April This and That

Scouts. Scouts is not my favorite, but the boys love it. How come it is so crazy? How come parents let their kids run through the gym and the church? How come no one ever learns how to do a flag ceremony correctly? Patience, lots of patience is required for scouting, and boy am I grateful for the leaders who seem to have never ending amounts of it. Bowen received his Bear this month. Good work Bowen!


Grandma and Grandpa Day- As we are all aware, I have the most amazing parents on the planet. My mom and dad have one day a week dedicated to their grand kids. We happened to be there on one such occasion. We only had Gwen and Coop with us, and boy were they excited. First, grandpa set up the best fort ever. Complete with a giant tarp, a flag pole, and flashlights for all.

Gwen had her own head flashlight, which she loved and left on for a surprising amount of time.




Primary songs were sung with Grandma at the piano. My nieces and nephews are the cutest.



Gwen and Jane with grandpa. He is their absolute favorite hands down. When he is in the room they fight over who gets to be held first and he usually ends up just like this.....holding both girls the whole time.

Grandma made all this kids lunches in small cupcake pans. Each hole had a different food item , the kids were in heaven. Days like this make me miss living closer to home.


Cooper at his kindergarten Easter party. Hudson Morby and Ty Englebright are his buddies that are also in our ward. Cooper got to bring a lunch to school that day, he was thrilled. Gwen and I got to come and hide all the eggs.





The Eater bunny comes to our house on Saturday morning, so we can focus on the true meaning of Easter on Sunday. This year the Bunny hid those baskets good!






The weather is warming up (yay!) and Gwen is sporting her new Easter swimsuit.


After finding and rummaging through their baskets each of the kids found a small egg at the bottom that contained a clue leading to one last surprise. A scooter for the boys and a swim suit for the girls. Later Saturday morning we enjoyed a neighborhood egg hunt and breakfast.


Gwen enjoyed her first Peeps experience. Very. Much.

The token Easter morning pictures. They are getting soooo old, right?! I'm not though, RIGHT?!

Sunday was filled with great food and lots of family togetherness. Easter is one of our favorite holidays, lots of food and candy, but better yet, remembering our Savior and his incomprehensible sacrifice for us and the beautiful gift of eternal life. For this, we are truly grateful.

Better Late Than Never.....

This is Gwennie's one year photo shoot. Thanks again to my amazing friend and partner Alisha at onememoryatatatime.com. You continue to amaze me.

Thirteen....ANOTHER Teenager!

Jackson turned 13 on Feruary 24th, right after we returned from Kansas City. His birthay was pretty uneventful since he used ALL his birthay money combined to buy the new Kobe shoes. This I will never understand, but the boy loves his shoes. I did try to round up some Celtic looking baloons and cupcakes, and Carter and I took him to his favorite restaurant for dinner. He originally asked for tickets to teh Celtic vs. Jazz game, but I sucessfully managed to talk him out of that....whew (it was going to be expensive!). Amazingly, a member of our bishopbric called the Sunday before the game and said they happened to have and extra ticket, and would Jackson like to go? Are you kidding me? The kid is more than lucky! He got an all expense paid trip to see his favorite team (the Celtics) play the Jazz (also a favorite)! He had such a great time. What a way to top of a wonderful birthday.

Jackson, you are the fire in our family. You make everything fun and exciting. You love your mom and you take good care of me, you treat me with kindness and respect. When carter is out of town, Jackson steps up and takes on the resposibilites of the house. Jackson works hard, and he is dedcated to whatever he takes on. He spends all his free time working on his basketball game, and boy is he getting good. He just made the school team. Whatever Jackson does, he does very well, school, piano, church, scouting and sports. One of the best things about Jack is his sense of humor....the kids is a hoot! I would rather be with him than just about anyone else! We love you jack and we couldn't be prouder of you! Happy thirteenth!

Kansas City 2011

Carter sold enough insurance last year to be invited to his companies headquarters in Kansas City, Missouri to attend rookie school and the annual awards banquet. I was lucky enough to be invited too. It was a lot of work to get every one all squared away so we could go, but in the end it was well worth all the effort.

A huge shout out to my mom and dad who came down to St. George to tend my kids. I'm sure it was not easy, but my kids loved every minute of it. They are SUPER grandparents. Gwennie was glued to grandpa and wouldn't have much to do with any one else. Thank you, thank you, thank you mom and dad!

Carter and I had the BEST time ever! I loved Kansas city. It is an old city full of rich history and amazing architecture. It didn't hurt that we were put up in the most amazing hotel, ate the most amazing food, and given some amazing gifts. I got to seep in every morning while Carter attended meetings. What?! One of the days the wives went on a city tour, the arcitecture of the city was stunning, and I absolutely loved all of the old houses. Every night we were treated to fancy schmancy meals with food that never seemed to end. When we came back to our room we would find fun surprises like cash, gift cards, and fun gifts. Another nigh we went to the most amazing high scale bowling alley and had incredible food and a great time. Don't worry we both got matching bowling shirts. I may or may not have bowled the highest girls score of the evening....I think it might have had something to do with the fact that I was one of the few girls not drunk, but I will take the victory however I can get it!

Our Hotel

The view from our room, overlooking The Plaza

During the last half of the week, all our peeps arrived from the Whittenburg office and things got really fun! Oh how I love those people. We had another amazing dinner on Friday night and on Saturday morning we went to see Independence and Liberty Jail, an amazing experience.

Look at what a good pioneer I would have been

On Saturday night the magic happened! We broke out the formal wear, of which I got not a single picture (lame), and headed to the grand ballroom for the awards night. This thing was like the Grammy's, everything was five star for sure. A four course meal on fancy china, a stage, cameras, lights, and a server for every table etc. etc. It was especially fun because our agency won agency of the year, a very prestigious honor. We were so proud to be a part of such an amazing group of people, who we love. After all the hoopla, the fun happened. An amazing band came out on stage, the dance floor lit up, and the fog machines were turned on. I might have embarrassed the family a bit, shhhh. I don't know what happened, but after a week with no kids and being totally relaxed, I danced my little heart out until one in the morning, and had the time of my life doing it. I had some INCREDIBLE dance partners (you know who you are) and got out about 15 years of pent up stag dance energy.

Getting ready for the "big night"

So, needless to say, Kansas city was a real hit. We wouldn't have had as much fun, if we were worried about our kids, but with mom and dad at home holding down the fort, so we never worried. Carter and I got to spend some quality time together, which was the best part of the trip. Man I love that guy and have never been more proud of him in my life. He has started a new career off with a bang, and I can't wait to see what else he can do. Until next year Kansas city, keep that dance floor warm!

Magnetic Personality

A Day of LOVE

Valentine's Day this year was focused on our kids. Carter and I were on our way to Kansas City for a romantic getaway so we decided to spend Valentine's with the kiddos. The night before was spent, as always, frantically coming up with a creative Valentine's box for school (why teachers,why???). This year we decided on a giant lego, which I took zero pictures of. Nice. The next hours were spent making these cute valentines...mustaches for the boys and lips for the girls. I found the idea at Familyfun.com. They were a huge hit, and super easy and inexpensive.





On Valentine's day my parent's came into town and my mom and I spent the day making our traditional Chinese dinner. The menu this year included: orange chicken. spicy chicken, steamed rice, noodles, fortune cookies and poky. My kids love this tradition and look forward to it every year. It was extra special this year to have my mom and dad with us. After dinner cupid rang the doorbell and the kids each got a special treat, another tradition they look forward to. We love Valentine's day at our house, just another way to tell these little people how much we adore them.

Gwennie is ONE

I can't even begin to process the fact that our baby is already one. She turned one on February 16th. This has to have been the fastest year ever. What a spark this little lady has brought into our lives. My mom said she had made our family even happier. I think she is right. Don't get me wrong, our little Gwennie was born with some serious spunk! She came into the world screaming and she continues to show us her fire from time to time (she even has a slight red hue to her hair). But as time marches on she is becoming more and more pleasant and fun.

She only says a few words right now like, Da da, ma ma, oh oh, etc. She is taking about five or six step across the room, but is not yet steady on her feet. Carter says our gene pool must be shallow after five kids. She is defiantly the slowest to learn to talk and walk, but I think it is because she has four siblings that never leave her alone. I personally am enjoying this little girl taking her time. I wish this stage would last forever.

Carter and I were out of town on her actual birthday, but we celebrated the day before with grandpa and grandma Bowen in town. I can definatly tell this baby is number five...we just didn't make a huge deal of presents and parties. Am I loosing my edge?? Perhaps. Grandma made cupcakes, I bought her some clothes and that was about it. It was special anyway.

Gwen we love you to the moon and back and we couldn't imagine life without you. What a gift you have been to our family. We can't wait to see what the next year holds for you!










* Keep and eye out for Gwennie's one year photo shoot. Cute pictures to come!

January Therapy

I am not a big fan of TV. I hate watching things I have already seen. I know how they end. BUT, I am watching Gilmore Girls seasons 1-7 for the FOURTH time. Every year in January, when the kids go back to school and the Christmas rush is over, I feel a bit blue. The Gilmore girls makes me feel happy. They are quick witted and fun. I have even talked Carter into watching a few episodes with me(he likes them). So if your feeling blue, pop "The Girls" in and have a looksey, you won't be disappointed. I promise.

Top 10 in 2010

1. Gwen Mathews Cluff arrives five weeks early, weighing 6lb 1oz and 18 inches long. Finally another girl after 15 years! (February 16th)

2. Jackson turns twelve and receives the priesthood. (February)

3.Carter begins work with the Whittenburg Group selling insurance. (April)

4. Courtney wins the election for Sophomore Class Secretary. (May)

5. My dad retires from Bowen Collins and Associates, his own company after 40 years in engineering. (June)

6. Grandma and grandpa Bowen take the entire family to Disneyland to celebrate grandpa's retirement. (June)

7.My grandma Gwen Mathews Richards celebrates her 100th birthday. Big parties are thrown! (July)

8.Courtney receives her Young Womanhood Recognition Award. A huge accomplishment! (August)

9. Courtney starts high school and Cooper starts kindergarten. (August)

10.Lori starts her own business Miss Plunkett. (September)

Of course like everyone else our year had its ups and downs, but as I look back I am filled to overflowing with deep gratitude for the wonderful life we have been blessed with. Our trials have made us stronger and taught us some much needed lessons. But most of all they have helped us grow closer as a little family and to recognize the hand of the Lord in our life every. single. day. Our testimonies and faith are stronger and we understand a little bit better what is most important. How can we ever complain? Our lives are busy, and happy and I can't wait to see what 2011 brings!

The Year of the Quilt

This year instead of the usual gifts that my kids exchange, they decided (on their own) to draw names. They wanted to make each other blankets. "You have to make a blanket that you know the other person would LOVE." These were the rules. At this point my heart started pounding. Guess who does the very minimal sewing around here. Five blankets? Before Christmas? Do you hate me? I reluctantly agreed. I'm glad I did. It turned out to be one of the best ideas ever. The kids immediately started brainstorming about what their sibling would like.

I was determined to teach them each a little bit about sewing during the process. I took each one on a trip the the fabric store where the could pick out the perfect material.

Cooper was very discerning during his shopping trip to a local quilt store. "I need to get Courtney either yellow and gray or turquoise and red fabric mom. Those are her favorite colors. THIS is it! She will love it." We took the material to the front to be cut. The lady asked me how much I wanted. Cooper piped right up and said, "I am sewing a blanket for my big sister, how much yards do I need?" Needles to say, the lady had a good laugh.

COURTNEY'S QUILT

Cooper pinned all of the ric-rac on the quilt and "assisted" me as I sewed it together. He wrapped it by himself. He was so proud.

GWEN'S QUILT

Bowen used a material for Gwen I already had, He picked a darling ric-rac trim to match and insisted on a very soft backing. He pinned every stitch of ric-rac on the edges. Using just over 1,000 pins. He patiently sat and helped me sew the rest.

COOPER'S QUILT

Surprisingly Jackson was the very first one done. He decided quickly on a BYU quilt for Cooper. He had just finished a semester of sewing, so obviously he was a pro. He picked a white fleece and cut out a giant Y. He pinned it on navy fleece and sewed around it. He then turned under the edges and carefully (slooowly) sewed each one.

BOWEN'S QUILT

Courtney wanted to do a Lego quilt for Bowen. We searched for weeks on the interned for Lego material, Lego sheets, Lego blanket. Nothing. She settled for Utah Jazz fleece. Bowen loves the Jazz. She sewed every bit herself.

JACKSON'S QUILT

Gwen decided her sewing skills were lacking, and to my delight ordered a Celtics Snuggie online. I swore this family would never own a Snuggie (a robe worn backwards), but Jackson was tickled with it.

The kids were beyond excited to see what each person would think of the blanket they sewed. They kept begging us to let them open them early. Finally, on Christmas Eve we gave in and let them open them. It was so wonderful. The kids were so excited and grateful, because they knew how much work went into each blanket. It was one of those gifts they will never forget.