{good doggie}

This just cracked me up....Millie has quite the imagination and is very good at keeping herself entertained. And us as well! She brought the shopping cart up from the basement and decided to take Roxy for a 'ride.' What a good dog. Really. She is so great with kids. So I snapped this picture of the two of them. And I continued on with whatever I was doing.

Next thing I knew, Millie had rummaged through some drawers and found this:

Man, what a good doggie! To let Millie cart her around and then put a bib on her...and then let me take a picture! However, immediately after this picture she jumped ship. She'd had enough. But there's always tomorrow. And she'll be willing to do it all over again! We sure like our Roxy.

who's had a birthday?

Happy 11th Birthday, Davis!

I can't believe that our boy is now 11 years old. Seriously...where did the time go? Davis is such a joy to have in our family. He is cheerful, very helpful, a great big brother (and little brother, as well!), a super student....loves, loves, loves to read (he actually 'logged' in over 2,000 pages over the summer!), he is an AWESOME goalie for his soccer team and a great basketball player, always has some kind of ball in his hand and is frequently being reminded about the no-playing-ball-in-the-house rule, he enjoys board games, and is an all-around wonderful young man!

Davis decided that he wanted to take his golf game to a new level....from retrieving the golf balls out of the water on his golf outings with his dad to actually lugging around his own set of clubs! So for his birthday he got the package -- clubs, bag, balls, tees, towel, glove and a REAL ball retriever! And his tee time is set for 7 am tomorrow morning!

He even looks like a real golfer!

Watch out Tiger....

After a round of miniature golf and his requested steak dinner, he wanted to celebrate with banana splits! And we ended the celebration with another winning soccer game (4-0)!

And because he's 11 years old, Davis has officially moved on to Boy Scouts by getting his Webelos Badge and Arrow of Light award last month. We are so proud of him. He has worked very hard during the last 3 years of Cub Scouts.

Way to go, DQ!

We hope you have had a super fantastic 11th birthday, son!

We sure love you!

back to school

With the uniforms all ready and the backpacks stuffed, the kids were excited to get back to school...and I was excited for them. Maren is now in 8th grade, Davis is in 5th grade and Natalie is in 1st grade (that all day thing takes some getting used to, but she's been a trooper!).

Millie started preschool (she's always too fast running out the door to stop for a photo) and enjoys being with her friends. So it's just me and Eli for 3 mornings. It's back to homework and projects...but it's all good!

derby and more hiking

We sure love our visitors! The Williams family were able to stay with us for a few days and we loved, loved playing with them! One of the highlights was going to a demolition derby in Heber on the 24th of July. It just may be a new tradition!

We were completely entertained!

Our cute girls, Maren and Olivia -

We hiked to the Timpanogos Caves. Even Eli went along on dad's back, which made for a pretty good workout!

Dennis and Eli -

Inside the caves...pretty amazing.

Maren was amazed as well.

Ethan, Davis and Olivia in the caves.

A little photo shoot on the way down the mountain.

Me and my handsome men -

The whole gang (well, those 13 and under!).

Thanks again, Williams family! We are so glad you came to play with us!

Hiking the 'Y'

This summer we were lucky enough to have the Mills family visit. Davis and Rylan were able to attend a basketball camp at BYU. Man, it wore them out! But not enought to stop us from hiking the 'Y'!

Natalie en route to the top!

Which one of these is not like the other? All seem to be smiling except for, yes, Maren. She didn't think that hiking in 90+ degree weather was the most fun.

But we kept encouraging her, waiting for her, and helping her along.

Make a wish, Davis! And blow hard!

That's better...we are all smiling now! It was a bit hot that day, but the view was spectacular! And the company was even better.

Millie had a pocket FULL of special rocks. This was a favorite.

Millie was a super hiker. She walked the whole way up and down!

Sitting on the 'Y'. WE MADE IT! It turned out to be a great experience for Maren. She found out that she really can do hard things! And it so worth in the end. Great job everyone!

We missed our dad on the hike. Dennis wasn't feeling well that day. He really only loves to hike when there is a stream or lake at the end while holding a fly rod! But we'll get him next time.

By the end of their stay, Eli really took to Uncle Michael.

Thanks again for visiting. We'll take you anytime!

men and toys

No, Eli does not own an ipod. However, he caught on quite quickly! He loved the buttons and was amazed that he could control what came out of those little earbuds!

Maren was teaching him all about this fun, new 'toy'.

He can actually make it work....I still have a hard time!

Now this is unfortunately a regular occurrence -- exploring dad's office. Unsupervised. He even know that if he quietly sneaks in there and closes the door behind him, he can accomplish so much more! He rummages through drawers, finds the sharpies to draw on himself or his surroundings, dumps out the box of staples, or climbs on the desk to see the computer better. Notice the phone in one hand and the computer mouse in the other. What is it with techno toys and men?

And the grown man gets a toy for Father's Day!

I am sure it will improve his game dramatically!

We sure love our dad and appreciate all that he does for our family. I am especially grateful for a wonderful husband who is such a great father for our children. We are so blessed. Happy Father's Day sweetie!