Lindsey's 10th Birthday

When Mark and I first got married he joked that I didn't have a birthDAY, I had a birthWEEK! I guess I have passed that on to my children. Lindsey's birthday festivities have officially lasted one whole week! It started last Friday with her party. She wanted to go rock climbing. Mark found a place close to us on line and we invited her cousins and friends. They had a lot of fun and Mark and I were worn out afterwards. We had the job of "belaying" for the kiddos. Basically it was our job to make sure they didn't fall and tie off the ropes for them the whole time. On Tuesday, we celebrated with some friends of ours. Their son's birthday is the day before Lindsey's and he was turning 6. They set up this really cool water slide in their back yard, we ate pizza, and had ice cream sandwiches. On Wednesday, which was her actual birthday, our family tradition is that we go out to eat at the restaurant of the birhtday person's choice. Apparently I have also passed along my good (yet sometimes expensive) taste and Lindsey chose PF Changs! So, our little party of 12 went and ate and celebrated yet again! Finally, today, exactly one week later we will conclude the birthday celebration. Lori, David and Morgan are coming into town and we are going to eat at Lindsey's favorite restaurant, Babbo's. I told you she has great taste! It's been a fun filled week celebrating our "little buddy" turning 10. She is now double digits and I'm sitting here wondering where the time has gone!

Dinner at PF Chang's where her biggest concern was whether or not they were going to sing to her. She wanted them to of course!

Celebrating with friends! This is Dawson's birthday smile, I love that kid!

Mark trying to figure out how to tie the knot. He never did figure it out and I had to help each time he switched kids!

Lindsey....Then and Now

I can't believe that my baby girl is about to turn 10. She is the sweestest, smartest and funniest girl. She loves to laugh and loves to make our family laugh. She is incredibly thoughtful and cares so much about people. She is our little fashionista and loves to shop! In fact, at the end of the 4th grade this year she was voted Kindest and Most Fashionable in her class!

Caity

These are just a few of my recent favorites of Caity!

The Newest Wood Girls

Cameron and Nash joined our family in late April. Mark surprised us all by bringing home Cameron first. He then went back to the store to get some puppy supplies and called and said that they had one puppy left, Cameron's sister. He came home with his second surprise for the girls and we named her Nash. Mark's rule was that since the puppies were girls and he was now greatly outnumbered, they had to have basketball related names. Nash is obvious. Cameron was named after Cameron Indoor Stadium where Caity's favorite college team, Duke, plays their games. They are a pomeranian/dachsund mix (Mark calls them Pom-a-Weenies which drives the girls crazy!). After our latest visit to the vet Cameron now weighs in at 3.6lbs and Nash is 4.4lbs. They are great puppies and we are having so much fun with them. They sleep all night and Caity and Lindsey take turns being on "puppy patrol" in the mornings! Nash and Cameron

Cameron

Nash

Daddy Daughter Dance

Our church has an annual Daddy Daughter Dance that Mark has been taking the girls to for years. Each year he comes home tired and a little grouchy. Our girls are complete opposites. Caity loves to be out, to be around people and to have fun! Lindsey is a bit more on the reserved side. She loves to have fun, but she also loves her bedtime! So, each year the girls fight over who is dancing which dance with Mark and then another fight occurs when one is ready to leave and the other wants to stay. This year, our church is holding the dance on 3 nights! Problem solved! Each daughter gets her very own night with Daddy. The girls were happy to have Mark to themselves and Mark came home from night number 1 in a much happier mood! Here are some pics from the first night of Daddy Daughter. Mark and his beautiful date, Lindsey!

Every year Mark "surprises" the girls with a corsage when he picks them up. This year he told Lindsey that with all of the craziness of basketball playoffs he "forgot." She moped around the house a little bit that afternoon but would not admit that was the reason! She was real happy when daddy picked her up and had the corsage!

Mark's Early Christmas Gift

I had to give Mark one of his gifts early. I had been planning it for a little while, but in order to do it, I needed him gone for an entire day. That is not a problem during basketball season! He had a game up in Flagstaff and left to catch the bus at 7 am. I got up and started the project! I spent all day painting and didn't even get to the lion. He was so surprised when he got home and pulled in the garage! I finished the lion 2 days later. He loved his early gift!








Mark's basketball logo painted on the wall of our garage!

The Black and White Ball

Mark had to chaperone the dance up at school and so he took Caity and Lindsey as his dates! The girls and I had a fun day of shopping for their outfits. It was a black and white ball and we were able to find some really cute outfits at Justice! They had a blast getting ready for the dance!