To-Love List

Ryder woke up with a yucky cough this morning and just went downhill from there. Tenley stayed home again because she had a fever on top of the cold. Ryder got a fever in the afternoon and threw up all over himself and me around 5. I feel so bad for my little kids! But I'm so grateful Kade is feeling well and that I was feeling well enough to take care of them.
The past few days that Tenley has been home, I've let them watch T.V. on the couch most of the day while I've gotten a lot of things done on my to-do list. But I've been feeling really guilty about that. All they want is for me to cuddle with them, so today I forgot about my to-do list and focused on my to-love list. Yes, it's a real thing! I literally have a to-love list with people's names on it just like I have a to-do list with tasks to be done. It makes me feel like I'm actually accomplishing something positive when I sit and cuddle my kids on the couch and watch T.V. I am loving them and that is something I need to do every day. They are always on my to-love list.
Tenley had a little bit of energy this afternoon so she colored Ryder a get better soon picture. She loves to make cards for people, even when she is feeling awful herself. She's amazing.

Our Teddy Ruxpin may have some creepy looking eyes, but Ryder loves him!

Sister Missionaries

We've had sister missionaries in our ward ever since we moved here, but one has finished her mission and is heading back home this weekend, the other sister is getting transfered, and rumor is that we'll be getting Elders next. It's been nice to have sisters though! They came into Young Womens on Sunday and shared their testimonies of the gospel, the Savior, and their mission. It was powerful and I hope touched some of the girls for the better.

Poor Tenley wasn't doing any better today. So she stayed home again. Which Ryder and I loved. I'm glad Kade is feeling well, but I think he thinks he's missing a party every time he goes to school and Tenley stays home. It definitely isn't a party though.

Buddies

Tenley wasn't feeling so great this morning. She woke up with a croupy cough so she stayed home from school. Ryder loved having a buddy at home with him! Even if she just sat on the couch all day. She did come to Kade's basketball practice with us, though, since Brad wasn't home from work. I think she enjoyed getting out at least once.

Brad gave us a great lesson on repentance, with a demonstration and everything! I love his lessons.

Teenagers

Tonight Brad and I were able to go to a youth fireside. We were asked to be on the dating panel and the youth asked us questions. I was a little intimidated about the whole situation, but we were on the panel with a few other really awesome couples and we ended up having a great time.
I say this a lot and I'll probably say it a thousand more times, but I love the youth I get to work with. They are amazing. They lead so well and so effortlessly. They can teach lessons incredibly. They are so awesome and they inspire me all the time.

We video chatted with my parents before the fireside and Kade and Tenley gave them a little piano concert. I've been impressed with both them. They are both memorizing songs on the piano already and doing a great job. And they love it still. All thanks to their awesome teacher I'm sure.

For some reason the photo doesn't show the kids playing the piano in the small square box. Oh well. My parents are adorable!

Hockey Games

We took the kids to their first ever hockey game tonight! I've always enjoyed watching hockey and it's been a while since I've been to a game so it was really fun to go to one as a family. When the kids saw the first hard check into the wall they were pretty surprised! Ryder couldn't take his eyes off of the zamboni as it smoothed the ice. It was fun to watch them experience something new.

Snowshoeing, The Pinewood Derby

All I had asked Brad to give me for my birthday was a trip to the mountains to go snowshoeing and today we finally got to go! The weather was beautiful and there was a lot of snow. The trail was well groomed and we had such a fun time. We left after dropping Kade and Tenley off at school and got back in time to pick them up. Ryder got to ride in the carrier on Brad's back. He told Kade and Tenley that he went on a horsey ride on Dad through the snow. He enjoyed it!

Tonight was Kade's first pinewood derby race! He and Brad had fun these past few weeks building a car together. His car did pretty well! And he had a lot of fun.

Surprise Packages

This morning my brother Jason texted and said that Ryder and I would be getting a package from him for our birthdays today. Sure enough, just a few hours later it arrived! Ryder and didn't waste anytime opening it. Jason gave me so really nice running and walking socks. They are so cozy! And he gave Ryder a PJ Masks toy. Ryder was so excited! It came at a great time too because he's become very jealous of Tenley's Hatchimals.

Kade had his 2nd basketball game tonight. He is improving a lot and he scored another basket! Woot woot! Kade is awesome.

Speaking of improving, the kids' 2nd quarter of school just ended and I got their report cards back. They are both excelling in everything and they both got certificates for good behavior. Kade's reading and math test scores have always been above average and last quarter Tenley's were just about average, but now she is off the charts in both subject areas! I couldn't believe how much she improved in such a short amount of time. I'm proud of them both.

Amazon Packages

All the kids got some Amazon money for Christmas from Grandpa Hobson and Grandma Judy, but surprisingly they've all been having a hard time figuring out what to spend it on! Tenley finally decided on Hatchimals which are all the rage right now I guess. They arrived in the mail today and she was so excited. When we got home from school, Tenley gave each of us an egg to hatch. It took a while to figure out how to 'hatch' them, but after a wonderful YouTube tutorial video we got it figured out!
When I ordered her Hatchimals I ordered some piano music for me at the same time from my favorite composer. A late birthday present to myself :) I even had some time tonight to play one of the songs. I really need to take more time to play the piano everyday. I'm missing it so much lately.

Letters

A few days ago Tenley got a letter from my friend Becca in Indiana. Becca has four brothers and is the only girl so when she heard how sad Tenley was after hearing she was getting another brother, she wrote her the most amazing letter to cheer her up. She even gave us some money to Target so we could go on a shopping date together. It was such a kind and thoughtful thing that meant a lot to all of us. Tenley seems more excited than ever now to be the only girl!

Basketball Games

Tonight was Kade's first basketball game! It was so much fun to watch him play. It was a little rough at first, but then he seemed to get the hang of it. He even scored a basket! He was so excited, he jumped up so high and had the biggest smile on his face. Of course, this was one of the few moments I was recording :(. But it was probably more fun to see it without a camera in front of my face.

My Birthday

I had a great birthday today! When I woke the kids up this morning to get them ready for church, Tenley perked right up and said, "Happy Birthday, Mom!" It was really sweet.
Brad secretly told my young women that it was birthday so when I walked in the young women's room they all started singing 'Happy Birthday' to me. That was sweet too!
Brad spent most of the day in the kitchen for me making lunch, dinner, and dessert. Tenley and Kade were really helpful too by doing the dishes and keeping the kitchen clean.
The kids let me take a nap and they colored lots of pictures for me that they'd keep putting on my lap. They're so cute and thoughtful.
Lots of family and friends called or texted and I definitely felt loved!

Cheer Camp

Tenley came home from school a few weeks ago begging me to sign her up for a cheer camp that the High School cheerleaders were doing. Although I was surprised to see her interested in that, it also made me so happy that she was excited about some sort of an extracurricular activity so I signed her up. Today was her special day! She and I went early in the morning to the High School and she practiced for a few hours with the cheerleaders. She loved it and had fun playing games with them and learning the cheer.
We all went back later that day for a High School basketball game and she performed at half time! She smiled the whole time and had a blast. She was adorable and I loved seeing her be involved and have so much fun!

Date Night with our Kids

Since tomorrow will be busy with kids things and my birthday is on Sunday, we decided to celebrate tonight. We took the kids to a yummy burger restaurant and then told them we had a fun surprise after that. They tried to guess, but couldn't ever figure it out. We pulled up to the movies theater and they got so excited! We took them to see the new Star Wars movie and it was a lot of fun. I love surprising the kids. It was such a fun night.

Basketball Practice

Tenley came to Kade's basketball practice with me tonight and it was fun to have her with me. Kade is loving basketball and his team. I'm excited to see his first game next week!
When we got home Brad and Ryder had fallen asleep together on the couch! Such cute boys.

Bear Hugs

Even after a ridiculously long and busy day at work, Brad can come home and make the kids giggle and laugh like no other. It makes me so happy to watch. 

They love him. So much.

And so do I.

Holiday

It wasn't until I was talking with my mom last night that I remembered the kids didn't have school today! My mind is racing with too many other things I guess. But I was so happy to have them home today! It was nice not to have to wake them up. I always hate waking them up to get ready for school so it's nice to let them sleep as long as they want. We made German pancakes for breakfast and then Kade had a friend over. They had a blast together. They mostly played video games all day so when he left I tried to do some more productive things with them. And for a few hours the house was pretty peaceful and they were all productive. We practiced the piano, Kade read a book, and Ryder played with toys. It was a mom moment win and I wish every afternoon was the same way!

For Tenley's family night she made us cookies, taught us about how we are all children of God, and we watched Star Wars. They still love those movies!

Tenley

I don't know what I would do without my Tenley girl! She is always so helpful. She played with Ryder a lot today after church and then she helped me make dinner. She's always willing to set the table and clear the table as well. I love the extra help!

Date Night

Today was a typical slow moving Saturday for us. We slept in and had a big yummy breakfast/brunch. Then Kade went to a friends house for a few hours and Brad had some errands to run so Tenley, Ryder, and I exercised together and then they took a bath while I showered. We were finally ready for the day by one. :) It's good to be lazy once in a while!

Brad and I got to go out on a big date tonight! We had friends invite us to dinner and a rodeo. It was such a fun night! Dinner was at a tepanyaki restaurant and it was delicious and such a fun atmosphere. The rodeo was a blast as well. I've only ever been to really small town rodeos before so this was a huge difference! It was pretty intense watching the bull riders. They were impressive, but pretty crazy as well!

The kids had  a really awesome babysitter. They played hide n' seek, tag, and a few other games. They watched a movie and ate popcorn. And they were sleeping peacefully when we got home. I'm glad they had so much fun!