Yearly we have a ward luau. Its always so great. We always have some Polynesian dancers perform dances from all of the islands. As always, someone from my family gets involved in the dancing. It was Charlie's year this year. She was just spectating but check out those hips!
Once every three months we do our duty to the car and take it in for a little TLC (also known as an oil change and tire rotation). My girls LOVE this event because the blessed Lexus dealership provides quite the tasty snack bar making our hour stay a bit easier. Upon arrival the girls instantly ask for a doughnut. Fortunately they had two sprinkle doughnuts. Let me just say I have never seen anyone else in there EVER with children. The girls happily ate their doughnuts in the waiting room spreading the sprinkle doughnut love all over the floor. Next came the drinks, Sprite cans in the mini fridge. Little drops here, little drops there. Once they had thrown their cans away they giggles as they watched the pop spill out and run through the trash. Then came the candy. Nerds. By the time Tate had COMPLETELY exploded her diaper (the kind that as you're cleaning it up it just seems to get worse) the waiting room was covered in sprinkles, Nerds, and Sprite. Which, did you know, when Nerds and Sprite meet on the floor and then are walked across it creates beautiful colors? I tried to sweep up the mess with my foot creating a decent pile of nerds and sprinkles in the corner but the Nerd/pop colors were there to stay.
Charlie had her first Clytie Adams Ballet dance recital in June. It was such an impressive production! They danced to a live orchestra and the entire program moved very quickly. Charlie was amazing (of course). She was even invited to do an additional little part as a random bee with two other girls from her class. She was great and all grins from ear to ear afterward (it helps that the auditorium the dancers waited in for their performance time had a magician and lots of fun.) Flowers at the end also brings lots of grins, however, she has requested that next time she has a recital she gets red, white, or pink roses.
In a moment of insanity I signed the girls up for two sessions of swimming lessons in June. That meant four weeks of straight swimming lessons. I am so glad they are over! However, they both did improve a lot. Plus, I may have missed this gummy grin from Tate!
Its here. At least that's what I've been told. We have made it swimming a few times but currently Utah has acquired a monsoon season. Strange. We've started swimming lessons and gymnastics, in the process of finishing dance and school, had a root canal (me, not the girls) and have several doctor's appointments before the weather can clear so its not my fault we're not at Cherry Hill to swim every day. 
Tate is six months old already! Where has the time gone? She is definitely my most petite baby. She is very happy and calm yet energetic (I'm beginning to worry about when that energy is able to move around...scary). She has rolled over in both directions but isn't so hot about being consistent, I'm not worried. She is a chatter box. That girl will talk all day long (baby talk, of course).
On a side note, Phil had to go to Cooperstown, NY for work a week ago and got to go to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Yeah for him!
We had a chance to head down to Delta last month and visit Phil's grandparents. We got to visit with his Grandma Nielsen pretty well one on one (which I have NEVER done in our entire 8.5 married years). It was really fun to visit with her and hear her stories. Then Phil's aunt took us out to her friend's place who had brand new ponies. Phil's Grandma Cox made us fried chicken and milk gravy (Phil's all time favorite meal) and we got to spend some time with both Cox grandparents. Phil really does love Delta, me...not so much. It was a fun weekend and the girls loved playing with the horses so everyone was happy (and yes, Brit did wear her sparkle shoes out on the farm, much to her father's dismay-not appropriate farm shoes, how embarrassing!).
A little over a month ago a HIDEOUS lawn ornament appeared on our lawn. For those of you who don't know, we share a little lawn area in front with our neighbors (we live in a townhome...it happens). Two little kids sliding down a slide. Sweet, you may say, cheesy is what I say not to mention VERY cheap. It was placed more on our side (we assumed the neighbors thought it looked cuter closer to the tree...it didn't). So we had a silent war with the neighbors...many comments about their craziness and Phil scooting said children back to the neighbors side and neighbors scooting it back. If you understand the full neighbor situation you'd understand why we never talked to them about it. They're nice enough just a little bit of craziness over there. FINALLY, the HOA got involved last week and sent the neighbors a warning. That night we got a knock on our door. Lawn ornament NOT the neighbors. They have hated it just as much thinking it was ours and couldn't figure out why we kept moving it to their side. That night the two children on the slide made it to the trash with a few goodbyes from the girls (they thought it was wonderful and oh so cute). Thank you to whoever put it there....
I have rearranged the seating arrangement in our car so that the girls are all together in the same row (Charlie was tired of being in the back by herself). As we were returning from the doctor's yesterday Charlie says, "Brit! You can't feed the baby your sucker!" Sweet of her to share, but now I wonder how many other sweet treats my five month old has had...
