Jessica's Prayer

We are in the middle/end of a super crazy weekend.  But I'll get to that once I'm back in ID (I'm in LA right now).  I just had to write really fast about the sweetest thing Jessica did tonight.  We were saying a prayer before she went to sleep.  I started out, "Dear Heavenly Father..."  And she just randomly decided to take if from there:  "Thank you for Daddy, and thank you for Carly, and thank you for money, and thank you for Carly.  In the name of Jesus Christ, amen."  SO CUTE!!  Her Aunt Carly had just been playing with her, helping her put money in a bank.  I love how her sweet little mind works!

My Favorite Sites

I just thought I would share some of my favorite web sites with everyone. Most are already listed under my links, but here they are anyways.

Bakerella I just recently discovered this site. It has some really fun and creative baking ideas. Desserts mostly, which is of course the most fun. She has one recipe for this Reese's cake. I don't even know if I could do it justice describing it. Check it out because it looks amazing!!

She Does Hair I'm so looking forward to using this one when Jessica gets a little more hair. OK, she probably already has enough hair, just not enough patience to sit through me really doing her hair. The site just has some really fun and creative do's for little girls.

Blue Dandelion A friend of mine from SD makes these awesome hair bows and stuff. They make me want to be more creative and crafty.

SugarDoodle This site has some great ideas for church related things. I know Primary people who use it every week for sharing time. :)

All Recipes There are a ton of places like this online - just good all around recipe sites. It's just nice to have a place to be able to go and figure out something quick, healthy, or just fun.

I would love to hear from all you all out there about some other places that are fun/useful/whatever.

Hales Family Reunion

This past weekend the three of us (and Michael's younger brother) made the 10 hour+ drive from ID to Lake Tahoe. It ended up being a super fun event, complete with boat rides, hikes, good food, and lots of cousins. Jessica loved all of the attention.

Playing at the lake

Getting a ride from Grandma

The boys making the jump

Playing in the sand

Jessica, Papa, Tyler, and Emma

Jessica loved playing with Michael's cousins.

A BIG Popsicle - she was in heaven

Jessica, Tyler, Papa, and Emma

So proud of herself as she walked through the water.

Jessica is in time-out at the lake for throwing sand. :)

Jessica and Michael

Cousins - Emma, Tyler, and Jessica

I don't know if you noticed or not, but yes, Jessica really does have 3 swimming suits. I'm not sure why a 2 year old needs 3 swimming suits, but I guess that's besides the point. Thanks Grandma for ALL of them! :)

FYI

Just so you all know, I changed the way I've listed all of your blogs. I had last names before, but changed it to just first names. Maybe that will add some privacy from people doing online searches - maybe not. Either way, that's what I did. :) If any of you would rather not have your blog listed, just shoot me an email or leave a comment. I don't think I ever really ask permission before listing, so I'm happy to remove anyone. Or if I haven't listed you and you're feeling super left out of my award-winning blog (ala Angela's blog), let me know that too. :)

B-I-N-G-O!

July 4th

As Laura isn't feeling too well, I figured I better man-up and do some blogging myself. Luckily, this shouldn't be too difficult as Idaho Falls really knows how to put on a party, otherwise known as the Freedom Festival. On Friday, we spent the morning at the city parade which happens to pass by just 2 blocks from us. Jessica had a great time, especially with the view she had perched atop her grandpa.

The parades was...well, a parade - a few politicians, church groups, and high school cheerleaders, drama teams, and bands. Jessica had fun and when it got too hot, grandpa was nice enough to get some Hawaiian shaved ice, which Jessica devoured. This just happened to be a pretty funny picture with Jessica looking rather sassy.

I showed her this picture and she started laughing as she said, "I'm so messy!" Cute kid. Well after the parade, we headed back home and since it was still so hot, we let Jessica run around in the sprinklers which she absolutely loves.

We considered taking Jessica to the fireworks Friday night, but it was just too late for her after all the festivities of the day. It doesn't even get dark until 10pm and she was out cold by 7:30. Maybe next year. So we got a little firework to light off for her before bed. It was supposed to be a silent little guy, but we were surprised when the dang thing started screaming like a scared deacon. I have some video of it, but it seems to be a little too large for the blog. When we got back inside, Jessica was still a little shaken and this is the response I got to my dumb question.





That night, Laura and I headed down to the river with her brother Bobby and his wife Susan for the "biggest fireworks show west of the Mississippi" (or so they say). It was fun and I even got some video of the finale.





We all had a great weekend. Unfortunately, Jessica's cousin Alice had to leave on Saturday morning. After they left, Jessica just stayed by the window saying that she wanted Alice to come back. I tried consoling her by saying that this next week she'll be able to play with her cousins Emma and Tyler. Now she walks around the house looking for them. She'll be very excited to see them at our reunion next weekend in Reno.


Here's one last picture of Jessica and Alice. They had a great time together and Jessica loved actually being the "big kid." It was cute how she'd pull Alice around with her and how Alice would pick up some things Jessica would do. She'll be very missed.

Cousin Time

Michael has been a little frustrated at my lack of blogging lately - especially since I've had a decent amount to blog about. OK, maybe not "frustrated," but he's mentioned it. :)

Jessica has been in heaven lately. My brother, his wife, and their 15 month old daughter are in town visiting from Illinois. Jessica LOVES having her cousin Alice around! Usually she likes being around older kids, seeing what they can do and doing her best to mimic. But she has really grown into the whole "bigger kid" thing. She loves to drag Alice around and tell her what to do. Oh dear. They've gone swimming, both in the back yard and at the community pool, gone to the zoo, and much more. It's so fun to watch. I think Jessica will be a great big sister someday.

A day in the pool

Susan showing a ladybug to Jessica. So funny.

At the zoo

More to come...