Memorial Day Fun!

Today was pretty exciting. I went to meet some friends at a water park. I was feeling adventurous so I also took 5 kids, one being a little girl who won't go ANYwhere near a bathtub. Her parents and I thought it would be worth a try and worst case I just bring the troop home.

Well, pleasantly surprising, she LOVED it!! Hooray! I know summer will be a blast now. In fact, she went down the baby pool slide before her older brother would even think about it.

What has made me laugh all day to think about was when she went under for a second when I turned to check for her brother. I picked her up and she blew her nose and wiped the water away, then she kept repeating, "no, no, no, no!" loudly and forcefully. That may not read super cute and funny, but I promise, it was.

I then did a bit of shopping or really returning. Then I met with a friend to see the new Snow White movie, Mirror, Mirror. I liked it and thought it was quite entertaining. Plus, the great news is that we went to the dollar theatre meaning we saved a gazillion dollars!! I love to go to the movies, but I also love being frugal. I'm not good at it yet, but hopefully I'll get better at it with time!

recap of my fantastic weekend!

this past weekend was a great weekend!  very blog worthy so here goes a list!

- i went to help clean the church

- that was actually followed by a date which included a "who can pick the best watermelon" contest...which, by the way, i won.

- saturday i went rock climbing at an indoor gym, which was very difficult for my out of shape self, but pretty amazing because i love attempting to do very tough things

- got a cupcake from the cupcake shop

- then went running...in that exact order ;)

- the late afternoon was spent in the sun by the pool, oh yes

- dinner was spent with friends eating fresh salmon with brown sugar and mustard glaze, mango chutney, couscous, corn on the cob, and asparagus.  Mmmmm! 

- sunday was just as, if not more amazing!  an Apostle of the Lord, Quentin L. Cook came for the weekend priesthood training and so we were able to hear from him in a special meeting on sunday!  so wonderful to hear from him and so grateful the Lord loves his people today enough to have prophets and apostles on the earth today.  i am so grateful for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints!

- dinner with the wonderful Tutu and Rara Brown.  it was waffle sunday and they are so dear to always be accepting marriage deficient people in their home.  we also went for a walk in the sweet little neighborhood they live in.  i just LOVE them!

- i know what you are thinking, WHAT A GREAT WEEKEND!  but it didn't quite end there...

- a few friends came over and we played a game i've had for quite some time, it was Ratuki (which is another version of NERTS and whatever else you call it...)  fun stuff!

well, that was about it!  not much more i could have fit into it.  hope you are all well and happy! 

xoxo,

mary

happy mother's day

i must say, it's been a wonderful weekend.  i am pleasantly surprised.  previously, i decided that mother's day is actually my least favorite holiday.  but, i know, i cringe every time i say that or even think that.  i have a wonderful mother and i'm forever grateful for her, also a very rich heritage of wonderful grandmothers, but the selfish part of me is quite sad to not have my own little family with a cute husband and darling little kids.  although i know without a doubt, deep down it will happen, it seems quite impossible at the very same time and right now.  you all know me, and this is no surprise.  i am so blessed to always be surrounded by kids, but alas, they are not my own.  i also recall a talk where sis. dew tells us "are we all not mothers?" and i could not agree more.  BUT, here is what i do have and how i spent my weekend :)

it started early, on friday morning actually where i was able to go to charleston, which i love dearly.  it was only a day trip, but it's amazing what one day can do for you.  i went with some friends and for a friend's birthday, and it was just such a relaxing day of laying on the beach.

on saturday i was able to have a free schedule and just get things accomplished, which an unplanned saturday, is always a great saturday!!  i later on went to a surprise party for katie and then we carried the after party on to my apartment and we laughed all night.  don't ask what we talked about, because i have no clue.  do you have those kinds of friends?  the ones you just laugh with for hours for no reason?  i hope so.

today, sunday, was the icing on the cake.  i made dinner for my family this evening to celebrate my dear mother and i must say it turned out really well.  i found a luau pork crock pot recipe and it was really yummy.  i also made quinoa for the first time and don't ask me how to say that.  i keep wondering myself...  i went to sacrament with my family and then to the singles branch that i attend before heading home to make the other dinner items to go with the crockpot.  i love that i can still smell it hours later, crockpots are the BEST!  most of all was the company of my brothers and mom and dad.  i sure love them and although we are all busy with our various lives, it's so nice to be able to spend time with them!  i hope your day and weekend were as wonderful!

so i say to all my friends who are not yet mothers, but yearn to be one, to the many many wonderful influential women who have played a role in mothering in my life, to my sweet friends who are new mothers, and to all women i say:  HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!  you are amazing and wonderful, because you are a woman and a daughter of God. 

love and blessings,

mary

little boys in little "bath tubs"

Babies and boots...

I don't know of anything cuter!