I took these photos last year on Mother's Day. I have to say, I think I have some pretty good-looking boys!

Bry is performing this week in his school's musical, Grease. The director told them not to cut their hair back in February, so his has gotten pretty long. His hair is fine and thin, so it's not a great look for him. I've told him that the day after Grease is over, he gets to have a haircut. I was hoping it would be tomorrow, but I've been informed that they are performing it for the student body on Monday.

Caiden asked me last week if I was going to take pictures of them again for Mother's Day. I asked him, "do you want me to take pictures of you?" and he replied that yes, he would like me to take pictures of them, but I better wait until after Bry gets his hair cut.

A New Temple in Payson!

President Monson announced today that a new temple will be built in Payson. It will be only two blocks southwest of our house! I literally screamed when I brought up KSL's website and saw that it had barely been put up as the latest news. Sooooooooo exciting! Jumping up and down and goosebumps exciting! I can't believe that we will be able to walk to the temple and I should be able to see its spire(s) from my window every single day!

How Mom Met Her New Baby

This post is actually for my brother and his family. Some background info if you're not my brother or his family: my mom and dad had a miniature schnauzer that they loved like no other. We often joked that they loved that little dog more than they ever loved us kids. They never denied it. They had him for 12 years. During this time, he got poisoned from dog food made in China, developed diabetes (which they treated with two insulin shots each day), and eventually went blind from the diabetes. A week before Christmas, with my dad in the hospital, their little dog died. My parents were devastated, especially my mom. My boys have taken turns staying the night with her so she would't be alone at night as my dad remains in the hospital. Last night, Brooke called me in to look at an online classified ad for a miniature schnauzer. There were no pictures of her yet, but she sounded perfect. I quickly e-mailed the owner and eventually she sent some pictures. We drove up to Salt Lake today to meet her and she came home with us. The plan was to keep her secretly until my mom's birthday on the 15th. We decided instead to give her an early birthday present at a little family New Year's gathering tonight. This video shows what happened:

So...

Do I write a giant catch-up post, or do I just start again from where I am? It's been awhile!

He Is Risen

Before and After

Tuesday was the beginning of something new for Caiden and Alex. Here is the before picture (which is my new favorite picture of these two, since they look like they might actually like each other - gasp!):



This is the "during" pic:



And this is the after:



Yep, two of my boys have a serious case of brace-face!



Poor Alex, he gets to have braces twice: now, in order to make room in his already crowded little mouth for the HUGE permanent teeth lurking under his gums, and then again when he is a teenager to straighten those ones out.

Caiden gets to have oral surgery this summer to remove an extra tooth hiding below, as well as to remove his wisdom teeth which are quite close to the surface.

Bry's not off the hook either. He will be getting braces in about six months.

I wish I had taken pictures of the x-rays. Alex's mouth looked like a train wreck, and Caiden's was just weird with the extra tooth hanging out below. Alex looks like he might have an extra tooth also. Crazy stuff!

And what's with 14 year old boys that they always have to make a goofy face when a camera is pointed in their direction?!!

In the meantime...

We've had a house full of the sickies for the past week. Bry was first, and a trip to the pediatrician explained his misery with a positive strep test. Alex was next, then Caiden, and although I haven't gotten the full-blown illness, I can tell that my body is doing all it can to fight it. Poor Caiden, he has been sick at the end of every term this school year. Only Brooke has escaped this bug, which is fine, since he's already had enough misery this year.

Rather than dwell on that, I think I will give a shout-out to a couple of Etsy stores that I've purchased from recently. I love quality homemade goods! First, I bought this darling headband from here.



It is so well-made and amazingly comfortable. Plus, she's a fellow BYU alumnus. We've got to support each other, you know!!

I also bought this fabulous bracelet from here.



The picture doesn't do this gorgeous bracelet justice! The details are amazing! I love the toggle clasp, it's so unusual.

I highly recommend either of these sellers and their products. If you haven't shopped at Etsy, check it out. It's so fun to see all the creativity and hard work that goes into each seller's products.