Rapunzel & Rainbows

Elizabeth and her friend Sadie were playing so cute in the basement earlier this week. Our kids have not played with this screw pattern game in ages, but she and Sadie stayed busy with it for probably 20 minutes straight! And I love that she's wearing her Rapunzel dress-ups!

Today there was a beautiful double rainbow. I wasn't home, but Ryan and the boys enjoyed standing on the porch looking at it for a while.

Friends

Elizabeth and Izzy were so cute playing with Elizabeth's new dolls today! I love that Elizabeth has such a great friend!

Neighborhood Birthday Party

The 4th of July festivities have begun! Today was our annual neighborhood BBQ and party. We always have it on our cul-de-sac, and so my neighbors and I are the ones who get to arrange everything. It is always so fun to see our planning come to life, as everyone shows up and has a great time for a few hours!

We stated off with the bike parade, led by Bro. Lepak on his 4-wheeler.

There were lots of hamburgers, hotdogs, and delicious sides. Later in the evening we had snow cones and mini soft-serve ice cream cones. The kids stayed busy with the bounce house obstacle course, relay games, and water balloons.

best friends Izzy and Elizabeth

As we started the evening, we had a prayer on the food. Right after, before everyone scattered to get their food, Ryan walked up with a HUGE cake and everyone started singing Happy Birthday to me! So I guess they all figured out that I was really planning my own birthday party ;)

As far as the rest of my birthday goes, my main present is the new fireplace. It's not quite done, but the built-in shelves and cabinets were just completed yesterday! I also got a new camera bag that doubles as a purse, which I am SO excited to use for our upcoming Disneyland trip!

Fun with Friends

Last night we had our friends, the Myers, over for dinner. Ryan and I have gotten to know them well through church assignments, and our kids LOVE them both! They are so sweet and playful with the kids. We had a great time after dinner with the games they brought over!

Splashin' Celebration

Yesterday was Izzy's birthday. Izzy is our neighbor and Elizabeth's good friend and is exactly 3 weeks younger than Elizabeth. To celebrate, our family was invited to join the Denneys at Seven Peaks for the morning.


Our family has only ever gone to Seven Peaks on our own, and so it was fun to be at the water park with friends! Thanks, Betsy for being the photographer! And thanks for inviting us . . . we had a great time!


(Benjamin and Nathan were there, too. They were just off on the big slides most of the time and weren't around for pictures.)

B is for . . .

On Wednesday I had the honor of throwing Betsy a baby shower for her new little boy, Beckham. There were two main things I focused on:

1. The Baby Quilt: As soon as I found out they were getting a little boy in their family, I knew I was going to make a baby quilt! I was inspired by a quilt I'd seen online here, and decided to adapt it to boy colors.

I bought the fabric the day Beckham was born (July 1). Luckily, baby quilts come together fairly quickly! I finished it on the 12th -- the night before the shower. It took me forever to pick out the fabrics, but I am happy with how it all came together!



2. The Food: Betsy's friend, Kylie, and I worked together to host the shower. She brought cookies, drinks, and the most delicious peanut butter chocolate rice krispy treats! If you've read any of the blog in the last year, you know that I am totally inspired by the recipes from Our Best Bites. I knew I wanted to use their whipped frosting to make some fun cupcakes. I also found a recipe for fruit salsa and homemade cinnamon chips. The leftovers may or may not have been my entire lunch the next day!



We had a good turnout, and Betsy was able to get a lot of adorable outfits for Beckham! I hope she could feel how much love we all have for her, and how happy we are for her new little boy!



Izzy was able to be here for the shower, and she had a lot of fun:


My boys loved the "after-party" . . . they used all of the tissue paper and bows to play dress-up. Ryan, it was not my idea -- I promise!

Baby Beckham

Our neighbors, the Denney's, welcomed a little miracle into their home just over a week ago. Beckham Michael was born!

We had the chance to watch him for about 15 minutes one day, and we spent the whole time taking turns holding him. Nathan was excited for a turn, and of course Elizabeth wanted a turn as well!


At the time, he was just 5 days old! What a sweet baby!

This Is For Katie and Eric . . .

A few years ago, our wonderful neighbors Katie and Eric initiated/planned a 4th of July neighborhood party. It has now turned into a wonderful tradition that everyone looks forward to each summer. So when we got the news in May that the Myers were moving, our first thought was how much we were going to miss their family -- they are such good people! But our second thought was . . . what about the 4th of July party?!

We knew we had to continue the tradition! I was already plenty busy, but I guess I like to take things on, so I went ahead and started the process to get the party planned. I enlisted the help of Betsy and Janae, and together we got it figured out along with some help from other neighbors.

In past years we've done the party a day or two before the 4th, but this year there were too many conflicts (Stadium of Fire, ward Man Camp), so we decided to do it right on the 4th. We had a lot of fun, but missed some of our neighbors who were off doing things with family!


The kids bike parade:

Just like last year, Joshua was excited to decorate his bike, but then he refused to ride it in the parade. He pouted off to the side. I think he's nervous about keeping up with the big kids.

Thanks, Izzy, for letting Elizabeth ride with you in your wagon!

Nathan and friend Spencer participated on their skates -- with their sticks, of course (insert Mom eye roll)

BBQ dinner:

I should have photo-shopped Ryan into this picture because he spent a lot of time at the grill, too!

Despite my best efforts, I think Elizabeth's meal was more dessert than anything else. This cupcake was not the only sweet thing she grabbed off the table!

Bounce House:


Games:

lining up for the sponge/fill up a bucket relay
Janae had the great idea to get a parachute

3-legged race

We also did a water balloon fight again this year, but I didn't get any pictures of that


Treats:

Everyone LOVES the soft-serve mini ice cream cones!

Snow cones were also very popular. I remember what I learned from serving them last year, and my hands were not as stained this year!

This year our neighborhood fell into a fireworks-restricted zone. We were sad that we couldn't end the night with fireworks, but other than that it was a great evening! THANK YOU, Eric and Katie, for the legacy of fun and neighborhood spirit that you have left! We miss you. You are welcome to come back anytime!