Memere's Birthday and Cousins Day at the Beach

I have been SO bad about taking pictures this summer!! I need to get better.

Case and point, it was my wonderful mother's birthday this past week and this is the only picture I got of the birthday girl. And to be honest, Julie took it!

But bad pictures or not, we celebrated Memere's birthday with a fun little pizza party. The Gasch's came, along with the Banks's. It was a great time.


Julie was dressed for the occasion.

And of course the kids helped bake and decorate a special cake just for their Memere!

Even though there were not the awesome family pictures I would have liked, we had a great time celebrating Mom and all she does for her growing family.

Then yesterday we got a special treat when cousins Summer, Emmanuel and Sophia came over to hit the beach. I took the afternoon off work, scooped up John and the kids and met them there. What a beautiful day it was.

Julie was really into playing in the sand. She is normally much more interested in the water. She did end up soaked head to toe, but built a fun castle complete with dam and mote.

Sophia had NEVER been to the beach before. She was very apprehensive about the sand and water. But she thought chasing her cousin Andy around was pretty fun...as long as mom did all the work!
Even her Dad couldn't convince her.
But it was enough to completely wear her out. Next time they come over (which all us Hunters hope is REALLY soon!!) I am sure we won't be able to keep up with her.

Happy Day.

As we Hunters sit and enjoy a quiet Father's Day evening, I think of how lucky I am to have a wonderful man in my life who is an extraordinary father. Last night we went to cruise night in Pismo to watch all the beautiful old cars, eat some greasy food, and spend some time with Grandpa Mel and Grandma CC. Today, we swam in the wading pool, made a Father's Day cake,
and spent time together.

Today is also our 7 year wedding anniversary. In past years, we have gone to do something special, something just the two of us. But this year, I am so happy just spending the day with our family.

So Happy Father's Day, John. You are 100 times the father I hoped for my children. And Happy 7 year anniversary, I love you.

Veda

On Wednesday morning, I brought the kids into work with me to meet Grandma, like I do every Wednesday. While we were waiting, a very excited husband called to say that Bess's baby was on the way. When Grandma got there, she was even more excited!

All day, I was on pins and needles waiting for the news.

Then it came, our niece, Veda, had arrived. And she was perfect, and Momma Bess was doing great.



John is getting ready to go see the new addition, and I can't hide the fact that I am more than a little jealous he gets to snuggle this bundle of love before I do. We are so happy for you Bess and Matt, and can't wait to get to see her and watch the amazing parents I know you will be.

Weekend Fun

This weekend we went to the beautiful wedding of our friends Steven and Emily. I didn't take any pictures of the amazing bride or the handsome groom, or any other friends. All the pictures I took were of our crazy kids dancing!Andy found all the beautiful girls in the room and danced with them. Every time I looked up, he was dancing with another lady. None of them were people we knew. He would just walk up and ask them to dance, it was so sweet. I think this one was his favorite.
This was another one of his favorite partners.
Honestly, who could resist this boy!
But, he also didn't mind dancing solo.
Julie got herself an Uncle to dance with.
Andy even left his women long enough to dance with his old Momma.
Then, he got tired. Julie didn't really know what to do with him at this point.
They had so much fun at the wedding. We didn't get home until 10:30!!

The next morning we got up and went to Avila Valley Barn with the Cisneros Family. Julie picked out her own outfit.

We piled on the tractor and went out to pick berries and peaches.
Julie and Andy were great pickers. Everett was really good at picking and eating the berries his Daddy put in the basket.
And what does a boy who picked berries, and ate most of them, look like at the end of the day??
Yup, we had a great weekend. This was the first weekend in months it has been sunny and warm, so I am glad we got to take advantage of it!

Sweet Boy

Andy, like any little boy, has his moments of being a terror. Sometimes he uses his hands more than his words. Sometimes he likes to run over Julie's dolls with his tractor. Sometimes he wipes his nose on my pant leg.

But then, the rest of the time, he is this sweet, caring, gentle boy.
Who reads books to his great grandmother.

Who explains every picture to her, even though she can't see the pages or hear what he is saying.
He is an amazing little man, well, big man, getting bigger every day. And every day I am so proud of him!