Cadbury World

On Veteran's Day we visited the Cadbury Factory. It was really fun. We learned about how chocolate was discovered and how it became so popular. We wrote our name in chocolate, toured the factory and ate tons of samples. We had so much chocolate that we thought we were going to be sick.

Happy Birthday Hannah

Hannah's Birthday was October 12th. She celebrated with here friends at the skating rink. Happy Birthday Hannah.

The first day of school

What an exciting day for Hampton, Hannah, and Hayden. They started school last Monday. All three kids are in separate schools. Hayden says Mrs. Hand is really nice and he is happy to have his best friend from last year in his class. Hannah likes how Mrs. May is nice and strict at the same time. Hampton is excited to have some of his friends from church in his 8th grade house (Central).

Hampton's 13th Birthday

My oldest son is now a teenager. The night before his big day he celebrated with all his great friends in the decons quoram. They had a great time eating pizza and playing video games all night. What a dream come true for him.

Beautiful Lake District

In July we decided to take a trip to a beautiful place called the Lake District.

Our first stop was Iron Bridge Gorge. Here we got to see the birthplace of industry

and the worlds's first cast iron bridge. It was built in 1979.

Our second stop was the Preston England Temple. The Temple grounds were amazingly beautiful. We had a wonderful time walking around feeling the special spirit that was there.

On our second day the boys went golfing, we rode on a historic railroad and went for a hike. The view was amazing. We loved the public footpaths that would wind all through the town and all the rock walls that were made by hand hundreds of years ago.

On the next day was drove to a lake called Derwentwater. This was near a town pleasant town called Keswick. Here were took a boat ride across the lake and hiked up to a peak along the shore. What a beautiful view. Everything was so green and fresh. We also walked around the lake in the rain. It was great to see the kids determination to get to the top and stay strong on the 9 mile walk.

The next day we went on a scenic drive through the heart of the Lake District. It was misty and rainy, but it only added to the beauty. We drove up the steep narrow one lane roads and saw tons of waterfalls and sheep.

We stayed in a cute cottage called Cragg's cottage. It was a cozy place where we enjoyed returning each night. (Jarom discovered out that an accomplished author once lived there.) We had a great time playing board games, reading Shurlock Holmes, and sipping hot chocolate by a fire. What a great way to create some real wonderful memories.

British Poppies

The weather here in England has been so beautiful. We had just the right mix of rain and sunshine. Because of this, we have been blessed with some amazing wildflowers. The sides of the roads have been covered with daffodils, poppies, and daisies. I love the beauty of this country. Here are some pictures of the kids surrounded by the amazing flowers.

Lot of things to be proud of

So many wonderful things have been happening in the lives of my children. This last week of school has been somewhat magical. Everyone has been getting along, jobs have been done in the morning before school and teachers send praise of what good kids I have. It's hard to think that the last day of school is tomorrow. Hampton, Hannah, and Hayden have had such a wonderful school year it's hard to think that it's over.

Hampton was honored today at his school award assembly. He received seven awards. The two most important were the "Commander's Honor Roll" and the Student of the Year for the Bakerloo House. We are so proud of him and love him so much. Hampton was also inducted into the National Junior Honor Society.

Commander Cassie Barlow

We also had the chance to attend Hayden's Muffin Morning with his class. His teacher had so many wonderful things to say. We have been blessed to have her instruct him. He has surpassed all of our expectations on reading and his school work. We are so happy to see him excited to read.

Hannah has done wonderfully in school as well. Her Tera Nova scores were in the top of the Nation. She has done well in her gifted and talented class and is very sad to see that her teacher is retiring. Hannah also received many awards including High Honor Roll, the Physical Fitness award and had a story published the showcase magazine.

So tonight we are going to celebrate. Celebrate our sweet wonderful children that we love so much. Celebrate their successful school year and their many accomplishments. We love you Hampton, Hannah and Hayden. Keep up the good work!

Happy Birthday Hayden

Hayden celebrated his 8th birthday on April 19th.

He received legos and his very own set of scriptures. What big boy.

The New Scout

Hayden is now 8 years old. He is the newest member of the Thetford Ward Cub Scout Troop. Hayden has been so excited about becoming a cub scout. He loves to wear his uniform and work on his requirements with Jarom. Isn't he cute?

Back to Blogging

Now that we have transitioned to our new computer and all our pictures are loaded I am ready to start adding things to our blog. Sorry it has taken so long.

Our last trip was over Christmas break. We went to a beautiful place called Cornwall. It is in the southern most part of England and was beautiful...even in the winter.

Our Cottage was right along the coast. We loved staying here. It allowed us to have a quiet cozy place to come home to each night. It was very old and we had to stoke the fire to have hot water for a shower each day.

Being in Cornwall was quite an adventure. The roads were amazingly narrow and walled in.

Some of the things that we were able to see were: Tintagel Castle...this is the legandary birthplace of King Arthur. It was beautifully placed along the coastline on top of a cliff.

We took some awesome pictures here.

This is Jarom's favorite.

Next we drove through the beautiful Darmoor National Forest. We took the self-guided riding tour in the Rick Steves' book. It was filled with wild ponies, Celtic Crosses and beautiful bridges.

We also saw St. Michael's Mount. It is a rock island that has been inhabited for 1,500 years. Originally a Benedictine monastery, the castle was built up by the St. Aubyn family, who still owns it today.

Our favorite afternoon was spent walking along the coastline to Land's End. What a beautiful sight. We were there just in time to watch the sun set into the ocean.

We also spent a day at the Eden project, a futuristic theme park of global gardening and Plymouth where the Mayflower left England. All in all our trip was wonderful and a beautiful family experience.