Party Like an Animal

Having a July birthday in Arizona means pool parties are a hit. Iva had one last year and was so excited for the one this year. Well, two days before her party she decided she didn't want to get wet. What?!? So I did a quick pinterest search and came up with some new fun indoor games. Her birthday party was a lot of fun. We played animal bingo, read animal books, played feed the monkey bananas (pin the tail on the donkey), and adopted pets.

Iva Turns Five

Iva's birthday lasted the whole month of July. Next year has a lot to live up to. After the party with cousins in Idaho, we came home and had a party with the family. Balloons and streamers have become a family tradition and Iva reminded us of that before she went to bed. (I will admit some years the balloons and streamers are better than others.)

 

Iva made sure everyone had party hats and poppers so they would feel special too. She even let Charlie open up one of her presents because she thought he was starting to feel sad. I really cannot believe how blessed we are to have Iva in our family. She is so thoughtful, caring, and just great.

Shark

Grampie sent us home from Eagle with a remote control shark balloon. Shawn jumped on board and put together the shark and then headed to the Party Store with Iva and Charlie to fill it up with helium. They had a blast flying it around our living room. There is talk of going to the church gym when Shawn gets home again to fly it around.

Quiet Mornings

I love quiet mornings at home when we have nowhere to be and can stay in our pajamas as long as we want. We need the time to recharge and settle down. Iva, Charlie, and Henry love them too- they love doing projects and hanging out together. They really do get along most of the time.

Primary Day Camp

When I was called to be Primary President, I was kind of thrown into it head first (because of boundary changes and most of the primary presidency, teachers, and all nursery leaders going to a different ward.) While I was floundering, the amazing primary president, who we share the building with, took me under her wing and helped me figure everything out. Sis Lucas is amazing. One of the things that she helped me get on board with was Primary Day camp. We combined our two wards and had four days of day camp throughout the summer. It was so fun (and worth all the hard work and time spent preparing.) Highlights were definitely the firefighter hosing down all the kids and the obstacle course in the gym.

Black Bear Diner

Iva's favorite restaurant is Black Bear Diner. It is the one place we can count on them eating their food so they can have a scoop of ice cream with sprinkles. She got to pick where to go for her birthday dinner before Shawn left for West Virginia. She picked Black Bear Diner. We originally were going to celebrate her birthday, but then we found out Shawn passed both sets of boards and celebrating that got added on. We really are so proud of Shawn and all he manages to accomplish.

We told Iva to give us her biggest excited, proud of you, we love you smile and this is what we got. I absolutely love this picture and it was pretty much exactly how we all felt waiting for Shawn's test results to come back.

Iva and Charlie agreed to take some pictures with Shawn after eating so they could look at them when they are sad and missing Shawn when he goes to West Virginia. Henry wouldn't cooperate.

Heading Home

We headed home from Eagle and stopped to see Meg's new house. It is a good thing we did because Meg is moving. We had an uneventful trip home and the kids were so excited to see Dada. They missed him a lot. So did I... it never is quite as fun without Shawn there. We need our dada.

Eagle Island

Eagle Island sure has changed a lot since the last time we went. There was an awesome little beach now with swimming areas, a slide, snowcones, and lots of fun. 

Lego Party for Ward

We were so happy we got to help celebrate Wardie's birthday before heading home. It was such a fun party. Henry did have a meltdown and refused to go inside the party room. I have no clue why? Luckily, Papa saved the day and went and got milk for him. He perked up after that and would at least go into the room.

Cousins Pictures

The cousins all got matching shirts and it was awesome. So fun to see them all matching and amazing to think they were all there for Grammie and Papa. So many cute kiddos.