Brooklynn's Birthday

July 10, 2013 was Brooklynn's birthday, and she turned 10 years old.  WOW, how time flies.  I can remember holding her for the first time, and how scary it was to have a girl.  She has been an amazing daughter, she has a lot of goodness.  One of her amazing qualities that I appreciate is her Christlike love.  Brooklynn truly displays charity, and just knowing her makes me want to be better.  I'm so grateful that she is a part of the family!!

MORE SWIMMING

Jeffrey's big splash

Brooklynn next

Malia's turn

The next morning @ 9:30 am

Breakfast of Swimmers

Breakfast of champions, or swimmers at least.  Hashbrowns, Eggs, Bagel, Grapes & Juice

A WHOLE WEEK OF SWIMMING

Between June 29th and July 3rd we went swimming 7 times!  Sometimes as many and 3 times in a single day.  By the end we were tired of swimming in the pool where dad lives.  Dad had to start wearing socks in the pool cuz his feet were cracking so bad and hurt.  On Wednesday we went to the Scera Pool to go down the slides and jump off the diving board.  We tried really hard to not let the swimming suits dry before we went swimming again, but it was too hot outside, and they would dry in just a few minutes.  On our last day we went and bought fireworks to light off with mom.  We found a really good deal where we bought one pack and got a second pack for FREE!  Next week we plan on going to Seven Peaks, and of course swimming, swimming, and more swimming!

Party Party

On Saturday June 29th we were going to get up early and go swimming yet again, however the girls just couldn't get out of bed!  Breakfast was served at 2:00 pm.  Fruit Loops were on the menu, in big mixing bowls since they were so HUNGRY!

Late in the afternoon we went to Chuck E Cheese to see if we could beat our 10,000 tickets from the nickle arcade, unfortunately we were unsuccessful but still managed to win over 3,000 tickets

After Chuck E Cheese we had to get a Jamba Juice, it was 104 degrees & wow the car was hot inside.  We went and got a Jamba Juice & left the car running to let it cool down.  We all got Strawberry Wilds smoothies, a Power for Dad, Originals for Jeffrey & Brooklynn and a 16 for Malia

Friday Fun

On Friday June 28th, the Velasquez cousins came up and spent the day with us.  We went swimming at the pool, went to the nickle arcade on State Street.  We won so many tickets, it may have been the most ever won in a single visit, over 10,000 tickets, a special thanks to Tony Velasquez for his help.  Later in the day we went to Panda Express for dinner, and then all went swimming including Aunt Danielle.  Lots & Lots of fun.

Hair Cut

Jeffrey got a good lookin hair cut, and shampoo, he enjoyed it on a very hot day.  The girls wanted a hair cut to, but NO WAY without mom's approval....

Manti Pageant

On Thursday June 27, 2013 the kids were able to go to the Manti Pageant. It was tons of fun. We took our blanket, and were able to lie on the hill side and enjoy the pageant. We left Orem WAY too early, and so we stopped in Ephraim for some pizza, and drinks. After we arrived in Manti and placed our blanket in the best spot, we walked around the small city, and looked at the different booths. We got some slushies, cotton candy, and plenty of water to drink. It was nice to be back in Manti, as this was my temple as a youth, and re-kindle some amazing memories. The temple was re-dedicated when I was 8, and I can remember the white handkerchiefs, and touring the temple. Brooklynn and Malia weren’t able to stay awake for the entire show, but they tried their best! A lot has changed with the pageant over the past 20 years, but the feelings and thoughts remained the same. It was a great day!!

The next morning the kids were going to get up early to go swimming.....

So much for that idea!  Jeffrey woke up a little after 9:00 am, Malia and Brooklynn woke up after 10:00 am

Lego Robotics

This fall semester, Jeffrey and Brooklynn signed up for a Lego Robotics League. They meet twice a week to work on team building skills, programming, and inventing. If you're their age, what's not to like? 

Their coaches are fantastic! The kids are excited with what they are learning and come home to work on their programming assignments, do research, and write papers. So far, it's been a great experience for them.

The theme for this year's competition is Helping Seniors. Their 'senior partner', Mr. Giles, has problems getting out of bed and out of chairs. They are working on an invention to help him.

Last Friday the group met at University of Utah to speak with Nancy, a gerontologist. She listened to all of their ideas and gave them some great feedback!

 Jeffrey and Brooklynn happy about their first day of college.

Professor Nancy and their lego buddies

Early Morning Violin Practice

Lake Mountain Fire Update

Here is the latest picture from my neighbors yard. If you look close you can see some flames. Still no evacuation order for our neighborhood, so we're holding tight at home.

I forgot to mention that this is the second fire in the area in 3 weeks. Crazy!

Our Mountain on Fire

Someone was shooting targets on the mountain behind our subdivision yesterday.  Here is the fire they started, and how it looked yesterday (pictures compliments of my neighbor) from behind our house.

Here is how it looks as of 2 hours ago. They are starting voluntary evacuations in our neighborhood and mandatory evacuations in the neighborhood a couple miles north of us. I think we'll stick it out a few hours longer. Mark is at work, and the two oldest have the flu. They don't feel like doing much of anything right now.

Here are 2 more shots from a few streets over.

Moving on up

Jeffrey went shopping this weekend for a new church outfit. He really wanted me to buy him a suit.  I know he won't wear the suit coat for more than 5 minutes in the summer heat. He chose a different outfit, including a REAL grown up tie. He feels like he has matured past the clip-ons. So here you have it, a few pictures of Mark helping him get his first tie knotted snugly around his neck.

A Birthday Favorite

Happy 4th Malia!!

Watching the Sunrise

Rolly Polly Racing

A Preview of our Family Pictures

Mark's aunt took our family pictures over the weekend. Here are a few of the pictures she has ready!

 

Ring of Fire

Tonight's solar eclipse. 

(I borrowed this picture from the internet.)

Darla's Wedding

In March, Darla was married to Steve. I was glad to be at the wedding and see her so happy!

The happy couple

The happy couple with her kids

So, here is where it gets really fun. All college freshman roommates together again for the first time in years!! I don't know how Darla swinged it, but we were all able to be there for her on her special day.

Soon after her wedding, Darla moved out of state with her family.  This was our going away lunch to tell her good-bye.