My Heart And Soul

Yesterday was a BIG day for us. Andy has decided to apply for graduate school. He is trying to get into a CRNA program. Most program's require him to take the GRE test in order to apply. He had studied all last week for it. He took the REAL test yesterday afternoon and got his test results as soon as he finished. Of course he did great!! We all new Mr. smarty pants would. LOL So to celebrate we went out for dinner and headed up to Brigham City to do a walk through of the brand new Temple. It was ABSOLUTELY beautiful. I LOVE the Temple so much! It brings me so much peace and joy to my heart. It feels my soul with an abundance of  warmth and happiness. I truly feel like I am "home"! 

 Every time Andy and I go to the Temple Ella always ask's if she can come. It's hard to tell her or yet explain to her why she can't. It was so awesome to be able to take my children to the house of the lord and show them what it's all about. The Temple has changed my life. I am so grateful to be able to come to this amazing place and feel the spirit. I want my children to understand the importance of the Temple and what a special place it is.

Sunday Dance Off!

This past Sunday Andy and I decided to make a crepe cake for a BBQ we were invited to. Andy is the KING of making crepes! He cooked, I layered. It was so much fun to hang with my Man in the kitchen. We were blasting the music and dancing around like a couple of teenagers. My daughter thought it was so funny. She asked if she could video tape the whole shin dig and I thought.. HECK YA! Let's have a kitchen dance off! LOL So here it is... Andy and I making the biggest idiots of ourselves. Btw.. The crepe cake turned out amazing. Ha!

Sister's! (The Three J's)

Once a month I get together with my Sister in law's, Jen, Jadie and Jess! Last night we went to Zupas for dinner and then afterwards we saw the movie Batman!! I had such a great time. Growing up I always wanted a sister. In fact, I would pretend I had a twin sister named Kylie. LOL When I got older and had a family of my own, I REALLY wanted a sister. I was always hearing about my friends getting together with there sister's or spending the day shopping with there sister and I felt like I was missing out on something. Well, lucky for me I married a guy with a SISTER and three brother's who in return married three awesome chicks... To make a long story short I inherited four sister's!! I knew I would get a sister someday if I prayed hard enough. LOL I LOVE these girls. They are all so amazing in their own little way. They cheer me up, make me laugh and inspire me! I am so blessed to call them SISTER.

Kickin It With The.. "Ivy League".

Andy has joined a kick ball team!!! You can call them, "Ivy League" LOL.. Last night was his first game and they did pretty good. Andy kicked a home run! The final score was 8 to 10. Even though they did not win, it was still so much fun! The kids got to run around and play in the dirt. I think they really enjoyed seeing there Dad out there under the lights. 

 Thing one and thing two.. LOL

 Look! It's me and the baby from "The Labyrinth"!

 Andy stretching it out.

 That's Andy in mid kick..

 Andy thinking good and hard about his next move!

 Family pic in the dug out!

It's Just Me And You Kid... (and the baby)

 In light of Ella going back to school I thought I would take Rowan on a little outing. He doesn't start Pre School until next week so we might as well end the summer with a bang. Not to mention, I wanted to get a taste of what things were going to be like with out my little Ella to help me out. (It was rough) LOL! We went to the Dinosaur Museum, had lunch and then afterwards enjoyed some Ice cream. We had a good time together but after all was said and done I was pooped. I can't believe how much I rely on Ella's help.

 Rowan's two favorite things, sand and water!

First Time For Everything.

Ella had her first day of 1st grade! And, it was her first day at Hunter Elementary. Ella is a shining star I tell you what! She amazes me daily. She has grown to be such a smart, beautiful and talented little thing. I was so emotional dropping her off. For some reason I was affected more this year than last. I think it was a combination of her first day being gone ALL day and watching her lock her bike up like she was 10! Last year she attended Diamond Ridge Elementary. We loved the school, it was new, well organized and offered a french immersion program. But all of her friends were at Hunter Elementary and I felt like I was depriving her of having the kind of experience that makes elementary school so memorable. Not to mention it was so much farther away, she was never able to walk or ride her bike there. I think that is what made this year so special. I know we made the right decision enrolling her at Hunter. Her smiling face says it all!

 Ella waiving at her BFF!

 Ella hugging her BFF. 

Look at her locking her bike up like a pro. LOVE HER!!!

Family Reunion.. Southern Style!

This weekend we celebrated our Cowdell family reunion. Every year in August we have a family camp out and usually have a theme. Each family trades off being in charge and this year it was our family so we decided to go with a New Orleans (Mardi gras) theme. My mom had lived down south, near Mississippi and Louisiana, for the past five years and just moved back this summer. So, what better way to celebrate then southern style. My Mom slaved away in the kitchen, cooking up fried green tomatoes, fried cat fish, hush puppies, corn bread and jambalaya. For dessert she made a king cake and benyas. It was amazing! It is always fun and interesting to try new foods and learn about new cultures. 

Yes, those are ALL fryers! I think we had a total of six? LOL 

 This is the king cake. It is to die for. It's a French tradition. You are actually suppose to hide a baby in it and whoever finds the baby or gets the piece with the baby, becomes KING for the day. I am not quite sure what the baby represents. LOL

 We do a raffle at the end of the party and the big prize that everyone wants is usually a blanket or quilt my grandmother has made. I wanted it soooooo bad. My mom ended up winning it!!! I was so happy for her because she really deserved it. She had worked so hard on this party.

 Thanks to pinterest we came up with this cute idea for cups! They were a hit. PLUS, we didn't have to go through a million paper or plastic cups. Everyone got their own with their name on it. 

 We were obsessed with this mask. LOL. Can you tell?

 For breakfast we had corn beef and hash, southern style grits and purple and green pancakes. YUM!

 All I can remember is that it was FUNNY! LOL

 Baby Gwen rockin her Mardi gras head band.

The kids had a blast decorating their masks and getting their faces painted.