Curly's Baptism

Curly's baptism was the most anticipated event of the summer. It wasn't just Curly that was excited - her sisters and her parents looked forward to it as well. Berry kept saying "It's my birthday and then I get baptized!" Fisher and I have been meeting regularly with Curly to study with her and hopefully prepare for the special promises she made when she was baptized.  She continually impressed and continues to impress us with her understanding of the gospel of Jesus Christ and her faith!  We are proud of her for her decision to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints and for her example to her friends, teachers, and family.

 

It was a memorable occasion with grandparents coming from very far away and many friends also traveling to show their support.  We are grateful for the good people in our lives and feel very blessed.

Curly and Fisher before the service

Sweet children singing

Curly with her teacher Sister Rawhouser and friends Sam and Faith

Happy family

Happy girl!

Berry comfortable

Can you tell that I am playing catch-up?  Stay tuned for a whole lot more!  In this exhibit we portray Berry in her various sleeping locations of choice.  Most night, we are just glad when she finally falls asleep!

Her favorite! Face down on the tile, under the desk

Hallway Sprawlway

Foot Facial Massage - it's the new thing!

Accident waiting to happen!

Flower Garden Party

For Lou's 6th birthday party, she wanted to have a "Flower Garden Party."  Phoenix in June is not exactly conducive to a garden party.  So we got creative and had an indoor flower garden.  Lou helped plan the activities and games.  We designed and delivered invitations, we prepared decorations, treats, and crafts, and then we waited... To her, the days until her birthday party dragged on and there wasn't a day that went by in the week leading up to the party that she didn't calculate how many days it was until her party.  Eventually the grand day arrived and we thought the party was a hit.  Here is a glimpse of what we did.

Birthday Girl Lou

Lou's "Flower Garden"

Making flower bead bracelets

Playing "water the flower"

The ice cream sundae bar was a hit!

We forgot to get out the spray whip cream, but we improvised...

Happy Friends

Lou's friends - Arianna, Kendra, Hailey, Bella, Rachel, Cecelia

The Lakes at the Lake

I don't think that summer is complete without a camping trip, even with all the hassle and dirt, camping is a favorite family activity.  We managed to squeeze a weekend trip in between parties, birthdays, baptisms and family vacation.  It's only taken me two months to post about it, but it is worth posting about :)

We headed to the Blue Ridge Reservoir about an hour and a half northeast.  Our friend who recommended the spot also kindly lent us a canoe.  We hiked, explored, played cards, read books, and ate "camping food."  There is a fire restriction, but that did not put a damper on camping.  We roasted smores and made kettle corn on our butane stove.   We even slept pretty well - which is not usually the case with camping.  It was fun to have T-man and the girls join us for the second night.

We canoed around the reservoir, had a picnic, and braved the cool water to go for a swim.  When we returned home to 119 degrees (the hottest day of the summer and maybe even in history), we wished were back in the lake!

Cooling off after a hike

Cruisin' around

Yummy S'mores

Cousins and Kettle corn

Dirt!  And mom doesn't even care!

Headed out for a picnic

A loaded canoe!

Brrr!

Picnic on the rocks

Headed home

Spud loved the canoe ride!

Pajama Party!

Turning eight is a big deal around here. Momentous in many ways, but one is the big birthday party that Curly got to have. She wanted to have a pajama party "late-over."  The girls arrived, the games began.  First the girls made their own personal pizzas and then while the pizzas were cooking, the girls made "slippers" with flip flops and ribbons.  After pizza the girls did "friendship fingernails."   Each girl had a different color and rotated around painting one finger of a friend.  Finally we finished with ice cream sundaes. It was a fun evening for all (even the parents running the show).

Flip Flop Slippers

Pizza Party

Friendship Fingernails

Teegan, Claire, Colette, and Emily

Birthday Girl

Showing off their "manicures"