A long time ago...

my brother and I played on the Jersey shore! :)

McKenzie!

Kenzie has some fun friends that she got together with for pictures and a dinner out - to celebrate the end of the school year!  Kenzie had an all around - fantastic - last year in middle school!  I think she is a little nervous about high school and a little sad about ending her reign as an 8th grader! 

Meade, Courtney, Kenzie, Katie, and Maddie

Dinner at Armando's - yummy!

Band concert - she had a flute solo and got to play the piccolo.

So she told me the day of she had a flute solo and didn't make a big deal about it.  But had I known her flute and the chimes were about the only things playing I might have been better prepared.  Anyway, if you listen closely and quickly you might here what I heard that night!  :)

Honors Night! :)



I am always so proud of the kids when they have worked hard and done well, but sometimes the award night gets a little "lengthy"!  Good thing we had Kavan with us to take pictures...

Soon after school got out, Kenzie went to Girl's Camp.  Great site, great lake, great leaders, and great memories!

"Live Like You Believe!"

Then Kenzie turned 14!  Huh? 
(Did you know I met Layne at 14?  At my first church dance?)

Kenzie was sick on her birthday and had been for 3 days, but we still had a small celebration.



Ice cream cake, yum!



Then we celebrated with lots of family at the lake.

Then she celebrated again with some friends by making "hair flowers,"

bath salts and shrinky dinks,

 having lunch and eating cupcakes and ice cream,

then pampering the feet with pedicures while watching Letters to Juliet.  Fun stuff!!



One of the things she asked for for her birthday was a Daddy - Daughter date!  They saw the movie Soul Surfer and ate at Fatz Cafe!  So fun!

My, how time really does fly!

We sure do love her!



Kyler!

Kyler had the opportunity to play baseball for the middle school's B team and the county recreation department this year.  Even though his school team was kind of like the "Bad News Bears" that never quite got it together, Kyler worked really hard and had a great time with both of his teams!

Kyler turned 12 years old in May - WOW!  To celebrate "the boys" - Kyler, Layne, my dad, and 3 of Kyler's friends (Griffin, Owen, and Keaton), went to IHOP and the movie Thor in 3D on the eve of his birthday.  Then on his birthday my dad took Kyler, Kavan, and Layne on a fishing trip.  They had so much fun!

Then we celebrated with cheesecake and presents after showers.

It's fun that Kyler still gets so excited!

Kyler loves card tricks, magic tricks, diabalo tricks, etc...  So Kenzie got him a "magic hat."

And being 12 he got to go to Boy Scout Camp in June, so he got a new pack for his birthday!

Also being 12, he received the Aaronic Priesthood on Sunday May 8, 2011.

What a neat day! Layne and I are so grateful for Kyler and for the choices that he makes - and for the excitement he has for life!

After church, we celebrated Kyler's and Kirk's birthday with lots of family.

Kyler got an afghan from his Grandma Mitchell!  Love it!

Kirk and Kyler are enjoying their cake - cookie and ice cream!!!

There have been several areas devastated by storms lately and Alabama was one of them.  Layne, Kirk, Collin and Kyler along with many others were able to go help with Alabama's relief effort.  What a great opportunity for service!  I think seeing the devastation was quite an eye opening experience for the boys.  (Kyler also thought it was pretty crazy to go to church without a shower in his dirty jeans and t-shirt, and to be able to set up camp right there on church grounds.)  A neat experience - a great memory!

Kyler really enjoyed middle school and had a great school year!  The end of the school year brought band concerts and...

Kyler and the bassoon!  :)

honors night.  Kyler missed honors night because of a baseball game, but the two trophies left sitting on the table were his.  He said his homeroom teacher (Ms. Nash) was very excited to give them to him the next morning.  He received the trophies for obtaining the highest average in his pod for language arts and social studies.

We love this boy!

2005                                                               2011