had a lucky week with animals at the butterfly house she was the only one that a butterfly came and landed on her arm. Then today while we were at the St. Louis temple taking pictures a salamander squirmed up and perched next to her for a moment. She says when she grows up she wants to be a mom and a petrinarian! Makenna is growing into such a little lady as we took our picnic at the temple she posed for some very beautiful pictures then she asked if she could walk around the temple alone. She was so reverent I am so happy with her sensitivity to spiritual things. Lily is also growing up very quickly so I took some one year photos while she still is little. On a lighter note Dean has started potty training and has done relatively well he didn't have an accident for two days so we went to the store and got a firetruck. However, we have had to since take it away as he has decided he didn't need to use the toilet and in sacrament when he fell asleep on Jon's lap I got a tap on the shoulder to which Jon mouthed the words, "He Peed on ME" I started laughing!!!! I'm just glad it wasn't me! I feel very blessed with the sweet kids I have been given. I also have the best husband in the world. We are still trying to figure out when i am going to be coming back to Morgan, it seems like every time I make a decision they tell us something new about what they are going to be doing in August. O Well, I will just go with the flow.

This week has been a very fun a busy one yet again. Vivint decided to do another drawing for the wives. The first one was of a photo of all the wives together. We took one of us with the kids destroying my apartment and the wives holding signs. We Really Really need a Spa day. Well, we won that one and got a free gift card to a spa. This week it was service oriented. I came up with the idea of going to the Ronald McDonald house and having us be super hero's. So my dear friend Amanda took on the task and made about 11 capes even one for our Dog Rocky and bibs for all the babies. We then gathered items and took them to the RM House. It was fun a good day of service. The kids absolutely adore there capes! We didn't win the shopping spree that went along with the service, but it was fun anyway. The rest of the week was spent running and relaxing. Seriously! I ran 11 miles on Wed. to prepare me for the half marathon I am suppose to be doing in two weeks which I can't find a babysitter for. . . It's youth conference, of course! I've been training for 3 months and now NO SITTER? We will see what happens. After many long runs I would take the kids and relax at the pool Ahhhhhhhhhh. Jon has been wanting to do a race really bad and has been running to prepare for the chance. So when Creve Coeur announced that they were doing one we signed up. Of course the babysitter thing didn't work. She didn't hear her alarm that morning so we ended up making a mad dash to the car with all the kids and both jogging strollers. Jon pushed Makenna and Autumn and I pushed Dean and Lily the entire 6.2 miles, and NO it wasn't flat. They had like six massive hills that we had to go up. Needless to say I walked up them and Jon even took both strollers and pushed them so I could catch my breath! He is the greatest husband. He was having a blast tho, he had a huge smile spread across his face the whole time and was waving to people as we ran by. He even texted me later that day and said. That was awesome we need to do it again! I said sure just next time not be pushing 150 lbs. So, today Father's Day I couldn't hold back on showing our appreciation for Jon. I made a poster that said, "I have a hero. . . His name is Daddy" and I set the table with all dad stuff and superhero gear. He got delicious pumpkin pancakes with homemade syrup and then a delicious homemade lunch with blueberry chills and then the office did a BBQ. I think we all are over stuffed! I just have to say that I love my husband so much. This father's day I am so appreciative of the husband he is. He is so truly selfless when they say that a marriage and family is equal partnership and you should both should help each other I feel like it is always lopsided on his behalf. He gives so much to me and the children I worry he doesn't take enough for himself. He truly give 110% to us and I Love love love him for that and so much more. Of course I also got to talk to my Father and Jon's dad for a moment this father's day. It is wonderful to have the heritage we come from and I loved listening to my Dad speak of his childhood. I mentioned to him that I made Jon homemade ice-cream and he told me of the time when they had "Bossie" the cow and when she was in her good years they had so much cream they didn't know what to do with it. My grandma Wall put the recipe in the family cookbook of "Bossie" and her ice cream recipe. I want to get a cow now! Life sounds so fantastic back when the world wasn't "SO" complicated. I love you dad and I love the story's thanks for sharing and raising me to enjoy the simple things in life. It truly is where happiness comes from!

School Ends with a Splash

Life has ran away from me just like the end of May. School ended on a great note. Makenna absolutely loved coming to Craig Elementary and all the amenities it has to offer. Autumn did a end of Preschool Splash party and it was fun meeting her teachers for the last time and having a BBQ. We also have been thoroughly enjoying the pool as it has gotten hotter, and hotter. It is a must almost everyday and Dean absolutely loves swimming which is a big change from last year. He wouldn't even dip his toes in the pool. We went to the Zoo on our week off of school before summer school started and it was wonderful hanging out with my kids. They are so fun and super cute. We have to ride the train at the zoo because Dean is addicted to trains and says "CHOO CHOO!, Choo Choo!" constantly.

The day before memorial day we did a picnic with Vivint which was nice. I got to make some treats that I had been wanting to try and we got to meet all of daddy's coworkers. Kyle Fransen even showed Autumn how to hold a spinning basketball on a pen. They have decided that our friend Shayna's new husband Danny should be part of our family and they call him Uncle Danny, and of course all the other little kids running around are like cousins and great friends. It feels so much like family out here it warms my heart. When people work so close with each other you can't help but share the joy and the pain as well as feel a close connection with those around!

I had the opportunity this last week to drive 13 hours down to Houston to hang out with my sister Wendy. We went to the Woodlands and enjoyed good food, laughing, the pool, and just having fun. I tried using my new camera and capture some photographs of the Houston Temple. This temple has a special meaning to Jon and I because it is the first temple we went to together and did Baptism's. Houston is where Jon and I met and it holds a special place in my heart and brought back all the memories of our courtship. It was wonderful to have a mini vacation even if it consisted of driving so much!

When I returned home the girls had started summer school. They do a month long optional class out here so I put them in it. They leave at 7:45 and get home at 12:15 It's been going really good so far and I am super impressed with Makenna's reading since we have come out here. Leaps and Bounds! Lily had started climbing the stairs. Yep I missed it, but now I have to worry since we have 4 sets of stairs in this house. She still isn't walking, but she smiles so much and gives me hugs so much that I can't even think of her growing up it makes me sad. . .

Jon is selling and keeping a good attitude. He misses out on so much to provide for our family, and I am so grateful to Him for all he does. This Sunday he had to talk in sacrament and then give the Elder's Quorum lesson. That's a lot of preparation with his work schedule and family life on top of that. I married an exceptional man!

My news is that I have been running and training for a half marathon. I did the Route 66 race this year and was proud of myself for placing 9th in the 10k; not quite as good as I dad 2 years ago, but I pushed hard and with running 10 miles two days before, and four kids to wrestle I did well.

It's been a super good hobby for me and I like feeling strong and being in shape so it's nice to have friends like Amanda that push me along.

Our family is doing well and summer sells is almost halfway over and that feels great to say! Life is an adventure so let's enjoy it!