Happy 40th Birthday Little Sister!

Several years ago we surprised Cheryl in Reno for her 60th birthday and had a great time. So, Casey thought it would be fun to recreate the hilarious birthday weekend memories!

One morning was pedicures and mimosas!

We spent part of the evening in the sports bar watching the Final Four. I didn't have much clue about what was going on... :) But I yelled and cheered along with everyone else!

 A toast to Casey for her 40th... Happy Birthday!

One of the days we took the bus to the Peppermill. It took us a bit to figure out how to buy a bus ticket... ha!! On the way home, we met a very interesting man and his pet rat.

One night we went to comedy act of Jeff Jeffries... it started out pretty funny, but then he started getting rude and crude. Pretty soon it was too much for a few of us to handle, so we snuck out the back. {Some poor lady was seen leaving and she immediately became part of his act!} 

Waiting for the show to start.

What a fun weekend! New adventures, lots of laughter, and even more memories. Thanks for including me in your big weekend!

Hello Hawaii

 The view from our condo's balcony.

Lunch at Duke's

A few self portraits.

 

 

Lots of swimming.

 Walks out to the point.

 

 Beautiful flowers.

Whale watching.

 Relaxing.

 A drive up to Waimea Canyon.

 

 Snorkeling.

 

 

Kilauea Lighthouse.

Chickens everywhere!

Ali's 1st Dance Competition

Ali tried out for "Soda Pops" last summer. It's the youngest performing team at the studio where she has been taking lessons for the last 5 years. She tried out with her cousin Natalie and her buddy, Alexis... they all made it! It has been so fun for all of them.

Ali & Alexis

Joining this team has been quite a commitment (for all of us!). Practice is two nights a week for an hour and a half... with different fundraisers, pictures, & performances throughout the year.

Today was the first competition for the girls. Ali was a bit nervous and very excited! She loves her jazz number; they all do! And you can really tell when they're on the stage. Their energy and enthusiasm makes it so fun to watch. 

Natalie & Ali in the front row.

This dance won 2nd place for their division! Yay! So proud of your hard work Ali! :)

Happy Birthday, Alison!

My first born is TEN!

Happy Birthday Beautiful Girl!

Since today was such a special birthday; double digits! we celebrated BIG! We took Ali and a few friends to Wings and Waves waterpark. It was a great day! It was such a fun place, and the kids had a blast!

This was one happy (not so little) girl. :)

Family Date Night

Our "date" night started with dinner at Red Lobster. Ali insisted that she could eat an entire crab dinner...

She needed a lot of help cracking the crab and pulling out the meat, but eating it was no problem. Little sister was happy to help!

After dinner we went to Craft Warehouse and Dick's Sporting Goods (we split up for this part of the date!) The girls had some allowance to spend, and Merilyn found what she called the "perfect" item.

She didn't tell Daddy what she got, and when we got home she ran ahead of us and put the "poopsy" on the carpet inside the front door. When Trav walked in he began the process of freaking out, "What is this!??!" But, before he could really get worked up he heard the giggling from around the corner. We all burst out laughing, but no one could outdo the belly laugh that came from our little Merilyn. 

Snow!

We've been waiting all year to get some snow... but, I don't think it's going to happen! So, Trav decided that since the snow wasn't coming to us, we needed to go to the snow.
One afternoon we bundled up and headed to the mountain. It was great!

The girls had so much fun! Up and down the hill; Daddy was having just as much fun hooting and hollering as he came sliding down. Lots of laughs, for sure!

We went into the lodge to warm up with hot cocoa. We sat and watched the snow come down, and down, and down... we're still hoping we might get a snow day at our home!