You Scream, I Scream, All the Patrons at the Restaraunt Scream

On the last day of school we took the girls and some of their friends to "Clean the Sinks" at a local restaraunt. They fill up a little kitchen sink with 6 scoops of ice cream, toppings, whipped cream, nuts and a cherry and you try to finish it all! The kids have been wanting to go "clean the sinks" since they learned about it, and they had a great time. The other patrons might not have had such a great time since 6 kids, one baby, 2 parents, and a LOT of ice cream don't always make for a quiet dining experience! And we hardly made a dent in the sundaes. The older girls were able to eat about half of theirs. But it was memorable and really yummy!

Take Me to the Candy Shop

I decided to let the kids do a candy/snowcone/pop/snack foods stand this summer to teach them about how money works and let them earn a little of it! and also because they always bug me to have a lemonade stand :) The first day I had a terrible migraine and was inside in bed while they did it. They came in afterwards and told me how much they had made. Then Courtney said, "But I didn't know how much change to give people." So we had to give some of the profits back to the neighborhood kids! This is the girls getting ready for the store.

Courtney's Play "Rocked"!

Courtney had her 2nd grade program last night and it was great! The theme was geology, and Courtney played a metamorphic rock. It was so cute, and Courtney is really going to miss her teacher, Mrs. D, she was an excellent teacher and was so dedicated to her job.

Out of the Mouths of Babes

Tonight we had Aunt Nikki over before she leaves on her trip to Ireland, and Gma and Gpa came too. Sunshine was entertaining us with a medley of songs she made up herself. In the middle of a song about how much she loved her baby sister she sang (while looking at Gma and Gpa),"And my Grandpa and Grandma are going to die soon. And Calvin(our dog) too." We all just died laughing, and then my dad said, "Well we better be getting home, Gma looks pretty tired because she is going to die soon." Kids say the darndest things!

Dance Recital Time!

This week Sassy and Courtney will have their last dance recital for the school year. They have both loved dancing, and it has been so neat to watch them progress and perform.

An Honor at a Court of Honor

Last Saturday Mike and I attended a Court of Honor for two of the boys that Mike had when he was Young Men's President in Logan. They were brothers who had both earned their Eagle Scout, and one of them passed away a few years ago in a car wreck. It was an emotional ceremony, but full of good remembrances. When they passed out the Mentor pins, Mike was honored to receive one. It is the second Mentor pin he has received from a former young man.

Rocking Out to American Idol!

We finished up our fabulous night of cousin fun with an American Idol contest. We had the best time cutting loose and singing our hearts out! My cousin Amy (also known as the "Voice of America" in China!) gave us some stiff competition but Dr. Dan took home the title of American Idol. Good Times!

Sharing the Love

Sunshine just loved her cousin Andy and talked to him and followed him all around when she wasn't playing with Estie. He was very patient with her and Sunshine just loved the attention. This is also a picture of my cousin Danny (now known as Dr. Daniel W!)and his wife Janie, we just love them, they are the nicest, funnest people!

A Long Night for Babies

Apple Dumplin and her cousin Addie had a great time playing together and were surprisingly pleasant during our Friday night party. Dad entertained Apple by bouncing her on his legs, which she loved!

Fun with Cousins

When my aunt passed away last week, we got to see some of our cousins that we haven't seen for about 7 years! We had the best time, and realized just how much we enjoy spending time together!

Courtney turns 8!

Courtney turned 8 last week, and we had a party in the USA! We celebrated as a family with Grandma, Melissa, and Erin who all have birthdays in the same week. Courtney got a snow cone maker, magic 8 ball, magic set, Barbie potty training puppy set, and the fabulous "pleather" pants she picked out for herself with Gma and Gpa. She also got a stationary set that she wanted from the book order, glitter hair spray, and some spanks with zebra ruffles that Sassy picked out for her to wear to dance. She went easy on us for her breakfast in bed, just pop-tarts, and got everything she wanted except silky pajamas! We also had a party for her friends where they got to go see how to train your dragon at the movies and then come home for pizza, cake and ice cream. Some things we love about Courtney: She is always willing to help out, she is a great sharer, she helps out all the time with the little girls, she loves to dance, and she has tons of energy! We are so lucky to have her in our family.

A Cookie Tribute

As a tribute to my Aunt Janine I made 12 dozen of her famous sugar cookies for her funeral. Aunt Nini always made these for every special occasion in our large extended family, and they were highly coveted. It was really fun to try and make so many of these with the little girls(not), and finally I just let them roll out their own little dough to keep them busy. At an auction at our family reunion about 5 years ago I won 2 dozen of them, but I asked her to just teach me how to make them instead. You should have seen everybodies eyes light up when I brought these in to the family luncheon. They are just another of the many wonderful things we will miss from this amazing lady. You can find the recipe for these yummy cookies here:http://holmsteadfoodies.blogspot.com/2010/01/most-famous-recipe-of-all-time.html

A Sad Week

My Aunt Jalaine passed away shortly after her twin sister, and I wanted to include them together. Jalaine was an amazing person, she taught me so much, and suffered so much the past 20 years from cancer. My Uncle O'Dell took the best care of her, and really showed us what it meant to be a dedicated husband. I always tell my girls to look for a husband like Uncle O'Dell or their dad, someone who will really love them and not just because they are pretty! Some of the best recipes I have came from her. She was an excellent cook, a fantastic mother, wife and friend, and was so talented. She kept an immaculate house and decorated it so cute, especially for Christmas with her Santa collection. We were always welcome at Aunt Jalaine's, and it was always fun to be there. We will miss her tremendously! What follows is the original post:
I changed the first song on my blog to one that was played at my Aunt Janine's funeral yesterday. We have had a sad week. My Aunt Janine (my dad's younger sister) was sick two weekends ago with the stomach bug and had to be admitted to the hospital. Since her husband was out of town when she was released, my parents took her back to their house to recuperate. Mike and I went over to see her that night (Monday, May 3) and visited with her for an hour. I sat next to her and held her hand on the couch while we laughed and talked. She seemed just fine, but in the morning when my dad when in to check on her she wasn't breathing. They were unable to revive her at the hospital and she passed away on May 4. She was diagnosed with cancer in 2003 and has endured many painful surgeries and treatments since then, so it was a very peaceful way for her to go, just unexpected for us. We had her funeral today, and it was comforting to hear about the really wonderful person she was. She just made you feel like you were the most wonderful person when you were with her and we just feel her loss so keenly. Some of the things we love about Aunt Nini: she always had a smile and a hug for you, she remembered the small details of your life, she NEVER complained, you always felt loved and accepted in her prescence, she was a fantastic cook, she was a big influence in teaching me how to be a good mother, and she knew how to have fun! Her bishop shared a scripture that gave us a a lot of comfort about where she is now in Alma 40:11-12:,"Now, concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrection-Behold, it has been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them life. And then it shall come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow." Hearing this scripture gave me comfort because you just knew Aunt Janine was there. She was just that Christlike, loving kind of person. It rained all day like the Heavens were weeping with joy to have her back.