Andrew's First Day of Kindergarten

Andrew was so excited for his first day of "real" school! He went to kindergarten at Thomas Edison Charter School. 

When I went to register him for school I got a really bad feeling about him going to our normal public school so I did some research to see what our other options were. Gilbert and I are pro public school but I couldn't deny the feeling I got. After more prayer and research we decided Thomas Edison was the best choice for him. Now that the school year is almost over I can say that I couldn't have been more impressed with the experience Andrew had this past year. Mrs. Bosshardt was a phenomenal teacher. I was able to help in the class room every other week until Sage was born and I was so impressed with how confident and comfortable his teacher was. Andrew has grown so much this year. He can read really well (he reads 3 verses in the scriptures every night), loves to do homework, can do all addition and subtraction up to ten, can tell the time on a round clock, and can count to 200+. I am so proud of how smart, friendly, obedient, determined, kind, protective, and caring my little boy is!

 

Bear Lake with the Bohne's

We had so much fun playing on the beach in the sunshine.

 Gilbert kept trying to get a good picture of the seagulls as they would fly by. This one turned out pretty good.

 Thank you to Dominic, Amy, Jackson and Ella Bohne for inviting us to spend a day at the beach!

 I am pregnant with Sage. This is how we announced it. With all "5" of us....

Smith Reunion, Father's and Sons, and Fishing 2013

The annual boat races....

 Looking at the waterfalls where Grandma Smith grew up.

 Andrew riding bareback.

 Fish really do fly! ;)

 Muddy memories.

Ruby turns 2

For Ruby's birthday we went to the movies and watched Epic with Papa Oldham and he spoiled us with drinks and popcorn. (Grandma had to go visiting teaching.) It was a great movie! 

Then we went to the shoe store and let Ruby try on all the shoes she wanted to.....She even tried on some shoes that Andrew was trying on. To say that Ruby loves shoes is an understatement! :) She picked out a cute white pair for some church shoes. Then we went and got some cake and ice cream and Papa surprised her with a bunch of balloons they got her a fun present.

 I think she liked her cake....

 We met Grandma at her house and had a fun celebration for Ruby. Ruby has a special place in her heart for her Grandma! Papa and Grandma got her bracelets, necklaces, rings, crowns, and some fun toys. Thanks for celebrating with us Papa and Grandma!

Firsts

First time riding his bike with no training wheels.

Andrew wanted to ride his bike without training wheels so bad. He kept begging me to take them off but I couldn't help him learn right then so I told him he'd have to wait until his dad got home. That wasn't good enough for him so he went and borrowed the neighbors bike that was bigger and had no training wheels and taught himself. I walked outside to check on him and he was coming down the sidewalk all by himself saying "Watch Mom!" He wanted to prove that he was ready right then to take them off. So when Gilbert got home from work we took the training wheels off and off he went. He was a pro from the get go. Spring of 2013.

Spring 2013

  First garden....
We got a plot in our neighborhood garden and thought we'd give it a go. We loved having a garden and here's what we learned after our first year:
1. We love carrots!
2. Carrots last forever.
3. Watering everyday is much harder than you would think.
4. We don't water enough to keep lettuce sweet.
5. Broccoli grows crazy.
6. Ruby loves sugar snap peas.
7. We could never have enough strawberries. We always fought over who got the prized few we had grow.
8. You never know what you're going to get growing in a neighborhood garden. ie: green beans/ a turnip. Thanks to our great neighbors the Bohnes. #funsurprise!
9. We could never grow enough tomatoes.
10. Cucumbers need more space. But they were very sweet.
11. We love having a garden!

Before

After

Better Late Than Never :)

A quick recap....... I haven't blogged in way too long and I have decided it's my favorite way to journal. It helps me remember the details of life better than anything else so I am going to do a quick catch up and then blog our life as is happens. The ups and the downs, and mostly the memories I never want to forget.......

Ruby LOVES eating snow. If she is ever out in the snow this is what she's doing always! I learned no matter how hard I try I can't stop her from eating it so I tried to teach her how to pick which snow is better to eat. (Winter of 2013 at Papa's house)

 We got to visit family is St. George a few times last year. This is one of the times and we went with Grandpa Rowley to his farm. He let Andrew drive the tractor (which you can't see him) and gave us a fun ride in the bucket of the tractor all around the farm. It was a fun ride and Andrew was a great driver.

 Gilbert went Tiger Muskee fishing a handful of times last year. This is one of his best that he caught. He even took us along a couple times.

 I have always dreamed of becoming a runner..... One of those that love/ enjoy running. I decided I need to get good at it first and then maybe I will love it. I have always hated running. I wish that wasn't true but there's nothing about it that I like. So last year I really wanted to get in shape before getting pregnant again so Gilbert would go on his daily runs and then on his third or fourth lap (his cool down) I would run with him. He would give me good pointers and help me with the mental game of running. My overall goal was to become mentally strong and since running is always something I have struggled with I thought it was a good place to start. Gilbert helped me A LOT! He is very encouraging and patient. I wanted something to work toward to we both signed up for a 5k. Gilbert took second place (even with a handful of high school runners and a couple college runners). After Gilbert finished he came back and finished it with me. My goal was to run the whole thing but in the end my knee gave out on me and I could barely walk. Gilbert talked me through finishing. Thanks Babe! Someday I am going to run a whole 5k. I know that's a small mile marker for most but for me it will be a great accomplishment. My friend Katie Watson also went running with me a lot and did the 5k with me. She is in much better shape so at the end I told her to finish strong when my knee gave out. She was a great running companion too.

 Papa Oldham's house...

 Andrew's first experience of soccer. 2013....

 Ruby enjoyed the flowers as much as the game.

 This is where we live... 2011- 20? This is actually the house across the street from us. This sis our view. We have loved living in The Springs and  mostly the awesome neighbors and friends we have made here.

 Camping at Newton. This is one of the times Gilbert took us fishing with him and we camped overnight. The kids loved it! Fishing, climbing trees, roasting marshmallows, campfires, looking at the stars, throwing rocks, getting soaked, and enjoying being together.

 Papa Oldham's house and all the fun we have there.....