Summer!

This summer we have been busy, busy, busy!  Tyson was called into Young Mens and has been busy with all that that requires and work but he is doing a great job and the boys love having him in there.  I have been keeping busy with T.J., especially now that he is so mobile. I have also been volunteering taking photos at the local animals shelters for their facebook pages and transporting dogs to rescues, as well as Relief Society stuff.  I was called to Relief Society Secretary so that is keeping me pretty busy as well.  I have loved being home with T.J. and taking him on so many adventures.  So far we have been swimming (almost every day), gone to the zoo, gone to the aviary, and gone to the library each week for new books, just to name a few.  Tyson has also been very busy with all sorts of projects.  I'm sure Garret is regretting staying with us this summer because Tyson is putting him to work!  A couple weeks ago our neighbors were getting rid of some gravel and we told them we would take it off their hands.  We ended up putting it in our raised garden (since we have WAY TOO MUCH gardening space) and then Tyson and Garret engineered and made a GREAT firepit!  It is great having too engineers around!  That same week, Tyson's brother Jake and his family came into town and we got to have them over for dinner, some swimming, and of course the firepit.  It was our first time using it so it was fun that they got to experience it with us.  We loved having them here, hopefully they'll come back soon!  It is always fun when Tyson's family comes into town.  We don't get to see them enough!

Tyson and Garret have also been busy building us a new fence.  Our old one was original to the house and needed to be replaced.  In some areas it was being held up by twine.  It looked awful!  I'm so proud of their hard work.  Check it out!

This summer Uncle Garret also bought a motorcycle.  He has been fixing it up in our garage and it looks great!  He has been so nice to let T.J. sit on it and Tyson ride it through the neighborhood.

 T.J. loves birds!  So this summer I have made it a point to let him see as many as he can before the winter comes.  We visit the neighborhood canal everyday to see the ducks and feed them.  I have also taken him to the aviary where he was most interested in the pigeons wandering around than the aviary birds.  Silly boy!  He also liked the pelicans and flamingos.  This past week the library also had a "Birds of Prey" bird show where we were able to see birds like Eagles, Falcons, and Owls up close.  It is nice to have so much to do so close to home.

 The last week of June, there were a couple of days where it wasn't good swimming weather but T.J. was restless so I took him outside to finger paint.  He loved it!  It was so cute to watch him explore with the texture.  There is never a dull moment with this little guy.

 Also the last week of June the park next to our house held its annual "Taylorsville Dayzz" it is always such a blast!  They have a carnival, petting zoo, fireworks, concerts, and booths.  T.J. got his first face painting, rode on a hot air balloon, and played with the goats and miniature horses at the petting zoo.  It was such a fun weekend.  We had a bbq at our house that weekend with our family and friends prior to walking to the park to enjoy the festivities.  Our neighborhood rocks!

We hope you all had a wonderful 4th.  We had a blast!  We went to Provo for the famous "Stadium of Fire."  This year they had Kelly Clarkson headlining with Carly Rae Jepsen and Cirque Du Soleil.  It was a wonderful program followed by a great firework show.  We also had great seats which made it even more enjoyable.

Here are some other snapshots of this summer.  You can see some cute pics of T.J. swimming and T.J. eating his second favorite food...Pickles (his first is watermelon)

T.J. showing off his swimming skills.  He is such a little fish!  He is learning to hold his breath under water, kick his legs, and jump off the edge.  He is going to be a swimmer just like his daddy!  We hope you are all enjoying your summer as much as we are!