JULY 2006: Wow! This is going to be a long one. July was a big month at our house: first, we celebrated Independence Day with many cute pictures; then we spent a week in Pinetop--where I didn't take many pictures; then my brother, Brent, returned home from Brazil after serving a 2-year mission; next, we endured FLAMING HOT weather that made me question the wisdom of living in AZ; and last, we spent a week on the beach in Port Hueneme with the Lewis family. Whew. These pistures are kind of a conglomeration of it all.

One morning we tried taking some family pictures on the beach. It's a good thing candid shots are in style.

Ditto.

For those who are part of the Merkley family, you might appreciate this picture taken in Solvang, CA. Sarah and I have another one from when we were little girls. My mom says we met up with family in Solvang.

Warren and mom.

Okay, what follows are a bazillion cute pictures of our kids, mainly Abigail. Her smile is so captivating--I just kept snapping pictures, and then I just kept adding more to my picture tray because each one seemed cuter than the last...Sorry. I won't write many captions.

Nice face.

Sand does not taste good, nor feel good between one's teeth.





Abigail loved the beach. All of it. The water, the sand, the sand toys. This shovel and sifter were her favorites.

HA!

Oh look, Warren DID go on vacation with us...

Discovery.

Emily and Abigail.

Warren said, "Sand crab!!!" when he saw this picture. Funny, because you can't see the crab, but everything else about the picture tells you it's there.

Me and my sisters: Natalie (13), Emily (17), Sarah (26), Bekah (24) and Annie (9).

At the beach house we stayed at, there was a 2nd story balcony overlooking the patio. Abigail loved putzing around the patio. This is taken while looking down on Abigail.

Did I mention Abigail loved the sand?

Cold!

Warren in his own world.



I think this picture is a dictionary-worthy definition of the word "frolic."

So, this is the month for attempting family pictures. I suppose it's the inevitability of getting fat as I progress in my pregnancy that motivates me. (Did I mention I'm now 5 months pregnant with our 3rd child, supposedly a baby girl?) Anyway, before you move on to the next picture, take note of Warren's direction.

See what I mean?

This is kind of how things are in our life: Andy and I looking forward happily to the future, Warren being a goofball and Abigail loving every minute of it.

This is my dad with Warren, and my dad's older brother, Ron, with his oldest grandchild, Kaden. Special.

Notice the caption on her shirt: "American Cutie." And I didn't even buy that outifit--it was a gift.



Warren as a pyro-in-training.



With Papo in the pool.

Abigail meeting Uncle Brent for the first time in her life. THE END. 

Warren's 3rd Birthday: May is a big month for birthdays at our house. Abigail turned 1 on the 17th, Bekah turned 24 on the 21st and Warren turned 3 on the 30th. I wish I had pics of Abigail's b-day to show, but we were on the beach and had only brought the videocamera. So here are some quickshots of W's party. There aren't many because with 10 kids, you need all the adults helping, not taking pictures :)

I celebrated my 3rd birthday in Mexico with a pinata, so it seemed like a good tradition to start. Unfortunately, the only pinata at the grocery store was a lovely shade of lavender.

At Warren's request, we had a "dog" party. (Notice the dog ears in the first picture.) Here is a picture of Warren's dog cake that he helped me make by sticking cookies together. 

San Diego/Solana Beach, May 2006: One of the fun things about visiting CA every year is visiting the people Andy met on his mission in Anaheim. We go back to the Vietnamese Branch every time we go.

From here on out, Warren is dictating the captions for the pictures to me. "That's Abigail looking at the dolphins." (We were at Sea World)

No comment from Warren on this one.

"Abigail looking at the polar bears when we lived there. Polar bears eat us. I'm going to boing seals at those polar gears. Boing, boing, boing, boing."

"That's me looking at the hole where the water goes in the polar bear cave."

"That's the walrus eating fish. I'm looking at the walrus, blowing it a kiss. Then it blowed me a kiss."

"A walrus face. Ha-ha."

"This is Abigail touching the bear hand prints.She just stares at me through this picture. Isn't it dark in there?"

"This is the Shamu show." Okay, I have to interject. Contrary to what Warren thinks, niether Abigail nor I am as big as Shamu. However, we were waiting for the Shamu show to start when we took this picture."

"Abigail is seeing Shamu jump out, and jump in."

"Abigail feels happy."

"That's my shark face. I like doing a shark face."

"Me by the spitting waterfall."

"That's the spitting waterfall." Mom: "Abigail's not a spitting waterfall!" "Abigail is a spitting waterfall. Ha-ha!"

"Pete the penguin!"

"Abigail loves going out to the waves her own self. Abigail said, 'I can do it!' But she's going to feel cold in the waves. She says in this picture, 'I can do it.'"

"Me with dad going out to the waves. I feel happy."

"Abigail kneeling looking at those pine needles. Remember the waves were coming to hit our sand castle at the beach?"

"Me guarding a hole. Do I got rakes to rake myself out?"

"Time-out."

"Abigail getting sand in her hands." 

Easter Pictures! These next five pictures are best viewd as an uniterrupted sequence. I could put captions, but I think they tell their own cute story.





Our family is one of the few (I think...) that still hides the real, hard-boiled eggs they've decorated. Here is Warren with his stash. Of course, we hide the candy-filled ones, too...

Aunt Annie is Warren's best helper when it comes to finding eggs. She is vigilant making sure that he gets his fair share.

Abigail checking out her Easter loot.

Abigail is really into phones. She calls them "hellos." Here, packaging is doubling as a phone.