Essie's Baptism

My sweet little Essie got baptized this morning. It went really well, with her Grandpa giving a talk and lots of family there to see her. Grandma and Grandpa came up from Texas along with Angie and Charlie, Grandma Faull and Eric drove up from Albuquerque, Aunt Sonja and Uncle Jerry came from Preston, Wayne's girlfriend Des was there, and lots of friends and primary teachers from the ward. She was very excited to be baptized, and today is also her birthday so the whole day was pretty cool.

Essie's Birthday at Lagoon

Essie's birthday is this Saturday and her choice for celebrating the day was to go to Lagoon and bring along her friend Nick. We had lots of fun there last summer so we were all excited to go (and I was excited to not have to plan a big party). Lagoon did not disappoint, it was an awesome day. We all loved the rides, no one got sick, no one complained about being tired or hot. It was really fun! Sinjin's favorite ride is still Bulgy the Whale, but he went on lots of other ones too. Matt and I have always enjoyed rides so we took turns taking Essie on the ones Sinjin is too small for. Summer and Nick were pretty darn brave, but not quite at Essie's level. She is a total daredevil, and this year she's tall enough to go on any ride she wants. Our only complaint is that the water in Lagoon A Beach is freezing! Even though it was a hot day we were all shivering and didn't really stay in the water park area very long.

The Army's Best New Recruit

My brother, Tim, swore in to be a member of the United States Army yesterday. He's going to be fixing computers and other electronic devices. Should be cool, I think he'll be a great addition to the world's greatest army. I'm proud of him, even if this isn't really the path he thought he would be taking.

Unexpected Fun

Last night I took the kids to a little fun center in Lehi called Liberty Land. I've seen it from I-15 and always thought it looked kinda lame, but it turned out to be really fun. It was especially nice because it was free (we got an invite from a realtor friend of ours). It was perfect weather, hardly any lines and lots of fun little rides. Sinjin was much braver than I thought he would be, based on how scared he was last summer at Lagoon. He even liked going with me on the roller coaster. It was one of those times when you see your kids with such joy on their faces, and it just makes you smile. Matt came for the last hour or so and took the kids on the bumper boats, which was cool because then he got soaked instead of me:) Too bad I didn't get a picture of Essie, she was too busy riding the roller coaster.

Alpine Loop

One of my favorite things about living in Utah is going up into the mountains. Today I took the kids for a picnic to Cascade Springs. It was so beautiful, especially green since we've had so much rain lately. We actually got caught in a rainstorm, but that made it even more fun. I'm glad Sinjin doesn't beg me to carry him after two minutes like he did last summer. Now we hike pretty far and the kids all do great. We just needed Matt to be there to make it a perfect day.

Zach and Chrissy's Wedding

The kids and I just got back from spending a week in San Antonio. We went down for Zach and Chrissy's wedding, and to hang out with the fam. (Matt couldn't go because he's in Georgia for Army Reserve training.) We had lots of fun at Grandma and Grandpa's house, and the wedding was beautiful. Thursday night was a nice dinner at Alamo Cafe, then Saturday they got married in the San Antonio temple and had a reception at Chrissy's parents' house. Everything was gorgeous; the house, the decorations, the dress, the pictures, the cake. Zach and Chrissy were so cute, they looked like two little kids that just couldn't stop grinning.

Sinjin 4th Birthday

Today my little fella turned four years old. We had a fun day; swimming in the morning, lunch at Costco(one of his favorites), went to a playground, and then had a little birthday party. He mostly wanted Lightning McQueen toys, but then he picked out a Spongebob cake. Sinjin is a well-loved little boy, and we're all glad he's been a part of the family for four wonderful years.