A Few Things I Didn't Mention Before

Sorry about my last post. I started it really late at night, saved it, and then somehow lost half of it. How do you go back into a previous post to change it? I also need to know how to delete comments. Does anyone know?

We've had so much happen over the last few weeks and I feel like I just don't have enough time to sit down and blog about it all. So here are a few highlights:

July 11th was our 10th year anniversary. When Jason came home from clinical he brought me these!

A few days later we went to The Hill Cumorah Pageant and got to see some old and new friends. The girls loved it! Chloe adopted herself into a new family during the show. They were from Utah, camping out for the week, had 8 kids and were apparently a lot of fun. She shared our cookies and drank their water. The only time she wanted to sit with me was when she was hungry for real food. But when she tried to return to her post, she got a bit lost and a little scared. So their mom and I got up to rescue her. She was about to start screaming their little girl's name. I could just envision her upstaging the show. She certainly has the lung capacity to do it! I had these flashes in my head of all the things she does when she's panicked. I haven't moved so fast in a long time! The other mom and I both got to her at the same time. ( But I was about 4 rows back)! That's one of the greatest things about the Church. You have instant friends and people who care no matter where you go! Here are a few of my favorite scenes from Pageant.
Jennie (Jason's sister) is the lady dancer in blue and purple. Isn't she great?!!!!

My favorite scene is when Christ comes down among the Nephites. However, I didn't get to take a picture because Lily needed to go potty. We watched as we were walking to the bathrooms! She has since been talking about how Jesus is in Pageant. She wants to go to Pageant to see Jesus. She doesn't believe me that Pageant doesn't happen every night in the summer. She doesn't care that Pageant is over. She just wants to see Jesus. Don't we all?

Pageant 2008

Jennie and the boys were in Pageant this year. When Chloe saw them....she desperately wanted to be part of the action. She immediately asked, "Mommy, I need to go get my costume on too

Just Fooling Around With the Camera

Chloe is very good at taking pictures as described or shown in previous posts. She took all of the following pictures (except the one of her)....



I think she's got talent! And she has quite the sense of humor!

A Visit with Uncle Rick and Uncle Jim

Fun with my family!

My Uncles came to Rochester for a family visit. I thought I'd share a few of my favorite pictures! This is Uncle Rick with Chloe.
Uncle Jim with Chloe!
Schmoozing Lily....she was a bit cranky due to lack of sleep. We were running everywhere and didn't really slow down. Too much fun was to be had!
The girls haven't seen their "Great" Uncles in a long time because they live in Georgia...but they were very happy to get to know them better while they were here. When they first came to visit us in Buffalo, the girls had to show them all of their toys....downstairs and upstairs. We then went to the Buffalo Zoo and actually got to ride the train and carousel thanks to Uncle Rick. (Normally that is something Mommy tries to avoid)! We had to see all the animals in the zoo and in the process wore out Mom-Mom.
Here is Lily, Mom-Mom, and Uncle Jim. The girls fought over who got to ride on Mom-Mom's lap. Lily apparently won this round!
Every time we go to the zoo I try to get a good picture of the two of them together...so far this is the best one.

A preferred way to travel...

Out for a walk on the camp!A cute picture of Chloe.Fun at the splash park...a new addition to the camp my dad runs. This makes it extra fun to go to Nana and Pappy's!

I Can't Stand Rude People

The girls and I had a great morning. We woke up at a decent time, we weren't rushing, they dressed themselves, brushed their teeth, we ate watermelon, strawberries, blueberries, and raisin toast for breakfast. They were sharing, being nice to each other...life was good.

Then we got to the place that I "work". My boss needed me to teach step aerobics. She was supposed to do it, forgot, and didn't have any sneakers to wear. So, we decided that I could combine the two classes and teach step for the first half hour and then take my class back to our studio for advanced body conditioning. Okay...no problem. I like step...however, I've never taught an entire step class. I use step at the beginning of my class to increase our heart rates, however, it's only for 15-20 minutes. Not an entire class. Now, here comes my second dilemma. I surveyed the class. It ranged from ages 20-90. Some of them chose not to use a step at all. Now my usual class is an advanced class-they expect me to push them to their limit. This other group....not so much. HHMMMMM....how to strike a balance.??!!....
So during the class I ask them how they are doing. Most are sweating to death, some give me a smile, some say okay, and then I get a response of, "It's a little boring and we don't normally take water breaks". So in my head I'm thinking, okay Miss Critical, why don't you teach the class? (Actually I know I thought bad words and I'll let you think of the possibilities...let's just say that I have had to repent today).
So just for kicks and giggles I decided to throw in push-ups and horizontal mountain climbers and some weights in an attempt to make it a little less boring for Miss Critical. So what does she do? She stops.....she didn't keep going with the rest of the class...she stopped to stretch for awhile. I guess she was too bored to do the harder stuff! Don't tell me you're bored with the class and then opt not to do anything when I increase the resistance.
Then at the end of class she had the nerve to come up to me and tell me that I did a good job considering that I was only given a minute notice. I wanted to throw my weights at her. It took everything in my power not to lay into her. Here I was trying to be nice so that their class didn't have to be cancelled completely. I'm NOT a step instructor and I don't want to be. I'm an Advanced Body Conditioning Instructor. Occasionally I teach yoga, Pilate's, or spinning.....NOT STEP! So I smiled and asked my class to pick up and follow me back to the studio. I've been fuming ever since.
Apparently I'm not the only instructor Miss Critical has done this to. I can't stand rude people.

Tranquill Family Reunion at Uncle Tom's (Second 4th of July Celebration)

More of Uncle Justin's fireworks on the 4th!

Our 4th of July holiday was spent in Lyndonville, NY. Here the girls are patiently waiting for the parade to start.
Waiting and waiting....it did eventually start...like a half hour late. But the girls got lots of candy which made them happy.
Then we went to Uncle Tom's house where the girls got to play with Jacob. Take a quick swing in the hammock.
A few rides in the boat. Isn't the pond gorgeous!?!!! We love swimming here. From back to front: Uncle Justin, Grandpa Tranquill, Chloe, Lily, and Daddy. This reunion has become our family tradition every year. It's the only time of year that we get to see all of Jason's cousins.

Sawyer and Lily played very well together. The girls loved climbing all over Lisa.Andrea, Aunt Glenda, ?, and Aunt Jeane hanging out on the dock.Jason, Justin, and Rick walking out to the water....probably up to good. Oh yeah...they tried to put a motor on the rowboat and somehow it ended up in the water! Oops!Glenda, Andrea, Chloe, and Jacob...they didn't need a motor!
Chloe didn't like having to wear a life jacket to swim....but it did make her feel more comfortable to go in the deep part!My studly manly lifeguard!Cousin Andrea became a favorite!We pet the horses across the street! Lily has a new love...she wouldn't leave until she pet all of them!The little one on the run. She didn't like the life jackets either!Daddy started shooting.This reunion is the one day of the year that I shoot a gun. I'll dig up a picture from last year to compare my form!Watch out! This was Lily's response to the shooting.Chloe decided that she wanted to try....She got really scared from the kick back. I don't think that she will ever want to shoot a gun again!Shooting last year....hmmm...I think I need a new pair of jeans.
The 4th used to be my favorite holiday because it's the day Jason proposed to me. Now it's one of my favorites because I get to swim, spend time with family, set off fireworks, and have my husband teach me how to shoot a gun. I just love the land we live in!
Happy 4th of July!