Sequins Bracelet

Kirsten made this purple/gold sequins bracelet. It's super easy to do. This was originally going to be a craft project for Kirsten's birthday party, but we ran out of time. Click here for the tutorial.

Crocheting for Baby

Lonetta's going to need some warm hats to keep her little head warm come November. I've had fun crocheting these hats in the evenings when all is quiet. I love the seafoam color of the first hat. It's made using baby mohair yarn. Click here for the pattern.

 This cute cream colored hat has ear flaps to keep Lonnie's ears warm. I'm debating on whether or not to add braided ties to either side of the flaps. I bought the pattern from this cute Etsy store.

 I used the same pattern from the cream colored hat, just minus the ear flaps. Don't you love the cute pompoms on the top sides!
 

Kirsten wants me to make an elephant hat for the baby. I actually found a pattern online for one. So, we shall see. Of course, Kirsten will want a matching one. 

1st Level

Kirsten survived her first year at Girls Camp. She came home from Camp Richie in desperate need of a shower and sleep, but that could wait. For she had a LOT to share with us first. Her first day was hard. Homesickness made Kirsten weepy, but wonderful friends and leaders helped her get through it. 

The theme was:

"Stand Ye In Holy Places: There's No Place Like Home"

Kirsten swam in the lake, attended devotionals, did archery, crafts, gospel adventures, rappelling, made lots of new friends, sang, danced, and bore testimony. 

I am glad that she had this experience. And even more glad that Kirsten is home again. I really missed her. It's no fun being the only girl in the house.

Memories With the Mulligans

My niece, Megan, and her husband, Nathan, spent a few days in the Bay Area. On Wednesday we got them all to ourselves. We of course had to spend some of the afternoon at the beach (Twin Lakes). The weather was cool and sunny with a fog bank threatening to roll onto shore. Megan and I spent most of the time chatting and eating on the warm sand farther away from the cold ocean breeze. We had a lot of catching up to do. 

Steven showed Nathan how to skim board.

Justin decided to brave the cold water (for a couple of seconds). Brrr.

Nathan and Steven had a blast building an impressive sand castle which even included pyramids. (As seen in the last picture.)

Dave-o hung out near Megan and I where it was warmer.

The finished product. 

After the beach, we drove home to celebrate Pioneer Day by making butter and bread sticks to eat with dinner. It was fun being able to talk and play with Megan and Nathan. Next time we see them, they will have a new baby to play with ours. Until July...

Have we not Reason to Rejoice?

Tonight we met at Mom and Dad Zinn's house to celebrate James' graduation from high school and Michael's brithday.

Emily, Kirsten, Owen, and Dave-o getting set to race.

It was a great evening. We love our family!

Baby Boy Afghan

Pregnancy seems to be in the air. At least in my little social bubble it is. I recently finished this baby boy afghan for my next door neighbor, who is due next month. I purchased the Lace Baby Blanket pattern from this Etsy shop. I love the variety of stitches that are used in it. 

Another High School Graduate

Look what came in the mail today!

James has officially graduated from high school. 

He's decided to enroll at West Valley Community College, which is where a lot of his friends from work attend. They are all planning on trying to take some classes together. James' goal is to get his GE in a couple of years, serve a mission, and transfer to BYU where he will enroll in the EE program. 

Congratulations James! We are so proud of you!

A Young Woman

Kirsten attended Young Womens for the first time today. She was so excited! And ready! It seems that she literally became a young woman over night. Or maybe I'm just looking at her differently. I've taken off the kiddie prescription glasses and am finally wearing the "wake-up-mom-your-daughter-is-growing-up" lenses. She's not a little girl anymore. 

A Twelve Year Old!

Six of Kirsten's friends came to our home to "sprinkle" their love on her.

They decorated cupcakes (with frosting and lots of different types of sprinkles).

Ate sprinkled treats. Made a peony flower hair clip with a sprinkled button center.

And swam in the pool.

Eliza.......Jessica

We sprinkled the pool with beach balls.........Lauren

CeeCee........Elizabeth

The girls had fun loading the rafting tubes with beach balls to jump through.

In the evening, it was family time. Grandma and Grandpa Zinn came over, along with Matt (who has been here for the week) for dinner and birthday pumpkin pie (that I forgot to put salt in).

Kirsten with her grandparents.

Happy birthday Kirsten! We love you,

Free Slurpee Day

Did anyone else go to 7-Eleven for Free Slurpee Day? This year it was a 12oz instead of their usual 7.5oz. Kirsten chose strawberry-lime. 

Eyelet Lace

While browsing through Grandma Nielsen's "Hooked on Crochet" magazines (Mar/Apr 1991 issue), I immediately fell in love with the "Eyelet Lace" afghan pattern. I knew it would make a gorgeous baby blanket for my niece, Becca who is due in August. Don't you just love the ruffle edging?

The Bright Spot of my Day

(This is a cute picture of Lonetta. It's a profile of her showing off her flexibility. Take a look at her leg! The knee is above her mouth and her foot is tapping the top of her head.)

 

At my last ultrasound visit, the perinatologist discovered a "bright spot" on the baby's heart as well as a single umbilical artery. I spoke with a genetics counselor and was told that neither one of these posed a serious problem for the baby. The bright spot would eventually go away and the one artery is capable of performing the job of two while sustaining a perfectly healthy pregnancy. However, to be on the safe side, I went in for another ultrasound today for the perinatologist to have a closer look at the baby's anatomy; focusing on the kidneys and urinary track (which area sometimes abnormal due to the one artery).

 

I didn't want to go alone, so I invited Mom Zinn to come with me. It turned out to be a really fun visit. The technician was informative and humorous. At the end of the visit, the perinatologist came into the room and said that everything looks good. I have a follow up visit when I'm 30 weeks along to make sure the umbilical cord is still doing its job of nourishing baby Lonetta. They will be monitoring her growth closely.  

Here is a short video of the ultrasound. If you turn your sound up, you can hear the technician explaining what you are looking at.

First Lego Creation

 After quiet time, Dave-o emerged from his room excited to show me his first Lego creation that he made all by himself.

Great job!

A Relaxing 4th

(Kirsten and Emily decorated this cake)

The night before the 4th, I was spotting. The labor and delivery nurse that I spoke to on the phone, told me to take it easy. So, that is what we did on the July 4th. Michael, Stacy, Emily, and Owen spent the afternoon with us. The kids and dads swam. Stacy and I chatted. Dave-o and Owen played Teenage Ninja turtles. And David and his brother spent at least a couple of hours playing ping pong.

 

Our guests left around five, which is when we stoked up the BBQ for some yummy hamburgers.

Once the sun set behind the mountains, Dave-o enjoyed holding sparklers while we waited for it to get a little darker.

Then we lit our ground fireworks that I smuggled over from Gilroy. For the rest of the evening, we enjoyed the air fireworks that were continuously being shot all around our neighborhood. It was a great 4th of July.