Just Cause....

I took these cute pictures of Katelyn so I had to post them....

Peru

Kyle returned home from Peru last Saturday after being gone for 9 days. He had an amazing trip and was blessed by the opportunity to serve those in need. He said it puts a lot of things in perspective and taught him a lot about how trivial some of our everyday problems are in comparison to the people in Peru. While he was there the group gave away 150 wheelchairs to those to could not walk. Kyle said some of them had laid on a floor in their home their entire lives and had to be carried by their family to where the group was at in hopes of getting a wheelchair. In one of the villages Kyle was able to pick up a young girl about 14 years old who had never been able to walk and help her into a wheelchair. He and his father were both touched by the moment. It must've been amazing to watch her face as she smiled joyfully knowing she was gaining mobility for the first time in 14 years and will forever remember Kyle as the person who handed her that gift. Our prayer is that God will not only touch her life, but he lives of others who received wheelchairs during their trip.

While the group was there they were also able to do some "touristy" stuff and visited Machu Picchu, one of the 7 wonders of the world. It was built around the year 1460, but was abandoned as an official site for the Inca rulers a hundred years later, at the time of the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire. It's been said that it was the only city the Spanish conquistadors were unable to find when trying to take over during the Inca Empire.

Rain, Rain go away, we want the sunshine to come out and play

After raining all day and all night on Friday the sun came out early Saturday afternoon. Katelyn and I decided to take advantage of the warm weather and go for a dip in the spa. We turned the temperature down so Katelyn could go in and it wouldn't be too hot. Leah even joined in the fun. Katelyn loves the water and she enjoyed splashing around. Kyle and his dad made it home safely from Peru and Kyle was catching some zzzzzzzz's so he didn't go swimming with us. Katelyn and I had such a wonderful time staying with Kyle's Mom while Kyle and his Dad were gone. I even got a couple hours of "me" time to run errands without having to drag Katelyn in and out of the car. It was great! There's something about being down at the ocean, hearing the constant sound of the waves that's very relaxing. Even though Katelyn battled a cold all week, it didn't stop her from busily exploring the house all day. She's really starting to get into everything!

Making a fruit salad

Katelyn decided she wanted to help make the fruit salad for dinner. She loved hanging out on the kitchen counter.

Katelyn's 7 Months Old

I decided to give Picture People another try for Katelyn's 7 month pictures. Mostly because we're having her dedicated next weekend and I really wanted some pictures of her to show at the party where she's wearing the dress she'll be dedicated in. The photo shoot went great! She was all smiles and every picture came out great. I didn't order them all, but here are some of my favorites from the shoot.

Getting ready for Bidwell's Chain Reaction show next month

Life at the beach...

As many of you know Kyle is away in Peru on a mission trip through Mariner's and the Free Wheelchair Mission. He is having an amazing time and God is really ministering to both him and his father. Meanwhile, back in California, Katelyn and I packed up the car on Tuesday and headed down to my in-law's beach house for some R&R. It's been great being down here, enjoying the sunshine, the sound of the waves, barking of the seals, and the gorgeous sunsets. We are so blessed to have been invited down for the week. Katelyn is loving having so much more space to crawl around and explore. Speaking of exploring, now that Katelyn is getting her 2nd bottom tooth she is exploring everything with her mouth. Poor thing, she's just gnawing on everything!! She's even taking her pacifier as of late. Well I decided to go out and buy her some teething biscuits and some Gerber fruit and veggie puffs. She is loving the teething biscuits. In fact today she sat in her little highchair, naked, enjoying one of them. What a messy treat they are!! I know babies are supposed to get messy and it's so much fun watching her enjoy herself. She just kicks her feet, smiles, and talks to us as she eats. Today she made such a mess that I decided that a wet wipe wouldn't do the trick and ended up putting her into the sink and giving her a bath. That biscuit got everywhere... her hair, diaper, hands, feet, nose, ears.... hahaha. 

Katelyn loved being in the sink, she played with the faucet and splashed in the water, all while I was diligently trying to get her cleaned up. Of course my mother-in-law and I had to get some pictures. At one point I ran downstairs to grab her towel and Jan said she decided to stand up in the sink, on her own! Oh boy! My baby girl is growing up so fast.

Arbonne Spa Party

Last Sunday afternoon I had a couple of my girlfriends over for a spa party. My friend Christine is a consultant for a company called Arbonne and they recently released a detox spa line and she had asked me if I wanted to throw a little party where we would do mud masks and pedicures. I love Arbonne products, I use the entire baby line on Katelyn and I use their face products for myself so it was a no brainer... of course I would get some girlfriends together. It was a beautiful, sunny day and we all had a wonderful time pampering ourselves. All we talked about was how we should do this more often. My friends had so much fun that 2 of them are having parties of their own next month. Arbonne is a great company and all their products are truly natural, containing elements of the earth that revitalize your skin and body. After the party Christine and I got to talking and I decided that I was going to become a consultant myself. It's something I've been thinking about for a while, but have just never done. Check out their website and let me know if you are interested in trying any of their products; I'd be more than happy to order them for you. Or you can order them yourself, just plug in my consultant number 18060128. Happy Shopping.

p.s let me know if you'd like to come to my next party or host one yourself. You won't be sorry. It's so much fun to pamper yourself once in a while.