Our Dancing Queen Turns 9!

You know how Brynnli loves to tell us what theme she wants for her party months in advance, right? Well this year she had it narrowed down to a fruit party or a dance party. I didn't quite know how I would pull off a fruit party, so I successfully convinced her to choose a dance party and we had so much fun!!

Birthdays at our house last as long as we can. First we started out with Brynnli's friend party. She didn't have school on the Friday before her birthday, so we had all of her friends over for an afternoon party. 

Brynnli invited the Moffats and Keira from our neighborhood, Pearl and Arissa from dance, Audrey, Hazel and Paisley from school. We had pizza for lunch. 

Then they painted a sun catcher. 

Luckily Makayla and her friend Maddi wanted to help with the party, so we put them in charge of the dancing games. 

We played freeze dance, did the chicken dance, limbo, and the macarena. 

Then we opened presents. Brynnli got so many toys, stuffed animals, gift cards, art projects, and Barbies.

Brynnli doesn't like cake, so we had birthday donuts and she blew out the candle. 

The next morning was Brynnli's actual birthday. She got to open one present and it was a new outfit for dance. 

We had cinnamon rolls and bacon for breakfast. 

Then Brynnli had to go to her trio practice. We stopped on the way home for a little birthday treat. 

Check out the muscles on this girl! 

Then Brynnli opened the rest of her presents from us. She got a toy dog, clothes, and Barbies. 

Brynnli wanted Texas Roadhouse for dinner and she was so excited to sit on the saddle for her Texas sized Yea haw birthday shout out. 

The next day was Brynnli's family party, and do you know the best thing about Tyler's family? They all participated in the dancing. That's right... the cha cha slide, macarena, chicken dance, limbo... everything!

Then we opened presents. Everyone must know that Brynnli loves Barbies because she got a Barbie set from almost everyone. 

Hands down, best and most supportive family around.

We can't forget Grandpa Craig who also has a birthday, but is so great to go along with whatever Brynnli plans. He said he loves Barbies and dancing parties too. 

Cam also loves Barbies, although he probably wouldn't admit it if we didn't sneak this photo of him playing with Brynnli's new toys. 

Actually... all the kids love Barbies. They try to act like cool teenagers, but they are really just kids at heart. 

Oh Brynnli, where do we even begin? 9 years ago you gave us the best surprise when we found out our little caboose was a girl, and you have given us non stop fun since then. You are such a happy, sweet, sensitive, loving, and smart little girl. You know how to make us laugh, like when you drink a lot of water and then jiggle your belly to hear it swish around. You know exactly what to say at the right moment to make us all laugh with your witty one liners and facial expressions. You are so incredibly smart at school and are doing so well learning cursive and multiplication facts in 3rd grade. And there's nothing we love more than watching you dance with your cute facial expressions and full out dance moves. Even though you are the youngest in our family we all look up to you because you have such a positive out look on everything. You know how to have fun and how to make everyday a party. We are so lucky to have you in our family and can't wait to see what this year has in store for you. 

Here's Brynnli's birthday interview questions at 9 years old: 

What are some things that you like or are popular today? " Barbies... Of course. Oh and pizza"

What do you like most about yourself right now? " I like that I have talent and I am very creative... very."

What do you think your future job will be? "I want to be a teacher and an author ".

What are you good at? "Writing, dance, and barbies "

Do you have a crush? "Yes. Fine I'll tell you...Lincoln "

Who are your friends and what do you like about them? " Hazel because she's really fun and Audrey because she's kind of dramatic, which is fun "

Where is your favorite place to eat? " Texas Roadhouse or the one where they cook in front of you ( Tepenyaki)"

What makes you really annoyed? " Makayla farting at night"

What makes you feel proud? "Getting a new trick in dance "

Which of your nicknames do you like the most and why? " Definitely not Bryan. I like Brynnie because its basically my name"

What is your favorite subject in school? "writing and reading and math"

What do you wish you could do that mom and dad won't allow? "Jump on the couch and pin things to the wall "

What is your favorite thing about Makayla? "She is funny by doing weird dance moves "

What is your favorite thing about Caden? " He is kind and he always apologizes and he is honest"

What is your favorite memory with Dad? " When I was little and we went to an ice cream place together"

What is your favorite memory with Mom? " When she paints my nails."

Flip Flop Summer

We are soaking up the last little bit of our flip flop summer before we start the new school year. Here's a few of the things we have been up to this month:

Grandma Bonnie fell and broke her shoulder, arm, and a few ribs. She is in a lot of pain, but she is seriously one of the strongest people I know. Despite being in pain, she tries to find joy in everything. 

When we got back from our vacation, we stopped by to see her. Grandma Bonnie is one tough granny and someone I really admire. 

Brynnli's friends, and our neighbors, the Moffats, asked her if she wanted to go to a bakery that was celebrating everything Barbie... Apparently you could get a discount if you dressed up in pink, so Brynnli got every pink clothing and accessory item she had to go with her friends. 

Look how cute these girls are. The Moffats have 4 girls all really close to Brynnli's age, so she ends up playing with at least one of them every day. 

We are so sad because the Moffats are going to be moving next month to Florida. They plan to stay there for a few years. Brynnli is so sad because she plays with the Moffats almost every day, and when they move she won't have any friends to play with in our neighborhood. 

Who's going to play restaurant with Brynni now? I guess Grandma Kathy will have to do. 

These two cuties got back to school haircuts. Don't they look so grown up?

My mom and I took Bella to feed the ducks in the canal by their house. Both Grandma and Bella had a great time. 

Brynnli had a few friends over for a late night movie. These girls are so cute and had so much fun. I don't know how much of the movie they actually watched because they were giggling the entire time.

Don't let Makayla's face confuse you. She loved this ride at Lagoon. 

That smile is much better. 

Thanks to Tyler he timed our ride on the Ferris Wheel perfectly to have the perfect view of the sunset. 

Our kids are so lucky to have Tyler as their dad. I mean what 40 year old dad would do flips on the tramp?

Brynnli loves her new playroom and spends hours just playing up there. If you ever have the chance, go to her store.. it's one of the best places. 

My parent's new house is starting! They dug the concrete footings. They will hopefully be in their new house by February or March. 

Makayla is a little bit nervous about 7th grade and opening her locker. Tyler took her to the school so she could practice. 

My niece Hanna got married on August 19th. She makes a beautiful bride. 

I loved this picture of Hannah in her wedding dress with the picture of Hannah's mom in her wedding dress. Hannah's biological mom, Amber, passed away in a car accident when Hannah was just 2 years old. I love that she was able to honor her mom this way. 

Bella really is the most spoiled dog around here. We just love her. 

She's a walrus!

I wanted to document this moment because this will be the last time my dad grows a huge garden. My dad has always had a huge garden filled with corn, squash, tomatoes, eggplant, raspberries, and cucumbers. I remember summer nights when we would just have dinner from the garden, and I loved it. I think moments like this are bitter sweet. I know this yard is so much work and my dad his getting so tired trying to keep up with it all, but I am going to miss my childhood home and the memories I had there. 

I walked past Makayla one afternoon and just had to snap this picture of her. It was a "glimmer" moment for me. A moment where I wondered how she grew up so fast and marveling at how she's become such an amazing young woman in the blink of an eye. Makayla is an excellent student, a loyal friend, a great sister, and such a fun daughter. Don't let people try to tell you that teenagers these days are difficult because I think the rising generation is pretty great. 

This one too... they don't come any more thoughtful, hard working, funny, and smart as Caden. 

Saturday mornings are made for quick trips to the local farmer's market and library. The kids got to plant some seeds in a pot. 

And a huge shout out to Tyler for always making our back yard look amazing. 

I found this picture of me and my best friend in elementary school, Staci. Tyler was laughing so hard that the two of us would get matching clothes and have professional photos taken. Tyler said Caden looked exactly like me and made Caden do the same pose as me. What do you think? Does Caden look like me? I couldn't see it. 

Just in case you didn't know... our kids are really talented. Just look at Makayla. She said this was a really comfortable way to watch t.v.