Look what I can do!

Colton's thoughts:

'It's amazing folks, I roll over from my back to my front, I prop myself up on my arms, and you would think I had conquered a country! My family giggles, claps, and pulls out that dreaded camera! Now if you will excuse me, I must do my duty and look cute for that crazy mama of mine; the things I do for those I love!'

Picture Post

Due to the fact that I have once again stayed up way too late, which is due to the fact that I don't sleep as well when Rich is gone; I will for tonight simply post a few pictures of brotherly love I have captured.

Okay, I feel guilty; here is also a video of Braden and Brooke rocking out (Brooke does most of the rocking), playing the paper guitars Braden made for them (you never know what he will create next).

*Just so you know, Brooke again created her fashion statement.

(don't forget to turn the music off at the bottom)

Brooke's Dance Recital

The weekly trips, the hours waiting at the dance studio, the money spent, all led up to this, the dance recital. Saturday morning Brooke had her first dance recital, and she LOVED IT! Mama and Elizabeth even drove down from South Carolina to be in attendance, which we were very grateful for! I think it would be accurate to say that she had zero stage fright; she was in heaven, and has since informed me that she wants to be on television. I don't know about that, but I can support another year of dance. Here are some pictures and video from the big day. Before you watch the video, let me explain; it is VERY poor in quality. The reason of the poor quality is this; we weren't supposed to bring video cameras, camera phones, or anything that remotely resembled a camera, so I sadly came unarmed. Once arriving at the recital though, I realized that very few parents decided to follow said rule; when I saw other parents whip out their Canons and Nikons, I was a little disappointed, but then I remembered my back-up, my saving grace, my wonderful, life saving, diaper bag camera.

It wasn't quite the same, but it would have to do. So, I whipped my little life saver out, handed it to Rich, and he got to work trying to capture the moments the best we could.

First up, pictures from the day, including some from our celebration lunch at Olive Garden, our quick stop at Homegoods, and pictures from the awards ceremony they had earlier this week at Brooke's dance class.

Next up, some videos from the recital. Again, these aren't the best, but they will have to do for now (we ordered a DVD of the performance).

First, here is a video from Brooke's tap dance; this is my all time favorite costume! I think it is adorable! I had issues with her ballet costume and the thin, see through fabric they had across her midriff, just saying. Brooke is the one next to last on the right, the one missing a black bow from one of her tap shoes; yeah, not quite sure what happened to the other one.

Here is a short video of part of Brooke's ballet performance; sorry about the head chopping at the end, Rich said he let the camera drift.

(Brooke is in the middle.)

Here is a video of the grand finale at the end, mainly just Brooke's class coming out, bowing, and sitting down.

(Brooke is the first one, the one holding the woman's hand.)

All in all, it was a great day!

World's Strictest Parents

Ever heard of the show World's Strictest Parents? I hadn't either, until I found out that the man who was the second counselor in the stake presidency (church stuff) and his family were going to be on it. Cool, huh?!!! At least I thought so. Well, as many of you know, Rich and I don't have cable, so I had to wait until they put the entire episode on www.cmt.com; it was worth the wait! I got some great ideas from it, the consequence jar for example (which I will blog more about later). I also sooooooooooo want a skirt like the one Dana Cork (the mother of the family) helped one of the visiting teens make (ADORABLE). In case you want to check it out, here is the link, http://www.cmt.com/videos/misc/391878/worlds-strictest-parents-105-the-cork-family-1.jhtml?id=1611505

They are a fantastic family, and it let me know that having respectful, hardworking, loving teenagers can be a reality! I have been so scared that my children will grow up, turn 12 or 13, and turn into disrespectful, lazy, ungrateful children! Around me lately I have witnessed teenagers talk back to their parents, completely ignore their parents, act as if their parents are simply things or beings to do their bidding, and totally disprespect their parents!

Thankfully, this family

let me know, that by laying the groundwork (which Rich and I are trying so hard to do), we can have loving, respectful teenagers.

Thank you Cork family for opening up your home to America!

Your family is an inspiration!

Cuteness Personified

He gets a little bigger and a little cuter every day!

Bittersweet Pride

As I look at these pictures of my children, I am filled with so much pride, but the pride is bittersweet. In these pictures my children are cutting up strawberries to make jam and decorating cards; they are in fact trying to put a smile on someone's face, herein lies the bittersweet. A week ago tomorrow, my dear friend LaNae found out that her mother had died, quite unexpectedly. It was the perfect opportunity to teach the children lessons about death, the resurrection, eternal families, friendship, Christlike love, and service. The children were thrilled to have the opportunity to help cheer up someone they care so much about, and I was so proud to see their Christlike love in action; I'm glad they were able to bring LaNae some joy amongst her pain, bittersweet. It also let me know, that I need to look for more opportunities that will allow them to use their talents, gifts, and time to serve others.

See this man?!

See this man?!!! I miss him like crazy!!

See these kids (posing with their Grandma); they miss him too! We all miss him!

He is once again in the dreaded Atlanta, but thankfully, this is his last trip!!!!

What do I miss about him?

ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING!!!!!!!

What do the cuties miss about him? I don't know, let's ask a couple of them.

Let's start with Braden.

"Braden, what are some things you miss about your daddy?"

"He reads Junie B. Jones to us. He always goes on dates with me. I love when he reads books to me, and when he helps me write words that I don't know. I miss when he tucks me in and sings a song to me."

Sounds like a pretty missable guy to me. Let's ask one more cutie, just to make sure.

How about Brooke?

"Brooke, what are some things you miss about your daddy?"

"He does great explosions!

(An explosion meaning filling up empty milk containers with water, going outside, throwing them high up into the air, and watching them explode when they fall; Rich uses it quite often to bribe the children, because they think it is just the greatest thing! It is amazing how quickly they will finish a job if the promise of an explosion hangs in the air!)

"He does flips, and the flips he does are great; he teaches me Spanish while he does it. He helps me draw things what I can't do. Because Daddy really helps me a lot, because I love him!"

There you have it; it is unanimous in the affirmative!

We all miss Rich like crazy!!!!

He is a great father and husband, and we want his little tushy home!!!!!!!!!

Summer Reading Program Kickoff Party

Today the cuties and I (as per tradition) went to the library for their Summer Reading Program Kickoff Party. We signed up for the reading program, collected our reading logs, and then had some fun!

Here are some pictures of our mini adventure:

(I would like to point out that Brooke selected her shirt hairbow combo, in case anyone was wondering.)