Magic Mountain

Chyna wanted to go to Magic Mountain this year for her birthday. We didn't want to go on her birthday since it was over spring break so we waited a few weekends. The kids had a blast. I am scared of many of the rides there so I had doubts about letting Chyna ride them. She LOVED them. She was not scared at all. Our very first ride was Goliath and at one point I looked over at her and she was completely white. I thought she was going to throw up but after that she was fine. I think she is braver than me but that is not saying much. There are a few there I will never ride again. The younger kids had a blast too. Gabriel loved Thomas Town and we even got him to ride some bigger rides with the family. I am amazed and the height limits that they have there. He was tall enough for many rides that I would never put a 4 year old on. Gillian and Savannah loved the fast spinning rides the most. They were all awesome and brave. IT was a wonderful family day. We only had one meltdown and that was when the park closed and we had to leave. I became "mean" and not his best buddy anymore. He quickly forgave me after a good nights sleep.

Jason' Birthday

April 16th was Jason's 31st birthday. We stayed home and ate Me N Eds and he requested a triple chocolate birthday cake. His requests were granted.
The best daddy in the world right here with the best kids. Alright I am a little biased.
Savannah and I found this shirt a few days before his birthday. And since we have to hear him recite his old movie lines all the time we thought it would be perfect.
Happy birthday Jason/Daddy we hope you had a wonderful day!

Easter Morning, Yep This Is All I Have...

To my surprise I hardly took any pictures of Easter this year. I guess I was paying attention to General Conference and cooking lunch that I missed them as they tore into their Easter baskets. By the time I got in the living room their were just wrappers and shredded grass everywhere. Well at least I got pictures of all the Easter Bunny's hard work in putting these baskets together.

Happy Birthday Chyna

After months of counting down (on her part, not mine) Chyna has finally turned 12. She has been so excited to move up into YW that she literally was counting down on her calendar. She decided she wanted to go to Doghouse Grill for lunch and we invited all the relatives to join us. It was an awesome afternoon. She is a very lucky girl to have so many friends and family that love her. I am so lucky to have her as a daughter. She is truly a wonderful young lady.






So many cousins...



Chyna and her grandmother share the same birthday. Happy 50th Grandma Kim.
She is getting so big I can't believe it. How blessed am I to have this beautiful daughter?

Faith in God

Chyna has been counting down the days until she moves up to Young Womens. She could say exactly how many but it is only a few more weeks. One step to getting closer is finishing her Faith in God book for primary. She has worked hard to get it done and not waiting to the very last minute. She had over a month to go and had already finished all of her interviews. Last Sunday in Primary she received her necklace and Sister Christiansen had the nicest things to say about her. The one great thing about Chyna is she is such an easy child. She always does what she is supposed to and everyone always says how wonderful she is. Well it is true she is. She is a wonderful daughter, sister, and friend. Although it is hard for me to believe she is turning 12 this month I am so excited for her to be in YW with me and go to camp with me this year and all the new experiences that are in store for her.

Young Author's Fair

Savannah and Gillian were both picked to go to the Young Author's Fair this year to represent their school. Jason and I are so proud. Jason went when he was a kid and always told the kids how neat it was. The girls were so excited this morning as they got ready to go. Gillian was picked for a poem she wrote about penguins and Savannah wrote a short story about cats. They always say write about what you love, right?


Chyna was happy when Savannah was picked and then when Gillian was picked she felt a little left out. Although she is so happy for her sisters we had to do a little teasing this morning.



See it's all better. The girls really do love each other and are very supportive. Chyna is a very proud big sister and tries to help them with everything. I love these kids so much!


Here is Gillian's poem:

Penguins in July
By Gillian Manriquez

Waddle waddle waddle near the green tree
Waddle waddle waddle the penguins set free
Waddle waddle waddle the penguins get close to me

Screech screech screech the penguins say to you
Screech screech screech below the sky so blue
Screech screech screech how wonderful are you

Snorkel snorkel snorkel I see the penguins slide
Snorkel snorkel snorkel I see the seal come by
Snorkel snorkel snorkel swim penguin slide

Slide slide slide into the big blue
Slide slide slide I see the penguin come to you
Slide slide slide the penguin screeches to you

Run run run come with me penguin dear
Run run run penguin look over here
Run run run welcome to your new home

I will post a copy of Savannah's story when I get it back.

Valentine's Party

Gabriel had his Valentine's Day party at preschool on Wednesday. I showed up just at the end while he was passing out his cards. He is so sweet and was picking out each card for each of his friends. He loved his party and brought all of his valentines home and lined them up and he calls it his collection. He has really been into collecting things lately.