Some Snipets from Summer

What a busy summer!!! Deciding to move, getting the house ready to sell, looking for a new house, packing, moving, unpacking, making new friends . . . Plus some fun vacations and great times with family. Wow!

I've just spent the last hour finally figuring out how to download all of the pictures from my spiffy new camera to the computer (it really was complicated--I had to install special software and everything) and now I am all ready to put them on the blog. So here are a few of my faves from the summer of 2009. And only a few because I never have the patience to upload lots of pictures to blogger. It always seems to take FOREVER!! If anyone has some tips, please let me know!

Aaron's birthday. Remember how he loves shoes? I think he's even saying "shoes!!" in the picture. Look at the delight in his eyes.

More birthday. Yummy cake.

Now here are some pictures from our vacation to St. George. Than, Sara, Aaron, and I drove to the Grand Canyon one day to check it out. It was totally worth the drive for me and Than and totally awesome to see. We went on a teeny-tiny little hike, more like a stroll, but the kids got wiped-out and we had to carry them back to the car.

My guys!!

The 2 cutest kids in the world.

One of the precious pictures that I'm not taking.

Here's more St. George. This is what we did every other day that we weren't seeing natural wonders of the world. SWIMMING!! We were so fortunate to be able to stay in a house with a pool. Thank you grandma and grandpa!

Sweet Sara

My cute hubby!!

Aaron's 2nd favorite thing to do in the pool. His 1st favorite? Jumping off the side and being dunked under water.

Daredevil Sara. I think this picture is awesome!

One last picture in front of our first home.

And now I've said this before (and I'll probably say this again): I'll never go this long with out blogging again!!

What happened in June

If you still read, here's a QUICK recap of our goings-on in June. No pictures, sorry.

1. Aaron turned TWO!! My baby is not so baby-ish anymore. We had a couple of celebrations for him and he got tons of presents. Thank you family!! His favorite? Shoes!!! His least favorite? Superman Cape. He got a bunch of plaid shorts and polo shirts--he is so stylin' with his new duds. He also got his first real haircut (hated it) and now he looks like a little man. My neighbor made this awesome cake that looked like a dinosaur--it was super yummy too.

2. We sold our house and found ourselves a new one. We looked all over the place for "the perfect house" and it turns out that it's just a few miles away. So we are staying in the same town, for now. It's really nice and I love it and I can't wait to move in and show it off. If it all goes well, we'll be in the new house by the end of the month. But I won't say too much now because I don't want to jinx it.

3. We just got home from a family vacation with Than's family. We rented a house in St. George that had a pool and now we all have nice tans. We went to Las Vegas one day to visit some friends, went to the Grand Canyon on another, and just kicked it by the pool the rest of the time. Sara and Aaron loved loved loved the pool! By the end of the vacation, Sara was swimming from end to end (with her life jacket and floaty on). Aaron just wants to jump in and go under water. He's fearless. Totally Scary!!

So June was great. Here's to a fantastic July!!!

Circus Day

Today was Sara's very last day of preschool forever!!! Kindergarten here we come (in 3 months)! At Sara's preschool they don't do any type of graduation, but they do have a big party on the last day. It's called Circus Day and all the teachers dress up like clowns and the kids get to go to each classroom and sing and dance and eat otter pops and goldfish crackers. Sara has been looking forward to this since Circus Day last year. But who wouldn't? Otter pops and goldfish crackers--that's the best of the best if you're a kid.

Sara and her teacher, Mrs. Smart

I was calm, cool, and collected until we went to say good-bye to her teacher from last year. I don't know why that got me, but that was the moment I realized just how big she is getting. I think it is so easy to think of your first child as a baby forever. Maybe that's how it is with all your kids, or maybe it's just me. But at that moment I realized she is not a baby at all. Suddenly, I was swept up with so many feelings: I was so proud of Sara and all that she has accomplished this year and so sad that these days don't last forever and so happy that she IS growing up and becoming such a smart, funny girl.
So I cried happy/sad tears and held her hand as we walked to the car.

Sara on the first day of preschool (August 2008)

Sara on the last day of preschool.

Look how much she's changed. What a cutie-pie!!

For Andy

Let me start with my excuses: I can't find my camera, my computer is being lame-0 and takes FOREVER to do anything, and the weather is getting nicer so we spend more time outside and less time sitting on our bums (but I guess I do a lot of bum-sitting outside too). But April's almost gone and I haven't posted anything, so this I do now out of guilt.

• We started off the month "trying" to watch General Conference, or Jennifer Conference, as Sara likes to call it. We told Sara all about King Benjamin and how the people listened to him while sitting in their tents and then I made the most beautiful blanket-and-chair-tent that there ever was. Sara and Aaron had snacks and toys and blankets in the tent and loved it for about 15 minutes. But, by golly, that thing had to stay up in the middle of our living room for 2 days!!! It was just to magnificent to take down.

• Easter was fun. We had a big family dinner at my mom's. The kids loved their Easter baskets. They each got a couple stuffed animals and bubbles. Sara got a bunch of hair bows and Aaron got a hat (which is now lost). We had many, many different egg hunts. One at my sister's, one at home, and a neighborhood BBQ/Easter egg hunt. And lots of playing with the eggs around the house. We use the plastic ones and fill them with candy. Don't go thinking we play with hard boiled eggs all the time. Guess who is still eating all the candy? Every time I have some I think, "stealing candy from a baby sure is fun."

• Last week we went to the zoo. I didn't have my camera with me, but I did have my phone so now I do have some pictures to share. Than was going to dinner and the Jazz game after work, so we met up with him for some lunch at Greek Slouvaki (YUMMY!!). Then I headed off to the zoo with the kids. We have a membership, so we usually only stay for 1 to 1.5 hours. This time we got there at 1:00 and didn't leave until 4:30 and had so much fun! Sara got pooped-out in the middle, but we stopped for ice cream and then she was ready to go again.

Aaron sitting in his stroller with his blankie.

Sara sitting on Rhino.

We had to ride the train before we left. I know their faces are cut off, but I just love how happy they both look.

And of course, playing with the ball.

• One day we went to KFC for lunch with my sister. Sara wanted butter for her biscuit, but I couldn't get if for her and neither could my sister, so we told her to ask one of the cashiers. She hesitated for a moment, and then she did it. Now she has no fear of store workers. We went to the mall to buy some baby clothes for my friend and her new baby girl and Sara made friends with the workers. She told them why we were there and started looking for clothes for herself. She then asked them to help her find size 5 clothes. The best was when she found a dress and asked them to help her find leggings to match. And then today we went to Walmart, where she bought some bubbles with her own money and paid the cashier by herself. She exclaimed, "Mom, I got my first receipt!!!!" Oh, what have I done to my daughter?
  

Foodie Thoughts

Yesterday I was having a snack of chocolate covered pretzels after lunch. YUMMY!! One of my most very favorite things. Aaron wanted one so I gave him one. He then proceeded to hold it in his hand until all the chocolate melted off and then ate it. And he was left with palms full of chocolate.

Last night we had fish sticks and fries for dinner. It was Sara's first time eating fish sticks and she actually liked them. It was a big surprise because she is the pickiest eater I have ever known. Later, when she said her prayer before bed, she said, "Please help us so our house will not stink."

Today I went out to lunch with my sister. We decided to try out the new Rubio's. It was good eats, but crazy busy because it just opened. I was given a little bowl of black beans with my fish tacos and I gave it to Aaron with a spoon. He loves beans and he loves feeding himself with a spoon. But this time, he gave up on the spoon and used his fingers until he realized that it was easier to just drink the beans. When he was finished he looked like he had a mustache and beard. He even had some on the bridge of his nose. The ladies sitting next to us couldn't get enough of him. Why don't I take my camera with me everywhere I go?

Disneyland BABY!!

I had been feeling pretty blah about the winter and really needed a get-away so after a bit of discussion, we decided to go to Disneyland!! It was a pretty spur-of-the-minute trip, but we were able to pull it all together and get out of town. Than and Jay talked and they wanted to come too so we had a big party down in SoCal.

We went to Disneyland for 2 days, the beach for 1 and then back to California Adventure. The kids had so much fun. Sara and Jaydyn hit it off and wanted to play together all the time. They sat together in our stroller while we were at the park and then played nonstop in our room.

We got to go to Huntington Beach on Than's birthday. It was a little cool and windy, but we still had a great time. Than volunteered to get buried in the sand. So all the girls wanted to get buried too. Aaron loved the sand!! He looked like a total beach bum. Some of that sand ended up in his mouth, I know.

The happy family.

Waiting in line for a rollercoaster.

Sara and Jaydyn sitting like angels in the stroller.

Sara, Jaydyn, and Saydey with the Fairy Godmother.

Hugs!!

The girls.

The boys.

Than getting buried.

Sara's turn.

Aaron chillin' in the sand.

Sara showing off a treasure she found.

Than, Sara and Aaron walking to the ocean.

We had so much fun. Thanks Jay and Cheri for coming with us and for the awesome place to stay!!

Six Random Things About Me

I was tagged awhile back by Cheri and now I'm finally getting my sorry butt around to doing it.

1. I wear the same pair of earrings everyday. Ever since I first saw the movie "Some Kind of Wonderful" I wanted a pair of diamond stud earrings and asked for them for every birthday and Christmas. A couple of years ago Than bought them for me and I love them!! He thought he lost them right after he bought them and almost had a heart attack. But they were found and now they can be found on my ears everyday.

2. My favorite color is orange. I think it is such a bright and happy color. We have orange pillows, orange blankets, an orange mixer, orange vases, orange candles, and an orange wall in the kitchen. I have too many orange shirts, 5 pairs of orange socks, and 1 darling orange paperweight that looks like an orange.

3. I love reading magazines. My favorites are home decorating and scrapbooking magazines. I used to be real bad and buy one practically every time that I went to the grocery store. Now I'm much better and only get one every other month or so. It would be so much cheaper if I just got a subscription to one.

4. I can't wink, whistle, or snap. Whenever I tell people this something in their brain clicks and says, "Hey I can be the one to teach her." I don't know why they think this because if I haven't been able to these things in 30+ years, why would I be able to learn in just a few short minutes? So if you see me, don't think you can try to teach me. I'm hopeless!

5. I think Ricky Martin and Shakira are awesome. I went on a Spanish-speaking mission to SoCal back in 1998 to 1999 where everyone was listening to them. When I got home, one of the first things I did was buy a Shakira CD. Then a couple years later I met Than who just got home from Venezuela and he loved Shakira too!! Now as a family we own every Shakira CD and Sara can spot a Shakira song within a few notes. When we clean the house on Saturdays, you can bet that some Spanish music will be playing.

6. I wish I were a crafty person. I dabble in scrapbooking, but I wouldn't call myself a scrapbooker. And I'm really good at spotting craftiness in other people. I always see things that people make and think that I could make that only if . . . . . . I wish I could take a crafty class and learn how to sew and paint and make lots of cute stuff.

And that's the end. It was actually pretty hard for me to think of 6 things. I think officially I'm supposed to tag 6 people, but I don't like doing that.