You've got to try this!

I had to make another cake for Mary's birthday for an extended family party, but I didn't just want to make the same cake over again. Mary said she wanted more flowers, and I wasn't entirely sure what to do. Then my awesome mom directed me to a video on the Studio 5 website, and I had my answer. (That's a local morning talk show.)
Pretty, huh? It's a mix of fake flowers and CUPCAKES! You use all the stuff you would to make a fake flower arrangement, like styrafoam, a pot, flowers, etc., but then you add cupcakes that have been decorated to look like flowers. The trick is to freeze the cupcakes before you add them so they will stick on to the toothpicks you use. Needless to say, Mary LOVED this, and she wasn't the only one! If you want to see the whole demonstration video, just got to studio5.ksl.com and search under "cupcake bouquets." It's so easy, and the different ideas are endless! I'm so excited to do it again for something else. Anybody need a party cake?:)

Mary's 3!

I can't believe my little baby girl is 3! Where does the time go? It was so much fun to watch how excited she got about everything. She is truly like a little ray of sunshine in my life.

Savannah made this adorable card for her little sister. It was so sweet.:) It makes me smile when I can tell how much my kids love each other. Isaiah and Savannah had been hugging Mary all day, and here she is returning the favor.

Mary told me that she wanted flowers on her cake, so I made an Easter bonnet. She totally loved it, especially the pink. Happy Birthday, Mary!

Easter Fun

Okay, so I know I'm a little late here, but we had such a great Easter that I had to post about it. First, there was a ward egg hunt at our local park. My kids did a great job finding their eggs, and quickly reached their limit of 5. They were troopers too, because it was especially cold and windy that day. Luckilly, there was a delicious warm brunch to eat afterwards.:)For Easter weekend itself, we headed up to my in-laws cabin in Lava Hot Springs, Idaho. My kids were super excited to hang out with their cousins, and they weren't even worried about if the Easter bunny knew where to find them or not. (The Easter bunny's had to come to quite a few different places over the years...:) Easter morning was full of smiles, as always, but do you know what? My kids were most excited about the new scriptures they had gotten! (They sure know how to melt my heart and make me proud.:)

I know these pictures are a little fuzzy, but it's kind-of complicated to get really excited kids to hold still long enough for a picture.:) (Don't you just love the matching pj's? Thanks, Grandma!)

So Cute

I just had to share this picture of my kids and their friends at the park. Isn't it adorable?:)

Zumba Power

I know this has absolutely nothing to do with my family, but I just had to give a little shout-out for Zumba. For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, Zumba is basically aerobics with a Latin flavor and AMAZING music. You know, the kind that you just have to move to when you hear it. My friend Ann got me started a few months ago, and I LOVE it! It's amazing how much easier exercise is when it's fun! And the results are awesome! I tend to have a hard time losing weight because of a few health problems I've been dealing with, but I've lost 13 pounds since January, and I'm down 2 pant sizes, and I feel great. Now how cool is that?:) Besides all that, Zumba is totally addicting. It's really fun to just move to the music. Here's a link to one of my favorite songs and routines (the first part of the video): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vf0q6qtThF4&feature=related. I get a real kick out of watching some of the guys in the background. Zumba's the greatest!:)

The Boat FLOATS! It Really Floats!!!

Many of you know that my wonderful husband had been building a "sea kayak" out of pvc pipe and membrane in the garage over the winter. A few weeks ago, we took it out to a neighborhood pond, just to see if it would even work at all. We did get quite a few strange looks from those around us, and you could tell they were all watching to see if it would fail catastrophically. BUT IT WORKED. Not only that, it worked quite well. And if you don't believe me, here's the photographic proof:
Yes, that's Jason out in the middle of the pond in something he imagined and then built all by himself. And he didn't even get that wet in the process. I'm so proud.:) Way to go, honey!

Crazy Utah Weather

Utah has got to be one of the only places in the world where you can have 4 inches of really heavy, wet snow one morning, and then have it be gone the next afternoon. Case in point--my kid's snowman. They were so excited a while ago to have fresh snow one more time before it was really warm, so we got all ready for winter weather and made this beautiful snowman. (Note the party hat. This snowman's ready to go!:)

My cute kids were so proud of this snowman, only to have it be a complete puddle the next afternoon. Oh, well. At least I got to document the snowman this time before it melted.:)

I know, I know

Okay, so I know it's been a couple of months since I last updated the blog. It seems that I always intend to, and then something else comes up. (You know how it is.:) Still, it's my goal this week to clue all of you in to what has been going on in our lives. Here are just a few of the things you have to look forward to: birthdays, Easter, family trips, our boating adventure, concerts, t-ball, and kid's antics, just to name a few! (Wow. No wonder I've been busy.) Stay tuned!:)