Fourth of July Festivities

 After Atticus's birthday party, we went to my sister Sarah's house in Tacoma for another party to celebrate the holiday.

Mount Rainier on the way to Sarah's house--I never get tired of that mountain!

Stephanie and Pa, my mom's dad - The two of them were talking, and I couldn't help but take a picture. It is one of my favorites.

My brother-in-law's aunt brought a bunch of cheap toys to Sarah's house for the kids to play with. The most popular was a set of long balloons that you blow up with a pump and then let them fly off. We didn't have enough pumps, so we started just blowing them up with our mouths. Not easy, my friend.

Blowing her heart out

HoneyGram gathered the kids out in the field with their balloons, and they let them all go at the same time.

Brian and Sarah

I told Justin I wanted a good head shot of him, and this is what he did.

And then I said, "No, seriously." And so he gave me this one.

And then this one.

And finally this one. Gotta love brothers.

HoneyGram brought matching hats for Atticus and Hyrum. Atticus's didn't fit him, but Oliver wore his to the party at Sarah's house. Of course Papa had to try it on too.

Netty had her first experience with sparklers. Last year we didn't do them because I was in the hospital in labor with Atticus, and the year before she was too young. I couldn't decide which picture I liked best, so here's a few:

The black on her face is ash. Shortly after I took this picture, the sparkler went out, and she touched the end of it. She had a lot of tears and a little blister.

HoneyGram and Papa with the three youngest grandbabies

It was such a good day. I am so grateful for my family.

Firecracker's First Birthday

Atticus turned a year old on the Fourth of July!

We started out with party for him in my grandma's backyard, and then later went to my sister Sarah's house for a barbecue and fireworks. By the time he was a year old, Atticus was almost walking, jabbering a little, saying "mama" and "dada," and saying "up" or "bup." Now, almost two months later, he is RUNNING, saying "mommy" and "daddy" and about ten other words, jabbering like he's having a conversation all the time, and getting into everything. He is very snuggly and loving, but also impatient, and he will not stand for trading--he knows what he wants. He and Netty are best friends and partners in crime.

Here are some birthday party highlights:

Atticus with his cousin LaMar. LaMar turned 8 on July 1st. They are the only two in the family with July birthdays.

Friends - My grandma (left) is 84, and Dolores, my aunt's mom, is 89. The two women have been friends for years. They are both losing their memories, and sometimes their conversations don't make a lot of sense, but I love watching them chat. After so many years, they are still such wonderful friends.

We opted out of lunch and stuck with just fruit and dip for the party. Notice our sad centerpiece--the balloon bouquet was adorable until the balloons leaked their air. By the time the party started, it looked pretty pathetic.

Because LaMar was baptized the same weekend, my parents were able to come out for Atti's birthday party as well. Ten of the twelve grandchildren were there too. My dad's shirt says, "12 reasons why I love being a PAPA," and then it has the names of all of the grandchildren on it.

Gotta love how kids crowd around when it's present time. No matter how many times you tell them to step back and sit down, they manage to creep up again.

I made an ice cream cake for Atticus. My mom decorated it because I ran out of time, but I think it turned out really well.

Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of the inside of the completed cake. But here are the two cake layers in the oven, and then I had a layer of vanilla ice cream in the middle. It was adorable and delicious. Maybe I'll do the same thing next year so that I can get a picture!

Atti's little cake

We took the cover off of the high chair for cake time. this ended up being a really smart idea. His shirt still has stains in it from the red and blue frosting.

Unlike Netty when she turned a year old, Atti really dug into it with both hands.

And the sugar coma after....

Flat Anya

In her class last year, my niece Anya read the book Flat Stanley. In this book, Stanley makes a flat version of himself and then the Flat Stanley goes on adventures around the world. So the students made flat versions of themselves and mailed them to friends or family in other parts of the world to take pictures and write about the adventures that they have together. Anya mailed hers to me (because I have such an adventurous life). The project was done at the end of the school year, so we had the "Flat Anya" for a good part of the summer before we mailed her back. Here are the pictures we took:

Helping Atticus and me fold laundry

Reading with Netty our favorite book:

The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear

With Netty's favorite red boots, in the rain. It is Washington, after all.

Taking a nap with Netty

In Cle Elum to visit some of Jon's family

Kisses

In Leavenworth, Washington with Jon and me

After the "after the baptism" family party for my nephew LaMar, just as everyone was getting on pajamas and getting ready to go home

In Sync

Look familiar?

Being Brave: Potty Training, Day 1

1 infant in diapers + 1 toddler in diapers = expensive.

Netty is two now.

I decided to be brave.

For a week now, we have been telling Netty that she was almost a big girl, and that on Big Girl Day, she was going to get to go potty like a big girl and we were going to throw away her diapers. We were really talking up her "special day."

After breakfast, we gave Netty a special "Big Girl Day" present to open--Minnie Mouse panties. She loves Minnie Mouse, and was so excited.

She picked out which pair she wanted to put on.

(And Atticus was thinking, "You gave her underwear? Lame...")

And then Netty decided to be modest.

Netty did the honors of throwing away her diapers.

And she was happy to do it.

After six changes of clothes and a lot of tears on her end and almost-tears on my end, we were successful one and a half times.

Good start today. Hopefully better tomorrow.

What I Know

One of the very first memories I have is of my mom rocking me in our old rocking chair. I remember feeling my blanky on my cheek and looking up at my mom in the dim light while she sang "My Heavenly Father Loves Me." I have no idea how old I was. I just know that I was little enough to fit snugly in my mom's arms.

Flash forward 25+ years, and this same song, now known as "HoneyGram's Song," is part of our nightly ritual. I sing it to both of my children every night. When it was time to sing it tonight, Netty started singing along. She's done this once before, and on both occasions, it has surprised me. Although she can't verbalize most of the words, I know that she knows them. Once we were through, she said, "Again," and I grabbed my camera.

Yes, I know Heavenly Father loves me.

Cousin Love

I love that my children have lots of opportunities to see some of their cousins. We see those who live in Washington at least once a months, if not more. I grew up near all of my cousins, and many of them were and still are some of my best friends. I wish we could live by all of our children's cousins, but I am grateful that at least we can live near some of them.

Shortly after Braylin (Sarah's son) was born, I came to Washington for a few months to nanny for Sarah. I felt as though Sophie and Braylin were practically my own children. Since we have moved back to the area, Braylin and Atticus have developed a special bond.

My aunt comes over from time to time. She has a daughter about a year older than Netty. At first, Netty had a hard time sharing her Minnie Mouse tea set, but now the two girls love playing together.

Watch Me Grow

Netty is in full toddler mode. Every day is filled with uncontrollable laughing fits, temper tantrums, frustration at not being able to communicate, and pure joy with even the simplest things. And Netty's day is usually about the same.

Netty went potty in the potty chair twice a couple of months back, but she hasn't shown any interest since then. Some days I can talk her into wearing her "big girl panties" over her diaper, but she refuses to sit on the potty chair at all. Potty training tips are welcome! I want to get this little girl out of diapers!

A couple of weeks ago Netty had her first official time-out for hitting and kicking me when she didn't get her way. It didn't take her long to calm down, and she's only had one or two more time-outs since then.

She has suddenly become interested in setting the table. When we were at my aunt and uncle's house she unloaded the lids from their cupboard and set them around the table. She's also helped me set the table a few times. It's fun having a little helper!

Since I found out I was pregnant with Netty I have been waiting for the day to come when she would walk around the house in my shoes. Well, she's been walking around the house in someone's shoes all right. I just didn't think it would start with Jon's shoes.

At least she doesn't always try to grow up to quickly.....