Ice Cream!

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In June, I did a photo shoot at a birthday party at the zoo. I brought Sarah along since it was the family of one of her good friends, Eaden. We had quite the adventure just getting a parking spot. It was ridiculous! We drove around for a half hour and when we finally found a spot and signalled to get in - waiting patiently for the car to leave - another driver came around the corner, looked at me and snuck right in! I couldn't believe it! I was flabbergasted that this old man would be so incredibly rude. Sarah did not see the best side of me that day, but I did resist the urge to leave a 'thank you' note like she suggested. Hmm, do you think the two of us need some anger management? When we finally got in the zoo - after 45 minutes in the parking lot - we had a lovely time taking pictures of Grace's 3rd birthday party. We even enjoyed a fun train ride! When we were done, we called daddy and the girls to meet us for ice cream because it was hot! It was nice to relax and cool off together.

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YW Leader's Waffle Party

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At the end of my time in young women's, one of the things I was very sad to lose was the close commradery I felt with my amazing young women's presidency and advisors. I wanted to thank them in a special way for the service they had given the girls and support they gave me. They are such wonderful women and I grew to love them so much.

The Saturday after being released, I hosted a Waffle Party for my sweet friends. A few of the ladies could not make it, but Kelly, Janae, Elizabeth and I had a great time talking over our yummy brunch. Christopher* gave me a Belgian waffle maker for mother's day this year - so we made delicious waffles with all kinds of toppings and I had to make Egg Stuff for a special treat too.

We had a fun time hanging out and talking. It was so nice to have a moment to celebrate the time we spent together! I love these ladies so much!

Sarah's Piano Recital

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Sarah has been taking piano lessons from Sister Stott for almost a year. She really has a love for playing the piano. It has been so neat to watch her talent blossom in the two years since she started taking lessons. For this recital, Sarah played a really cute song called "The Spinning Song". When I told my own teacher this she was surprised considering that Sarah has only been taking lessons for 2 years. So she gave me a copy to practice with and I can say, because I've tried to play it - it is not an easy song! (o:

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I need to get better at uploading my videos on here - pictures don't do these recitals justice. (o:

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Marilyn's cute students. Her boys standing in the back played the most amazing duet!

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We love Marilyn. She's been great for Sarah!

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Angela supporting Sarah and getting some yummy sweets at the end for her reward of sitting quietly!

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Poor Nat had a harder time making it through the recital. She got some barkdust in her eye during recess earlier in the day. It was a sad day for her - when she got her owie - she had to wait in the office for mommy to come get her. (I was at Out of This World with Angela, Tina and Tori - thanks to Tina for taking Angela so she could stay and play - we had only been there a half hour when I got the call from school.) Then we ran her to the doctor to make sure everything was okay and worked hard all day to help it feel better.

Twist Her

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The girls have discovered the fun of a classic game. I've played a couple rounds with them and it felt a lot like Yoga! Great workout! (O: The girls are WAY better than me!

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Young Women - Sewing Night

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After BillyBob* was called into the bishopric, I knew my time in young women's was short. It was so sad to think about leaving my girls, so I was grateful that it took a few weeks for things to get sorted out. I continued to be YW president for another month after initially finding out I would be released. I was grateful for the time to let it sink in and soak up as many more memories and hugs as possible. This was my last hoorah - our sewing project. We worked on sewing pajamas with my sweet seamstress friend, Rebecca. It took three weeks. I didn't get to go to the very last one, but I heard they were a hit and turned out so cute. I really wanted to go and get one more picture, but at that point I really felt like I needed to step back and let go. Plus, after taking all three girls with me to YW 3 weeks in a row, I was burned out. It helped me to realize that it really was a wise thing for me to be released. Two big callings in one family is too much!

I love the picture above of Natalie, Angela and 'big' Natalie. (she's not big, just bigger than little Nat!) My girls really love and adore the young women. That was one of the wonderful perks/ blessings of my calling. I loved them looking up to my YW - good girls who know how to have fun and be happy. Great role models for my little young women!

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Look at that concentration on Ellie, Tana and Heidi's faces!

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Hannah and her friend Michelle.

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I'll add this to my collection of funny Lizzy shots!

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I'm glad Kim pointed out Natalie to me while a few of us were chatting. Here was my Nat - who found a creative use for the fabric scraps - overlooking the activity. (O: Such a trend setter!

Natalie's Violin Recital

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Natalie's second violin recital was lots of fun. She knew what to expect and had more confidence. Plus, because she's been doing a lot of practice learning to read notes (the 'songs' she practices are more like drills), she got to play the same song, "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" but a bit fancier and with even better hand position. It's fun to see how much she's learned in the last 6 months. She was so cute. It was also really neat to see the amazing talent of the older students and Heidi's family. Very inspiring for Natalie! (o: Although, by the end, as she checked off all the performers on the program she wasn't feeling inspired; just hungry!

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I think Natalie's favorite part was going to Sweet Tomatoes to celebrate her hard work!

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I had to get a picture of each of the girls trays. They crack me up. Natalie LOVES veggies and fruit so she had a pretty colorful tray.

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Angela's tray - actually I'm surprised to even see peas made it on there!

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And Sarah's lovely yellow tray. (o: