Happy 24th Birthday, Courtney!

Has anyone out there noticed that I barely get any blogging done besides birthday posts? Yes, it's very sad. Probably only to me... but I am hoping to get back to more blogging one day soon. It's my dream! But it is time to celebrate another birthday and that means it's time to publicly tell Courtney how much I love and adore her because that's what social media birthdays are all about, right? Facebook has made all birthdays over 21 about 300% more fun because at least people know it's your birthday!

Last year on her birthday, Courtney was engaged and heading to England to compete with the ballroom team. The routine was magical and Courtney was spectacular (in my humble opinion) and they won! Here is a picture of the first lift that they do with Courtney being lifted.

But even better than this picture... if you Click here you can see the performance! Hopefully this link will lead you to a page that has a video box on the lower right corner. Advance to 7:40 and you will get to see Courtney in action. It will take a few minutes but it is so worth it! There is even a British ballroom commentator which is pretty fun. Courtney, as you can tell from the picture, is the one being lifted in the beginning and in the end. In between it's a little harder to find her because they all sprayed their hair the same brunette color. The whole number is Disney themed with light up dresses and it was just beautiful. Right after the video it shows them getting their award if you want to see that. Enjoy!

Then last year, five days after returning from England she became Mrs. Curtis Papenfuss!












and now a year later on her birthday, she is expecting a son in August!! It's been quite a year!



Curtis and Courtney have been living in St. George where Curtis has been playing basketball for Dixie University for the last two years. He had a great season and is now busy preparing to take the MCATs. We couldn't be prouder of Courtney and all she has accomplished in the last year!! We can't wait to have her and Curtis here in WA with us while he applies to med school! Happy Birthday, Courtney!

30, Flirty and Fabulous!

My baby turned 30 today! Well, yesterday... as it is already after midnight and I have not gotten her birthday blog up yet. Arrgh! Not only did she have her 30^th birthday on Friday the 13^th but she had it on the opening night of Nutcracker! So the chances of getting a timely birthday blog were cursed. Kacey, please excuse my tardiness!

It’s really hard to believe my firstborn is 30!

I swear she was this size about 5 minutes ago!

 

But now she is this boy’s mother!

 

And she has 3 more little cutie pies!!

  

She is the best sister ever!

And she makes the cutest grandkids!

I feel like I won the mother lottery when I got Kacey as my firstborn. I respect her and I admire her and I love hanging out with her!

Happy Birthday, Kacey! Thanks for bringing us 30 years of pure joy!!

Look who's feeling 22!

This is Kylie right around 2nd grade... and now she is teaching 2nd graders. Oh my! I am so proud of her. She's so grown up! It makes me feel old but it also delights me to see her have such an impact on her students. I have no doubt that these kids will never forget their 2nd grade teacher!

And I bet future Claudio will thank his favorite teacher, Miss Earl, for believing in him when he receives the Tony Award for his one man play "All Things Mario!!"

I love you, Kylie! Happy 22nd birthday!!

Happy Birthday, Brad!

Well it's birthday blog time again and I find that I have a tendency to use pictures from the same age period for the blog. Kids are just so darn cute when they are babies and toddlers! So I thought I would find a picture from an age that I hadn't posted before. So I found a couple of gems but then I couldn't decide whether to go with the embarrassing Halloween photo or the cool snowboarder dude? So I did both!..



Any boy who is willing to dress up like a grandma just to get free candy is my kinda kid!

Okay so here he is around the same age looking a tad bit cooler...




But the funny thing about this picture is that I'm pretty sure this is Kristy's old snowboard outfit. I was smart enough to not buy pink so that snow clothes could be passed down regardless of gender. But, then again, Brad probably would have worn it if it was pink anyway because he was that kind of boy! No, not THAT kind of boy! Not that there is anything wrong with that... (Seinfeld reference for those who missed it) I meant he was easygoing!!

Brad is just an all round gem!

And he has great taste in women!

Update: Brad and Julianna are living in Phoenix, AZ where Brad is getting a Masters in Bio-medical Sciences and Jules is working at an orthodontist office.

Happy 26th Birthday, Brad! You are the best son ever!!

(Yes, I realize that I have two sons and I just called one of them the best. But I think even Bryan would agree that a post mission son is way better than a pre-mission son! In a few years, when Bryan has learned to pick up after himself and would rather converse with people rather than play video games... he will be right back up on the top of the list alongside Brad!! Haha. The best thing is that I think Bryan is going to turn out just like Brad so I am on proud mama!!!)

Guess who's 18???

 From this:

To this:

















To this:














To this:

I can't think of a better family caboose than Bryan! Oh, how I adore this boy!! While it's true that I am ready to have his future mission president whip him into shape for me... I also think he's pretty outstanding just the way he is!

Happy 18th birthday, Bryan! We love you!!!