On Anniversaries, Checkups, and Pyrotechnics

July is nearly over, with nary a blog post from me. Oops.

4 We started out the month with a visit from Jared's sister, Emily, and her family. We had a great time hanging out with the Swanson crew. (I don't think I saw Henry without a cape for a single second. . .you can see him in the second photo below sporting his latest acquisition). We played at Liberty Park, camped out at Mt. Timpanogos*, and had our traditional 4th of July celebration on what used to be the family farm. Thanks to the Utah State Legislature, this year's fireworks display was the best we've had to date.

Jay thought he'd save a little time and light sparklers for all of the grandkids at once. Once the first sparkler caught on, though, we quickly abandoned the idea!

"Yay, America!"

*Well, not all of us. I may be a PWC (Person Who Camps), but I prefer not to take my chances with a baby who still wakes umpteen times a night. So I sent the girls with Jared, and Ben and I enjoyed a quiet evening at home. :)

16 Yet again, we failed to celebrate our anniversary in the traditional way. Aaron and Joni were blessing their new little guy Noah that weekend, so instead of the standard dinner-and-a-show, we packed up the kids and headed out to Vernal to pay a visit. We spent the evening of our anniversary making sandcastles with the kids at Steinaker Reservoir. Back at the hotel, we all piled together in the "sitting area" of our "suite", where we watched a documentary on candy-making and I ate far more Red Vines than was prudent.

The girls were having way too much fun to look up at the camera.

Actually, as anniversaries go, it was pretty awesome. That night, after I'd bathed and jammied the kids and we were all just hanging out, I was struck by the notion that THIS was really what our wedding day had been: the first step on the road to creating this funny, wonderful, sometimes exasperating little collection of individuals we call a family.




21 July also brought checkups--a little late--for Anna and Ben. Jared and I had both noticed that Anna is feeling a lot more "solid" these days, and lo and behold, she's gained SIX POUNDS since her last weight check right before her tonsillectomy. That's a pretty substantial gain, especially if you consider her tonsils probably weighed a pound each!

Not to be outdone, Ben has also been packing on the pounds and is teetering right at the 20 pound mark. My arms have never looked so buff.

Ben and Yvette chilling in the play pen.
Yvey is no lightweight herself, but next to Ben she looks positively dainty.

24 We celebrated Pioneer Day with the Eppersons, with a barbecue and Cul De Sac of Fire. I especially had fun snapping pics of the girls with their sparklers.



It was the only time that they held still enough for pictures; the rest of the night I had to content myself with some snaps of the as-yet-mostly-immobile babies.



And that brings us to the end of July. Elizabeth is beside herself with excitement waiting for first grade, and Anna is eager for preschool to start, too. I imagine Ben will miss his sisters while they're at school, although I doubt he'll miss having to live in his car seat the way he has this summer as we run from place to place. I'm sure Jared will welcome the slightly cooler temperatures of August as he toils away on the yardwork. And as much as I've loved having the girls home with me all summer, I'm looking forward to the structure and routine that the school year brings. Maybe I'll even find time to write a few blog posts!