Visitors & Celebrations...

My sister and her family flew into town a few days after we got home. It was so fun having them here. I wish they lived closer, and I wish they visited more often! That little Kenzie May is one of my favorite little people of all time! :) Of course, a few Cafe Rio trips were made:

My mom did go home for a few days after watching our kids while we were in Mexico. But then came back up for another week while Kayla was here. These two girls' birthday's are only a day apart, so we wanted to have a joint celebration.

We had quite the adventure while driving up north on Presidents day to hit the Carters Presidents day sale. We had to hit the Carters sale to stock up for that new little man coming in July to the Croskrey family! :) --So excited for them, and Kayla is seriously the cutest little pregnant lady! Just a tiny little belly popping out! :) Kinda makes me want to do it all over again! :)

My van had started having issues with the sliding door again, but it was just one of them, and the other one worked fine, so it wasn't top priority to get fixed (at least not until after all of our company left) So, we driving up and all of the sudden it feels like I had hit something, or ran over something. But there was nothing on the road that I could see. A few minutes later my power steering goes out. I never realized how much I appreciate power steering until I didn't have it! While going fast, it was fine, not too bad. But when I tried to park in the parking lot, I seriously COULD NOT turn the wheel, I was pulling and pushing with ALL of my body weight and might! Anyway, we did our shopping, called our mechanic who couldn't get me in to look at it until the next day, so just drove home so as not to get stuck somewhere before then. Luckily my mom was here, so we had her car. Kayla and Jason had one of the Croskrey cars, so we were just fine. The next morning my mom follows me to the mechanic so he can take a look at it. On the way, literally just a few blocks from our house, the lights start to flicker, the gauges go down and it is totally dying. Called the tow truck through our insurance and he comes and asks me if I think it will start enough for him to move it away from the curb a little. So, he tries, and it starts right up! So I ask him if he thinks I can drive it to the shop. He asks me if my steering is always that tight. So, I tell him that my power steering went out. He tells me he's not a mechanic, but knows a thing or two about cars, and then pops my hood. My serpentine belt was totally gone. He was kind of in shock that I could have driven it as far as I did. I think that the thing that I thought I had ran over the day before was my belt somehow falling off!!! Without the belt, the battery doesn't charge, and the belt runs the power steering etc... yada yada yada, he towed my van in, and a few days later she was running just like new with a brand new serpentine belt! OK, sorry--long story! :) It was a fun adventure trying to drive my car with no power steering, Kayla had to reach over and help me make some turns... :)

But we also did get to go out with my Auntie Lorraine one day for lunch to Wadells. A new favorite of mine! It is a burger joint on the south hill featured on 'Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives'. It is divine! :)

Taylor wanted to take some pics:

My aunt Lorraine gave us these books that she had made for her kids for Christmas. It is a book of poems that she wrote, but it is so cool, because it is also filled with old pictures of my mom, aunts, uncles and grandparents growing up. I will cherish it forever, I love stuff like that! :) And the poems are --awesome!! :) Such a sweetie, that Auntie Lorraine! :)

Cutest picture ever of Kenzie & Taylor:

This girl is a riot, I loved every second she was with us. She calls my mom 'lady' so she was always saying, 'hey lady, come here' or 'hey lady, do this, or do that' It was hilarious! :) I even get an Aunt Taraka, but not grandma, she's just the lady! :)

This boy loves him some grandma. It doesn't help that she barely lets me see him while she's here. Seriously, she takes over, and I don't even get a chance. :)

Grandma & Jackson waiting in Grandma's car for the tow-truck that morning...

We finally had the celebration that the girls were waiting for. Taylor woke up that morning and got to open her presents from us up:

I may have gone a bit crazy buying her clothes. Little girls clothes are seriously so cute these days. I think I just buy vicariously through her, because heaven knows she is such a tom boy, she probably won't wear them that much! :)

Little man got to ride around on her new Radio Flyer saucer thing. It looks like he liked it! :)

We then thought it was a great idea to take the kids bowling. And it was a great idea. We reserved three lanes because some of Kayla and Jason's family and friends were going to show up. They didn't end up coming, so we had 10 kids on three lanes of bowling. Needless to say, it didn't take long for the kids to get bowled out.

Well, all but one! :) This little Kenzie May was going going going all night with the bowling. She seirously would have bowled every single players turn all night if she could. Jason had to rein her in now and then! :)

This boy enjoyed the view from his car seat, but he's such a sweet and happy and content little man that he was just fine with that! :)

My favorite birthday girl!

Cole must have bowled a good round! :)

Me and my girly's Tara & Meg. It's really too bad that none of us are photogenic! :)

These two BFF's also enjoyed their night of bowling. Tucker must have done good! :)

The whole birthday gang:

Afterwards, we came here for presents and cake and ice-cream:

Love me some clearanced out Valentines Dairy Queen Ice cream cake. What?? That was TOTALLY their decision! :) I had nothing to do with it! :)

This picture is very typical of their personalities: :)

Love that little squishy scrunched up nose:

Me and my seester and our birthday girls. So much fun! I love all of these ladies so very much!

Another celebration we got to have was a baby shower for a friend in our branch, Carolina. I was asked to bring a treat, so I thought I would make mini-cupcakes. Well, for those of you who know my cooking skills, this won't come as a shock, but I messed them up big time. For some reason I read that the oil amount was 1 1 /3 cup. It was really just 1/3 cup. I tripled the oil! I didn't have another cake mix box, so I had to make due. So, I did what any other cooking expert like myself would do, I added some corn starch to thicken the batter back up a bit. Then, so as to not lose flavor, I added some vanilla. I had to roll with it, because I didn't have time to change. I made the cupcakes. The cupcake holders came out a bit greasy after each batch, but the flavor was still there, so I just prayed that no one noticed! :) I have never gotten more compliments on a dessert than I did these cupcakes! :) Everyone was asking me how I make them! :) I was dying. Little did they know they were eating pure oil! :) {But they were pretty tasty!} :)

Carolina had to feed Jenny with her eyes closed just like she would feed a baby. :)

It was so much fun, our branch has some pretty amazing women in it, and I am so glad that we are all together. It's been so wonderful getting to know them! I feel so blessed to be a part of the branch. Since most everyone in the branch is from a different country, and most of their families are far away, we have become like one big family. I have loved this experience of just being put together with these women I don't know, and have loved getting to know them and learning from them and serving with them. They are truly amazing women. I hear about stories of their baptisms and conversions, and the sacrifices made to go to the temple, or go on missions, and it is truly humbling and amazing!

Both of these women are amazing, Carolina just moved here from Brazil, and has no family and is due this week to have her baby, and it has just been great getting to know her. Jenny, the baby, was just recently baptized a month ago. She is 17 years old and a Jr. at U-High. She bares her testimony all the time, and is so strong in the church. Just started going to seminary, wants to go to BYU, and is just amazing. The sisters are still teaching her parents, but Jenny just totally grasped the gospel and has been amazing. I've been taking her to church and activities, and it has been so wonderful getting to know her! The other ladies in the back are Hna. LaCasse and Hna. Zavala. Hna. LaCasse is our RS president and Hna. Zavala is her counselor. They are both amazing women! I love them all so very much!

It was definitely a month to celebrate!!!