Time flies like an arrow

Fruit flies like a banana.

It's funny on so many levels. Or maybe just on two levels.

These first pictures somehow ended up in reverse order. So we're working back from general conference weekend to the beginning of the month. Then they start going in the proper order to the end of the month.

Nate and Jude enjoying a fake snack in front of a pile of dirty laundry. Just trying to keep it classy.

I played Lincoln Logs while I listened to conference. Sometimes I let the kids help. But mostly I hollered at them to keep away from my amazing creations. I'm proud of the outcome, but not of my behavior.

Now these two pictures really need to be swapped in order, but I don't feel like messing with it. Here's what happened: The kids wanted to play soccer outside. They begged Nate to join them. He went out, kicked the ball a time or two, and then blasted Gray right in the face and gave him a bloody nose. I think the bottom picture is right after he did it. Poor kid.

How Nate reads children's library books. Alone.

Gray was so delighted with some hand-me-downs that Heather sent to us. He is in love with these flip flops. He kept asking me who gave them to him. I would tell him they came from Cousin Bryant. Gray would say, "Bwywint gave these to me?! That's so nice of him!" He made me send this picture to Heather.

Gray making a huge mess with his frozen yogurt after a trip to the health food store. Gross.

A call this series of pictures "Boy with Blue Cube in Poor Lighting." Enjoy.

Oh how he loves to stand. He really is nuts with his physical skills. He's so small, yet so powerful!

On Friday the 11th I met up at a park with a couple of my best gals from high school. Really I think we've been friends since 8 or 9th grade. Its crazy now to think that we're all so old and growed up. (And I do mean growed up and not grown up.) And a big thanks to Stacey for bringing out her camera and taking some pictures of us!

Here's me and Britney and some of our kids.

And here's all of us who were there. Stacey Staheli White with her two, Ross (3) and Ruby (1). Me with Colin (5), Kate (4), Gray (2), and Jude (6 mo). Britney Richey Manning with her two, Levi (2) and Kylee (3 mo). And Hollie Jones Hunter with her three, Jefferson (6), Thomas (3), and Lucie (9 mo). Thanks Britney for getting us all together! It was so fun!

Some of my embarrassing drawings. Gray was demanding pictures at church. I asked him to describe who he wanted drawn, and then I did my best (REALLY! THAT'S MY BEST!) to draw what he said. I stink at drawing. Nate's pants are a bit exaggerated because I was teasing him about the pleats before church.

Gray also asked for a dragon. I only know how to draw one kind of dragon, and that's Trog-Dor.

Gray is a good helper. He doesn't get much done, because he gets stuck against the wall, but he loves to help. Jude loves to try and attack the vacuum.

Colin and Kate finally did it. They finally cute their own hair when I wasn't looking. Thankfully they both didn't do too badly. Kate cut her bangs quite a bit, as in before she didn't really have bangs and now she does. And Colin took a chunk out of the middle, but you couldn't really tell. We just buzzed his head and now it's all good.

Four kids, one stroller, one looooong walk. I has tired.

This is my friend Bekah's parent's backyard. I love it. I love it so much that I snuck back there and took some pictures of it while they were at work. (I asked permission first. Kind of.) I took pictures so I could show Nate what I would love to build in our backyard. I don't think we'll get anything nearly this awesome, but it's a good starting off point.

On the 18th, Colin's class had an egg drop. Mrs. Burr (the principal, and my old Creative Writing teacher from high school) dropped the projects off the roof of the school. And by dropped, I mean threw. She really launched them up into the air. Colin and Nate built a contraption, but it was unsuccessful. Faulty execution, I say. The idea was good though, because it came from me. I looked some stuff up on the internet, but apparently I didn't find the proper YouTube video like all the other parents did. Most of the projects were eerily similar.

Splat.

One of the wooden blocks that Nate used to secure the egg-in-nylon ripped free of the cardboard box. Oops.

Colin didn't want his picture taken afterward. He was a little bummed.

Jude is the worst napper in the world. The worst. He refused to sleep, and then crashed when we got to the park. He slept in that swing, despite the strong wind, for like 30 minutes. Don't worry, I stayed right by him.

Gray and his friend Zoe.

Easter! And by Easter I mean the day before Easter. I don't have many pictures. We went to an Easter Egg Hunt put on by our neighbor's ReMax company. There were a ton of people there. It was nuts. But the kids had fun on the bouncy houses, getting cotton candy and balloons, and generally running wild. The egg hunt part was a joke, but my kids each got a few eggs and everyone was happy and satisfied.

Gray is sporting a blue cotton candy beard here in this picture, if you couldn't tell.

We went straight to Caleb and Heather's new house in Bluffdale afterward for a family lunch. It was delicious. Papa and Uncle Caleb spent the whole time setting up bees in the backyard. Or back dirt area, to be more precise.

Gray was enchanted by the bees. He was a dedicated helper, following the other two around all afternoon. Papa even got out a beekeeper outfit for him.

My delicious dessert. I dipped strawberries in orange-colored white chocolate to make them look like carrots. Then I made a dirt dessert with chocolate pudding, cool whip, and cream cheese with crushed Oreos on the top. It was awesome. I ate way too much of it.

I don't know what's so special about the bottom of the exersaucer, but Jude loves it.

I love this picture. Gray was being so silly, and I loved it. We had a good laugh.

I love pictures of Jude gnawing on things. He's so happy. And focused. Also, he's adorable in cloth diapers.

Two teeth! So fun!