Summer Time

This post is a bunch of stuff that I have been meaning to post over the past two weeks, and just haven't yet. So here it is:

Our Girls
I love Luci! She is my big helper. If you need your bathroom cleaned she is the person to call. Every time I clean the bathrooms she is right by my side helping me out. I'm thinking pretty soon I'll just let her take over :).
Since Clara was born she has started to play with her dolls a lot more. She has three dolls that are all named Clara Brielle Dimond. When I'm nursing Clara she nurses her doll, when I'm changing Clara's diaper she changes her dolls diapers . . .
I made her a nursing cover and changing mat for her doll so she can do things just like me. She's always talking about being a Mom and a Grandma. She talks like it's just around the corner. Kind of makes me sad when she does. She even has a boy in our ward who she plans on marrying.


Clara is getting funner and funner the older she gets. I sometimes get caught in a sad moment as I realize how quickly she is growing up. Thinking about how many fun stages lie ahead helps dispel most of that sadness though.
She is a very happy girl, always smiling and laughing. If you need a smile, she will give you one. Over the past month she has been sleeping through the night (knock on wood). She is grabbing at things and starting to play with toys. She is also going through a phase where she sticks out her tongue all of the time. I love my baby!


She is wearing size three to six months clothes now. I love getting out the bigger clothes and reminiscing about the times that Luci fit into them! I hate putting the smaller clothes away and realizing she'll never fit into them again! Oh well, I guess that's life.



Fathers Day
"Mimicry is the sincerest form of flattery" Luci loves her Dad so much, and what better way to show it then to change her clothes to match her Dad. Kirk is a great Dad! One of the bests things in life is seeing how much he loves our daughter. I couldn't ask for a better Father to my children.


I'm also blessed with a great Dad. He's always tried hard to be there for me, even for the little things. I remember when I was five or six being devastated after losing another race to get my pajamas on. My Dad came in to comfort me, and taught me a trick I've never forgotten. He told me not to check how far along my siblings were in getting their pajamas on and I'd win. The next night I used that trick and I won the race! Thanks Dad!

Garden
Our Garden is doing great! We have peas, carrots, lettuce, corn, peppers, tomatoes, basil, cilantro, strawberries, yellow squash, zucchini, cucumbers, and onions. We've already harvested strawberries, lettuce, zucchini, and did I say lettuce? We have tons of lettuce if anyone wants some.
There is something satisfying about eating food you have worked so hard to grow.



There are horses right by our garden plot and Luci loves to feed them every time we leave.
Vacation
My sister Michelle just graduated from high school and my parents took her on a trip to NY to celebrate. Since that is close to us, we got to meet up with them for part of the trip.

On our drive up to New York we stopped at Watkins Glen, a state park featuring 19 waterfalls. We went on a two mile hike to see all of the waterfalls, then hit the road again.


Clara hates this sling unless she is facing forward. Even then she will only tolerate it for a short time. Luckily she fell asleep early on and slept through the rest of the hike.


We met my parents and sister in Palmyra. We got to see the Sacred Grove, the Peter Whitmer Farm, the Hill Cumorah, and the print shop where the Book of Mormon was first printed. They were all very neat, but my favorite was the Sacred Grove. I can't think of a better way to describe it then the song "bees were humming, sweet birds sing, music ringing through the grove".
I am so grateful for Joseph Smith. I know the church is true!


This is the Alvin Smith tree, planted in his memory after his death.






After Palmyra we headed up to Canada to see Niagara Falls. I must say that these wateralls put the ones we saw earlier to shame! We went on the Maid of the Mist boat ride and took the Journey behind the falls. It was a lot of fun.










After Niagara Falls we said good bye to my parents and took Michelle home with us. I'd like to say she stayed a long time, but she could only stay a few more nights. Oh well, it was fun having her. It was great seeing my family, but so hard to say goodbye again.
Good news though, me and my girls are coming back to Utah to visit at the end of August. My sister Nicole found us a good deal, I'm so excited! I'm nervous to fly by myself with two kids though.