Summer 2012 Highlight Reel

We got to visit Nini and Papa (and the rest of the Carruths) in Texas over the Fourth of July.  It was SO much fun!  They planned a Curious George birthday party for my boys (whose birthdays were coming up), and we had so much fun with cousins, swimming, and doing fireworks (except for Jackson who parked himself 2" from the TV to watch Dora because fireworks freak him out so badly!)

 

 

Jackson, Will and Dustin's birthdays are all within a week of each other, so we had a big party week starting with Jackson's 3rd birthday party.  It was a big day for us!  We invited friends from church, Grandma and Grandpa, Grandma Dixie and Grandma Donna.  It was a construction party (Jackson's latest obsession), and so I had fun stretching that theme as far as possible. 

 It was a cute party with construction hats (with bows, for the girls), a construction site cake, and a fun craft where we decorated mini sand boxes to hold our mini construction trucks.  Jackson loved every second of it.  Will, on the other hand, thought he should steal some of the attention by walking with confidence for the first time (besides a couple of steps here or there over the past few months)

The next big day was Will's birthday followed immediatley by Dustin's birthday.  Oh man.  We were traveling on Will's 1st birthday to North Carolina for a family vacation.  We were so excited to get the beach house where Mark would be waiting for us in the early evening, and go out to dinner to celebrate the little guy's birthday as a family.  But no.  Instead we got there at about midnight after SUCH a bad travel day.  I even said the words "there's no way this day could have gone worse".  Well the travel gods sure showed me!  The return trip was SO MUCH WORSE, turning into a two day ordeal, complete with a hospital visit for my dad (kidney stones, meaning he was drugged up like crazy the whole way home.  we have some pretty hilarious stories about his narcotic-induced antics)

We went Nags Head, North Carolina, a place we went tons during my childhood, and a place that holds so many special memories for me.  I love it there.  Love. It.  Of course, you might have to heavily bribe me to go back, just because of our travel nightmares, but still.  Jackson and Will loved the beach, the pool, catching the ghost crabs on the shore and 'busting waves'.  I mostly loved just being together as a family, watching Olympics, and watching the waves. 

 Jackson started PRESCHOOL!  The day before he started, I was a MESS.  I could NOT stop crying all day.  Which is so lame, because he's just going for an hour and a half twice a week to this Co-Op Preschool that some of the moms in the ward and I are doing.  So every 6th week, it'll be at our house.  Jackson did really well, which was a relief, and so I know it's silly that I ever worried about it.  But my baby is all grown up!  I can't believe it.  He is so handsome, smart, funny and sweet.  I couldn't love him more.  I am so so so lucky to be his mom!