Happy 8 Years, Sophie!

So, my {baby} Sophie turned 8 on Saturday!  It is hard for me to believe, time moved so slow when I was home with little ones, and now the years are flying by. We went to Legends of the Guardians at the IMAX, then dinner at Claim Jumper with all 6 of us.

Sunday we went for Mojo fro-yo, and a little b-day photo shoot.

I stopped buying school pictures a few years ago {because, Hello?!? they ALWAYS suck!}.  So we take our own once a year.  I think one of these will do nicely!

And now 8 thing I love about my 8 year old:

1. She is so smart, and loves to read and write stories.

2. She is creative, always doing some sort of craft, and using all my good scrapbooking stuff....

3. She is hilarious, always saying or doing something to make us laugh.

4. She is caring, she really cares about people and animals.

5.She is sassy, which we all hope turns into a strong, independent adult.

6. She is artistic and loves to draw and paint.

7. She is energetic and loves to be busy.

8. She is loving, always giving hugs and wanting to cuddle.

So happy birthday to you, Sophie-lou!

Subzero Ice Cream Shop

The girls and I had a fun night out thanks to This Cute Girl and her post about Subzero ice cream shop.  It is a really cool concept, you choose your ice cream base (liquid), flavors and mix ins, then they use liquid nitrogen to flash freeze your concoction into ice cream!

Mixin' it up

Flash Freeze

A final mix

Still smoking a little...

This place really appealed to my inner nerd!

Sew-N-Go

As all of you know, I have the best job in the world!

It has become more fun with the addition of our fabric department.  We have the absolute prettiest fabric selection ever, and the best sewing classes.  I recently took the Sew-N-Go and it was "sew" fun!

Here's the deal:  It is $18 for the class, every first and third Tuesday 11am-3pm-ish.  You come, pick a kit off the counter, and have a seat.  When class starts, they show a sample of the project and hand out the pattern.  Yes you heard right, supplies and pattern are included, and you sign up "blind" not knowing what the project is.  Here was my first class: 

The tote was so cute, I had to make 3. I mean I do have 3 girls, I had no other choice right? The fabulous teachers have extra kits for sale, and not to brag too much, I got all 3 done in class!  This tote can be made any size determined by the size of squares you use.  I might just start cutting squares out of my fabric scraps and sew them together when I have enough.  I'm inspired, can't wait till next time!

Been Busy

I have been so busy lately, but haven't we all?  Celeste is playing both volleyball and fall softball, so we have a sport to go to everyday (but Sunday), and some days two! Whew!

But in my "spare time" I have been editing Alexa's Europe pictures.  I first weeded the 1300+ down to 810.  Now comes the editing.  Her camera was not so good, so all her pictures have a slightly overcast look, even on days that were bright and sunny.

Here are some samples of her pictures, both before and after:

And fun effects:

And a few more pretty shots:

Back to School

I am a little late in this post, but the kids are back in school (Aug. 9)!

Their first day back in school, a customer at work wished me a happy mother's day, too funny!

Celeste is in her first year at Tempe Preparatory Academy, in 7th grade, and Alexa is now a Junior there. Man does time go fast...

We have already had curriculum night at TPA, where I met all Celeste's teachers, and it was a really great night. Hearing them all speak reinforced to me just why we are so lucky to be at such an amazing school. Never have I seen a more qualified, dedicated, interesting group of teachers! I wish I could have met Alexa's teachers as well....

Sophie is still at Ward Traditional Academy, now in second grade.

{she looks a little goofy with the sun in her eyes, oops!}

So far, Sophie loves her teacher and her class, and we have had a much easier time getting up for school, never her favorite! So far, so good anyway.

Michael starts back at Mesa Community College this Monday with a full load of classes, and will still be working for Tony (part-time).

{Why did I ever think it would be easier when they were all in school?}

Summer Break

I can not believe the girls start school in two days! We had a great summer. Most summers we have spent right here in AZ, with small 3-4 day mini vacations to southern CA. This year, we took a real family vacation, the first EVER! I got a passport book of national parks (which appealed to my inner nerd), and we were on our way.

First stop, the Grand Canyon. The kids and I have been in the past, but it was a first for Tony, and his niece Lizzy, who joined us:

Our next stop was supposed to be four corners, but it was closed and under construction. What the heck is that about? So we moved on to Mesa Verde, CO. I had never heard of it, but it was AMAZING! There were really neat ruins we hiked down to:

Then it was up through Utah, and Arches National park:

We made a pit stop in Denver, to see Tony's sister, Tammi (Lizzy's mom):

I love this picture of Michael, with Tammi, and Olivia, who is exactly one month younger than Michael. They were babies together, and now my "baby" towers over his aunt and cousin!

Our next stop was Wyoming, with 4 days to spend in Jackson, Grand Teton National Park, and Yellowstone:

Grand Teton

The girls with a huge elk behind them.

One of the many buffalo we saw, this one was walking right by our car!

And the highlight of Sophie's trip, a beautiful horseback ride in the mountains of Wyoming. Sophie is in love with horses, and I was so glad she was able to do this!

After leaving Wyoming, we were not done yet! We traveled down through Utah, staying at Utah Lake, then Bryce Canyon National park.

We totalled 6 National Parks stamped in our passport book, in just over 2 weeks! We had so much fun driving around, camping in the RV, relaxing and being together.

She's Baaaack!

So, Alexa is back and she had an AMAZING time.

I got my wish, she took lots of pictures (over 1300). I still have to really look at them, sort and edit them. That will be a big job!

In the mean time, here are a few (unedited) from each country.

First stop, England:

The London eye, which they did not get to go on due to a mechanical issue, bummer!

On to France:

At the Louvre, Eiffel tower and

at the top of the Eiffel tower.

Next stop Belgium:

Alexa at the Belgium chocolatier.

And then, the Netherlands:

Shoe and cheese factory.

Then Germany, where she had her home stay:

This is their backyard. She attended a day of high school with her home stay sister, Sarah. Her home stay was one of her favorite parts of her trip.

And last was the country she liked the most, Switzerland:

This was pre-white water rafting, which she said was a blast.

And they saw SNOW!!!! So fun for a group from AZ:

Alexa enjoyed every minute of her trip, saw so much, and made some really good friends. It truly was the trip of a lifetime!