We spent Saturday night in the emergency room with our sweet Bethany!  A neighbor child came running to our door to tell us, "Bethany's been hurt!". She had been jumping on a trampoline with several other kids and fell off.  Kevin and I drove her straight to the hospital.  Her wrist looked awful!

They thought that perhaps she had severely dislocated the wrist.  Not so!  The x-rays told us the bones were broken! 

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Fortunately, we had two very good doctors who were skilled in setting bones which is apparently called a "reduction.". They put her to sleep, set the bones, and splinted it.  They used a portable x-ray machine so they could watch the bones throughout the whole procedure.  It was pretty high-tech and cool!  We were just really glad that she got the care she needed.  What a blessing!  She is already feeling better.

We had a pretty fun week before all that!  On Wednesday, Beth's kindergarten class put on a circus!  I got to watch Bethany be a tiger and a prancing pony!  She also did juggling!  It was so sweet and fun to watch.  Benjamin and I loved it!

On Thursday, Beth's kindergarten class celebrated summer birthdays!  So, Beth got a crown and a poster.  That was a pretty fun day, too!

Thursday was also the end-of-year track party for Megan and Mariah.  They got a bunch of ribbons between the two of them and had great fun being with their teammates and eating pizza!  They had a great season!

Friday was the last day of kindergarten!  So it was the last time that I was in charge of the walking group!  Aren't they cute?

That afternoon was the annual Author's Party at Brookside Elementary!  I got to hear writing from Beth, Cali, and Cheyenne. 

Before that, Cali and Cheye had already been having fun at their Fourth Grade Stores!  They earn play money during the year for good work and good behavior, then at the end of the year they work in pairs to provide goods or services for their friends to buy with the play money.  They all get really excited about it!  Cali and a friend provided games of miniature bowling and HiChews.  Cheyenne and a friend provided hair coloring with hair chalk.  They both came home loaded with fun stuff and had a great time!

Friday evening we had the privilege of attending an honors banquet for Megan due to the 4.0 she has maintained through all three years of junior high!  What a great accomplishment!  I can testify that she worked really hard for it, too!  We are super proud of her!

Saturday was our super busiest day!  Are you ready?  It was the day of the Young Women's yard sale.  So, Sarah, Megan, Mariah, and I helped sort and transport Friday night and then we were back at 5:30 am to set-up and sell stuff!  Sarah helped until 8am when she had a meeting at Funfinity.  Megan helped until 9:00 when Sarah and Savannah came back from their meeting and Kevin took Sarah and Megan to Provo for their YCC ropes course event.  Savannah came to the yard sale around 9:30 to sell jewelry she had made and donate the proceeds to girls' camp.  I left the sale at 10:30 so I could be home to babysit for a neighbor in need.  Mariah stayed until 12:30 when she left to go ice skating for a friend's birthday.  At 1:30, they called to have me come back to the sale so they could pack the non-sold goods on our trailer and Kevin could take it to DI.  This was just as Kevin was coming back from picking up Sarah and Megan from the ropes course and dropping Sarah off at Funfinity for her five hour shift at Funfinity with Savannah.  Kevin got back from DI, I took Meg to Spanish Fork for her fiddle lesson and was back before my neighbor came to pick up her kids at 4:30.  Deep breath!  It had been such a busy day, Kevin and I decided to go out to eat to wind down.  We thought we were done for the day! 

It's a good thing we got some sustenance and were back before we spent our evening in the ER!  The Lord is really looking out for us.  It all worked out perfect.  It's a tender mercy and we're so grateful!  :)

Benjamin helped me plant the garden this week!  Monday was cold, cold and that night the temperatures dropped below freezing.  Luckily, Ben and I waited until Tuesday!  Ben enjoyed helping me pull the Virginia Creeper off the fence and taking his turn with the clippers.  He dug large holes in the wrong places and drove our plant cart (above) like a fighter jet.  I did double duty trying to keep the plant stems from being broken and trying to keep Ben from driving the cart into the elderly patrons buying flowers.  He was a sweet, constant companion and I thought he was great fun to have around even with some of the extra challenges he provided!  :). Now we are both proud of our newly planted garden.

This week Cali and Cheyenne had crazy hair day at school.  They participated most enthusiastically.  Last week they had a super-hero day.  I forgot to put the picture in last week, but I wanted to because they made their costumes themselves.  I was pretty impressed!

They have been LOVING having baby rabbits.  They're outside with the rabbits everyday and head there immediately after school.  The babies have gotten over a lot of their shyness so they get held a lot!

Megan and Mariah had their last track meet this week.  It was the two-day district final!  On Thursday Mariah ran the mile and placed 5th with a time of 6:06!  Megan ran the 400m leg of the medley and helped her team to a 3rd place finish.  On Friday Megan ran the 400 and placed 6th with a time of 1:05! They both ran in the 800.  Mariah came in 7th and Megan came in 9th.  Then they both ran on the same team for the 4x400 and helped their team to another 3rd place finish!  Awesome running, ladies!  They are fast!  They've had a great time and Kevin and I have loved watching them.

Lining up for the 800m!  Meg is second from left.  Mariah is third from right.  They're the ones in red!

Mariah handing off to Meg in the 4x400!

 

 

We're their biggest fans!

We had a surprise visit from Grandpa Skinner and Maria on Friday night.  They were on their way back from California and it was a short visit, but it is always great fun to see them!

Sarah has been very busy working two jobs!  The softball games started full swing this week, she worked two days at Funfinity, and took an AP World History test!  She's still doing big homework assignments in Chemistry and Math and is trying to finish a quilt for her sewing class.  Poor girl has had a very stressful week!  We are so proud of all her hard work, though!

In addition, Sarah and Megan got their first chance to do service for the city through Youth City Council.  Saturday morning was "Bike with the Mayor!". They got on their bikes to help chaperone the littler kids and even brought Cali and Chey along!  They got free donuts and hot dogs and got to be there for the inaugural turning-on of the splash pad.  They all had a pretty grand time!

We got to go to Savannah's seminary graduation tonight.  It was a great meeting and we're so glad Savannah had the opportunity to take seminary from such great teachers and that she valued it and finished the work to graduate!  We took her picture with the other seniors in our ward who she has grown up with (and the bishop and his wife)!

Speaking of pictures of Savannah, I made her announcements this week!  Take a look at some of these awesome pictures!

How can she be done with her childhood???  My beautiful girl . . .

Guess what?  We've got baby bunnies!  I gated a small spot at the side of our house so our rabbits would have more room to run and play.  This also gave them the ability to dig burrows!  These little bunnies were effectively hidden away in a burrow until just this week when Cheyenne found them.  There are three and they are very shy but aren't they sooooo cute??  Cali and Cheye are in bunny heaven.  They just wish they'd stay out longer each day.

On Monday of this week we had another honor in our family when Calianne won the Tiger of the Month for her class!  Yay, Cali!!  Now I just have to take her for her free Sonic Kid's Meal!



She picked that cute fish for her prize!

On Tuesday, Sarah and Megan got sworn in at the City Council meeting as members of the Youth City Council for the coming year.  Sarah and Megan were kind of unimpressed, but their dad and I thought it was pretty cool!

They have these cool matching Springville polo shirts!

Speaking of matching shirts, Savannah and Sarah worked together twice this week.  I just had to take their picture in their Funfinity shirts and nametags!

We've had crazy weather this past week.  The twins had tennis Monday but it got canceled Wednesday.  Sometimes it is sunny and beautiful and 15 minutes later it is cloudy and cold and spitting rain!  At least everything is green.  And when it is sunny, it is wonderful.  Mariah got a chance to do some outdoor reading even.

What a cool chair, right??!

Friday's track meet was a case in point as it started out in the rain with clouds from horizon to horizon.  Mariah ran her mile with a time of 6:13 and placed second.  Then Meg ran her 400 with a time of 1:06 and placed third.  They both ran the 800.  Mariah placed first and Meg second!  Then the sun came out and it was beautiful and there were blue skies!  And Kevin and I had to leave.  But while we were gone, they did great in their 4x400 relays.

Kevin and I needed to leave because we went up to Salt Lake to meet my Aunt Connie.  We all went to the temple again to do family names for sealings.  It was really awesome.  We love doing that and are so glad she invites us!

Saturday morning was the Goldilocks Bike Ride! Yay!  Sarah, Mariah, and I all went up to ride.  It was an all-women's ride and they are my only daughters with nice bikes, so I signed them up!  It was very fun.  We were signed up for the 20 mile ride which was the shortest of all the choices.  There were two rest stops stocked with food and drinks and lots of fun people to ride with and to cheer for us along the way.  However, there was a headwind with rain and hail for several miles . . . while we went up a hill that never ended, of course.  That was the part that gave us bragging rights, so it was all good!  At the end, we got to have a yummy lunch.  It was great.  I got lots of comments on my bike.  As we crossed the finish line they announced our names and city.  When I crossed, the announcer said, "And on the coolest bike I've ever seen . . . Katy Skinner from Springville!". Pretty exciting, right?  It was a great memory maker even if we got very cold!

Before the race! -- when the sun was still shining!

After the race with my friend who did 40 miles.

We got these cute necklaces for finishing!

Meanwhile, back at the farm . . . or house.  The little kids had spent the night at Grandma and Grandpa Gazdik's.  They love doing that!  So, Kevin and Megan ran in a local (free!) 5K. Megan came in around 25 minutes and Kevin came in around 23:30.  They had great fun and it didn't even rain on them!

Today was Mother's Day!  Kevin made me a lovely breakfast and helped with a lovely dinner at Grandma Gazdik's house.  I got lots of lovely cards from people professing love for me -- which are the best kind don't ya know!  It was a lovely day and I love being a mother!

I have to say that Beth and I agree on this one!!

Kevin left us on Tuesday this week!  He went to Toronto for special training in his field.  He will be back tonight!  We have missed him so much!  What a hole he leaves in our house when he is gone.  I did a lot of things I normally do when he is here, but I hadn't realized what a comfort just his presence brings!  So, this week was harder than most.  It also may have been just a tad busier!

On Tuesday, I drove Sarah and Allyson up to SLC again for more USTA matches.  These were their singles matches.  The weather was cold but beautiful so they played outside and battled the wind.  Ben thought it was a great place to explore and walked all around the fences lining the tennis courts and found himself a fort in the bushes.  I thought they both played great although they both lost and felt bad.  It was a great learning experience either way!  . . . and they got cool t-shirts.

That night we had a YW activity where we sewed bathroom travel bags out of handtowels.  It was a little chaotic trying to give everyone a chance on the sewing machines but it was a great beginner sewing project and the girls all liked it.

Wednesday after tennis for the twins, we had a piano recital for Sarah, Mariah, Cheye,and Cali.  They held it at our piano teacher's house.  It was a small recital (we may have been half the participants!) and then we had a pizza dinner as refreshments.  It was simple and fun.  Everyone played well.  They are all doing so well on the piano!

Thursday was the 4th grade Hershey Track Meet!  Cali and Cheyenne both ran and I got to watch them (for the morning part!).  They both ran super fast in the 50 meter and both made it to the semi-finals.  They both did great in their long jumps.  Unfortunately, I had to go before they ran the 400 meter but I hear they did great in that, too!  In fact, at the end of the day, Cheyenne came home with two awards!  4th in the 400 and 3rd in the 50!  That's for the whole city!  We were so impressed!  What fun for both of them!

Cheyenne in lane 2

Calianne in lane 2

Friday I got to go with the kindergarteners on a nature hike to finish up their "Forest Week."  We pretended to be ecologists and we did bark rubbings and we identified the different parts of a plant and made nature bracelets.  We finished up with lunch at the playground.  It was great fun!  I loved being with my sweet Bethany!

After kindergarten, I went back over to the track because the junior high was competing at Springville High School that afternoon!  I missed Mariah's mile (where she placed 2nd) and Megan's 400 (where she placed 3rd), but I saw them both run in the 800.  Mariah placed 2nd and Megan passed two girls in the final 100 meters to place 3rd.  It was really exciting and fun to watch!  Lastly they both ran in two different 4x400 relays.  They did great in those, too! They're both still sunburned today.

Saturday was Sarah's first day at her new job at Funfinity!  It went pretty well, I think, since she came home feeling less scared than when she left!  She'll do great.  I think she likes it!

Savannah worked Saturday, too, but after Sarah.  When she was done with work, she went and got her senior pictures taken by our good friend, Jen Grigg.  Jen showed me some of them and they look great!  It's going to be fun to have those.

As for me, a big project of mine came to fruition this week.  I've been working on converting my bike into a recumbent!  I got stuck last week and had to get some help from a good friend in the ward who is a bike guru.  Finally, it is done and I took it out.  It is going to take some getting used to.  It is very hard to balance!  I hope I am ready before the 20 mile bike event that I am signed up for next Saturday.  (You might want to start praying now for my safety!)  (I am just kidding, by the way-- about the praying, not about the 20-miler!)