Weekend of Fun With Family and Friends

I seriously started this blog a week ago. With getting very sick, moving and no Internet connection...I didn't finish it until today, a week later!

This weekend was the Moses Lake Spring Festival. My family had lots of fun just hanging out together. Some of the fun pictures from this weekend.

This really doesn't have anything to do with this weekend. It's just Quinn being Quinn. He was acting like this table was a race car. What a typical boy!On Thursday we went and watched Nathan play T-ball again. Malcolm kept telling me all week that he wanted his "team". When we got to the game and I told him he was to little he started pouting. Cute huh!?! He kept inching toward one of the teams warming up.On Friday night we went and watched Kathryn clog. She is so cute. All the other kids loved it too. Malcolm and Jayni were up trying to dance, and even Mason was trying to dance.Saturday morning my high school friend, April, and I did the 5k fun run together. We really enjoyed it. We ran faster then we usually do and ran the whole way together. As we were coming to the finish line, I told her to pick it up. I started going faster and didn't think she was very close behind me...as I came to the finish line I started slowing down and all of the sudden she is pushing me with her elbow out of the way. Needless to say she beat me by an arm. I had to laugh. Later she was feeling guilty for being so pushy...but I told her how hilarious it was. The coolest thing about the run was when we came up the first hill there was Matt and the boys cheering me on. Then they drove to another spot and cheered me on some more and finally the finish line. It made my day to have them there. Quinn was imitating me running too...it was so cute!Later in the day we went to the result ceremony wondering how well we did. I ran it in 26:57...April beat me by a second (according to them.) Come to find out April took 3rd in our division...female 20-29 year old. She was feeling really guilty for elbowing her way past me...It made me laugh even more. What a fun experience!! We averaged about an 8 1/2 min. mile. Overall we placed 44th and 45th. The official results.
I am really pleased...notice the wet mark on my shirt...it's not sweat...they hand out water at 2 spots during the run and it's really hard to run and drink at the same time.In the afternoon we had a picnic in the park with the family. We had good food and a good time!
All the grand kids had a blast playing for hours. Malcolm and Jayni played together like they have never been apart...a love/hate relationship.Milo and Tom played in a 3 on 3 basketball tournament with some other guys. This is one of the few picture I captured...nothing of great significant. They won the tournament...and we enjoyed watching what we could while we weren't chasing down kids.Milo, Richard, Tom and Brady taking a breather before their last game. I just thought this was a classic picture of all of them together.
What a fun weekend we all had together. On Monday we had a BBQ at Mom's since it was Pop's birthday. Another day of good food and fun with the family. It can't get much better then this!

The most embarrassing moment of the weekend was this. I asked Malcolm if he needed to go potty as he's running off to the playground. He tells me no and the next moment he's pulling down his pants to my embarrassment. I tried shielding him from the public...but they were everywhere and laughing. That's what you get when you have boys and you teach them to pee outside when traveling. This isn't the first time it's happened...although never with an audience. We had a little talk about privacy. Thanks Mel for capturing the picture.

This one's for Pop!

(Pop, Mom and my siblings last summer)

I've been thinking a lot about you today, since it's your birthday and all. I can't believe you've been in my life for over 16 years. You have been such a blessing to our family and have brought so much to us. I think of how much you love my Mom. It amazes me to think of how young you were when you and Mom started dating, and how you were so willing to love us five kids. What maturity that took. It just shows to me how much you truly love Mom...and us for that matter. I am so grateful for you. For all the support you have given me through the lose of my Dad and siblings. For the support you have showed me in my interests. I love when you will come to church just because I am singing. I am so grateful for the support you give us all in our beliefs and that you have such high standards yourself. You've been there for all the really good times and really bad times in my life. I can't imagine life without you in it. Thank you for all the good memories, for sticking with our family and for loving me despite myself. Thank you for being such a great Poppy to my kids. I'm grateful they get to have you as their grandpop. You will never know how much I love you. Although no one can ever take the place of my Dad, I'm glad that I still have you to be my Dad. I can't express to you how much I love you, how much you really mean to me. Thank you for all that you do for Matt and I, and thank you for loving my Mom. These are but a few of my thoughts, I can't put into words everything I feel for you. And I can't stop crying as long as I'm writing them down, so I better stop. Happy 36th birthday...I'm glad I am here to share it with you!! I love you so much, thank you for being my Pop!

Some love from the boys!!

Hopefully Today Is Better Then The Last!!

So yesterday Malcolm was on one...he was in the naughty corner at least half a dozen times. It was like he had no understanding of anything I said. Maybe it was because I was dragging. After my run...I just felt like going back to bed, and of course I couldn't, and I just felt grumpy and short fussed.

So the day started out in the sandbox. Matt had just barely put the sand in and the boys were playing in it. Matt was watching the boys, I was at the stake center with Merle. For whatever reason Malcolm got mad at Quinn and threw sand right in his eyes. This was probably the finest sand out there...almost dust. Matt took Quinn and washed his eyes out, but the rest of the day sand was building up and coming out. (Needless to say...we will be getting new sand that is coarser.) Then at some point Malcolm threw dirt at Quinn's face. (I was inside and Cynthia saw this.) Then during Quinn's nap Malcolm was cleaning the outside windows with paper towels and Windex. When Quinn woke up he was helping squeegee it off. I was sitting watching them just inside and for whatever reason Malcolm decided to give Quinn a spray in the face. So for the third time Quinn had his eyes washed out. I can't imagine having sand in the eyes scratching them, then having Windex sprayed in them. Malcolm was in big trouble. Grandma Hardy put him in the naughty corner...that meant business. I couldn't believe it...poor Quinn, I hope he doesn't go blind. About an hour after he went to bed he woke up bawling. He wouldn't calm down at first. We thought maybe his eyes were burning, they were so red. Cynthia called an optometrist in her ward and he said that with the sand as fine as it was, we should flush his eyes for 10 - 15 mins.....what!?! That was no small task, and Matt and I could only do it for 5 mins. Luckily he woke up this morning and his eyes look fine.

Hopefully today is a better day. So far Malcolm seems a lot more calm, but I guess we'll see how long it lasts. It's hard to not beat your child when they do naughty things....that's terrible to say, but does anybody else feel that way?

The Rest of the Week

Just a few more pictures of what we did this last week. Nothing extraordinary, but it's always fun to share the pictures.

Rose on Mother's Day in her cute little sun dress. Look at all the cute rolls.

The cousins all playing together. I think the boys were being puppies around Rose. They kept her entertained, and she was always watching them. She especially loved Quinn...she would always grin and giggle when he was around.Quinn at his best...both the boys love to play with the swiffers.Mack posing with Rose.I loved this profile picture of Rose.Despite the background I think this is such a cute picture of Rose and Cynthia. Rose just giggling away.Malcolm built a "spaceship" this day. He started waking up at 6 am this week. The first day I made him take a short nap (he would sleep 3-4 hrs if I let him.), but this day after he built his spaceship he said he needed his blanket to put in it. I went to ask him if he wanted lunch and he said he wanted to sleep in his spaceship.Sure enough he was that tired. This is so not Malcolm. I can count on one hand how many times he's fallen asleep like this. I love this close up of him. He's still my beautiful baby!!Thursday night we had the pleasure of watching Nathan play some T-ball. He was so cute to watch. The boys loved it and once Quinn got passed the fact that he couldn't play, they were pretty good. Both Mack and Quinn talked about it afterwards. (Quinn in his own little language, I can get the gist of it usually.)Friday and Saturday we had a girls weekend while Pop, Milo and the boys were on Father's and Sons camp out. On Friday Mom, Leisha, Mel, Kathryn and I went to dinner and watched a movie. Saturday we all went to Tri-Cities. Sadly I wasn't too much in the picture taking mood apparently. I was able to take two pictures on the way home...then my camera died. This picture is hilarious. If you look closely you can see a little eye peeking out between Mel and I. I guess Kathryn just wanted to be a part of the moment. We had a really good laugh when we previewed this pic. It was a fun time with the girls.

I had a great week with Laura here. I wish she didn't have to leave so soon. I already miss them and can't wait for the next visit. We only get to see them a few times a year...sometimes only once. Just when I feel close to Laura...she's taken away!! Haha!

The Results Are In!

So the pictures us girls had with the kids are in. There aren't any normal ones of me and the boys...but they are still cute! Colleen did a wonderful job!! CLICK HERE to go to the site. Then click "Your Images" and click on "Cynthia and Girls". It will ask for a password. The password is "hardy". Let me know what you all think!

In The Nude!

Yesterday Laura, Amber and I were sitting around the house chatting. Amber's oldest Savannah came in asking if she could go slip and slide in the Earl's yard with the Perez kids. Amber said yes...despite them being fully clothed. (I need to learn a few laid-back tips from her!!) Malcolm wanted to go and so I said he could go too. He was doing "the dance" so I told him to go use the restroom. He came back down stairs totally nude with only is socks and "weebok's" on and holding his life jacket. (I bought the life jacket 2 yrs ago and he's never like it...until now!) It was hilarious and all us girls were laughing. I told Malcolm that we don't swim naked, (while laughing and trying not too), he was so serious and just told me he wanted to go slip and sliding. I told him he could go but had to put his clothes on. (I would have put his swim suit on, but I left their brand new swimsuits in the closet at home...ugh!) He got his clothes back on and I tried telling him he didn't need a life jacket for slip and sliding...he insisted he needed it. So he went up to the Earl's. A little while later I decided I better go up to their yard. I went up to find him like this......at least he wasn't naked!! Connie said that when he got up there he took his clothes off (luckily not his underwear) and was trying to put his life jacket over his head. (It was all done up.) She convinced him to let her help put it on him. What a funny kid!! I called Laura at the house and had her bring up the camera...I had to capture the memory!At least he wasn't going to drown in the pool at the end!!! HAHA!I want to get a slip and slide for Cynthia's house. She has the best steep hill for it. Last year for the boys' birthday party we borrowed Connie's...the kids all loved it!Amber's 2nd daughter Ava....she is such a beautiful little girl. She has such beautiful little girls, I just had to post the pictures. They don't do them justice on how cute they really are!This one is Vivian. (I don't know if I'm spelling their names right, sorry Amber) She has the most beautiful curly hair. She has pink eye, so don't mind the eyes. Don't hate me Amber for post it! She's 17 months...I think Quinn should marry her in 20 years...what do you think Amber? Should we have an arranged marriage!?!This is Amber's oldest Savannah. She is in pants and everything slip and sliding. She loved it, even without a swimsuit on.Quinn was tempted a few times to hit the slip and slide...but I think all the kids scared him away. He just watched in awe. What a handsome baby...even with a huge scar!

I love his profile!

Hanging With The Girls

For Mother's Day all of Matt's siblings came into town. Jeff and Nate from Utah, Laura, Mike and their daughter Rose from Arizona, Rhino (aka Ryan) was already here. The only sibling missing was Ben, he's on his mission in Fort Worth, Texas.

On Friday night Cynthia had Colleen come over and take some pictures with us Mom's and the kids. My kids didn't cooperate very well, so I'm hoping something turned out with the kids and I. Once we get the pictures I'll post some. We all wore white tops and denim bottoms. The boys looked so cute!

On Saturday Cynthia bought tickets for us girls to the "Soroptimist 10th Annual Tea & Tasting". It was so fun...we all got dressed up in cute little dresses. (I wore one of Laura's dresses...I'm sure she looks better in it then me!)Each table has a hostess and they decorate the tables themselves...there were some settings! Here are a few pictures of some of them.

This would be a fun one for guys or a boys birthday. I think it's clever, but for the occasion it was my least favorite. The rest were beautiful!I had wished I sat at this table with the chocolate plates and candy.I was told that this used to be a more traditional English tea party. The women used to wear hats all the time...now just the old ladies do. Look how cute this old lady looked!!This is the table Laura and I sat at. The hostess is in Cynthia's ward. She went on a mission to Nigeria...hence the safari type theme. It was beautiful.This is where I sat...cute huh!?! We had a little "party favor". Notice the little tin in the background with the toy hippo on it. The tin was filled with candy and there are coasters that actually go inside the tin.This is the chef that did the cooking. His name is Chef Amadeus. I didn't care for the food all that much. I did try smoked salmon, duck and tuna. I'm not much of a meat eater since being pregnant with Malcolm...but I ate it. For dinner Matt BBQ steak. It was way better then any of this food. Matt is an amazing cook...mostly with meat. He has a knack with knowing the right spices. I think he should be a chef...on the side after college. Or to put us through college!This is Cynthia...she sat right by Laura and I at a different table.Laura and I sat together. I really enjoyed the table we sat at. They were all really entertaining and most of them were members. I tried herbal tea...but I enjoyed the water much more. I really enjoyed having Laura here. She is Matt's only sister and I'm glad we get along so great. The problem is that she's always lived so far away!!!Here's us girls...I look the same in every picture...it made me laugh when I was going through them.This was my favorite of all the food. Stuffed strawberries...yummy! It has a cream cheese center and was served on the yummiest chocolate sauce. It also had a eatable flower. I ate mine...but Laura wouldn't eat hers.It was so much fun to have some girl time without kids. And the company was great. I have the best in-laws. I wish we could have had more time and money to do more girl stuff! To bad Laura is leaving on Friday...she should have stayed for like a month!!

Home For The Summer (This is a long one!)

Like last year, we decided to come home for the summer. Matt is able to work with his Dad landscaping and I'm able to, well just be here. Matt finished up his finals on Thursday...Yay, so my mom and Milo drove down on Friday and helped us bring home the things we needed for the summer. We are living with Matt's parents again. They have a big, beautiful home and yard so it makes it easy to have more space. I'm really excited to be home this summer. Last summer was fun but I was really confined to stay at the house. Quinn was still taking 2 naps, and Malcolm was taking 1. So I couldn't go anywhere from 10am until 5 pm, or else some one's nap was interrupted. Well this year Quinn is down to 1 nap (from about 1pm-4pm), and I stopped giving Mack a nap. I feel like a free woman. I have great plans to take the boys and actually visit friends and family. (We didn't do that last summer.) I also want to continue to take the boys to the library story time (we do that at home too), and I really want to get a playgroup going on. The boys really need the interaction...and so do I. Once the Aquatic Center opens I want to get a season pass and go several times a week. I'm also hoping that I can put the boys in some swimming lessons. What is also going to make it great...Brianne and Leisha are both moving back. That means that all my "Mom's kids" are home for the summer. (Yeah...it's confusing!) I hope to have plenty of family get togethers, because in July Leisha and Richard are moving to New York so Richard can get his Masters...I am so sad! But here's to a summer full of fun, or so I'm dreaming!

This is the house we are fortunate enough to call home for the summer.

The nice, wonderful and big back yard the kids get to explore and play in all summer. Matt's parents have the most beautiful yard. These pictures don't do them justice. Notice the kids are already making themselves at home with all the toys.

Melanie called me Friday night, the day we came into town, and asked me if I would wake up when the roosters came out to go to some yard sales in Tri-Cities. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to yard sale with her since she is so great at it. I have never been very good at it, but really want to have her talent. Ha! She told a friend about these yard sales and there ended up being 3 other girls that came, but in different cars.

The find I am most excited about are my new dishes. I found this Pfaltzgraff place setting for 8 and only paid $15, that included the to bottles below. The set come with a dinner plate, salad plate, bowls and mugs. They look like they have never been used. They are a classic white (obviously), and have a interesting border. I love them though. I am so excited to take them home and use them.

I loved these bottles. I think they are beautiful!

I got this jacket for Mack for a $1 and the shoes for $3. He needed both so I was excited!

After we hit the yard sales we of course did some other browsing and shopping around Tri-Cities. One of the girls that came down was Korbi. We went to lunch at Olive Garden with her and then did some more shopping. We went our separate ways, but all ended up at Craft Warehouse. Mel and I were picking out some things for Mom so she could make some hand outs for Relief Society. Little did we know it was National Scrapbooking Day. They had a little game give away where they had taped numbers to the floor and would tell you to jump on a number. They would then pick number and call them out. After a couple times, I actually won. Which is really funny because I don't do scrapbooking. At the very end they were smart enough to have us clean up the mess. They told everyone to pick up as many number as we could. Korbi and I only managed to get 2 each, while Mel end up with 4. As they called out the numbers, Mel's got called, then Korbi, then Me (the 2nd time), and then Mel again. It was so hilarious that we managed to clean them out...along with some other people getting some prizes. Korbi was the cheerleader jumping up and down each time we won, while Mel and I laughed hysterically in disbelief, and at Korbi's reaction. We had a great time. I really want to do this again, but hope it can live up to this day. What a great start to my summer vacation...if you can call it that.