Swensen Family: January 2014

Thursday, January 23, 2014

The Big 30...Yikes!

One year older and wiser too...right?! Mckay, the kids, Dick, and Sarah made me feel extra special on my big day. In addition to the love sent from other family members both near and far. You really know how to make a girl feel special. Of coarse we had been a little bust getting ready for the reception but we also found time to party. We had Papa Murphy's for dinner (best pizza ever!). Followed by a chocolate cake and some ice cream.

That's a whole lot of candles!

Make a wish.

Getting ready to put out the fire!

I'm usually not one to do a post about me but I'm trying to include most things that happen in our lives in order to use it for keeping memories for the future. Who knows...maybe one day I'll wish I was only 30 again!

Saturday, January 18, 2014

Levi and Stacie's Big Day

We headed to Rexburg, Idaho for a fun weekend with family. We enjoyed supporting Levi and Stacie on their BIG day. The kids have been loving spending time with their cousins and had a blast. We stayed at a large lodge outside of Rexburg.

The happy couple!

Posing with the kids.

So sweet.

Now Emry and Grandpa joined in.

Taylor and Brielle exploring on the Temple grounds.

Busy girl

Trying to stay warm.

Good looking Payton with his lovely broken arm.

The Swensen clan at the Rexburg reception.

Missing the rest of the Linfords and Oli on his mission.

Another with the kiddos.

This is one of my favorites...everyone looks picture perfect!

McKenzie enjoying some hot cocoa and cookies.

Brielle, Hanging out with dad and mom while enjoying some refreshments.

And kisses from daddy!

I LOVE it!

Funny faces!

The other kids did get a bite to eat as well and then they were off to play with their cousins. When ever we were looking for one of them, usually they would be found with their partner in crime. It is great having cousins so close in age, makes for best friends. Asher and Taylor are a funny pair. They literally stayed in a classroom with a chalkboard, chalk, maybe a chair or two, and themselves for the majority of our time at the reception. The said that they were making plans. If I remember correctly it had to do with a dragon and swords/weapons. Whatever they were talking about and planning in there it sure had them entertained for the longest time.

Then it was time for the Montana reception the following weekend.

Looking good!!

The kids had been practicing "You Are My Sunshine" and here they are all ready to go on stage.

They did awesome and it was entertaining to say the least!

The older kids held the tune while Emry wasn't too sure of the whole thing, and Brielle wanted to steal the show. She was a little behind the rest of the group and tried reaching for the microphone on occasion. I was shocked by her reaction to being on stage. She loved being in the spotlight...Crazy girl!

Good job kids!

Then McKenzie and a few other girls in the ward had been practicing a dance routine. It was fun for Kenzie to be involved in something like this. She is kind of a natural and was really looking forward to it. She is front left here.

So cute.

I wish these pictures would have turned out better.

Having a good time.

Levi and Stacie having their dance.

Happy Couple

While were were cleaning up I set Brielle on the counter and came back to find that she had been helping herself to some left over sweet rolls. She looks like she hit the jackpot!

I love that Brielle has a close girl cousin on the Swensen side!

Her and Emry get along pretty well!

Thursday, January 16, 2014

Children's Museum Field Trip

Time for another Preschool Field Trip, but this time the other kids got to come along too. They had a short day at school and Payton had a Dr check up for his arm. They were eager to come along for the fun and spend time with friends at a new place. We went to the Children's Museum and the kids could have spent a long time there. It was a great activity for the cold winter months after being cooped up. At first the kids were going everywhere as I was trying to keep track and head count. Then they would stick to their favorite activities and it became easier to keep track of them. They had a BLAST! It is always fun finding more local places for the kids to have a good time.

Brielle and me all ready to go.

My pirates Payton and Taylor, manning the ship. It is fun to see their imaginations at work.

Brielle had a blast in the kitchen center. She loves to cook (reminds me of Kenzie).

Kenzie, boarding the ship.

Kenzie and Taylor climbing rocks.

Then of coarse the kids liked digging for dinosaur bones in a pit of beans.

Perhaps the most popular activity there was the Grocery Store. It was so funny to watch them go shopping and purchase their items.

Brielle getting the good stuff!

Happy little shopper (now to get them to be this happy while I grocery shop).

Kenzie and Brielle shopping around.

Taylor checking out, while Payton is the cashier.

It was a fun afternoon with the kids!

Sunday, January 12, 2014

Payton's Broken Arm

Well our second child to break something happens to be..... Payton. We were spending a fun little overnight trip at the cabin. As we were preparing to leave to either head to the ice rink for another attempt at skating, or back home, Payton was coming down the steps from the loft and took a fall from about half way up or less. I was nearby as we were right in the middle of a game of Sorry and as he fell. I thought from the looks of it that he was going to have one sore bottom. To my surprise he immediately grabbed his elbow and began screaming. Which in turn startled Mckay, who was taking a nap on the couch at the time. This is probably one of the more humorous parts of the story. Mckay jumps up without even knowing the cause of this sudden drama. He started looking around like a crazy man asking "WHAT HAPPENED!!" . Looking back, this still makes me laugh!! Payton continued to cry and even said, "I need to see a Doctor!" Now, Payton doesn't appear to have the highest level of pain tolerance so we wanted to monitor him a bit as we debated whether or not we actually needed to take him to see a doctor. Well, he wasn't moving it much and it sure caused him a lot of grief, so the next day after church we took him to be seen. Sure enough, after an ex ray it was determined that he had a broken humerus near the elbow. Poor kid! As he tells me the story of how it happened from his point of view, he says that he was trying to catch himself with his arm as he was falling and when he landed (on his out stretched arm) then it hurt his elbow.

Looks like he will be sporting this good looking splint until a further check-up February 21st. He was seen again and we debated an actual cast but the doctor thought this would work just as well and might even be nice to be able to remove it for an occasional shower, if it started stinking (yeah).

Trying to stay tough while enjoying a little extra attention!

Soon the realization that he would remain in this cast/hard splint for weeks hit in and I know he will be one happy kid once he gets his arm back to normal. (More clothing options again, less restriction, showering most mornings before school like he likes, etc.)

I hate seeing my kids in pain, but it does remind me of how fragile they are.

Love you Payton buddy!

Saturday, January 11, 2014

Weekend Getaway at the Cabin

We had a spur of the moment decision and decided to head for the cabin as a family for a quick overnight trip. It was a nice little getaway before tax season picks up.

One of the new favorite things is the Ice Skating Rink in the town of Phillipsburg. The kids just couldn't wait to try it out so we stopped there on the way to the cabin. We happen to have the rink all to ourselves, not a bad thing, there were still plenty of falls (the kids would have been even more embarrassed had others been there to enjoy a good laugh as well) but at least we only had each other to laugh at. They were picking it up rather quickly, well Taylor was more of a stomper around on the ice instead of a glider. We had intentions to come back the next day for a little more fun, but plans changed thanks to an injury (Payton's arm: another post).