Tara & Gavin Wedding -- Great Wedding... not your typical wedding weekend

Tara & Gavin... great wedding weekend.
In April we all enjoyed one of the funnest wedding weekends I've had. It started on Friday with a huge Mexican fiesta -- Mariachi band and all! Rico's fabulous catering and Jenn's friends made an incredible dinner. The Cottle siblings A-Z gifts were amazing (I've got to get the list) and who knew pinatas at a wedding dinner would be go great!

The wedding was beautiful... and of course Tara and I had the most tears. My favorite part was watching Lauren all day. She followed Tara and Gavin and took pictures, helped hold her dress and even went to Idaho to the open house. (I think she would have gone on the honeymoon if she could have! Which led to a very good mom/daughter chat.)

After the reception they had a dance... everyone loved the dancing including Grandpa. He got so carried away he actually fell. Jenn got it on video -- it was very funny and he handled the fall very well.

I am so grateful to have such a great niece that my kids look up to (and Gavin is now Cameron's favorite new person)! You two are great examples to all of us!


Cameron got Tara's garter and this girl caught the bouquet... he was so proud!

Lauren followed Tara and Gavin around all day. She held her dress, she took pictures, she even went to Idaho for their open house. If she had her way she would have gone on the honeymoon with them too! But there are not two better people for Lauren to idolize and following a cousin around the temple is a great place to follow.Awesome cupcake/cake.

Lauren and Jana

Cam & Kenzi had a great time dancing... everyone did for over 1/2 hour. Grandpa got into things and even took a tumble!!! But he was ok.Ok, so I wasn't the only one crying here.
The girls were mesmorized by Gavin & Tara's first dance.
What a cheesy family! Cam loved the fake mustache. Cottle, Hess and Stout Girls Cam and Gavin -- Cam's favorite new family member. About time we get some more boys! Everyone loves Tara. Beautiful Cottle Women! Aunt Sharron and Aunt Maureen -- the only two left f Fiesta the night before was so much fun! The bride and groom got their own pinata and the kids thought it was the best wedding dinner ever. The Cottle siblings did a great A-Z wedding gift. How Adam can be so spiritual and so trashy at the same time cracks me up. Everyone loved the Mariachi band... especially Rachel and the cute teenager guy.

6th Grade Graduation... My Favorite Part

Lauren my little baby (sniff, sniff) had her official 6th grade graduation today. Can I tell you how much I love, love, love her teacher?! Mrs. Higley is fabulous and Lauren had a great year.

They did a fun program, teary sentimental songs, and it was so funny to watch some of the girls burst into tears and fight back tears (and moms) and some of the boys rolling their eyes at the whole event.

Time to brag (or be a proud parent) for just a few minutes. Forgive me... but I was very proud of Lauren and need to document this.

• Lauren's Proudest Moment: They gave an award for the fastest mile run in 6th grade. They started by announcing the 3rd place winner -- Sam Perry. 2nd place winner -- Gavin Nadauld. You could just see the smile on the teacher's face and she announced the fastest 6th grade mile winner -- Lauren Hess. Lauren has been Gavin's and Sam's biggest rival for 3 years and you should have seen the look on her face when she got the award. I must say Dave and I were pretty proud too! It was cute because as the 3 of them stood on the front of the stage together a lady from the back yelled "Go Girl!"

• What should have been Lauren's proudest moment. Lauren receive all 3 of the possible certificates. The "grads" could receive a certificate of completion, 100% A/R and the Presidential Academics certificate. (The look at your grades, test scores and work for 4th, 5th, 6th grade and if you meet a certain level for all 3 years you get a Presidential Academics certificate.) Just a handful of the kids from the other 6th grade class got the Presidential Academics and not everyone from her class got it. (Which was a bit of pressure because most of the kids did in her class.)

I also loved the songs, the looks on their faces, You Raise Me Up (with violins and cellos) and the kids doing sign language.

Love you Lolo... wish I could have been a student like you at that age... and be 1/2 of the athlete you are. You are such a great example to your brother and sister.

Things don't always goes as planned... but this year it doesn't get better than this!

On Sunday I was thinking back over lots Mother's Days. I remember being about 14 and having to speak about mom's on Mother's Day. Well if you know me and my mom at all, I think I pretty much cried through it all.

I remember Mother's Day when I was at BYU Hawaii -- calling home and listening to all of the partying in the background thinking... for just this one day I wish I was home.

The first Mother's Day after my mom died was probably the saddest and funniest. Prior to that time, Mother's Day didn't depress me even though we hadn't been able to have kids. While my mom was alive I looked at it as a way to celebrate my love for my mom, even though I wasn't a mom. But after she died I decided as Mother's Day got closer I didn't have a Mother and I wasn't a Mother so I was feeling a little blue. I decided the best way to overcome the blues is to serve others. So I bought a potted flower and on the way up to my dad's for Sunday dinner Dave and I stopped by a Care Center to "brighten some mother's day."

Well... let's just say sometimes things don't got as planned.

We pulled in and Dave waited in the car. (He liked my idea, but thought it was a little nutty to just randomly go find some 'mom' and give her flowers and visit her so he offered to let this be own service/touching moment.)

I guess in my mind I pictured some beautiful old woman, lying in bed, tearing up when she realized someone remembered her on Mother's Day. Either she had outlived all of her children, or they were out of state and she was so hoping for a visit and flowers that day. She and I would have this "instant bonding" and I'd know that my thoughts and efforts were an answer to someone's prayers.

When I walked in I discovered I had probably picked the dirtiest, oldest, ickiest care center in SLC. (I had just looked up an address that was on the way to Bountiful.) I cheerfully walked up to the front desk with my flowers and sweetly asked the receptionist if there was a patient that didn't get any visitors from her kids today and would like a flower and a visit. "No." was the response I was given in a cranky, irritated voice. "But you can leave them here and if I think of someone I'll give them to them."

No "Oh, how thoughtful." "You are wonderful and you are going to make so and so's day!"

Just a "No."

I left the flowers and dejectedly walked back to the car. I'm sure my face said it all as I explained that not even in this dumpy care center was I wanted on Mother's Day.

I'm not sure what Dave said, but I do think by the time we got to Bountiful I was laughing and realized that I could feel sorry for myself if I wanted to, but why would I want to.

I can honestly say I think that is the only time in my life I haven't liked Mother's Day. This year was definitely high on the list of great Mother's Days.

• A gorgeous yellow and gold necklace, with a beautiful gold heart! (With the perfect pattern Cameron so carefully designed. The blue plastic chain added to the beauty.)

• A money flower card made from dollar bills, quarters and a gold dollar. (Lauren is so clever and LOVES to give gifts.)
  

• A beautiful picture and yummy cookies in a jar. (Kenz was so proud of her work.)
  

And.... lots of homemade cards from the kids. Can it get any better?!

Clone Wars Episode VI: The Birthday Party

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• A clever invitation designed by mom (even if Cameron had no idea what the jokes meant and Dave thought Becca did it for me. Should I be insulted or grateful Becca usually does them for me?)
• A clear/sunny afternoon (thankfully... this was definitely not conducive to the indoors.)
  
• A bunch of wild young Jedi's
• 1 Star Wars Hero and 2 Evil Villans (aka Sam, Christian and Lauren)
• Guess Who I Am (Thanks Wendy ... as always such a great game!)
• Station 1: Yoda Soda, Light Sabers in Mud and making candy/pretzel Pod Racers
• Station 2: Create your Own Light Saber and Jedi Training with Annikan & Darth Sidius
• Station 3: Astroid Hunting and Planet Blasting (Thanks Lisa -- you really went above and beyond the call of friendship.)
• The Final Battle: Annikan vs. Darth Vader/Darth Sidius. Congrats Annikan for winning!!!
• Cake by Lauren (great cake!)
• Kill the Droidica (aka pinata time)

Race for the Cure... one of my favorite Mother's Day Traditions

Inspirational, touching, emotional, sad, funny ... one of my favorite Mother's Day traditions.

Happy Mother's Day Mom... Kenzi and I shed a few tears for you today along with race route. We all miss you and love you!

And Happy Mother's Day to my sisters, nieces, aunts, cousins, mom-in-law, friends and my own sweet girls! I can't imagine what life would be like without you!

The Karate Kid... Cam

A few things about Cameron and Karate.

1. He LOVES, LOVES, LOVES it!

2. He LOVES, LOVES, LOVES Master Shaun. If Master Shaun fixes his belt, Cam fixes his. If Master Shaun smiles, he smiles. Next to his dad I think Master Shaun is #2 on his top Idol list. He begs to go to class early because he loves to be the 1st one there. He loves it if for some reason he is the only kid at class that day... a day with just he and Master Shaun is heaven!

3. He is so intense and take it very seriously. He wants to be exact and precise and good. I love watching his face during class. At the end of each class Master Shaun passes out a "best in class" award to whoever worked the hardest, practiced, etc. One or all students can get it. Cam gets one nearly every time because this is very serious stuff to him.