Sarah's Birthday

It was the coldest day of the year, but it was Sarah's birthday, and Jenna wanted to take her for ice cream.  We tried Rollin' Creamery, and it was delicious. Jenna picked out some jewelry for Sarah that included some best friends stuff.  Fun outing!

Stan Lee Day 1 and The Bell Game

Heather and Mackenzie attended Stan Lee's Comic Con after school today. It's a smaller Con, but still fun to walk around and wear the cosplay. Her Victorian Steampunk cosplay was amazing. She ended up being photographed by a professional photographer.  We pieced that cosplay together, and it looked like a super cohesive outfit. I love helping her put these outfits together.

In the evening, we took Jenna to her first Bell Game, Fountain Valley vs. Edison. We got creamed, but hey! It's the Bell Game so, ya gotta go. Sarah and Jenna had fun dressing for Twin Day as a part of spirit week as well as painting her face at the game. We sat with our friend, Michelle, and we ran into our Ocean View bff, Grace. Jenna sat with her friends, and we got a fun picture in the parking lot afterward. It was a festive night and a right of passage for our newest Freshman.

Middle School Volleyball Tournament

 Jenna's middle school volleyball tournament was today. So fun to play with friends and get some competition experience. The girls did great!

Fulton Volleyball Tryouts

Jenna, Sarah, Grace, MacKenzie

These cuties tried out for Fulton's volleyball team today. Jenna has been pretty sick and later in the evening, she had a fever. But she tried out and made the team. Woot!

Day In The Temple - Early Morning Session for Youth

Today was our Stake Day in The Temple. This year it was not only open for un on a Monday, but there were two special baptism sessions for the youth before school. They were excused from Seminary to attend the session, and there was one to accommodate those with zero period. I took Heather, Jenna and Sarah, and it was a great experience. There were donuts and milk for the youth as the left.  We got the girls to school on time and although we were a little tired, we were happy to start our morning with such a great event.

Summer is Coming...

...and we can't wait!

Occupy Sarah

BFF, Sarah, turned 13 today. Her friends wanted to surprise her with a little party, but they weren't going to be ready until about 4:00 p.m.  So, we occupied Sarah by taking her to Bruxie for a treat and then over to Forever 21 to window shop. After shopping we had a fake errand to run that happened to be were the party was occurring (Jenna was thinking ahead and borrowed something from these friends she would have to return that afternoon). Sarah was TOTALLY surprised. She knew there was supposed to be a surprise party at some point, but she never suspected this. Mission accomplished!

Beach Cookout

The Instagram craze is causing me to take more pictures than ever before, but I love it. I'm not sure I would have documented tonight's church Youth Activity beach outing, but because Heather's friend was able to attend, and because the girls had so much fun together, I had to post a picture on Instagram.  And then blog it.  My kids, grandkids and great grandkids are going to know more about us than we ever knew about our ancestors with all these pictures I'm taking!

Summer Snapshot

Jenna and Sarah got together for some summer fun out in the warm sun.  They have spent hours over the years in one yard or another running through the sprinklers or playing with the hose.  I looked out from the front porch and saw the girls sitting and chatting, and the moment struck me as a perfect "summer snapshot" of what the time away from school is all about.

Activity Days in Oz

My friends, Kathy and Suzie, who do directing, costuming and props for our church productions, were in charge of this year's Stake Activity Days for the 8-11 year old girls.  The theme was Wizard of Oz, and the decorations were to die for.  Jenna, Sarah and other 12-year-old girls were asked to be the poppies (helpers) for the day.  I've put captions below.  It was just too awesome for words.

The dining room

The class themes followed the brain, heart and courage wishes of the travelers, and a witch or two were present in that courage class.

The poppies helped the young girls come into Oz and travel around.  The entry had a house, red slippers and an awesome tornado!  Jenna and Sarah were tasked with helping the girls get ready to visit the Emerald City.  I'm so impressed with everything I saw.  I wanted to stay and be a little girl in Oz!

President's Day Weekend

Heather was in Fresno from Sunday through Tuesday at the CA Indoor State Championship track event. She must have been having a great time because she didn't stop to take photos.  Hahaha.  We did ask for one of the venue so we could see where she was spending most of her day on Monday. The high school didn't do anything spectacular at this event, but it was definitely an experience that Heather was proud to be a part of.  Only 4 Freshmen qualified and were invited to attend, so that was pretty cool.

Jenna spent Monday with Sarah celebrating Sarah's 12th birthday. She celebrated by taking her girlfriends to the mall to support her while she got her ears pierced.  The girls had lunch in the food court, posed on the escalator (escaposing is what it's called), and they supported Sarah and shopped at Claire's.

After the larger party, Sarah and Jenna hung out for a while.  We took them to Kohl's for some birthday shopping which was a fun treat for both girls. Our family had planned to go to Souplantation for dinner, and Sarah's family had also, so we ended up sitting together for further fun and shenanigans.  It is always the best to spend a day with your bestie!