Saved The Best for Last

We had three sets of visitors right in a row and my sister, Carianne was the last one we had. She stopped to see us on her way back to Utah from the UK. She was there doing a semester abroad for nursing school at BYU! Cool huh. She had lots of fun stories to tell so you can check out her blog. She is headed to Honduras for her mission in August so we were excited to get her to ourselves for a few days.

Of course the stethoscope was a hit and she taught them how to use it...

We played at the park- Dylan didn't want to stop playing tag with Carrie but the Humidity was zapping her energy. So we did some of this...

They did lots of this...
Ashlyn was pretty attached... Actually all of them were...It rained a lot but we decided to go outside anyway. We found a lot of fun things to do in the rain... We did a lot of hanging out and relaxing because I was still recovering - thanks for getting me a few days further Carrie! We had so much fun! We can't wait to see you again soon!

Happy Father's Day

We had so much fun preparing for Father's Day this year! And here is the man we did it all for...

He is the best choice I ever could have made for the father of my children!!! Don't you think??

We made our own Father's Day card...
Here is Connor's custom made Father's Day tie. The kids designed it themselves. The beads in the middle spell "DAD", there is a jewel smiley face, and buttons. Connor was a great sport about wearing it all day long. Corbin loved it at the expense of a few pom poms. He got a lot of comments at church! We surprised Connor with two custom made notepads (by the artistic hand of Dylan) for Connor to have at his desk at work. I know the picture isn't great but it says at the top "From the best Dad ever" with a car drawing and at the bottom it says "Dylan Ashlyn Corbin."
Dylan made this colorful pencil holder at preschool. It even is held together with a school picture sticker!
And a rash guard or "swim shirt" coming in the mail!!

We also were lucky enough to have Doug and Jackie (Connor's brother, Joel - his wife's brother, got that?) for Father's Day dinner- a perfect end to a great day. They are practically family- I guess they really are in a long way. But now Dylan has a new best friend who he has invited back for a Wednesday play date. Too bad they live in Richmond, VA and came down for the weekend! But we will gladly take them when ever they need a getaway!

One of Dylan's favorite pass times is wrestling, which Doug is a professional at! They also played a game of "dodge ball." Doug has a lot of energy, but I want to know if Dylan even made a dent on Doug. This makes Doug a perfect visitor in our home!


Dylan having the time of his life...

Ashlyn getting in on the fun...
But Ashlyn had the most fun playing with Jackie...
Even Corbin warmed up to Doug (really not a hard thing to do)...

Here is a little clip of just ONE of the fun DOUG GAMES!!!

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

You might want to start thinking about renting yourselves out! Thanks for letting us enjoy you. You gave Connor a great Father's Day gift by letting him watch you wear the kids out!

Happy Father's day to all those Dads out there! I know that my dad has made a wonderful impact on me! He is so intelligent, willing to serve in any way he can and he is the hardest worker I know. He loves spending time with my kids and I love seeing how much they adore him. He has always been such a wonderful support to me in all of my endeavors and encouraged me to be my best! Thank you Dad, I love you!

We also think the world of this man...

Roger Thompson, aka, Poger, is a great Dad. He's been my father my whole life (ha!). He has taught me many things (like always do the dishes), but there is one (of many) things that I'm so thankful for: He taught me to work hard. I remember we would mow lawns together, build stuff together, wash cars together, etc. He always would do a great job, never settled for anything but the best. It was often frustrating, because I was younger, but addicting when I realized I wanted to do good work as well. I hope I can in some small way measure up to his work ethic.

Nini & Poger

The Same day my parents left, we were lucky enough to have Connor's parents come. They have such busy lives and we are so grateful that they could come (for the fun and for the help!)The kids had such a wonderful time with them since mom was practically in bed all week (tonsillectomy.) By the time all our company stops coming, my kids are going to think I am a boring mom.

They got to take the train ride at the Science museum in Durham! Along with all the endless fun there is to be had there! It might even make for a good reason to come to NC! Hint, hint- I am now taking trip reservations to fill up our summer!

They got to go bowling. I mean what kid doesn't enjoy rolling a massive ball in an effort to knock things over!

We just plain enjoyed them to death- I hope we didn't really! But we sure did have fun. Thank you for everything!

And we are still enjoying being horse crazy and our little snacks you made us! We still got our eye on you!

Tutu & Papa Steve

Thanks to us, my parents have now seen the south. Because of all of our moving, we have given relatives a reason to see so many parts of the country.

In the two weeks my parents were here we were able to do a whole lot:

See Dylan's preschool graduation. If I am already crying now, what will I be like when he finally graduates from HS and leaves for a mission??

Notice my very photogenic Dylan!!!

Spend time showing Tutu and Papa Steve just some of what we love about Raleigh... looking for bugs, reading and playing uno with grandparents, Riding bikes on the trail, going for a dip in the creek, playing and bowling.

Note: the sideways tipped heads are my kids "posing" for pictures. As you can see Corbin has caught on.

We also were lucky enough to spend 4 days back on the outer banks. The weather was wonderful! Another slide show for y'all to enjoy... Roanoke Island Lighthouse, kayaking in the sound, playing on the beach, flying kites, the sand dunes, and playing on an 1800's ship (you will see Dylan and Ashlyn "trying" to raise the anchor and Corbin ringing the bell.)

I could have spent an entire post and slide show devoted to Dylan "fighting" the waves. He must have accumulated a full marathon by the time we left to come home from running from and into the waves.

When we got back Dylan and Ashlyn were adamant about making "books" with Tutu. We had a big craft session and they are each very unique so check them out...

Dylan's rock'n roll notebook is on the left, Tutu's very appropriate beach notebook in the middle and Ashlyn's all girly notebook on the right.

The kids also made a wind chime with Tutu and Papa Steve out of all the things we collected at the beach. What a great memory from our time.

Thank you Tutu and Papa Steve for coming to see us, We miss you already!

7 years and counting

This is the amazing man I married 7 years ago...

for eternity...

And

• 3 kids
• 7 moves
• 2 undergraduate degree
• 1 masters degree
• 1 CLS certification
• 2 triathlons
• 1 marathon, 2 half marathons, a few 10k's and countless 5 k's
• 1 trip to Europe
• 2 trips to Japan and 1 to China (just Connor)
• 1 Kirtland play (connor was the lead)

Later

I am so grateful that I made the decision to marry such an amazing man who is a stalwart priesthood leader. He makes me laugh, he pampers me, he teaches me about selflessness, he becomes a kid when he is with them, he is spontaneous, he is outgoing, he is smart, he is adventurous, he can sing and play the piano (drums and much more), he is athletic, he always lets me go to my church meetings unattended by children, he makes me feel like the most beautiful woman in the world, he respects and encourages my talents, and he always makes me want to be a better me!

We have had fun this year reading each other's Journals for our anniversary. It was a great way to recognize all that we have been through to get to where we are now! And what a wonderful place we are in!!!

I LOVE YOU, MY MIRACLE