The Thief

 Notice anything missing on my tomato plants?

I was really looking forward to my garden produce this year, but for some reason every time I went out to see if any tomatoes were ripe there never seemed to be any.  Each time I could have sworn there had been some that were getting close, but they always seemed to disappear.  They weren't on the ground so they hadn't fallen off, so what was happening?
Mike thought we had gophers or something in the lawn so he and Hunter set out a trap.  One morning I heard all kinds of noise and when I went out there guess who I found in the trap?

One big brown squirrel who I believe happened to be my tomato thief.  Mike was out of town so we left the squirrel in the trap until he got back.  I told the kids to stay away from it, but I kept seeing Michela sneak out to give it food.
Once Mike got back he took it up to the mountains and let it go.  He said it shot out of the trap when the door opened and never looked back.
Guess what?  Still no tomatoes.  Do you think he had a friend?

Time for a Haircut

Michela's hair has been getting so long!  She has needed a haircut for quite some time now.  We finally scheduled her an appointment with our friend Laura.  She took off about 6 inches and had some long layers put in it.  So much easier for me to put into a pony tail now.

 While we were there I made Chase jump in the chair for a quick cut too.

Thanks so much Laura, you are the best!!!

Pioneer Day Parade in Fairview

For Pioneer day we went down to Sanpete County to join in on some small town fun.  Mike and Hunter were at Scout camp so I took the rest of the kiddies down to Fairview for the breakfast and parade.  Problem was, the breakfast seemed to be shutting down when we got there.  I piled the kids back into the car and we quickly drove down the rode to the diner for pancakes, french toast, and bacon.  The kids were entertaining themselves by making straw wrapper mustaches.

 We finally made it to the parade and was it hot!  This is why I detest parades, I can't stand sitting out in the heat.  The highlight of the parade was the candy for the kids.  The "parade" consisted of a bunch of trucks and cars driving down the road throwing out candy.  I saw maybe one float, one marching band, and a handful of girls doing dance routines.  Not quite my idea of a parade.  The kids enjoyed getting sprayed by the fire truck.


 I loved the missionaries' sign, it was totally Napoleon Dynamite.

After the parade we went over to the house in Mt. Pleasant and hung out with all of the cousins.  We had a yummy lunch.  The kids had fun playing and I enjoyed talking to everyone.  We headed out a little early,  because Laina refused to take a nap.  Of course she was asleep within 5 minutes once we hit the road.  Shakes were calling our name so we ended the day with thick delicious shakes from the Shave 'n Cream on the way out of town.

My Little Mermaids

We have been spending a lot of time at Seven Peaks this summer.  The big kids take off as soon as we get there and ride all of the fun slides.  I've even taken Aria and Laina down a few of the tube slides.  It's so much fun hearing them squeal as the clutch my arms in sheer terror.  By the time we get down to the bottom they are yelling for more.
Aria, Laina, and I spend most of our time at the Kiddie pool.  They love to splash in the water and pretend to be mermaids.  Aria has the mermaid kick down pretty well.

 They are so cute in their little pink suits.  They are the sweetest sisters.

 I also had to include this shot of Chase.  He was taking a quick little cat nap in the tube.  Funny kid.

Happy Fourth of July Birthday!

In years past Mike has taken the kids down to the Fourth of July parade with his family.  Last year Chase decided it was his birthday so he got to decided what we should do.  I would much rather hang out at home, open presents, and have pancakes for breakfast than sit in the heat and watch the parade go by.  Chase got some fun new Lego sets and the new Batman Lego 2 game for the Wii.  After a pancake breakfast he and Hunter raced downstairs to try out the new game.

 In the afternoon we headed over to Mike's Uncle Scott's new condo for lunch and swimming.  I love sitting around and talking with family members I haven't seen forever and finding out what is going on in their lives.  The kids spent almost the entire time in the pool, briefly popping out to get something to eat.  Luckily there aren't too many people living at the condos yet so the fact that all of the cousins took up the entire pool didn't matter too much.

That evening we had Peggy, Megan, and her family over for dinner and a little celebration for Chase.  I made him a chocolate oreo filled cake for his birthday.  He loved it!  It was fun watching his eyes bug out as I pulled the cake from the fridge and stuck in the candles.  No problems for him in blowing out all 9 candles.  Yes, that is right, 9!  When did he get so old?

We ended the night with the cul-de-sac of fire.  I didn't buy any fireworks this year but we enjoyed watching the neighbors set of theirs.  The real treat was the huge aerial fireworks that a couple of the neighbors were setting off.  Who needs Stadium of Fire when you have neighbors like this.  Of course my camera's battery died right when the fireworks started, bummer.  I guess I'll just have to rely on my memory instead.  The kids loved it all.  We kept running back and forth between the front and back of the house to see all the fireworks going off.  I have to say I was a bit nervous that some of them would start a fire, but luckily nothing happened.  At one point I walked into our backyard and looked out over the valley.  I couldn't believe the sight!  There were fireworks going off everywhere.  It was like my own fireworks show.  It was a wonderful day for us and definitely went out with a bang.

Nine fun facts about Chase:
1.  He is such a skinny little thing.  He is just like his Daddy.
2.  He loves all things Lego, especially Ninjago Legos.
3.  He thinks the movie "Baby Geniuses" is hilarious.
4.  He loves swimming and is getting better at all of the strokes.  After only 2 weeks he can now do the breast stroke and can keep up with Hunter and Michela in the freestyle.
5.  He loves to read.  He just finished all of the Percy Jackson series and the first 2 books of the new series.
6.  He likes to hang out with his friends.  They come up with some pretty fun things to do together, like mini golf courses in our backyard and baseball using wiffle balls and tennis racquets.
7.  He likes to sing and dance.  He loves busting a move in the family room.
8.  He screams like a little girl.
9.  He is a ball of energy and loves being outside.

We love Chase and are so glad he is a part of our family.  He is still my little cuddle buddy and loves being close to Mike and I.  He has the best smile and a big laugh.  Love our little towhead with those big brown eyes!

The Terrific Twos!

I can't believe my baby is 2!  We celebrated Laina's birthday with a family Cookie Monster party.  She LOVES cookies and is always asking for one, she is her Daddy's girl, so I decided a cookie party would be perfect!
We invited Mike's and my families over for dinner and cookies.  Everyone filled up on taco salad for dinner but left plenty of room for dessert.  Did I mention we were having cookies?  Five different kinds of cookies to be exact.  We had Chocolate Chip cookies, Peanut Butter cookies, Lemon cookies, White Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal cookies, and Triple Fudge Oreo Crunch cookies.  I got some awesome recipes off of Pinterest.  I couldn't believe how many cookies there were but the group polished them off with no problems.

Laina was so excited for it to be her birthday.  For breakfast we made her blueberry "Fuffins" and put some candles in one to practice for the big event that night. 

She didn't know what to make of them.
She did a lot better in the evening.  She tried to blow and with a little help from Mommy we got them out.

It was fun having everyone over.  The cousins had a blast playing together, inside and outside the house.  I often found Laina tagging along after her older siblings and cousins laughing and screaming along with them.

 Laina loved opening her presents.  She got a cute piggy bank and some "monies" from Grandpa and Grandma Staker.  Matt, Sara, and the boys gave her a cute little book and a much loved Minnie Mouse.  

 Grandma Hunt sent out a present full of cute clothes and a sweet book about 10 little monkeys.  And our family gave her a little Cookie Monster and a new microphone for all of her singing moments.

Laina is the sunshine in our family.  She adds so much fun to our lives.  I can't imagine life without her!  She is becoming such a big girl.  She is always running and dancing through the house, singing and talking up a storm.  She is always so concerned about where everyone is and loves having her whole family together.  She is so sweet and sensitive towards others.  When someone is crying she is the first one to run over and give them a hug.  She is the life of the party!

Two fun things about Laina:
1.  She loves being a girly girl.  She likes twirly skirts, pretty shoes, and lots of bracelets.
2.  She is a dancing machine.  At our nephew's wedding reception she danced the entire time.  She loves shaking her booty and likes to try and copy Aria's moves.