Father's Day

Much of our Father's Day celebration involved cooking. My mom and dad had come down for the weekend to see Brandy's girls' dance recital. So Chris and I decided to make my dad a very southern man's Father's Day breakfast. I made some yummy biscuits from scratch, and Chris whipped up a fantastic sausage gravy. And there was plenty of butter and strawberry jam to round it all out. My dad grubbed it all. The girls also made him a few little gifts, and we fed him almost an entire half gallon of Blue Bell through the course of the weekend, so I think he had a happy father's day.

We sent Chris's dad these two pictures in matching frames:

For Chris, I ordered 2 black angus dry aged prime bone-in NY strip steaks from Pat LaFrieda, as well as 4 of their original burgers and a nifty grilling apron. We made a yummy dinner - Chris did the steaks, and I made some loaded mashed potatoes and mini key lime pies for dessert. The kids made him some little presents, and we all doted on him a bunch today. He deserves every minute of it, and more; I really can't imagine a better dad.

Elder Streeter

My cousin, Casey, went into the MTC last week. For our family night activity we made him a care package.

Memorial Day Weekend

We were going to head down to Goodyear to see Chris's family. But little miss Anna was sick, so we rerouted and headed up to the cooler weather at my parents'. It was my mom's birthday, after all, so we figured it was a pretty good plan B. Here are some highlights:

at Temple Square

at Temple Square

at Temple Square

Waving bye to Granddaddy when he left for an appointment.

Bret

George in his "Mom" tattoo shirt.

We made a sign for Grandma Gail's birthday.

Peek-a-boo!

Grandma gave Olive this tiny vase with flowers; she loved it.

My lovely mom on her birthday.
Oh, and the first key lime pie I ever made.

George and Uncle Dave

Olive and Ethan

Riding the banister.

at the St. George Temple

at the St. George Temple

at the St. George Temple

at the St. George Temple

at the St. George Temple

at the St. George Temple

St. George Temple

Finally home, we enjoyed popsicles and the
kiddie pool in the backyard.
A perfect end to a delightful Memorial Day weekend.

Mud Bath

Our neighbors and buddies, the Hinds, have a big hole dug in their backyard right now because they're going to plant a tree. Seems like the girls have other plans for the hole.

Mother's Day

Breakfast in bed -- french toast and fresh strawberries, accompanied by a bouquet of lovely flowers. But the best part was the presentation -- Olive carried my glass of milk, Lucy handed me the syrup, and George presented my napkin, while Chris carried everything else and corralled the kids. Then Olive gave me a heartfelt squeeze, Lucy said "I love you, mom," and Chris tried to get George to say mama. So so sweet. I also got to take an uninterrupted nap, and a yummy dinner of sliders and fries. Love my family, and really really love being a mom.

The Stuckis Came for a Visit

Our girls with Nixon, and Charly in the background.

Our pals from Lake Havasu, the Stuckis, came to see us for the day. Sophia and I threw a Pampered Chef party, and the boys took the kids to the splash pad. It was so fun to see them!

My 33rd Birthday

For my 33rd birthday Chris and I left the kids in the care of Brandy, Sarah, and Lydia, and headed for the hills. We drove to Santa Monica, and checked in at this great place on the water. Our room was right on the water, and our view was lovely. We had Killer Shrimp for dinner, and that was seriously fantastic. Perhaps the highlight of the trip for me was sleeping in past 9:00 the next morning. I really don't know the last time I slept that well. We decided to drive up highway 1 - or PCH, or "the 1", or whatevs - and just see where the day took us. We had a late breakfast in Malibu, and admired the sights there. Then we drove up to Santa Barbara, took a walk by the beach and breathed the ocean air. We did a little shopping (I found the perfect blessing dress for this bun in my oven, and got some fun smell-goody lotions and potions). Then we had a lunch of fish tacos, did lots of people watching, and then hit the road. All the way from Santa Barbara to Henderson, Chris read The Hunger Games to me while I drove (it's been 3 years since I've read it, and I wanted to read it again before I saw the movie; he happily obliged). Other than a couple of near heart attacks (I L.O.A.T.H.E. the LA freeways) and witnessing a bee family suicide, we had a peaceful, happy drive home. We grabbed some Metro and birthday cake, and enjoyed it with Brandy & co when we got home. It was a delightful trip. I also scored a day spa from Gaily Balls, a happy couple of phone calls from some of the dearest ones, a bunch of texts, and lots of FB love. Oh, and this rad mug.