Dance Recital Dress Rehearsal

Katie had her dress rehearsal for her dance recital the day after we returned from Disneyland. Since she took two dance classes this year, she was going to be in two dances. One dance was in Act I and the other was in Act II. Because she was in both acts, she was required to be at the dress rehearsal for four hours. I was a little worried about her being there that long right after a busy trip, but she was so excited for the recital that the time never bothered her. I always sign up to chaperone the girls, so it's fun for me to see the dances from backstage.

I was so excited when my friends started showing up for dress rehearsal. 

 One of my friends brought a tablet to help pass the time as we waited to dance.

I love it when we get backstage, and we get to watch some of the other dances while we wait for our turn! 

Then it was our time to rehearse. 

Then I had to make a quick costume change and get ready to practice my next dance. 

This time, I chose to sit at the tables and color with my friend. 

It was our turn to line up to go backstage.  

Our practice dance went well, and then I spent the rest of my time with my friend! 

A Furniture Find

When we were furniture shopping for Jennifer again, Katie found a bench that she fell in love with. She thought every house needed this bench.

I think would look just perfect at any house!

Fresh Flowers

We have wild daisies that grow next to our house, and Katie was so excited when she got back from Disneyland and saw that the daisies had bloomed. She asked if we could go out and get some flowers for the house.

 I would pick very specific flowers to cut when we went out.

Sometimes it was hard to not just look at them. 

I kind of wanted a picture of each flower I cut. 

This picture shows just some of the flowers upon flowers that we have. 

I tried smelling them, and they smelled really good! 

We brought a vase with water out with us so the flowers could go right in the water. 

Would you like one? 

I love the beauty that just exists in the world! 

This was the perfect summer time activity!

Missing Friends

When we returned from Disneyland, Katie had been out of school for five days, but she decided that she already missed her school friends. One of the first things she decided to do was to make presents for all of her friends.

I worked all morning to make books for my friends!

Happy 4th of July, 2018!

This year, Katie invited her friend, Kai, over to join her in the neighborhood bike parade and picnic. As you might imagine, she was thrilled when he was able to join her. It was the very best part of the day for her.

In the evening, Katie decided that she'd rather just watch fireworks on TV instead of going to see them. While we stayed home, we worked on trying to keep our pets calm with the extra noise.

Even though our neighborhood has a bike parade, you can take anything that moves through the parade route! 

Kai and I both chose to take our scooters. 

It's always so much more fun with two! 

And off we went to the park! 

How did Kai get so tall? Doesn't he know that I'm older than him? 

The first thing we did at the park was to get in line for the balloon guy. 

We each got to talk to him about what we wanted him to make. 

Kai had him make a sword, and... 

...I got a giraffe! 

After that, we sat down to enjoy some of the food that was there. 

Then we decided to join in on the games. 

First, we play tug-of-war. 

Then we got tied together for the 3-legged race. 

We weren't the fastest ones there, but we had fun! 

Thanks for joining me, Kai! 

This was us having fun!

Our Last Day in Disneyland

Our last day in Disneyland was a partial day since we were flying home late that afternoon. We spent the day going on any favorite rides again.

One of my requests for our last day was Small World again. 

We agree with the sign. It is an awfully happy ride! 

I took Aunt Jennifer to go one last time on Francis' Ladybug Boogie in Bugs Land. 

After a long, hot wait, we finally got in our ladybug, and... 

...they kicked us off before the ride because it wasn't working. At least we have pictures on it! 

While we played at Disneyland, Mr. Limpet and General Washington played with Garyldine's company.

After our flight home was cancelled, and Aunt Jennifer worked hard, we luckily got on another flight that evening. I was glad to get on the airplane after being worried about not being able to get home!

The Day of Meeting Characters and Parades

The next day was a busy day. Katie spent some time meeting some of her favorite characters in addition to going on more rides. Most of the afternoon was spent with parades. In order to have a good place to sit, you have to be to your spot early at Disneyland, so we watched life at Disneyland for hours as we waited for the parades.

The next morning, I took my mom on the double decker bus down Main Street since I liked it so much with Aunt Jennifer! 

After some rides, I had the chance to meet Princess Elena! 

We talked a little about our spirit animals before stopping for a picture. 

Then I went to visit Tinkerbell! 

I hadn't seen her for awhile, and I love her! 

The Mad Tea Party is a must for me, and you can usually look for me in a pink cup! 

Then Aunt Jennifer and I found a special group to meet! 

I thought I was just meeting the Fairy Godmother and Cinderella together, which was exciting, but when the mouse showed up, my excitement doubled! 

That afternoon, we sat on the sidewalk on Main Street to wait for the parade. It's really hot to sit on the sidewalk that has been in the sun all day. 

I kept myself entertained as I waited. 

Do I see something coming yet? 

I think I do! 

We saw some favorite Pixar characters! 

Disneyland always has such fun parades! 

I was especially happy to see the Inside Out float. I've always wanted to meet Joy and Sadness! 

This parade also had squirting water. This is what I did when I didn't want to get wet! 

After the parade, we headed to Disney California Adventure to see Anna and Elsa. 

I'll never stop loving them! 

Then it was time to find a place to wait for our Paint the Night Parade. We were in the sun again but at least we had a bench. 

We played with Snap Chat while we waited for the parade. 

Who knew we'd have a Disney theme? 

We even got Grandma's picture! 

We all had to stay warm in the cool evening. 

The nighttime parade is so much prettier in person that in pictures, but I loved seeing Tinkerbell again. 

It was also fun to see Belle, and... 

...the other princesses!