Island Park with Hadley Family

Chris and I got the itch to go somewhere over the kids Fall break.  We found a great deal on a cabin in Island Park to rent.  We went to Sunday dinner one day and asked who wanted to join us!!  We got a few takers!  We had our family, Clint and Heidi's family, Chris and Jenni's family, G&G, and Grandma Wyatt.  We spent 3 nights in the cabin and had a great time.  It was a little cold but we still spent plenty of time sightseeing in Yellowstone, riding the 4 wheeler and playing games in the cabin.  We also ate some yummy food.  Everyone took a turn fixing a meal and we were well fed.  My favorite was Uncle Clint's homemade french fries!  Yum!  

Grandpa brought his 4 wheeler and it was the favorite for the kids.  Emilee and Sara thought they owned the roads on this thing! Anytime we were at the cabin, the 4 wheeler was in high demand. I think Grandpa might have had as much if not more fun than the kids.  He loves to give rides and the kids will definitely take him up on his offer!

So fun!  Super glad we pulled it together last minute and went!  Can't pass up opportunities to play and have fun together!

Chris' Birthday!

Dad turned 44!  When I asked him what he wanted for his Birthday dinner he told me that it didn't really matter what else we had, but he wanted Kim Reeder's breadsticks.  I called her and got her recipe and we gave it our best shot!  Unfortuntely, they were not as good as hers.  He got some money...which he always has fun dreaming about the millions of ways he can spend it!  We tease him about this just a little bit!

Hope that you had a wonderful Birthday and know how much we all LOVE you!

Conference Bowl!

Our FIRST ever "Conference Bowl".  In our 5th Sunday lesson the week before General Conference the Bishop had 3 different families talk about how we can get our families better prepared to watch General Conference.  There were some awesome ideas.  One of the couples told about how they celebrate Conference just like they would the Superbowl!  Dad instantly fell in love with the idea.  We decided we would make this a tradition, and the first "Conference Bowl" was born at the Southwick house!  We had a slumber party in the basement the night before and then made lots of yummy food to eat between Conference sessions.  The kids also had a packet to take notes on each of the talks.  I think it turned out really fun and hopefully helped us feel like Confernce weekend is an important event in our lives.  I think we will keep this tradition!  

The nicest letter ever!!

I found this letter in a pile of Brinley's homework.  It was super sweet and just what any Mother loves to hear.  I wanted it in a safe place where it would be printed and kept.  So I decided to put it in the blog!  Here it is...

Dear Mom,

Mom I love you very much.  I love you because you are very nice.  I feel safe when you are near me.  I am glad you make me dinner, lunch, breakfast and do a lot of other stuff for me.  You are the best Mom ever.  I want to come home from school and walk in the door and hug you so tight.  Thank you for all that you have done for me.  You play uno with me and lots of other games and I love it.  You are an Awesome Mom!  I wrote this letter for you to read.  I love everything you've done for me.  Thank you.

Love, Brinley

I am sure I am going to need to read this at a later time when she is a teenager and doesn't think I am such a great Mom anymore!

Cousins at Grandpa and Grandma's!

Oh the leaves at Grandpa and Grandma's house!  The kids never seem to outgrow them.  They are a hit each and every year!  We have the best cousins!  And we are so lucky to get to spend almost every Sunday with them.  Grandma makes us all dinner, which is a big job for her, but it gets us all together and it has made us a family that loves each other.  These kids have so much fun together!

Em and her crazy friends!

Em has great friends!  We love them.  They climbed up to the "B" on the side of the mountain and lit it on the night of the Homecoming game.  Looks like they had a ton of fun!  Em is always up for a party of any kind, think she might take after her Mother!