Cabin Get-Away

The suitcase may not be completely unpacked yet, but we do have the pictures downloaded. (Priorities, right?!)

Sierra and Ally desperately want to take off in the kayak on their own. Yikes - not yet!

Ally took over Valerie's seat at the end of our hike.

The Original Bushwhacker and her apprentice!

Early morning snuggles with Grandpa.

These two hardly left the beach area.

My new favorite picture!

Cherry Pickin' Birthday Party

On Saturday we celebrated a combined birthday party for Sierra and Ally. Although I have offered to invite their friends the last couple of years, both girls still just wanted a family party. (I LOVE THAT!) So - Grandpa & Grandpa, Chuck and Missy and all of the Becks met us at Tyler's Orchard in Emmett for some mid-morning cherry picking. We haven't picked cherries anywhere else, but we HIGHLY recommend this orchard if you're looking for a fun outing with your family. Saturday was a beautiful and sunny day! We had personalized buckets ready for everyone and the girls wore some homemade cherry outfits. By the way - I'm loving my new sewing machine. Just wish there were a few more hours in each day that I could spend at this new hobby. Anyway - Everyone had a great time picking (AND EATING!!!) lots of cherries and when the buckets were full we drove over to The Pizza Factory for some lunch, cake and presents. They have a side room that was the perfect place for us to hang out. Unfortunately, half of our pictures are still stuck on the camera's memory card. If anyone has any suggestions for retrieving "damaged or corrupted files" we would love to hear from you! But here are a few from the first half of the day.

The cousins were waiting on the blanket for the "go ahead" to pick cherries.

Meanwhile, Valerie was already shoving cherries into her mouth as fast as she could.

Savannah Jane Beck

Sierra Elise - 6 years old

Ally Grace - 4 years old

SIX

We celebrated Sierra's sixth birthday as a family today at Roaring Springs. The girls had a WONDERFUL time! We must have done 37 laps in the lazy river. Toboggan races were a hit again and Sierra tried a couple of new slides with me. She is really surprising us with how brave she is becoming.

Highlights of this last year in Sierra's life:
1. KINDERGARTEN!!!

2. Learning to read and beginning to spell.

3. Sparks - memorizing the books of the New Testament in order.

4. Learning to pump herself on the swings.

5. Riding her bike without training wheels.

6. Getting her ears pierced.

7. Losing her first few teeth.

It's been an exciting year!!! We are so proud of the beautiful girl that she is - on the inside and out.

Another Milestone

Mommy: "Do you want me to quit wiggling your tooth?"

Sierra: "No. Keep going."

Mommy: "Am I hurting you?"

Sierra: "No - just do it."

Daddy: (gagging in the living room) "Will you two please shut the door. You're gross."

Mommy: "Are you sure you don't want me to stop?"

Sierra: "Yes! I'm sure. Pull as hard as if you were pulling a rhinoceros into your house!"

Where's Grandma?!

I can't believe that a whole week has already flown by since Carolyn (Marc's mom) left. We are so grateful to have spent 17 days with her all to ourselves! The girls had a wonderful time getting to know her and she got to see just about every detail of their lives in full color. Her visit included:

* Living room performances of The Sound of Music

* Zoo Boise

* Sierra's Kindergarten Graduation

* Powell's Sweet Shop

* Slumber party in the playroom

* Wahooz

* Family Dinners

* Chuck skydiving at the Celebration of Flight Air Show

* Bowling

* Bike rides

* Parks!

* Church soft-ball games

* Movie:"How to Train Your Dragon"

* Lots of book reading

* Sewing projects

This is a terrible picture, but it makes me laugh - Valerie just made herself at home and tickled Grandma's feet while she tried to read to the other girls on her first night here.

We miss you Carolyn!

FOUR

Today we celebrated Ally's fourth birthday!

(The "official" party is still to come.)

Her treat of choice - homemade ice-cream sandwiches.

Some special memories of the last year include:

1. Her prayer of salvation.

2. "Sound of Music" and "Little House" obsessions.

3. Flippin' pancakes with Dad.

4. Learning to write her name and draw great pictures.

5. Being the "big sister" while Sierra was at school.

6. Finishing her first AWANA booklet.

7. Constantly talking/singing to herself!!!

We love our brown-eyed girl!!!

Kindergarten Graduation

Sierra is just two school days away from being finished with her Kindergarten year! I can't believe it - feels like I was just posting about her first day. We are so proud of all that she has learned this year. But most of all, we are so pleased by the good behavior that she has demonstrated in class. She made some good friends this year and has been a bold Christian testimony to her classmates. Her sweet little heart is truly concerned about their souls. We know that attending a public school can have its drawbacks, but we believe that this was just the right place for Sierra this year. She had a wonderful teacher and her classmates certainly know that she is a Christian!

Way to go sweet girl!!!