I'm comin' to Utah!

Most of you know I am leaving for Utah this Thursday with Tim and Danika. Tim and Danika wanted me to come with them(which was such an honor and I was surprised they wanted my company in their car for 24 total hours! I think it will be really fun to travel with them and have their undivided attention...ha ha ha ha ha ...they will be in my power...kidding! I have decided to stay with Emily for the bulk of my stay ( I think my first night with be at Lindsay's with Tim and Danika cause we will be getting there at about 1 am or so (sorry I didn't ask you yet Linds but I will call you today:) I am so excited to see all of you and your families...Saturday sounds like great fun at Stacy's house, thanks for offering Stacy! I am soooo very excited to stay with Emily...I have never had the chance to really get to know her ( well, there was that trip to Trout Lake with her and her first 3 children but that was so long ago) Every time I have been to Utah ( an astonishing 4 times without my children...once for dance sport, once for Steven's birth , once for almost Joann's birth and once for Leah's birth!) I have had the chance to stay with my sisters and get to know their families...this is a rare opportunity and so fun! I do wish I would have been able to spend a bit more time with Lindsay and Devin but they , hello, just got out of the hospital they day before I left, Devin did make an amazing dinner for mom and I YUMMO...short trip for me...the day will come again I am sure of it! Seeing my nieces and nephews in their own homes and showing their true colors ( you know how kids are different when they are away from home...good or bad?) has been such a great blessing to me. I really got to know those gorgeous McPherson kids on my 2 1/2 trips I have stayed at their house...I love those kids, I am grateful for that time to see them be at home and living in their real lives, not bussling around for family activities and stuff, when I was there I got to see a play with Paul in it..watch Adam do Karate...watch Samuel play basketball...go to Dance Sport, again, with Bethelle..and follow Isaac around everywhere and take a special trip with just Isaac to Lisa's house...not to mention the spoiling I got from Stacy and Jason...dinner out twice and YUMMO Cold Stone Ice cream! The time I spent with Lisa ( 13 days) was unreal! I loved being there when her children got home from school and tending their kitchen, spending time with Devon during the day was so cool, he wanted me to throw his baseball with him and when you get that boy's attention he will talk your ear off! Lisa was so fun to watch waddling around...9 months pregnant...she was a dinamo! She spoiled me too much too, we had fun shopping at this cool store(forgot the name) for an "outfit" for me...we were not successful in finding one but I felt so special that she wanted to do that and I could tell she was so tired but she hung in there and we had a blast...Quincy was there too for 8 of those days and when do us three ever get to spend that much time together? That was a time I will never forget...I cry when I think about how much fun that was for me! I can't believe my kids survived me being gone that long! WOW! As far as kids go I can't believe Quincy's kids survived that too, what troppers they and Wallen are for doing that...thank you so much Wallen!

Now, I didn't even know this Sunday was going to be Mother's Day, of all the luck, and my kids were like"OH? You are going to be gone mom? Well, let's do Mother's Day next week then." I love my kids! Now I don't feel like a total loser mom that is neglecting my babies on Mother's Day...I plan to spoil Emily and Joey on that day...oops maybe that should have been a surprise..get food Em I am cooking that whole day so stock up! I took care of Kaylanna for Emily and Joey a couple of years ago when they went to Hawaii and she was so sad I had hoped she didn't hate me forever so now is the time for me to win that sweet girl over! FUN TIMES.. I can't wait!

All this has motivated me to want to save a trip for my sister, Linda, and her family I never get to see just her and the boys so time willing and money available I am going to go visit her next school year! I LOVE IT! I feel kind of like a grandma:)