Wandering Around.

Before Mackenzie's 5th grade program we had plenty of time to kill on BYU campus. So Ty and I took the kids outside to get some wiggles out.
Here are a few shot of the kids.

Xander and Dawson being silly as ever.

Xander had to have his picture taken with the
'Y' in the back ground.

By the end of the night he was on cloud 9 as he walked around campus and got to see the stadium and baseball field.

Guess where he wants to go!

Mackenzie running around.

I love this shot of Sawyer in mid air as he runs toward me.

Hello handsome!

The boys wanted daddy to lift them up so they could look down at all the cars driving under us.

Here's all my men. waiting for the show to start.

Hope of America

5th grade students from all over Utah County converged onto BYU campus and filed into the Marriott Center. There they performed a marvelous event called, 'Hope of America.' It was a beautiful tribute to this amazing country we live in.
At the beginning of the program there were different acts that performed such as, dance companies, a drum line group, and a group of dancing grandmas. It was very entertaining.
I was brought to tears when the audience arose and applauded as families with active/deployed service men and woman entered waving flags for their loved ones. Each of the families had a student performing that night. I reflected on the sacrifice these families were making for my freedom. I saw tiny babies being carried by just a mother. What a sacrifice she is making having her husband serve our country. And his sacrifice of being away from his wife and 3 little children. I guess I related to this woman because she resembled closest to my own life. I can't imagine not having my husband home every night with me. The absent feeling in our home while he was away would feel like an incomplete puzzle. Only I would know which piece was missing. I would long for knowledge of his safety. The not-knowing would put my imagination into a frenzy.
I salute these men and woman who are giving up so much for us. For Me and my Family. Thank-you.

OK. back to the program. It was utterly amazing. The songs, the music, the atmosphere, the spirit. They all came together into a perfect unison.

Here's Mackenzie sitting in her assigned seat.

All the students/schools were assigned colored shirts. When all the students were in their spots they created a giant flag.

Mackenzie is in yellow. They were part of the flag's outline.

Amazing isn't it!

Alrighty, where is Kenzie?

She is straight up the row of steps between the stars and stripes. 

Look at the top red stripe. See the yellow above it.

Kenzie is the top first yellow shirt. Can ya see her?

I'm kidding.

 But, I could zoom in on her.

That's her with her head turned in the top left corner.

Looks like she's enjoying herself.

Look Who's 2!

April is in full swing which means we're 1/2 way through birthday month in the Keith house.
I can't believe my little dude is 2 already. Sawyer is the sweetest, most lovable little man ever. He makes me happy every day. One look at him and I instantly smile.
We kept Sawyer's birthday low key this year. With Tyler traveling and being gone for a couple weeks and possibly leaving again during Sawyer's birthday I vetoed a big birthday party. In fact, I decided against 3 different parties this year. Kenz and Xander get a combined party with a couple friends each.
Here's some pics of Sawyer's simple family party.

Sawyer Loves Mickey Mouse. 

His favorite show is Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. 

I decided it keep it simple and give him his favorite character.

He's trying to reach the frosting.
He had a graham cracker he wanted to put icing on.
He's a smart boy.
He knows what's up. And what's good to eat.

The little stink kept blowing out the candle as soon as Tyler got it lit.

Yummy cupcake time.

That's one happy boy with his new toys. 

He got a Mickey Mouse.

And yet another tractor. This little boy is obsessed with tractors.

He also got a new sand box. 

Grandma and Grandpa Bruderer got him the slide he's zooming his tractor on and sand for his sand box. 

Thanks G&G B.

It still amazes me that he's 2 already. It seems like just yesterday I held this tiny, new, little bundle in arms. Sawyer has brought so much joy into our family since his arrival 2 years ago. 

Thank you little duders for choosing us as your family.

We Love You.

Goose Egg

I was working at the farm last Friday when I received a call from my good friend Tara. It's not a good sign when the first thing she says is, "did the school call you today?" Followed by, "Well don't freak out when you see Dawson's head."
Turns out Dawson was in P.E. when he and another kid collided. Dawson fell and bashed his forehead on the floor. OUCH!
Tara said the bump was huge when she picked him up from school for me. It had a purple ring around the bump. According to Tara the bump was about the size of a golf ball. When I picked him up later that after noon it was about the size of a quarter.
He said it only hurt when he touched it. He played fine and was alert. That's what mattered to me.

I'm happy to say he's feeling much better today.

Happy Birthday Mackenzie

It's hard to believe that my baby girl is 11 years old already. It seems like just yesterday I was trying push her big ol' head out. Honestly, she was small and had a perfect little head. But, I did have to push for over 2 hrs. The stubborn little monkey was stuck in the birth canal and wasn't budging. Well, I showed her who was boss. She was born at 5:04 pm on April 9th. She weighed in a whopping 7 lbs. 9oz. and was 18 inches long. I just remember seeing her head full of dark black hair. She had so much hair I could stick little barrettes in it.
She's definitely changed a lot since then. Now she's a beautiful pre-teen girl complete with a diva attitude and huge generous heart. Kenzie has blessed my life in several ways. She lights up the room when she walks in smiling. Her willingness to help and please makes me proud. She has shown tremendous discipline in her school work and sport. I don't think Mackenzie knows the word defeat or can't. She continues to push herself and accomplish the goals she sets. Sometimes she is her own worse critic. She'll beat her self up over little imperfections and tiny slip ups. Then she'll refocus her energy and try again. It's this 'never say never' attitude that has gotten her so far in gymnastics.
When I think of Kenzie I automatically think, gymnast. Most people who know her do too. She is so much more than a gymnast and flexible.
Mackenzie is:
Compassionate, determined, self-motivating, self-disciplining, courageous, silly, athletic, responsible, dedicated, righteous, faithful, loving, loyal, beautiful, cheerful, humorous, crazy, sweet, sincere, helpful, reliable, and my best-friend and daughter.
Every day I am thankful to have been blessed with her as my daughter. I don't know what I've done to deserve her but, I'll take it. I love you  Macaroni noodle.

Does she really think I'd let her do that!

I surprised Kenz with flowers.

She loves bright colors. When I saw these I had to get them for her.

Singing happy birthday to her.

Sawyer  actually sang it too.

Warm Weather Welcome.

We had a few days of absolutely beautiful weather. High 70's and almost 80 degrees. I took the kids to a couple different parks to run around and wear themselves out. We soaked up the sunshine and took in the fresh air. I visited with a couple good friends while our kids ran around together. It was a perfect way to spend to a few of our spring break days.
Here's the kids having a blast.

This was the first park we went to. 

I only got this pic because the kids took off and didn't really come around to much.

Xander was the best big brother ever. He stayed with Sawyer the whole time.

 I stayed with my friend Tara the whole time and chatted. It was a win-win for me.

The next day we headed to Neptune park in Saratoga Springs.
It's a new park that just opened and the kids have been itching to go.

The biggest attraction is the climbing pyramid.

My little monkey daughter scurried right up to the top. Back down and right back up.

Xander slowly made his way to the top.
He got faster as his confidence grew.

Dawson never made it to the top. 

He was a little too weary to climb that high.

Xander at the top.

The Pyramid.

That's Kenzie and Xander at the top.

Sawyer was happy with his Oreo cookie and the basketball.

Kid Pics

These pictures were taken by Renee for me on our Easter weekend.

Easter, part 3.

We had our traditional egg hunt after church. We gave Sawyer a head start because let's face it, with his siblings he was going to need it.
Here we go.

Notice the intense focus on his face. This was his strategy.

 "Keep your eye on the next egg as you bend down and grab the closest egg."

He also had to stop and shake every egg to hear something rattle inside.

And the other kids are off and running.

These 2 paired up and started working together.
They would clean an area in no time.

I finally had to put them on a 'stop'.
So Sawyer could get some eggs in his basket.

Finding the final egg of the hunt.

Kenzie was nice enough to let Sawyer find it.

The kids going over their haul.

Sawyer protected them with his ring pop and Nerf gun.

Be afraid. Be very AFRAID!

Easter 2012, part 2.

After church we gathered the kids together to "attempt" to take a few group pictures of the kids. When ever this is my desire it turns into an attempt. Occasionally I do snap a few successes. But, it's the not so perfect ones that truly capture my children for who they are.

Traditional chaos.

We're getting there.

Beautiful!

My  babies.

Mackenzie

Dawson

Xander

Sawyer

Us

After all our craziness, he still loves me.