Fake Family Pictures

The girls opted for an impromptu family picture session recently, dressed to the nines in their Sunday best on a random Wednesday evening. I was honored to be selected to photograph the occasion. Featured in the shoot was Julia's newborn Care Bear, Michelle, still sparking and new in her blue and pink striped hospital cap.

Incidentally, pesky little brothers named Spencer were not invited.

A Girl After My Own Heart

As long as I can remember, I have loved to clean, sort, and organize. I was always my mom's special helper, because I was the only one of her kids that shared with her this bizarre love of order and cleanliness. Savanna is typically my child that enjoys that sort of thing, doing chores and randomly cleaning up messes because she is both thoughtful and helpful.

Lex, though, is showing promise too, though her idea of organizing usually means grouping things together in an orderly fashion, but never actually putting them away. She surprised me the other day by "organizing" her room, which literally meant that she got all of her toys and miscellaneous items out and grouped them together in piles (oh, so many piles) with like objects and then proudly showed me the fruits of her labors.

She also worked hard recently on cleaning out the kitchen junk drawer. And by "cleaning," I mean taking everything out, sorting it, lining it up, and then leaving it on the counter for me to put away. She's definitely got steps one and two down; now we just need to work on step 3.

(Note the sunglasses and headband...because what girl doesn't take the time to accessorize when she's cleaning?)

Sometimes I just can't get over her wonderfully bright and spunky personality.

Weather You Like it or Not

I know that Phoenix is the last place most people would want to be during the stifling hot months of summer. But dang if our desert sunsets aren't some of the most gorgeous I have ever seen. Thank goodness for a degree of compensatory beauty in our parched lives.

And speaking of lovely, nothing is more wonderful in these parts than the sight and smell of impending rain. Once that crazy monsoon wind starts blowing, though, you better hope you are close to home, or you'll be accosted with hot wind and pelted with roaring rain faster than you can spell Phoenix backwards. (Harder than it sounds, right?)

Spencer and I went for a walk last week to take advantage of some unexpected cooler weather and within ten minutes I was rushing for home. We were a couple houses away when the rain started and I ridiculously mistook a fast-moving dust cloud for regular storm clouds and ended up with dirt in my hair, eyes, and mouth in a matter of a few seconds. Not my favorite experience of all time, but I will say that it was a sight to behold. Next time I think I'll just behold it from the front window instead.

More favorite sights: pink summer skies flanked by towering pine trees in Flagstaff.

Thanks for the wonder, Arizona.

Nice Try

Bah-ha-ha-ha...

You thought you could keep ME...out of the drawers...in the kitchen??

Ah-ha-ha-ha! Good one, Mommy.

Lake Pleasant...Literally

Once upon a time, right in the middle of this toasty time of year that we like to call "summer," some friends from church invited us out on their boat for the day. I agreed somewhat reluctantly, as per my party pooper m.o., mostly because I was worried that I'd be stuck on shore all day with a busy toddler while Craig and the other girls went on the boat and had a blast. (Any other moms ever feel this way? Anyone?)

Wonderfully, my expectations were totally off, since the family we went with (minus the dad, Todd, and Savanna's friend, Kristen) actually waited on shore so that we could all go out on the boat at the same time. It was so. Stinking. Fun. Who would have thought that a place called Lake Pleasant, right in the middle of this scorching desert, could actually be...well, a very pleasant place to be. Todd was awesome and took us around the whole entire lake, took us tubing, gave the kids (and Craig!) turns driving the boat, and very patiently let us try water-skiing. (Well, Julia and I tried. Craig actually succeeded.) We had such a blast and were so grateful for the generosity of our friends. Spencer was a champ and was perfectly content the whole 3 hours we were out. Lex got stung by a bee right after we got onto the boat and only cried for a minute and then was completely fine. I'm telling you: it was as pleasant as pleasant can be.

I wanted to eat him up in this marshmallow-looking life vest

The girls got to get out and swim...the water was the perfect temp, too.

Check out Savanna's...jazz hands?

Love this boy. Don't mind my boat hair.

(Spencer's boat hair, on the other hand, is exceedingly cute.)

She is more beautiful every day, I tell you.

(Just in case you thought Spencer was being under-represented here.)

(Have I mentioned how adorable he is?)

Oh, baby, she's got a license to drive

And this cute guy, too

Twin boat hair

Trying not to fall out...we caught so much air it was crazy

Lex did not appreciate the air-catching and wanted to call it quits after a few minutes

Thanks, friends, feel free to invite us out anytime.