Happy Father's Day!

I asked Mike what he would like me to make for Father's Day dinner. He said, "I want to do the cooking." Man, he really doesn't trust me! Actually he just likes to cook. Pretty sweet deal for me. He made chicken, steak and shrimp kabobs. We gave Mike an underwater camera, but technically his present was a bag for his lawnmower he got a few months ago....but that seemed kind of boring.

The kids sang in church again. Jorja told Preston she would give him a quarter if he used the stairs. I was up on the stand helping the kids. Preston looked like he couldn't decide what he should do. I picked him up and carried him with me. He didn't like that AT ALL, so I put him down. He ended up jumping down the stairs, which was better than climbing over the edge. We need to have a family home evening lesson on reverence - again. We decided that after we watched Stockton get out of the chapel by jumping over a few pews. He was really fast, but dang it . . . why do they do these things?

Mike finished the day by having a banana split, playing Age of Mythology with Maysen then watching The Amazing Race....season 15 I think. Mike got a call from Jerome tonight. He was playing Pirates with his boys and they were making up a speed play version. It sounded really interesting, Mike and I will have to try it that way because sometimes you just aren't in the mood to sit down for an hour and a half!

Fire Pit

Mike was a monster worker today. He cleaned and organized almost all of the garage. We still had a lot of things from moving, so it was a ton! He also made a cool fire pit in the backyard. We enjoyed some afternoon smores.

Stephanie and the new fire pit!

Preston...seriously, what could be wrong?

Preston and Jorja had fun playing in the tree in the front yard. They were out there quite awhile. The only problem was Preston needed help getting into/out of the tree. He would want in....5 minutes later he would want out....3 minutes later back in..... Finally we were done with the tree.

Preston

Jorja & Preston

We called Bubs & Ange and asked if they would want our swimming pool we had in Georgia, and Preston's old car seat. They were all for that. Ange said they would pick it up today. We told them to make sure they brought their swim suits! Ange also brought dinner. Yummy meatball sandwiches with homemade bread. Swimming was fun, but I think the highlight was the inflatable fish Mike bought. I wish a had a picture of Abbs in it. She was so cute! Ella too. They LOVED it!

Abigail & Angela

BUBS! Lincoln is already preparing for the splash.

Good idea Lincoln!

This is the only picture with Ella for some reason.

Bubs, Steph, Preston, Lincoln, Ella

I never got a picture of Maysen, but she was there swimming away with us....and enjoying it! Mike was there too....he was behind the camera.

Jorja

Lincoln

Stockton

What a great life!

After swimming we had dinner by the fire pit. Awesome. Then a wiffle ball game. Stockton loved it. Both Stockton & Jorja were very good....considering they have never really played before.

When it was time for Bubs & Ange to go, we were trying out Abigail in the carseat. Preston didn't like that at all! He was crying that it was his carseat. He hasn't even used it since December. It is a really nice one. Mike got Preston's mind off of it by having Preston help him put lights in his carseat. His came with reading lights you can push on, but we haven't ever gotten around to adding the batteries.

We had a great night and are already planning on having a sleepover next week!

Back From Oakcrest

Maysen came back from Oakcrest today. She did not have a good experience. Bummer. We moved here about the time sign-ups were, so she didn't have anyone to sign up with.....didn't know anyone yet. Her cousin Erica had a good experience when she didn't sign up with anyone. Too bad it didn't work out the same for Maysen. She said about five girls (out of 10...one being Maysen) were quite rude. They talked about things that made Maysen feel really uncomfortable. She said she felt awkward and didn't want to listen to what they were saying. It was a lot better when her counselor was around, but when she wasn't Maysen spent a lot of time standing outside the cabin. Made me sad to think of her alone like that. I was hoping this would be a wonderful experience for her. She did like her counselor a lot. Her name was Astro. That was who she mostly hung around. I'm glad she at least had that. Maysen enjoyed the crafts and archery and even shot a bulls-eye! She said they made scones around the campfire but they weren't as good as Grandpa Millburn's scones. Anyway we are thrilled to have Maysen back with us. I hope she has a better experience when she goes to our stake girls camp in July!

Don't Panic

First, we were e-mailed the results from the swim meet yesterday. Jorja placed 5th (out of 10) in the backstroke with 31.33! That was her best! She also placed 9th (out of 12) in 25 m freestyle with 34.97 and 3rd (out of 4) in the 50 m freestyle with 1:22.02. She did two relays. The first was a medley and she did the backstroke but her team got disqualified. Not because of her! Yay! Swimmer #2 hands were brought beyond the hipline during stroke. (I'm not sure what that means, but I get it is bad.....the swimmer is only 7.) Her second relay they placed 2nd (out of 3) with 2:30.81. Jorja was the first swimmer and did really well. She hit the wall about the same time as the first place team. The second swimmer was a cute little six year old. She kind of got behind, but seriously SIX years old! I think that is quite cool.

Stockton scored a 106.10 at his diving meet. He is excited because he will most likely be able to go to district. You need to compete in three meets - done. The coach can only take three divers from each division. He is going to take those with the highest scores. Stockton has placed first in all three meets, so I'm pretty sure he will make it.

Jordyn asked a question about Tyki. (I discovered how he spells his name.) I'm not sure how old he is, but he was competing in the 15-17 year old category. He also got disqualified for his super slow race. It said DQ delay of meet - misc. Still makes me laugh. I was laughing when I was looking at the results posted at the pool. A 10 year old girl heard me talking to Jorja about it. She said, "I was so mad! That was so rude!" I just laughed and said, "I thought it was pretty funny and was very glad it wasn't my kid."

Tonight we played in the pool! It was so warm! Mike's pool cleaning robot broke and he has to send it in to be fixed. As a result our pool isn't as clean as usual. Man that robot does a great job. Preston, Jorja, Mike and I played. Preston is completely crazy now. He absolutely loves the pool. He is getting better at swimming, but has a LONG way to go. I was talking to him about how he shouldn't panic if he was in trouble in the water. He needs to kick until he is at the surface or the side, but don't panic. Preston then went over to the diving board where I was going to catch him, but he slipped and went off the side of the board. I dove for him so fast, but it was just a bit until I could get there. Preston did great. When I got to him he said, "Mom, I didn't panic." Seriously this was thirty seconds after our talk. Preston enjoyed swimming from Mike to me and back again. He did that for a long time. He would say, "I'm done now, no one more time" over and over. Preston thinks his goggles are magic and make him swim. I loved sitting on the bottom of the pool and watching him dive down to me. Pretty fun life we have if I do say so myself.

Tiki

Stockton and Jorja had another swim/dive meet today. This time is was at our pool, so that was nice. Stockton placed first. When Stockton finished, Mike said he would get Jorja. I was helping score. I told him she would be at achievement days or walking up to the pool. Fifteen minutes later Mike came back in a panic saying he couldn't find her anywhere. Great. Come to find out, Mike didn't realize I told him she was at achievement days, so he was looking in our house. I was so relieved! I went and picked her up and took her straight to the pool. She was swimming in the first event and got there just in time. She didn't get a chance to warm up, but at least she made it! She swam the backstroke in the relay, 25 free, 50 free (her first time....she was tired!), 25 back and a freestyle relay. She did great and should sleep well tonight!

There was this boy on the other team named Tiki, or something like that. He reminded me SO MUCH of Stockton. On one of the events when he jumped in he did a flip. His coach was MAD! We were sitting by him and he was complaining to his friends. "She gets mad at me no matter what I do....I have to get into the pool anyway, I might as well get style points....If she is mad at me for this she is going to kill me for what I'm about to do." What was he about to do? He ended up being the only one in his event. It was a 100 IM. He jumped in with a belly flop and then proceeded to swim as slow as possible. His goal was to swim in 10 minutes. He was slapping the water on the breast stroke, going as slow as possible on the back stroke and the butterfly, on the freestyle he was swimming like crazy - really slapping the water but going no where. I was laughing so hard. Man did his coach let him have it for about five minutes by the fence. Although for 20 minutes after that he was surrounded by about ten boys who thought he was the coolest thing ever. Anyways, he made me laugh - and I was sure glad it wasn't Stockton who was pulling those shenanigans!

My Three Wishes

1. I wish we had a house like our old house.

2. I wish I could have a cat.

3. I wish I had lots and lots of pet frogs.

--Jorja

Swim. Dive. Swim

Maysen left for Oakcrest this morning. Hard for me to believe that I have a daughter old enough to go to Oakcrest. I hope she is having a wonderful time.

I took Preston to his swimming lessons today. I started him in pre-level 3. He was in pre-level 1, but I skipped 2. Not because I didn't want him to take the second level, I skipped him because I couldn't get him in the class. It filled up too fast, so I just put him in this level. His teacher wasn't very happy about that. Oh well. After I picked up Jorja from swim lessons we all went in the pool. Preston has been too afraid to go in our pool without his life jacket on. Today I told him that his teacher wanted him to work on a few things. Holy cow did things change in an instant! Preston was nuts! He now is no longer scared of the water. Which is a good thing, but a bad thing. Now he thinks he can swim. He would barely let me hold onto him. He loved swimming from Mike to me and back to Mike. He would say, "1,2,3" and then swim. He would barely get his breath before he would do it again. I finally had to make him get out of the pool because he was shivering and his lips looked a little blue. I am very proud of how hard he worked today and how brave he was to overcome this fear. I am excited for the day he can swim by himself so I won't have to worry about the pool in the backyard.

Stockton had a diving competition today. He took first and was quite proud. He did have to stay for the swim competition. It was in Salt Lake. Mike was on call, so there was nothing he could do about it. He was quite bored toward the end. The rain delay didn't help. Jorja swam the freestyle and backstroke. She did AMAZING! She beat her freestyle time by 4 seconds. She beat her backstroke time by 8 seconds! She swam her backstroke faster than her freestyle! I think her times were 34 on freestyle and 32 on backstroke. After the first competition they e-mailed the scores. I hope they do that again. Great job Porge! You were fantastic today!

Light Bulb

Maysen did the lesson for Family Home Evening tonight. She put the light bulb in a glass of water, but it in the microwave for 10 seconds. She talked about being a light to the world. The kids were impressed that the light bulb lit up. Nice.

Preston is still crying. Stockton & Jorja were both in the room with him when he went to sleep. I guess he drove them both crazy because they both left and are sleeping in other rooms. Well, I guess Stockton isn't asleep because he is looking over my shoulder right now. Anyway, I was talking to Preston and he said, "I'm glad I'm not a girl because then I would have to use conditioner." Yep, that is the worst part of being a girl.

Eric, Eden and Ella

Eric, Eden, Ella was written on my calendar today. I don't know why I thought that was funny, but I did. I started my day by going to Eric's baptism. It was great! I'm glad I was able to make it up there. Eric is my cousin Heather's oldest child. On the way back I decided to stop by my grandma's and make sure she is doing okay. When I walked in the door I got a wonderful surprise! One of my favorite people was there. Nice. We helped my grandma & Aunt Gayle who is staying with my grandma. Aunt Gayle has a cat that is driving grandma crazy. It is pretty funny. For me. Especially since the cat that was staying at our house just went home.

When I got home I had just enough time to get Jorja ready for Eden. She was coming over to give a swim lesson to Jorja and her friend Ashley. Then on to Ella's birthday party! Ella wanted a peep cake, so Ange had been saving peeps to use. I was quite impressed that Ange could throw anything together when they just got back from camping! Anyway, thanks for inviting us Bubs & Ange . . . and thanks Ella for having a birthday! You are a beautiful FOUR year old!

Happy birthday Ella!

Lagoon in June

Last night we camped at Lagoon with Bubs & Ange. It was fun, but freezing! Preston & Jorja squeezed into mine & Mike's sleeping bag. Mike was kicked out. He tried to sleep in my old snuggie we brought for Preston, then ended up sleeping in Jorja's sleeping bag. (She had her sleeping bag inside ours, so I slid her out of it and gave it to Mike.) He was so cold and could not straighten his legs all night. It was a pretty long night for him.

This morning we walked to Lagoon. My family has a reunion there every year. I love it. We haven't been able to go for four years. Finally we can go again! It was great and the weather was perfect. Preston had a great time. We rode the rides you get wet on in our swimming suits. (Rattlesnake Rapids and the Dishwasher a.k.a. Cliffhanger) Lagoon-a-Beach was the most freezing I could ever remember. Water like ice. We only lasted one waterslide. Luckily I was the one who was watching Preston, so I didn't last even one. Preston went down three kiddie slides, one that had a giant freezing waterfall he had to go through. He was so cold!

Stockton loved going on the scary rides again. He rode Wicked and Colossus twice. (Once he rode Colossus by himself.) There was not one scary ride he turned down. Bubs got Lincoln to go on Wicked. Now that's crazy! My kids did really well today, but they had no desire to wait in lines after spoiling them last week. Many of the rides were declared not worth the wait. Preston really wanted to ride the merry-go-round . . . . specifically the one puppy on the merry-go-round. We ended up being first in line, then some people got off the ride because they said they couldn't find a seat. So, three little kids and two adults ended up in front of us. As soon as we could get on, we raced to the puppy, but it was already taken. Preston didn't like that. He was crying thick tears. I asked the lady if we could wait until next time so he could ride the puppy. Luckily she was okay with that. Preston got on the puppy and petted him the entire ride.

I love being with my family. It was awesome to see Grandma Parry there! (and grandpa too!) We were hoping they would spend the night at our house, but grandma wasn't feeling too well, so they went back to Idaho in the evening. Mike & I took a lot of pictures during the day, but judging by the outcome you would think it was only us and Bubs' family at Lagoon. We did have a really great time and love having such a fun place to see my family. (Plus I think it's a pretty sweet way for Bubs & Ange to spend their anniversary!)

Jorja

Preston, Jorja, Maysen

Maysen & Ella

Jorja & Preston

Maysen & Ella

Jorja & Preston

Jorja

Stockton & Ella

Ella

Preston

Stockton! Love this one!

Preston

Lincoln

Ella & Preston

Abbs

Ella & Preston

Abbs

Ella & Preston

Lincoln, Preston & Ella

Preston

Lincoln & Preston

Of all the pictures we took, I was really excited when Mike showed me these. They reminded me so much of pictures from ten years ago. Maysen has told me several times this is her earliest memory. I love it!

Jorja & Preston ~ 2011

Stockton & Maysen ~ 2001

In conclusion: I love Lagoon. I love Lagoon with my family and I love Lagoon with no lines. If only we could combine those two, that would truly be magical! Thanks to all my family for continuing this tradition . . and thanks to the weather for being great!

Almost Family Photo

Mike's work e-mailed this photo they took of our family at Lagoon day on Friday.

Mike, Stephanie

Jorja, Stockton, Maysen

We also received an e-mail that Stockton placed FIRST in his diving competition on Monday. Way to go Stockton!

2nd Grade is Finally Over!

Jorja had the LONGEST year this year! She started 2nd grade August 5th and finally had her last day today. Jorja has grown up a ton this year. She looks so much older. Maybe because of all the transitions she dealt with. Here are a few of the changes: Started school in Georgia, ended in Utah. Started in English, ended in a Chinese Immersion program. Started with braces, ended without braces. Started with bangs, ended with long/no bang hair . . . okay so the last two had to do with her looks, but she really has become quite beautiful. I was so excited for her to finally end school. She has worked so hard. I was also anxious because the other kids finished a week and a half ago. This has been a great, long/hard year. I'm glad it's over! I'm glad we were able to move to Utah, even though we miss our friends in Georgia. I'm glad Jorja was able to get in the Chinese Immersion program and that she has worked so hard! Congratulations Jorja! I love you!

Jorja & Mrs. Trombino ~ 1st day of 2nd grade

Jorja ~ last day of 2nd grade

Jorja & Talon . . . the cat is going back tomorrow!

Doans

Today we tried again for Maysen and Stockton to be tested by the district. We had an appointment for noon. When we arrived we were told we would need to reschedule again. Annoying. Stockton and Maysen were very broken up about it.

The rest of the day was spent getting ready for the Doans! I was SO EXCITED to see them! Ethan is going into the MTC tomorrow. We had a delicious dinner of ribs, corn on the cob, corn bread, lemonade, pineapple, watermelon and apple pie. I think I'll be full for a week! It was fun to hear about Georgia and everything that had been going on since we left. Mike also showed them a little of the commercial he was working on. They spent hours helping Mike with it before we left. Mike doesn't have it nearly finished, but they were laughing their heads off. I am so happy they came to see us while they were here!

Elder Ethan Doan, Shannan, Rick

When I was putting Stockton to bed tonight he said, "The only thing I can think of that will be good about going back to school is pizza every Monday. I can't think of one more good thing." I said, "What are you not looking forward to?" Quick as a wink he rattled off, "Don't get out early, walk single file, girls get to go first in everything, fire drills, tornado drills." I started laughing and told him there will be no tornado drills . . . but there will be earthquake drills. Maysen came up with "starting on time, listening to announcements and she will have to 'socialize'." Stockton then added, "a ton of text books in a crammed desk, go to and from school, homework, and cut & paste worksheets . . . I HATE gluing!"

I also told Preston that I was going to homeschool him next year. His reaction was, "What? No!" I told him it would be fun things like gluing marshmallows on the letter A. He laughed and then said that over and over. Then he said, "Gluing marshmallows on the letter B. Gluing marshmallows on the letter C . . . . I think you get the picture. I am going to miss the kids, but it will be nice to give Preston attention this next year. He kind of got pushed to the side a lot, so I'm looking forward to focusing on him.