Re-cap - Sort of!

 For my weak attempt at keeping up on my blog here are a few highlights from the last month or two. After 3 years, Nash graduated from Miss Molly's preschool at Mary MacPherson!

The teachers there are phenomenal! They went out of their way to help our boys while they were there and they were so extremely kind and supportive of our family. We love them and will always be thankful for their positive influence in our lives! I just love how these ladies treat every kid in their class like they are the most important and smartest kid there! They were even so kind to have an early graduation before we moved so Nash could be there.

 Miss Andrea

 Miss Molly

 

Miss Wendy

I also have to mention the boys bus drivers, Bonnie and Lorna. They are amazing and always so patient and happy even while they waited for us to find backpacks, get shoes on and coax Nash onto the bus. When I told them we were moving Lorna said, "Well you can't take Nash! We've practically raised him, he's been riding our bus since he learned to walk!" I had a darling picture of the boys with these special ladies but sadly it was on my phone that I lost on the Alpine slide last week. Wish I had backed up all the pictures and contacts from my phone cuz now they are all gone! =(

 

 Brynlee also said good-bye to her 1st grade class. That is her with her jacket over her head being "it" as they played corners one last time before the bell rang on her last day at Mary Mac.

It was really hard to say good-bye to all of our friends in Meridian!

Brynlee's friends had a surprise going away party for her. They "kidnapped" her and had a breakfast party where they made her the center or attention and promised they would all write to her. 

She of course loved it!

My sweet friend Amy offered to have a good-bye party for all of us which I declined because I knew it would make me sad and I would cry and I try to avoid that. She still threw a surprise party for me which did make me cry but I loved it and was glad she did.

We absolutely loved the 5 years we had in Meridian.

It was home for us.

 Ridge was born there and it was the only home Brynlee and Nash could remember.

 The friends and neighbors we have/had there are amazing!

Good thing facebook, phones and blogs make it easier to stay in touch.

On the 10th of May we packed up our sleeping bags, the children, Cassie and the hamsters. Quickly cleaned the house one last time, drove to Salt Lake quickly cleaned out Brady's apartment and came to our new home in Alpine.

 Driving away from our home and neighborhood and so many people we love made it an emotional day for me...that and the fact that I hadn't been sleeping well had me more on the sad side of the fence than excited side. When we left Brady's apartment it started pouring rain. As we drove around the point of the mountain and headed into Alpine the sky cleared up, the sun came out and a beautiful double rainbow arched across the mountains right in front of us. It felt like it was just for me.

It was breathtaking and all of the sudden I was so excited and felt so grateful and blessed to be in Alpine all under the same roof again!

 I grew up in Utah so for me it has felt like coming home. I love mountains and the ones here in Alpine do not disappoint! Every time I walk outside my eyes wonder up those beautiful rugged  peaks. Brady and I kept commenting about the incredible mountains, apparently a little too much because after about a week Brynlee begged us to please stop talking about the mountains!

The top picture is the view of the mountains to the North of us.

The bottom picture is the mountains to the East of us.

 Looking down the street to the South you can see Utah Lake and in the distance (too far for my camera) you can see the Mt. Timpanogos temple.

I love the scenery here, the cool mountain breeze, the dark nights (no street lights = lots of stars), the crickets, the nice people, that there were lots of kids wearing cowboy boots with their shorts at the kids schools, and being closer to family.

Most of all I love having Brady home every night.

As long as I have that I think I could live anywhere!

I feel so blessed to be here with my family and am still just trying to take it all in and enjoy it.

One more mountain picture just for good measure!

 The children have loved getting together with their cousins more often!

Big Grandpa with all of his grandkids at Keatons baptism.

 Brynlee went to and loved the last two weeks of first grade in her new class at Westfield Elementary. She got there just in time for all the end of school fun and the pet show where she proudly shared not only her hamsters but her brothers!

We spent Memorial Day weekend in Cove and Preston visiting family and loved that!

We've had a lot of fun over the past couple months between all the packing and unpacking, someday I'll get better at doing shorter more frequent posts! ;)