Preschool Graduation

Yesterday was Simon's preschool graduation. He will still go to preschool next year, but they have the graduation for everyone. It was really fun for me, because I went to Miss Margene's preschool when I was Simon's age. It's actually strange to think that I was there for preschool, and now my son is! Simon LOVED preschool. I think what he loved most of all was that he got to go with Collin. Anyway, they sang some songs, showed us how they know all of their letters, and the sounds they make. Then they went up to Miss Margene and got their diplomas.

Simon is so smart. He knows all of his letters, how to write them, and the sounds they make. He can also write his numbers 1-20. He can count to 40, and he knows how to write his first and last name! We are so blessed to have Simon in our family. We are so glad that he loves to learn, and loves to go to school. Let's hope he stays that way! He is such a sweet boy. We are so proud of him and we just love him to death! Here are a few pictures from the graduation...

Weekend Getaway

On Friday, Ben took the day off work. Can you believe it? He actually took a day off!! It was fantastic. His friend Steve, from work, owns a cabin in Heber. So Steve's family and our family spent the night "camping" in their cabin. (which, might I add, is nicer than our home!) On Thursday night, Simon asked Ben if he would buy a tent for him and Nolan to sleep in while we were camping. Ben explained to him, that we were going to be inside, in a cabin. Simon thought for a second, and said, "Daddy, can we sleep in a tent in the cabin?" So, while we were at Walmart getting a few things for our trip, we bought a little tent for the boys. They were thrilled! We had so much fun. The boys LOVED to run around outside. And Bella loved the dirt. She was an absolute mess, but she sure had a great time! Steve and Shannon have three super cute kids. Their oldest, Aubrey, is ten, and she just loved to play with and hold Bella. She also took all of the kids around the cabin on the four wheelers. She is such a sweet girl. We drove the four wheelers down to a little lake/pond, where Ben caught some frogs and a salamander. There was also a cool swing that someone had set up. I couldn't believe it, but Simon even took a ride! I thought he would be too chicken. It went pretty high off the ground. All in all, it was a fun little weekend getaway with the family. We always love it when Ben takes time off work to hang out with us, and I just LOVE being in the mountains! Now I just need a cabin!

Mother's Day

My Mother's Day this year came a little early. On Thursday, I went to a Relief Society activity, and Ben stayed with the kids. When I got home, the garage door was locked. I knocked, and I could hear Simon saying, "I want to open it...can I open it now?" He ran to the door, opened it, and immediately said, "Mom! Come find your presents!" There was Ben, coming up right behind him saying, "No Bud, don't say anything!" After a lot of pleading from Simon, Ben let Simon tell me where they were. He led me down to the basement, and straight to the toy box. He opened it up, reached in, grabbed the treat and said, "Mommy, can I have one of your treats?" How do you say no to that cute little stinker?

Simon just isn't very good at keeping things secret. At Christmas, I made the mistake of buying Ben a present with Simon. As soon as Ben came home from work, Simon said, "Come on Daddy, mommy hid your present upstairs!" If you don't want somebody to know about a present, you make sure that Simon knows nothing about it.

Mother's Day (yesterday) was great too! We went to church and had lunch with my mom, and had dinner with Ben's mom. Every year, Ben's mom has one picture taken of her and her kids, one with her, her children and their spouses, and one with her and the grandkids. I also took some pictures of Simon and Nolan, since I had my camera out! They turned out very well! I hope that all of the mother's had a great day!

Monkeys in a Cage

This weekend, I'd have to say, was the best weekend...ever. We are trying to put our backyard together this year. We have a VERY small backyard, so it shouldn't be too bad. On Saturday, we spent the day raking up the truck loads of rocks. Luckily, we had most of Ben's family come over. I'm sure that they had as much fun as Ben and I did! While we were all outside, we turned on some music. Simon, Nolan and Bauer sat by the radio and danced away. Simon was just sitting there taping his toes, and every once in a while he would pretend he was playing a guitar. They were sooo cute. So, we raked up the rocks, and then Ben bought everybody Cafe Rio, YUMMY! We bought Timber (our dog) a little dog run to put on the side of the house, and when we got it set up, the boys had a fun time playing inside of it. Grandpa Bliss called them monkeys in a cage, and that is just what they were. They loved to climb up the sides. We all had a rip roarin' time! Anyway, thanks to everyone who came to help with the rocks! It would have taken Ben and I a week to do what we all did in one day! We really appreciate all of the help. We look forward to seeing everyone again next Saturday! (wink wink nudge nudge)

The Ben Face

I just LOVE this picture. Doesn't Simon just look so grown up? This is what I like to call...the Ben face. Simon makes this face every time he is concentrating on something. I call it the "Ben face" because that's just what it is...the face that Ben makes when he's fixing something, cooking something, putting something together, or doing anything that requires thought and concentration. I love seeing little pieces of Ben and myself in our children. It's so funny to me, because we didn't teach them how to do things like us...they just do. I see it in their facial expressions, the way they talk, and even in the way they move their hands while they tell a story. This 'Ben face' is a classic example. I'm so grateful that Ben is such a great man and father, for his boys to look up to. If Simon and Nolan can turn out like their father, they will certainly be lucky.

Crawling

Our pretty Bella started crawling three weeks ago! This is great because she can entertain herself. It's also bad, because she can get places on her own. She goes around finding the tiniest little pieces of anything left on the floor, and they go straight to her mouth. No more leaving her sitting on the floor playing! The poor thing has already crawled off my mom's bed, and has fallen down the stairs. I guess I'm a bad mom...letting her hurt herself. After a few days, she figured out that she can get where she wants pretty fast. It's pretty fun to watch her. She looks so darn cute. It's also very strange. It seems like she was just born last month! She has perfected her crawling skills since then...now she's trying to climb up stairs and stand up to tables...yikes! I will post a video of her crawling the day she figured it out...I have to wait until Ben can help me though. I'm not that computer savvy!