June

June was such a fun month. We had all sorts of fun family things going on. 

We got to go to Rock Springs Wyoming to see my brother Chad. We got to see his girls dance, and watch Chase play in a baseball game! 

I watched all the kids one day and we went to a park right near their house. 

 We also had a picnic! Monty's best friend was Bressie :)

Monty also got a quick X-ray for his foot at my brother's new office! It was so fast and so easy! We were in and out with no crying! So not worth ever going to any other doctor for a foot problem. He was cheaper and it was a much better experience! 

Next, my brother got married to my best friend growing up, Brie! I can hardly believe her name is Brie Shelley now. It's been 18 years since my brother Chad got married and Jamie has been our only sister in law for so long. Finally we have another sister in law and another niece and nephew. For me, they have always been so close like family. Brie and I have stayed such good friends all of these years. It still kinda weirds me out to watch them kiss. haha!

Thursday while packing, I had written down to check and make sure we had our temple recommends on my list the day before. I went to do that and realized both of our temple recommends were expired! J.D. was on his way home from work, it's 4 pm and he is calling to figure it out while driving. A bishopric member would meet with us as soon as J.D. got home, BUT it was stake temple night so not one member of the stake presidency was home. They all went to Manti. However, I am so grateful that the stake president holds the power of discernment so he doesn't HAVE TO interview. He felt that J.D. and I were both worthy and called the temple for us so we could watch my brother get married.

We drove down Thursday night, stayed in Primm, NV and then drove the rest of the way early Friday morning. With Hazyn and Monty, we needed to stop so they could get a good rest. The kids were so so good on the way down. I am so blessed to have such amazing kids pull through when I am worried the most. We all went to Sea World the day before the wedding. Our kids could not get enough of it. We went on rides and saw all the animals. Hazyn just went through the whole day calm and happy.

We got to see the Killer Whale show one last time before they shut it down...

It was SO fun seeing our family all over the park. Sea World was so much more fun than Disney Land. So many cool (shady) places to sit and chilled exhibits to walk through. With a 2 month old baby, it couldn't have worked out better.

This is Blake and Monty watching the killer whales swim.

We got a picture of Dawson at this age when we went to Sea World before, so had to get one with Monty :-)

That night we had a HUGE BBQ by the ocean. Our hotel was right on the beach and ocean! Everyone walked over and had a chance to visit and get to know each other. Our kids didn't even make it to that, they were so tired they fell asleep as soon as we got back from Sea World. J.D. and I switched places, one watched the kids while the other went to the BBQ to eat and then we swapped after a bit. It felt like home having a BBQ so chillax.

They got married June 11th in the San Diego temple. It was so perfect. We had a photographer that knew our whole family and took pics so fast. The sealing was definitely for choc and Brie. He related marriage and family to a basketball team. SO CHOC! Brie kept pulling faces that were hilarious! When the sealer said "eternity" she got big eyes and a scared faced, then she would cheese it so big, laugh, and so on. Choc would wink at her and smile so cute. The sealer said afterwards, "I've never had a couple winking and smiling at each other before" and we all busted up. It was a pretty neat thing to watch Choc get married finally. Especially to the girl of his dreams. She was almost too close the whole time growing up we all missed it that they were going to be sealed one day.

Matt making faces at Monty!

Rylee, Sari, and Jessi waiting in the cold wind. 

My Uncle Dennis and my dad (two out of the three kids- Uncle Gary died age 13)

Mrkynlee and Monty playing while we wait for Brie and Choc to come out of the Temple.

And here I am- my mom went around taking pics of everyone....

We went to eat pizza afterwards and then it was just more relaxing after that. J.D. took Dawson to the ocean to play. I tried to nap which didn't happen. 

Once Monty went down for a nap, Hazyn woke up... I visited with my Grandma and took some pics.

Later that evening, I went out to the beach by myself since I hadn't been down to the ocean yet. I wanted to put my feet in the cold water once again. It was so peaceful. So many people just sitting and watching the waves roll in.

.D. and I even got a date! Saturday night, at 11 pm, my brother Chad sat with the kids while J.D. and I walked the pier. It went about 300 yards out over the ocean. It was so nice and peaceful. 

Here we are, out over the ocean and San Diego behind us.

We went to bed and the next morning J.D. took both boys down to the ocean. 

Monty said the water was too cold so he just played in the sand. 

Dawson couldn't get enough of the ocean!

 It was cold, but the idea of being in the ocean was so worth it!

 Dawson and Carson spent most of their time looking for seashells. Dawson found a sand dollar!

We then packed up around 1 and headed home. Chad had to drive clear to Rock Springs, so we needed to get going. I wish we could have spent just a little bit longer down there, but 2 days was all we got and we made the most of it!

We had Hazyn's 2 month check up! She got a couple shots and is doing so good! She is in the 23rd percentile for weight and 80th of height. She is in the 40th percentile for head circumference. She is smiling more and more everyday. She can hold her head so well and is the best sleeper. She is getting to know Dawson a lot more since he watches her while I get things done. He loves to watch her smile. The boys are always arguing over who gets to hold her. They love her so much.

The rest of June we have been trying to do more summer fun things. Dawson does his Summer Bridge  book and reads every day. We went swimming, working on the garden, mowing the lawn, watering everything, running through sprinklers, sleeping on the trampoline, camping, and baking lots of goodies and bread. Oh! and sleeping in!! 

We headed up the canyon again and had some dutch oven potatoes! It was so stinking' hot even up there, we didn't stay long. 

Monty found the pepsi's!

 I got a selfie with Dawson and Hazyn!

 J.D. watched the potatoes most of the time and was teaching Dawson as well how to cook this heavenly meal.

 We did finally get to eat, and then we were ready for a nap!

 Monty has this thing with his ears... noise or even water from a bath bothers him so bad! The bugs were flying so close to him, he would scream from the sound. So we put on some headphones and he was a much happier kid. 

J.D. was headed to work on the morning of the 20th. I woke up at 3:40, fed Hazyn and then went to pump the other side. I was just finishing and I heard my phone ringing. I ran to answer and said, "Hey hold on." I had to finish putting myself back together and putting the pump away. I get back on the phone and I say, "are you okay, whats up?" I was just thinking he needed someone to talk to because he was tired. He said, "No, I just rolled the car." My response, "Are you serious?" J.D. "Yes, I don't need a guilt trip." lol I said, "I'm not, I just didn't think you were serious. Are you okay? " J.D. "Yes, but do I call the police? I mean, I'm okay and totally fine." Me "Um yes. (lol) we need the police report for the insurance. So call 911. Then call your boss. Then call me back."

We hang up. 15 minutes later I still haven't heard from him. So I call, and call, and call 3 more times. No answer. My heart was racing. I thought he passed out or something from shock. Finally J.D. calls back and we just chatted while the cops came. He had just looked down for a split second and looked up to see the road had turned and he was going straight into a post. He swerved and ended up on the other side of the road and the car on its side. He hit sage brush which tipped the car on its top and he finally came to a stop. We realized afterwards that a bunch of tools were in the back seat and not 1 came flying towards the front seats. I think there were many angels watching over him at that time.

So, that has led us to a new car. With our budget, we decided to get two cars under 10,000 so we can be more secure financially. So we got two used vehicles and pray everyday they will last as long as our sweet malibu. We came into that car one day as our Saturn stopped running. We literally rolled into the car dealership and left with this joy. It gave us 150,000 miles and no major problems at all. She cost us only$10,000, so were are hoping the same luck with what we have now. We had so many wonderful memories with that car and we will miss her so much. We brought every baby home in that car. I guess since we are done having kids, we are forced to be done with the malibu.

We had Choc and Brie's reception in Cedar City. I didn't take any pics, but we had a lot of fun!  Two days after that, Hazyn ROLLED! I caught it on video!! 

The entire month J.D. worked so much. He worked his regular job, and then did tons of Handy Man stuff. We hardly saw him unless we worked with him finishing a house here in Holden. J.D. and I were making enough to pay the bills, but we were on a really strict budget for gas and food. We just weren't comfortable with the situation and kept trying to figure out a way we could cut back, but there just wasn't anything else we could sell or cut back on. The day J.D. prayed for opportunity to come our way to better our situation was the day he got a phone call to come to the finish work on this home here in Holden. It has truly been a blessing. We have been able to get the tires needed for the car, go to San Diego, and get a few necessities that we needed to build our food storage back up in case we find ourselves tight financially again. It has been a major sacrifice for J.D. to not be able to spend very much family time with us, but it's something we are learning to get along with. Dawson is will go and work with J.D., and I'm finally getting to a point with the baby that I can go and help him finish the work a little faster and we get to spend time together. We thank Heavenly Father every day for these handy man opportunities that come our way.

We did swim a few times. However, we could not take our eyes off of our little dare devil Monty. He went bolting towards the big pool and was leaping into it as the life guard caught him. She saw me running and yelling stop, and caught him in the knick of time. This has led us to swim lessons for the little rascal. I know he is only 2, but we are going to start him with me teaching him when J.D. can come swimming. Next year we will probably pay for real swim lessons. He loves the water and is so fearless.

We spent many evenings sitting with Grandma Marjorie and talking. She loves to hold Hazyn and see her outfits. The boys give her lots of loves and Dawson always kisses her cheek when we say goodbye.

 We love dressing up Hazyn in summer clothes! She is so cute and her hair is to die for! 

 Our favorite is to see her smile and scrunch her nose! She really makes you feel so special when she smiles at you. The boys love getting her to smile for them and telling me about it. 

 This outfit is from my friend Kathy in Glendive. It's a moo moo from Hawaii!! I love it!! 

 While Dawson is out playing with friends, we sit in the living room and watch Hazie Bug. Monty will sit and talk to her for what seems to be a long time. He is always so proud of her and every little movement she makes. 

June flew by and then July flew by faster!

May

May flew right by us... I can't believe it's over. Now onto the summer! We didn't see J.D. very much this last month. He was hired to do some finish work on the Lemon's home here in holden. It was an answer to our prayers as we try to pay off our medical bills. He would leave at 3 am, work 8-9 hours at his regular job, then come home for1-2 hours to nap, then go work on the Lemon's until 9. By that time we were all in bed. It's been a struggle not seeing him, but the money has helped us. We hope he can find more work after it's all done so we can continue getting things paid off.

Dawson's last month of school he has done amazing. He was sent home with scores telling us he is well into a 2nd grade reading level, and is testing beyond average for his age. He is one of the top ten in his class academically. He loves getting 100's! We are so proud of him and who he continues to become. He makes so many friends and is always pushing for good sportsmanship. He started baseball and is already progressing so much there. He loves baseball and loves to here more about Babe Ruth. lol! It's pretty funny to watch him get so into baseball history. Dawson has also been a HUGE help with the kids. He will hold Hazyn all the time while i get things done, and he has been so good to teach Monty new things. Just this morning, they both woke up early and Dawson knew not to wake me. So he woke up J.D. and asked if him and Monty could go out on the trampoline. They went out with blankets and pillows and watched the sunrise. I can't wait for Monty to get older so he can do more things with Dawson.

This is all of Dawson's certificates and projects he brought home the last day of school.

Dawson did have his school program this month and danced to Foot Loose. It was AWESOME! He is such a dang cute kid and dancer. My mom made it up to watch and was so impressed with the whole program. I only recorded the dance, and it wouldn't up load to here because of the length :(

Monty is as crazy as ever. That kid is so dang active, I can hardly keep up by the end of the day. Let's just say I sleep so good once I'm asleep because I'm so tired. Every night he loves to put on his 'jammas' and he will sleep in his bed all night! Such a difference from Dawson when he was that age. Once in bed he will say, "I need twinkle twinkle" which means he wants me to sing Twinkle Twinkle little start to him. He wakes up and will say, "I need a change! I pee'd!" lol! He loves to brush his teeth and get his vitamins. Then he says, "I need my dress" which means he wants clothes on so he can go outside and play. He is such a good kid. He is definitely quick to change his temperament and when he's mad he keeps saying "I not! I not!" or "I didn't! I didn't!"He is super quick to repeat everything we say. It's so much fun listening to him talk more and more. He loves his Hazyn and always wants to help burp her, feed her (which he can't and hasn't figured out yet), and hold her. He loves to do EVERYTHING Dawson does.

Hazyn is doing so good. Next month she has her 2 month check up and we will get to see where her stats are at. She seems so long to me. She is wearing 3-6 month clothes which seems a little early for a 1 month old kid. She has SO MUCH hair too! She sleeps at night and only wakes up 1 time! I can't believe I finally got my sleeper baby. I need it that's for sure. She wakes up every morning at 7 and is full of so many smiles. Then the rest of the day, it's not likely to catch her smiling. Hopefully she will start to more and more as time goes on. There is just no way J.D. and I could have a non smiley baby. haha! We were both known as 'the kid who never stops smiling' growing up.

We celebrated Grandma Marjorie's 101st Birthday! She is such an amazing person and continues to teach me more things every day. She is so patient and kind. I love being around her and the peace that follows. 

 Loni made her cake and there was plenty for everyone! Seeing Grandma so happy is the best.

 

We had Hazyn's blessing this month on the 15th, and most of the family was able to make it which made for a big blessing circle!  

Before we got to the church, J.D. and I wanted to stop and see Grandma before anyone else did and before all the craziness of the rest of the family wanting to hold her, being at church, and getting through the luncheon. 

When Grandma saw J.D. I and the baby come in, she immediately started crying. It's one of the moments I won't ever forget. She was so happy and it meant so much to her that we would come before church and think of her. She shows her gratitude so much and is so genuine. I hope I can be like that someday. 

What I remember from the blessing is that she would come to know the atonement and the love Heavenly Father has for her. She was blessed to be happy and make those around her happy, and the word peacemaker was mentioned. 

On a side note, I love thinking of a stream of light coming down from Heaven when the men place their hands on someone's head for a blessing. It truly is Heavenly Father speaking right then and there. I'm so grateful for the gospel and all the guidance we receive.

After the blessing we dressed Hazyn in the cutest white outfit that my sister Amy bought for her. She was so good and she was passed around so much! She hardly cried. 

We had the luncheon up at the church and everyone was so willing to help bring food. It helped J.D. and I so much. It was so nice to visit. We had so much help cleaning up. Our boys were in their glory with so many cousins to play with. 

After the luncheon, we had to deal with a flood in our basement. I will say, if it was going to flood I'm grateful it was on a weekend when everyone was here to help. lol! It was cleaned up in no time, and it jump started our renovations for the room. 

Memorial Day was a great day  for us. We went up and took pictures at the cemetery- some of my favorite. 

 Here are all of my kids' feet! I love it!

And then we went up on the mountain to have lunch and get away. 

It was so peaceful and no one else was up there!

Hazyn LOVES it outside. (All of my kids do)

We just had sandwiches and watermelon. 

J.D. took the boys for a little walk and Dawson went picture crazy.... If I would post all of the pics he took with a phone in 10 minutes, it would be over 100 photos...

 Later that month, Lucas called J.D. and wanted to go for a horse ride up the canyon. Dawson begged to go.

Tilden and Dawson rode the same horse and crossed over 15 streams! There was so much water coming. We are so grateful for the moisture we received. It helped us having a water share so we could jump start our garden. 

April

Obviously our month of April started out with Hazyn. :-) It was such a miracle and such a relief to get her here. We had many other things happen that month. Most of which was snuggling our sweet baby girl. I posted a lot of that on Hazyn's birth post. Here is what else was going on.

Dawson loves sneaking my phone and taking selfies. You can definitely say he was meant for this generation.

 Even at church.... 

 We went to Kanab the last weekend in April. It was there that Hazyn met Uncle Matt, and a bunch of family. 

 She met her cousin Rylee Jill,

 her cousin Layne

 who couldn't get enough of her,

 and her cousin Jessi,

 She did get to meet my sister Amy, and her other son James as well, but I didn't get pics. 

I will say, by the end of the month we all still couldn't believe how much hair she had and how big her eyes were. 

 I love getting pics with all three of these kids. I like to imagine that Andee is laying here as well. They are all so calm and happy hanging out in mom and dad's bed. 

 Also, on April 27th we had the honor of doing the horse and buggy for our good friend Janette and her husband! they had asked J.D. if he would drive them to the reception and take them home. It was the highlight of the night! Dawson dressed up so nice so he could ride with J.D. and we decorated the buggy as well! 

J.D. washed the horse and gave her a good bath. He had been training her all year long and finally got to show off his skills. 

 When they got back, Monty wanted a turn. So Dawson took him for a ride. I love that Dawson can get on a horse and take his little brother for a ride anytime now. If only he could lift the saddle up onto the horse, he could go whenever he wanted! One day he will... 

 That sums up the month for us. From there, life got only crazier and busier....