We Love Summer

This summer has been a great one! So great that I haven't had much time to update the blog, so we'll have to do a little catch-up!

Dann has been super busy, as usual. I don't know how he fits everything he does into one day. I guess it helps if you get up at 5 a.m. like he does. He has enjoyed working with the high school girls tennis team (the first one they've ever had here) the past few weeks. He does what he can to spend time with us, which we appreciate. But, most of the time it's just mom and the kids, so we find ways to have our own fun!

A front-yard picnic in June

Our only long trip this summer was at the end of June. We drove down to Las Vegas to see family and celebrate Dann's aunt and uncle's 50th wedding anniversary. Baby Grace did great on the 8-hour drive down, but not so great on the way back. We decided not to take any more long drives for a while! We also saw some friends and played at the splash park.

Lily and Sam both had a blast doing swimming lessons and passed their levels. Sam went off the diving board for the first time and was the first one in his class brave enough to do it.

We were lucky to have cousins come from Arizona for the whole month of July. The kids played so hard every day that they crashed each night, falling asleep in seconds. We went up the canyon, played at several parks, collected bugs, rode scooters and bikes, ate lots of ice cream and popsicles, and did the hokey-pokey several times a day (at Bella's request).

We also had fun at UBIC (Uintah Basin in Celebration) just a few weeks ago. The kids did lots of crafts, ate snow-cones, watched fireworks, and we all ate lots of good food. The parade is their favorite event, as it usually results in a huge bag of candy to take home. They weren't disappointed!

Lily turned 5 a few days ago and her party seemed to be a success. She loved her presents, especially a new pink razor scooter. I didn't even take pictures of the cake.

Little Gracie has enjoyed all that we have done this summer, too. She is growing and is the joy of my life right now. I love her sweet smiles and cute giggles and that she goes to sleep when I lay her down. She sucks on two of her fingers to comfort herself, so she doesn't take a pacifier. She sleeps 10 hours a night and loves to snuggle. She is the baby I have dreamed of. I am enjoying every minute of the time I have with her, wishing time would slow down. I remind myself every day that I need to take more pictures of her, but haven't been very good about it.

Next week Sam starts first grade and Lily starts kindergarten a few days later. They are very excited, and so am I! We are also in the process of moving, probably next week, into my grandparents' house just around the corner. I'll write more on that later....