Camping

Today we are organizing everything to go camping this afternoon. We will be in Kelly's Grove for the next two days. I am excited! I love camping! Last time we went camping Giovanna was two years old, so I was looking forward to go again!

See you guys when we come back!

Pool Key

Giovanna used the money she raised with her lemonade stand towards our pool key- the key we need to open the pool gate at our condominium.

Since first day of summer Giovi’s been asking to get the pool key, but honestly I didn’t want to pay $50 bucks for it, so when we did a yard sale and she sold the lemonades, she knew exactly what she would do with the money. We still had to help with a few bucks, but we didn't tell her that! ;)

This week we went to the pool twice for a night swim. Giovanna’s friends came over and all the girls had a wonderful time! It was actually a pretty good idea to get the key!

Nature Connects

The Redbutte Garden is holding an exhibit featuring fourteen sculptures entirely made of LEGO bricks. The creations are amazing! So creative and beautiful! 

 Today was so hot, but we bravely explored the whole Garden and we were able to see all fourteen sculptures. From time to time the girls would cool off in the water throughout the garden then keep walking. I really love this place and I wish there was a way to capture the wonderful smell from the flowers everywhere, specially from the Rose Garden.

Mindy, Claire and baby Bella joined us too that afternoon. It was really fun, and I hope these cute girls can always be friends.

P.S. They weren't suppose to touch the sculptures, but they were really, really, really careful!

Teddy Bear Clinic

A few weeks ago I pre registered the girls to the Teddy Bear Clinic. We've never been to one before and I had a completely different idea of what it actually was. The website didn't give any details so I let my imagination fly. 

What a wonderful surprise when we got there and found out what Teddy Bear Clinic was. They had asked each child to bring a stuffed animal which we did, but I thought we were suppose to donate them to kids in crises (my imagination flying). It turns out their stuffed animals had a check up- they were measured and weighted, wore masks, got shots and even had a surgery. It was so cute!!!

 We took a tour through the Timpanogos Regional Hospital while the kids got familiar with facilities and surgical equipment. It was a great experience and the girls loved it!

Then they were able to talk to a firefighter team about their job and what kids should do when they are in risk. Then they had popcorn and pet some cute animals at the petting zoo.

Garage Sale

This Saturday our family headed to Lehi to do a garage sale. We decided to do it there since our friend's neighborhood was having one. We didn't have to worry about putting out signs and all that stuff. We just showed up and displayed our things. We sold half of our things so I am planning on doing another yard sale here in Orem to sell the rest of it.

Giovanna and Bianca set up a lemonade stand, and Marito and Dominic helped them sell it. At the end they raised about $10 bucks. Giovi already knows what she is going to do with the money.

Giovanna loses her fifth tooth

Giovanna's bottom tooth fell out today. It's been so fun seeing her wiggle her teeth and pull them out so bravely. I wish I was that brave at her age!

Tomorrow we are having a yard sale, which means I spent all day organizing and price tagging toys, games, clothes, kitchen appliances, and etc. I am exhausted and my back hurts, but I am excited to get rid of a bunch of things we don't longer use or need! :)

Have a good weekend!

Summer Project

Every summer I like making cute and inexpensive projects for the house. This time I am planning on hanging new frames on the walls and shelves in the kitchen and bathroom. I also want to make a project I saw over the internet to display my girl's arts. They have painted beautiful things that are currently hidden in a box.

 Also, I have finally upgraded our old door wreath I found a while ago at a thrift store for only $1. I bought flowers at the dollar store, and a cute wooded home sign at Walmart for about 4 bucks.

Here's how I did it: First, I planned my design. Then I cut the flower stem into five single pieces and with the hot glue gun I carefully glued the flowers on the sticks.

I also tied a knot around the stalk and the stick for an extra hold. Like this:

Then I glued the wooded sign and the remaining flowers. And this is the final result: a beautiful door wreath for only $7. They usually cost between $60-$110.

Wild wonders

Today the girls headed to Central Utah Gardens to watch a super fun class about animals and water. They learned about different animals, their habitats, their characteristics, and what they do to conserve water. They also got to pet some of the animals.

The instructor was really good and caught everybody’s attention explaining peculiar aspects of each animal in a very fun/funny way. She made the kids laugh telling them that turtoises breath through their bottoms while drinking water, and that even skunks don’t like their own smell, so they wash themselves right after shooting their stinky gas.

We also learned the difference between turtle and tortoises. One of those differences is that turtles have flippers and tortoises have feet. 

 I love all Central Utah Garden classes! They are so instructive and so much fun!

You can register for next classes here

Bella turns one

June 8th of last year I started sharing my birthday with baby Bella, daughter of our friend Mindy. This year I turned thirty-five and she turned one. Last Saturday we celebrated her first year with cake, pinata and splash pad! It was a hot day, and the kids had a blast.

We sang happy birthday to her, played in the water, hit the pinata, then when the party was over Mindy took me to a birthday shopping hunt night. She took me to three different stores to get gifts head-to-toes: shoes, clothes and face/hair products. It was so much fun! I got a pair of yoga pants and a t-shirt, a sport bra (instead of shoes, because it was hard to find my 5.5 size), and awesome skin products.

Thank you Mindy for my birthday surprise! I loved it! And thank you boys for watching the girls while we were out! Love you all!

Father's day

Happy Father’s day to all amazing fathers out there. I am grateful for having a wonderful daddy for my girls who loves and protects them.

Saturday morning the girls took their daddy to have breakfast. I love seeing these three together! My girls sure are lucky girls! Then on Sunday we gifted him with a coupon book redeemable for some of his favorite things- massage, game night, meal of his choice, etc.

Download the printable PDF here

Summer Reading Challenge

Right before summer break, Giovanna brought home a summer reading challenge from school of "what to read" and "how to read". She basically can pick between fourteen type of books- comic book, biography book, poetry, etc, and she can pick how she wants to read them- with a flashlight, outside, at the public library, and so forth. It is a fun way to keep her practicing her reading throughout the summer.

This week I took the girls to the library to pick the books they want to read. Giovanna got two comic books, two biographies of Abraham Lincoln and Alexander Graham Bell, and a magazine. Bianca also got two random books. 

It's been a while since I took them to the Orem library. They have changed a lot the children's area. Now they have games, tables, chairs and booths to read, a stage and a little closet with costumes and all sorts of fun things for the kids.