Camping...

We went up to Rockport, which is one of our favorite places to camp.

  This time it just wasn't as fun as usual!

The day we were leaving I had to go to the dentist to fix a broken filling that was stuck between my teeth...thank goodness our dentist could squeeze me in & fix it!  

Then on the way there my car wasn't working right...the emergency brake came on & the brakes started grinding while I was driving.  So, we had to turn around & borrow my dad's car  (luckily we weren't too far from home!)

Then Libby was sick with a horrible cough & Sophie had a raging fever the second night, which meant almost NO sleep for 2 days!  It's hard having sick kids on vacation.  I was completely exhausted by the time we got home!

Then the site we go to has showers & flushing toilets (which is why I like camping there), but this year this is the sign they put on the door...

Not only did they ask us not to flush, they locked the showers...not so fun!

I have to admit it made for quite a few jokes while we were there ;)  "If it's Yellow let it Mellow!"  etc...

My kids always have a good time & they love going camping! 

 They played a little baseball with Steve...

 We all took turns walking Sophie...it's the only time she would stay in one place!

 She had also started running her fever that day :(

My cute Mom & Dad are always so helpful with the kids!

 Tyler, Libby, Jasmine & Zack enjoyed playing a few card games.

 Mickey was cold...he got a REALLY short haircut last week!

The water was super low this year & so the beach was really muddy!

My kids didn't mind, in fact...

My boys LOVED it!

 You would literally sink like quick sand!

Tyler was almost buried!!

Then he'd rinse off in the muddy water!

 Jazzy & Libby enjoying a swim...

 Grandma & Sherry trying to stay cool while they watched the kids!
We did a little boating...

 Josh drove like a pro!

 Steve did too!

The water was FREEZING!  It literally took your breath away!!

 Libby did a little knee boarding.

Tyler tried, but it was too choppy & he got really scared so I had to jump in and help him...poor kid!
He did it the time before perfectly...I still haven't gotten to that post!

It's been kind of a weird summer...it seems like we ran out of time!  We actually only went camping once & boating a few other times.  I can't believe school starts tomorrow!  I'm not ready, but some how we always adjust!

Libby's Friend Party...

Libby had been planning her birthday party for about a year...She amazes me with her creativity!
She LOVES Harry Potter, so that was the theme she chose.

She made up the invitations all by herself . Then her friend Sara helped her create a quiz to send with the invites for each girl to fill out.  Depending on how they answered the questions would determine which "house" they would belong to.

For the invitations she used page 51 of The Sorcerers Stone as her guide & replaced Ginny's name with each of her friends' name.  Then we printed them on old fashioned paper.

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HOGWARTS SCHOOL

OF

WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY

Headmaster: Minerva McGonagall

Dear Miss Ginny Weasley,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find an enclosed list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins July 20 from six to nine o’clock p.m. We await your owl no later than July 19. Dinner will be served.

Yours Sincerely,

Liberty

Birthday Girl

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This was the quiz that she sent with the invites.

Quiz!!!

Please finish and bring to the party.  Will be needed for an activity.

1.       Which best describes you?

A.  Brave   B.  Smart  C.  Loyal   D.  Power Hungry

2. If you were a witch what would be your dream job?

A.  Auror   B. Hogwarts teacher  C.  Minister of Magic  D. Death Eater

3.  Who would be your friend?

A.  Hermione Granger   B. Luna Lovegood  C. Cedric Diggory  D. Draco Malfoy

4.  Who do you respect?

A.  Godric Gryffindor  B.  Rowina Ravenclaw  C.  Helena Hufflepuff  D.  Salazar Slytherin

5.  What is your favorite color?

A.  Red  B.  Blue  C.  Yellow  D.  Green.

If you had mostly A's you were a Griffindor, mostly B's you were a Ravenclaw, mostly C's Hufflepuff, mostly
D's you were a Slytherin.
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For the party we recreated Hogwarts & had different activities at each station.

When they came in the door they were ready for the Hogwarts Express... 

On Platform 9 3/4...

Then they entered the Sorting Hat...

This is where each person was told if they would be in Griffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Slytherin.

  

Then they ate dinner in the Great Hall...

They loved their silver platters!

For Dessert they had...

A cup of dirt with worms!

Next they entered Diagon Alley...

Where the first stop was Gringotts to get their golden Galleons!

 Then they went to a few shops...

Ollivander's Wand Shop to get a wand.

Eeylops Owl Emporium...where they made an owl necklace.

Then it was time for them to attend a few classes.

First, was a potions class....

This was definitely a favorite!  The dry ice was a hit!

They turned out pretty cool...

All colorful & bubbly...

Next up was Defense against the Dark Arts...

In this class, they tried out an experiment to see if pixies could live in the environment of a jar!

I got this idea from Pinterest.  You need a mason jar, glow sticks & glitter.  You just cut the glow sticks & empty the color into the jar & add the glitter..they turned out so cool, but only glowed for about an hour!

This is such a sweet group of girls & they were very entertaining with all of their excitement & laughter!

Libby said it was her favorite birthday party EVER!
She & her brothers had a great time making all of the posters to display.
Here are a few sites where we downloaded some of the printables...
Signs found HERE & HERE.

Piano Recital

Zack & Libby had their end of the year piano recital in June.

They did so good!

Zack played "Here Comes The Sun"

and 

Libby played a song from the movie "Tangled"

Zack's Birthday Party...

Zack's birthday was last Sunday.

He was greeted in the morning with hugs from Tyler & Sophie!

These two are best buds & Tyler wanted his picture taken with him!

And so did Steve & I...

We LOVE this kid!!

Zack couldn't wait for his birthday because he knew he was getting this! 

 My boys are obsessed with Lego Ninjago at the moment!

He also got this one & put it together so we could decorate his cake...

He was very excited with how it turned out!

Then we had Sunday dinner at our house & as always...he was very spoiled by everyone!

 When he was at Cub Country this summer he wanted to buy an elastic band gun, but they ran out of them the day he was there, but lucky for him....

 Grandma found him one! 

 He was also thrilled with his tornado Lava Lamp from Shelly!

Everyone made him so happy!  He had a great day!

Happy Birthday Zackary!!
Later on in the month he chose to invite his best friend Noah & go to Classic Skating.
It turned out to be a fun night!

 Zack & Noah

Tyler, Libby & Sophie
I think we were the only one's there with a baby cruising around in her stroller that late at night!
She LOVED it & was bobby her head to the music...so cute!

Happy Birthday Zack!

 On August 5, 2012 

Zack turned "9" !

I seriously can't believe how fast time goes by!

This kid has brought so much joy to our family!!

Nine Things about Zack....

-He's such a good brother! He is so helpful with Sophie & he lets Tyler go EVERYWHERE with him!

-He is funny!  He might be shy, but he definitely has a sense of humor.

-He is so smart...he knows all kinds of facts!

-He's a good friend!  

-His smile is amazing...we love those dimples!

-He LOVES Ninjago & puts them together like a pro!

-He's very good at playing the piano...when it's a song he likes he'll master it quickly!

-He loves anything to do with space.

-He will be starting 4th grade in a few weeks!

Happy 9th Birthday!!
We LOVE you!