4th of July

What a great day to celebrate, the 4th of July.  I love the country that we live in and the freedoms that we enjoy.  I am especially grateful for my husbands service to our country.  This year for the 4th we weren't able to celebrate in the traditional fashion because there was a burn ban on all fireworks. We still got together with friends to celebrate.  We started the morning off with a pancake breakfast and a BBQ dinner in the even.  Spending time with friends is something I really enjoy about this holiday.  Of course it is also a great excuse to take picture of my girls and their matching dresses.  I love that they have so much fun together.  I hope that they always stay the best of friends.  One tradition I have started with my girls is having them say the pledge of allegiance each morning as we hang out the flag.  My hope is they will come to love this country and the men and women who sacrifice so much for the freedoms they enjoy.  
 

Yard Work...

One of the joys of owning your own house is changing it the way that you want.  That includes the yard.  Yes, you always have yard work no matter where you live, but it is some different when it is your own space.  So Saturday became family fun day in the yard.  Okay for part of the family it wasn't fun (Alex & Emily), but for Savannah and Brittlynn they are so excited to do everything that daddy is doing and more.  I wish we had more days like this were we all worked together.  It doesn't always happen but when we do it feels good to work together and be part of something together.  

 The girls did a great job trimming the bushes.  They didn't want to stop.  

 Emily got to pull weeds...it was an awful task that we heard about the whole morning.  

 The fun really began when it was planting time.  I really don't like flowers...I just kill them, but my husband said we should try.  

Alex tried to look at the positive part of yard work...being able to work on his tan.  

Spartan Race

Eric and some friends from church decided they would enter in the spartan race.  I am not sure why, but in the end he came out loving it.  For those of you who have never heard of this race it is a running/obstacle course.  They recommend you don't wear anything that you want to keep.  You might not get it back.  We weren't able to go cheer him on (it was during nap time), but luckily he got a lot of good shots of himself.  After each obstacle if you didn't finish it completely you had to do 10 burbies...It was so much fun to be tortured, he is already to do it again next year.     

Cheer Clinic-Basketball

As a family more than anything we love going to Air Force sporting events.  This year Savannah was able to go to the cheer clinic sponsored by the base.  She had so much fun.  The best part for her was being able to work with daddy's cadets.  That is one of the perks that comes with his job.  He knows people and they love Savannah.  Brittltynn wished she could be part of all the fun, but she isn't old enough so she cheer from the side lines.  

 At some point during the dance Savannah decided to play ring around the rosies.  We really had a lot of fun watching her cheer for her Air Force Falcons.  

Ice Skating

 Eric loves ice skating, he loves playing hockey, watching hockey and being around the ice.  He is even more excited that Savannah loves going to hockey games, and of course when you daughter asks if she can skate like her hockey boys, how do you say no.  So we planned a family night on ice with our friends.  It was a blast.  This was Savannah's second time on the ice and she was daring enough to let go of hands and the bucket to try skating on her own.  Brittlynn had fun but couldn't go very far without her dad.  We were happy to have the Walqhuist family come and join us.  It is always more fun when friends are involved.

 Brittlynn is ready to take on the ice

 Jacob is having lots of fun.

 Benjamin having a blast

 Just starting out and she wasn't sure how much she liked it.

 Brittlynn loves being with her dad.

Emily and Alex even came along for the fun.

Abigail all on her own.

Happy Halloween

What a great time of year full of celebration and family tradition. To start it all off we took a trip to a local pumpkin patch where the girls were able to pick out there own pumpkins.  Brittlynn just wanted a little on that she could carry and Savannah had the hardest time finding one that was just right for her.  After searching for what seemed like forever the pumpkin was found.  The girls were so happy with what they found.  

Then next activity that follows was carving of the pumpkins.  The girls had so much fun watching their Daddy and helping him.

 Then it was time for the costumes.  Savannah was so excited to be a butterfly.  I would have to say that she was the prettiest butterfly around.  Brittlynn dressed up as a cute little bunny rabbit.  I love these girls and I love how much excitement they have for the little things each day.