June, July, and August

 A morning look. He's so sweet! Well, here we are posting about the rest of the summer, finally.  This picture below was taken at a playground in Fruit Heights near our parents' homes. It is the coolest playground I have seen yet. It's all designed as a castle, as you can see from the picture. Very fun. I think this may be from Memorial Day in May or July Fourth. Can't remember.

Here's Peter using the bathroom clock as a phone.

This picture actually goes with April, I think. We tended my parents' dog Wilson while they took my two younger brothers to Hawaii. This is on a trip to the park. Peter loves Wilson, but he often torments him, and for some reason Wilson just takes it. We're working on the concepts of kindness and gentleness.

This is at the top of a mountain whose name we were never entirely sure of. 

Peter in the laundry basket. Every kid loves this at some point. 

June 12 was our anniversary, and Caleb was kind enough to come watch Peter while we went out to eat at The Old Spaghetti Factory in Trolley Square. It's nostalgic for us because back in 2004, when we were first falling in love, we went on a date to see Phantom of the Opera and we ate there, near the beginning of June. Memories! It was a really nice night. That weekend we tended for James and Sarah while they ran the Ragnar. Here is Peter with Alanna looking at Jackson and Paul's matching beds. Cute! 

There's a really cool park right next to their house which we went to a few times. It was so fun! But also so hot! We couldn't wait to come back and have otter pops. Didn't you just love those as a kid? 

Peter loves to mimic both of us, especially trying on our clothes. Here he is sporting Dad's tie.

Peter loves playing with his friends. This is Andrew.

The Wright side of the family got together to wish my Uncle David and Aunt Cynthia well on their way to serve as a mission president in South America. We gathered at my uncle Keri's house, which is such an awesome place. Among other attractions, he owns two horses! Here we are feeding one a carrot.

June was also the time for the ward campout. We forgot to borrow gear from our parents, so we just went for dinner. Peter and Andrew enjoyed playing in the bushes and other people's tents. 

Here Peter is about to nurse his kitty. What a nurturer! He used to do this a lot, but hasn't for some time. It's so funny the things kids pick up!

We went to my aunt Laura and uncle Quinn's house in Midway for Independence Day fireworks. Midway is so beautiful! And such a nice size! It's a bit far from any big city, but Luke and I dream of living there someday. We went on a walking tour of the neighborhood, and two gentleman happened to be walking by with this sweet Shetland pony. They were happy to let Peter sit on its back for a moment.

Peter loves to look at his books. 

Our cuddly boy.

For my mom's birthday in July she took my sisters and I shopping! It was like a fairy tale dream come true! Ha ha! Especially because Luke tended Peter, so I was able to concentrate on the task at hand. The two boys made a day of it. They went out to eat at Costa Vida, saw the race car exhibition currently on display at the UMFA, rode the train, and went to Dinosaur Land at City Creek. This is a view of City Creek.

By the time they hit City Creek Peter was a tired boy. I believe this is inside the Disney Store, where one little girl nearly gave Peter his first kiss!

Enjoying a quesadilla at Costa Vida.

The car show. These are all older models of race cars. 

Our phones, while convenient, don't take the most incredible pictures. Sorry about that. I believe the picture below is at one of the Trax stations.

 Dinosaur land! All the models are made of squishy plastic material. Very kid-friendly and climb-able.

Also in July Luke's grandma Perkins came to visit! Here Caleb is teaching her the fine art of archery with his awesome bow.

We all took a turn.

I confess to having fallen in love. Some day I will have to get myself a bow and arrow. It's so fun!

Peter almost always tells us when he needs to go poop, and happily does so on the potty. I think the point of this picture was actually to show off his messy mug though.

On the twenty-fourth, in honor of Pioneer Day, as well as the three July birthdays in the Perkins clan (Jackson, Alanna, and Peter) we had a day at the reservoir near Sarah's house, and dinner and presents afterwards. It was so fun! The rain tried to discourage us for about twenty minutes, but finally it passed and we enjoyed the rest of the day on the beach. Here Luke is burying Paul in the sand to achieve the "being eaten by a shark" effect.

Peter and Blaze. You can tell how much he was enjoying himself. 

The final product.

Uncle Caleb swinging the Jackson and Peter around on the floaty bed. They love it! 

Jackson performing the same courtesy for Peter and Blaze.

Eating on the porch. While enjoying the meal, Caleb and Lauren announced they are expecting! The baby is due in March. Too much fun!

Peter has such generous relatives! Here he is opening presents from Grandma and Grandpa, and the Williamson family.

There was strawberry-blueberry trifle for a cake. Delicious! The three kids each had a candle to blow out.

Peter took two or three times to manage it by himself.

Our gift for Peter and all the kids were the little balls with toys you get out of the vending machines in grocery stores. They came complete with extra quarters, so there's no reason for mom to say no! ha ha!

Peter's birthday happens to be the same as my sister Heidi's, so when she suggested going up to Pine View to celebrate, we were happy to tag along. Everyone brought food, and we rented a Jet Ski to ride around. Here's my sister Samantha towing Peter around in the tube. He enjoyed it immensely, and eventually even fell asleep!

Luke played with Ashton and Kaden and their friends most of the time. Here they are getting the canoe ready to jump into.

I am very proud of this shot. The actual moment of the dive.

The day would not have been complete without Luke making a creation of sand. 

Finally we have a picture of Peter and little cousin Silas! Though not so little anymore! He's four months old already!

 

Peter always asks for sunglasses to wear in the car as Luke and I put ours on, so we finally got him a pair of his own. Which he promptly broke. He's still happy though, so I guess it's fine. Ha ha!

Our summer ended with a gargantuan effort by Luke to supply us with a hundred burritoes! I believe we ended up just shy, with only 80 or 90 sem-odd. Still a huge success. We now have homemade frozen burritos anytime we're in a pinch with nothing to eat. Which happens more often than it should, as we, too, are expecting a baby come the first week of April! I've been a bit tired and sick, so food doesn't always happen.

We are all so excited for this baby! Mixed with a bit of trepidation, of course. How on earth do mothers of several kids do it? I'm about to find out! ha ha! The best part is that our baby will be just days or weeks younger than Caleb and Lauren's! It will be so fun for our kids to be close to their cousins.

Now summer has gone and Luke is back in school. Only one year left and we're done! Couldn't be happier about that. Cooler weather is coming more everyday, and I couldn't be happier about that, either! This summer was so hot! It was great fun, but Fall is in the air, with all the holidays and delight it brings. We're so glad!