Blaine's Big Weekend!

Blaine turned 30 on Saturday and also lucked out to have Father's Day the same weekend as his birthday. For his birthday we went to Cameron's TBall game (where Cam was thrilled to earn the game ball for his first time--he had some great plays out in the field) and then we went to a movie (without kids!--thanks Lisa!) and saw the new "Indiana Jones" movie--which we liked. And then, we had a great BBQ last night with some of our great friends and neighbors. So--Blaine is 30 now--he can't tease me about being older anymore. Happy Birthday Blaine!



Blaine got Wii Fit for his bday--its so cool. Come try it out sometime!


The whole family loving our awesome Dad!



Blaine blowing out candles on his birthday "trifle". He's so old now he needed some help from Cam and Kelsey.



This is Drew--we are considering adopting him as our son.

Summer Fun!

We look forward to summer so much and mostly because we go to the pool several times a week! The kids love it and I love it because they just play and have fun and don't fight or get in trouble!
Then they're so tired that night so they sleep really good. Here's some fun pictures of our summer fun!



Cameron is our little fish in the water--he is a great little swimmer and prefers to be under the
water rather than out!


Nothing is cuter than babies (well not so much a baby anymore) in their swimsuits!
Ellie is quite a dare devil when it comes to the pool--she does everything her brother and sister do!


Kelsey is usually pretending to be a mermaid or something while she swims.

Family "Motto"

I wanted to post this quote on our blog because it has become our "family motto" I suppose as we get ready to start a new chapter in our lives with moving to D.C. Many of our friends and family are in the same situation so its good for all to read! (It's a bit long, but well worth it!)

"I have just two things to say to you who are troubled about the future. I say them lovingly and from my heart.
First, we must never let fear and the father of fear (Satan himself) divert us from our faith and faithful living. Every person in every era has had to walk by faith into what has always been some uncertainty. This is the plan. Just be faithful. God is in charge. He knows your name and He knows your need.
Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ--that is the first principle of the gospel. We must go forward. God expects you to have enough faith, determination, and trust in Him to keep moving, keep living, keep rejoicing. He expects you to not simply to face the future; he expects you to embrace and shape the future--to love it, rejoice in it, and delight in your oppurtunities.
God is eagerly waiting for the chance to answer your prayers and fulfill your dreams, just as He always has. But he can't if you don't pray, and He can't if you don't dream. In short, He can't if you don't believe." --Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, "This the Greatest of all Dispensations" Ensign, July, 2007

This quote just says it all and brings a lot of peace to us as we do have an uncertain future right now. Here we go again... walking by faith to another adventure in D.C! This is our way of "embracing and shaping our future" and we are "delighting in our opportunities"!

Cameron's on to the 1st grade!!

Cameron finished his Kindergarten year! I must admit that makes me sad, because he will only be in Kindergarten once and its just a special year for kids! He has done so well--its been a great year. We are so proud of him. He is such a good reader and its been so fun to see his mind just overflow with all the stuff he's learned. That's what we love the most about Cameron is his natural curiosity and desire for learning! He'll be a great 1st grader in D.C next!! But until then..we are excited and ready for SUMMER!


Cameron with his great teacher, Ms. Oden at the end of the year "Luau" party.


Cameron with some of his friends from class.

Dinosaurs, Fishes, and Animals

We did a lot of FUN things in Utah! Here are just a few pictures. We went to the Dinosaur Museum, the Aquarium, and Hogle Zoo. The kids loved it all. The best part was just being with our wonderful Grandmas and Grandpas and cousins. We miss you guys. Thanks for the great trip and the fun memories!

Slippin' and a Sliding!

Who doesn't love the Slip and Slide?? Our kids sure do and its even more fun with Aunt Sto pulling you down the slip-n-slide and going together with cousins!! Uncle Matt does a pretty impressive slide as well.

Ryan's married!

Many of you know we just got back from a great trip to Utah! Blaine's brother Ryan got married in the SLC Temple and it was the best day! We all love our new sister and aunt Brooktynn so much! We are so happy for them and we were so blessed to be there for the wedding.


Uncle Matt with Cameron and cousin Emma

One funny thing happened related to the wedding events. Blaine's mom had left Brooktynn's beautiful bridal portrait out in the corner so she could take it to the reception they had planned. She also left some permanent markers next to the portrait and Ellie found these markers and colored ALL over the picture in blue marker!! Kelsey came running to Grandma saying "Ellie colored all over the married picture!!" Some attempts to remove the marker with various things did not go well--thankfully a new picture was ordered and replaced. I was not present for all of this--so my nice mother-in-law tried to hide the picture so I wouldn't feel bad for what my daughter did, but I ended up finding the picture and just about died when I saw it! We have the picture now as a souvenir from the wedding.


Ry and Brooktynn with the "colorful" bridal picture!

There was also a "bench press competition" between Blaine and his 4 brothers--ask Blaine who won. (It will boost his ego for him to tell that he won which gives him major bragging rights for quite some time. ) I, however only tied in the "arm wrestling competition" with my sis-in-law Lisa. I did beat my mother-in-law however, but she's been working out so I had to really try! (She told me to include that!) If only I had pictures of this!!