the 4th of July!

What would the Fourth be without a firework burn?- she survived though!
This was Emmy's first REAL 4th of July~
In that, she was in the USA and was old enough to enjoy in the festivities anyways~ we didn't have a TV set up yet- so sadly I missed The Capital Fourth- this is something that I even watched in Dominica- so I really was sad- but- we got to play with fireworks as a family instead--it reminded me of my childhood at the cottage with my grandfather lighting firecrackers over the lake--- ahh those were the good old days.

this time was not quite as charming as my childhood memories of the cottage- as we were in a little bit ghetto of an apartment complex parking lot-- but it was so fun because it was in South Carolina- our temporary home and we were together- and in America- who cares that it was drizzling?
Here are the pyros-- please note that Jason's face is by FAR the most excited- he was delighted about the fireworks laws here in SC- and said that 1/2 of the ones we lit were illegal in Cali. We had a few scares like when J forget that Roman Candles do indeed shoot out and far (not a great plan to angle towards the trees) but it was a VERY fun time- the girls loved it, J loved it and as anyone who is reading this blog knows- I LOVE AMERICA and feel so blessed to be here-God bless it!

Bumbo Baby Girl

I know that I have 1 million posts to catch up on-- but instead I have to gush about this baby!
This face... ah!
When I make dinner Elle Belle helps out...
I like to cook anyways~
but when THIS is what I get to enjoy while cooking- life couldn't be better. She is quite literally the cutest little thing alive and I adore her. She makes my life happy.

An ODE to Grandpa Larry and Grandma Diana.

Ellie Dell got to meet her Grandpa Larry and Grandma Diana- she adored both of them from the start.

It was such a blessing to be able to spend time together.

So cute. Our time with Grandpa was a blast- we all are so excited to be closer and hope to be able to make it up to them more often now that we will be only hours away by car!

Somehow- in all of my picture taking (and I took a LOT of pictures) this is the only picture I got of Diana- I am LIVID right now- but all I can say is that there could not have been a more gracious host, better cook, or kinder Grandmother. We all had the time of our lives and felt very very loved. THANK YOU to our California family for making our trip such a special time! Here are about 10000 posts of what we did in Cali- enjoy!

the Prophet said to plant a garden~

So that's what they did! It now is producing and Jason is VERY proud of that fact.

Some MUCH needed Kaley and Cami time!

Elles got to meet her Aunt KK- hooray for Aunt KK! (and Cami too- she loved him- but threw up on him the first time her held her-- just like Ellie to make the moment memorable!)

Emmy really is in love with "Cami" as she calls him.

"KK is my best friend" was a phrase very often heard on our Cali trip ;)

We had SUCH fun getting some much needed KK and Cami time ;)

Aunt Yo Yo and Stanley Koontz's table...

Jason's Grandfather made this table- I immediately loved it before I even knew that.

Aunt Yo Yo and Uncle Sean- what a fun littlw treat to get to see them in Cali too!

The one of a kind design- I just thought it was so cool that Jason's Grandfather left something so creative behind~ I had to capture in on film ;)

love it.

"The Reel" Deal.

Yes! While In Cali- we FINALLY got to see Uncle Cameron perform with his band The Reel (please look it up- I don't know how to do the cool link thing) they were performing to benefit an incredible cause called Courage House- again- please look up...

Emmy LOVED LOVED when Uncle Cami sang- she danced and sang the whole time and still asks if we can go see Cami sing again- she is his #1 fan.

Elle Belle like it too- I was worried that she would think it was a little loud or that the beat would irritate her- but I should have known- like pretty much everything else- she took it in stride.

So Many Firsts...

first pony!

first piggies! (apparently these made Bells feel mildly confused instead of happy- but what can I say- she was 3 months old...)

The Larry's Childrens' Choir~

I wish I had videoed this-- please imagine twinkle twinkle sung beautifully and directed expertly~

Don't they all just look so delighted! I loved it.

Folsom Zoo-

This is just a sample of the GREAT times had at the zoo- animals- how can you go wrong?

Emmy loved this peacock... until it suddenly terrified her for no reason that I noticed- then, she was outta there~ what's funny is that just a little while later- this guy turned into a crazy Kung Fu Panda 2 style attack peacock as he was trying to kill a fellow suitor to impress a hen- it was awesome.

What the Hail?!

Emmy thought she had died and gone to heaven- she shares my un natural love of ice ;) here she is picking up a slush ball that J and Grandpa Larry were throwing in her direction- she was delighted!

Yes folks- it HAILED while we were in CA-

The weather was weird- but it was still amazing!

The 3 Musketeers...

Emmy got to spend a lot of fun time with Gavin and Griffin (cousins on Diana/Larry's side)- they are the cutest and nicest 3 yr old twin boys on earth- and Emmy fell instantly in love~ with both of them... here she is making that abundantly clear ;)

They were such a good fit together- they sang songs, laughed and played- and then played some some more~

a new favorite picture.

she doesn't play favorites!

Another AMAZING thing to add to the California trip- BEST FRIEND COUSINS! Thanks boys for including Emmy.

look who is 4 months old!

at 4 months Elle Belle is a delight- she weighs in at 14 lbs- eats cereal and breastfeeds like a champ- smiles- laughs- rolls over- kicks- stands while held-pinwheels- grabs toys- LOVES her sister and family and really is PERFECT in every way- she is adorable and such a little sweetheart- what did we ever do without her?!

First cereal!!!

It started out like this...

HATED IT!!!

but quickly progressed to this~

IN LOVE- she now gets fussy and wants her cereal- hooray! at 4 months- she is an eating champ. How will she eat once we are in South Carolina? YES- we are going to be renting an apartment in SC- Augusta is kind of like Kansas City- where 1/2 the city is in 1 state and the other 1/2 is in another- the OB and Family Practice rotations that Jason will be doing are in GA- but our home will be in SC- I'm very excited- we are moving forward! In Sept- we will be moving across the country to Bakersfield, CA where Jason will be doing the rest of his rotations at Kearn- and hopefully some of his ellectives too- hooray!!! we are so proud him ;)

the sad part about our moving forward is that cute little moments like these won't be happening anymore- boo- wa wa. what a happy time it has been! :)

A Belated Easter

OK, so Liz has assigned me tonight's blog post because she caught me playing angry birds on my ipod for 2 minutes and can't handle the thought of me having any Jason time... So here it goes...

First of all, a special thanks to Liz for being the Holiday queen! She makes every event so much more bright and exciting, it's pretty much why I married her.

Here is Emmy coloring Easter eggs with her uncle Josh. She suicided all of my eggs creating a beautiful brown color.
My favorite Peep!
This is why Cadbury should be outlawed in the states...
And here I am wishing Easter was celebrated in the evening.