August Happenings

The month of August was busy, busy, busy as always.  Just a quick post to show off my cute little family and some of the fun we had.

I'm still in full on baking mode - I love baking.  I really wish I could become a full time baker - ha!  maybe one day, like after I retire?  Anyway, the cute girls are patiently waiting at the oven for the cookies to be finished..

 There was an "end of summer" carnival put on by Sandy City and we had a good time.  There were tons of bouncy houses, a little train ride and music.  And, it was all free - who can beat that?

 Paisley, well, just being Paisley.  She wants to do everything Emery does, but puts her own spin on it.  She's got Emery's shin guards for soccer on, and Emery's socks.  Notice though, she has a shin guard on her foot and her hand, and a sock on her foot, and her hand - crazy girl!

 We were only able to get in one camping trip this year (I was devastated, not!) but we did go up into the canyons for a few hours for dinner and playing.  The kids had a great time as always and we had great food!

 I took the girls to the park and they got to just run around.  It's so fun now that they are able to really play together.  It does scare me sometimes that Paisley tries to do every single thing that Emery does, but she hasn't had any major injuries yet ..

 I went to Babies R Us to get a baby shower gift for my girlfriend and ended up buying $80 worth of stuff for my kids.  I swear, that store is bad news for me.  Anyway, they had these robes on clearance for $7.00 each - who can beat that?  And, they are really good quality.  So, now we have the added work after bath time of putting the robes on, then taking them off, then putting them back on - it's never ending.  The girls love them though and they look so dang cute in them.

 Emery convinced me to go to Burger King - I'm eat a lot of fast food but I've never been a fan of Burger King.  So, I went to Del Taco for myself and then Burger King for the girls.  We got home and the girls didn't eat anything, but they loved the crowns.

 Paisley in action - climbing onto the nightstand in our room ..

And then deciding that it would be a good idea to put a chair on top of the dining room table to sit on.  This girl!!

Summer Fun

We have had a fun and busy summer so far.  Here's a recap:

Paisley just being Paisley ... wearing whatever outfit she has decided she wants to wear, dressing herself and climbing up anything she can manage to get her hands on ..

 Taking a spin on Emery's new bike..

 We bought Emery her first real bike this summer.  Is it bad that it took us this long?  Anyway, it's Barbie and pink, and she loves it!  You should see her on it with her pink Barbie helmet and she's usually wearing all pink - such a sight!

 We got a slip n slide this summer too.  It brings back memories of me playing with my sister and the neighbors at my Great Grandma Ruth's on the slip n slide.  So fun!

 Paisley playing dress up - the girl loves to dress, undress and dress herself again.

 We were lucky enough to have Makayla out for a visit.  She's getting way too big!  Emery was attached to Makayla's hip the entire visit.  I tried to remind Makayla that she was the same way with me not too long ago.

 We headed to the pool a few times.  Not only is it fun to play in the pool, but it's also about the yummy treats.  Nachos, churros and coke - yummy in our tummies!

 Makayla being a typical "pre-teen" when I try to snap a picture

 Paisley being as happy as can be - she's has nachos and then digging into a churro

 We also went camping for two nights while Makayla was here.  I think we all know that I'm not much of a camper, but the girls and Ivan love it, so I go along for the ride.  We went up to Big Cottonwood - only about 15 minutes away from our house, but it was still in the woods and we slept in tents, so I consider that full on camping.  It was wet, rainy and cold the majority of the time, but we still had a really good time.  We enjoyed good company, ate awesome meals the entire time and had a great camping experience.

 All of the kids on the trip ..

 Paisley was spoiled and got held 99% of the trip.  I didn't mind when I got to hold her - it made me not have to do any work and she rarely cuddles with anyone at home, so I took advantage of every second I could cuddle with her :)

 For the 24th of July, I met up with some friends at a carnival close to home.  Here's a shot of all of the kids ..

 They had bouncy houses for the kids.  It was really busy and all of the bouncy houses had long lines.  So, the 3 women decided to divide and conquer.  We all stood in separate lines and the kids went to whoever was closest to the entrance.  Once it got dark, we gathered up on the grass for a fireworks show.  All in all, we had a great time!

Quinlan came over a few times to play with the girls.  On this particular day, he decided he wanted to roller skate.  Sorry Quinlan, you were covered in PINK - that's all we have in this house ..

 For some strange reason, Emery likes getting into Paisley's high chair.  The reality is, Paisley pretty much refuses to sit in it - she wants to sit at the table like a big girl.  I should probably just pack it away.

Well, there you have it.  A recap of what we've been up to this summer.

Happy Birthday Ivan!

Emery and I decided to make Ivan a chocolate cake for his birthday.  Emery loves to help me bake so her and I baked the cake while Paisley was napping.  When it came time to do the frosting and sprinkles, Paisley was awake and wanted to participate.  She wants to do every single thing that Emery and I do.

Notice how they both are licking their fingers (well, Paisley is getting ready to).  Paisley quickly learned that if she put her fingers in the frosting while trying to put the sprinkles on the cake, that she got to eat frosting.  That was just the beginning ..

 Finished product .. Happy Birthday Papa!!

 Singing to Ivan ... I love that you can see the happiness in all of their faces!

Easter Celebrations

Better late than never right!  Well, even though Easter was 3 months ago and I probably don't remember much of the small details that I usually post about, I still want to document it.  We had a small get together at our house and enjoyed a great Easter of good food, dying eggs and then hiding and finding eggs.  The weather was beautiful and we played outside on the girls' swing set.  

Little miss Paisley climbs up the rock wall on the swing set all by herself.  

 She has also mastered the sport of baseball ..

 Here are the girls' Easter baskets

 Emery loved dying and decorating eggs .. her hands were all kinds of colors afterwards

 Grandma Lola and Paisley

 Opening Easter baskets ... somehow Easter turned into as big of an event as Christmas and birthday parties - these girls are officially spoiled!

An attempt at a picture of me and the girls - I look exhausted and pale and of course, Paisley wouldn't cooperate - that's a 1 1/2 yr old for ya

 Emery searching for the Easter eggs

Soccer Time

Emery finished her soccer season just a couple of days after we got home from Mexico.  She really started to get into soccer, just as the season was ending.  I've signed her up to play again in the fall, so we will see if she still likes it.

Here is Emery with her medal and her Coach, Coach Mike.  I really liked the Coach, he was great with a bunch of 4 and 5 yr old and he really pushed for the parents to get involved.  

 Emery and the other kids on the team playing soccer.  Now, it looks like they did a lot of standing around, and since they are young, they did do some standing around.  But, the way the Coach had the games set up, in mini teams of 4 playing against 4, all of the kids got a chance to kick the ball.  It was a lot of fun for Emery.