july memories

The Fourth of July has become one of my favorite holidays, but sadly, I don't have all my pictures from this year. I ruined my phone at Hawaiian Falls mid-July, but thankfully I had shared some of the pictures with family and they were able to send them back to me. I'm so glad I did, because this one makes my heart SO happy...

And Danielle always takes pictures from our 3rd of July fireworks show...

It was crazy windy at the Midlothian Stadium, but we loved our time hanging out with friends, shooting rocket launchers, riding bikes and scooters, and playing a bit of football. As the sun went down, we anxiously waited for the show to start.  We started hearing rumors that it was cancelled due to the crazy wind (and it really was SO windy!), but we stuck it out a bit longer.  All the cars around us started leaving, so we assumed that it truly was cancelled.  Ten minutes later, Danielle texted us to say that they saw fireworks as they were driving away.  Several other friends confirmed that they stayed for the show, so I have no idea what happened with the rumors.  We were all so bummed, but at least we will have something to look forward to next year. 

On the Fourth, our Bishop placed an extra Boy Scout flag in our yard, and our kids thought it was the greatest thing ever. It did feel very patriotic to have a huge flag waving in the wind.  I really should do more to teach Brooke and Colby about our country, the freedoms we have, and about the men and women who give their lives to protect us.  

We continued our tradition from the last few years and headed to the Arlington Parade.  Once we were all dripping with sweat, we decided that we had seen enough, haha.  We saw horses, marching bands, and the pack of Elvis impersonators do stunts on their miniature motorcycles, so we called it a success. 

The next few days are a blur, and since I don't have any pictures, I can't really tell you what we did, haha. My pictures really do serve as a journal for me of our comings and goings. 

On July 9th, I had my first visit with the Fertility Specialist and found out that our baby's heart was no longer beating.  We were all devastated, but that story has it's own post so I won't go into detail here.  My parents already had plane tickets to come take care of the kids while I went to Girl's Camp, but they came now in another capacity.  Since I was no longer going to camp, we were able to spend quality time together which I needed both physically and emotionally. 

It warms my heart to see the love my littles have for my parents.  

 Brooke didn't waste any time in getting Nay Nay to play Barbies with her.  Almost every day, while I put Colby down for his nap, they would play Barbies together.  My mom would tell me about their dialogue, and she said Brooke seemed to be processing everything through her play.  It felt so sad that Brooke was having to go through the loss of another baby, but I tried to be strong for her. She knew I was going to the hospital for surgery, but we never explained what was going to happen because it would have been too much for her little mind to grasp. I felt such peace knowing that she was at home with my parents, and that she had so much attention from them while I was a little distracted.

 We went swimming a few times, enjoyed a luau at Hawaiian Falls, played some games in the backyard, went to the movies, read lots of books, and just plain enjoyed the company of Nay Nay and Papa.

 Sunday pictures...

I was so grateful that my Mom was with me that Sunday because I was emotionally struggling.  I was nervous about going to Young Women's, and about what I would say to the girls.  Most of them already knew what had happened, and my Laurels even came to visit me the night before the D & C, but I wanted to share my experience with them and let them know how I had felt the peace of the Holy Ghost despite this trial.  As we were saying the theme, I could feel myself start to cry. My Mom put her arm around me, and I just let the tears fall.  When it was my turn to get up, I was able to share my thoughts.  It wasn't easy, but I was able to draw some strength by having this woman by my side.  She is the greatest mom anyone could hope for, and I seriously believe that to be true.

 When their visit was up, we were all sad!  We took a few final pictures, headed to Iggy's, then made the airport drop off.

We love you Nay Nay and Papa!!  We'll look forward to seeing you at Christmas :)