Can it really be??? Is summer really over? Uh, yeah Brielle. Summer is definitely over.
It has been for three weeks now. It’s about time you write this post…you know…before it’s Christmas and all.
This summer was a blast. I can’t even tell you how much fun we had! Wait, yes I can. And I can even show you pictures. In fact, here are our Top Ten Memories of the Summer 2014:
1. Watching Grandma Kaye and Grandpa Cal love on their grandkids. Grandma Kaye did everything from letting loose in the kiddie pool to making a homemade puppet theatre to walking around Wheeler Farm looking at all the smelly animals (other than my own children).
Grandma Kaye is the coolest! She even gets in the pool with her clothes on.
The girls loved this homemade puppet theatre. Watch Braelyn’s imagination come to life with this video clip.
We can’t leave Utah without a trip to Wheeler Farm. Fun and free entertainment!
Grandpa Cal is just the right sized teddy bear to cuddle.
2. Having Emry be completely unimpressed at the $1,000 worth of fireworks shooting up in the sky. On the flip side, Braelyn was completely terrified (as she is every year) of the fireworks until the very end in which she exclaimed, “I love fireworks!” and ran around with sparklers and poppers in hand for the next two days.
Not impressed.
3. Being abandoned at the train station by my mother who thought that I was right behind her as she stepped onto the train. Luckily the next train was only 10 minutes behind. In fact, I was more worried for my mom and Braelyn than I was for myself. That mother of mine has no sense of direction! Love you mom.
How could you forget about these two adorable faces???
4. Going to the lake with our good friends Barry and Lisa. Our kids kept us safe on the tube. Once they were back on the boat, all safety rules went out the window as Ben and I got rocked on the wakes. At one point I was doing a full handstand mid air before I came crashing back down on the tube. Important detail: I landed it and still hung on. Whoop whoop! Miss Braelyn Boo tried her hand at wake surfing and was a total pro. She loved every minute of it!
A bunch of crazy lake rats.
Watch this rockstar kill the waves in this super cute action video.
5. Emry starting dance class, well if dance class is what you really want to call it. In all reality she just stands there sucking her fingers, watching everyone else dance around her. I finally found tap shoes small enough for her tiny little feet, but in the meantime quarters taped on the bottom of her shoes worked just great.
Once again, not amused. You can watch this hilarious video of her dance skills.
You do what you gotta do. She now has some stinkin’ adorable toddler tap shoes.
6. Swimming! Lots and lots of swimming. Braelyn Boo mastered the diving board this summer while Emry evolved into quite the little fish. Braelyn would have lived at the pool if we let her. Swimming is by far her favorite thing to do.
Watch Braelyn master the diving board in this video. And Emry is quite the fish in this video.
7. Going to San Diego. This is the beginning of a yearly tradition for my family. We had way too much fun from playing on the beach to exploring the San Diego Zoo to feeling the magic at Disneyland.
Although we did encounter a few setbacks: Emry getting an ear infection the night before we left, kids having to pee on the side of the road every 20 minutes, Braelyn getting strep and missing out on our day at Disneyland, and my iPhone flying off the Matterhorn roller coaster never to be seen again…to name a few.
Perfect company for hanging out in the sand.
These cousins couldn’t get enough of each other. The San Diego Zoo is amazing!
We conquered Disneyland without any kiddos. What?! Guess we’ll have to go back when everyone is healthy.
No wonder it took us forever to drive to San Diego. These two kiddos couldn’t coordinate their bladders at all!
8. Wheelbarrow racing in Aunt Jan’s beautiful backyard. Somehow nicely pushing our kiddos in the wheelbarrow turned into an all out competition between Ben, his uncle Dave, and me to see who could push the kids the fastest. Of course my husband Mr. “Look at Me, I do Crossfit” won, but I was proud of my muscles. Rawr!
You can watch us having the ride of our lives in this video.
9. Weekly walks…umm, runs…to the library for story time. Every week, no fail, we would plan on walking to the library. But, of course, me and my late to everything bad habit always got in the way. We would end up in a dead sprint halfway to the library, in 100 degree plus weather, just trying to make it on time. But it was worth it, every week.
We may have another runner in the family. Check out that stride.
10. Getting Braelyn ready for kindergarten. We had so much fun picking out a backpack, meeting her teacher, and buying a brand new outfit for her very first year of elementary school. Just as we anticipated, she has been rocking kindergarten and loves every second of it…although she does say it’s a lot of work and very tiring. What?! Braelyn worn out??? They must be doing something right over there.
This little diva picked out her outfit and accessories, from her head down to her toes.
Having such a fun summer just makes me even more excited for our fall break. I can’t wait to see what shenanigans we can come up with for those two weeks.
I am so grateful to have this crazy amazing family of mine. Some days are rough, most days are hectic, but all days are filled with love for these peeps in my life. Mwah!
How was your summer vacation? Memorable?
