Our 2022 summer

All these pictures are out of order but that's OK! Here we go!...

We got more and more depressed watching Emery's BYU pile get bigger and bigger.

We got to celebrate Emery turning 18 before she left for college! Her friends picked her up and took her to In-N-Out at midnight for her birthday because they wanted to start celebrating the second she turned 18.

We went to see Top Gun- none of us had seen it yet. Then Emery and I got mani pedis.

Lots of trips to see family in Granite Bay this summer. We always love cousin time.

Quinn's job is to collect the recycling that we throw out in the garage and put it in the correct recycling bag. So then she made a sign that said "throw cans in bag!" hoping it would help her out with her task. It did not help her out at all. Then she scribbled out "throw" thinking that was the problem and wrote "Put" instead. It's so cute- her attempts to get us to be more civilized have worked and I try to put the cans in the bag instead of throw them by the bag.

Another fun trip down to San Diego to see our friends! We could just hang out and talk and eat but we always fit a few fun activities and a beach day in to our trips.

Emery is a huge help on the drive by taking over the whole middle part. Every since cancer treatment it's been harder to use my inflexible right/driver's foot for hours and hours in the driver's seat.

Griffin and Spencer got Corona after YM camp this year. Spencer was sick for a couple weeks but Griffin just slept a lot for one day and was fine.

Our stake combined YW and YM camp this summer and it was amazing for our family! We only had to set aside 1 week of our time for church camp and I got to watch 3 of my kids interact/learn/grow. Spencer was able to go also and help with the high adventure part of boy's camp.

We got home from Utah Saturday night and then I got a phone call Sunday night asking if I could fill in for someone at girl's camp... starting at 6 am the next day.

Sure

I pulled all my vacation clothes out of the laundry and repacked them for girl's camp hahaha

I filled in for one of the craft ladies and my kids were very nice and came to visit me at crafts.

And then they brought their friends to come visit me at crafts too.

Campbell was the most enthusiastic song leader. The girls took a lot of joy in teaching the young men their camp songs. Especially the songs that talk about boys being stinky and mean.

Griffin trying out some new hairdos as he sat and waited for his haircut.

Aunt Natalie made Campbell's birthday super special with one of her famous chocolate cakes.

While we were in Park City Campbell had a scary episode where she was really struggling to breathe and was not getting better. She doesn't have allergies or asthma and tried an inhaler which also didn't work. We finally took her in to the ER because she was getting so tired from the effort of breathing in for so long and forcing the air back out.

They gave her a potent steroid shot and a breathing treatment and every other test came back clear. She was given a stuffed moose for her birthday.

Finally we forced them to discharge us after midnight- after the nurses and I had already sung Happy Birthday to Campbell and been given this amazing bouquet. Campbell didn't want to spend another second of her 16th bday in the ER.

Hotel swim party

Every time the "Sunroof" song comes on the radio some one has to go out the sunroof. Except Emery is the only one who will do it. When the car is parked.

We all had so much fun at the Olympic Park activities. Zip line, Alpine Slide, ropes course and tubing down the hills. We also watched the Olympic ski jumpers practicing and landing in the huge pools.

Campbell's request was that we do something really adventurous for her 16th birthday- I think this fit the bill. Especially the zipline to the "freefall" platform where your only way down was to jump off.

Emery hanging out with Brigham Young at her future university

Second annual cousin picture at the Minecraft deer.

Annual sculpture picture

Utah has the best Fourth of July fireworks and shows!

We were in the market for a new reliable family car and drove to check out a potential purchase in Vallejo one day and then went to Six Flags while we mulled it over and then went back and bought it... after spending about 4 hours getting more and more annoyed at the whole car buying process.

Six Flags butterfly exhibit

Quinn on the scary swings that no one will go on with her.

Quinn moved a rock over to my chair to use as an end table for my water bottle.

My beach helpers are always in a big hurry to get to the water so they take ALL the stuff and I just have to meander down there with my water bottle.

Quinny turned 11 this year! We love her and had a great time celebrating her. She loves Calico Critters, Hatchimals, stuffed animals, candy, money, and squishies.

A few of the YW got together to make our ward's father's day gifts this year. So nice of them to come help and I think their service added a nice touch to the gifts.

20 years!!! We knew we had to be somewhere exciting for our 20th wedding anniversary so we snuck away to Kauai for a few days while our new graduate held down the fort and made sure everyone got where they needed to go.

We had the coolest little protected cove outside the hotel with lots of tropical fish (and no sharks) so we swam around the cove a couple times each day.

So happy to be making our way through life with Spencer and for being able to grow, learn and become better together. It makes me smile thinking of little 15 year old Allie having already found her eternal companion and where we are now.

Graduation party with some of Emery's favorite people

Emery's friend has a baby duck which we invited to the party also. It's name is Otis- but then it turned out to be a girl but she still calls it Otis.

Griffin and I wrangling balloons for our graduate.

Emery was awarded lots of stuff towards the end of the year which she got to wear as part of her graduation outfit. One of the awards was for AP Calculus which just highlights how smart she is.

A bunch of stakes in the area put on a huge prom night for kids 16 and up (sometimes called Priest Laurel Ball and other times called MoPro- Mormon Prom). The girls all came over to get ready before my friend and I took them to Fenton's in Oakland and then on to the dance at the Interstake Center (at the Oakland Temple). We sat in the parking lot chatting and watching all the kids. It was a fun evening for all!

Emery and Campbell looked amazing and had such a good time!

Another piano recital in the books! Quinn played "Everybody Wants to be a Cat" and Griffin played "Linus and Lucy" from the Peanuts cartoon show.