Team Smith

Sweet corn on the cob I love a good church picnic!!! We don't just say grace, we sing it. And with probably half of those present having sung in the choir, or with the choir at least once, it is a sweet and joyful sound! I'm betting the special adult cooler of drinks helped some loosen up a bit ;-) Thank you to the grill masters, the party planners, and everyone else for a great Sunday afternoon. Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye heav’nly host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost! Aaaaaaaameeeen....   +

We were so excited to have Billie come over for a sleepover! We began our evening with hair chalk- a safe and instantly removable way to color your hair. Dinner fit for royalty included chicken, mashed potatoes, broccoli salad, hawaiian rolls, and honest berry lemonade. Delicious! We quickly followed that up with nail painting, dress up, 30 minutes or so of reading books, bath time complete with water crayons and an ABC lesson for Savvy, and a brief room cleaning session. Our night almost ended with a viewing of Anastasia, popcorn, and water. Savvy went to sleep and it was just the big girls, singing and dancing to the movie. Then it was bedtime for all. Except really, who wants to sleep on a sleep over?? Unfortunatley I made a rookie mistake, and still had all of the girls sleeping in one room. The older gals were trying to build a fort and Savvy was trying to sleep. So I relocated Cass to our room. Except then Billie and Cass were no longer able to whisper in loud voices and avoi...

Sunscreen is one of Savvy's favorite words to say. It is freakin' adorable. Sounds like "sunseen". She likes to have a small dollop in her hand so she can "help" put it on her nose. It is a part of our morning routine. A couple months ago, just as the sun started making an appearance, Savvy came home from daycare with these awful looking red patches on her face. When our girls get sick, they tend to really get sick and end up needing ER visits. So of course I started panicking. It didn't seem to bother her, and I was worried. I did what we all do, though we know we should not, and I surfed the internet looking for similar pictures and ideas of what it could be. I started thinking about what kind of poop she had recently, took her temp, thought about her appetite, and ran through the checklist of all the things you're supposed to think of when your kid may be sick. Cue Matt Smith... He comes home and joins freak out mode with me. About two minut...

Thanks to our friend Vanessa, we now hit up Donner more often than Tahoe. It's closer, less crowded, has two playgrounds, great bathrooms, easy parking, and it's cheaper. In other words, it is wonderful! Don't get confused though...you have to keep driving past Donner State Park and go all the way to the other side of the lake to West End Beach. They even have a snack stand should you forget your picnic basket ;-)

I love going to this place! There were two highlights for me on this particular trip. #1. The cheetahs were 'bout to scrap with a snake by the fence. It was eerie. They were so focused, watching the snake as it ambled along. Where was the snake headed you ask? Towards the lizard sunbathing on the rock. And what was the lizard doing? I swear, watching a cricket. The circle of life soundtrack may commence.... #2. When Daniel was being cute as a button pushing Katie in the red wagon...until he looked back, smiled, then pushed her down the hill! Sibling love. And waved goodbye while his parents went chasing after her. And she was just smiling with her hands up in the air, enjoying the ride. Good times people, good times.