We can't wait...

5 MORE DAYS...we have been looking forward to and waiting for the day to arrive when we will board the airplane and fly away to NEW YORK CITY!!  The kids are so excited, and so are Chris and I. 

 A few years ago Mike and Debbie warned us all that they would be having the reunion of 2012 in Virginia.  Chris and I started saving our points.  We knew it would take a lot of them and we wanted to be able to go.  It is nothing short of a miracle.  We were able to have enough points from a program at his work to be able to buy our airfare, rental car, 6 nights in hotels all over New York, Discovery passes into Niagarra Falls, airport parking...almost every detail was taken care of.  It will take some of our own money, but nothing comared to the cost it would be for such a great trip.

I don't know why we are so blessed, but I am sooo grateful that we had the opportunity to be in Nauvoo with our family last year, and that we will be able to tour the rest of the Church History Sites in New York this year.  That has been a dream of mine for many years and I almost can't believe it has all worked out!!

We will be gone for 16 days.  Mike and Debbie have planned an awesome reunion for us.  We are excited to see the sites as well as spend lots of time with family.  The kids are so excited to see their cousins.  Brinley keeps telling me that she is most excited for #1-to ride on an airplane because she has never done this before, and #2- to get to play with the Virginia Maddie. We have 2 Maddie cousins, so that is why she is known as the Virginia Maddie.

Lots to do before we leave...but we are so excited!!

Emilee's Girls Camp

This year Emilee got to go to girls camp at Heber Valley Girls Camp.  This opportunity only comes around about once every 5 years.  They stay in nice cabins and the camp is set up with so many activities and fun things to do.  She had a great time.  Em has so many great friends in our ward.  She is very lucky and loves to spend time with them.  Thanks to her great YW leaders for all the hard work put in to make camp great this year!

Curls!!!

 Brinley discovered if she gets in the tub in the morning, then wears her hair all that day and all night in two french braids, this is what she gets the next morning!!  We thought it turned out pretty darn cute.

I love her long blonde hair.  Her big sisters are also jealous of it.  It is thick, has natural highlights and she is young enough I can still make her let me fix it.  I'm afraid my years of this are limited, but I will take advantage of the few that I have left!!

Very Creative Girls!!

 This is what happens at our house when girls get bored!!  Kylee saw this idea on pinterest and talked Quincy and Brinley into being her willing participants.  They drew chalk pictures all over the driveway and then took pictures. 

I think Quincy and Brinley are really going to miss Kylee and her fun ideas when she goes to college!!  They love her dearly...good thing they still have Emilee as a great big sister!

4th of July

This year for the 4th of July we tried something a little different.  It was definitely an experience and a memory we will never forget...but not something we will probably ever try again!  We decided to be a food vendor at the Plain City 4th of July Celebration.  Only those who wanted to give up their usual 4th of July traditions participated and we were pretty sure we were set up to make a fortune!  Grandpa and Grandma, Alex and Kacey, Clint, Heidi and Maddie, and our family chose to participate.  We set up shop to sell cotton candy, popscicles, pulled pork sandwiches, hot dogs, drinks, chips and ice cream bars!  We were very brave for our first plunge into it.  It took a ton of work on everyone's part.  We spent months talking and planning and shopping...and the whole day before setting up. When our big day arrived we were very frustrated to find that there were tons of other food vendors.  We had been assured that we would be one of only a couple!  Needless to say...after a very long, hot but pretty fun day we were excited to be done.  The moment of truth awaited as we went back to Grandpa and Grandma's house to find out if we were in the hole, had broken even, or made the thousands we were hoping for.  We had big plans to take the money and rent a huge cabin at Island Park next summer.  Well......we made enough to give each of the kids that helped $15.00!!!  Not what we were hoping for, but we were so grateful that we had not gone in the hole!   

Even though it was not as successful as we had hoped, it was pretty great to see us all work together to accomplish something BIG!  It was a big undertaking and we did a good job even if we didn't make our millions!  We will just have to save our pennies and find a different way to get us that great cabin in Island Park!!