Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

And the winners are..............Erin, Annie, and Jessie. I couldn't believe I only had 3 people sign up, so everybody plays everybody wins. I will send my boxes out sometime next week and I will post a picture before I pack everything up. I am excited to see what everyone does for their "pay it forward".

Mark's Farewell in St. George

Chase and Ava holding hands at the park. Chase and Ava being silly in the water

Matt, Ava, Mark and Me (with my little prego pooch).

Sunday July 13th was Mark's Farewell. Mark did a nice job on his talk and he had a lot of friends there. We had a yummy luncheon at a park after church. It rained a little which was nice because it wasn't as hot, a nice change from the previous days. This park had a little slash pad that the kids couldn't resist. After the kids all got naps Jess invited us to her in-laws to swim. We picked up pizza and swam some more. Again no pictures of the good times at Jessie's in-law's pool.

Pre-Farewell in St. George

I heard some noise in Rachel's pantry........Ava had shut herself in pantry and was digging through a big bowl of candy.
Michele and Ava on the water slide.
Mark, Maya, Chase, Ava, Michele, and Tally at the pool.
Ava, Chase, Maya, and Tally posing for a picture at the mini-river park.

We had so much fun before Marks Farewell on Sunday. On Thursday we went to the new aquatic center in Washington, Durango's for lunch, the city park, and this is the night I discovered Girl Scout Blizzards from DQ. Then Matt came on Thursday night and we played games at Rachel's house (too bad she had to work that night). Friday most of us went to a park that that is in the middle of town that has a little river and fountains for kids to play in. After the kids had turned to raisins, Jess took her kids home for a nap, and Lori, Maya, Ava, Matt, and I went to Pasta/Pizza factory for a very yummy lunch. After lunch we went to Costco to help my mom get some of the food for the farewell. Matt was a gem and dropped me at the Mall after Costco while he went and put Ava down for a nap. I shopped with Rachel, Michelle, and Lori. They helped me pick out a couple of maternity clothes since everything I brought for my trip was suddenly way too tight. Go figure! Friday night we hung out at Rachel's house again and the kids ran thru the sprinkler. First they started out in their clothes, and then diapers and then they got naked. Good thing Rachel's yard is fenced in. Have you noticed everyday has a water theme? 110 degrees requires water!! Saturday we went to Zions and hiked the gateway to the Narrows and had a picnic. The squirrels were aggressive and tried to eat our lunch. The kids would chase them off with little sticks.......sorry no pictures of Zions or the squirrels. Saturday night Matt, Ava, and I went to Ruby River where Rachel was our waitress. Ava was the naughtiest she has aver been at a restaurant......Joy!

Logan UT in July

Sara and Ava at a park in Logan. Ava could thro rocks into the water for hours.

Brutis, Ava, and Maya. Ava was in Dog Heaven this trip. She got to hang out with Brutis (lori's dog) Dingo (suzie's dog), and Harley (jessie's dog).
The girls loved holding hands.
Blurry, I know, Suzie's four and my Ava.

Maya and Ava sat at their own table at McDonalds in Beaver. Maya received an A+ for her traveling skills on this trip. Ava not so much.

So we went to Utah for my brother's farewell in July. Ava and I decided to go out a little early. We flew into Salt Lake and Lori, Matt, Maya, and Brutis picked us up at the airport. We all drove to Logan where Lori is living for the summer. We had a great time. We went to the zoo, had the most amazing sandwiches at Great Harvest, went to the park, etc...Then on Monday night Matt packed up the car for Lori and I for our trip to St. George. It was stuffed full, I'm still not sure how he got everything to fit. We even had a giant duffel bag between the two car seats. That Tuesday afternoon we stopped in Salt Lake and had lunch with my dear friend Julie and then spent the night in American Fork with another dear friend Suzie. Ava loved Suzie's house. She has 4 beautiful kids and lots of toys. Suzie and I stayed up waaaay too late reminiscing about old college days and the Wednesday we headed to St. George.

Blast from the past.....Okay Maybe just July

Eating a bag of yummy, buttery popcorn
Ava with Grandpa
Gathering sticks. A strange obsession she has.
Ava with her cousins.

I did not post some of the fun things we did in July. And I think they are worth posting, and I want them off my to-do list too! This is a 4th of July parade in Token Creek. They call it "The biggest little parade in the world" It was a lot of old cars and fire engines. It wasn't too long but it was hot. We decided to walk from our neighborhood and it wasn't as close as we thought, plus we went a way that we had to back track. Ava didn't mind because she got to ride in her stroller. Dad bought her beads that she still likes to wear them.