This is just a portion of Emma's ballet dance from her recital in May. I'm still trying to figure out technology. More to come later.

Summer Fun

Well...we have been away from home for two weeks now. We packed our bags and left our current hometown of Clovis, NM to take a summer trip to visit family. We came to town to see Julie's family get sealed in the Atlanta temple. What a special experience! Several times since then Emma and Aaron have talked about when they get to go to the temple. They thought it was so neat that Hope and Hayden got to be in the temple. The kids and I took Josh to the airport...after all, someone has to earn money so I can play all summer. :) We stayed at Julie's house for a week and had a blast. The kids played all day--even in the wee hours of the morning. Their days were filled with fun, and I think we even managed to leave before they got tired of each other.

We are currently at my mom's in Guntersville, AL. We've already gone swimming, which Jacob loved. I must admit that it's a bit interesting feeding 11 people at every meal but the kids have enjoyed playing 'restaurant.' We have our waiters and waitresses to help serve and our busboys to help clear the table and wash dishes. Sneaky aren't we!?! Although it's been a lot of fun here, I still have not gotten used to the oppressive heat. We have about 8 more weeks left of visiting family and friends...then we'll head for home in time for school to start. I'll post pictures soon.

Race Day

A group of us ladies from church have taken up running. Somehow we were convinced to register for a 10K race down in Roswell, NM--Thanks Alex! We're living proof that anyone can do it. :) We were tired but very proud of ourselves.
Kara, Tina, Alex, and me...No one sent me the memo that we were wearing blue shirts. :)

Miraculously, I came in 3rd place in my age group. The kids were so excited that I came home with a medal. I ran it in 1 hour 3 minutes.

Me and Tina after the race. Don't we look lovely!?!

Alex Wixom and Kara Lott chillaxin'. :)

Once the race was over, we went back to the hotel and showered. We went to a really cute Italian restaurant then roamed around Target for 3 hours. We continued our shopping excursion (although our choices were meager) and finally left Roswell around 9 that night. It was a day full of fun! I'm so grateful I have a sweetheart who encouraged me to run and for my kids who are so easily impressed by my "accomplishments." Families are great!

All grown up

I can't believe how quickly time goes by. Jacob is almost eleven months now and can get to almost anywhere he wants to. He stands up on his own and cruises along whatever he touches.

He's our little funny man.

Garden time

While a friend was out of town, Emma, Aaron, and Abby took over watering their garden. They had a lot of fun doing it, but I was grateful my friend got back before we killed it. I don't possess a green thumb at all.

Renaissance Fair

Every year at Mesa Elementary (Emma's school) they have the Renaissance Fair, a fundraiser where each grade runs several booths. You buy tickets to do the different activities (Book Walk, duck pond, and of course we had to buy pizza and cotton candy). I was just going to take Emma but Josh's TDY was extended one day so we all ventured off to the 'fair' together. The kids had a blast and I got my workout for the day.

On the way out...

Emma was a banner carrier for her class. She was so excited and wanted to wear her 'high heels' and a dress in honor of the occassion.

This is what we looked like when the fair ended. The last thing we did was Rapunzel's House of Hair where they all got their hair spray painted. I wasn't excited about spraying their hair until I found out that it would use the rest of our tickets...then it would be time to go home. Even Jacob was good while we were there.

Life's been crazy

Here she comes....

...and she keeps on going.

The last few weeks have passed by in a whirlwind. I have officially taken on the position of "soccer mom." I feel like I am constantly driving one of the children somewhere. What's bad is that two of the kids are too young to do anything yet...which means this is only going to get worse. :) Emma started the soccer season this spring and absolutely loves it. She also really loves dance. How do you make them choose? Saturdays are game days for soccer and it is so fun to see Emma and Aaron in their uniforms excited to go play. As long as they enjoy it, I'll spend my Saturday mornings cheering them on from the sidelines. (Although between you and me, I'd rather be home, sitting in my pajamas, and eating a late breakfast. Hey...a girl can dream!)