We did it!!

Well, Emma and I decided about 6 months ago to grow our hair for locks of love and today we finally had enough hair to donate. We ended up cutting 8 1/2 inch ponytails and are donating them to Pro-V because they require less length. Here is my hair way back in January when we started out.

And here it is today. It is going to take me a bit of time to get used to it, but I think I will like it. It feels so light and free.
We had such a fun time and Emma looks absolutely adorable. She has some more photos on her blog also. It was fun to be able to do it together and it feels good to be able to help out such a great cause.

I FINALLY WON SOMETHING!!!

My incredible photographer friend, Nicci, had a contest and I actually won! When we get our photos done, I will share them with you. Our family has never really had a good family portrait done and this is such a huge blessing for us! Thank you Nicci!!!

wrapping up the school year!

Emma has a big dance recital every year at the end of the school year. This year she was in 5 numbers and had 3 different costumes. It is always a fabulous production and a very long week. We had dance 7 out of 8 days this last week. Lots of hair and make up to do every day. But it was a huge success and she had a lot of fun!!

Our friends Canon and Elsie came to watch dress rehearsal mid-week.

We are thankful for our dance school - great teachers, students and parents! Emma has loved her classes.Emma also wrapped up her final year at King's Way. We had a fun party with her class that she has loved. She was very tearful when I picked her up from school on Friday. Even though she loves her school very much, she is looking ahead to a new adventure!

Cody also had a year-end party this week out at a park. We had great weather and the kids had a fun time. They played kickball with pools for the bases.

They then had a water gun battle with boys vs. girls. The teachers even got in on the battle. It was fun to watch from a distance!

We are so thankful to be winding down a great school year. We love summer vacation!! This year we are looking forward to spending time with my brother before he leaves for Laos next month.

Check it Out!

My friend Eryn opened up an Etsy shop for her creative designs and is having a great giveway. Link over to check it out. Her stuff is super cute and she is a wonderful person that I am thankful to know!

What is it with Star Wars?!?!

What is the deal with Star Wars? My family is really in to it. They all love the books and the movies and the kids even played a lot of star wars make believe for years, but I really don't get it. This girl in the video - that I saw on Meg's blog - explains it about how I would!

beach fun

My parents rented a house in Salishan for a week. The kids headed down Thursday to have some fun in the sun on Friday. They dug a huge hole in the sand with my brother and had a beautiful day on Friday. We came down with Tucker Friday night for the weekend. We took several walks and sat around a lot.
There was lots of time for good conversation. It was the quietest beach I had ever seen - we rarely saw any other people. There are also no street lights in this gated community so it was very dark and peaceful at night.

My brother, Berk, who moved home for a couple months before heading to Laos in July, spent a lot of time with the kids. They got up early Saturday morning and built us this little shelter. Isn't it great!!

Tucker enjoyed lots of stick chasing. He also went out running with Curtis and did a couple early morning walks with me. He was exhausted by the time we came home!

The sand at the beach was beautiful. I got several fun photos of it. It is amazing to think that God knows each piece of sand.

The kids and Curtis were so relaxed they laid down for a quick rest on the sand. Tucker decided to get in on the act. He even buried his face in the sand while he was laying here with them.

Before heading home we did our best at getting a group shot. It was a nice peaceful trip and was a great chance to get away from the routine and chaos of life. Thanks Dad and Mom for a great time to rest. We hope you enjoy the rest of the week.

ps. they really didn't build that shelter - we found a couple of them at the end of the beach. Cool though!! We thought we would take credit for it.

Do we have to come home?!?!

My parents are treating my family and brother to a time away in Salishan (which if you have never visited, I highly recommend!). We are enjoying great weather, fun in the sand, the quietest beach I have ever visited, good food, time playing and time to contemplate. My hubby even had time to update his blog this weekend.
Now the dilemna begins...they are staying all week and we don't want to come home. In the grand scheme of life, what is a few more days away from school, work, responsibility! When we do ever come home, I will post photos!