Seven.Four Years

 7.4 Years

• Pool season has started. This year, I had you try out for the swim team and you made the team! It is going to be hard to wake you up for practice but this will help you out in your swimming so much. We have already started going a lot more in the afternoons. I love it!
• We headed out to Utah to pick up Sam from his solo trip to Utah and do a girls trip to southern Utah to see Frozen. It was a lot of driving, but you loved the trip. The pool was a lot of fun. It was harder for you because Bonnie is not a great swimmer and sort of does her own thing. The big girls were off doing their thing so you didn't have anyone to play with. That was hard to watch. The play was great. You loved seeing it. It was so hot, we got frozen lemonade to cool us down. 
• We celebrated father's day in Utah and got to be be both dad and Grandpa Matthews. You guys gave dad the ugliest bacon tie.
• This month, you were able to complete in the kids 208 Triathlon. You swam a lap in the pool, rode your bike around the loop twice and ran around the loop. I stayed with you for the bike and run and was so impressed with how determined you were. You never complained and kept pushing even when it was hard. Way to go Girl!
• We had a blast up in Silverwood this month. We went the night before and stayed the night at the Potters. The next morning, we swung by the airport to pick up Elaine! She gets to spend a week with us. The weather was perfect for Silverwood. We were nervous going on a Friday (we normally go on a Monday) but the crowds weren't too bad. You loved going on the scarier kids ride like the frog hopper and butterfly swing. We got early to the magic show and was able to sit in the front row and get pizza. Because we were in the front row, Elaine got picked to the helper for the card show. We stayed until closing. I had booked a hotel for that night because I always feel like we get home too late and it is hard to drive home that late. When we arrived at the hotel, the website that I booked through messed up and instead of 2 queen beds (that we were going to squeeze 7 people in), there was only a king size bed. We ended up driving home that night and getting in at 2am.
• The week with Elaine has been awesome. She loves having all of you guys around. When Maggie is busy or needed alone time, Elaine was so good to play with you little girls. She doesn't have younger sisters so I think she liked playing that big sister role. One of the days, we rode our bikes into town from our house. I was really impressed that you made it all the way on your own. We made it to Creme, where we all got drinks. Of course, it wouldn't be a trip with a Smith girl without a play. We also took Elaine to the pool, the library, the park, and Jungle Gyms.
• Grandma and Papa Price came and joined the party. We have always talked up Fourth of July, so they decided to come out for it before we move. We started the day with homemade crepes with berries. We got out of the house early to catch the egg toss and foot races. You were Grandma's partner in the toss and you made it about four tosses. We came home for lunch where we quickly decorated your bike for the bike parade. We sat with all our friends for the parade and you kiddos made out like bandits with the candy and swag. We had hamburgers, watermelon, salad, and root beer for dinner. We roasted marshmallows and lit our own fireworks. Even though the fireworks weren't that big, I love how you guys gave big reactions. We stayed up late to watch the fireworks. The next day, we were able to have a much needed slow morning. We went back into town for lunch at the food cart. We ended the night at the rodeo. We haven't been to the rodeo in a long time. It was a hot evening, but we were lucky to find seats in the shade. They happened to be right near where they release the riders. It was thrilling to see them all crash into the gate. On Saturday, we took everyone rafting. We brought the little blue kayak and that became a favorite with everyone. Sunday was a good day to rest. We painted rocks, played games, and just hung out. On Monday, our family had to go home. It was so good to have them.