May

Here's what's been going on around here... end of the school year fun! All the commentary is at the bottom of the page. I couldn't get it to line up under the pictures! **James and his Kindergarten teacher at his "Writer's Celebration." **Emi and Clara at their dance recital. **Emi singing the national anthem at a town baseball game. She was AMAZING! We had several parents and coaches come up to us and say her singing was the best they'd ever heard at a game! Way to go Emi. **Strawberry picking! **Compare this oak leaf to a Utah scrub oak leaf! Yes, it's huge! **Celebrating James' birthday at school (a month early). He's wearing his favorite star wars lego shirt and this awesome bday crown. He took extra big m&m cookies to school to share with his class. He was very happy about it!

Too Long!

It's almost embarrassing to post.... it's been way too long. It would take me weeks to catch up, so never mind. I'll just keep it current!


One of the 22 giant trees we had taken down in our yard last week. The 'lumberjacks' are almost done, only two more trees to go! The sound of chain saws and wood chippers are still ringing in my ears. It's quite scary to have your entire house shake every time they 'drop' a 100+ ft. tree in your yard! On the upside, James was entertained all week!


Congratulations to Clara, who turned 8 and was baptized last month. We love her and are very proud of her!

Summer Utah Trip

Better late than never! The kids and I spent a wonderful 2 weeks in Utah this summer. We spent lots of time with friends and family. We went to the rodeo, the parade float display, spent a week at Aspen Grove, went hiking, swimming etc. Of course, the kids loved the flying part of the trip too. It didn't hurt that we were upgraded to first class - free of charge! Economy will never be the same! We missed Jim, who couldn't come due to work. But, we had a fantastic trip!

First Run

A couple of weeks ago I participated in my first official road race. A neighboring town was having their annual 5k and I decided to give it a try. I can proudly say that I ran (slowly) the whole way and survived!

Emi took this pic after I got home. I don't think it's such a great idea to post a pic of yourself at 8:00 on a Saturday morning, wearing no makeup, and having just finished exercising! :) But, seeing as this was such a momentous occasion I guess I'll post!

Back to School

Everyone is happy to be back in school! Yippee!

The Beach

Yesterday, we took the fam to the beach. It was a gorgeous New England summer day.... couldn't have been any better. Narraganset R.I. is our New England beach of choice. Jim and the Kids had a great time playing in the surf and I enjoyed reading a book on the beach! :)

Building sand castles! Jim isn't too happy about me posting a pic of his 'white chest'.....but hey, he can't help it - thankfully he's been in a cold air conditioned office all summer!


James playing in the sand. James was awesome in the surf this year. He and Jim went clear out and caught some big waves. James also loved chasing sea gulls on the beach. It was hilarious to watch!


Emi striking a silly pose. She is always our little mermaid at the beach....constantly in the water!


Clara and James coming in from looking for shells and smooth rocks. Ah, the simple pleasures of a day at the beach!

Happy Birthday James!

James turned FIVE on July 14th. I can't believe my "baby" is five! He has been looking forward to his birthday for months. We had made a paper chain when there were only about eight days left...and each day he would cut a link off. The morning of the 14th I rolled over and opened my eyes to see James standing at my side of the bed, grinning and holding the last ring from his birthday chain. Another cute thing he's done for the past few months is ask about the size of his clothes. "Is this shirt a size 4T? I can wear it for just a little bit longer then." OR "This shirt is a 5T.....I can't wear it until my birthday." His favorite shirts were those that read "4T/5T because I can wear those now AND later." So funny! :) Here are a few pics of the birthday boy.


For James' party we had a bounce house, pirate games and water guns. Super fun!



James and his baseball birthday cupcake!



The Fam on James' big day.



James chose cheesy scrambled eggs & homemade cinnamon rolls for his birthday dinner.



Getting ready to open presents.



Legos! A new favorite!