Baptism

Thomas's baptism was so special.   He was very prepared and ready to make that commitment.  He was supported by so many friends and family.  Both sets of grandparents, all aunts, uncles, and cousins that lived within a 4 hour drive, three friends from soccer and their families, his primary presidency and bishopric.  During the program he played "Teach Me to Walk in the Light" on his violin with Jackson on the cello and me on the piano.  Jackson performed both the baptism and the confirmation.  Standing in the circle for the confirmation were:
Grandpa Berry (Bubba)
Grandpa Groesbeck
Uncle Judd
Uncle Chris
Uncle Jake
Uncle Cody
Uncle Jordan (soon to be uncle)
Great Uncle Alvin
Dad's cousin Shane
Bishop Douglas Rock

I have noticed an increased sense of responsibility in Thomas.  He is maturing and making good choices.  He seeks after the truth.  He is determined and hard working.  I feel privileged to be his mother.













After the baptism we had dinner with everyone at our house.  We ate lots of soup, bread, and dessert and finished off the evening with a bit of Just Dance2 on the Wii.  

Giant Sunflowers

The favorite thing we grew in our garden this year was giant sunflowers. They were SO TALL...at least 8 feet! We harvested, soaked, and roasted them. They are delicious!

Make a Funny Face Mommy

After I had finished taking way too many pictures of my kids in the driveway, Essie said she wanted to take a picture of me.  I got everything set, showed her the button and helped her hold the camera up facing me.  After a few shots she said, "Okay, now make a funny face Mommy.  That was good, now a different one."  I'm not very good at making funny faces.  I planned on just deleting them, but decided against it.  These are for you my funny face queen!

Graceful Dancer

When I have seen other moms ask their kids to dance, I have usually seen the child do a fast, wiggly, twisty jig.  When I ask Estella to dance, she swoops and glides gracefully in an interpretative dance style.
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Skid Marks

Nicholas suddenly LOVES making skid marks.  I am still not used to the sound of it.  Every time I hear his screeching tires I cringe, imagining that it is a car screeching to a stop to avoid hitting one of my children.  It must be a phase that kids go through because I remember when Thomas did the same thing on the same bike.
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Scoot Bike

A neighbor grew out of this bike and passed it down to Essie.  One of the training wheels broke, so Jackson and I decided to take off the pedals and let her scoot along on it.  It took her a while to get used to it, but now she LOVES it!  She cruises around on it, chasing after the boys.  I think we just might skip training wheels with her.

Hot Ride

Alexander makes this bike look good!