Lacey is Off to her Sophomore Year at BYU!

 

Friday, Aug 28th was Lacey's final night here after over four months of being home, so it also was her final night of working at her summer job at Park Tavern.  It's fun that she works with her Aunt Heidi, so we decided to surprise them and go and have dinner at Park Tavern.

Best server ever!  We're leaving a big tip!

Then next morning, she said good-bye to Peppa

And Riley

And Ella

And Dad.

And then the two of us boarded a plane for SLC!

Side note.... once we landed in SLC, we randomly ran into my good friend Meredith (who was in my Dietetics program at BYU and have kept in touch with ever since) and her husband Patrick. So fun to have this little impromptu reunion!

US Open

 

On Tuesday, Aug. 25th, we got Riley and Ella off to their first day of school and then Dave, Lacey and I headed to the train station where we boarded our train for NYC.  Once we arrived, we dropped off our stuff at the hotel and then headed out to Flushing Meadows to see the US Open!  This was Lacey's first time going, so that was fun.  Here are some of our highlights:

Watching Taylor Fritz (#9 in the world) practice

Watching Alex De Minaur (#8 in the world) practice

Watching Arena Sabalenka (#1 in the world) practice

Watching the legendary Novak Djokavich, who has won a record-setting 24 Grand Slams, practice.

Lacey enjoying her first US Open with Novak Djokovich (and his hitting partner) in the background. 

And Lacey's favorite, Ben Shelton!

Andy Roddick practicing

Gael Monfils

Then we went and watched a mixed doubles match with Schnaider and Ruud vs Peguala and Fritz

Then watched Zverev, currently ranked #2 in the world.

And wrapped up the day going to Ashe Stadium to see an exhibition match of Roger Federer vs Andy Roddick followed by a doubles match with Roger Federer and John McEnroe vs Andy Roddick and Andre Agassi. It was very fun and was a highlight for Dave as he has always wanted to see Roger Federer play and this was probably his last chance to be able to do that since he is now retired and only played this exhibition match because he was inducted into the tennis Hall of Fame later that week. 

Fun little getaway for the three of us!  And memorable way to wrap up the summer before heading back to BYU with Lacey.

First Day of School

 

Riley's cone

Ella's cone

Can't believe we're down to only two first-day-of-school cones.

But we're still lining up on the stairs and keeping the tradition alive in a modified sense.  And Maricarmen, yes, Ella still sleeps with your blanket every night at Age 13 😊

Ella's haul

Riley's haul

First day of Sophomore year for Riley.

And last first day of middle school for Ella!

Have a great year girls!! Study hard, play hard, be the friend, make the memories. 

One Last Hurrah

 

School started for Riley and Ella on Tuesday, Aug. 25th.  Since I have Mondays off, I thought about planning something big like going to the ocean/beach for the day with my girls on their final day of summer.  But alas, Riley had soccer practice and Lacey had to be at work by 4pm, so we made it lower key, but still had fun.  We went to Chick Fil A for lunch.

And then after our picnic lunch at the park, the girls played at the park and on the swings just like the "olden days."  We moved to this neighborhood when Lacey was 5, Riley was 1 and Ella wasn't born yet, so they have spent countless hours during their toddler/preschool/elementary years going to this park.  So, it was fun to go back together.  Especially since it was a gorgeous day and we had the place to ourselves. 

Then we went and played several rounds of pickle ball at our local courts (but alas forgot to take any pictures of that) and then wrapped up the day with a trip to Smoothie King.

It's been fun to have all four of my kids home for the summer and for my girls to have been able to spend so much time together too. 💗💗💗

Ella's First Job Went Swimmingly!

 

All four of my kids got jobs this summer.  For Ella, Age 13, this was her first job and she got a pretty sweet gig!  There is a family in our court who has three young kids.  The youngest is still in swim diapers and therefore only allowed in the baby pool.  But the older two want to swim in the "big pool" but at ages 4 and barely 6, still obviously need to be supervised.  So the mom hired Ella to come with her to the pool every time they went (which was usually 2-3 days a week) and paid Ella $20 an hour to be in charge of the two girls in the big pool while the mom was in the baby pool with her toddler son.  Ella was in heaven playing at the pool with these two sweet girls and made lots of money, which also thrilled her as she is saving for an electric bike.

Ella and sweet Lily.

Ella and Tess.

It's been a great summer and a great first job for Ella!

But alas, tonight is a "school night" as school is starting tomorrow for all the elementary aged school kids, the 6th graders and the 9th graders.  For Ella and Riley (8th and 10th grades), they will start on Tuesday.

Happy 12th Birthday Peppa

 

When we surprised the kids with Peppa 12 years ago this week, we videoed it and to this day, it is one of my very favorite videos.  It comes up on my FB memories every year, but I don't know how to post it on this blog.  Peppa's "person" is Tanner, so she's been missing him this past week.  But we're trying to take good care of her while he's gone.  Happy birthday, Peppa!

Mexico City: Tanner Update

Tanner made it to Mexico City!

Here he is at the Mexico City training center with his mission companion Elder Harmon.

The Kibler family used to live here in Severna Park for several years.  They moved away awhile ago, but their daughter Rachel is currently in the Mexico City MTC and ran into Tanner!

"Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost." Matthew 28:19

He also ran into his second cousin, Elise Cardall there!  Elise is serving in the Boston, Spanish-speaking mission and happens to be in the Mexico City MTC at the same time as Tanner too!  Elise's dad is my cousin, Taylor. Taylor's dad is my mom's brother.  Small world!

We finally got to talk to Tanner on Friday!  It was so good to be able to hear his voice and talk to him.  He seemed happy and well adjusted and said he wasn't home sick.  So, that's all good news!

Chilling on the grounds taking pictures on his first free day.

He did however get a buzz cut 😏

Here he is at the Temple with his District.  He is 5th from the left.

Tanner in the middle.