California, Here We Come!!!!!

Summer camp continued at home in Arizona and this week the theme was PIRATES!!! I was so excited to get into my pirate outfit and join in the fun- AAARRRGH!!!


While I was playing with friends and finding hidden treasure at camp, Mom and Macie went to the train park for "my camp" as Macie calls it.

They took a ride on the train,

a ride on the carousel,

and even walked up and down the train tracks (one of Macie's new "favorite things").

After a short week at camp the family packed up the car and drove to San Diego to celebrate Pa's birthday and the 4th of July weekend. First thing in the morning Macie and I woke up and hurried everyone out to the beach. The weather was perfect; the sun was shining and the air was warm- not hot and uncomfortable like the 115 degree weather in AZ...

Macie learned to "park her shoes" on the ledge of the boardwalk like Grandma and I, and helped carry her toys across the sand like a big girl.

It look her a while (its tough getting used to walking in the sand), but eventually she made it!

Right away we sat down and the fun began; building castles, digging holes- it was AWESOME!

When Macie got bored playing with our sand toys she stared to use her imagination...

Mom laughed as she watched from afar as Macie struggled to fit into her beach bag, and then yelled and screamed when she couldn't get herself out...

I thought it looked like she was on to something, so I gave it a try:

I quickly discovered that tipping on your side was the easiest way to get out...


Playing at the beach was a blast, and both Macie and I couldn't get enough!

Back at Grandma's house we cleaned up for lunch and naps, and I pranced around the house wearing Dad's new beach hat.

That afternoon we insisted on playing at the bay, and Macie loved frolicking up and down the shoreline.

Dad helped us make castles in the sand,

and even taught us how to make drip castles...

Macie lost interest in castle building (she was much more interested in castle destroying), so to distract her, Mom took her down to the water. It proved to be an excellent distraction as Macie learned she loves the water at the bay!

The next morning I woke bright and early to celebrate Pa's birthday. His one and only request for his big day was to take me to the fair without supervision. Mom had anxiety about letting me go all morning, and even wrote my name and her phone number across my arm (in permanent marker). I don't know why she worried so much (I guess it was the first time I had ever taken a trip somewhere with someone other than her or Dad).

I dressed in my 4th of July outfit and waited for Pa and Michele to pick me up.

While waiting (I was so excited that I was ready a half an hour early), Macie and I played around in the front yard and I worked on my "posing"...

After Pa picked me up Mom, Dad, and Grandma took Macie to the beach. She was pretty excited to be getting ALL the attention...

Mom called Pa 4 times (in 2 hours) to check in before she was finally told to "quit bothering us." I had an incredible time at the fair with Pa, riding all the rides, eating food (cinnamon rolls, hot dogs, etc.) and watching the entertainment (I was used as a prop in the Dog Show; they jumped over me). Mom was so relieved that I made it back home in one piece that she didn't even get mad that I ate junk all morning and made a mess of myself.

I fell asleep for my nap the second I walked in the door, and everyone at the house slept for 2 whole hours. When we woke up, Mom, Dad, Macie, and I piled into the car and drove downtown to have a birthday party for Pa in the harbor.

It was great spending time with family and seeing some old friends!

Macie and Mom enjoyed eating all the yummy snacks,

while I enjoyed running around with friends. Eventually Macie joined in, and the whole family enjoyed some time on the beach.



After working up an appetite, Macie sat and relaxed while Aunt Connie brought out Pa's cake.

Macie didn't take her eyes off of the cake while Connie placed 60 candles on top of it!!

After singing to Pa he blew out his candles (all 60), and he didn't even pass out!

Mom let us help by pulling out the candles- the best part of helping was licking the frosting off of the bottoms.

We couldn't help but try to stick our fingers in the cake, so Mom had to step in and take it out of our reach.

It seemed like hours had passed before we FINALLY got a piece of our own.

Austin helped me shovel cake into my mouth,

but Macie didn't need help from anyone...

I used my fork until all the big bites were in my tummy,

then used my fingers for the smaller pieces.

Needless to say, it was AWESOME!!!


Mom was in a sugar coma from all the cake and frosting (I think she even ate more than I did), so while she laid down on the lawn Macie and I spent time with our good friends.

`


Pa had a great 60th birthday, and we were glad to be there to celebrate with him!

The next day we celebrated the 4th of July at the beach with Mom, Dad, and Grandma Judy, and enjoyed a lazy day in the sand. That night we had to drop Dad off at the airport so he could fly back home to AZ (he had to go back to work), and afterwards we braved the 4th of July crowds and took a gamble by driving from San Diego to Huntington Beach. We turned out to be big winners, as traffic on the freeway was non-existent. We arrived at Jeff and Susan's house in time to see the firework show in HB. Macie lost interest early and Mom put her to bed while I stayed up with Susan and watched until the last burst of light lit up the sky.

In the morning we walked up and down the sidewalk where I used to live. I told Macie all about the fun times Mom, Dad, and I used to have at our old house.

We spent our day at the Pier playing in the sand with our friends.

That night we had a birthday party to celebrate everyone's birthday; Jeff, Susan, Wendy, Mom, Macie, and I all joined in to sing to one another!!!

When it was appropriate I dug in for a bite of the cake,

and Mom let Macie do the same.

Macie and I had a fun time at the birthday party,

and were SO happy to be spending time with family.

The next day Jeff brought the "banana car" out from the garage...He had been telling us all about this amazing car for a long time, and we were both finally old enough to ride it, so we took it down to the boardwalk to take it for a spin.

We both had an incredible time going up and down the beach, as on-lookers kept stopping us and asking where we had found such a great toy!

Macie and I took turns cruising around as Jeff and Susan watched with pride!

Watch what Macie's solution is once her legs get tired of pedaling- Mom was pretty impressed with her innovation.

All that exercise tired us out, but after a long nap both Macie and I were ready for some more fun, so Mom took us to the park to meet up with Lyla and Nathalie. Although we thoroughly enjoyed playing, we also didn't turn down the chance to stop and pose for the camera...

Macie and Lyla got along really well ( I was a little too "high energy for the both of them).

Mom was impressed by our playground skills, as Macie climbed up the ladder all by herself, and I slid down the fireman's pole like a champ:

Macie and I had a blast in Huntington Beach with the Jacklin's, and were sad when it came time to pack up the car and head home.

Before leaving town we stopped at "our spot" for some food and fun. The climber at the playplace didn't do much for Macie so she improvised...

After giving Jeff, Susan, and Charlie "the biggest hugs ever", we drove back to San Diego to spend one more day at the beach before heading back home to Arizona (and the heat). First thing in the morning Macie insisted upon going to the beach. Since she is a big girl now she has to carry her swim toys across the alley to the bay...

I was grateful to have one more day at the beach with Grandma!

After posing for some pictures the 3 of us played in the water together and took turns riding the boogie board.





I was feeling particularly brave that morning, and let Grandma push me around in the bay.

Macie watched as I laughed, and decided to give it a try...

She didn't enjoy it as much as I did, so she jumped ship and went back to kicking and splashing at the shore.



When it was time for lunch Macie and I went back to Grandma's and played in the courtyard while Mom was preparing our food.

Macie was upset that Mom wouldn't refill the bubble wand (after Macie kept spilling it on purpose), so she sat and pouted on the step. Mom can't get enough of her "pouty" face- I will admit, it is pretty cute...

After eating, both Macie and I posed for some pictures together.

Check out how cute Macie and I look in Grandma's dress (yes, Grandma's)...

We enjoyed a fun day at the beach before driving back home to see Dad and Jaxy Jax. I am looking forward to the coming week, as I will be turning 4 in a couple days, and am promised a bunch of fun activities to come.

Summer Fun in AZ!

After our two weeks in Ohio, we returned home to find Summer was underway in Arizona. Mom wasn't too thrilled about the prospect of driving around town so Macie and I could play at parks in the hot sun, so she and Dad made an executive decision and began the process of turning our backyard into an all-inclusive play place.

We started to acquire new toys for the yard, but when the box with our swingset arrived I was too excited to sit still. Poor Dad worked from sun-up to sun-set on his "day off" (doesn't get too many of those) to put it together by hand. Mom watched from a distance, wanting to help, but unable to do so- according to Dad it was a "one man job." It took him about 18 hours, but he managed to finish it on his own. Macie and I spent the whole next morning having a blast on our new toy while Mom and Dad worked tirelessly to "summer-proof" our yard and get it ready for the heat of summer. From sun shades to tents, they hoped to make our play areas tolerable.

Check out how cool our side yard looks now:

Macie and I spent the entire week playing at home and enjoying the beginning of summer. When the weekend arrived we went down to the Lifetime in Tempe for a pool party and had a blast out in the sun. Macie and I watched Dad get "dunked" in the Dunk Tank and thoroughly enjoyed all the attention we got from Dad's employees and pool-partyer's alike. The sun was hot that day, and both Macie and I were feeling its affect. I chose to sit under a lawn chair while Macie opted to play indoors in the Kid's club. Mom dropped her off, but nervously sat by the pool feeling guilty that Macie was tired and should probably be napping instead of playing. After 30 minutes Mom disappeared indoors to check in on Macie. What she found brought both laughter and tears as she discovered that poor, exhausted Macie had fallen asleep on the climber in Kids Club...

Mom marveled at her sleeping "baby", feeling both guilty (for not taking her home to nap), and overwhelmingly happy (that her little girl was so peaceful). Macie was the talk of the gym as she slept- people kept coming in to take pictures of her. Mom decided it was best to leave her alone, so she came back out to the pool party. 30 minutes later the staff called to let her know that Macie had finally woke up- an hour nap on the climber- Macie is quite the trooper!

The following weekend Mom left for New York to attend Aunt Hayley's college graduation. Because it was going to be extremely expensive for our whole family to travel for the ceremony, Dad had opted to stay home with Macie and I while Mom went to represent the Frankwick Family. Mom hadn't been apart from Macie and I for over a few hours EVER, and Dad hadn't been alone with us for over a few hours EVER, so there was a little anxiety about the 3 days. Mom stressed the whole week before leaving, not because she didn't think Dad could handle us girls for 72 hours, but because she didn't know what she would do on her own.

I guess she managed to survive without us, and when she got back she showed us what we had missed- I don't mean to be rude, but it looks like all I missed was a bunch of sitting around. Here are Hayley, John, and Holly (yes, Holly got to walk in the ceremony), during the ceremony,

and here are the happy grads, diploma and all:



Dad, Macie, and I didn't have ANY problems surviving without Mom. Dad turned out to be even more "SUPER" that we could have imagined! He managed to keep us fed, clothed, and entertained for 3 whole days- here are a few videos of our weekend:

Macie and I on the swings eating bacon and listening to Iron Maiden:



Macie and I making the most of summer fun in the sprinklers:

With Mom back home our lives returned to normal- not bad, but not nearly as much fun as our time spent with Dad. According to Mom he said that those 3 days were "the best 3 days of his ENTIRE LIFE."

That following Sunday was Father's Day, and we spent the Day spoiling our special Dad!

The day began with a big breakfast with all of our favorites,

and afterwards we dressed in our summer attire (baithing suits, or as little as possible) and played outside with Dad's new basketball.


The family enjoyed Dad's special day. While we slept Mom took him to be pampered, and then Aunt Hayley and John came to the house for a Father's Day barbecue. I hope we were able to express our feelings of love and gratitude to our awesome Dad- we are so lucky to have him!

Macie and I continued to enjoy our fun backyard, making up games and playing in the water to stay cool. Often times Mom would sit inside and sew while Macie and I played with one another- I didn't realize she was constantly spying on us through the windows...

Even after we tire of swings, sprinklers, and trampolines, Macie and I never have a problem finding ways to have fun...



Towards the end of the month we got a surprise visit from my friend Maddox and his new baby brother Dash. I had a blast playing, swimming, and hanging out with them!

One of my favorite things about summer so far this year has been the fun Summer camps at gymnastics! Each week has a different theme and every day has different activities. Mom and Dad allowed me to sign up for all my favorite themed camp days, and Mom made it extra fun by dressing me up every day for its corresponding theme.

Here I am on crazy hair day:

Can you believe they colored my hair??? It was awesome- I got to choose my favorite colors, they didn't have purple, but the green looked just as cool!

As you can imagine, my favorite camp themes have been those involving princesses.

Here I am with miss Rachel and my class on Snow White Day:

Macie is still too young to attend camps (since they run from 9-12, a long time for someone her age), so after Mom drops me off at camp she takes Macie to the train park for, as Macie calls it, "mommy my camp."

They ride the train,

as well as the carousel!

Here I am dressed as princess Belle, I brought a rose (one from Mom and Dad's wedding bushes) to show my class since there is one in the movie.

The night before Jasmine camp Mom put me to bed disappointed that I didn't have a Jasmine outfit (the only princess dress I don't have) to wear the following morning. While I was sleeping Mom apparently stayed up late working her magic and managed to sew me a genie outfit appropriate for camp (it didn't show my belly like Jasmine's does, but I didn't complain too much).

It had genie pants, a vest, and bracelets all adorned with beads that made noise when I shook!

Here I am showing Mom what I learned in dance that day:

My next day at camp was Rapunzel day and I wore my favorite purple princess dress.


Check out the cool Rapunzel crown and hair I made at camp (I didn't need to add much hair since my own is so super long)!


While I was at camp Mom and Macie went to the train park and toured the "Rapunzel" tower.

Macie enjoyed going up and down the stairs,

and practicing her skills on the "balance beam."

Despite all the other fun, she still enjoys the train ride the most!!!

When Mom picked me up from camp my fellow campers and I put on a show by demonstrating a few of the cheer and dance moves we had learned that day:

After the mini recital Mom took Macie and I over to Open Gym so that we could run around and get out a little more energy before nap time. I spent my time working on my flips on the bars,

While Macie showed off her "signature" moves with the hula hoop:

That weekend we accompanied Aunt Hayley to the horse stables to see Bugs and say goodbye to the barn animals since he would be moving to a new facility the following morning. Dressed in proper "horse stable attire" Macie and I helped Aunt Hayley hose him off (since the average daily temperature has been at LEAST 100 degrees). He loved being brushed, cleaned, and pampered, and Macie and I loved helping out!

We made sure to give proper goodbyes to the chickens, goats, and horses, but saved our best goodbyes for the donkey as he is our favorite.



The month of June has been filled with fun at home in Arizona, but once July hits our family will be back on the road. With a couple trips to California planned, the upcoming month promises to be filled with lots of fun and excitement-check back soon for details!