My Motorcycle Man

ANOTHER motorcycle trip!  He is off with his motorcycle gang (all the other men in the family).  They are taking the scenic ocean routes, stopping off on Whidbey Island, Winthrop (apparently it was recreated to be JUST like an old west town.) , then heading to Lake Chelan.  The last I heard they were jet skiing on the lake and having way too much fun.  I have a love hate relationship with this bike.  I love riding on the back with the wind in my hair, hugging my hubby, as we fly past the beautiful WA Puget Sound, lakes, forests, and other scenery. It makes for great summer date nights!
But, I hate the fact that it can be so dangerous!  These road trips in particular make me worry because it's so much time on the bike and highways.
Well, this road trip I was definitely too preggars to ride so the girls and I had the weekend to ourselves!  I had big plans for us, but it was ruined by the stomach flu!! That first night was quite busy.  It started with Julie wetting her bed at midnight (this never happens anymore. So weird) Then the flu hit Lizzie at 12:30am.  Of COURSE, it hit the first night Dave was gone.  Nothing better than being alone, pregnant, and having to clean up wet sheets; then vomit on the carpet, bathroom floor, and child; then waking up every 30 minutes to do it all over again all night!  At least she got better at aiming for the bowl I gave her.  It sounds pretty gross, and yes it was! Fair or not, I think this last experience has added more weight to the "hate" aspect of my psyche in regards to motorcycles.

Janice Kapp Perry Visits

This happened a couple months ago, but I skipped blogging it some how! We got to hang out with Janice Kapp Perry!  Janice Kapp Perry (born 1938) is a well-known Latter-day Saint songwriter whose contributions have resulted in roughly 50 albums and songs in the LDS Church hymnal, Children's Songbook, and 70 Favorite Children's Songs.   

She is a celebrity of sorts among those of our faith!  She is extremely musically talented to say the least.

She stayed at my In-laws home for the weekend so we got to have dinner with her twice, attend her fireside, and sing all of our favorite songs with her- that SHE wrote!  She signed one of the girls' favorite books, "I'm Trying to Be Like Jesus". Then, the girls asked if they could sing their favorite songs for her, "I Love to See the Temple." and "A Child's Prayer"   Overall, she was such a sweet, hilarious, amazing woman.  She was so down to earth and had the cutest relationship with her husband. She had some pretty amazing stories about singing in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and asking permission from President Hinckley to turn his poem into a church hymn, only to barely recieve his written permission, which arrived by mail the day after he passed away.  I loved how the love of Christ and sharing that with others through music was her passion. When she spoke to the large assembly at her fireside she told a funny story about how it took her husband forever to learn that she loved receiving flowers as gifts.  So, before she left Dave brought her a bouquet of fresh flowers to take with her. It was a great weekend! 

Summer Highlight Reel

I just can't have my giant camera with me all the time!  I find the camera phone and instagram to be so handy!  It just is, but that doesn't mean I can't re-post them on my blog to preserve the memories.  :)

 Trips to the library are always a favorite.  We have been working on reading skills.  

Dave and Chris attended a dental conference in Seattle.  We made a trip of it, stayed in a hotel, enjoyed some Brazilian Rodizio, and did a little downtown shopping!

The Pages moved across the street from us!  It's great to have close friends so close! Sometimes we borrow baby Bailey and practice having 3 girls, complete with matching clothes.  Notice the elephant theme?

 Trips to Seattle and THE farmer's market are the best in the summer.

 Beautiful bouquet of fresh flowers for $5? Yes, please!

 There's a brand new Children's Museum close by and its amazing! They love the dental section of it of course. ;)

As the Relief Society evening meeting coordinator I plan our monthly activities and this one was a favorite! We splatter painted over 130 T-shirts and participated in the Walk to Cure Diabetes, supporting a young girl at our church who deals with that challenge.   

 We went on a little vacation- just the two of us! The sites were beautiful as we rode the sounder to Vancouver.

 Then, we boarded a Norwegian cruise ship and relaxed! We toured around Vancouver Island and spent some time in Victoria. Our favorite place to be was on the ship!  The entertainment and food is endless!

 Tuesday is our prized family day and this is where we spend many Tues mornings.  The girls play while we work out and then we all go swimming!  Lizzie is very proud of the fact that she can swim all by herself (with a floaty backpack to help).  

 "I have a hot dog for a pet.  The only kind my folks would let me get.  He does smell sort of bad and yet he absolutely never gets the sofa wet..."  The girls LOVE this "A Light in the Attic" favorite.  They find it hilarious.  A couple hot dogs, cooked spaghetti noodles and... voila!  The nursery rhyme comes to life.

 Mike graduated from dental school!  Another dentist in the family!  We had a little party and said farewell because they are headed to work in Yakima.  

 Father's Day was a good one this year! The girls treated their daddy like a king.  We surprised him with a new DeWalt Drill and Saw set.  Then, they decided to continue giving him gifts until they had given all their toys away to him.  We cooked him up a special dinner of marinated flank steak, mushroom farfalle pasta, salad, and bread.  Later that day, we baked a giant chocolate chip cookie and decorated it with frosting.

 Mommy and Daddy had their vacation so a family vacation was in order!   

 We flew to Vegas and stayed at Circus Circus the first night.  

 Then, moved to the Tahiti Village which was off the strip a bit and very family friendly. The Van W's joined us and we did lots of swimming and buffets!

 The last stop of our trip was in Utah for a family reunion!  We checked out the site of my parents' future home!  (Should be done this Fall)  We got to see where they are building their new business, too! We celebrated the 4th. Then, we headed to a big cabin and spent time with the whole family. We did a lot of water activities, camp fires, played games, etc.   I need to get all those pictures from my Grandma...

 The same week we returned from Utah, cousin June came to stay with us at our house for a couple days!

 We all loved spending time with her and had some good times at the fair, jumping on the trampoline, and eating pickles.  (June LOVES pickles)  The other day we were eating hamburgers and Lizzie said, "I don't like pickles.  If I find one on my hamburger I know just where to put it."  Me: "Where?"  Liz: "In June's mouth!  She loves pickles."

 Right after June left, the Marstons came to visit!  Lizzie and Grant loved playing together.  It was very cute.

There are so many cousins!  The families are growing exponentially!  (We are missing the Laupers in this photo)

 Blackberry season is here!  We go crazy picking blackberries all August. One of our favorite summer things to do.

 I have been working quite a bit this summer at a few different offices.  Quite a bit being relative.  Once a week is quite a bit for me.  I enjoy the time and the girls get to have an all day play date with friends!  Sometimes, I get a longer lunch and I pick up the girls for a lunch date!  

I don't think I have ever frequented so many different parks in one summer.  I think we have visited 10 different parks over the last month.  This park was inside the zoo and this little red spinner was a favorite!  The tiniest merry go round ever...lol.  

Sisters

"A closer friend I'd never find than the one I call my sister."

Laughing, playing, running, tumbling, fighting, hugging, tickling, teasing, crying, comforting, holding hands, spinning, jumping, squeezing, and dancing.  

These are just a few of the things these sisters do together.

Growing up I had all brothers and no sisters.  I loved my brothers and enjoyed getting the attention that comes with being the only girl.  Though, I did wonder at times what it would be like to have a sister.  Now that I have two girls, the sister relationship is so fun for me to see in action.  The closeness and friendship is stunning at times. 

 I make no claims to them having a perfect relationship.  They fight alot (its in the list above) :).  But, they are super sweet and the best of friends alot.  Aaah, the ups and downs of sibling relationships.

These girls are so cute and fun.  It's no wonder that Dave and I are super stoked to get a THIRD little daughter soon!  

 Little sister #3 is not here yet, but we are all looking forward to and excited for what the future holds!  

Julie, The Big 3 Year Old.

Favorite Color:  Pink

Favorite Song: I Love to See the Temple

Favorite Movie: Megamind

TV Show: Lalaloopsy

Favorite Candy: Gumballs

Favorite Book: All Winnie the Pooh Books

Favorite Activites:  Playing Hi Ho Cherrio, Barbies, Jumping on the Trampoline, Playing House with her sister, Play-doh, going to the park, playing with cousins, helping in the kitchen, and playing with Mimi.

Accomplishments: Completely potty trained!  She is sleeping in a big girl bunk bed with her sister.  She has a whole repertoire of songs she can sing by heart.  She has the first five Articles of Faith memorized!  She is an excellent swimmer, gymnast, T-ball girl, and ballerina! (We love the YMCA).

Juju's 3 Year Hello Kitty Party

Happy Birthday to our sweet little Juju Bean!  She has been looking forward to her big day for some time and SO very excited to have a Hello Kitty Party at Charlie Safari!  

The cupcake eating part was certainly one of the highlights of the day.  Sweet sugar...mmmmmm!

Charlie Safari is one my girls' favorite places to be.  What's not to like?  Bouncy houses, slides, sports, token games, and food!

 Julie was lucky to have so many cousins in town for the occasion!  It was the perfect venue for lots of kids to run around, go crazy, and have fun!

Julie definitely loves her Grammy!

JoeFish decided to take her for a ride on his motorcycle!  I'm not sure he will be invited to our next party. ;)

 Pizza party time!!

All the cousins and friends made the party so fun this year! 

 Julie got so many presents I'm afraid she was completely spoiled!  Barbies, mermaids, fairies, animals, kitchen sets, candy, and so much more. Family and friends were so generous.  Julie has been kept busy at home since!

 This bop-the-shark game was Juju's absolute favorite!  She spent every last coin she got wailing on these bad boy sharks!

 Dane and Grant were quite the little soccer players!  Again, it was so great to have the Marstons in town for all the activities!