Merritt Memories

Grace turned ten! I promised her 2 years ago when she turned 10, she could finally have a slumber party. She never forgot that promise. She was so excited! That excitement faded, however, as one by one each mother called to let me know their family doesn't do sleepovers. After a little talking too, she was happy again. We made the most of her late night birthday party, and 2 girls were allowed to stay the night. That made her happy! sleeping bag race making a wish Grace is turning into such a beautiful young lady. She is such a big help around the house and with her sisters. I am amazed at her ability to be obedient. She is ten and never misses a night reading her scriptures and having her personal prayers. I can ask her to do something and she does it. She reminds me so much of her dad. She is very dependable and responsible. I am so grateful for her! Happy Birthday, Grace!

The month of September always sneaks up on me. I'm sure it's because of the summer rush. I'm always happy to see it, September that is, though it brings with it more busyness in the Merritt household. In this month we celebrate 3 birthdays. Not 1, not 2, but 3 !!! If I was a mom who threw my kids a friend birthday party every year, holy cow! No time, no money. Good thing I'm not that mom. It's not because I don't want to. If I had the means, and let's be honest, the ENERGY , I totally would. After recovering from school shopping, the idea of throwing a huge birthday party with screaming, wound-up kids doesn't thrill me. So, I do it every other year. And I like that. This year was an off year for Becca. She was so sad not being able to have a friend party, so we did this to cheer her up: Her own personal photo shoot. Who doesn't like feeling like a super model? And it was fun! She chose to bring cookies for her class to celebrate. Sugar cookies in the...

My kids are in year-round school. This has its advantages, but definitely comes with some disadvantages. One {dis}advantage is the short summers. We have three weeks before the next school year starts. I try to cram a lot into those weeks, hoping it's a successful summer. My plan usually includes two outings a week and then lots of park days. Our park days were few because of the crazy weather pattern this year. Our Summer actually felt like Spring. It would've been really nice if it had not been for the amount of rain we got. I'm not complaining, I know others were lacking in water, but when you're trying to fill the {long} days of Summer, it can be a little frustrating. We were able to do some fun stuff though. Our outings included: bowling, the movies, the library, and swimming. We went swimming every Friday and we would do one of the other activities on another day of the week. I always forgot my camera, so I have no pictures. We did however have two really fun trip...