End of an era

I recently got a letter from my credit union. Apparently, an account that I have had since I was a kid is inactive. Not too surprising though since I haven't lived near a branch in almost seven years. The last activity for the account was 5 years ago. So, for the last 5 years, I have let $150 just sit there and earn a measly amount of interest. Now, if I don't take it out and close my account, the CU will take $5 a month until there is no more to take and then they will close the account. I think I'll go with the first idea and get my money. Hmm...what to do with it. I'm thinking of splitting it three ways and starting saving accounts for my kids.

4th of July Festivities

My mom called me up on the 3rd and asked if we would be interested in joining them for the parade in Centerville on the 4th because my cousin Jared was going to be in it. Instead of spending the night at my mom's house, we decided just to get the kids up early on Saturday and drive up. Elliot woke up twice during the night (something that he never does) so when my alarm went off at 6:00, I really didn't want to get up. So of course, we were running a little bit late that morning. Luckily, mom, Steve and Tamara were running on time and they got an awesome spot for us. In years past for the 4th, we have run a 5k in Magna in the morning and then saw the parade in the afternoon. The parade in Centerville started at 9:00 so it was never terribly hot so that was great. The girls enjoyed running out in the street for candy and we all stood and cheered when Jared came by on his unicycle. We were even lucky enough for him to come back and juggle fire for us. Too cool.


After getting back to my mom's house to get ready for a BBQ, Tamara decided that it was time for me to learn how to drive the convertible. The last time that I tried to drive it was about 10 years ago. Right after my dad got the Cobra, it was time for the annual Ute Stampede car show in Nephi. He was so excited to take both cars down for the car show. But he was especially excited to be able to drive the Cobra and listen to music and not have the windy drive in the convertible. I was given that task. The only problem was that I had never driven that car. My dad thought that because I could drive a clutch, I would be able to handle a 1964 Mustang. Wrong! I didn't even make it to the end of the street. Apparently I was trying to start in 3rd gear. But 1st and 3rd were so close that I couldn't even tell the difference. When my dad and I switched cars before leaving site of our house, he was not too happy. Fast forward ten years and Tamara was very insistant on me driving the Mustang from her house over to my mom's. After a couple of rounds in the church parking lot, I was ready for the open road. I made it all the way there without killing it and it was a blast! I miss going for rides in that car. Guy even got the privilege of going for a spin and then he took me for a ride. Totally fun. I took all the girls for a little ride. It was ok at first. But then Amelia said that the car needed a roof and that she didn't like it windy. Ashley slept through the whole ride. We thought that she was just snuggling with Tam until we got home and realized that she was asleep.


We had a great BBQ (Sanpete turkey and corn on the cob were the highlights) and got out the kiddie pool for the kids. Amelia would live in the pool if she could. Ashley even enjoyed being in the pool this year. I decided to get Elliots trunks on him and let him take a dip too. He was not a big fan of the cold water so he got to sit on the side line and just dip his toes in.


Sunday morning, I dressed the kids in red, white and blue for church and snapped a few pictures. I love being able to dress them up all matchy.

Elliot - 6 months old

My little baby boy is 6 months old. I can hardly believe it. He is a very happy baby about 90% of the time. He likes to be held and pretty much stops crying instantly if you just pick him up. He is still trying to roll over and just makes it to his side and then goes right back to being on his back. He can sit up for about 5 minutes before getting tired and flopping over. The good news is that I think he likes sitting up a lot better than lying down so maybe that will motivate him a little more to master this skill. He is eating cereal and veggies twice a day now and tolerates most of them but really loves sweet potatoes and squash. He loves sitting at the dinner table with us and making faces at daddy. Elliot still loves the sound of his voice and squeals just to hear himself. Amelia was singing a lullaby to him this morning while I was getting ready. It is great to know that she loves him so much. I've also had to switch him to a convertible car seat because he has outgrown the infant seat. Which also means that he gets to sit in the cart like a big boy. I think that he really enjoys shopping a lot more now. He had his 6-month check-up on Monday and is doing great. He weighed in at 21 lbs 5 ozs and 28 3/4 inches long. So, he is in the 95th percentile for everything. What a big boy!

Happy Birthday Ashley!

Ashley celebrated her 3rd birthday on June 23rd and we all had a ball. Before we could go to the puppet show at the library, Guy and I had to make a quick stop at the high school to vote on a bond for the school district. (The results were finally official on July 1st with the bond passing with a 1.99% advantage and the leeway passing by a mere 0.84%. Next time you are thinking that your vote doesn't matter, it does. Only about 10% of registered voters actually participated in the election.) The puppet show was a ton of fun and taught the kids about saying "please" and "thank-you" so that the things that they are given don't disappear. When the show was over, we went home and had cake and ice cream and then opened presents. Ashley picked out a hippo cake (I love Albertson's bakery) and Cherry Chocolate Chip ice cream. Super yummy! Then she got a new Memory game, magnetic dress-up dolls, Rocket (from Little Einsteins) and a new outfit. The girls even got to stay up a little later because we got home a little later from the puppet show. Sharing the new toys has been really hard. Amelia will ask very politely if she can play with one of Ashley's new toys and Ashley will say "no" so Amelia will start crying. Life is rough when you're little.


On Sunday, the 28th, we had Grandma and Grandpa Van Horn, Grandma Corinne and Grandpa Steve and Auntie Tamara come over for dinner. I made a chicken and rice soup and then a fresh strawberry vinaigrette dressing to go with a yummy strawberry salad. My mom made yummy bread sticks and a delicious cake and Tam brought drinks and the best ice ever from Sonic. I think that Tamara wanted to bring drinks just so she could hear Ashley say, "More lemonade" all through dinner. From Grandma Corinne and Grandpa Steve, Ashley got a new outfit, African animals, and a princess sleeping bag. Auntie Tamara gave her a farm set with so many animals that I can't keep track of them all. She has so much fun playing with all of them. Grandma and Grandpa Van Horn gave her a Tinker-bell outfit and a shirt that says "I'm the cute sister".

What a fun birthday for my little 3-year-old.