Some amazing things

Our little guy is officially 6 months old! He takes to the bottle like it's nothing new, and he's tried a few kinds of baby food. Starting to fill out his shorts too! He now sleeps in his crib till the early morning hours and prefers his thumb over anything else you put in his mouth. He's the most mello child you'll ever meet and such a blessing to our family!

Dillan has become super confident in his swimming abilities this summer. He does cannonballs without fear, has jumped off diving boards alone, and gone down the big slide at the community pool. Once he tried both, there was no stopping him. We couldn't keep him away and he couldn't get enough.

Leah also braved up and went on the EZSki behind Papa's boat. She battled with herself the whole day on whether or not she'd try it, but finally gave in. Also, when Grandma first set up the pool on July 4th, Leah would NOT put her face in the water for anything! Now, a month later, she dives into the pool and swims to the opposite side underwater! She's taught herself to swim. So typical! What a superstar! Hopefully both kids will maintain their bravery for the next 30+ days when we hit Walt Disney World!

Since moving into Grandma and Papa's house, there have been some adjustments and a lot of questions from the kids. "Why can't I have my own room again?" "I miss our old house" "I miss my friends." But they have been troopers adjusting to a new ward/primary, soon a new school, and sharing a room. They asked how long we would be here. We told them we weren't sure, but told them Daddy needed a new job so we could have a new house. It was something Mommy and Daddy had been praying for for a long time. Soon they started praying for Daddy's job too.
The beginning of July, Chris planned to take off 3 weeks from work for Shaver and visiting some family in St. George. Just days before that time started, 3 days in a row, he had some job leads. One was from a couple buying a TV who worked for Northrop Grumman, the company Chris had been applying to for years (where Papa works). The second was from a friend in our former ward who worked for a cell phone company. And the third was a text from a Best Buy friend Chris had not heard from in many months.
He started applying, making and returning phone calls and things took off.
He had an interview with his friend for a job that sounded perfect. His friend knew he was the perfect person for the job, too. He was primed for the interview. He nailed it. After he left the room, the hiring panel said "That is an A+ winner." He was the top interviewer. He got the job. Since that day, Chris has been standing a little taller, breathes a little easier, and is much happier than before. It has been years of persevering and heartaches to get to this point. We tried to keep hope alive and knew it would happen, it's just so hard to believe it is actually REALLY happening. He starts his new job training in a little over a week. We are so proud of him!

St George

We got home from Shaver, threw some clothes in the wash, repacked and headed out again. This time we traveled to St. George to see Grandma Donna, Papa Bob and our favorite
cousins of Arizona.
We went on a neat hike and saw lots of tadpoles and frogs. The landscape was amazing.


We got in lots of play time with all the boys and we were spoiled rotten from Grandma and Papa while we were there.

Normally Little D just gets his toes wet around the pool, but this trip he took in his first real swim with Daddy and loved it!

This is what summer memories are made of!

Shaver Lake 2011

We look forward to Shaver every year! This year the kids were especially excited, probably because we get a week filled with COUSINS! On the drive up we heard "Are we at Shaver Lake yet?"and "Are Roxy and Dono going to beat us there?"

Its just so much fun anticipating and getting ready for the trip. We watch Papa and Chad get the boat ready and we make a list of everything we need to bring. Once we're in the car and we see the big trees and feel our stomachs churning, we know we're close. Thankfully no one got sick this year (even Mommy)! Some kind of record.

We love seeing family and catching up with eachother. Relaxing in the sun, taking in the water, trees, and family. There's nothing like it. It's such a special tradition with some of the most special people on the planet!

It's always fun to see how much the kids have changed every year. They love to play in the sand and wade in the water. There are always kids to play with and new games to invent. They also become more brave with the water and try new things.

Every year there's something new to experience and enjoy. This year Grandma and Papa brought Kayaks that were a BIG HIT, Dillan and Leah got a little pulling behind the boat, and Drewbee got to experience it all for the first time!

Thanks Grandma and Papa for all you did to make this an enjoyable week! We loved it and love you!
Can't wait till next year!

summertime

We've been trying to get our summer rhythm going, there's just so much fun stuff to do!
Summer fun in the pool


On Papa's boat



And everywhere inbetween.

Digging out precious rocks in our little excavation kit.


Dillan did his first big brother bottle feeding. Everyone's growing up too fast!

Father's Day

We had a great weekend spending Father's Day with some great Daddys and Papas!
First we baked peanut butter blossoms for Daddy and Papa, put them in a special decorated box and the kids hid it in their room until Sunday morning. We worked hard finishing Daddy's tie. It was a tribute to the Utah Jazz and basketball. Not exactly how I wanted it to turn out, but I wasn't about to mess with tradition, and I know Chris appreciates my mediocre crafting skills every year.
We made a special Priesthood Line of Authority framed picture for Daddy, with his priesthood lineage. He loved it.
The kids filled out forms telling all about their Papa. How old he is, his favorite food, etc.
Then more family came over and we had some fun visiting and laughing.

We are so grateful for our Daddy and our Papa who take such good care of us and love us unconditionally. They are great examples, teachers, and playmates!

Love you Papa!
Love you Daddy!

Summer

We've been enjoying the summer and trying to fill our days with fun!

This week we went to the San Diego County Fair and had a day full of food, games, a few rides, pig races, and more food (do people really eat deep fried butter???)

Some fun days still ahead!

kickin off summer!

Summer has started. YAY! There's just so much to keep us busy and having fun, I don't know how we're gonna do it all!
Before summer started, Dillan had Kindergarten graduation.
The ceremony started with all the class seated on the rug and everyone read The Very Hungry Kindergartner. It went through all the months of the school year and everything they had learned. They sang songs, did the pledge of allegiance, and recited lots of fun things.




Then Mrs Iverson handed out their report cards and packets to take home. I still have everything to look through!

After the program, there was pizza and ice cream sundaes. Some of the mothers had gifts for the students. One mom made cute little scrapbooks for each kid from pictures she had taken throughout the year. Tons of work but super cute! Another Mom had a huge bag with a bouncy playground ball for each kid.
Dillan played the rest of the day with his buddies, it was hard to say goodbye.
Before we left, we gave Mrs Iverson her present Dillan made. We took a regular box of crayons, cut them in half, and glued them onto a monogram letter I, the page also had Mrs Iverson's name on it. We put it in a frame and figured she could use it in her classroom. She loved it and said she would keep it in her classroom.

He had such a great year and learned so much!
Goodbye Kindergarten, Hello First Grade!