Taylin's Baptism

Taylin was baptized today.  She has been waiting for this day for a really long time.  She decided a long time ago that she wanted to be baptized, and today finally came after much anticipation :)  I am so proud of Taylin and her choice to be baptized. She has such a strong spirit, and I am so grateful for that.  I am also so grateful for all of the support that was shown to Taylin.  So many friends and family came to celebrate her baptism, and every single one of you played a vital role in Taylin's life.  I would like to say that it has been all me and Chad that have made her such a sweet girl, but that wouldn't be the case. From family, friends, primary teachers, school teachers, etc. Every single one of you have helped us guide Taylin to where she is today.  I can't thank you all enough for your support and love.  We love you all!

And Taylin, I just want you to know how proud I am of you.  You are such a sweet, tender, and kind little girl.  You are an example to me all of the time.  I love you!

Taylin is 8!!

Taylin's birthday is always a hoot!  Even though she chooses the same thing to do every year, it is always a new experience :)  We went swimming at the Veteran's Pool, and we had the ENTIRE pool to ourselves.  It is probably due to the fact that it was extremely overcast, and even started raining on us. But, that didn't make Taylin waiver.  We went and swam until we were forced to leave :)

Afterwards, we had her staple food, Little Ceasar's Pizza and "silly bread", along with cake and icecream.  It was a day full of fun.  I can't believe how quickly she is growing up!

Some things about Taylin:

Your favorite color is Pink

Your favorite food is Little Ceasar's Pizza

Your favorite Princess in Ariel

You LOVE feather earrings

You are a good friends

You say you love Zoogels (sp?) even though you don't have one :)

You are a good helper to your mom

You love our trampoline, and trying new tricks

You love to color and write nice notes to people

You like to play with your sisters

You are very tender-hearted

Happy Birthday Sweet Girl!!  We love you!

Let Freedom Ring

The 4th of July is my absolute favorite holiday of the year.  I love everything about it!  Spending time with family, warm weather, playing at the cabin, the canyon, yummy food, fireworks, and of course the amazing freedom that we are celebrating.  I am a very patriotic person, and I love celebrating the freedom that so many men and women of our country fight to preserve.  I'm so thankful to them for providing me with the freedoms that I take for granted every day.  I am so happy to be able to teach my girls what the 4th of July is about, and how special of a day it really is.

This year was a pretty low-key celebration for us.  We started out the day up at the cabin with many of my aunts, uncles, and cousins on my mom's side of the family.  In all there were 33 adults, and 36 kids. Definitely a full house, but SO much fun!

I was able to get this fabulous picture of my Grandma Kartchner, my mom, me, and my girls.  Four generations in one picture.  Priceless!  I am so happy that my girls have the opportunity to know and love my grandma just as much as I do.

After the cabin, we made our way home to do some fun little things of our own.  Chad went to a REAL soccer game, and the girls and I did some snaps and snakes.  We didn't buy any fireworks this year, mostly because of how unbelievable DRY it has been this year.  Our family has a history of starting things on fire (unintentionally of course), but needless to say, starting the mailbox on fire, or the fence (which have both happened in the past), could have big consequences this year.  So, we enjoyed our simple snaps and snakes, and watch everyone else's fireworks around us :)  My parents deck was the perfect place to view many of the fireworks in the entire neighborhood, and they were beautiful.

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!

Summer has officially started.....

How do we know?  Swimming lessons have begun!!

The girls have been so excited to start swimming lessons (some a little hesitant.....Brexlyn), but they all did so well!  We LOVE our teacher, Elizabeth Tongi!  Not only is she an AMAZING swimming teacher (seriously, has my girls swimming after their first lesson!), but she has also been one of my best friends for over 13 years now!!  I love that girl!  Hears to the start of Summer!!

Shopping for the perfect dress

Taylin is getting baptized!!  The date is quickly approaching, and it was time for us to start hunting for a special dress for her special day.  I started a tradition with McKinzley where I take my girls before they are getting baptized and we spend a day together shopping for a special dress, going to lunch, and giggling :)

I am SO mad at myself because I forgot my camera this time!  But, it didn't change the fact that Taylin and I had a great time!

We started out at the dress store, and she went around picking out all of the dresses she wanted to try on (10 dresses!!).  Then we headed to the dressing room to start the process.  I was amazed at how she critiqued each one.  There were certain details she didn't like about some.  One didn't fit her the right way, or the front "poofed out too much".  Nevertheless, she narrowed it down to 2 dresses.  One was a satin dress that had a bow in the middle and a little jacket to go with it.  The other one looked like miniature wedding dress!!  She tried both of them back on, and (thankfully) decided on the satin one.  She looks GORGEOUS in it!  I can't wait for her to be able to wear it.  She picked out the perfect shoes to go with it, and of course they have a little bit of a heel on them :)

After dress shopping, we went to lunch at our favorite little Italian restaurant, Francescos.  They have the best garlic cheese sticks...hands down.  This part of the day is my favorite.  Just the one on one time that I have with my daughter to talk and giggle with.  She told me all about school, and her friends.  All of the things that are important to an almost 8-year old.  And then she said to me, "Mom, I can't wait to be baptized!  I can't wait to feel the Holy Ghost!"  That made my heart happy!  Then she said "Can we have pizza after my baptism?"  Lol.  That is true Taylin form :)  I love her so much, and i'm so proud of her!  She brings me such joy!!

Rocky Mountain Shores

We decided to head to the zoo today to check out the new Rocky Mountain Shores Exhibit.  I do have to admit that even though Hogle Zoo has made some improvements to the zoo, I haven't really loved them.  Well, I should be more specific.  I don't like the new enclosures for the tigers, leopards etc.  I feel like you can never see them now because they are up so high.  Anyways, I was not overly hopeful that Rocky Mountain Shores was going to be anything special, but I was quite surprised.  I think it turned out great!  I love that they have the different levels that you can look at the animals under water, or from above.  All of the sea lions, and the polar bear were very active.  The girls loved it, and I am super excited to take them back!  I give it an "A" :)

Bear World 2012

This is the 2nd year that we have taken the girls up to Bear World, and it is quickly becoming a yearly tradition.  The girls love to see the bears right next to the car (despite the fact that I about have a heart attack every time), and of course the petting zoo and rides are an added bonus.  We spent part of the day at Bear World, and then we picked up Abby and headed to the movies.  We saw Madagascar 3, and the kids thought it was so funny. (Chad and I liked it too :) )  After the movie, we met the rest of Ryan and Corinne's family and went to dinner at the Pizza Pie Cafe.  Loved it!  I wish that we had one closer to us!  We had a great time chatting and just hanging out.  Until next year!

Memorial Day

I hope this doesn't sound creepy, but I love Memorial Day.  Let me tell you why.  Ever since I was a little girl, it has been a family tradition on my moms side to meet at my Grandma Kartchner's house the Sunday before Memorial Day, pick flowers from her beautiful gardens and make gorgeous arrangements, and then take them down to the Provo cemetery to put on the graves of our loved ones that have passed.  I know that a lot of people do this, but one thing that makes it extra special to me is that at every grave someone tells us a story about that person.  Usually it is my Grandma Kartchner.  This has been so neat for me while growing up, and still to this day, to feel like I know these people that I have never met, but that I am related to.  Such an amazing legacy that is being passed on.  This year was especially fun because my girls were enthralled with all of the stories.  I love that they are having the same experience that I did when I was young, and learning about their ancestors.  It was a beautiful day, and the cemetery was gorgeous.  Such a peaceful place!

On Memorial Day we went up to the cabin, had lunch, and spent the day playing in the cool air.  Pure bliss!

LOVE my Grandma Kartchner!!