4th of July...

picture overload... I loved the fact that we had FOUR days to celebrate the 4th of July this year. We had a way fun, packed, festive, exciting, and long weekend. Here are the little ones ready for a cookout with the Becksteads and for the fireworks. Grandma Beak and Bode

Grandpa Beak and Rylie...

Best of Cousins! Rylie and Holly!

Sparklers, they are seriously my FAVORITE! I love them and I hope my kids will always do them with me.

On Saturday, I got a wild hair to go for a ride and have a picnic somewhere. So we loaded up in the truck and took off to Old Ephraims Grave up Logan Canyon. We were not really prepared for the long ride it is on a dirt road, we thought it was just a ways up there. But we made it and had our picnic. Rylie had fun with the squirrels at the momument. If you haven't ever been there, here is a picture of the momument that is a big as old ephraim was.

Sunday was a fun filled day too - we ended up getting out our fire pit and cooking hotdogs and smores. It was nice to just hang out.

AND finally celebrating with the Lewiston Parade and Lewiston Fireworks...! ME and Rylie...

watching the parade with cousins

Oh Sweet.

4th of July outfits.... we love this holiday, seriously.

What do you do...

at 8:30 on a Saturday night, when Mike and Rylie are "camping" in the backyard and Bode is asleep.... and I have the house to my self. It took Rylie forever to settle into the tent and go to sleep. But once she did, they slept in until this morning. Whata good dad to go "camping" in the backyard.

swim lessons!

This was Rylie's first swim lessons. She did great and we already knew she is part fish. She loves to swim and play in the water. I have the hardest time getting her out. She learned so much and did great. She loves jumping off the side into the deep end with her life jacket on.
Her new friend Kenna who she rocked and rolled with each day after her lesson.

Bode loves the water too, he splashed and splashed in the pool. He was a good sport waiting for Rylie's lesson to be done so he could go play.

smores!

My sister and her girls went camping one weekend. We decided to join them for smores each night and then head home to our beds. We had a fun time and hope they invite us to go "camping" again. Plus they make a very good smore!

Summer has began...

Summer is in full swing around here, just a few SUMMER FUN photos to share. We love this time of year.

Happy Father's Day!

Good thing we get ONE day a year to celebrate these wonderful men in our lives we call Dad. I am blessed with a fun, wonderful, hardworking, honest, and generous dad. I have a fun, teasing, generous, wonderful father in law too. And my kids have been blessed with an AWESOME dad, he really is the best. After church Rylie and Mike went on a treasure hunt around the house and yard to find his presents. I think I had more fun watching the two of them. Hope you had a great day Daddy, we love you.

The treasure was hidden in the grill....

Lucky Rylie - I was explaining on Father's Day that we were going to go to Grandma Kaye's (mike's grandma) and that Grandma Beak (mike's mom) would be there and then we were going to go later that night to Grandma Smith's (my mom). She puts one hand on her hip, the other hand pointing a finger at my and says "One GRANDMA at a time, mom!" She has no idea how lucky she is.

perma grin, stairs, camera and more....

Rylie is way to smart for her britches right now. She learned in Nursery that when "she's happy, I'm happy". That is the only part I got out of her. Well she has flipped it on me... "if I am happy, then she will be happy". So if I don't have a perma grin on my face at all time she will let me know that I am grumpy and it is making her sad. This has gone on for days. At the store one day, every time I let the smile drop she would do her fake cry and tell everyone that her mom is sad, so she is sad. UGGHHHH so with a perma grin remember when MOM is happy, Rylie is happy!

BODE has learned to climb in just a few days. He loves to stand up to everything, crawl into everything and get into everything. He stood up to the stairs a few days ago and then today he crawled up the whole way, one stair at a time.

My camera has died on me! Does anyone have a brand or style or opinion on what to get or not to get. I would love to get a really nice one and take pictures, but I think it is out of the question.

Rylie was a little jealous of Bode one night, so I picked her up and treated her like a baby. I ended up putting her in Bode's crib. She thought it was hilarious! so glad that she does have a little brother to be jealous of, to tease and to bug! She is a great sister (most of the time).