Slip-n-Slide

On the afternoon of the 4th of July, we built a make-shift slip-n-slide. We also pulled out the sprinkler and little kids pool for Macey and her cousins.

And what's a kiddie pool, with out a Scott belly flop? :)

More fun pictures!

Aunt Holly was nice and watched Cooper (isn't he so cute?!)...

...So I could try the Slip-n-Slide:

...and fail at the Slip-n-Slide! (I did FINALLY get it, though!)

Macey and Scott were great sliders!

And in between water activities, Macey drew us several "Meow meows". (She draws "meow meows" several times a day, every day!)

After a few hours, Macey got sick of the water. We headed inside and took a warm bath, popped some popcorn, and then Macey watched a movie with Abby!

And for the boys, a video. Scott and Jake practiced doing this for a good hour. I videoed the second time they finally got it!

Nephi Canyon

The Saturday after the 4th of July was the Robertson Family Reunion (Scott's Mom's side of the family). Scott's Grandma and her siblings own a big piece of property in Nephi Canyon called Hop Creek Hideaway. We had the reunion there, and Macey loved it! It was so green and there was a Creek. Macey played in the water and ate popsicles. (What more could a little girl want?!)

Grandpa Bagley held Coop so I could take pictures. Such a cute, happy boy!

Side note: It's nice to know that Macey is as afraid of dogs as I am!

Other than the dog, it was a fun day in the water!

We headed back to the campsite for popsicles and socializing!

Family Prayer

Scott and I say several prayers together everyday. When it's family prayer, we always try to reign in Macey: put down toys, make her be reverent, fold her arms, close her eyes, and bow her head. We do it every. single. day. Most days, it seems like a never-ending battle! We have been doing this for months and months!

Tonight for dinner, she did it!

It was a hectic dinner time, and I quickly put her in her booster seat. Scott was feeding Cooper. It was time to pray over dinner. I turned to her and told her I was going to pray. I told her to bow her head and close her eyes. She did it! She dropped the food she was snacking on, folded her hands, closed her eyes, and bowed her head.

Scott and I quickly stole a glance. We were both fighting back tears. I had to hurry and pray because she was ready. It has totally paid off. Months and months of work paid off. As difficult as it is to be a parent, today, all the hard parts were totally worth it!

Big Sister

Macey is such a good big sister. She freely gives Cooper kisses. If he is upset, she will bring him a toy or a blankie. She watches out for him, and he absolutely loves his big sister!

We have been sleep training Cooper. It hasn't been as vigorous as it was with Macey, but Cooper is catching on faster than Macey did. The times where he does cry himself to sleep, Macey doesn't let him cry very long.

The other day I was in the kitchen doing dishes, and I could hear Cooper fussing. I knew he was exhausted and would soon go to sleep, so I kept an ear open and kept doing dishes. I noticed Macey kept running back and forth to something, so I peeked my head around the corner. Cooper's bedroom door was open, and he wasn't crying anymore.

I panicked and took off running--preparing to scold Macey, but everything was just fine. I found this:

Macey had thrown her Rapunzel pillow, Rapunzel doll, and blankie into Cooper's crib. She had pulled up his crib bumpers, and she was talking to him through the crib slats. He was the happiest boy in the world!

After I gave Macey a kiss and pulled her stuff out of the crib, we left the room again. Five minutes later, I came in to find this (love the stuffed monkey pillow under his head, the football in the foreground, and his little, crossed ankles):

Fire Pit

Lynn got a fire pit for Christmas, and we finally pulled it out for our 4th celebrations. I only got one good picture from that night. You will have to take my word for it, and the chocolate smears and graham cracker crumbs on Scott's shirt--that the night was fun, and the eatin' was good!

Watercolors

Macey loves, loves, loves to color! While we were at Grandma Bagleys, she had paint, so we pulled out watercolors for Macey to do one day. She is such an artist! (She had to finish her York Peppermint patty before she began, but she loved it!)