1st Pinewood Derby

I was sad to be missing Hunter's first pinewood derby while I was in Chicago. I planned my trip months in advance and I didn't even know about the pinewood derby or I would have gone a different week for sure.

But Hunter was understanding and Justin was a great dad............he even helped Hunter get his car ready days in advance......lol!

Brother French in our ward helped get Hunter's weights right on his car. And of course Grandpa Boswell helped out a ton! Shaped great and ready for paint! Pretty happy looking kid I'd say!

I guess the night Hunter's car was ready for paint was a school night. It was 9:00 by the time Justin got off work and got the kids settled for bed. Hunter told his dad, "I guess we have to wait til tomorrow night to paint my car huh?" Well Justin's response made Hunter's day he said, "Well how about we stay up and do it tonight?"

Hunter couldn't believe it.........so my boys stayed up late painting Hunter's car. What a great memory for them both! I think Justin was just as excited about the pinewood derby as Hunter was to be honest.

Dressed to kill in this boyscout uniform and ready to race!

Justin said Hunter was a great sport when he didn't win a race. And as a parent that is what you hope for in competitions like this. Hunter did win many races but he didn't place in the top 4. So he was bummed but Justin said he acted mature the whole night.

What a cute looking group of boys!

That night I called to see how thing went. Hunter talked to me for an hour and a half. It was so fun to talk to him. He gets in these adult conversation moods and I absolutely treasure every minute when he does. We talked about a lot of things but every so often he would go back to the pinewood derby. Even though I couldn't be there to watch him it was great to talk the night away with him about it!

Great job and example Hunter Jay!

Where is Mija?

This evening I had a photo shoot scheduled with this family. During that shoot Hunter came in my studio and asked if he could run down to the Pryor's and get Mija, their dog. I said sure.

Anyway, Mija came down, the kids all played with her in the backyard during my shoot. Then she ate the crumbs off my kitchen floor.......oh how I love a visit from Mija!

So after my photo shoot I noticed all the kids were inside but Mija wasn't. I asked Hunter where she was, he said in the house. We looked all over for her and couldn't find her. Justin had just left for a church meeting and I thought she might have got out when he left. So I told Hunter to run down to the Pryor's to see if Mija was there. Mija is like their child I might add!

Hunter started to cry as he left to run to their house. He said, "I really don't want to loose Mija!"

I told him just run down and see if she is there, everything will be just fine.

In a few minutes Hunter comes running, actually skipping in the front door.

He says, "I Am So Blessed!"

Heavenly Father answered his prayer he told me. As he was running to Mac's he asked Heavenly Father to help Mija to have made it home. And his prayer, and mine, was answered.

It is always a sweet reward to know and hear from my kids that they thought to pray when they needed help.

Thank you Hunter for your example!

Rodeo Fun Day

On the Saturday that I was in Phoenix for Time Out For Women, Kiersten and Hunter had their first rodeo. I was really sad to be missing such a fun day with them!

Justin is such a great dad and took all the kids to the rodeo. It was kind of a rodeo fun day...........there was goat dressing, a chicken chase, greased pig chase, rescue race, grocery race, and then some of the usual events sheep riding, roping, steer riding, barrels......Just all kinds of fun events.

Look at my little cowboy!

Hunter was beyond excited about getting to ride sheep for the first time. He really really wanted to win a belt buckle. He rode extremely well for his first time but didn't win the buckle. He got to ride three times because the first two times he stayed on the sheep and they just laid down. So he had to ride a third time. On the third time the sheep kind of tripped coming right out of the shoot and it threw Hunter's momentum off. He ended up scoring a 42, really good for his first time ever!

He had a great time and that's what really matters. Thank you Kelly for letting him borrow all your gear so he could ride!

Hunter and his friend Justice did the goat dressing and love it as well.

It was fun to get to see Hunter's rides on video. I was impressed........he has one hand in the air the whole time just like the real bull riders. I was so glad Justin video taped it for me to see. Thanks Sweetheart!

This is Kiersten before she ran the barrels. It was freezing cold! I believe it was like 40 degrees most of the morning and the wind was outrageous. In fact Justin ended up calling my mom and having her come get Mr. Grant because it was just too cold for him. Thanks mom for always being so willing to help us out! You're the best!

Kiersten has been taking lessons for only 3 Fridays before this rodeo but Kelly talked her in to competing in the barrels. Kiersten was really just trying it out to see if she even liked riding in a competitive setting. I am defiantly not pushing Kiersten to like it, but will support her (and Hunter) if they do. Kelly is really good at telling the kids that they don't have to do rodeos, they can always just take riding lessons and enjoy horses. This was a smaller rodeo and kind of a "play day" so it was the perfect time to try it out.

Kelly was up in the announcer booth. So she told the guy that this was only Kiersten 4th time doing the barrels. NOT her 4th rodeo no her 4th time ever running a barrel pattern. So the announcer did a great job and annouced all that......he really got the crowd cheering for Kiersten. Kiersten even made Snickers lope, which is the next speed after trotting. You go from walking to trotting to loping a horse. Kiersten was able to trot Snickers through her barrel pattern and on her run home Kiersten made Snickers lope.

Justin said Kiersten was smiles from ear to ear when she got done. Kelly was so proud of her and so are we!

Great job Hunter and Kiersten!

Just To Warn You

As I was tucking Hunter into bed he sure said a cute thing I thought.

Mom, "I love you Hunter........Sleep good little cowboy!"

Hunter said, "Hey mom before you go I have to warn you of something. If when you are doing the laundry you might just find a Five dollar bill, don't be scared............it could be mine!"

The funniest part was hearing the sincerity in his voice. He really did think it might scare me and I indeed needed to be warned!

So glad he warned me of that cause money in the washing machine or dryer can be quite scary!

It just made me smile..........thank you for the smile tonight Hunter. I went to bed happy because of YOU!

Snickers

Don't ask me how I got roped in to horse riding lessons. I guess the part that they are free is really hard to argue with.

So for the past three Friday's either after or before piano lessons I load up the kiddos and head out to the Graham County Rodeo Arena. Kelly and her boys are there with Snicker's ready to give Kiersten and Hunter riding lessons. Kelly has been riding horses and competing in rodeos since she was 5.......so she is a wonderful teacher.

Snicker's is a great kid horse and a wonderful horse to start lessons on. When the kids are ready for more speed Kelly has other horses she'll put them on. But for now the kids are loving Snickers! It's hard to believe Kiersten will even get back on a horse after having Grammie Cluff's horse get spooked and took off running with Kiersten on the back.........not once but twice! The more times Kiersten is on Snicker's and nothing scary happens the more confident and comfortable she becomes. Who'd have thought Hunter would like cowboy stuff? I want my kids to grow up to be well rounded individuals........so if he wants to try out cowboy stuff it's fine with me. He still is in Hip Hop, takes archery, plays the violin and the piano and is loving every minute in all those activities. So I believe doing and trying many different activities will help Hunter (and all my kids) to be well rounded. Plus I want them to know they can do anything they want to do, as long as they are willing to put forth the effort to do it! Silly Cowboys! Hunter loved flipping down off the fencing in this position. I was just happy we didn't end up with stitches or anything. Looking pretty happy! During this lesson Kiersten learned to run the poles for the first time. Plus this was the first day Kiersten loped with Snicker's. Kelly always makes the kids decide a goal for their lesson and loping was Kiersten's goal for today. Great job Kiersten accomplishing your goal and pushing past your fears! Hunter's goal was to learn a barrel pattern today. Hunter did have a little scare today because he was wearing spurs and he kicked and smooched at Snicker's and she started loping. He was NOT ready for loping nor was he expecting it. He handled it well and learned a good lesson about the difference between kicking with spurs and without them. Wonderful job Hunter not giving up after being scared! This was actually a Saturday because Friday was too busy for us to meet. So Kelly's husband Trenton was there as well. This picture was after the non-intentional loping incident. Trenton was really sweet to Hunter and made him keep riding so he could see that Snicker's won't just take off. What she did was exactly what Hunter unintentionally asked her to do.........to lope. He also had Hunter ride to learn how to get Snicker's to stop..........she is such a great horse and will stop on a dime when you ask it of her. Trenton and Kiersten are riding on Gunner. This is the next horse the kids will be riding when they are ready for more speed. And I guess he has a much smoother ride, but he is more horse and they aren't in need of that yet. I can't thank Kelly enough for the lessons. I did have my dad make her a roping dummy just like the one he made for Hunter. She saw Hunter's and said it was better then any she had seen or that they had. The kids and I surprised her with it. We took it one evening after dark to her house, put it in their front yard, left the thank you cards that the kids and I had written, rang the doorbell and drove away. They opened the door just as we were driving away so the kids yelled out the windows...."We love you Kelly!" Needless to say she was so grateful and that can count for payment til I think of something else to give her since she refuses to take any money. Plus I probably couldn't afford riding lessons for both kids right now any ways.........so we are all thankful for her generosity and kindness.

Not Everyone Appreciates Our Cluff Humor

So today Hunter knew I had made arraignments with Kelley, Justice's mom to have him come over to play. He didn't know the exact time, just that it would be after lunch. So he had asked me at least a dozen times in a thirty minute time span, if I had heard from Justice's mom yet.

I kept telling him, "no son not yet!"

Finally he came over to me and said mom can you text Kelley and ask when we can go get Justice.

I told him, "I just did and we are meeting her in 20 minutes."

Hunter responded with, "Well that was a waste of me talking huh?"

I quickly and harshly said, "yes it was..... so shut your mouth!"

He looked at me and we both started laughing!

Hunter said, "That was so funny mom!"

Hunter is funny to me and apparently he REALLY thought it was funny because he not only told a couple of our neighbors that story. He also felt the need to tell it to a lady who was behind us in the check out line at Walmart. She, on the other hand, did not find it so funny......she looked at me like I was a bad mom for telling my kid to "shut his mouth!" She just shook her head and didn't seem amused.

I don't get it......wasn't that funny?

Salsa Fest

Kiersten is in her second year of Company and LOVIN' it!

During the summer she attended Intense Dance Camp for a week. Which was Monday through Friday 8:00-5:00 and she was so happy to go each day!

So the Salsa Fest was last weekend and her first chance to perform.

Hunter and Logan are in an all boys Hip Hop and Tap class this year.

They were thrilled when they found out they'd be able to perform at the Salsa Fest as well.

Nice picture huh? Yeah the boys faces look so funny! It was so hot and sunny and hard to keep your eyes open for a picture :) Kiersten is in Hot Shots this year! She is the one in the front center..........this was her group doing their "Wanna Be" routine. They totally rock at this routine. They also did "Party Rock Anthem" which included all company dancers..........they learned it at intense dance camp. I got several comments on how impressive of a dancer Kiersten is. She really does steal the show when she is dancing!

Just push play to see a few seconds of their dance!

This is the boys hip hop group. Logan is the second from the left and Hunter is the last on the right. Now I wished I had video taped the whole dance. It was super cute and they only had practiced it for one class time.............so awesome job boys!

So it's our tradition to go to the Salsa Fest with the Pryor's and this year was no exception. We decided to watch the kids perform and then taste all the salsas. Yeah Bad Idea!!! The salsas were ALL GONE! I guess less people entered then last year and tons more came to taste. So next year we won't make this mistake.....it will be salsa tasting first and then watching the kids perform. It was so sad to miss out on tasting all those wonderful salsas. I had even skipped lunch just to be ready to take in all those chips and salsa............yeah I should have eaten!

We Have Ourselves a Cub Scout!!!

What a handsome young man we have here!

Hunter was thrilled beyond words to finally be in cub scouts. Unfortunately he can't make it to his weekly scout meeting because he has hip hop at the same time. But he was way excited about the Bike Rodeo Pack Meeting!!

Grampy Boswell got his older (smaller, easier to ride) bike all ready for him. Justin just couldn't find the time to get it fixed with all the craziness going on at work. Drivers dumping asphalt in the middle of the road, Workman's comp court hearings, the crazy job in Clifton, etc., etc...the list went on and on the past few weeks. Kind of seems like it's always some drama there at CKC! But thanks to Grampy, as is well in the bike rodeo department. And Justin did promise Hunter that no matter what happened at the office; he would make it to his first Pack Meeting, and Justin did!! My dad is always so good to help us out! Thanks dad for being so great!!! And thanks Justin for putting Hunter first.............I know it wasn't easy with every thing going on at work lately!

Hunter was so excited about his scout shirt!

Isn't he gorgeous!!

This was a little before Pack Meeting. I tried to get Hunter to eat dinner but he said he was, "just too excited to eat!!" So we compromised and he ate an apple!

The bike rodeo was a big hit! Hunter had a wonderful time. Eric Blair is the scout master and boy is he creative. The boys are so lucky to have him in there!! Now I just have to figure out how to fit this scout stuff in...........especially considering we'll be doing it all at home for now. Hunter was bummed to know it wouldn't work out for him to go to the weekly meetings, but what can you do?

Grammy's Birthday Sleepovers

That Mother-in-law of mine is AMAZING!!!

Several years ago she started a new tradition, once her grand kids turn 3 she takes them for a birthday sleep over. She takes them to the dollar store where they get to pick out as many toys as they are old. Once they get a little older she lets them pick a toy out at Walmart in the amount that they are old. She lets them pick where they want to have dinner. She even buys them a movie to watch that night.

Everyone of my kids LOVES this individual time they get to spend with their Grammy!

I am so grateful my kids have such a wonderful Grammy!

I asked Hunter if he wanted to wear this cute outfit and he said,

"Yeah baby I can be Grammy's Hero for the night!!

The back of his shirt says, "When I grown up I want to be a hero".....so I think that is where he got that from, but you never know with Hunter. Thanks mom for being so amazing............my kids are truly blessed because of you!

Hunter had a wonderful time of course. He was so excited to pick out Fruity Pebbles for breakfast. I never buy those because man do they make a mess, once those things harden up they are a pain to get off the table. So kudos to Grammy for letting him buy those!! Maybe when I am a Grandma I will buy them..........LOL!

The Construction Following the Party!

You'd think with all the Lego sets Hunter got for his birthday he'd be busy for awhile. Yeah not so much.............within two days he had them all put together.

He even finished he technic dump truck! He was so excited with this one..........it is electric. I am always impressed when Hunter can put together these electric Lego sets! Great job Hunter!!! But man oh man Hunter now wants all the expensive Lego sets..............and boy can they get pricey. I don't even want to think how much we have invested in Lego's. But they do add great decoration to Hunter's Lego bedroom, so that's awesome!

Seriously Someone is Going to Turn Me in to CPS soon

So a couple of weeks after the stitches incident we had two other accidents.

On a Thursday in the morning I was cooking eggs for breakfast and Logan was helping me stir the eggs in the pan. When they were done I started to dish them out and as Logan was getting down from the stool he put his hand right on the stove top.

It burnt his hand pretty good! So he went to school with a bandaged hand.

Well that same day at school during recess Hunter was playing football and got his finger bent back. He came home complaining about it hurting but I kept hoping it was just jammed. I figured they wouldn't even x-ray it any ways. The following day he just kept complaining that it hurt and he is pretty tough for his age..........he did walk on a broken foot for a week before I took him to the doctor.

Any way after talking with my friend Wendy I decided to take him to the doctor. We saw Dr. Sue, she sent us to get an x-ray and told me to buddy tape it and get a splint for it. She said she'd call with the results but that she thought it was most likely broken. She later called to say that it had a small fracture but that it wasn't out of alignment so that was great news. She did say that they have found that fingers that get broken in youth and don't heal properly end up causing worse arthritis later in life, then normal. So she said you do want to get it checked out just to be sure its going to heal up right. Good thing I listen to Wendy because I wasn't going to take him in until she talked me into it!

So just weeks after having Kiersten with stitches I have to send Logan to school with burnt fingers all bandaged up and Hunter to school with a broken ring finger all bandaged up.

Seriously I am just waiting for the visit from CPS!

Lego Birthday Party

Often, but not always, our parties start with the invitations. Hunter's Lego Birthday party was no exception. He was thrilled when I showed him my plans for the invites! I believe he thanked me at least 8 times for making such cool invitations.

I used large Lego blocks and build a small square. I wrote with a black marker all the party info.....It read, "Come Build Some Fun at Hunter Cluff's 8th Birthday Party!"

Then the other side had the details. I took the blocks apart and placed them in these clear bags so that the boys would have to put them together. I had my friend Krista Hancock make his cake......she did a great job as always! Hunter was so excited when he saw his cake. A Lego man and extra Lego blocks made the cake extra fun! Hunter liked the flag that said "8" cause he is eight now. We had a few square or block candies sitting out for the boys to enjoy. They all liked the Lego block candies that you can actually build with! We played a few relay games..... The first game was the Lego Spoon Race. The teams were split up on opposite sides of the basketball court with half of each team on each side. I placed a Lego block in a spoon and each team had to hold the spoon and run to the other side of the court where they handed the spoon and Lego block over to the next team member. If they dropped the Lego they had to pick it up and start over again. They were fun to watch! They cheered so good for each other.

There were 12 boys at the party! Actually 13 if we count Mr. Grant!

The next relay game each person on the teams had a Lego piece. They had to hold the Lego piece under their chins by pressing it against their chests............no hands could be used to hold the Lego piece.

They had to run to the opposite end of the court and place the Lego piece in a small plastic container, without using their hands. It was hilarious to watch them!!

After a few games we let the boys just have some play time which they really enjoyed!

Hunter opted for sub sandwiches from Subway...........great choice Bud!

What a bunch of good looking boys!

We then played a game where the boys each got a sticky hand and they tried to use it to "grab" as many Lego pieces as they could. They had a ball trying to do this. They had a hard time when their turn was over.....they just wanted to play it over and over again.

Hunter just loved every minute of this party! It was the perfect party for him because he loves Lego's so much!

After that game and dinner it was time for the building of Lego race cars.

I had gotten a nice big used lot of Lego wheels and axles off eBay which made it perfect for building cars.

I was a little worried that there would be boys not interested in building with Lego's, but boy was I wrong. I am not kidding the boys built and then rebuilt their cars and trucks for over 45 minutes. Twelve boys from age 5-10 sat quietly for 45 minutes and built with Lego's. Even Justin could not believe his eyes.............I was shocked myself!

Once they knew they got to take their Lego cars home with them as Hunter's gift to them, then things got serious. They were so excited that they got to keep them and then the building was ON!

It was great to see everyone so excited!

Justice Nelson, Hunter, Kendall Moore and Bradlee

Logan just thought he was one of the big boys. All the boys were so nice to include everyone. There were friends from school, neighbor friends and cousins; so I was a little worried that they might not all mesh well. But they did...............aren't kids amazing!

This really went on for 45 minutes! And they were surprisingly quite!

What a fun group of boys!

Jacob was very excited about keeping his Lego car. It was so cute to see his excitement!

Kendall, Doyle and Logan getting ready to race their cars down the slide.

Treven, Justice and Hunter

Carsen Davis, Hunter's neighbor friend.....isn't he adorable!

During one point of the party Carsen excitedly said,

"This is the BEST party I have ever been to and it's not even mine!!!"

It was super cute and I was glad to know he was having a great time!

Bradlee and Declen.....Hunter's school buddies!

They are such good boys!

The final masterpieces!

What a bunch of fun boys! Mr. Grant was in heaven with all these friends!

Silly Hunter

Make it a good wish!

One more game..........

we had put a Lego piece in each balloon and then blew them up. We then tied the balloon's to each boys ankle. They had to try and pop each others balloons. What a HOOT watching these boys run around trying to pop each others balloon without getting their balloon popped.

It was hilarious!

Crazy boys

Then it was on to presents. Hunter was excited to get another Lego set! Ya just can't go wrong with Lego's when it comes to Hunter!

Following the presents the boys all played a few rounds of Laser Tag. They couldn't believe we had Laser Tag Guns for everyone. It was a huge hit and they all wanted to stay longer, or come back to play Laser Tag again. It had began to rain so the Laser Tag ended up being in the house. The boys had a blast running through the upstairs and basement. I have never regretted investing in our Laser Tag guns! Such a great time for all ages!!!

Happy Birthday to My Favorite Lego Builder!!