Rhino Rally 2023!

Those crazy boys are loaded up with bikes and I've got the snacks. I say boys but Juliet raced this year too!

Talon raced 2 laps and finished 1:09:19.

Juliet and Mark raced little bikes too. Mark finished 1:26:42 and Juliet finished at 1:18:22. 

They had to stop after lap one and pit. Mark was in too high of a gear and shifted down two gears and wheelied out of the pit zone. It got a lot of laughs from the onlookers.

Big bikes are getting ready! 

Ryan, Merril and Jack rode big bikes. Merril asked Jack what class he wanted to race. Jack joked open expert. Merril thought he was serious and signed him up! Crazy kids. Merril got waved off and finished two laps. Ryan and Jack did three laps. Merril finished 2:50:02, Ryan got 4:04:42 and Jack got 3:57:09! Wowsa! Weather was good and no one got hurt so yayyyyyy! 😇

Choir California Trip! 🌞

I chaperoned Juliet's choir trip to California. Oh man! This was a little hard for me. I feel like we didn't have a meeting about the expectations of chaperons or even what the heck we were supposed to do. Some of the other chaperons and myself were scratching our heads but nobody died and we all had a good time so it's fine. Juliet was not in my chaperone group but I saw her around.

I mainly went because Sheri and Shelly talked me into it. It was a fun party in the hotel room!

We went to Universal Studios. I haven't been there since I was a teenager. Way before Harry Potter became a thing.

At Universal Studios, I left my coat in the bus because it was hot during the day. I totally needed it at night. I refused to buy a $60 hoodie. I was going to buy Juliet one but she toughed it out. I ended up parking under this heater with a hot chocolate for part of an evening. I walked around with my arms in my shirt the rest of the time. Universal was our favorite part. Juliet had a great time hanging out with her friends!

We went to the beach one day! Not warm enough for me to get in the water but some kids had never seen the ocean!

We went to the Broadway play of the Lion King. The costumes were very interesting and the theatre itself was beautiful.

There was a visit to a University and I was falling asleep during an orchestra performance. I didn't sleep well at the hotel. The ride home was long and there wasn't a plan for a stop to use the bathroom. Yikes. Logistically, this trip is hard. I'm sure the two new teachers will change some things for next year.

Mikayla's 11th Birthday!

We bumped Mikayla's friend party a week later. She's getting so tall and it's fun to see her grow up! Happy birthday little girl! You might pass Juliet in height this year!

 

Gorgeous Snow! ❄

Look at this storm! This is so lovely. 😍

Do you want to build a snowman?

Beautiful Valentine's Day dinner! Jack was out with Leighna and Talon stayed over to eat!

But let's be honest, everyone just loves the chocolate fondue. 💗 These are my favorite people! Love you! 

I have to include this last picture of the snow man the next day. He was leaning. I couldn't figure how it was still upright! It didn't last long. Less than an hour later, it toppled. 

On A Mission!

Does anyone in your life hatch schemes? Holy moly! These boys have concocted a plan to get down to Mexico without Wade knowing to retrieve the rock that he crashed into. Merril took Mikayla on his adventure.

Darryl was with him when he crashed and knew right where is was. They really found the rock and dug it up. They tried to strap it to a motorcycle and drive it out but it made the motorcycle too top heavy and it kept falling over. They ended up driving Merril's truck in. You can see the rock still strapped to the motorcycle.

I wish you could see the video when they presented it to Wade. His voice was incredulous. He kept saying, "How?!?"....."HOW?!?" And then he smacked it. The rock rests at Wade's house with a special plaque, detailing its journey.

Maxine got a new companion, Sister Taimana. Maxine is going to miss Sister Wengler.

Mark's Literacy Scholar Award

Mark has been working hard to read better and it's paid off! In his class, he received the literacy scholar award for the quarter.

Good work kiddo!

Sick Tricks!

Look at the boys fly! That picture of Jack is so cool! I know he's not 20 feet in the air but it looks awesome!

Mark's getting too dang good! He needs more gear! That poor boy is mostly scar tissue. 

New Baby Madeline

Merril's sister, Megan, had another baby and the family is so excited! Everybody wants to love the new baby cousin because we haven't had one for a little while. Her name is Madeline Eleanor Campbell. Mark thinks we need to have another baby but I told him, “Sorry bud, you're out of luck.” 

Madeline was blessed here in St. George so it made it easy to attend. She has sweet blonde/red hair. It's so fun to have a new baby around. 😍

Fun Adventures!

Juliet was invited to Vegas for Nicole's 16th birthday party! Her parents have a time share and they had a sleepover and played in Vegas over the weekend! Yay! Juliet still has about 6 months until she turns 16. Sorry kiddo!

Nicole's parents were there too!

Do you see!? Look who is with my girl? Jo Anna and JoLyn were going to be in Southern California and asked if they could drop in on Maxine! Yes! They made sure it was okay with President Platt and I'm so jealous! Jo Anna got a big hug! *I'm crying* 

I'm so glad someone was able to give her a hug for me. My hug is coming up! This is Maxine's companion Sister Wengler. She said they get along great! They help each other. 

Letters from Maxine

I used to love writing to pen pals. Technology has made it obsolete. Since Maxine's been on a mission, I've loved writing and receiving letters again!

She makes them so cute too!

I will miss this when she comes home but can't wait to be able to talk to her when I want.

Sandy the Bearded Dragon

Mikayla loves this animal! She's so happy with Sandy. I think Sandy is very interesting.

Juliet does not like Sandy. 😂😂😂 Whenever Sandy runs to sit next to her, she makes a face and tries to get away. It's great stuff. Lol.

Spotlight on Mikayla

Mikayla has been in LEGO League for 2 years. She stays after school two days a week and helps the team make a Lego robot.  It was time for the big competition and it was hosted by Hurricane High school! Our team didn't win, but they still had a good time. 

And then on the same weekend, Mikayla was asked to speak at stake conference. When I first got a text from the stake president, they said, “We'd like your daughter Mikayla to speak at stake conference.” I responded and said, “Do you mean Juliet, my 15 year old?” 😲 They said, “No we want Mikayla.” She did a great job and didn't seem nervous at all! 

Awesome sauce girly!

Cozy vibes!

I love cozy winter vibes. It's about time to take down the decorations but I still love them too much. And this quilt my Mom made is so lovely, I can't put it away just yet.

We had epiphany. Tons of babies stuffed into the king cake. Sorry. On Epiphany, everyone is a winner at our house. Those who want to seek Jesus, can find him. 💕

Welcome 2023!

Merril and I have a California King size bed and that means that it can fit more people in the morning. This is how we started off the new year! 

Aunt Megan was in town and the families went bowling. This is the only picture I took. 😂 Aunt Megan brought Madeline and everyone was obsessed. She's so little and adorable.