The boy turns 9

Treygan's birthday was such a whirlwind this year happening soon after moving, I hardly had time to reflect like I usually do because I'm sappy like that.  Instead, I'll sap on the blog for just a moment.

Treygan at 11 days old.  The quality of this picture alone makes me feel old!

9 years ago (9!!) I brought my first baby into our family, I was 21.  Sometimes I'm just so grateful he survived having this young completely clueless mama. It's hard to be the guinea pig but Trey takes it all in stride, he's pretty patient with me really.  I love that he has a good mixture of qualities from me and Justin; confident, easy going, ambitious, funny (you do the parent matching, haha). My favorite right now is watching him interact with Luke. They are buddies and I hope it stays that way despite the 8 year age difference.  Since moving, they now share a room and in the beginning (when Luke wasn't used to a roommate) there were 1 or 2 reports of baby brother waking up and "yelling at me and I rub his head to get him back to sleep." It made me smile that big brother just knew what to do, he didn't come complain to me, he just took care of it.  Treygan is going to do great things, I just know it.

Onto the party!  We celebrated in Rexburg this year with cousins.  It involved a Star Wars theme and a lot of fun. Take a look...

The cupcakes (thanks Lori) They look Star Warsish right?

The Food: I don't even know what Muja's or Padwan's are, but I went with it, and yes I used Hot and Ready and not Pizza Hut, it's just how I roll, simple but still gets the point across. 

The birthday Storm Trooper

Yes, he was really that excited for a bat bag

The death star that I was told didn't really look like the death star

 

And now the absolute best part of the entire party...

Darth Vader stopped in, this is the after shot, where he just held it up for the picture,  the paper mask didn't last long in the battle...

Don't you just love that last picture? Sheer joy on the boy's face, he will never forget his very awesome dad being so willing to be attacked with pool noodle light sabers.  At the end of the day, Trey summed it up well when he said, "Best birthday ever!"

Below are a few great pictures of the party guests that I have to include because they are so great.  Thanks Lani for taking them for me!

The Move

It's already May?  We've been in Twin Falls for over a month now and I think I'm ready to talk about "the move." Well maybe not, but here it goes anyway.  Moving is hard! The few weeks before we left, I have never felt so stressed out (oh, except for when we moved the ten other times).  No seriously, I came down with a UTI, broke out in hives and was a big ball of anxiety. But through all of that, I reaped some serious blessings in the form of the most wonderful friends a gal could ask for.  Playdates were had, meals were given and more selfless service was given through house cleaning and box packing.  The day we moved looked something like this.. (okay, not matching cars, but you get the idea)

Our farewell party looked something like this... (again, you get it)

 I was so overwhelmed with how many people showed up to see us off and then to help us, I really couldn't believe we were leaving this place so full of kindness and love for a place we hardly knew at all. But, alas, the inevitable arrived and we waved goodbye with tear filled eyes and nervous hearts for what lay ahead.

Now, I could go on and on about how I am not feeling the love here and how I constantly beg (just myself in my own mind) to go back to how things were, but I won't because it won't help.  Instead, I'm deciding here and now to make the best of this situation and try to find happiness here...it's not Twin Falls, it's me.  There are plenty of good people in the world and plenty for me to do to make a difference.  Vice President of PTO- yes please! Say hello instead of waiting for someone to come to me- absolutely! Live well! It's my new motto, you can take it to mean whatever you want, but for me it means that whatever I'm doing, I'm going to try my darndest to do it well, to be happy. It doesn't mean unrealistic expectations or never allowing myself a bad moment (or day), it just means to try my darndest.   However, in the spirit of keeping it real I'll admit that in my mind I am giving this a year, then I shall reevaluate- just sayin. :)

Live Well!

"Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls."  Matthew 11:28-29



 

Winds of Change

Oh the winds of change, they are a blowin’! Where are they taking the Prices…?

Twin Falls, Idaho baby! That’s right folks, we are moving. Yes, we’ve moved at least a hundred times (okay, more like 10) and we’re doing it again. In our defense, we have been in Meridian for 4 ½ years now, a record for us. We need to live up to our reputation and keep moving along.
Let’s be honest here. Do I love moving? No. Do I want to settle somewhere so my kids can make lifelong buddies and feel secure? Absolutely. But, this is just an opportunity we can’t resist and truly feel is a blessing for our family. Justin was offered a position as the Resident Engineer in Shoshone for the State of Idaho. This is a promotion, something I’m very proud of him for, and along with it will come promotion perks , or as I like to call them, blessings.

I feel excited, nervous and sad, but truly mostly excited. I think that is a really good sign, considering the last time we moved I was anything but happy. I’ve learned my lesson and now know that even though we have established wonderful friendships here and live in a neighborhood that most people envy, new friends await. The kids are starting to creep up to an age where it is important to be settled, but I think there is a still a window. I know it will be an adjustment and I know there will be tears, but I also know they’ll move on eventually and make new friends, probably faster than I will. This is an adventure! I know we can use it for the good of our family if we stay close to the Lord.

Meridian friends, don’t think you’re getting rid of us! I know how many of you drive to Utah throughout the year and would be breezing through our new town, so don’t forget to pop in on us and say hello because you will not be forgotten and each friendship we’ve made here will impact our lives forever.

Questions 3&4

I finished The Book of Mormon! I reached my goal and finished before the new year, I was just too busy to post about it! Today, I'll post questions 3 and 4, then we'll finish up the last 3 throughout the week.

Question 3 Who else saw the golden plates?

In addition to Joseph Smith, several other men and women saw the plates and testified of their existence. Eleven men in particular, known as the Three Witnesses and the Eight Witnesses, recorded their testimonies of seeing the plates and , in the case of the Eight Witnesses, of holding the plates. Their testimonies are included at the front of each copy of the Book of Mormon.

These men stand as powerful witnesses of the Book of Mormon, perhaps even more so because some of them became "for a time hotile to Joseph," affirms Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Nevertheless, they "testified to their death that they had seen an angel and had handled the plates. They have been shown unto us by the power of God, and not of man," they declared. "Wherefore we know of a surety that the work is true."

Question 4 Is there physical evidence that the Book of Mormon is true?

Although we don't base our faith on physical evidence, there is linguistic, historical, and archaeological evidence for the Book of Mormon. For example, the idea of writing on metal plates was once ridiculed, but in recent years numerous examples of sacred writings on metal plates-some hidden in stone boxes-have been found.

Linguists have noted Book of Mormon words and phrases that sound awkward in English but make perfect sense in Hebrew and related languages that would have been known by the people of the Book of Mormon-languages young Joseph Smith did not know.

But these kinds of evidences are not what convince us of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. It is a matter of faith and personal revelation.

Christmas Eve with Woodburn

We spent Christmas Eve with our wonderful, awesome, amazing neighbors! Have I mentioned how much we love our neighborhood? Along with the Palomarez fam, the Partridges, the Pugmires and the Juniers, we ate (there is never a shortage of good food here), we played..well, okay we let the kids play while we relaxed and of course the kids acted out the Nativity.

The Prices 2011

Danny won the dollar in the right left game

So did Rylie!

Alison became 5 bucks richer!

Boys on one side

Girls on the other

Lukie lasted about an hour into the part

Danny, Ryan, Grayson, Treygan

Rylie, Taylee, Emily, Brooklyn

Beautiful girls: Annie, Miranda, Alison, Lissa

All the kids (Lacey is in this one)

Brooklyn as Mary

Taylee as the Angel, boys as shepherds

Brooklyn Dawn turns 7!

Whoa! 7 years?! I can't believe how time has flown since Brooklyn joined our family on December 22, 2004. Looking through her pictures, Ihad forgotten that she was the stinkin' cutest baby ever, especially with all of her dark, crazy hair. Even now, I often whisper to Justin about how we are in trouble with her because she is just so pretty...but enough of that because we all know Brooklyn has many more wonderful qualities, like being the biggest helper with Luke and sometimes Taylee (when they aren't fighting). Or when she looks at me with those pouty, big brown eyes and asks, "Will you cuddle with me?" The list goes on and I hope it continues to grow as she does. We love you Brooklyn!
3 months old

This is what Grandma Hardie calls "kickin' hair."

2 years old


And now......

Big 7 year old in her special birthday chair

I made her dreams come true at Build A Bear Workshop

I don't do cakes, so I bought it but still ruined it trying to write Happy Birthday.

Brooklyn and her friend Baylee at Pojos

Happy 7th sweet girl!