Savannah and Aiden's Birthday Party

Erin and I have always??? I think always... celebrate Aiden and Savannah's Birthday together since their only 17 days apart. We've usually had pool parties, the last couple years the parties have been at Erin and Nick's house since they have their own pool.

Anyway, here are some pictures from their Birthday party.

Savannah's Birthday at Cherry Hill

Cherry Hill

Every year we take the kids to Cherry Hill to celebrate Savannah's Birthday with the Elwood family.


Ellie, Dayton, and Cousin Skyler near the Pirate Ship.



Daddy and Savannah enjoying some fun in the sun.



Savannah taking a running start.



Savannah loves adventure and loves climbing walls.




There's not one climbing wall that Savannah hasn't
made it to the top of. Everyone who is around is shocked
my how high she climbs.



Savannah, Savannah, Savannah. I'm not sure where to start...or how to describe Savannah. Savannah is roughly 43 inches. (Just short enough to miss the really fun rides at amusement parks.) She now has or has had...I'm not sure which out of state family has seen her hair...short hair, which we all love. Savannah now has freckles that trickle across her face like her older sister. Savannah is a ball of energy.

Savannah is hard to understand. She'll come up to me one second give me a big hug, and she'll tell me she loves me, but the next second she's sneaking food down to her room. Savannah will be playing with Dayton nicely, however, the next second she's dragging him down the hall by his arms. Savannah will share her toys very nicely but the next second she'll take them away and than start throwing them at the kids. Some of this I would say is normal child behavior but Savannah does take a lot of her behavior to the extreme.

Savannah loves to challenge herself and is very good at most things she tries. Aiden took his bike up to the cabin while we were there a few weeks ago. Savannah had never been on a bike without any training wheels but wanted to try and ride his bike. It only took a couple times of people running with her on the bike before she was able to take off and ride on her own. We were so proud of her and her determination. Now she flies down the street as she rides the new bike she recieved for her Birthday. Ellie is so excited that they will be able to ride bikes to school this year.

This week Savannah recieved a pair of Heely's as a late Birthday present. Ellie told Savannah that she would not be able to skate with the wheels for a while and that it would take weeks to learn to use the shoes. From what I understand, it only took Jonathan a few times showing her what to do and a little encouragement before she was able to skate with her Heely's on her own. When I finished shopping and went to pick Savannah up, she was thrilled that she was able to learn this on her own.

Savannah is getting ready to go to Kindergarten this August. I'll have to update you on how that goes. I think she will do very well. One thing that Savannah loves and I think needs is a structured day and a day full of learning and activites. (Which we don't always have at home.) So, I think she will love school.

There really are a lot of different dimensions of Savannah. As you read this it may seem that Savannah is only a challenge. That is only a little bit of truth. Savannah is a very sweet child. Her smile melts my heart. Savannah will spontanously give hugs and kisses and tell you she loves you which is the sweetest and most rewarding time in my day. Savannah will encourage a smile from those who just finished punishing her. She'll give you a big hug if you are upset. Our family would not be the same without Savannah. We love her very much.

Happy Birthday Savannah.

Monkeying Around...Is that even a "real" word?

These are some of my favorite pictures from The Hogle Zoo.




Do you measure up?



Abbie grabs on to Dayton before he takes a run for it.



Ellie and Savannah trying to act enthusiastic, probably
saying to themselves, "Mom, no matter how many
pictures you take, Dayton and Abbie are not going to look at
you until the rooster behind you goes away."



My little Monkey's...isn't that the truth!

Fourth of July

I'm a little behind these days....Soon I'll have Savannah's Birthday post up.
Here are some Fourth of July pictures. I hired my own personal photographer (Jonathan) to document the event. Jonathan, Kimberly, and Kimberly's Mom, Colleen, came over for a BBQ and to watch fireworks that night. Elizabeth watched most of the fireworks, Savannah ended up down the street with her friends, Abbie ended up inside with Colleen, and Dayton liked some of the fireworks but mostly he liked the ones that shot over our house at Desert Peak.

Happy Birthday Ellie

Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday Dear Ellie, Happy Birthday to you!

Sometimes it's hard to believe that we just celebrated Elizabeth's 8Th Birthday on June 29th. I still remember Aaron holding her in his two hands and her barley stretching over that. She was so tiny and (we thought) fragile when she was born. Now she is getting so tall and everyone notices the cute little freckles scattered across her face.

Elizabeth could win Best Drama Series actress. She can be the sweetest child but if she doesn't get her way or she doesn't want to leave Grandma and Grandpa Bradbury's, she makes the sadest face and puts out the whinest whine....However when you put her "fits" aside... She really is a sweet heart. Ellie loves to help out, especially with her baby brother. Several months ago, when Ellie would wake up in the morning she would sneek upstairs-and if she heard Dayton awake in his crib, she would get him out (without me knowing) and play with him quietly. To Ellie she was trying to help out so Aaron and I could sleep in, to me...she was taking on to much responsability. I had to remind her that she did not need to do that and that Aaron and I would wake up with him. But...this does show how thoughtful she is.

Elizabeth loves to be outside. She was thrilled when Aaron and I gave her a bike for her Birthday, replacing the one that I had ran over with the van a few months before. Ellie rides her bike for hours. I think it gives her a feeling of freedom. A feeling that she can go anywhere her legs will take her. (In my boundries of course!)

Her second favorite place to be is school. Elizabeth loves to learn new things. This last spring she stayed with Grandma Wendy, Jonathan, and Kimberly for a week while Grandma Wendy was here visiting. Ellie was so excited that all three of them took the time to teach her her multiplication tables. From what I understand, she caught on very fast. She felt good about being able to do the same things her third grade classmates could do. (Ellie was in a second grade -third grade split last year.) This summer, she has picked books like: Harry Potter and Charolette's web to read. What's funny, is that she can't stay focused on just one book. Ellie reads a couple pages in one book, switches to another book, then she goes back to the first book, then skips to the third. She does this between 3 or 4 books.


Ellie loved going to the cabin this last weekend and being able to celebrate her Birthday up there with Grandma and Grandpa "B". Aaron had told Ellie that he had always wanted to have a Birthday in the mountains, so Ellie was very excited that she was able to. She loved the swing and playing in the river.

She looks forward to her Baptism that will be happening in just a few weeks. At first she was very scared and thought she would drowned. With some explanation, I think she is starting to understand what Baptism means and why she will be doing it.

We love you Ellie and hope that you had a very Happy Birthday.

P.S. (Uncle Addie...Ellie was thrilled to hear your Birthday message. She was very happy that you knew it was her Birthday!)