Jonah Boyer Photography

Mommy opening up birthday present from Grandma.

Sister

Brother - CHEESE! (I think Mommy took this one as Jonah is in the background) :)

In My Next 30 Years

I am a fan of Tim McGraw and I still remember being 17 years old when his song "In My Next 30 Years" came out. I thought 30 was so old. And now I am 30. And I love it! I am thoroughly happy with my age. I am where I want to be at 30. I have an amazing husband whom I adore, three beautiful children that I treasure, and I am very happy. I'm excited about entering my 30's. I wouldn't go back to being any younger. I appreciate everything I have learned in my twenties and I am excited to bring that with me as a stronger me in my 30's. I love my husband and I am grateful for him. I treasure our relationship more every day. We have so much fun together as we enrich our lives with new skills and hobbies and couple and family adventures. I love spending time with Daniel. He is my best friend. Although parenting is often difficult and it's hard to know what the right thing is to do all the time, I enjoy having Daniel as my partner and talking together and praying together to learn to be good parents for our children. My children do bring so much joy to my life and I love learning through their eyes. It is amazing to witness these little ones figure out life and learn with enthusiasm and show incredible faith and love in their lives. They bring such a simple joy to everyday things and I'm so thankful I have the opportunity to be a mother.

My first thirty years have been about learning and growing. I'm grateful for the education I have received in my twenties, both from a University and also from living life. Being a wife and mother has taught me many things. I have also grown closer to my Heavenly Father and also to my Savior Jesus Christ as I have needed to lean on them during rough times in my life. I hope to continue to align my will with theirs and to serve them throughout my life. I am so grateful for my parents for the dedication they gave to me during these 30 years. As a parent now, I realize the effort that it takes and I am grateful for my mom and dad for loving me and supporting me and teaching me life lessons that have strengthened me throughout my life. Being apart from my dad these 3 years has been difficult. But I am grateful to him for the sacrifices he made for me and for the love he has shown me. I have learned a lot from him in life and after his death. I have had the interesting experience of being the main support to my mom after she has been such a strong support to me in my early years. She has taught me so much faith and given me strength and I am glad I get to pay that forward to her as well. I am so glad we are great friends.

In my next thirty years I hope to continue learning and growing. I hope to strengthen the relationships I have in my life. Especially those with my sister and brothers. I hope to serve others and to recognize and follow promptings of the Holy Spirit to do God's work here on earth. I hope to raise my children to love the Lord, to love their family, and to love others. Mostly I hope to enjoy them in every moment. Time goes by quickly and the next thirty years will be no exception. I will probably be a grandmother by then and I hope to be present in my childrens' lives every step of the way. They will grow up so quickly. I want to stand for truth and righteousness and grow closer to my Father in Heaven and follow the example of His Son. May my next thirty years be full of faith, courage, joy, love, and laughter!

Birthday Surprise!

I recently turned 30! My day started out great with breakfast in bed. Then in the afternoon my sister took me to get a pedicure. Ah, so nice to be pampered! That night as we were dropping the kids off at my mom's house so Daniel and I could go out to dinner, I got a surprise!

A surprise party that is! It was so much fun! I was really surprised and very happy! What a great way to celebrate turning 30 with friends and family throwing a party for me!

After the birthday party there was an after party - yes I know, so Hollywood :)
We went to Fenton's with some friends where they have the best ice cream in the world! Yummy!

Thank you to everyone who helped me to have the best 30th birthday I could ever have hoped for! Happy Birthday to Me!!!

Girls Night

When we asked the kids what they wanted to do this summer, Lea's first answer was to have a Girl's Night with Mommy. So last Thursday night we did just that. We chose a cookie recipe from our cookbook from the library and we made delicious shortbread cookies.

Then we brought our cookies to Grandma"s house and joined Grandma and Aunt Cheryl for the movie Enchanted and painted Lea's nails. Mommy also made a couple of bows for Lea during the movie. It was a fun Girls Night.

Aunt Cheryl put lip gloss and mascara on my beautiful little girl. Lea's got a little sass in this picture. Cutie!

Six Flags

While my Aunt and Uncle were here from Indiana we brought them to Six Flags for a day. My mom and sister came with us too. We had a wonderful day together at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. Lea and Josh were able to go on some fun rides with Aunt Cheryl.

Playing at the playground.

Shouka the Whale.

The Dumbo Ride.

Getting Wet.

Jonah, Micah, and Ben had a blast getting wet and playing in the water.

We saw the tiger show.

The kids had fun with Aunt Cheryl. She went on a lot of rides with them. :)