June 2019

Ah, summer!  Why does it have to go by so quickly?!  We thoroughly enjoyed June...

This is a crazy picture, but we celebrated Eric's birthday at the beginning of the month. That's a big present he's sitting on.  :)  (It's an inflatable kayak for fishing!)

47!  

The kids spent a day together with Mom-Mom and Pop-Pop...

PLENTY of swimming, of course!

Mesquite has an annual summer "festival" in the park right behind our houses.  We had friends over for a big picnic and swimming before watching the fireworks together.  Timothy and Eli spent the better part of the afternoon filling water balloons in preparation for this fight...  :)

We're so thankful for this group of friends!

Elizabeth and I took CJ and Eli to Surf-n-Swim, a summer tradition.

And Kelly and I took all the boys to Hawaiian Falls.  The kids had a blast!

Their favorite thing was this "Ninja course," as they called it.  :)  They spent more time doing this than riding rides!

One of the rare pictures of the two of us- an actual selfie!  :)

They rode THIS multiple times!  You step into that tube at the top, they seal it up, and then it counts down 3...2...1... and the bottom drops out!  YIKES!

More swimming!

We love it when Cooper spends the night!

We planned a 40th anniversary celebration dinner for my parents this month.  It was fun to see months of plans come to fruition, and I think it was a really special evening honoring our beloved Mom and Dad/Mom-Mom and Pop-Pop!

And that concludes June!  We're excited for what July has in store.  LOVE to you!!!

May 2019

Happy almost-officially-summer!  We blazed through a busy May and are so happy to have landed in the slower, much-loved pace of SUMMER.  Here are a few pictures from our May... 

 We celebrated Eli's birthday by going to a hotel for a night (his choice every year, which we love!).  He opened a small gift (guitar picks!)...

And then we headed to Bass Pro shops to look around and shop for fishing lures- one of Eli's favorite things for which to shop.  :)

 

We ate dinner on the lake and then went back to the hotel to have cake and watch a movie.

 

The boys (and the Howard boys, here) fish in the creek behind our house all the time.  It's super cute to watch them out the back windows.

Eli's big birthday present was a new BIKE!  He was thrilled!

Here he is on his actual birthday with a few lingering presents.  :)

And one more cake and birthday song...

Eli tested for his RED belt in karate.  He works so hard, and, as always, we're so proud of each belt that he earns.  Only two more before he tests for BLACK!

 

One MORE cake/birthday song, as we celebrated the May birthdays with the whole family.

Mother's Day...

More fishing...

They also catch craw-dads in the creek!

Eli had a guitar recital and perfectly played "Amazing Grace."  He has been enjoying guitar much more than piano, and we love hearing him play.

Last day of 5th grade!

He got the "obedience award" from his teacher.

To celebrate, we headed to Ham's Orchard with our friends Dawn and Lauren for lunch and ice cream.  He's holding up 6 fingers for going into 6th grade. :)

Kelly and I took the boys to an indoor water park called Epic Waters.  The boys had a blast!

We had a low-key Memorial Day with the Heinzes, cooking out, swimming, and doing a few backyard fireworks.

We love going to a Rough Riders game in the summer.  Timothy came with us this time.

After TWELVE innings, we were rewarded with fireworks!

And that wraps up May.  Much love to you!!