Robbie's 5th Birthday

Robbie turned 5 yesterday! FIVE, people.

Instead of a friend party, he got to invite two friends to see Cars 2 on Saturday. We went to an early show and the kids had a nutritious breakfast of popcorn, fruit snacks, and Sprite. He was SO excited to go with his friends, and he had a great time!


Later that day, we went to Baskin Robbins for his free scoop of ice cream and Barnes & Noble for his free cookie. Before dinner, even. We live on the edge.

Yesterday after church, most of the family came over.

L-R behind Robbie: My parents, Briana, Dan, Rob, Ayla, Sandy, Brigette, Steven, Kristil, and Erin on the floor.

Reycle bin ready for action!

He was VERY excited about his presents! Except the clothes. He hardly glanced at those as he moved them out of the way of his loot. Not sure he even looked directly at them.

He got plenty of Cars stuff, Legos, trucks and trailers, Hot Wheels tracks...


And then we sent him to the garage to find his new bike! He was really happy about that.

I'm hoping to get him on the bike tonight and see if we can't skip the training wheel stage all together. I'll take some pictures if we're not at the hospital.

Next, we had cake! He wanted a Superman cake, so I made him a SuperRobbie cake. We all had blue lips.
He was smart and didn't tell anyone his wish. He got some money in a couple of cards, so later that night I was trying to help him figure out what he wanted to buy. I asked him if he got everything he wanted, and his answer was an emphatic, "YEAH!" That was good to hear. And yes, he even likes the clothes. He checked those out after all the toys were put away. He had a fun day.

We love Robbie and we're very thankful to have him in our family!

Spring 2011 - Photo Goulash

Well, spring did happen - I just failed to blog about anything for months! Here are a few photos taken during my unplanned hiatus.

The kids and I rode the light rail to the Aloha Festival again this year. We started at the park & ride on Central & Camelback, which is right across the street from Smeeks - so of course we had to go buy candy and weird stuff! That's a great store.



Riding the train home that night - some drunk ASU boys were chatting the kids up, and it was kind of funny because the kids had no idea they were drunk. After they got off the train... "Those guys were really nice!" And they were - it was amusing to watch the whole interaction.


Erin is starting to feel the wrath of her parents' genes. She got glasses in March. She only has to wear them to see the board in class, and sometimes she wears them to watch TV, but I'm sure it won't be long before she has to wear them all the time, like her mom & dad. She's OK with it.

Around the same time, the dentist put a palate expander on her teeth. We know she'll need braces in a year or two after all her baby teeth are out. After her palate is expanded, there will be more room for the orthodontist to work with, and it should make the braces less extensive. Her teeth have already separated and look quite a bit different. Pending orthodontia: another gift from her parents' genes.

In May, Rob and Robbie went to our ward's Father & Son's campout. They had a good time. It was on a ranch, and there were herds of deer close to where they camped. There were also puppies, which were a big hit!

Robbie really liked going camping with Dad; he felt like a big kid. He called me from the road after they left. He said he was holding the map and he was the gavinator.

"The what?"

"The gavinator! I'm showing Dad where to turn."

Here he is with one of the puppies.

Erin finished up 3rd Grade, and got to go to Honors Night for Prinicpal's Honor Roll again. Here she is with her teacher and her trophy. She's a smart girl.

It's hard to believe we're halfway through the summer! Not sure if we'll get to go camping again in July, since a good portion of the state is on fire. Let's hope for some rain between now and then!

Camping - June 2011

We're back from our first camping trip of the summer! We went to Knoll Lake, as usual.

Rob's sister Brigette and her family came with us - except for Rett; he had to work. Erin and Robbie really liked having their cousins there to play with! The weather was great, and it was a nice, smooth week.

Walking to the lake

There are two ways to walk to the lake - one is on a nice little trail, and the way we usually go is straight down a ravine at a 45-degree angle. The kids all did great on the hikes and nobody complained.

Cousins on a log - Ayla, Erin, Briana, and Robbie

The kids did all kinds of stuff to entertain themselves. They explored the dry creek and played on the "tree bridge" (just a log that fell over the creek bed), played tag, colored, read, made sharp sticks... all the important things you do when you're camping.

Brigette and Steven at the lake

Robbie at the lake - always holding a stick!

We got a good campsite that had three tables. It was quieter this time than the last couple of years, and we were camped next to a group of boy scouts who were very well-behaved.

Our campsite - the grills, fire ring & screen rooms

Looking the other direction at the screen rooms, plus the kids' tents.

I didn't get a shot of Brigette & Steven's tent.

Our tent - You can fit two queen-size matresses in there and still have room to walk around!

Ayla and Robbie in the lake - MIND-NUMBINGLY COLD WATER!

This is where we jump off the rocks. It's a long swim across the lake to the rocks, so this time we brought two kickboards so it would be easier for the kids to get across. Rob would go with them and hang out at the bottom. He would toss kickboards to the kids after they jumped in so they didn't have to swim as much.

Robbie wanted nothing to do with it, but the other kids jumped several times. So did Rob and Brigette. Steven stayed on shore and took pictures, and I was too cold by the time I swam over there; maybe it will be better in July.

Erin on the rock, Ayla in the water

Coloring in the screen room - Erin, Ayla, Robbie, Briana

On the way home - looking off the Mogollon Rim

Rob's truck hit a milestone on the way home - 100,000 miles! (No, he didn't take the photo at 70 mph, that was me... leaning over him while he drove - maybe that's safer?)

Rob and some of the kids saw some deer on one of our hikes to the lake, and Robbie and I saw a big fluffy-tailed squirrel. We watched big birds swooping down and snatching fish right out of the lake - that was something new.

It was nice to have Brigette & Steven and the kids with us, and we couldn't have asked for nicer weather! Our family will go again in a few weeks.