Gavin's regression... :)

So, I was rushing around trying to get all of us ready for church this morning and realized I hadn't seen Gavin in a while. I called for him and when he answered from the living room, I started asking if he had his shoes and socks on before I rounded the corner and saw him. His reply was that he couldn't get his shoes and socks on because he "askidentally" trapped himself. But, he informed me that he was okay, because he was having fun being trapped. Good thing my kids are small...no baby swing was injured in this incident.

The birthday girl...and boy!

We just celebrated two birthdays. Adeline is now 10! Yikes, when did that happen!? And, Gavin is now 5. Adeline wanted to make her cake this year, so with minimal supervision, she did just that. It turned out great!

We do friend birthday parties every other year for the kids, so this was Addie's chance to invite a couple of friends out for fun. We went to the mall to window shop, play at the arcade, and have some lunch and ice cream. It was a lot of fun!

As a family, we went to the local swimming pool for Addie's birthday so the kids could cool off and have fun. What we have here is brave Addie jumping off the high dive, Calder proposing peace, and Gavin imitating a water skeeter (yes, that's my cute white hubby with him).



It is fun to have so many Summer birthdays (Christmas in July, anyone?), but we have decided to get a little creative when it comes to the cakes. Only four days separate Addie's and Gavin's birthdays, and then Calder's comes 19 days after that. One can only eat so much birthday cake. So, in years past, I've done things like frost some rice krispy treats for one of the kids' candles or do the cupcake thing. But, by far their favorite, is the "doughnut cake". It is just what it sounds like. I stack a couple dozen doughnuts and put the candles at the top. This year, Gavin called dibs on the special doughnut cake. So, since we were in St. George, it ended up being perfect, though not as spectacular as those last year.

We also went swimming for Gavin's birthday at the hotel pool. I forgot to grab my camera, though. Dang it! The kids also went hiking around the red rocks with their dad.

And here are a couple of cute pictures of Gavin opening his presents.

Wanda Pemberton Moore

This weekend we braved the 105 degrees and headed to St. George. My grandma passed away on July 16th, so we went down to her graveside service. It was wonderful to see some family I haven't seen in years. Some I haven't seen in over a decade!

Grandma Moore is my mom's mom. My mom has 2 brothers and each of them has 3 kids. If you do the math (I know, it's summer, so let me help you out), I have exactly 6 cousins. Total. There are no cousins on my dad's side. So, this is it. Just the six. The service was very intimate. Family only. That is what my grandma had requested. My mom gave a beautiful eulogy and each of her brothers spoke as well. Two of my cousins sang "Oh My Father", my grandma's favorite hymn.

I'm so grateful to know that my grandma is with my grandpa again and that she is surrounded by her loved ones who welcomed her into heaven with open arms. I will miss my little grandma, but I know I will see her again some day.

This picture was taken 2 years ago. It's the most recent four-generation picture I have with my grandma. She was small (4' 6" here), but she was a tough lady!

Gary's Masterpiece

Last summer, Gary undertook a huge project. We decided that we needed (or, wanted) a shed. So, Gary pulled out his trig knowledge, drew up some plans, and built the thing... from scratch! Who knew he had such hidden talents!? Obviously, it turned out to be more than just a shed. The top level is a play area for the kids. Here are some pics of the process. I was made fun of for chronicaling (yeah, it's a word now) so relentlessly but, hey, I'm proud of my guy! The only thing missing are some side rails so the kids won't take a header from the top level. Do we really need them? Okay, so I guess we do. Gary actually finished those a couple of weeks ago, but I need to get out and take some more pictures. I'll add those later on...

Our Fun-Filled Weekend

So, I totally looooove fireworks. Normally our family will go to some big show somewhere. Lots of times we'll go to Murray Park or to Weber High School. But, not this year. Having a new baby made Mama too nervous to go hang out for hours and then experience the explosions. So, we stuck close to home this year. Kind of a bummer, but that's okay. Gary and the three older kids sat on top of our deck cover and watched what they could see from WHS above our trees. Not the best view, but fun all the same.

We did make it down to have fun with lots of relatives on the 3rd and 4th. On Friday night, we hung out with my brother, Cory, and his wife, Lyn, and son, Ethan. They live in Herriman so we don't make it out to their house as often as I'd like. Cory got Rock Band for his birthday last March and has been wanting us to come play ever since. We finally made it. Holy cow, that's a fun game!!! I'm so mad that I didn't think to take pictures of us jammin! Who knew Gary was such a proficient drummer! Rock on!!! Funny thing is that we ended up playing Guitar Hero at Gary's parents' house the next day, too. Good thing we don't own an x-box or we might just become junkies. :)

The kids had so much fun on the 4th at Grandma and Grandpa Davis' house. It is so great that they have so many cousins (7), aunts (6), and uncles (5) on the Davis side. There's never a dull moment!

Here's crazy Addie with cousins Kennadi, Cami, and Davis playing in Grandma's pool.

Someone (hem, hem, Mom) forgot to pack towels, so Gavin is drying off the old-fashioned way...

Calder having fun in Grandma's sand box.

Sweet Sadie Smiling

Okay, I'm totally aware of the fact that my family is more than just this little one. I'm obviously a bit smitten at the moment with my sweet Sadie. I hope to update you all on the rest of the family soon. Addie and Gavin have birthdays in a couple of weeks, and then Calder's is a couple of weeks after that, so I'm sure I'll have some fun stuff to share. But, come on, is this not the cutest baby ever!? Sadie pulls all sorts of faces, including smiles. They're not intentional yet, but they sure are cute! I love her little dimples. She has one on each cheek. Of her face, I mean. :) I'm sure I'll just melt when I finally get that first "real" smile from her. But, for now, I'll take the pretend ones.