Olivia's Blessing

On June 6 we had the best last day in Tortolita ward. It was Olivia's blessing day and what a fabulous day it was. Jay's parents were able to be here and all of my family except Stephanie, Rick and the girls. My aunt and a cousin came down from Snowflake too and of course aunt Pam was there as well. It was so awesome to have all that family to share the day with. Jay blessed our beautiful little Olivia and as expected my eyes got a little wet. Of course it was hardest to hold back tears when Jay got a little choked up while giving the blessing. He isn't one to often get emotional in public so it is always very touching to me when he does. It was a beautiful blessing and I really think the spirit of the day was felt by all. It was really great too to have both grandfathers and my big brother standing in the circle.

I don't really know much else to say about the day but that it was wonderful. I am so grateful for my family. I feel so blessed to be surrounded by so many people who love me and my husband and our children. I am so beyond grateful to have the wonderful husband I have. I am thankful that he is a worthy priesthood holder and has been able to bless all 3 of our children. I just can't imagine it having been nearly as special if it wouldn't have been him. I am so blessed to have this man in my life and I can't imagine walking the path of life without him. He truly is my best friend and I love him dearly. I am thankful for the way he takes care of and provides for our family. I am thankful for his willingness to live with a little less because he places so much importance on me being a stay at home mom. I am thankful for the great dad he is. He teaches our children a lot and is so much more patient with them than I am. I am thankful for the love and constant support he is to me. My life just wouldn't be the same without him.

I am so thankful to be a member of my church and for the testimony I have. The gospel helps me reach for good goals and helps motivate me to be a better person. It helps me look outside myself and see the world around and constantly remind myself how truly blessed I am. My morals and my standards and my beliefs help make me happy and make me who I am. I am so grateful for my beautiful children. I am grateful for my sweet Olivia and for her blessing day. I felt the spirit and the love of my Heavenly Father who has blessed me so abundantly by making me a mother. It was a beautiful day filled with love and family!

All the family that came to church. Thank you ALL for coming. It really meant a lot to have you there!

Mommy and Daddy with our sweet little Olivia. She has settled into our lives so easily. She was very much meant to be.

Olivia and her cousin Machella. Olivia was so good about being passed around and held by everyone that day. It made me happy.
9 of the 11 grandkids. If we would have been lucky enough to have Julee and Alexis around we would have had all the cousins together. It was great to have so many of them though. 9 out of 11 ain't to shabby.
The whole McKinlay family.

McKinlays and Grandma and Grandpa Doll.

McKinlays and Aunt Jenn.

My gorgeous cousin Nikki.

A proud Grandpa.

Grandpa having a quick nap in the hall during Sunday School. He looks pretty comfy.

So very pretty in her white dress.

That really is one sweet, adorable, beautiful, precious little lady we have.

There can never be too many of these photos. Just too precious.

Smiles for Grandma

After a couple days of being fussy, Olivia finally had some happy time and smiles for Grandma.

It is so tiring being so cute.

Our 2nd Favorite Baby

We are a home full of Sophie fans. We love to have her come play and can't get enough of her. I don't know that anyone likes her quite as much as Noah does. He could be in the worst mood and if you tell him he is going to see Sophie he perks right up. If we didn't have a baby of our own Sophie would certainly be our very favorite. She is just too darn cute!
Sophie would rather play with the cord from the ceiling fan than with the toys.

I pulled out some baby toys for Sophie when she was over one day. Noah played with every one of them while Sophie played with things she wasn't supposed to.

Check out the splits this chunky monkey can do!

Naughty monkey trying to play with the night light.

She looks so tiny sitting in Noah's booster chair at the table.

Sophie wanted to help empty the dishwasher too.

7 weeks Old

Snoozing on her daddy.

Love the little smirk on her face.

My girls! Zoey loves holding her baby sister and Olivia is good with her, most the time.

Pictures with Mommy are pretty few and far between. I am always the one behind the camera so I don't tend to make it into many pictures. Zoey and Noah are really starting to love taking pictures so maybe there is some hope for me being in some. Zoey took this one.

D-U-S-T-Y

This is what a cedar chest looks like when it has been sitting up above a closet for 2 years. How gross is that?!

For a while Olivia always would put one of her arms up in the air. I always asked her if she had a question.

Her first smiley picture. So cute. I can't believe how much she has grown just since then.

Olivia and the Bear

This was when Olivia was about 6 weeks old. I was working on packing up some stuff in the kids bedroom and I brought her in to lay on the bed by me. I put Zoey's bear by her so she had something to look at. It ended up being one of her first cute moments. She just stared at that bear and was smiling and trying to make noises. It was so adorable. It kept her occupied for a good 20 minutes. It was just too darn cute and I got glimpses of some of her first real smiles.

Swimming

Went for a get together at my cousin's house the end of May. The kids all had a great time in the pool and hot tub. It's always fun to get the whole big group of us together. It's crazy, but fun.
Noah just sat on the little sitting place in the deep end. I couldn't get him to go out and swim around. He wouldn't move.

Zoey is a fish and would swim all day every day if she could. I just can't wait for her to be done with floaties.

The "kiddie pool" or hot tub as it actually is. The little ones love the hot tub though and spend most their time in it so I refer to it as the kiddie pool.

A little happier playing in the shallow end of the pool. He still didn't last too long though and got out because he was too cold.

Pam's Birthday

Pam's birthday was in May and though we were busy with all the craziness associated with moving, we just had to take the time to celebrate. We had some yummy crunchy tacos for dinner and a lemonade cake for dessert. It was nothing big but we just had to make sure Pam knew how great we think she is and how much we love her. We are so glad you are adopted into our family Pam! You are the bestest!

Big Helper

Noah was such a huge helper to Grandma and Grandpa one Saturday as they worked in the yard. He helped cut up all the branches that needed put in the trash can. He thought he was so great helping out and using the pruning shears. Way to go Noah for being such a great helper!

Some Time Around 1 Month Old

Noah was so proud to be holding her like a big people does.

She often has her bottom lip sucked in. So cute!

Olivia's sweet little hands. A rare thing to see them spread open too. She always has them balled up in fists.

She has such big eyes and I am still not sure on what color they are.

Having a sleep with Daddy while him and Zoey read Diary of a Wimpy Kid together.