Our summer break is nearly over. DH has taken our older kids on a Daddy Trip to California. I finally sorted all the mail, added all the back to school stuff to my calendar, got some scheduling changes made for two of the middle schooler's, worked on setting some fall goals and setting up a routine and making assignments, and now I sit down to spend a bit of time on this neglected blog.
This year will the last year with all of my kids living under one roof. It's hitting me a little hard to realize how fast the years pass but how slow the days. I'm grateful for the chance I have to document in words and photos the beautiful, crazy, intense, relaxed, playful, hard work of it all.
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| Benji is the center of attention, as always! |
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| "Don't take my picture!" |
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| This lovely woman lives across the street from me. She treats my kids as if they were her grandkids and is always telling me I'm a great mom. She's easy to love! On this day, she ended up with 6 girls from the neighborhood at her house baking and decorating cookies. No wonder they all adore her. |
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| Best friends |
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| Love that face! |
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| Our neighbors found a stray male rabbit hanging around their semi-wild females. For obvious reasons, they wanted a different home for the male. We seem to have a habit of acquiring hand-me-down animals right around the twins' birthday. Sarah named him Horace and he is a sweet little thing. Happy Birthday, Allison and Sarah! |
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| The five older kids volunteered at the Colonial Days festival. Allison enjoyed demonstrating how to twist rope. |
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| Hanging out |
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| Harmony wrote a book |
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| My two helpers, scouting out locations right before an extended family photo shoot |
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| This is my desktop background right now. I love it. |
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| That weekend when my brother and his wife and eight kids came to visit from Texas |
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| Joey on TV, take two -- this time, he showed off one of his favorite top secret mountain creeks. |
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| My brother's family |
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| Breanna was our horseback riding teacher before she went to Mexico on a mission for our Church. I was thrilled to do her bridals two days before her wedding. I think we even managed to keep her dress pretty clean! More from her session here. |
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| Stake Picnic |
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| At a family reunion |
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| I love my in-laws! |
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| I forgot to take a photo on this day, so you'll have to put up with one of Joey's. In between life-guarding, he's gotten in as much fishing as possible. |
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| Home from a birthday party |
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| Did I mention Benji is the center of everything around here? |
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| Sunday dinners are always yummy, usually cooked by DH and Lillian |
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| He's a year old! |
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| Playing games in the backyard |
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| Swimming |
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| Best friends. These two melt my heart all the time. Both are full to the brim of sweetness! |
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| Joey insisted on waking Benji up early in the morning for some last-minute snuggles before he headed off to New York for a month (he's off at a leadership camp he got into). There is nothing so wonderful as a teenage boy in love with his baby brother. |
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| Sweet baptism day for our friends. |
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