Mommy Tag

Angie tagged me with this, so here it goes. Landon is at EFY and he's having too much fun to answer these questions. These are answers from the kids. W=Whitney, A=Alexa, H=Hayden, K=Katie (I'm sure you would have figured that out.)
1. What is something mom always says to you?
W-Knock it off L-We'll see A-Go check on the kids H-Come here, Mister K-I Love you
2. What makes mom happy?
W-When we do our chores L-When we do our chores without being reminded A-When we clean the house H-When you say come inside and we obey K-When I don't be mad & sad
3. What makes mom sad?
W-When she loses her children and can't find them L- When we disobey her A-When Hayden is being naughty H-When people hurt Hayden K-When kids leave the yard
4. How does your mom make you laugh?
W-The things she says L-The things she says A-She says funny jokes H-tickles K-When she tickles me
5. What was your mom like as a child?
W-Heartbreaker L-How would I know A-She played kissing tag H-She liked to jump on the tramp K-Cute
6. How old is your mom?
W-36 A-36 L-36 H-14 K-10
7. How tall is your mom?
W-5'6" L-5'5" or 5'6" A-5'6" H-an inch long K-14 inches
8. What is her favorite thing to do?
W-Clean the house L-Go on tripsA-Read a book H-Sit down and say "Hayden come sit on my lap" K-When you love me
9.What does your mom do when you're not around?
W-I don't know because I'm not around L-Cleans A-Clean H-When I'm gone, you're alone
K-I don't know
10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
W-Actress L-Actress A-Chef H-Cookie K-Famous
11. What is your mom really good at?
W-Cooking L-Making everyone happy A-Parenting H-Riding a bike K-Riding a bike
12. What is your mom not very good at?
W-Farting-I think I've only heard you fart once L-Handling stress when the kids are missing for 2 seconds A-Being patient H-Climbing a tree K-Not riding a bike
13. What does your mom do for her job?
W-Raises kids/secretary/pays bills L-Cleans A-Watches kids H-Work on computer and clean up the shop K-Work on the computer and clean up the dishes
14. What is your mom's favorite food?
W-Salad/Vegetables L-Popcorn A-Fruit H-Salad K-Burritos
15. What makes you proud of your mom?
W-That she can raise 5 kids L-She's very loving A-How well she raises kids H-That I love you so much and you can't run away from me K-I love you
16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
W-Giselle (from Enchanted) L- Giselle A-Giselle H-A cookie K-An Indian
17. What do you and your mom do together?
W-Everything--we're tight L-Shop A-Shopping H-Kiss K-Cook
18. How are you and your mom the same?
W-Same outlook on life L-We're both funny A-Both pretty H-We both love each other K-We have flip-flops
19. How are you and your mom different?
W-I have bigger boobs L-I'm a guy-she's a girl A-You like cleaning and I don't H-We never ever swing with each other K-We don't have the same eyes
20. How do you know your mom loves you?
W-She tells me/actions L-Cause you can just feel the love A-Cause she tells me H-Cause your our mom K-Because I love you so, so much

I tag Andrea and Misty and now Dana and Jen

Landon's new do

Whitney needed a model to color their hair. Landon wanted his done really bad, but he was heading off to EFY this morning, so I was going to volunteer, but he didn't end up needing to check in until 11-1. We went to Whitney's school this morning and she tried her hand at doing a color on a real person. I thought she did a really good job. Her instructor was impressed, but when it was done, Landon wasn't so sure. The more he looked at it, the more he decided he liked it. The top two photos are before shots (love the clips??) I actually think it brings out his eyes more. After the hair was done, we headed to lunch and then went and dropped Landon off at EFY. I hope he has fun as a brunette!!
Whitney is really enjoying school and she is doing really well. I hope we don't burn her out too quickly, but I think that she will be fine if we take some strategic breaks. It will be nice to be able to get my hair done whenever I want.

24th of July Pioneer day parade

Here are some pictures from our wards Pioneer day parade. We had the parade on Saturday. The primary was asked to dress up if they wanted to and decorate bikes, wagons and scooters. We decorated our wagon as a covered wagon. We had a good time. Tracy was of course at the end of the parade route with water to get everyone soaked.

Pockets full of dirt

We have been cleaning up the shop for the past few days. Today, I took Hayden with me because he was the only one up when we left--besides Landon who was going out to mow the lawn. When we went to leave the shop, Hayden asked if I had a plastic sack. I asked him why and he said "so I can take some dirt home". I told him we didn't have one and he didn't need to bring any of that dirt home. I didn't think much of it until I got in the car and could see that he was sitting very carefully and he hadn't buckled his belt. I leaned over to help him buckle his belt and I could see that he was holding the sides of his pockets and his pockets were bulging. I asked him what he had in his pockets and he replied "dirt". I said, why are you taking dirt? He says "because this dirt is better, it packs better and even if you poke it with a stick, it still stays--that is why I wanted a sack".
I let him keep his dirt. When we got home, I took him over to the grass with a ziploc bag and he unloaded a good 2 cups at least. He is a funny kid--always thinking and always coming up with ways to solve problems.

Happy 18th Anniversary Tracy!

I have been married for half my life!! It is hard to imagine that I have been married that long. Time flies when you are having fun. Tracy and I knew each other for several years. I was young and I didn't pay much attention to him. He always had a girlfriend and I didn't care for her--not that I cared that he even had one, I just thought she was ditzy. I remember going over to his house with Angie when I was young and (in true Tracy style) Tracy threw me down and tickled me and said "your so cute"--just like he does with many little "kids". I didn't pay much attention until he came home from his mission. When I first saw him, I thought, wow, he has changed and grown up, he looks so good. I was still very young though and so I didn't think I had a chance.

Angie and Tonya needed a date for Tracy one night and they set us up because they couldn't think of anyone else (I'm sure they thought nothing would come of it). That was the month before I turned 17. We were never apart for more than a few days--until he went off to college and he would make the trek home almost every weekend. I can't imagine what my parents were thinking when in February of my Senior year of high school, I came home with a ring. I guess you can't help when you fall in LOVE. We were married 4 days after my 18th birthday. Now we have been married for 18 years.

Here are 18 things I love about Tracy:

1. He is FUN to be with

2. He is a great handy-man--he can fix almost anything

3. He was very handsome when I first started dating him and I think he still is

4. He is an extremely hard worker

5. He has always been a great provider

6. He is a wonderful father

7. He is very kind and would do almost anything for anyone

8. He works harder than most men that I know

9. He loves his family (extended and immediate)

10. He loves little kids--especially cousins and nieces and nephews--and they love him

11. He honors his Priesthood

12. He loves me and he shows it

13. I have never heard him swear

14. He likes to play basketball

15. He acts like a kid (he is learning when that is appropriate)

16. He gave me 5 beautiful children

17. He is creative and inventive

18. He is the love of my life and my best friend

Getting married so young wouldn't work for everyone (getting married at any age only works out for half the people in this country). I am glad that I made that decision 18 years ago. I married my best friend. Thanks honey for being a wonderful husband, a terrific Father and a great provider. I love you always.

Fun in the sun with family

5 Kindergarteners

These five McQuivey cousins are all starting Kindergarten this year. They will be the graduating class of 2021. Ashlyn Gardner, Brooklyn McQuivey, Delaney McQuivey, Ammaron McQuivey and Hayden Ross.

McQuiveys

My parents now have 21 grandchildren!! I had my first 3 kids before anyone else even got married. Shortly after Alexa was born, weddings started to take place and we had a grandkid explosion. We haven't had everyone together for a while and it might be a while before we get everyone back together again. It is fun to try to get everyone together and looking decent for pictures. Some of these pictures got cut off being put in a collage--I will have to do a slideshow of all the pics. What a great family.

Family pictures

While we had everyone together for Holden's blessing, we got together with the McQuivey family and had family pictures. Here are a few of the candids that we snapped while we were there.

Ross Cousins

On Saturday, July 5, we went to Southern Utah to go to Holden's blessing. We spent Saturday night with the Ross cousins from Southern Utah. We went swimming and had a barbeque. Here are some pictures of our swimming fun. Notice how happy Danny is to be in the water.

STADIUM OF FIRE

Stadium of Fire

We were able to go to Stadium of Fire and see Whitney and Alexa dance. We were able to get enough tickets to have Angie, Morgan and Elise, Tracy, Landon and I, Lanny & Kathy, Jason and Jace--and we sold Tonya and her family 5 tickets that Tracy had won through Primerica!!! We had a barbeque at our house before we went. The shutter on the camera was stuck and I didn't realize it until I had taken a few pictures. The table was set by Katie and was very similar to how Landon had set the picnic table at mom and dad's property in Tabiona--right on top of each other as many as she could fit.
Whitney and Alexa were able to dance. They had 1300 Stadium of Fire dancers this year. We could not see the girls, but I took a couple of shots--somewhere in there, my girls are dancing. It was a lot of work, but fun to do. They had the skydivers and you can see them if you look closely, they are by the exit in the first two shots. The fly-over is always cool. In the pictures with the dancers, you can also see horses and bikes, maybe wrestlers and weight-lifters--they did the dance around an olympic theme. The sound system was really bad this year--you couldn't hear much. The Blue-man group was a lot of fun. Miley was Miley--I don't know what else to say. The fireworks were spectacular as always. All in all, we had a great night.