May

May has been a crazier month between baseball, allergies, sheetrock, colds, babies, church callings, graduations... Summer came so fast!

It was too soon that we had to start mowing the lawn, BUT we soon found that Dawson loved to do this! It's gonna be a good summer for this mamma not having to mow. 

 Dawson started baseball this month and he is doing so well! We is starting to learn how to pitch and is playing a lot of 3rd base. He normally has played 1st, but we are finding he is really good at pitching and at playing third. He hits so good and is such a good sport. We had my nephew James and his wife Nicole come to Holden one day and work with Dawson on hitting and catching. It was so cool for Dawson. :)

Dawson also had his school program. He said he didn't like his dance because the girls had to sit on the boys' laps. lol! Such a funny kid!

J.D. got another handy man job putting in over 800 ft of trim. He painted it first and set some of it on the trampoline to dry. the next morning Monty found his way to the trampoline... without clothes. I swear I can't keep clothes on this kid! It's impossible, but makes for some cute pics!

 We had registered to do a walk for this support group for families that have lost infants, SHARE FAMILIES. It was so cool to go to!

 We made poster for Andee and then had a short ceremony before the walk. Dawson had a lot of tears which made a lot of others have tears.

 J.D. had a really neat way of looking at this walk. He said that we never will get to go to dance recitals, or games for Andee. This walk was her thing that we could go to every year and sacrifice time to travel to cedar, eat out, and do something for her and for other families that have experienced this same thing. It made it feel so different viewing it from that perspective.

 We each got a balloon and let them go with a note for each baby.

 We went to eat at the Pasta Factory afterwards. Monty stepped onto the back of a high chair and it immediately tipped back. The impact of the high chair did damage to the front of his face, and then a huge goose egg on the back. Poor kid screamed so loud the entire restaurant went silent.

 Monty has been doing so good with potty training. We tried every bribe in the book and it turns out, a piece of bubble gum is what did the trick. He loves his paw patrol underwear and that helped as well. He sometimes will wear diapers if we travel or go to someone's house, but other than that he does amazing. He will bring me underwear or a diaper and hide it behind his back and say, "Mom.... I got a surprise for you!" I have to respond, "What's my surprise?" (If I don't say it right he corrects me before continuing.) Monty then says, "It's a present......" I say, "What's my present?"  He says, " It's a .......... diaper/underwear!" And then he throws it at me. I giggle everytime and Monty says, "It makes you laugh all the time Jenny." Yep, my kid calls me Jenny and calls J.D., "J.D." It really makes us laugh so much. He has also told us recently that he hates his hair white and wants black hair like mine. Mine isn't black, just dark brown. He is super tan and without being able to keep clothes on him, he is tan everywhere already! Summer hasn't even started! Monty did get a sunburn one day and I said, "Well, if you would keep clothes on this wouldn't happen." He didn't care...

We got a call that night saying my dad had been burned really bad from the hose popping off from the oil tank while unloading. 3rd degree burns. It's so sad and just makes me hurt seeing the picture.

 I decided to experiment with Hazyn's hair and had so much fun doing topsy tails. It still amazes me how much hair she has!

 Hazyn is running all over the place. She is getting so much personality. She has 10 teeth! She is a big grinner and loves getting scared and scaring us! She runs and chases Monty all day. She shakes her finger and says, "No, No, no!" She also said, "Mom! Daddy! Monty, Daws, hi, now, and Katie." She says Katie because my friend Katie is always trying to get her to say it. Hazyn LOVES outdoors and wants to go on a walk whenever she can. She wonders and wonders and loves to touch and feel everything that the outdoors have to offer. She is a big time cuddler, and still is nursing. She is pretty stubborn and throws a fit on the floor if she doesn't like something or doesn't get her way. She will go to a pike and scream, then fall, roll over, kick her legs, and scream so more. It's more funny than sad.

She is a big time daddy's girl and always prefers J.D. over me anytime of the day. She is sleeping pretty good, but is in a habit of waking up at 3:00 am because that's when J.D. leaves for work. She is a light sleeper and can hear him leave.

My little Monty is such a trooper when it comes to brushing his teeth. He loves to watch me while I brush my teeth and copy my actions. He always asks, "Are my teeth white enough yet?"

He is also learning quickly how to do things he sees to be challenging. He is determined to at least try!

The last day of school, as usual, we always have the holden kids ride their bikes from Fillmore to Holden on the frontage road. It was SO hot, but Dawson made it! He is such a trooper. I sprayed the kids with the hose as they passed by our friend Sandra Wood's home. 

While we waited for bike riders to come, my kids got to ride it around at Sandra's house too. 

Sweet little Hazy hasn't quite figured it out yet.. but she looks so cute trying! 

 May was full of graduations as well. We were able to go to Parker's graduation last minute thanks to another student providing extra tickets for us, and a last minute babysitter who was willing to come in a half hour after calling her. It was so fun to see him graduate and be decorated with so many honors. Also! It was a night out without kids, which is always needed once in a while. 

 We went to Kanab to watch Rylee graduate from middle school. She didn't seem very enthusiastic about the whole thing, but we got hugs afterwards. :) 

 We immediately had to drive straight to the high school after Rylee's graduation, to see Layno graduate! He was loaded with money, smiles, tears, and so many hugs. Dawson was pretty proud to be related to such a popular guy! 

 The next week was memorial day. We love the tradition of feet on the headstone with Andee's feet impressions. The kids loved taking their shoes off on a hot day and running around. It's fun to let them decorate her grave as well. We ate breakfast at the town pavilion right before, and just enjoyed taking a day off. 

 These sweet little feet! The saying is perfect and goes a long way for each of my kiddos. 

 I have to take pictures of this little man because he is so animated, and full of more personality than we ever thought possible. 

 I never want to forget how much he makes us laugh. 

 He probably could come up with over a 100 facial expressions in less than 5 minutes. I just can't snap the camera fast enough! 

 And to add to his expressions... his hair is so light weight and static. 

 The last thing we did in May was go to Dawson's pinewood derby! He took 4th place! He was a pretty proud kid. He loves scouts, and loves projects with his dad. 

Lastly,  J.D. is getting closer to just running the handyman business. We are focused on the end of summer to just solely do handyman. It should be excited and much better for our family. I am doing babysitting whenever I am needed and making some extra money on the side. Every little bit helps. I'm hoping to be able to work in the schools once all the kids are in school. Then I can start saving for J.D. and I to go on a mission one day.

It's been a crazy month, but we are so ready for summer!