Zachary and his missing front tooth

Zachary lost his wiggly front tooth on Thursday evening. Billy pulled it out actually. Now Zachary looks like this:

He is so cute. He talks quite cute too. Your getting so big Zachary!!!

Favorite things party

I went to a "favorite things" party on the 10th and this is what I brought as my favorite for the evening.  I love my diaper clutch, I have ditched the idea of lugging around a huge diaper bag when  all I really need close by are diapers and wipes. Plus I can throw my chap stick and car key in it and call it a purse.
Inside I put wool dryer balls and TJ's lavender satchels which I use in the dryer instead of dryer sheets. It works for me and my loads of laundry and I love the lavender smell, especially because I make my own laundry detergent which doesn't have a smell.
The girls who "won" my favorite were pretty excited :) I was happy.

Halloween 2016

I'm a few weeks late.... but here are the pictures of the kids in their Halloween best this year.

 Don't mess with our sister!!

William's Baptism

I can't let this special day go by without a journal entry. William was baptized as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints on October 16th, 2016. We held the service, which was shared with his friend Oscar Green, right after church. It was Oscars actual birthday which made the day super special for him and his family as well.
The program started with singing "I am a Child of God", our good Bishop conducted the meeting for us, and then it was Billy up first for the talk on baptism. He did a sweet and wonderful job. Then I finished off with a little baptism bag presentation that I made for each boy full of little reminders and symbols to help them remember their special day and what it was all about.
Billy then took William to the font and baptized him. Jared followed with Oscar and baptized him.
While we waited for them to dry off and change their clothes, I played several primary songs on my guitar for people to sing along. It kept a nice reverent spirit and as I was finishing my last prepared song, Jared and Oscar walked in! It was perfect timing.
William and Oscar then got up and sang "Army of Helaman" together. It was awesome and I was beaming as I listened to them. They did an amazing job!
Next, Jared's Dad/ Oscar's Grandpa gave a nice talk on the Holy Ghost. He shared several neat stories when he was strongly prompted by the Spirit and listened.
Then, William received the gift of the Holy Ghost and was given a blessing by Billy. In the circle to join him were; his Grandma Mills, Uncle Dan, Larry Hixon, Larry Adams, and Bishop Ruth. It was a very sweet blessing.  Oscar was confirmed after William.
The primary president congratulated them both and gave them a small packet including a booklet for a program they will begin now that they are 8 years old. The Bishop also congratulated them and welcomed them as the newest members of our ward :)
We ended the meeting with a song and then dismissed out to the courtyard for some light refreshments that Jill and I prepared.
It was a special day. And, it was really special that Grandpa Wrenn, Grandpa & Grandma Mills, and the Hixon family all made such long drives to be there and support William! What an awesome family we have!
Congratulations William. I love you so much and can't believe how much you are growing up.

November!

When did it get to be November! We were just celebrating our birthdays in Utah, fresh from Hawaii.... life has been a whirl wind lately.
We took our first plane ride as a family on October 21st. The kids did awesome! They all loved it! It was the thrill of their year, they were all smiling and so happy. We flew from LA to Salt Lake so the flight was a quick hour and 20 minutes. When we landed one of the boys asked " can we just go on one more flight before we have to get off?" Haha.
This second trip to Utah in a months time was a success. My sisters and Mom and I had planned a big surprise birthday party for Kristy and Jess's 40th birthday. It was awesome. Although it was almost foiled by weekend army reserve drills... it happened and it was grand.
A scavenger hunt that lead to birthday shirts and a party bus- an escape room adventure- dinner at the Bombay house- indoor kart racing- and a grand family party to end the evening. It was such a fun evening and I think that Kristy and Jess felt special and loved. So it was a success in my eyes and all so worth it. I'm so glad it happened!
We got home Tuesday night and I did not have the energy or time to think about Halloween. I didn't even get our Halloween bin out of the shed. We ended up borrowing a few bags of costumes from our good friend and the kids had their pick from them. Our church trunk or treat was Saturday evening after an afternoon learning about how to do family history and a big bbq dinner. Sunday I taught the lesson in Young Womens and now we are half way thru the week again. Non stop fun ;)
I haven't gotten the camera out to much lately but I have snapped a few cute moments on my phone...

Leila feeding Daddy grapes on the grass in Utah

Birthday prep

Playing in the creek

Leila in her bird costume

 This is how Leila drinks her milk out of the cereal bowl once she has eaten all the cereal.
It's awesome :)