Take 2 and 3 on Family Photos

As previously mentioned Grandpa was unable to attend the grandparent/grandkids photo session (I will post a photo of the war wounds just as soon as I can get Grandpa to pose for one...). First round wasn't so great, unbelievable I know, but we tried again today and this was what we ended up with:
Gotta love the feet-ies in these shots.

Anyway I feel fairly pleased considering that there were 5 kids under the age of 4. We spent the afternoon eating, shopping, and hot tubbing at Grandma Ropelato's for our reward.

Here are those long awaited Grandpa Racketball Warwound Shots, mind you this happened while WEARING eye protective wear:

A Real Man's not afraid to ice his wounds...

Kiddie Kandids Photos

One thing I just love about going home is the Kiddie Kandids in the Newgate Mall. I have had brilliant success nearly every time we've gotten pictures. I am super excited this time because Katelyn's personality really shines through.
Katelyn 2 1/2 years

Sarah 7 months

This last shot leaves me with mixed feelings. It's really cute but right AFTER this was taken Katelyn leaned over, wrapped her arms around Sarah, and gave her a very soft kiss. It was magical but not captured on camera...I guess that's what memories are for.

***We would have added the grandkids photo but unfortunately John (Grandpa) was knocked in the head with a Racketball racket a few hours prior and now has 18 stitches holding his left cheek together. What can I say, he'll have a great costume this year??? Poor Grandpa Starley

Girl's Trip ***Warning Lots of Photos***

We started out with a super early flight but decided the girl's travel best at 6am. Sarah slept the entire flight and Katelyn was golden all but the last 10 minutes. She decided to try to fit herself into the carry-on space under the seat in front of us and got stuck; of course it would be right when the flight attendent asked me to buckle her up. Needless to say a short lived tantrum ensued (thankfully it was very short). It was worth it all when we saw my mom. I can't believe how darling it was to watch her bolt through the airport for Grandma just as soon as she saw her about 100 feet away. Priceless.
After a few minutes fanangling with luggage and car rental stuff my mom told me Natalie had the baby an hour before we landed (10 days early). Alexis Ropelato was born at 5 lbs 11oz and 19 inches long. She's pretty cute stuff. I guess McKell (3 yrs) came in at 5am and told Dave and Nat that she had just had a dream and her sister was coming. Nat got up to put her back to bed and her water broke.
I guess Lexie wanted to join our girl's picnic. Speaking of...here are some fun shots of the family picnic. My uncle Larry was so nice, he even took my cousin's shift so she could come hangout. Family is so awesome but we sure miss Nate. Guess we'll come back soon enough, huh?

Next on the agenda was the Starley Girl's Trip. We started out with Dinner at Bombay Grill in Ogden (Indian food) that was really yummy. Too bad I was slightly sleep deprived and walked out holding my water glass. The waitress hunted me down and asked for it back. Klepto tendencies??? The next day we went to Snowbasin Ski Resort for a gondola ride up the lift and hike to the ridge. We stopped that night for Costa Vida and the best play ever...Big! Yes Big like the movie. It was so much fun, I can't even tell ya. Of course it was super great because the main actor looked/acted just like Joey Hale. No relation (Katie confirmed this through text at Midnight her time) despite the fact that we were at Hale Theater, which IS Joey's extended family . Lastly was a horseback ride along Antelope Island on the Great Salt Lake but I bowed out because Sarah had decided 3 days of activities was just too long.
Dinner at Bombay Grill (Indian) AKA Scene of the Almost Crime
Gondola Ride
Ridge Up Porcupine Lift
Snowbasin Lodge
We're off to Big at Hale Theater
We've had many days of fun with the cousins and grandparents on both sides.
Ouchies--Katelyn's first big fallGifts!Matching New DressesJumperoo and Loads of Excitement
Wrecking Havoc

Camping and Beaching

We had a great time this weekend at Camp Lehi and Manresa Beach. Camp Lehi is a complex of 500 acres that you can enjoy camping near Santa Cruz. Only thing is you have to pay dues by serving a few hours the following day to upkeep the grounds. We had fun singing around the campfire, roasting s'mores, and playing with friends. It dropped down to 47 degrees so it was a little cold and we didn't get a lot of sleep, but that's camping, right?
After lunch the Naseath's invited us to check out their favorite beach off the Monterey Bay.
Getting Dirty in PajamasNotice how brave Thomas is in the waves.Sarah eating dirt...

Preparatory Preschool

Katelyn and I started following the Brightly Beaming Preparatory Preschool Curriculum this last week (link on sidebar). This has been a lot of fun for us and sometimes it seems Sarah likes the activities even more. The website by Katrina Lybbert has everything included such as: lesson plans, activities, poems, books, and illustrations. It is a daily program teaching about shapes, letters, numbers, and follows a weekly theme. I didn't feel like getting online everyday to get the layout so I went through my friends at Lulu.com and copy/pasted everything into a nice bound version. We've been having a lot of fun tracing A's in yogurt, singing, and making a cow collage. It's great because I don't have to do this on a set schedule. If Katelyn is in the mood in the morning that's when we do it. If she is more excited in the afternoon, then we wait a little while. I am glad Rachel and Jayne shared their successes with it too. Here are some of our highlights:

My Learning PosterDrawing of a calf (didn't you know)Sarah singing along to Hey Diddle DiddleFinding the Letter A on the Scattegories DieInterpretive Dance: Calf

Nate Moonlighting the Barber Business

So I was totally inspired by Amy Bloom's post a while back about donating hair for Locks of Love. I tried to find a stylist in the area via recommendation but to no avail. I decided it was time Nate had paybacks on all the horrible haircuts he'd received from me. I put my hair into a ponytail while Nate took out the handy dandy scrapbooking scissors. Voila. Who knew his secret talent?? I hope someone will be able to use my 12 inches for a wig.

BEFORE
DURING
AFTER...

I feel like such a dork...Hey look at me, right? Ah well. Now you can see Nate's handiwork.

Monterey Bay For Labor Day

This was one wild weekend! We started things off with a Stanford football game with Nate's co-residents. We next spent some time cooling off in our frog pool at home while Nate caught up on some charting. Then the fun began. We drove to Monterey Bay (it's less than 1 1/2 hrs away) to check things out. We rented these really fun bikes with a trailer for the girls (notice who's pulling the weight) and rode around the coast. We took part of the 17 mile drive to Pebble Beach and loved the ocean views. The bike lanes are so nice out here. At the hotel we took a dip in the freezing pool, but I chickened out and only went ribcage deep. Nate had some great flips with Katelyn and Sarah. We hung out and ate lots of great food. Isn't it so nice to eat and not have to clean the dishes afterward? Anyway then on Monday we spent a day at the Monterey Bay Aquarium and cruised along Cannery Row. The Aquarium has so many fun exhibits for the girls. Katelyn especially loved the glass room where the tide comes over the ceiling like a waterfall. Here are some highlights from our trek:
Go StanfordA Rare Moment of Ponytails with BowsFrog Pool at Home While Nate Has PaperworkKatelyn Discovering the Horn on the Car--(I just love the canopy of flower trees in the background)Nate's LoadTrailer for twoThe girls on break--Katelyn in the sand and Sarah's chillingSquash LunchReflectionsWaterfall TunnelWatching the Fishies
Hanging Out at the Hotel