What's New With The Carter Family

This year's 4th of July was a family affair.....dad drove down from Idaho to spend a week with us all, and even Justin's mom came up for the day.  We spent the day at the Skinner's house, hanging out and eating.  In the evening we went to our house for some amazing fireworks!  I love this American holiday :)  

After a few days of fun with Grandpa, Jem and River got some company -- US!  Brandon, Fin and I drove down to Idaho a day after the Skinners did, and spent the week enjoying some gorgeous warm weather, and the company of family.  It was warm enough to put the pools out (I bought a baby pool for Fin and Piper to use, and a slightly bigger kiddie pool for Jem and Riv), and of course as is customary we ate out every day :)  I like that tradition!  My favorite place was Texas Roadhouse, which we only get to enjoy when we're visiting Brandon's dad (as they don't have one where we live).  Here are some photos from the trip.

This year goes down as one of the best 4th of July's ever! It was a PERFECT day - sunny & warm, and we spent the holiday with our family and friends. Can't get any better than that, right? The Skinners were generous enough to host at their new house...and it was a great day! We played some games, ate some food, and talked while the kids played. The Bakula Boys brought their scooters, and the kiddos rode and rode and rode....they also had fun with chalk, and with their water guns :) Burkey got a little TOO close with the water gun, as you'll see a little later on! The cutest thing ever was how little Adam was Jem's little shadow :) He kept wanting to be near him, and when we saw him scratching Jem's back we thought it was the CUTEST thing ever! April was missing her Mexico warmth...towards the end of the night she was covered in 2 blankets and 2 towels LOL. The fireworks show was spectacular, as usual! We set off some mortars and we had a whole bunch of sparklers...

My niece River recently had a school concert. I was thrilled to be invited to attend, and very excited to see her sing! This is the first time I've ever been able to attend one of her "events"...and I must have been the proudest Aunt in the auditorium :) Here are some shots of her in action... My favorite song of the night was "Eye of the Tiger"....we kept singing it all night long! Thanks for letting us come and support you River! We love you oodles and oodles!

I'm sorry it's been a whole month since my last post...as always, December-January is fun, hectic and family filled - so even though I've taken a bunch of pictures, I haven't gotten around to posting them yet. Here is the first of many "catch ups" - Christmas day! We spent Christmas day at our house, with my father in law flying up from Idaho and my Sister In Law and her family driving a mere mile down the road. Have I mentioned how much I love that they've moved to Lake Stevens now? :) It was a great, relaxing Christmas...full of food, funny movies and a "Special Concert" to end the night with. More on the concert at a later date....for now, here are the pictures of the gift opening! We hope you all had a very merry Christmas!

Last weekend, the Skinners and I popped on over to Lundeen Park to take some "sister" photos. We were there only a short time 15-20 minutes maybe....and it was a little bit on the chilly side..... but boy, were River and Piper troopers! River smiled and posed and posed and smiled while Piper gave her best "I am not smiling" look LOL. They are two VERY special girls, and no, I'm not partial because they are my nieces *wink* . I think we got a couple of sweet shots....here are a few of my favorites ! And now for the two I had printed up to hang on my wall...... (This last one is my personal favorite! I love the sweetness on River's face as she cuddles close her baby sister.....).

LOVE this American Holiday! Fireworks, food and family - what more could you ask for? Well I can think of one thing - our missing family, the Axougas', the Carters and the Bakulas....we missed you guys! This year we did things a little differently....since the 4th fell on a Sunday. We went to church, then participated in an all-church picnic. It was fun! The Skinner's joined us and the church put on a free lunch of hot dogs, chips, drinks and dessert! Brandon entered a pie in the competition -- and much to his shock (haha nothing like a good ego right?) his Rhubarb Orange Creme Pie did not make it to the finals. Better luck next time babe! After the picnic we went over to the Skinner's place for some games, before heading back to our place for some dinner (KFC - oh my goodness it was SO GOOD, but of course everyone overate and suffered for it afterwards) and to get ready to watch the fireworks. We spent a little more than usual on fireworks this year -- it seemed like the ...

Sarah's Baby Shower was held this past Saturday. Thank you to everyone who came, you all helped make this day a special one for Sarah and big sister River :) I hope you enjoy seeing a video montage of the day - just click on the video above!

About a 45 minute drive North from where we live is this town called Mount Vernon. Around this town are lots of farms that grow beautiful flowers - tulips in particular! We try to make a trip up here every few years to visit the flower fields in bloom....and this year we drove up with the Skinners on a beautiful sunny Sunday, to Roozengarde - the farm we like to visit. Here are some pictures from our day!

My parents, Mary and Michael (also known as "Mum'n'Dad") came to the USA to visit us this summer. They were here for almost the whole month of August....and it was the first trip to the States for my dad, and the first in 7 years for my mum! It was AWESOME having them here... I can't express how much it meant to me to be able to spend some time with them again :) Here are some of the highlights from their (too short) stay. Welcome to the USA! A walk to Lundeen Park, Lake Stevens. Going to a baseball game - to see the "Aquasox" play Boise. Jem and "Nunna" making Koulourakia. A visit to Pike Place Market in Seattle. Mum bought some beautiful flowers there. Dad was always busy doing something around the house...he made firewood bundles, sanded and stained our decks, moved building blocks, installed a storm door.....wheew! Thanks for all of your help dad :) Mum and Jem cuddling together on the couch. On the Mukilteo Ferry, on our way home ...