End of the Summer...through September: Nathan's birthday, moving, and school

At the end of July, Nathan turned 6! I can't believe how old all my kids are getting. He wanted to do a jungle safari theme. Another of his requests was to make a cake with the parade candy we got on the 24th of July celebration. It is becoming a tradition for us to do that. I did the same thing last year (different cake). I have to admit it was hard and took some patience, but it was a lot of fun! My kids at least thought it was cool. The other kids that came to the party could have cared less. Maybe my kids are deprived. Just kidding!

Here's my masterpiece cake!

Here are Nathan's friends that came to the party. We played a lot of fun, crazy games. Set up behind them was the crocodile alley obstacle course. You can see the savage, albeit small animals in the left corner (stuffed animals). The game they had the most fun with, is a game I had gotten an idea for in Family Fun (a magazine) and put my own twist on it. We played 'cheetah' tag. I gave the kids their own sheet of office dot stickers and they had to chase each other putting spots on the other kids to get rid of their stickers first, while trying to stay away from everyone else who were putting spots on them. I gave a prize to the one who got rid of their sticker sheet first and the one who managed to have the least amount of stickers. They had a blast and it got a lot of energy out to lead to some calmer games. Nathan had a very fun time, he told me. He even told me that I didn't have to do all the hard work to do it (before the party) if I didn't want to. I think he knew I was a little stressed getting it ready, but I told him that I wanted to do it for him. He is such a sweet thoughtful boy!

Here's Nathan with Gr. Grandpa Redd at his family party.

Here is his bike he got from Gr. and Gr. Redd and Aunt Leonora. He was sure excited!




After Nathan's birthday, we had roughly three weeks to get things arranged and taken care of so we could move. We still hadn't sold our house, so there was a lot to arrange. I had tried to do a lot of deep cleaning before when we were showing the house, so it was nice at the end with only basic cleaning, because after all the packing, I was pretty worn out. I also had a lot of help from family, thank goodness! My mom and dad help us a ton! This is right before we left on the 12th of August in front of our house. Good-bye House!


We had packed and cleaned the house and loaded the Uhaul the whole day. Then we headed for my in-laws' house for the night. Leaving was hard! It was sad to leave all my family. I have been pretty spoiled in living so close, and the kids have loved it. We drove all day the next day and finally got there. Spencer's parents came with us, which was a life saver. It was a ten hour or more long trip! Some people from the ward came and helped us unpack that evening.


It was such a long day, I thought I was going to have a break-down by the end of it. My mother-in-law was great the next couple days to help with the kids and get meals. My father-in-law and Mike, my brother-in-law that came to help, were able to get everything rearranged and set up with Spencer. I think I was a little compulsive about getting unpacked, but as small as this place is (going from to a home to an apartment), there wasn't any room anywhere for clutter and boxes. We had left a lot of stuff and got rid of a lot more when we got there. In that couple week period before we moved to a week or two after we moved, I had never had so many headaches or felt more anxious. I am so glad it's over. I'm so thankful for all the help we had moving out and in again!

Spencer went to orientation the next week which was all day everyday that week, except Monday and I was basically on my own. The next week Spencer started school. We had only a little time to adjust. After we got unpacked, things settled down a little. The kids didn't start school till the first week of September. That was nice. It gave us a little time to get them enrolled in school and everything ready for them. This is Gracey and Nathan in front of our lovely apartment door before they catch the bus in the morning. Gracey's going to be in second grade, Nathan in first! Wow, time goes by fast!

Here's Gracey and Nathan in our dining room. They sure are buds. They do everything together. I do wish they'd include Becca a little more, but they are getting better at that. They are liking it here and making friends. I think it will be good for them. The school seems to be pretty good and they like their teachers.

Luckily, Becca and Aaron get to be home with mom! Yeah!!! Becca is going to be going to kindergarten next year. Boy, will I miss her staying a home with me! Her new favorite thing to do is dress up (a lot) and here she is, Princess Becca. Aaron is becoming quite busy and makes a good sized mess everyday. He is still so much fun. He is such a polite little boy saying sorry, thank-you, and please every time. It's been quite a nice change. He loves me to sing Primary songs to him before he goes to bed and I can't get away with singing fewer than 4 or 5 songs a night.