Bennett's Birthday & Conference Weekend

 I loved celebrating Bennett turning EIGHT this week! We had his party last weekend and his birthday on Thursday, so it felt good to not feel like we were trying to squeeze his birthday fun in between all of conference this weekend. He had a great day Thursday, with cinnamon rolls and bringing a fun treat to school, Texas Roadhouse for dinner, and his lemon blueberry birthday cake. Such a sweet guy. I always want to remember how much Bennett just purely loves everyone in his family and is kind to everyone he meets. It doesn't cross his mind to be any other way. Such a sweet soul.

Conference was so wonderful. I always feel like I need to go back to catch so much of it, but it was a relaxing weekend and the boys did really great. I cut my hair off after the last session on Saturday and I'm happy for the change. It just needed it. Conference Sunday always feels like such a slow, cozy day.

October is where it's at.

I love our morning walks so much.

We rode halfway to dad's work with him when he had a later patient one morning.
The boys thought that was so fun.

I found Bennett's spirit animal at the plant nursery.

Birthday boy tomorrow!

Always chooses cinnamon rolls for breakfast :)

He wanted to go to Texas Roadhouse and have them sing to him haha,
so we made a trip there right before swimming lessons.

Josh Ritter concert!
I've been looking forward to this night for so long.

Haven't seen him since our Indy days,
we love this guy.

All ready for a date with dad!

Preschool field trip to the Pumpkin Patch with dads.

The boys grabbed all their pillows and some blankets and made quite the comfy conference set up.

Quick picnic and tennis time between sessions.

I just love these four guys.

Fred & George are back!

Elk Bugling

The boys had no school Monday and we had a good day together. I think year-round school would be really wonderful. That night we did a mystery shop all together at BJs and they thought that was so fun. Mystery shopping takes me back, it's so funny to do it with four kids in tow when we started doing that just the two of us.

Tuesday we did yoga and made smoothies for Young Womens and I loved that calm activity :) I need to do more Yoga in my life. Bennett and Westin LOVE when they have activity days during Young Womens and I think they have the greatest leaders ever, they're so lucky.

Michael chaperoned Camden's preschool field trip on Wednesday to the pond and he said the kids were really cute. One little girl held his hand the whole time and it just cracked him up, preschoolers just love.

I went to my young women's orchestra concert Thursday and one of them did a cello solo for It Is Well With My Soul and I just think that song is so beautiful. She did such a wonderful job. 

Friday we took the boys to the Canvas Community Classic, which is when the high school teams play each other in the CSU stadium. Westin loves football so much. I think I've written that sentence in 100+ blog posts but it's just really true. 

Michael volunteered all day Saturday at a free dental clinic that Colorado does every year. I took the boys to watch the BYU game with friends, then to Westin's football game, then we got ready for Bennett's party that night. We grabbed pizza and cake from Costco and he had a bunch of friends come jump with him that night at Fly High. Michael met us there and the boys had fun jumping with him. Bennett is so stoked about turning 8!

My favorite part of the weekend was Sunday night -- we drove the boys up to Rocky Mountain National Park after nap time for a dinner picnic and a dusk drive during the weeks the elk are super active. There were so many, and they were bugling so much! Which is such an interesting sound and nothing like what you'd picture it to be. We even saw a couple males fighting and the sound of their antlers hitting was amazing to hear. I loved it up there, and it was such a pretty night. We stole the idea from some friends and saw them there for a few minutes. Westin said he wanted it to be a tradition, which means it was a good time :) 

The boys had a Monday off of school for a teacher work day and Bennett did every puzzle he could find.

Got Westin involved by the end.
I love how Bennett can entertain himself so well,
he's always been like that.

Such a cute scene to spy on while I do dishes.

"Jim and Nancy give me it!"
Lucky little boys to have such nice neighbors.

They had some inflatable obstacle courses at the Canvas Community Classic football game,
and Westin and Bennett thought they were so fun.

Bennett can't be bothered by the picture,
and Asher actually was really bothered by the picture,
but you can find his legs if you try hard.

Team photo! Westin liked flag football this season so much.

We recently acquired a wagon and I feel the same way about it I felt about my play kitchen.
Which is, I wish I bought this two years ago.

Have you ever ordered a cake from Costco?
What a weird way they still do it? But can't beat it!

Asher was all about this cake.
My favorite thing lately is when they say, "Can I have some more?" I just say, "Sure!" and give them the tiniest bit. And he did that like four times, which didn't even equal a whole slice of cake really, but he was just soo happy to feel like he had full access to this cake haha.

Sometimes you just need to hold hands while you eat cake.

Trying to get some candy from the bishop with some memorized Articles of Faith...
he needed some big help from daddy ;)

Sunday drive through Rocky Mountain National Park 

We ran into the Baileys there and she gets full credit for the everyone-looking-and-smiling photo,
my boys all love her so much so it was achievable for her.

This little deer came right over to eat dinner by us!
The boys loved seeing it so close.

So many elk.
And so much bugling!
We even saw two large males fighting and the sound of their antlers hitting was really awesome.

Super Moon

We had some fun nights this week!

Monday was trivia night again with some other friends, which I just think is so fun. Then Tuesday night we walked up Coyote Ridge with a few other families to try to catch the Super Moon and lunar eclipse. We could see it so well! There was no Young Womens that night because of a youth temple trip on Friday, so it was fun to just get together with friends and be outside that night.

Michael had a meeting Thursday night so it was just me and the boys. They were so great with bedtime. Some nights aren't so smooth but I was grateful for their help that solo night. Then Friday I went to the temple for an endowment session before meeting up with all the youth and leaders for baptisms. 

Saturday was tennis and High in the morning for Michael and me, then Westin's football game. We had a babysitter that night to go out with the Dimonds but their little guy was pretty sick. Michael and I went out for Vietnamese food and did a little birthday shopping for Bennett, then came home and watched the INSANELY FUN BYU game against Kansas State. What a wild game.

We ate dinner at the Schmidts house today, and Bennett and I got to the temple this afternoon to take some pictures of him for his baptism program. He's getting to be so big! 

This little hoarder man.
Every couple weeks we clear it all out and he seems relieved a little,
but then requests thing by thing each nap and night until he's once again
sleeping in sweet chaos.

This is right after he said to me,
"Mom, I'm going to turn you into a boy.
Abracadabra, I give you a................ boy head."
I was cracking up so much and he seemed confused as to why I thought he was so funny haha.

Super Moon with a little eclipse!

We loved walking up Coyote Ridge with friends to catch the special September moon.

Michael turned some jalapeños from my parents into some jalapeño poppers.

Westin has become skilled at managing bedtimes once in a while and I love him for it.

Soccer! Camden loves soccer Thursdays. He's totally into it.

Signs of little boys -- trucks doing yoga on my yoga mat.

Another Saturday Flag Football game.

Krispy Kreme opened in Fort Collins, woohoo!
I knew the boys would love watching the donuts being made.
They were making fresh apple fritters and they put them straight from the line into our box.

This little cat. She's so cuddly.

Some baptism photos for Benny boy!

He is so excited to turn eight next month.

He had to write about building something in his experience journal for school,
and specifically what he does when it breaks.
"If it breaks, that's ok! You just start over!"
That sums up Bennett :)

Last time my parents were here Camden asked and asked if he could make a gingerbread house with them and to be honest that just kind of went in one ear and out the other for me because, so random? And gingerbread houses are not on my mind yet? Then when they drove away he said, "Well it's so sad we didn't make a house together." Breaking my heart! So I kept my eye out for Trader Joe's haunted house kits they usually put out and he's so excited to build this with Grandma and Grandpa when they come back out for Bennett's baptism. What a funny guy.