Peyton's Six!

Peyton turned six on July 13th and we celebrated her special day at Lagoon with cousins. It was such a fun day! We started at Lagoon-a-Beach and ended with lots of rides. At only 45 inches, she missed out on riding most of the "big" rides because of the 46 inch minimum height requirement. But she managed to have a great time anyway. One of the last rides of the night was a little kid roller coaster. She came off of it bouncing up and down and yelling, "That was SO much fun!" She rode it two more times and it was a joy to see her happy face! It's hard to believe she starts 1st grade in just a few weeks. We're so grateful this beautiful girl is a part of our family.

Summer Fun

I am SO behind on blogging and there is a lot to catch up on! Where should I start?? Hmmm...

Washington
The girls and I were in Washington in June for my nephew's graduation. It was so much fun being with family again. How I wish I could convince my husband to stay in Washington! While there we were able to go to the Hands On Children's Museum with Lannette, Seth and Soren. I can't believe I haven't taken the girls there before. It was lots of fun!



Annalyce had a major spill while riding scooters with Seth, Soren and Peyton. She attempted to sit on the scooter and ride it down a hill. She was scraped on her hands, knees, elbows and face.



Our Anniversary
We got home just in time for Father's Day and our 12th Anniversary. It was a great day and we enjoyed celebrating daddy! Jeremiah surprised me with a new bicycle! I was very excited!



We had talked a lot about going on family bike rides, there were only two things stopping us. I didn't have a bike and Peyton didn't know how to ride a two-wheeler. With one obstacle out of the way, thank you Jeremiah, it was time for Peyton to learn to ride.



July 4th
We joined friends for the Stadium of Fire this year at BYU LaVell Edwards Stadium. It was SO much fun! We enjoyed great entertainment, fireworks, and time with friends! Carrie Underwood was fabulous, fabulous, fabulous!




Of course we enjoyed fireworks with the girls on the 4th and had a lot of fun goofing off together. We took several silly pictures, here are just a few ... I chose not to scare you with the silly ones of Jeremiah and I. They are seriously bad!



Cousins
Last week we had cousins here visiting from Washington. It was so much fun to have them here. The men went golfing while Melanie and I we stayed home with the kids so they could play. We took them all swimming and they had so much fun!



We spent Tuesday, July 13th at Lagoon and celebrated Peyton's 6th birthday (post coming soon). It was an absolute blast!

It's been a busy summer so far and we have had so much fun together. We've missed having vacation with daddy, but look forward to a weekend in Vegas with him (and grandma/grandpa Leuck in August).

Happy 12th Anniversary My Love

Happiness, can't be defined...
Its a certain mood,
A state of mind,
Its sharing everyday affairs,
With one,
Who understands and cares.
Its a tender look,
Or a gentle touch,
That says,
I love you very much.
Its a smile of comfort,
When your blue,
A hope that's shared,
A dream for two...
And happiness
Is more than this,
It's a warm embrace,
And a gentle kiss.
Its a special blessing,
From above
Its what you have,
When your in love!

I've been happy since the day I met you Jeremiah. Thank you for asking me to share your life. I love you!

T-ball - The Pink Panthers

Peyton started T-ball this month and absolutely loves it! She was so excited to find out that her BFF Kami was on her team too! It's a pretty simple team as it's all about introducing the kids to the sport. There is no score and they play for an hour total. Peyton's doing pretty well, she can hit the ball off the tee and has a good arm. It's a lot of fun watching her try something new and enjoy it!

Stewart Falls Hike

When we learned we were moving to Utah, we decided the biggest perk would be the hiking and camping opportunities. The Utah landscape and scenery is absolutely beautiful and we have always wanted the girls to gain an appreciation for our Heavenly Father's creations. So, on Memorial Day we took the girls on another hike (our first was in September to Three Forks Canyon, which I now realize I completely forgot to post).

I found this great site that lists hiking locations across Utah organized by destination and difficulty that we used September. We chose Stewart Falls (a four mile hike), packed a lunch, filled our camelbaks (the girls were thrilled with their own, purchased in Washington last week), and headed up the canyon. It was a bit crazy (with lots of people on the trail and at the falls), but we enjoyed ourselves and came back pretty exhausted.

Kindergarten Graduation

I am amazed how fast this year has passed! Peyton graduated from Kindergarten on May 20th and we enjoyed a cute performance about the things they learned this year. Peyton's line part: "We'd like now to share some things that we know." She is such a confident little girl and is thrilled to be starting 1st grade next year for several reasons, but most of all because she can finally eat lunch at school and ride the bus with her sister to and from school. It was so much fun volunteering in her classroom and seeing her in action. She makes friends easily and gets along with everyone. She follows directions well and has learned so much this year. She is reading and writing such fun little stories. I have enjoyed watching her grow and look forward to the many discoveries 1st grade has to offer!



Peyton and her teacher, Mrs. Bergera


Peyton, Annalyce, and Kami (her best friend)


I love how sweet this photo is and the beautiful rays of sunshine.

Friends

We held a memorial service for Erika in Olympia yesterday. In January she and I were traveling to Washington together for our grandfather's memorial services when Friends by Michael W. Smith came on the radio. Immediately the song took on new meaning as we listened to it with Erika's situation in mind. She asked that it be played at her services when she passed away. So I thought I would put it into a video with pictures of her with the people she loved. I love and miss her terribly, but am so grateful she is no longer in pain. I'm also very thankful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ and knowledge that I will see her again, whole and happy.