at the beach...

Want to know a secret?  The best months to visit the beach aren't June, July, or August, they are September and October.  It's the fall that brings the hot weather, warm water, and no crowds!  When I say hot, I mean it.  We've had wave after wave this month of 95-100 degree weather.  It's looking quite possible that my kids will be wearing shorts until Christmas.  

David was pretty proud of his tunnel... big enough to fit a big head inside!

This was taken at our bonfire at the beach.  It's nice when the sun sets early, because we get dinner and a nice display all at once.  I love watching the kids (James is pictured here) dance across the golden water.  

Grandma and Grandpa Larsen

We've made some fun memories with Grandma and Grandpa Larsen this past month.  Joseph and Dave drove to the Rose Bowl to watch BYU's close defeat to UCLA.  A few days later, we shared cupcakes with Grandma on her 69th birthday!  She really makes 69 years look great!  We are very blessed to live near such kind, supportive parents.  It makes the craziness of California living well worth it!

This and that

Our drought was interupted a few weeks ago by a rainstorms that lasted one entire day.  When the downpour began, we all ran outside to enjoy the nice warm rain.  As you can see, our grass is basically dead.  What's left are a few tufts of crab grass.  Thankfully, the other plants in our backyard are still thriving... the Hybiscus, iceberg roses, and citrus are still going strong!

This little one loves to smile for the camera.  She is quite the ham these days and keeps me laughing all the time.  The other day, she pointed to my foot and said, "you have a big, big bum!" She is quite stubborn too.  When she wants my lap, she WANTS MY LAP!

Joseph and "Mary" with baby Jesus.  Love the Aftrican twist on Joseph's outfit.

Ruth is my diligent student.  After inventing her own homework for the past few weeks, she cried with joy when her teacher finally sent "real" homework home yesterday.  Actually, she did cry when I told her it was time to stop so that we could get ready for school.  It's looking like she will have all her homework done in one day.  School is a great fit for Ruth.  In all her five years of life, I have never seen her happier.

Most of the time, payback as a parent comes in very small doses.  Once in a while, however, your children surprise you.  David wrote this sweet essay to us for back to school night.  It made me cry!

James seems to be adjusting well to first grade.  He is embarassed when I kiss him goodbye, but then shouts hello from across the school when I am on campus during the day.  The most surprising thing about James is that has gone from super shy to Mr. Butterfly, and makes new friends quite regularly.  Apparently James likes Wolverines?!!!

Emmy's Expressions

This one is the best:  

(The hairdo was her idea)

A few stops on the way home

As family camp ended, we made one final stop at BYU.  The cute couple with us is our neice, Clarissa, and her husband Aaron.  Oh the days of young married student life!  So fun!

So sad that the full temple didn't make it into this picture because I sure love the St. George Temple.  It will always hold a place in my heart because on the front left steps is where Joseph proposed to me.  

Here we are on the steps, thanks to David's photography skills.  It was kind of funny, because each kid insisted on having a turn.  I think this is the only picture where we are not sideways!

Jospeh's grandmother, "MoMo", is 90 years old.  She lives in Hurricane, UT.  The kids found her interesting.

Thanks to Joseph, we discovered that my ancestor, Joseph Wright is buried just outside St. George in Hurricane, UT.  Actually, he was one of the first settlers of the area and his tombstone is still legible!  

Frontier Night

Frontier night was our favority thing at Aspen Grove.  All the camp employees were dressed in their western best and stationed at different areas throughout the field.  The kids, especially Emmy who rode it about 5 times in a row, loved the train ride.  We got to throw tamahawks (impossible), rope bulls, get faces painted at the barber shop, and do just about anything else that seems western.  We lost track of David for most the night until the pie eating contest began, and there he was, front and center at the contest table.  The best part for me was looking all evening up at the face of Mount Timp with its wonderful pines and waterfalls.  

and more pics

James with his counselor, Joseph.

David's counselors take his group on a hike to Stuart falls.

Ruth and her counselors.  She particularly loved Mr. C (behind her), and would always wave to him in the cafeteria.

With kids all involved in activities throughout the day, joseph and I had a lot of alone time.  This is the gorgeous view on our way up to Stuart Falls.

Emmy made friends with another Emmy (same birthday month too).  Her mom, Becky, was such a sweet woman.  We got to know her really well on our hike.  We also linked up with two other families that were lodging next to us.  By the last day, the older girls in these families were entertaining Ruth and Emmy every other minute.  It was difficult to say goodbye to all these great people.