We're Home!!!

 First morning back.

The girls are taking to home quite nicely.

You'll be missed

Never mind the horrible pictures from swim lessons the kids all had, or the pictures we forgot to take of Elder Smith's return from his mission in Brazil AND the entire family reunion. Never mind the hair mishap my sis and I had- those pictures were never taken. Never mind the pictures of Micah's 10 stitches in his left hand that he got at 11 the night before we left Utah, when we should have been packing.

How old is too old to bath together? Never mind that. These are a few sweet pictures from Nana's bathroom, a room I had no idea I could love so much. We will miss you and all the other favorite Utah things that make Utah home too.

Our third 1st Birthday

Olivia is 1!

 She is our third baby to turn 1, and I find myself more emotional than with the last 2. With Taj and Eden I was so excited for each landmark, where with Olivia I find myself savoring every little baby moment. It was a fun celebration. She was loved and adored and celebrated, even more than usual.

 The kids were happy to show her all about blowing out candles. There were a lot of them (kids and candles). She was wanting to grab them, but blowing them out wasn't going to happen.

 Note: Olivia is eating the traditional 1st birthday cake: angel food cake and whipped cream with berries on the traditional Smith family birthday plate. I love that she has food in both hands. She was very clean and civilized about it, but also enjoyed every moment.

Eden was the Cheetos guardian. She loves those things, and now so does Olivia. Thanks for sharing with your sis. It was a fun party. Kind of a birthday party and a going away party in one. Taj told Micah how excited he was for it every night before bed for a few days. He is getting to that point where he and his buddies just run around being wild. I remember that feeling and love that my little guy has that. They all had special powers from what I've gathered. I have to note Elijah, a.k.a. "Chicken Potato" had the power to make bombs out of potatoes. Or something. It was hilarious.

 I made ice cream cone cupcakes. Yum. They were fun and tasty. The whipped cream melted instantly, even on cooled cupcakes, but they were still a hit. I'll be making them again for sure.

 Olivia loved her cupcake cone and wanted to share it with me. She is a sweet and sharing little one. I feel like she's taking care of me sometimes, the way she always comes over for a hug or to show me something. I'm such a lucky Mom and am constantly filled with love when I'm around Olivia. We all are. The kids run to get her from naps and come in to give her a kiss while she's nursing like the world depends on it. She's talking a ton, all though it only sounds like real words sometimes. We get what sounds like "ba" or ball. "mamama" or Mama. "yeah" or yeah. "dada" or dada. She's very good at communicating, words or not, without fussing.She's a very peaceful girl. Rarely throws fits, and they are always over quickly. She clicks her tongue. She loves water, and blankets, and loves animals. She points, and either squeaks or laughs when she sees them. It can be a real animal or just a picture in a book. She even neighs like a horse.

There's too much to say about this little one. She is a blessing. We love having her around. We loved celebrating her. I can't believe she's 1, but it feels like she's always been with us.

It's a good day when...

It's a good day when the kids and I can discover a new park WITH a splash pad. The landscape around us was so surreal. We'll be going back for more.

Then during lunch Nana calls us from our backyard... she rode Flash over for us to ride. These kids have the life.

Smith Girls in the Twin Cities

Olivia and I just got back from our trip to St. Paul. Why go to Minnesota you ask? 

For these guys:

this little guy (James was born the same day as Olivia)

this little cutie (and her old lady impression)

these girls might be the most photogenic people I know.

Amy and I have been friends forever. Since before we can even remember. We've always felt like family, then after meeting her cousin and marrying him we really became family. I haven't seen enough of her and her family that's been all over for Rudy, her husband, who is finishing his Residency in Minneapolis. Olivia and I jumped at the chance to go see them for 4 days and I'm soooooo glad we did.

At the Mall of America. It's as amazing as you've heard.

mmmmm... the raspberries.

Livi's first ride on a carousel.

More raspberries.

at the beach? No, at the lake. One of the 10,000.

surprisingly warm. playground right there. I kind of get why people love this place.

Even more raspberries. You can imagine the diapers. So amazing fresh picked.

gorgeous (sweaty) Minnehaha falls.

Such a fun trip. Amy totally spoiled us. She taught me all about the importance of good food with good company. I had no idea Amy could cook like that. She was an amazing tour guide. I can't get over the houses and the beautiful cathedrals. Incredible city full of nice people. Olivia is the best lap child ever. Seriously never fussed, even when our flight was delayed an hour, then we sat on the runway for a half hour, then we had to run to make our next flight, then we sat on the runway for another half hour, then they lost our luggage, so we didn't get home until 2 am. She was pure sweetness. It must have been all the sweet raspberries and her first taste of ice cream.
I was aching for my other babies, but we loved every minute of our vacation.

Happy 4th!!!!

Micah works 6 days a week all summer long, so when he get's 4th of July off we celebrate. I think it's becoming our favorite holiday. We had a few family firework shows. I love Taj cheering- he get's into it.

The first party we went to was a pool party at the Hartley's. Micah's not hiding from the camera, he's just not used to the sun.

Eden asked why red, white and blue get a birthday. This was a fun year for her, as a 3 year old she's starting to really think about things and figure out why we do what we do.

 At party number two we had the traditional release of the ladybugs- freedom! All the kids squeeled while Taj and Eden watched and adored the little critters.

I'm telling you, the boy loves fireworks. This year he was caught several times testing limits and saying things like "I was just burning the weeds". Yikes.

Olivia was seen nursing corn all night long. Along with fireworks, she discovered corn this year.

Eden said, "we should have only done one party." She was super tired by the end. We all were. We packed in the fun and the Micah time. The drive home from Park City was amazing... there were fireworks going off everywhere we looked.