Lance, Suzanne, & Ellie Cummard

Valentine's Kid's Craft Class

2012-01-27T21:14:00.001-08:00

Calling all crafty kids! Wear Valentine's colors for an extra treat!

At our house. Let me know if you need an address.

PINTEREST Party- Valentines

2012-01-26T23:16:00.001-08:00

With all the PINTEREST buzz- it makes perfect sense to actually make some fun recipes.
Tonight was Valentines theme.
So much sweet food!
Great company.
Full bellies.

Valentines Printable

2012-01-25T23:20:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

Enjoy a free printable that I made.

-Suzanne

December Randoms 2011

2011-12-28T21:09:00.000-08:00

All 6 cousins (in 2nd grade) together after school... gettin' crazy.

Dave & Syd's traditional gingerbread house party!

Ellie is still earning awards in school. Here she is at the winter awards assembly.

Mondays are our favorite day around here, when I don't work. Or Fridays, when I am done working!

This must have been one of those fun days. PaRtY!!

Grandma Riggs b.day/Christmas party.

Our 4 generations picture.

Cummard's Progressive 2011

2011-12-28T18:31:00.000-08:00

One of my most favorite traditions is PROGRESSIVE dinner.

We all met at Dave & Cheryl's (the parents) to load up for the hay ride.

(We came back & they had rice pudding at the end.)

Jon & Summer's

(cheese ball)

Davy & Syd's

(Burrito bar- with favorite ingredients from all around town)

Parker & Kanoe's

(chocolate chip cookies & milk)

Steve & Crystal's

(caesar salad & something so fancy I don't remember the name)

{Side note: Ellie is really into posing & making ridiculous faces right now. Gotta love that.}

This year, we served spinach/artichoke dip & hot cocoa with spoons dipped in white chocolate at our house.

That is one fancy kitchen!

"Our Someday House"

Elsie's First Christmas

2011-12-28T18:07:00.000-08:00

This was our first year with ELSIE.

Elsie was named by Ellie last Christmas. She is a girl. We made her a skirt, flower & added her "e" to her outfit. She felt much girlier after the make over!

I forgot to take more pictures of her appearances each morning, but here are a few of our favorites.

Above: Making a snow angel (mess) & proudly writing her name in it.

Below: Ellie's note to Elsie, along with a snack.

One morning Ellie woke up, found Elsie, saw her note, laughed at Elsie's nose.... and then Ellie looked in the mirror. Her look was priceless! Elsie painted red RUDOLPH noses on both of them in the night! Ellie decided to sport that look all day.

This note is being slipped in on this post, since it is Christmas. I am not sure if it was for Lance & I or Santa.

I love it. Ellie is 7 this year. Obviously, she does a lot of service!

These 4, aka: the QTME gang; Quincy, Taryn, Molly, Ellie are always together. One night at a sleep over at our house, the girls tried to STAY UP ALL NIGHT. They wanted to watch the elf move. Once we googled that idea- we found out the elf will not move if kids aren't sleeping- just like Santa.

After mom (me) getting upset & turning off every light & movie down/off & after 1 am, somehow these girls finally fell asleep.....

Elsie had something to say about that:

Christmas Eve she wrote Ellie a nicer note to say she's had a good time, but is really tired from going back & forth so much. She needed to rest for a whole 11 months. She also told Ellie that she saw Santa eat some cookies! She watched us enjoy our Christmas by our tree, and then disappeared that night.

She has brought such excitement every day of December. We will miss Elsie until next year.

Zoo Lights

2011-12-27T17:00:00.000-08:00

For our work party this year, my boss provided everyone with dinner & then a trip to see zoo lights.

Ellie loved everything. Esp. riding the camel!

My boss, Mike & his wife Sherry.

Christmas Kid's Craft Class

2011-12-27T16:24:00.001-08:00

Last Kid's Craft Class of 2011 was so much fun.

We made JOY banners, chain links, & cotton ball Santa pictures.

To eat, we made reindeer & snowman donuts, and hot cocoa with a large marshmallow on a peppermint stick.

It was filled with crafts & snacks & fun kids!

Speaking of CRAFT groups...

The adult craft group I am in was also at my house/my turn to come up with the craft in December.

Banners it was. They were all a little different. All of them turned out really cute. BE MERRY!

I printed a 5x7 of the Christmas printable I made for everyone in our craft group.

If you like it, feel free to use it!

Decorating for the Holidays

2011-12-27T14:03:00.000-08:00

I am thankful for the chance I get to help others decorate for the Holidays.

Above & below: Alma Goodman's (my aunt)

"SWEET CHRISTMAS".

Two reasons to post these pictures:

1) I can remember things for next time, &

2) to share with anyone who cares to look.

"Our Someday House":

Too bad my new "be merry" banner is really hard to see there.

We made the JOY banners at our craft class, but I had Ellie add 2 L's to ours to make it JOLLY.

This was just added this year. We had most of the stuff to make this advent since last year. Finally in November, some of us got together & put it together. They all ended up different. Ellie has loved pulling out a tag each day & reading things like "Progressive dinner", "Caroling", "Zoo Lights", etc.! If nothing was planned it would say things like "eat a peppermint treat", "Do a secret service", etc.

Our homemade ADVENT Calendar 2011:

I guess I was getting ready for my Kid's Craft Class...

Christmas Eve:

Home of Vicki Sherwood (my parents house):

aka: "PotteryBarn style"

Her b.day is in November. So many people love to give her Christmas decor, so she has quite the collection.

Yes, she made both of those cute quits.

USA YOUTH FITNESS CENTER:

(Where I coach kids gymnastics.)

My boss was so excited for his new reindeer. BIG reindeer, as you can see.

It didn't fit where he had in mind. LUCKILY, he saw this cute Santa picture that did fit perfectly.

(Not pictures is all the ornaments hanging from the ceiling that take the longest time.)

The Home of Mary Riggs. (my g.ma)

I am grateful for this "talent" (if that's what it is). It helps me make it thru Christmas time! ;)

Our Idea of "Black Friday"

2011-12-26T22:24:00.000-08:00

I hosted a BLACK FRIDAY KIDS DAY OUT at USA GYM.

8am-noon

The kids came early, made a craft with donuts (reindeer & snowman), watched Polar Express, & played.

After that, we met up with my family for a family bike ride to Freestone Park.

We played flag football. Some of us were better at the game than others. This picture says it all with Shalae & I standing there as everyone else is so serious & into the game! ha

Ellie was actually really into the game. Sometimes maybe too much.

When she was standing still she'd be doing cartwheels & handstands. When she did good she'd be bustin' out some gangsta moves. Auburn said it best when she said "Ellie is a gangsta cheerleader". I couldn't agree more!

Down went our fall decor.... which as great. That meant time to bring out CHRISTMAS!

Fall Kid's Craft Class

2011-12-26T21:28:00.000-08:00

FALL KIDS CRAFT CLASS

WAS A HOOT.

We made paper pumpkins, FALL banners, thank you notes, & mini candy dipped apples to eat.

Fun crafts, fun kids, fun time!

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-12-26T21:25:00.000-08:00

We started our Thanksgiving off right at our neighborhood TURKEY TROT.

(thanks LANCE for being in charge this year)

Auburn joined me.

Taryn joined Elle, or should I say -"hung out".

This year, we spent our Thanksgiving Day meal with the Cummard side.

Look at these adorable little girl cousins!

This is Steele. AKA: "Chunky". I don't really need to explain the name!

He crawled up to the kids table & started feasting & stuffing as fast as he possibly could!

The hostess with the mostest!

That night I had to go get LOTS done at the scrapbook store (ETC.). Lance & Ellie came with me to help.... and Ellie was sure glad she did, cause look who she got to sit with?!!

Fun Night with ELLE

2011-12-26T20:36:00.000-08:00

I won tickets to Broadway Palm Theatre at a school raffle.

What night would be better than to sit & relax than after our races?!

Ellie was so excited. She loved every second of this. The buffet, the fanciness, the play, ETC.!

She said to me, "mom, this is so romantic!"!!

I felt like it was teen elect teaching her "MANNERS" all night. It really was like a date.

ELLE with ELLE. (and Bruiser after the play)

Shun the Sun 2011

2011-12-26T20:25:00.000-08:00

In September, I started debating to run a long "race" again.

After adding a mile each week, I decided I was going to run an other 1/2 marathon.

So, in November I did it.

I ran my 2nd 1/2 marathon.

I am not fast. My goal was to STAY POSITIVE with myself the whole time.

The run started at Hohokam (?) Stadium on Brown & Center (?) in Mesa.

The night before the race I tried to look up the course. I saw it was all along a canal. We would run from the stadium to Baseline... and back!

I ran alone. I wasn't sure where I was, what street I was near, or anything. At one point, I started really looking around wondering where I was.. Then I realized I was on Lindsay, right after Gilbert. MY HOOD! I was so excited to hit HARMONY PARK! That was our 1/2 way point. That was a great feeling.

During training, I read to make it easier on my body (mostly knees) & on my time- do the training of run 10 minutes, walk one minute. I trained the whole time like that, once in a while running the first 2-3 miles & then doing "10-1". Once I was running, I had energy & felt great. I decided to keep running until I convinced myself to do what I had trained. So mile 8 I started doing "10-1". I was more prepared for this race- mentally. So much of the running is so mental.

ANYWAY...

Here I am finishing up the race.

Emotional, seeing my mom & Ellie & Lance there cheering me on at the finish line.

Ellie was excited for the FUN all around the stadium.

PLUS, her & dad did a race of their own!

.. literally ..

Some of the other racers (their first 1/2 for all 3):

Victoria, a friend/mom from the gym.

My friend, Mele Larson.

My cousin, Amy Johnson.

I love the feeling of accomplishment & being proud of others crossing the finish line, too.

Random. Fall 2011

2011-12-26T19:53:00.000-08:00

Earlier this school year, I missed all the notices about school picture day.

If you know anything about Ellie, you know she loves to be all dolled up & fancy. On that day (for school pics) Ellie left the house wearing an old shirt, wearing her hair in piggies that she wasn't happy about & even left mad/sad. When I heard it had been school picture day, I was at work. There was nothing I could do about it. I actually went in my office & started to cry. 1) I felt like a failure as a mom. 2) I knew Ellie felt "ugly" that day.

LUCKILY, there are retakes!

Ellie picked out her outfit & jewelry, and yes-her shoes.

I love this GIRLY GIRL.

I mentioned a few post back about all our dental issues. Her mouth & my wallet were so DONE with all of it.

Here's Elle being a happy {drugged} piggy.

One of Ellie's favorite things- showing off her baby cousin, Lucy.

Once in awhile I take Lucy on a jog to see Ellie at school.

Here's our mantle for fall.

(To remember for next year... and to add cuter stuff next time, too. ha)

Baptism Subway Arts

2011-12-26T19:40:00.000-08:00

Ellie's cousins MOLLY & JACKSON were born hours apart 8 years ago. In October they had their baptisms.

I made them each a cute subway art.

I was happy with how they turned out.

(thanks to ideas on PINTEREST)

This was the display at their luncheon after they got baptized.

Halloween 2011

2011-12-26T18:39:00.000-08:00

This year for Halloween Ellie had been saying she wanted to be Matilda all year. Once it came time to get an outfit together, her mind started to change. WHY? Well I told her Matilda wore overalls & scroungy clothes with a big red bow. Ellie wanted nothing to do with that kind of outfit. So.... then she decided she wanted me to make her a big tutu and she would be a

CUTE WITCH.

THAT SHE WAS.

We call our home "our someday house". Meaning SOME DAY it will be fixed up. SOME DAY.

But with my love for decorating & holidays, I get so excited for this time of year.

Here is some pics of our SOMEDAY house.

This is my sister, Shalae's house. I always love everything she does. She is such a perfectionist in ways I am not. Loved her decor!

Speaking of Shalae- here is Ellie & Noah at my kids craft class.

We live in the neighborhood I grew up in. My parents still live in this neighborhood, too. Each year we have a neighborhood Halloween party.

Here is Ellie & Lucy at the party.

Me & my beehive & beehive leaders doing a face painting booth.

Ellie & Tatum.

Tradition:

Ellie & Taryn sportin their Halloween spirit at school.

Halloween night at Grandma Cheryl's with the Jon's.

Finally, trick or treating in our neighborhood. (parents area)

Some of my favorites:

It was a Happy Halloween.

Halloween Kid's Craft Class

2011-12-26T18:30:00.000-08:00

Ellie had been asking me to do more kids craft classes. Starting October, I did a few more.

The kids were so excited to wear a costume & get their craft on.

We made popcorn hands, spider webs & a witches hat for a snack.

It was a blast.

Speaking of Halloween- here's the Halloween printable I made for anyone to freely use. Enjoy!

Little Bunnies 2011

2011-12-26T17:19:00.000-08:00

Cutest Little Bunnies!

Brings back memories of when I was little being a little bunny.

Then in high school, I was teaching the little ones & couldn't wait for the day to have my own!

Now that I do, I think this group is the cutest little bunch & couldn't imagine life without them.

They all love MHS.

I love Mesa High's TRADITIONS!

MHS.

ForEVER the BEST.

Carry On.

THIRTY, FLIRTY, & THRIVING

2011-12-26T17:02:00.000-08:00

I dreaded turning the big 3-0... but I had help making it lots of fun!

My mom & sisters & I partied at LGO, Sprinkles, Scottsdale mall, & YogurtLand.

My idea of awesomeness for sure!

Now that's lots of cupcakes!

The next day I went to Red Robin with some of the Cummard girls.

They also came & heart attacked my house for the big day.

My b.day was actually on a Sunday this year, so it was more of a birthday weekend, which ended up so fun.

(Notice Ellie trying to match me..)

My mom let me pick our Sunday meal, so I chose Costa Vida style! Everything was delish.

"Lance".. (I) made some yummy cupcakes & Ellie decorated our fireplace filled with love- all for me.

I guess turning 30 has its perks!

First Trip to Lake Tahoe

2011-12-26T15:56:00.000-08:00

Lance was invited to go on his first business trip in August. (wives invited, too)

The trip was to the beautiful LAKE TAHOE!

Free food, fun people, free activities...

We chose hour wrap/massages, which were so amazing.

Down the way from our hotel was a NESTLE shop. SCORE!

If all of that wasn't enough, we saw 2 "celebs" at the airports. One was the goofy guy from "Just Shoot Me" & then Steve Nash.

So FUN.

This was pretty much our first trip without Ellie since... well forever. It was a blast & we were so thankful for the opportunity!

August Randoms 2011

2011-12-26T15:34:00.000-08:00

Kids back in school & college classes not started yet... hmm.. Out to LUNCH it is.

Ellie started piano lessons with grandma Cheryl. (Ellie's request)

Ellie also started her first of many dental appointments. YIKES.

Russ & Shalae took us back to the lake so Lance could come. Him & Elle surfed it up together!

These 3 can be dangerous together while shopping.

Here's Miss LUCY loving "2 babies"!

Ellie continues to not only love reading, but is way awesome at it. She gets notes sent home that report she is in the top 87th % in the nation for her age in reading. It makes me wonder where this came from. Cause it SURE wasn't her mama! Proud of her love for reading, though.

1st Day of 2nd Grade for Ellie

2011-12-10T19:41:00.001-08:00

We had a great summer. Vacations, hang outs, swimming, sleep overs, etc.! We hated to see it come to an end.

Since school was coming, it was time to SCHOOL SHOP!

We had fun shopping with cousins & also just Ellie & I.

The night before the first day....

Ellie had her outfit all planned & ready to go.

Ellie loves to be FANCY!

Fancy Pants as much as possible.

(Her & her baby got a good night sleep that night.)

These are all CUMMARD's that go to the same school.

(There are even 5 pre-k cousins missing from the picture.)

Ellie, Molly & Quincy!

The "QTME Gang": (Taryn on the right)

All the girl cousins in 2nd grade.

Miss Fancy Pants 2nd Grader: ELLIE!

Speaking of 2nd Grade...

Check out these hotties! All 1st day of 2nd grade shots.

Lance * Ellie * Suzanne

My Christmas Printable & Kid's Craft Class

2011-11-22T18:05:00.001-08:00

Here's my CHRISTMAS printable for anyone to share & print!

ENJOY!

..............................................

Also, one more Kid's Craft Class for 2011!

We'll be crafting, watching a Christmas movie, snacking & having a good time. All on a Friday night so parents can go enjoy themselves! (Or get some shopping done without kids.)

RSVP by Wednesday, Dec. 7 if your kids are interested in coming so I can prepare a kit for them!

Feel free to message me if you need my address.

Lake Powell July 2012

2011-10-30T20:16:00.000-07:00

Back in December 2010, my parents Christmas gift to all of our family was a trip to Lake Powell. We hadn't been in so many years & most of our kids had never gone.
We had so much fun. Here are some of my favorite pics:

The tubes- always a good time.

our EL CAPATAIN, Russ!

Torturing Lucy- so sad.

Sunday- our day of TOURING the LAKE!

Ellie getting her cuddles with Brad since her dad had to stay home for work.

DANGLING ROPE! Love the ice cream.

Sorry Shalae...
Shae busted out her old REEF's, more than 10 years old.

Rainbow Bridge.

Matching!

Me & my ELLE BELLE.

The tube was going so slow that it tipped over- on the kids. All we could hear was screaming.
Russ jumped in as fast as he could to get Sophie & Roxy. They were so scared.
Luckily, Roxy also had her brothers there to save the day!

Ellie trying to learn to surf with Russ... didn't last too long.

MATCHING sisters!

Brad surfing..

Bryan surfing..

Shalae..

Brad..

Roxy & Ellie lovin life!

Tayler..

Riggs..

Jaxen..

Russ & Sophie..

Ellie..

Out on the lake:

There was a couple nights that it stormed- this was one of those nights:
{all snuggled inside}

Tube with Poppy..

Lucy experiencing the tubes:

The QUEEN of tubing {ELLIE}, and me:

Oh Luce..

Alisse..

The 3 guys that got stuck on the lake with a broken motor (?). It took them 3 long hours just to get back at like 10 mph I think.

Scott..

Scott in the air chair- hilarious!

Hotties!

Ellie & Noah cracking up at each other. (and a hungry bum)

Me & the GOOSE!

Games..

At the doc..

The lake looked so nice. It was so nice.

Hungry once again.

SuRFiNg!!

Alisse, Noah, me & Ellie. CLASSIC!

High Five!!

We had a blast at Lake Powell. It was so nice to go spend time together & play on the lake!
Thanks MOM & DAD.

Lucy's 1st b.day PARTY

2011-10-30T19:48:00.000-07:00

My baby girl turned ONE! (my niece Lucy)
The party was short & sweet but filled with people that LOVE & are obsessed with her.

Everything turned out so cute.
Lucy loved our gift. A baby stroller with a baby doll & a big bouncy ball.

I love Lucy!

My Homemade Printables

2011-10-12T15:41:00.000-07:00

Here are some of my printables that I have made.

Feel free to use any!

My Halloween Art with Crows.

Cute in an 8 x 10 black frame.

USA Youth Fitness Center- fun subway art for our gym.

SUMMER subway art to match our summer time banner.

NEWPORT 2011 -{PART 2}

2011-08-23T21:29:00.000-07:00

Why is it that time flies when you are on vacation?
I hate that.

Here are most of the kids that stayed at the house..
They all got along great & had such a good time!

On Wednesday night we headed to THE FUN ZONE on BALBOA ISLAND.
On the way there- Ellie & Roxy were laughing so hard at Lucy, which made Lucy laugh, & it went on & on. It even made me & my mom laugh just hearing them & seeing their faces!

PIZZA on BALBOA!

The kids rode rides & the ferris wheel & also played in the arcade.

Me & My Girl..

Our moms with their mom!
{Aunt Alma, Grandma Riggs, & my mom}

OH... Ellie & Roxy had so much fun on the human sling shot!

They flipped all over!

Lucy on the mini horses..

We finished the night off right...

Ah, here is when Lucy got stung by a bee. It was so sad.

I am not sure if I already posted these- but oh well if I did. The pictures are way cute of my Ellie Girl!
Shopping at the swap meet:

MATCHING!!

Ellie & Roxy pretending that they were taking their baby sister on a walk to the pier..

We walked down to the pier for.....

Fresh lemonade & cheese dogs!

The pier always has something interesting going on- this day we had BUBBLE MAN!

These girls were so fun.
They kept working on their splits, bridges & cart wheels everywhere they went. FINALLY I got my camera had them pose together! (Which Hank was really into also! ha)

Thursday night the kids stayed home while the moms went out!
We waited forever at Fashion Island- so we shopped a bit- then ate at PF CHANGS.

Ah, Hank & Krista- so cute!

A few fun shots:

classic

Again- classic Ellie:

Friday our cousin Stephanie brought her & her kids over to where we were staying to hang for a bit.
Mary & Ellie had some fun:

Cousin Molly & her family got there Friday, so Ellie went & found her & hung out for a bit.

Roxy & Ellie:

Ellie & me..

Ah, I loved the different plants that were there!

Before we left for home- you know we had to make one more "emergency stops"!!!
We love CITI DONUT{s}!!

A couple more favorite shots- these might be duplicates...

Lucy's first time on the sand. LOVE THAT GIRL!

Riggs & Jax! So cute!

Go RoXy!

We had a blast.
It was so fun to go be with our kids, cousins, mom, aunt, grandma and sisters- minus Shalae.

NEWPORT 2011 -{PART 1}

2011-08-15T21:50:00.000-07:00

We were so lucky to have a chance to go spend time with our kids on Newport this July! Moms, kids, Grandma Riggs, Alma, Krista & Hank all stayed downstairs at a house we stayed at as kids.
It was a blast.
Here are some of our highlights!!!!
Well- EATING is always one of our major highlighs, of course. (Above - MARIO'S & Below- the new yogurt shop a couple doors down.)

It was so fun to be right on the sand. The kids could play right in front of the house where we could see them, which was fun for them & nice for the parents.

MATCHING!!!!

Below is our families favorite donut stop- all though they are all good- we love their selection the best.
CITI DONUT (s)...

We lucked out with being able to hit up the OC SWAP MEET the last day before they closed for the month. Our family loves the Swap Meet but we thought we'd be in & out with kids....

but the kids loved it too.
Of course we had to pig out while there.
Love the cinnamon rolls,

1/2 of the stands {yeah, mini pillow pets},

the carnitas & the LEMONADE!

After so much shopping, we relaxed in the sand.
Lucy in her yellow polka dot bikini.

That night we went into Orange to a yummy Mexican food Restaurant.

Ellie & Hank love each other so much. She loves to act like his older sister & pretends she is babysitting him. For some reason- he likes it, too!

My girl, Elle Belle.

My other lover girl- Rox Star.

Speaking of little mommy- Ellie LOVES her cousin LUCY as if she was her little sister. (Well we all do.)

Love our babes:

Lucy was almost one. Which meant she was starting to be mobile.
She was so proud of herself - here she is signing "STANDING"!!

The boys- Riggs & Jaxen.

More yogurt. this time YOGURT LAND!

Around bedtime, we all just hung out... with worn out eyes from kids that played hard all day.

More MATCHING!

Luce stayed entertained for so long with just a bucket & a shovel.

Sisters!!!
Mom & Alma.

The girls.

Grandma didn't have enough energy to make it down to the water, but we did play some games - which g-ma is all about.

Playing "THINGS" was not one of the easiest games for g-ma to catch on to though.
The kids on the other hand ROCKED at this game. Most of the time we had a hard time guessing their answers!

{Saturday - Tuesday....}

Our {boring} 4th of July

2011-08-15T16:31:00.000-07:00

Well it couldn't be a party with fireworks without Lance buying fireworks.

The Price family had just got back in town like us- so we met up.
We tried to find fireworks.... but because of the storm, we never did.
We ended up back at our casa & had/made our own celebration.

Boring.... ha ha

Cummard Reunion * July 2011

2011-08-13T19:23:00.000-07:00

Cummard reuinon 2011!

Started with Waynes Breakfast- TRADITION..

and a shirt from when Ellie was 3!

Too small???

Uncle LA LA- loving the kids!

games

The girls went out to lunch "on LEE" which never happens.

We ended up at ??? well... hard to explain- but FULL of laughs!

The boys LOVE their moms HOT CHOCOLATE!

Making our plates is always one of our favorites.

Nash Dog waiting for Big Guy to come back...

Grandma Cheryl is so good about having all the kids HELP OUT with meals :

Monday morning after the reunion was over, they were allowed to ride the quads:

Elle crafting it up with Grandma Cheryl!

Cummard Randoms for June 2011

2011-08-13T12:37:00.000-07:00

Ellie was invited to join a summer program for all of June.

4 days a week * 8-12 * no math/reading, etc * songs, activities, crafts * FREE- including breakfast & lunch... OF COURSE WE WERE IN!!

At the end of June - they put on a performance about the WILD WEST! Ellie did great & loves it- AKAG (All Kids Are Gifted)

In June, Ellie & some of her friends & cousins also went to Crystal's Cooking Classes- she loved it!!

Every Friday was Kids Day Out at the gym, which included the water slides! Ellie & Noah had a great time.

Our biggest news of June {ha}...

was Ellie counting down the days until she could get her hair cut.

FINALLY, June 28th came for LaRee to CHOP it off!

She loves it, Lance loves it, I love it....

I'm pretty sure everyone likes it!

Summer Classes!

2011-08-03T17:58:00.000-07:00

During a couple weeks of the summer, I had a 4 craft classes at my house for kids.
Each class the kids made 2 crafts & a snack.
It was a lot of fun.... not just for me- but I think the kids loved it!

We made banners, pin wheels & cupcakes...

We made bottle cap necklaces, bracelets, and red*white* & blue strawberries....

We made noise makers, fabric flowers, and frozen bananas....

We made creative bookmarks, journals, and dipped pretzels...

I am sure I'll be doing KIDS CRAFT GROUP again.

Maybe again in the fall!

Dana Ranch Girls Camp 2011

2011-08-02T20:29:00.000-07:00

All of my first years after our hike.
I love that I am totally spacing someone taking the pic- HELLO! ha ha. it was cute of everyone else, though.

All the first years in the stake during our hike:

We were the green group.
The girls got pampered. We did hair glitter,

the girls got beautiful,

soaked their sore feet,

hung out, ..... {The banners I amde turned out pretty simple- but cute} ....

played games,

danced, sang songs,

snacked,

learned some new skills,

did crafts,

learned to trust each other,

communicate together,

listen to their teams,

hide balls during storm the castle,

draw on themselves,

Became more spiritual....
and of course PARTIED!

Our fun addi:

It was nice to have 2 of my sister in laws at camp. I could go bug them anytime!
Dang, we look so cute there. YIKES.

Oh- and look what I found when I opened my suit case. BUT I was alone, it was alive, & I just screamed!!! I had to kill it on my own. AH! It was so SICK.

Speaking of my beehives in Dana Ranch Ward. I love my calling, I love the people I work with & all the girls we get to serve!
One of my latest lessons was on TRIALS- which brought my mind to MAKING LEMONADE. Thought I'd share some of the cute things I made:

Also, Syd gave all of us these beehive cupcake pans- so I had to try them out on our beehives. They turned out so cute & sop delish!

Camp was a blast.
I loved how all of the girls in our ward were friends & all of us loved watching their testimonies grow!

Cabins

2011-08-02T19:11:00.000-07:00

Memorial weekend we headed up to the Cummard cabin to work... and have a little fun of course.

Crystal & I got a craft together for anyone that wanted to make one.

SUMMER TIME banner!!!

It was Jons b-day, so he asked Cheryl for a "cookie monster"... she made extras that everyone was drooling over {literally} & everyone waited to get a scoop.

Big chocolate chip cookie, vanilla ice cream, whip cream & chocolate on top.

I'm pretty sure that everyone came to an agreement that Steve & Crystals family need their own from now on! ha

Straight from the Cummard cabin in Strawberry, we headed to my moms side of the family cabin in Pinetop.
We wanted to go to Pinetop, but we had my cousin Bartons funeral that Tuesday anyway.

Ellie & Roxy are puttin on a show here to "Hey, hey - you , you. I don't like your girlfriend!"!!!

Alisse also crafted it up with me! I love the way the banners turned out.

Alisse also helped us cook s'mores while up at the cabin. It wasn't cold enough for a fire!

Finishing up First Grade

2011-08-02T18:39:00.000-07:00

Star Students!
Quincy, Molly & Ellie with their awards for reading.

I get so proud of Ellie as her parent because she gets so many awards at school. I on the other hand.... I wasn't always / maybe ever that kid!

Ellie with her teacher for FIRST GRADE- Mrs. Lawrence. Ellie loved her & all of the other teachers she worked with so far.

Ellie's last day of school gift for her teachers.
Smarties with a Sonic card.

Crystal had the kids come celebrate with popsicles!

We didn't waiste anytime....
Here is Ellie & Maggie.
Matching is so impotant in our world!

Easter 2011

2011-08-01T20:13:00.000-07:00

Well look who hopped on over???

Lucy was the one we expected a reaction from- but ROXY was the one that was terrified.

Auburn got in the suit...

She was a great bunny. She hopped all around & even said she tried to make "bunny ears" on someone. ha

Perfect. No need to go wait in any lines to get a pic with the bunny.

Below- Raine. Our Grandmas "nanny" if you will!

Even when Roxy knew it was her mom, she was so scard. SAD.

EASTER MORNING:

For dinner we went to Grandma Riggs house.
I made 3 kinds of desserts, I couldn't resist.

While we were hiding the eggs for the hunt- we realized that my grandmas turtle "Speedy" was finding the real eggs & eating them. NICE.
Please notice the LABEL incase he got away! Love her.

My baby girl- Lucy, who also tried to eat the eggs.

Some of the girl cousins. So cute.

Buffet.... Everything was so delish!

Sometime that weekend, Ellie & her cousins on the Cummard side came & partied... (I'm sure they were watching 13 Going On 30.

The girls all helped string some Easter eggs to make garland.

(I loved the way the fabric turned out in the frames for our SPRING decor to match the small banner.

Glamour Night 2011 at USA GYM

2011-08-01T19:19:00.000-07:00

This year I was in charge of this huge event with my friend Sandye at the gym.
GLAMOUR NIGHT. The girls sleep over- where they get to be so girly all night & get oh-so glamourous.
It comes once a year- unless we add another in the fall... It takes lots of prep & help from our staff.

The girls ate pizza, snacks, watched a movie, got their hair done, nails done, make up done, they crafted, played games, had open gym, did Kids Zumba, learned a dance, and laughed all night.
Glamourous.

Not only did they get to pick from 2 crafts- but they were great ones. Either flower clips or bottlecap necklaces.
Did I mention that each girl also got the hair sparkles?!!

At 2 am there were still a couple heads popping up, but no sick little girls. PLUS nobody called to be picked up- which was amazing.

Here are a couple of my favorite glamour shots:

AND OF COURSE0 MY ALL TIME FAVORITE:

JUST GLAMOUROUS.

Girls NB Trip March 2011

2011-08-01T18:47:00.000-07:00

My sisters & mom (and Lucy) took a girls trip to Newport in March - just to get away & have fun.
That is exactly what we did.

The only bugger to me was when I was the only one with out internet on my phone- waa waa once again. If anything was interesting, they'd share the info at least. (I promised myself I would upgrade my phone before taking anymore trips with them- which I finally did.)

We headed to The Grove.
It was Auburns birthday weekend. One of her favorite things to do is SHOP.... SHOP & SHOP.
We saw a couple "celebs" there:

HOWIE.

MARIO.

While we were in LA- mom picked to go to one of her old favorite food places. YUMMY!

The wind was so crazy but when we saw the LA Temple, we all decided to go look at it better.

As if this baby isn't fought over at all times in our family....

Auburn always talks about how much she LOVES MRS. KNOTTS. So for her b-day, we finally went. (That is after we shopped ALL DAY. I literally shopped til I dropped- I napped in the car while some of them kept going.)

As tradition, it's always someones B-DAY.... but this time was legit.
They sang to Auburn as she got totally embarrassed.

*Side note to remember: Everything we ate, Auburn would say "this isn't very good" or something like it. At the end of the night she couldn't even remember why she liked it so much!! HA HA

Our mom flew home early & missed one of our highlights of that trip.
As we were at the gas station by the outlets- Auburn said "I swear that is Gavin Rossdale. Is that him with his kids? It's Gwen Stefani's husband, etc..."
We were pretty sure he could hear us since our windows were cracked & we were all being crazy & trying to find our cameras. He just kind of laughed.

Little did we know, GWEN was just in the gas station. We saw her in the front seat after we passed them later on.
We were all dying.

There is nothing like a GIRLS WEEKEND with your BEST FRIENDS!

We have so much fun, make so many memories, laugh at old memories & I believe we all come home alot more HAPPY.

Seven Is Heaven

2011-08-01T17:43:00.000-07:00

Ellie turned SEVEN in MARCH so we had some close friends & a few cousins come celebrate her awesomeness at USA GYM {again}.

The Baldwins - above & below!!

The girls + Hudson.

They came & partied for an hour with the gym just for us....... then it turned into KIDS NIGHT OUT, which they all got to stay for.

.... {Couldn't resist our free dozen}

I love my Ellie girl. She is such a sweet heart & tries so hard to make good choices. I wish I had so many more kids JUST LIKE YOU! Happy 7th b-day Ellie!

Cousin Lovin'

2011-08-01T17:12:00.000-07:00

Ellie loves her cousins.
Here she is loving Lucy & Hank... "helping me babysit".

The first grade field trip was to the Phoenix Zoo. (It was our 3rd year in a row.... but that's o.k...)
Summer & I got drawn to be some of the first grade leaders, so we had out groups stick together.

5/6 are first cousins, but Taryn is so close- that she doesn't seem like a 2nd cousin.
L-R: Talbot, Molly, Jackson, Taryn, Quincy, & Ellie.
BEST FRIEND COUSINS.

Loving Valentines

2011-06-30T16:52:00.000-07:00

The fun Valentines Day cards Ellie & the kids at KDO made this year..
"Here's a TWEET because you're SWEET".
Our family did our Progressive Dinner the day before Valentines Day this year.
We started at the Price home:

Walked down to the Baldwin's:

Then we headed to our Parents house:

Then we went to our house (for SWEETS of course):

For Valentines Day Ellie brought her class her homemade Valentines & also cookies for their class party.

After school these hotties went to the mall with me & acted like they were older...

Oh boy- CLAIRE'S already? It starts young.

Pinetop Cabin Trip

2011-06-26T19:44:00.000-07:00

SNOW is not something we are use to. We don't have any appropriate clothes, shoes, toys.... nothing.

BUT we borrowed some stuff & headed to the Pinetop cabin to play in the snow....... or just play inside!

Ellie SLEPT A LOT this trip. She kept saying she felt fine.... I guess she wanted to grow 5 more inches or something.

These 3 hang well together:

YEAH OLD NEWS to most.... but guess what I introduced to the younger kids? We were all laughing so hard at each other.

I might have mentioned one of my latest obsessions...... We brought up stuff to craft it up..

"Mobi"/Noah & Sophie:

Shalae & Russ love Geo Cashing.. so they took some of along with them.

It was really hard to find, but eventually we found the GEO CASH hidden in the snow-in the woods.

It had been there for SO MANY YEARS.

Love Russ in that attractive cap.

Here's Lance carrying our almost 7 year old all the way back to the car. SUPER DAD. The mean mom said "WALK, You are fine." ha

It was so nice to get away for a few days.

Our January & February 2011 Randoms

2011-06-26T16:40:00.000-07:00

We all brought our bikes to the Gibbons house & then rode to Discovery Park on a day off from school...

We got 2 new family members on the Cummard side!!

These 2 boys were born with in 30 minutes of each other & the rooms were back to back.
Made it nice to visit!
CHARLIE is Lee & Sarah's new son & STEELE is Parker & Kanoe's.

One of my latest obsessions is the twist flower clips, so we even made them for KDO at the gym.

Ellie "babysat" a couple of her favorite little ones: Lucy & Hank!

I got to go with the 1st graders to the zoo on a field trip {again}! These 6 are all cousins. Love it.

We had a hard time watching my Grandpa Sherwood get worse with his cancer & etc.
{I'm gonna ramble for a moment so I don't regret writing a few things for myself to remember}

Some of the things that I'll remember most about him was his goofy faces & happy smile. In the last month or so before he died, Lance, Elle & I went to visit him when he was at a hospice place. He was confused. He was in & out of sleep- from minute to minute. He kept bringing up how he had to go work- he was always busy working or doing, helping, etc. He would tell Lance to help him get his shoes & Lance would tell him it was already taken care of... but in the next minute or so he would say something about needing to go help someone with something again. FINALLY- he gets to rest. That gives me peace. He more than earned it.
ALSO- that day I had been asking him if anyone had come that day- which I knew a couple of my sisters had been. At first he told me "no"-- and then kind of remembered that one of them was there. At one point he kind of knew who I was but he had been trying to figure out where he knew Lance from. All of the sudden when I said my dad's name- SAM- he said to Lance "Oh that is where I know you from. Sam & Vicki's house." I'm not sure why.. but I asked "Do you recognize me/know me?".... He wanted to say yes, but he hesitated & told me that he wasn't sure. It tore me up. I asked if he knew who {Ellie} the little girl was. He said "Yeah, that is Sam & Vicki's daughter- Suzanne." It was so hard for him to even talk. That was one of the last conversations I had with my grandpa. I lost it- BUT I knew he didn't forget me. He just remembered me being younger & obviously Ellie looks enough like me that he thought it was me. It was sweet. (Plus I like to believe that I was one of his favorites when I was younger... and still while I was grown up.)

We all enjoyed listening to his stories of his life & his life history & I know that we were lucky to have the time that we did with him.

We love him....He will be missed! We're all glad he is not in any more pain.

Our Last Week of 2010

2011-06-26T16:20:00.000-07:00

Even though a hot cocoa stand would have went better with the weather, Ellie, Molly & Quincy were so excited to do their first lemonade stand.

That same week, I tool them to POLAR ICE to ice skate for the first time.

We all slipped a few times but it was ALL LAUGHS the whole time.

All of the Cummard grandkids went over and wished Grandma Cummard an other happy b-day...

At the gym, we had SNOW delivered for the kids that came to camp & kids day out that week on Friday- which was New Years Eve.

My mascot for KDO- "Best friend BROOKLYN".

That night we hung out at Lance's parents & did fireworks,

and silly string...

of course Lance was in heaven with all that jazz.

IT WAS SO COLD!!!

It's always a party.... and every once in a while- A SLUMBER PARTY!!

What A Great {homemade} Christmas-2010

2011-06-20T22:26:00.000-07:00

Christmas morning seems so quiet at our house since it's only 3 of us- so we try to take it slow "SLASH" drag it out. We sleep in, some years we get all ready before coming in the main rooms. This year- it was P.J.'s.

I think we were all spoiled this year....

Ellie had one present that sent her on a HUNT.....

The poem explained where to go/what to do...
(Ever since DisneyLand she's been wanting her own lemonade stand... she kept telling us that we could build it.)
Well it's no hand carved lemons out of wood with bead board..... but she was THRILLED when she found THIS:
Lance helped me make posts for the banners. I made her banners, flavor & price signs, and my mom helped me make my vision be possible & I quilted her tablecloth!
I was happy with how it turned out- but I now want a bigger table.

(I'm always wanting something.. or everything)
HIDDEN PRESENTS... something my dad was always good at & I always loved growing up....

SINCE Lance is not "all grown up" (I'm judging this by the amount of cartoons he still watches)... I was very excited for him to find a bell in his stocking & this bike was waiting for him outside:
Ellie thought that spot in the back must've been for her...

Later on we headed to my parents to do our traditional Christmas afternoon.

This year was our sister's "HOMEMADE CHRISTMAS".

Yes- it takes a lot of time, but we are all so excited to make stuff for each other, get each others homemade goodness & PLUS homemade means so much more!

I absolutely love this tradition.

My gifts: Flower pins, & BANNERS of course! I made them each a BOO BANNER, plus an other one.

For Alisse- a Chrismas banner.
For Shalae- a Valentines Day banner.
For Auburn- a Halloween banner.
For my mom- a Happy Birthday Banner.

My girly girl was way excited for more tutu's!
(From her G-ma Vicki & Poppy.)

I love that everyone can just CHILL... including our Grandma Riggs!

{love it- Alisse is copying her leg}

HERE'S the HOMEMADE GOODNESS that I love:

Shalae made us 2011 calendars: ADORABLE of the nation.
Auburn & Alisse made our family video of the last 5 years- it was amazing.
And yours truely....
And my mom surprised us by making us each a QUILT!!!!

SO SPECIAL. I LOVE ALL OF THEM!
THAT was some of our high lights of our CHRISTMAS DAY 2010.

It was a great year.

Christmas Eve 2010

2011-06-20T21:55:00.000-07:00

We had all the kids exchange presents with the name that they drew on Christmas Eve since the Price girls would not be with us on Christmas day.

Lucy got her first soft baby doll. {Heidi Morgan}

The 9 kids:
Later that night, we went to Lance's parents for our traditional Christmas Eve.
Nativity...

These 3 girls wanted to perform "Daddy, please don't eat the cookies"...

We all opened PrEseNtS!!
Some of us partied...
Each year each adult gets to find their hidden $20 from the parents.

This year- if you wanted to put your $20 in a can & take a chance on getting your name drawn you could. The winner got to take all the money.

WELL... Syd had all the luck.

She didn't keep it though.

FOR the record, I'm not that nice. I would've taken it & ran.
The kids on the Cummard side:
Parker & Kanoe had Lance & I for Christmas.

One of the gifts was:
OURS is ELSIE (a girl).

She watched Santa work his magic that night.

We can't wait for her to come out in the following years!

Progressive Dinner with Cummards 2010

2011-06-20T21:32:00.000-07:00

This year we rode on a hay ride from house to house since we all live so close by each other now.
We started off at Steve & Crystal's .....
back tracked a bit to our house.....
back up to Parker & Kanoe's....
then around the corner OR some of us went thru the back yard to Davy & Syd's....
down that street to Jon & Summer's....
{had to include this- the dogs love Big Guy & he loves them}

Last we finished off the night at the parents house!
One of my simple & fave traditions.

December Randoms 2010

2011-06-20T20:57:00.000-07:00

Well most of my life is at work right now... these are some of the kids I love to hang with on Fridays at Kid's Day Out. We play, run, make a craft etc.

BELOW is Brooklyn... or as I call her "my best friend Brooklyn". She has come to ALMOST every KDO for a year (since I started them).

I think I'll be as sad for her to start school as I was with Elle!!! ha ha
Holiday traditions:
decorating gingerbread houses

Gotta love it (and those cute girls).
Brag time- ha ha
(Ellie getting awards)
More KDO... Christmas wreaths:
AND I saved the best for last.....
I was so tired one morning in December that after I woke Ellie up I went back to my bed. That day after she came home- YOU COULD IMAGINE MY FACE.

OH DEAR.

HER {PLASTIC} PANTS WERE FROM HALLOWEEN, NOTHING MATCHED, HER {TALL} SOCKS WERE TUCKED IN TO THOSE GREAT PANTS, AND NEVERMIND HER DIRTY BOATS on her feet!!!!!

That's how she rolled that day.

I could've died.

Who would help her if I wasn't around?????

Cummard Girls Favorite Things 2010

2011-06-13T21:39:00.000-07:00

For our FAVORITE THINGS night in Nov. 2010, we drew a name- which was Crystal who picked we go out to eat at Olive Garden.

After eating we went back to share our gifts.

Sarah's favorite things: amazing chapstick, sample of Hope In A Jar, and Nothing BUNDT Cakes! yummmm
Crystal's Fave: Silicone Mat. Once you've used one- you know why!
Kanoe's Faves: Clips to stop loosing your keys, and our 2011 mini calendars with b-days, heritage info, etc.! Love it.
Summer's favorites: Wisk, home made ranch mix, & Ranch bottle. A necessity for every fridge!
Syd's favorites: 2 small bowls from Anthropology. Love all the colors. Perfect for dip!
Cheryl's Faves: Reusable bags, our favorite thin cutting boards, slicing tool for wrapping (etc), and cute polka dot wrapping paper. She always goes above & beyond!

My mother in law, Cheryl was tearing up laughing at Crystal POSING:
You can laugh too!
She likes cameras!!

Cheryl is showing my favorite things for me: {OF COURSE it is all about food}

My favorites at the time: (breakfast)- Alpine Valley wheat toast with PB & a little honey. My home made trail mix & an apple for a snack with a protein drink. (my on the go lunch & snacks). I also gave pink reusable bags.

CHUBS is all it says about me. ha ha

It was a great night filled with laughter & favorite things!!!

So fun.

Our Thanksgiving Day/Weekend 2010

2011-06-13T20:55:00.000-07:00

One of my most favorite Cummard traditions is an every-other year tradition: THANKSGIVING EVE at Davy & Syd's!

The night before Thanksgiving- we all make a very nice meal & Davy supplies the sea food. (crab or lobster)

We all have a great time & full bellies after!

Thanksgiving Day we went to my parents.

Of course- we all try to take turns with our Lucy Girl.

The feast: (Luckily some of us did a turkey trot that morning)
These turkeys are love birds...

The Baldwins:

A little obsessed....
After so much food- some of us got a little tired!
{matching}
After napping we took a small bike ride.

Yes- this is Sam:
One year I bought my mom & sisters license plates with our husbands names... this is actually my moms bike- but really awesome when SAM is the one riding!

Lance & I took Ellie & Noah to play at Irving.

Pump it..

"Mobi" saying "Suzy, look I'm doing gymnastics on the P-Bars"!

And then there's my big kid- Lancer. Ellie's face says exactly how she feels about her dad. {WOW} ha

US:
The Gibbons:
The banner I made for my mom...
with her other decor...
I love traditions & I love spending time with our families.

I am so thankful for so many things in my life.

Veteran's Day Parade 2010

2011-06-13T20:21:00.000-07:00

The Cummard & LeBaron family have been a part of the Mesa Day's Veteran's Day Parade for many years!

TRADITIONS, TRADITIONS!!!

This years float: You're a grand-ole flag!

COUSINS!!!

Kanoe was preggers at the time- so she drove the golf cart. She got the hang of it a little bit- but we were laughing at her for a while because she wasn't sure about it...
No, not a circus clown- just Parker!

So fun to be in a parade with family!