Kendyl's 2nd grade awards...

We went to Kendyl's 2nd grade awards ceremony yesterday to watch her get her certificates for this last trimester. She is a very smart girl and a good student and has enjoyed school this year. She is exceling in math and reading 2 grades above her and can't wait to learn cursive next year.



She got straight A's again so she was on the Principal's Honor Roll and she got Great Attendance this semester. She was also awarded the Citizen of the Year award by her teacher for her class. We are so proud of you Kendyl for the wonderful girl you are and the good example you set for others! You are the most!

Kendyl with her friends Ashlei and Sofia.

Kendyl and her teacher this year, Ms. Thompson. We are so thankful for great teachers who inspire our kids and keep them motivated to continue learning. Thanks for a great year!

Brityn's preschool graduation...

Brityn had her preschool graduation program and last day of preschool this week. She proudly announced that she is now a kindergartner!

Here she is marching into the room.

They sang songs and each child got to say a part.

Brityn's part was "Hi my name is Brityn. B-R-I-T-Y-N. There are 12 months in a year. The year is 2010." She did awesome!

This is Mrs. Aubrey and all three of her preschool classes. She is a wonderful teacher and Brityn loved going to preschool. She has learned a lot and is well prepared for kindergarten.

Here they are tossing their graduation caps.

Brityn got the "Drama Queen Award" for her great imagination and her love for playing dress-up.

Brityn with her teacher Mrs. Aubrey. We made candy leis for all the kids in her class and Mrs. Aubrey. We're so proud of you Brityn for being an excited learner and a good friend! We love you!

Dinosaur Museum...

I went with Brityn on her last preschool field trip to the dinosaur museum. I thought Ryder would like seeing the dinosaurs, but apparently they were "cary" (scary).

The kids liked all the animals and there were even a couple of bears that they were allowed to touch.


No riding in the stroller for this big boy, he was pointing at all the animals he could name.


They had some really cool shark egg sacks, fish, turtles, eels, manta rays and a couple of small sharks in a big tank.


Brityn playing in a submarine the kids could get in. They had a fun hands-on exhibit that the kids seemed to really like.


Ryder had fun on these "non-cary" dinosaurs that he could climb on. He did not like it when the kids pushed the button to hear the dinosaur roars though. I had to hold him the entire time we were walking through the actual dinosaur section so I didn't even get any pictures there!


This museum is the perfect size to occupy the attention spans of small kids, with enough variety to keep them interested. We might have to make a repeat visit some time this summer.

Sawyer tries rice cereal...

It is hard to believe that my baby is old enough to start cereal! He has been showing some interest and watching us while we eat, so we decided to give it a try.

Here he is with anticipation written all over his face.

Hmmmm, not exactly what I thought it was going to taste like.

Savor it, maybe it will improve.

Hey, that's not so bad. Can I have some more?

Just plain busy...

I've got several things to post, but I just haven't had the time to sit down at the computer and blog. We are on the countdown till summer starts so I've been trying to get organized so we all don't go stir-crazy this summer. Kids registered for swimming lessons--check! Books stockpiled for summer reading for kids--check! Piano books ready to start piano lessons--check!



I made this really yummy fruit tart last night for a meeting Steve had, along with brownies and chocolate dipped strawberries. It was delicious and the kids couldn't wait to eat what was left.


I had extra strawberries so I decided to make some freezer jam. Prepped and ready.

Pureed strawberries.

Sugar added.

Pectin added and ready for the freezer.

Ryder has been sleeping in his big boy bed for the last 4 nights and taking his naps there too. Woohoo! Last night he discovered his new found freedom when he got out of bed several times to come see what I was doing. :)

My little cutie has decided to wake up every night for the last 2 weeks, once at 12am and next at 4:30am. Last night he finally made it until 6am! I need a nap.

Now that our new loft is finished, except for the flooring in the hallway, we've been trying to get our office moved into it. We discovered a furniture clearance center that had two bookshelf units that matched our office desk. They were a little beat up, but also heavily discounted. So we came home and cleaned them up.

This is my kind of refinishing project...a little pledge and some elbow grease and done! The cable guy came today to move the internet connection out to the new loft. Now we just have to get everything cleaned out and put away.

Mother's Day...

Thanks for letting me sleep in a little bit.


And for having smiles on your cute faces most of the day.


Thank you for the birdhouse Brityn. It looks lovely hanging in our backyard.


Thanks for the bookmark and the decorated picture of you, Kendyl. I like using my bookmark and Ryder likes to look at your picture on the fridge and say "Hi Dekyl!"


Thanks for my cards and all the hugs and kisses I got all day.



I had a lovely breakfast cooked by Steve. Thank you Steve!

After church we came home and had a "tea party" lunch that included my Great Harvest bread--yummy! The girls had so much fun using the fancy dishes and using good manners that maybe this will become an annual thing.


My two favorite girls having a fancy lunch with Mom!


Sawyer was a very good baby for Mother's Day. Thanks for making my day special!


I am so thankful I can be a mom to four beautiful children. It is a hard job, but I'll take all the hugs, kisses and love that go with it!

Kendyl's baptism...

Kendyl Leilani Hardy was baptized on Saturday, May 1, 2010. She was baptized and confirmed by her father, Steven Hardy with Herb Hardy, Mike Hardy, Todd Hunt, Jerry Russell, Jack Evans, and Curtis Palmer helping to confirm. She was lucky enough to be the only one from our ward to get baptized this month, so it was all about her.


She got to pick out her baptism clothing and opted for this dress as opposed to the white jumpsuits.


Kendyl and Steve in the foyer of the stake center.

This picture is right after she was baptized and dressed in her pretty dress. Nice and clean!


She was also lucky enough to go first so we didn't have to wait and the bathroom was dry and uncrowded to change her clothes. She had Grandpa Jerry and Grandpa Herbie be the witnesses when she was baptized.


Our family at the stake center after the baptism. It was a wonderful day shared with lots of family and friends. A big thank you to everyone who came to be with Kendyl on her special day and also a big thank you to those who couldn't make it, but were here in spirit.


She got beautiful flowers for a beautiful girl on her special day. We even got to make her own programs--she picked pink paper. She asked her Tutu to give the talk on the Holy Ghost and Grandma played the piano, Aunt Kaylene led the music and Papa Jack said the closing prayer.


Pictures with family and friends right after the baptism. She had a smile on her face the entire day! We're so proud of you, Kendyl, for being the wonderful person that you are and the righteous choices you've made.


After the baptism, we had a big party at our house. We barbequed and had lots of yummy food and even made homemade rootbeer. It was lots of fun to relax and visit with friends and family and let the cousins and friends have time to play.


On Sunday, we all headed to church for sacrament meeting and then we all went to primary to hear Brityn give her first talk. She talked on the Holy Ghost and did an awesome job! We came home to have lunch and then said goodbye to aunts, uncles and cousins. Sunday night I played with the stake orchestra for our easter concert and it was nice to have grandparents come listen and help Steve out with all the kids. Thanks to everyone for coming and making it a really enjoyable and special weekend for our family! We love you!!!