The Wizards were Jimmered..... And we were there!

We, like all the other BYU Alumni, became major Jimmer fans last year. Now that he is playing in the NBA for the Sacramento Kings, we couldn't pass up the opportunity to see him play when the Kings were in town this week to play the Washington Wizards. We got there early and watched him practice his 3-point shot....

And his free throws.

When he was done practicing, he came over and talked to us for a few minutes and thanked us for coming out to see him.

We went to the game with our good friends, Pete and Kim and their kids. Go Jimmer!!

Do you remember my Egg Nog Challenge post? I referred to my friend Kim, stating that Dave and I always laugh about the fact that we end up doing the most random things simply because Kim asks us with this smile you just can't say no to! Well, apparently, we're not the only ones who can't say no to that smile! They announced that Jimmer would not be doing any autographs. Well, Kim's son, Ryan brought this AWESOME Jimmer pinewood derby car that he wanted to get autographed. On the side, it says "You got Jimmered" as it passes by the other cars (and it did win first place, by the way). Anyway, notice the autograph. Yup, you got it.... Kim simply walked up to someone who she knew had access to Jimmer, flashed her pearly whites, and next thing you know.... an autographed Jimmer car!

Dave and I bought the "BYU Experience" tickets meaning we got to go on the court at half-time and high-five all the NBA players as they came out of the locker room. Very Fun!! And all our cheering paid off because Jimmer played the last part of the first quarter and all of the second quarter, scoring 8 points. AND the Kings won! Yeah!!

Mother of Five... at George's Home on President's Day

Here I am with my 5 kids at Mount Vernon with the beautiful Potomac River in the background. And, no I didn't just adopt two more children. Dave's sister and her husband have been in Hawaii for the past 11 days and we have been taking care of their two girls. I had been doing some research on something fun, educational and "presidential" to do today with the kids. But when I found out that my 12-year old and 10-year old nieces, who have lived here their entire lives, had never been to Mount Vernon, I knew exactly what we would be doing! Dave thought I was crazy for tackling this adventure by myself with all 5 kids, but luckily my two nieces are at the age where they can be my helpers.

Because they were celebrating George Washington's birthday, they were doing all kinds of neat presentations. Tanner loved seeing the soldiers. Although after a while of being outside on this February morning, the kids all started saying how tired/hungry/thirsty/cold they were, to which I responded, "Isn't that great that you can empathize just a little bit with how George Washington and all of his soldiers must have felt while they fought for our freedom??" :)

Here's Lacey with George Washington's sword.

And here is how Riley was for most of the day.....

Which is why, after getting tickets, waiting in line, etc, etc, I was out here with her instead of inside the house! But it all worked out because my two nieces still got to go through and they kept Lacey and Tanner with them. And, thankfully, I've been to Mount Vernon several times before, so I didn't feel too bad about missing out! Besides, Riley had a GREAT time running around his back yard!

See? Much happier!

This was Lacey's third time and Tanner's second time being here, but given that the last time we were here was when Lacey was 3, Tanner was 1 and Riley was in-utero, I'm not sure they remembered much, so I'm hoping at least Lacey will start to remember this.

My girls....

Visiting the tomb of General George Washington. The perfect way to spend President's Day. I am so grateful for all he and the other Founding Fathers did for all us and for the wonderful freedoms that we enjoy today.

Love Day

Lacey very excited to go to school for her V-day Party...

T-man with his loot!

I was a little bummed that Valentine's Day fell on Tuesday this year because I work on Tuesdays, but I tried to make the most of it. The night before, we had a nice family dinner and let the kids open their cards. Afterward, we baked V-day cookies and made chocolate-dipped strawberries. This morning, I didn't have to leave for work until 11:30, so I was able to spend the morning with Tanner and Riley after dropping Lacey off at school. I picked her up, then dropped off all 3 kids at the baby-sitter with V-day lunches (heart-shaped PB&J sandwiches, etc - thank you Pinterest). I had the table decorated with all their V-day goodies and gifts so that this would greet them upon coming home after Dave picked them up. I realized, after dropping the kids off at the baby-sitter that I hadn't gotten a picture of Riley, so I texted Dave at 6:15 telling him to get one of her in her cute red shirt and bow, but he said he had already put her down for the night:( So, unfortunately she's missing in this post. Anyway, Happy Valentine's Day to all my dear friends and family! "A Love" (that's for you, Steph!) to you all!