how about...

an overload of wedding pictures?!!

I love the walk out after the ceremony.  Every one excitedly watching and snapping pictures of the new love and the genuine faces of newly weds.

This is what happens when the second youngest of eight kids (Brett) and the youngest of 8 (Shawn) get married.  Instant aunts and uncles to over 30 nieces and nephews combined.  There are a few (Alli included) not in this picture of chaos, and yes, that is James screaming while being held by a nice niece of Shawns

I caught her, and even with the promise of yellow cotton candy she wouldn't be a part of that.

Can you believe how stinkin cute?!!

James was a little spent too!  It was HOT that day.

The fam ( i know, nobody is looking, but it's the only one)  

The gals

The family pic that didn't really happen

The decor, or the decor.  It was actually a lot of fun decorating an outdoor reception.  And I had fun making a whole bunch of the flower arrangements.  (don't look too close Melissa B) 


Just about to start!
I think we did pretty good covering the chain link fence.
And can I tell you of my new love for yellow?  My wedding had a lot of yellow and daises too, but this THIS was yellow like never before and I LOVED it.

Did you think that was all?!  Nope!  The next day we got to do it all again!  And we thought it was hot for the first wedding, we were roasting the next day for Roger and Karie's wedding.

Brett married into a ton of those nieces and nephews, and Karie got to marry into all this. (Plus all the spouses and almost 18 grankids too!)  And we couldn't be happier.  (I'm pretty she couldn't be happier either.)

Aunt Jeanie giving all the kids gum to keep them under control in the 3pm heat of that day.

I forgot to get someone to take a picture with all the grandkids in it too, I'm crushed.

Both of the days we so fun and everything went perfect!  It was exhausting physically and emotionally, but so so fun.  I'm so happy for Brett and Shawn and for Derek's dad and Karie.

Ok, so there it is!  Another couple of Baldry family weddings!  Austin better wait at LEAST 6 years before we do this again.

i'm vain, i know

Roger and Karie got a new camera.  Alli asked Karie to take her picture when we were out for Drew's 1st birthday party on Sunday.

This is a before picture.

3 little girls were in the other room for a long time crafting away making cards for Drew.  I guess we left them crafting a little too long.

Brooke found them in the act.  

I started screaming, 'NO NO NO ALLI!'  But it was too late.  Alli started bawling, luckily I did not.  

How handy to have the new camera around to document this.  

There is another big chunk out on the other side, but not as short.  I just kept pulling out more and more little blonde curls as held back my emotions.  Her hair is even more thin now.

Sarabeth pulled out the video camera for Ava and she just smiled away.  

Here is what 3 little girls can do.  I think it's mostly Ava's hair.  You can hardly tell with Natalee's hair, I have no pics of her.

I'll get over it, but I'm still not smiling about it.

I went to bed really early that night, hoping to sleep it off as a bad dream.  But I still woke up to the freak hair.  I can't believe how much this affected me.  Am I the only devastated vain mom?Everyone I tell just laughs and says 'haha, they all do it at some point.'  But no, they don't all do it, they shouldn't get away with this.  I never cut my hair and neither did either of my sisters.  (Then again, my mom might not have noticed if we ever did.  You know what I mean if you have ever seen any of my childhood haircuts.)  Please, everyone tell me how you truly felt when your child cut their hair.  Please tell me that all your kids did it and it and I'm not horrible for caring so much about how my child looks.  And don't tell me about when your boy did it.  Because James got a hold of a pair of those scissors and I quickly took them away and gave them back to these so called 'older' kids who were allowed scissors.  James has worked long and hard to grow hair, but c'mon, boys can just shave it.  

No pics of cute little Drew on his birthday, sorry bud, I found myself distracted for the rest of the night.

the blur

I don't even know where to start.

Since father's day, (in no particular order)

• we've had plenty park trips (checking out the bugs here)
  

• Derek finished his 1st year of teaching
  

• golf, golf, golf (still none for me yet)
  

• kids festivals
  

• a couple bridal showers
  

(the bride is on the left, but their outfits just needed a pic together.)

(and yes, it was as good as it looked, mmmm)

• 10km road race
  

(derek had to go play in the family softball tournament right after he finished the race)

• gave talks in church
  

• cousin Caroline got baptized
  

• about 5 birthday's were had
  

• July 1st celebrations
  

• a couple weddings to follow those showers, and the planning to go with it!  phew.  The weddings are getting a post of their own coming soon.
  

• a 7 year anniversary for us (no pics cause we did nothing...yet)
  

• various picnics and family bbq's (and yes, james has had a haircut since this picture.  actually we all have)
  

• cousins, cousins everywhere
  

• cooling off when it actually got hot enough
  

• camping in Kelowna (minus me and James, we're bums)
  

• plenty of girls time (as in plenty of late nights to turn me delirious in the best way)
  

• a supposed to be fun filled gals and kids day outside got rained out but was still fun inside with a million kids going wild.  (this was about a quater of the people who came.)
  

• keeping up with these 2
  

• one single shift at work which actually made me miss out on another family fun day, so that was no fair
  

• weeding of the garden which was completely neglected during all of the above
  

Is that all?  It's such a blur, I can't remember it all.  I missed a lot of photo ops, but I think this is more than enough here.

James took a nice looong nap in his own bed for the first time in like 3 weeks today.  After a morning of cleaning and thunder and lightning storm, the rest of us decided we needed one to.

I feel like we did so much in first couple weeks of summer there is nothing left to do, but I'm pretty sure I'll be able to find a way fill it.  

I LOVE summer!