My baby girl is 5!

I can't believe Ellie is five already. Here's my typical birthday list of things we love about Ellie:

1. She HAS to say "byeloveyouseeya" with a kiss everytime someone leaves or she is in tears. Sometimes it's frustrating when I'm in a hurry but I know someday I'll miss it.

2. She says the funniest things like, "Mom, my nose be's squeaky when I'm in bed." She can always make us laugh.

3. That girl can sleep! This is one I especially appreciated when she was little. She is still my best sleeper sometimes sleeping for 13 hrs.

4. She is such a good friend to her brothers. She can be a big kid and play with Kaden and then turn around and play baby games with Kameron. It doesn't phase her at all that she's the only girl!

5. Ellie loves to be tickled. If you do it wrong, don't worry, she'll tell you. She'll sit by you and stick her arm on your lap and say, "Tickle me." It's more of a demand than a request really. She likes them "softs" not scratchy and will make you do it until your arm is dead.

We love you Ellie Bellie!

Here is the front of Ellie's cake....

And here's the back! I have now vowed to never make another birthday cake ever! Everytime I make one it is a DISASTER. This one was no different. Everytime I turned around more of the cake would just crumble away! Kaden said it was "the dumbest cake ever." I totally agreed. Luckily it didn't bother Ellie a bit and she was just happy it had Tinkerbell on it.

And of course to hold with tradition we went to Texas for dinner. They didn't sing to her like they usually do and she kept asking when they were going to, so I sang to her all through dinner. I'm sure the people around us didn't enjoy it as much as Ellie did!

Mesquite

We went with our friends Heath and Heather to Mesquite for a week in June. It was SO warm (yes Jess, it was warm not hot) and we had tons of fun. It's always nice to get away from the distractions and work at home and just be a family. The boys went to golfing for a couple days and me and Heather had a fabulous day at the spa. I was the only bump on a log that didn't gamble at the casinos. For some reason I have no desire to go sit in a smoke and alcohol filled environment and lose all my money! :) We had an awesome week!

It was a long drive but the kids did pretty good. As long as Kameron had a sucker in his mouth. He actually was quite the little stinker. He sits in the middle of Kaden and Ellie and he would pinch them and pull Ellie's hair and yank on Kaden's headphone cord-- mostly anything he could do to make them scream. What a turkey! Super cute, though!

We took the kids into Vegas for a day. We went to the M&M factory, saw the lions at MGM and of course the Bellagio fountains, which are my favorite. It was a little warm for Jess and the kids so we were pretty wiped out by the time the fountains finally went off.

We went up to St George to Sand Hollow reservoir for an afternoon. My kids are beachaholics. They could stay there all day and still not want to leave. It was windy but so much warmer than Pocatello. I love the red rock scenery.

My wild child. Kameron has texture issues so he didn't really like the sand too much. He mostly just liked to sit on the chair. He never ceases to amaze me with his craziness.

Sigh... he's so handsome. My love.

Kaden and Cooper decided to make sand angels. I think the sand was the exact same color as his hair!

We stayed at a condo with a pool and the kids swam at least once a day. It's was nice to soak up some rays. We have not had a summer yet in Poky. Nobody wanted to come home!

Yep, there's my kids. My two mello, obedient children and then... Kameron. Never a dull moment. We love all the excitement he adds to our family.

Heather and I took the kids to the St George temple while the boys golfed. (This was right before we shopped at the outlets!)

That night we went to the Tuacahn Theater outside St George. We saw the Little Mermaid. It was cute and well done. Ellie absolutely loved it. Kaden and Jesse... not so much. I looked over once and they were both catatonic and slumped in their seats. Kaden said there was too much singing.

We had the lucky experience of getting a flat tire on the way home. We got to spend the afternoon in Fillmore, UT while they fixed our car. We ate at Bucks Pizza and were very ready to get on the road again. But we were watched over and blessed and no harm done. It was hard to come home!

Vegas!

My sister Keri and I decided to get away to Vegas for a weekend in June. It was so relaxing and fun to spend time with her. We were super close when we lived at home so it was nice to spend time and be best friends again. We had lots of laughs (or as Jim calls it "cackling") and just shopped and ate and relaxed and watched Law and Order late at night. Just like the old times. We had a blast! Thanks again Kiki!

We stayed on Fremont Street, which is the old strip. It was cool at night because there's a lighted ceiling that they light at night but it was a pretty rough crowd. We stayed at the Golden Nugget. I know it sounds cheesy but it was actually a nice hotel.

Hands down, the best part of the trip was going to the Cirque de Soleil show Beatles Love. It was AMAZING! We grew up listening to the Beatles so it was that much better. We were total nerds and bought tee shirts for the show and everything.

Me and Harrison Ford!