Father's Day 2015

Happy Father's Day to the guy who works so hard for our family!

Before church quick pic

We seem to have had camera issues on both Mother's Day AND Father's Day!  I meant to bring my good camera with me to my parents' house and totally forgot so iPhone pictures will have to do!

Yep, we're crazy around here!!

Matt turns 35!

Ooooohhhhhhhhh, was I so so SO excited for Matt's birthday!  35 is a BIG birthday year so I had to go BIG for his gift.  

Yes, that says "We're GOING!!!" meaning we're going to the Cardinals game!!

I had wanted to get Cards tickets for him in the past but it's kinda hard to get a game that's not on Sunday that's at home.  As soon as the Cardinals released their schedule, I was all over that.  And imagine my surprise that when I scanned the games, a Monday game against the Baltimore Ravens!!  Matt's kept tabs on the Ravens since he graduated high school with Todd Heap, who played tight end for them for several years.  I know it's hard to get a gift that's for four months down the road, but thank goodness he's a patient guy!

For Matt's birthday dinner, he chose to go to Lucille's Barbecue.  The first Lucille's we went to was in SoCal while we were in optometry school.  SO good!  It was always slammed busy with crazy long waits on weekends.  Imagine our surprise when a couple years ago, a Lucille's opened up here in Tempe!  Since the kids are getting a little older, we're trying to branch out from typical "kid" restaurants and expose them to good food.  We ordered a whole slew of things to share between us.  They did pretty good and trying new things!

We came home and had a family favorite, mint brownies, for Matt's birthday "cake."  Happy birthday, Matt!!

GirLs CamP 2015

Just to give you an idea of HOW excited Brooklyn was -----

I think she packed and repacked three or four times!

The morning of, ready to go- bright-eyed and bushy-tailed!

Most of our ward girls in front of the fancy charter bus they got to ride up in!

One night while I was single-moming it, the kids were being SO crazy and I was like, 'we need to get outta here,' so at 8pm, we went to Yogurt Jungle for a little sugar buzz!

Friday morning, I drove up with a couple other ladies to be there for "bishop's day."  It was SO fun to be there with all the girls and feel that GIRLS CAMP vibe!  And mostly because I got to hang out with Matt all day! ♥︎

I mostly walked around taking pictures of the activities.  They rotated stations for a couple hours.

Brooklyn did pretty dang good with the archery!!!

Brooklyn and her friend Hannah

The whole stake~

Our ward~~

I think you can tell someone (not me) is a little tired here after a week of camps!

Closing flag ceremony

I'm so glad I got to be up at girls camp, especially for testimony meeting Friday night.  I love hearing the girls share the experiences that are helping them build that firm foundation in the gospel.  I also love watching Matt interact with the youth as he develops that individual bond with each one.

I got a little teary eyed listening to all the girls sing the Camp Heber song at closing ceremonies Saturday morning.  There truly is a special spirit that can only be felt at girls camp!

Special moments with {Great} Grandma Palmer

Grandma Palmer has had quite a few health struggles over the last several years with cancer, but we got a phone call that she really wasn't doing well after a surgery and should maybe think about coming to see her at the care center she was staying at.  Matt and I were just going to run down there real quick but Gavin asked if he could come with.  Before we got out of the car, Gavin asked if we would be able to sing to Grandma.

Grandma looked rough but she knew exactly who we were.  There were some sweet tears shed by all of us.  I think Gavin feels an extra special connection with Grandma because we gave him his middle name, West, from her maiden name- Wanda West Palmer.  

Once we left, Gavin said, "I don't think I could've sung to grandma without crying anyway, Dad." 

We sure are grateful for amazing grandparents that have built such a legacy for our families!

Scout Camp 1st timer & while he was gone...

Blake left for scout camp at Camp Raymond at the beginning of this week.  It's a little nerve-wracking sending your boy off for a week with everything he needs packed on his back! 

I liked getting a couple texts messages from Matt, letting me know Blake was, in fact, still alive!  Matt actually split his time between Camp Raymond with the deacons and the high adventure camp with the teachers and priests at Drift Fence Lake in the White Mountains.

While Blake (and Matt) were gone for the week, the kids and I played!

First, we checked out Makutu's Island using our PogoPasses.  I did not like this place.  It was insanely crowded and I felt crazy claustrophobic climbing through the tunnels with Hayden!  Of course we neede to stop for a little treat on the way home.

Later that week, we decided to check out Krazy Air in Mesa.  It was way, way, WAY better than Jump Street!!  They have a lot more variety of things to do.  We spent a couple hours there and had a blast!!

Preston loved practicing his American Ninja Warrior skills!

And I think Hayden jumped into the foam pit a million times.

Brooklyn found a dance friend that helped her with her back walk overs!

And then all of a sudden, I was hearing that it was National Donut Day??  Is this for real??!!  We stopped by Krispy Kreme on the way home for our free donuts!

Blake made it home in one piece, filthy as can be!  His feet were black.  I think he wore the same pair of socks all WEEK!  Boys are gross.  Haha!