School Year Ends

Yeah for summer break! I'm a little burned out with work, so this will be such a welcome break! Walt and I have three family reunions to attend this summer - in Illinois, Cedar City, and Seattle. What a great way to spend the summer.

The other thing we're really excited about is the new patio we have in the backyard. It is a 14 x 16 foot slab. We prepared the ground by cutting away the sod, digging the dirt down, and moving the sprinkler control box over about 10 feet. Then a crew came and poured it yesterday, and today it is hard enough to walk on. We've been looking forward to eating breakfast or dinner out on the patio and hosting Barbeque's. Come on over and take a look!

Mothers Day

For Mothers Day Walt was very sweet and made me scrambled eggs, toast, bacon, and fruit smoothies for breakfast. Then he presented me with a set of grapefruit spoons and a cute green watering can. I wasn't expecting anything, so it was such a fun surprise! He wrote me a sweet note and I felt so special. Most of you know we're having difficulty getting pregnant. We'll be trying IVF (In Vitro Fertizilation) this July, so we're crossing our fingers and praying that it works! We can't wait to be parents.

We're getting the backyard ready for a patio. The weather is so nice and we're really excited to have a place outside to sit and relax and eat breakfast or read. We (well mostly Walt and my brother Alan who spontaneous volunteered to come help all day! Thanks Alan!!) rented a sod cutter on Saturday and pulled out the grass where the patio will be. Then we cut out some grass in our yard that was full of weeds and replaced it with the grass from the patio area. We tried to break out the small concrete square that is out there right now, but it turns out that it is at least 12 inches deep, so even a 16 lb. sledge hammer wouldn't budge it. We'll rent a jackhammer. We also have to move the sprinkler box which is in the way. So still a bit of work left to prep the area, but we're getting there!

Ranger Cookies

Last weekend my brother, Bryan, graduated from BYU with is Masters in Accounting. An exciting day! Made even more exciting by his announcement that evening at our family party that he and Sarah are expecting their first baby this next December. Yippee! Walt's sister-in-law also called that week to tell us she is expecting. We can't wait to be a new aunt and uncle twice over again! Bry and Sarah announced their news by baking ranger cookies, wrapping them individually as party favors and including a recipe, the last steps of which said "Bry and Sar have their own little cookie baking in the oven. Bake 7 more months at womb temperature. Makes one little Graden." :) Walt and I think "Ranger C. Graden" would be a great name for a boy! (C. is for Cookie, of course). Ha!

Heather, my step-sister, moved in with us last week for the month of May. It's been a blast having her here. I'm getting big circles under my eyes from staying up so late talking with her. We 're loving it!

Today I attended BYU Womens Conference with my Grandma Stevenson, Aunts Kim, Kelley, and Su, cousin Kara, and sisters-in-law Liz and Sarah. SOOOOO fun. I love being with my family. I attended several great sessions. I'll post my notes here in a couple days.