Summer Update

So, I've kind of dropped off the face of the earth for a few months, but I have a few pictures to prove we are alive and not hermits.

June: Ganon finished his MBA program. Hooray!

Connelly Family Reunion in Rigby. What a great balance of camping and civilization! We slept in a tent but had real bathrooms, kitchen supplies, shelter, etc. Our family loved spending time with the cousins!

Here are a bunch of us before our hike.

July: David turned 7, Rebecca turned 5, We celebrated our 8th Anniversary.

My sister and parents came to visit so we spent some time at the pool. We even got each of the kids to go on the "big slide." They have learned to love the pool this summer.

David and Rebecca celebrated their birthdays with a big friend water party! I think we counted 22 friends! We had sprinklers, a kiddie pool with slide, a slip-n-slide, a mini-tramp, water guns, and the most popular water bottle rocket launcher. It was a blast!!

August: Ganon Graduated with his MBA! He also celebrated a birthday and went to Youth Conference with the youth in our ward. I think they had fun...

We said farewell to Summer with a Hike up the Y. Here we are at the top (well, the bottom of the Y but the top as far as we were concerned.) Look at those happy faces!

We made good time on the way up so this is actually us on our favorite rock on our way back down. We had to wait for the sun to come up over the mountain. The three oldest walked the whole way up! My calves hurt for the next week, but otherwise I think it was a successful hike. School has started and we are getting into a Fall Routine. What are ya'll up to?

Finally A Master

After two very long years, Ganon has officially graduated with his Master in Business Administration from BYU!! We just received his actual diploma making it officially official. Ganon did an amazing job of balancing a full-time job, difficult church assignments, long nights in class, group projects, endless case studies, and a growing family. We are very proud of Ganon and his many accomplishments. Congrats!

His happy fan club.

Walking to his seat with his Diploma Cover. He got to sit on the front row so we didn't have to wait FOREVER for his turn.

Showing off the yummy leis the kiddos gave him.

Bath Snugglers

Our kiddos, like most, love playing in water. This is a good thing and a bad thing. It gets them to play outside, which is wonderful, but it also makes it so they change clothes about 10 times a day.
The other day our good friends the Wests invited us over to enjoy their pool. Charity and "Baby Isaac" were very generous to let us take over their pool. They even shared yummy popcicles with us. Baby Isaac was okay with it especially when we let him use my new Bath Snuggler.
TJ, like Isaac, likes to snuggle. Especially after bath time. Unfortunately, I usually bathe the kiddos on Sunday morning or Saturday night. In an effort to make it easier to get the kids bathed without getting me all wet, I decided to make a Bath Snuggler. It is a towel with a hood on one corner and a hole for my head on the other. I can wear it while I bathe them and then my church clothes don't get soaked. Then TJ and I get to snuggle (at least for a minute before the next child fights for the towel).

Another handy feature is that the towel can be wrapped around those that are more interested in running around and spraying people than snuggling (this is Isaac acting as the model).

Okay, so I don't really want this to sound like I'm selling you something, but I am thinking about selling them on Etsy. So, I would really like it if you left in a comment your opinion about the Bath Snuggler. On a scale of one to ten: 1 is "I would never buy That!" and 10 is "Wow! I want one of those right now! Can you make one for me please?" Other comments, opinions would be most appreciated as well.

Helpers

Sometimes the kids do really well with helping. Ganon taught David how to wash dishes. David taught Rebecca how to help. I think they may need another lesson, but I appreciate their willingness to try.

TJ, of course, isn't much help yet. The older three enjoy taking care of him. David will keep him happy while I shower in the morning or while I'm making dinner. Sarah makes sure he doesn't play with things that aren't his, and shows him how to use his own toys. Rebecca sings to him when he is sad.

Sometimes it is obvious that we've been stuck inside too long. While TJ was sick with RSV and his double ear infection the girls were less helpful. The white stuff is the rest of the baby powder. They helped me clean up the mess. (FYI, baby powder swept into the cracks of hardwood floor doesn't decrease the squeaking.)

When it's time for bed David gets to read to his sisters while I get TJ ready. Sometimes he turns on a movie on the iPod instead. While not as educational, I'm grateful that no one is crying. He is at least helping everyone calm down.

This is just a pic I took of the girls in the dresses I made for them in January. Thanks to Kelly for the fabric shower curtain I "repurposed."

Weather

This picture of the girls was taken on March 1st. They are enjoying the warmer weather. I'm more willing to let them play on the playground at David's school while we wait to pick him up.
In contrast, this picture of the van was taken the last week of February. It was the last hard snow of the year. I thought a picture of it would remind me to be grateful when I think it is "super coldy" and 50* outside. I'm working on being grateful for all seasons... but I'm most grateful for Spring.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas, Everyone!! We thought we'd share our Holiday Season with you by sharing a few pictures. Above are Rebecca and Sarah ready for the Sunday Christmas Program (the Children sang a special number at church). Thanks, Heather, for the matching "princess Christmas dresses."

Ganon took the three oldest to the Ward Christmas Party. Here they are "with Santa." Papa may remember a similar visit with Santa at BYU that resulted in tears. This picture was as close as they could get and still have three smiles.
Here the girls are enjoying their new magna-doodles. T.J. is enjoying his letter and shape barn. David is not in this shot because he is busy "spending" his iTunes App. Certificate. He got to pick out $10 in "Engineering" games for the iPod. Thanks, Grammie and Grandpa!
Ganon got a new Aloha Shirt for Christmas. It isn't a reyn spooner, but he likes it anyhow. The sleeves are even the same length. My gifts are not pictured here, but Ganon gave me some new tools as well as a healthy supply of paper plates and bowls. Now I can use disposable dishes if I don't want to do dishes (or I've been too busy using my tools to wash dishes...). Thanks, Ganon! They're perfect!

As a fun closer, here is a movie of T.J. the day after he learned to crawl. It also has him scooting at the beginning. He still uses the two skills together to get where the party is.

We're grateful for the wonderful year that we've had. Ganon continues to work hard at BYUB, at BYU's MBA Program, and at serving in the Bishopric. I try to maintain sanity as I take care of the house and little people. David loves First Grade and is loving learning new things. Rebecca is attending BYU Preschool and continually comes home with a new song that she learned. Sarah enjoys helping me with the laundry and taking care of T.J. Thomas James joined our family on April 8th and continues to make us smile. He wakes up happy every day and has figured out how to move around the house. Next goal: walking!

We look forward to all of the exciting things coming in the next year and are excited to share as much with all of you as possible. We hope you are all well and wish you all the best for this coming year.

Trafalga- Lehi

Sometimes working for BYU has its perks. They sponsored a BYU family day at Trafalga. We all got in for free. There was never more than a five minute line. dIt was pretty sweet. They had a little train (the favorite event I think) that went around in circles. The kids also liked the game of mini-golf, the inside play land, and watching me climb the rock wall. David enjoyed the race car track (he beat the other 3 girls), but Rebecca was done after one lap. David and Rebecca watched Sarah, Ganon and me go on the Airplanes. Sarah and I also went on the Carousel. I think Sarah had the most fun of all the kids. She wasn't afraid of anything. It was also nice to go somewhere for free and be able to test out their boundaries. David is probably still not ready for much at DL, but Sarah might be.
The Dakota Divide boat ride was a little intense for David, but the girls went a second time.
David LOVED the bumper boats. Sarah tolerated them. I love my son so I agreed to go with him. Rebecca and Ganon watched while keeping Tommy dry for the spray of stray "bullets."
Sarah and Rebecca took turns "bouncing" on this ride behind us. Sarah was still smiling at the end, but Rebecca wasn't as sure about it.