special event

(Aleyah Jai, Will, Eli, Jacie Jade)

Whew. Life is crazy! I've neglected to update the blog in a couple weeks because we've been very busy..... aren't we always busy?? When is life going to slow down? I'm hoping for some slower paced days once school starts. Speaking of school..... how is it possible that my baby Will is starting Kindergarten? Ahhhh, this all so new to me, it's a little surreal and a little scary. I'm trying to soak up every moment I can with my little buddy before he heads out into the big bad world! :) I know, I'm dramatic, but this is serious stuff here.

Meanwhile, we've moved into our own place, which is glorious. It has been like Christmas unpacking my boxes and remember all my OWN things. It's also been interesting going through things thinking "why did I pack and store this for NINE months?" or "why do I have this, I've lived without it for NINE months." Nothing comes out of storage the same, I'll tell you that. Especially when you store it through Fall, Winter, AND Summer.... it gets a little hammered. But things are coming together nicely and we are loving the new place, the space, the swimming pool!, and not having to live out of our suitcases or be "guests" in someone else's house. Will misses his cousins more than i thought he would and begs almost every day to go visit them. School will be a blessing for that reason alone. Our ward is great, HUGE (600+) people, but seems friendly and welcoming.

We also took a little trip up to our dear friends (or family, since we think of them like family) home to celebrate a special 5 year old birthday. Everytime we see or talk to Del and Cheryl, we feel so blessed and grateful for our connection. It was so fun to get the kids together and they had a blast. Will and Aleyah are both starting kindergarten and they had a lot of fun together. Eli was a ham, as usual, and kept us laughing all afternoon. The boys LOVE Del and Cheryl and always feel so welcomed and spoiled at their house. We had a great time.
Look at these beautiful kids. Such special little spirits and an amazing story they have, each one of them! Plus, I LOVE Eli's cheesy smile, it's the BEST.
Playing with the camera. Eli thinks it is pretty hilarious when you take a picture up close to him and the flash goes off, he was laughing hysterically.

My cute Will. What an irresistible face that is!

(Top row: Kara, Scott, Del, Cheryl
Bottom Row: Aleyah Jai, Jacie Jade, Ryan- Del and Cheryl's older son, Eli, and Will)

We were finally able to get a family picture of us all. Del and Cheryl are amazing people and every time I'm around them I feel uplifted, and happy, and I can tell they are great parents and so loving and kind. I respect them a lot, and hope that I can be half the mother Cheryl is.

Summer is winding down. We have registered for school, have almost all our school shopping done, and have had our dr. visit and immunizations. Now we are trying to soak up these last few days of Summer, spend time at the pool, drink snow cones, and relax. It's great, and somehow still manages to seem busy! Maybe I'll get around to decorating our new place and I'll post some pictures!