ALL IS CALM, ALL IS BRIGHT

It's been a fun and relaxing summer.  The best part has been sharing the joys of every day life with a 2-year-old!  Skittles brings wonder, humor and delight into our world.  Here are some of our happy moments:

I mowed the yard the other day.  Skittles brought me a soda.  Then asked if I'd play my music for him.  I obliged, and then he entertained me with an ENERGETIC dance!

Kiara and Cody took Skittles on a walk.

He wanted to walk the dog!

Apparently he's big enough to maneuver a grocery cart.

He needs to stop growing up!

Reading with grandma.  Eating cheese with grandpa.

Taking pictures of Karmel. "Cheesing" at Nursery.

Being a Charmer!

During a heat advisory... we (Kiara, Amy and I) decided to walk 4 miles.

Yes, we about died.  Yes, we were exhausted.

And YES, we love this crazy crew!

So glad I have a Kiara and an Amy in my life!

On the bottom:
Raisin, Skittles (Starburst is on top in yellow) , Jelly Bean, Marmalade, Nuts and Apple Pie

I love how beautiful everything is!
Heavenly Father is an amazing artist!

Kotten Kandy got a new ukulele from her grandfather.

(Yes, he MADE it!)

She loves learning and creating music!

She also goes to the temple EVERY chance she can!

She loves spending time with my side of the family:

Ken, G.J., Katia, Mil and Grandpa Mac

I'm jealous that she gets to spend time with my sister, her husband and my parents!

I'm learning how to sew!  Nicole is teaching me how to quilt!

Skittles is watching Spencer from Liken the Scriptures with Raisin!

And my grandson loves his "adopted" grandma: Nana Nicole and the Chicky Box.

He loves that she reads to him, gives him hugs, spends quality time with him, and lets him feed her chickens.  (He's fascinated by chickens.)

And having a dear friend who shares their garden produce with us has made Scott extremely happy.

He's made zucchini fries (YUMMMM!) and stuffed banana peppers (which HE loved).

My brother, Ben, and sister, GJ, took Katia 4-wheeling!
She loved it!

Scott and I celebrated our 26th wedding anniversary at the Cheesecake Factory.

Yummmm!

And let me just add, I'm sooooo blessed to get to spend eternity with this guy!

We made an amazing team!

My Wedding Anniversary Gift

Kiara makes life fun when she dresses her son and Groot in the same Captain America shirt.

Skittles was so excited to show grandma....

This cool dude makes me smile!

Scott asked me to take this picture... so he could look up what kind of plant these flowers belong too.  We'll be planting some Red Cypress Hummingbird Vines soon.

PINT SIZED PATRIOTS

 I love our neighborhood!  I really do!  Every year, they have a 4th of July parade.  And every year it's better and better.  Of course, this year it was extra cute because this guy got to participate:

Our Pint Sized Patriot - Skittles

Scott pulled the wagon so that Skittles and Starburst could ride behind the fire truck.  And Raisin rode her bike along the route also.  I love to see our community celebrating freedom and our incredible country.  (Before the parade, we all participated in singing the national anthem and saying the Pledge of Allegiance.)

Starburst and Skittles are ready to ride

Raisin is easy to love!

I love her patriotic smile!

Mark is in vehicle heaven sitting in our neighbor's slingshot.

Scott and Jim share in the enthusiasm.

Climbing trees is a patriotic thing to do.  Right?!

He won a raffle - a DQ gift card
Although I think he was more impressed with the windmill.

This is us!  Our neighborhood rocks!

(If you zoom in right to the middle... then you see me with the boys!)

I am truly grateful for the opportunity we have once a year to thank our Heavenly Father for our freedom and our beautiful country.  Although I am worried about some things that are going on in our country right now, I still believe God prepared this land for us.  And I'm grateful for all the men who have fought and died for our opportunities here in America!

Besides celebrating with a parade this morning, we also got to see our dear friends from Colorado.  I sure do love and miss Jan and Dave!  I wish they still lived a mile and a half away.  Colorado is a looooong drive.

We wish they would come back home!

And our other dear friends let us go pick apples on Monday.  Skittles LOVED their property.  And really loved Jim Nelson.  He followed him around and even learned to lean against a tree "just like Jim!"  Thanks, Mary and Jim!  We love y'all!

This cautious two year old actually let us set him in the apple tree for a moment.

That's a HUGE step for Skittles!

Hanging with Jim - like a little man!

Look!  A pinecone!

"See, I can hold the tree up too!"

We are blessed with good friends and a wonderful family!  And I love America!  I really am feeling grateful right now!

DRAGONS VS. DINOSAURS

 Skittles loves dragons. He comes by the infatuation honestly as his father also loves dragons. (To be honest, I love them too!) Scott likes dragons, but loves dinosaurs.  It cracks me up that every dinosaur toy we have is inevitably called dragon.  (It drives Skittle's grandfather crazy.) Scott and I found this dragon rocker at a yard sale last year.  It was a steal for $5.  And Skittles loves it!  Hopefully our other grandchildren will find joy with it too!

I mention this dichotomy of dragons because we went to the Renaissance Fair a few weeks ago, excited to share "real" dragons with our grandson.  He was actually afraid of the dragons, but slayed all of the trees for us with the hilt of the sword. We had a great time.  Scott got a mug out of a tree stump.  It's really cool!  And the turkey legs were delicious.  Skittles, Kiara and I loved the music the best.  (Who doesn't love bagpipes, Irish tunes, and sea shanties?)  Cody was like a kid in a candy shop.  He loved everything!  I enjoyed watching him watching the jousting.  It was a fun way to spend a Saturday.

Our jester didn't know how to stick his head through...

The King and the Queen

Skittles was entranced by the music.

He got his own personal concert from this flautist.

He clapped afterwards....

Fun and crazy things to see!

Skittles (and my daughter) our rather short compared to this guy!

This was a human hamster wheel - and as you walk in the wheel, ice is crushed for an Icee. 
Skittles wasn't sure what to make of it, but he loved the sweet treat.

Scott, the giant, with his giant mug and leg bone!

I love the Lillywhites!  They are the cutest family ever!

And this man is my favorite human being!

I'm glad we get to do forever together!

We also celebrated three birthdays this month: Scott, Amy and Mark.  Kiara made mini bundt cakes.  Mmmm.  And we enjoyed visiting and giving gifts.

Amy and Mark

Scott

Father's Day is always fun... but this year, my girls and I decided to REALLY spoil Scott.  We got him something he would love but would never buy for himself: a craftsman tool chest as tall as himself.  He is already anxiously organizing it and his garage.  It makes me so happy to see him so excited.

My Tool Man

And then there are the date nights where Scott and I choose to bring our grandson along.  We love these impromptu dates:

Date nights are extra fun with Skittles!

CRAFTING "FORE" THE WIN!

Once in awhile, I just get the urge to create.  Kiara and I made a few examples... And then we invited some of our favorite people to come join us in the fun!  We purchased golf balls and let everyone do their own thing.  This was the result:

- Raisin loved making monsters - Jelly Bean made an incredible spider -
- Apple Pie is really artistic with his balls and planets - Marmalade made a monster and a fox - 

- Nuts created Poky from Super Mario Brothers - Nicole made some bugs for her garden - 

- My pig and chick - Amy's cool emoji and mouse are incredible -

These are the one's Kiara and I created earlier...

Raisin put her monsters in the castle.

I love making things with friends!  I'm glad Amy and Nicole are a part of my life!  They are my sisters here in Kentucky when I'm missing my biological sister!  I'm sooooo blessed!  And I love all their kids too!  I'm glad they share them with me!

Speaking of loving kids... what blog post is complete without sharing more random photos of Skittles!  My grandson really is photogenic and adorable!  Check it out:  

Chewing on a meat stick and sporting his fedora.
Is there anything more cute?!  I think not!

Skittles LOVES his quilt from Aunt Kelly.

He begs us to get it out and then we ask him to find the different items and animals on the quilt.  It's one of his favorite toys.  We use it EVERY day!  He likes us to get down on the ground with him when we search for the different items!

Too much cuteness!

The more I look at this picture of Starburst and Skittles, the more I giggle.

This kid is super cool!