Happy 76th Birthday Papa Cecil!!

Papa and Nana took a long overdue vacation awhile back, so we had an impromptu Papa Party when we went for Sunday dinner!

Normally we find the same amount of reasons that we love the birthday boy as they are old, but I don't think Papa would want us to go on and on about how amazing he is, but here are a few things we love about him:

Papa is always happy to see us.

Papa always says "hello" when we arrive.

Brooke says that Papa is always nice to her.

Easton said that he is nice too, and listens to him.

Annie said that she loves him, and she can't wait to give him a special Christmas present.

Papa is a very loving person.

Papa is always trying to learn more about God and what life is all about.

Mattison's (as Madie is going by from now on) favorite thing about Papa is that he is always interested in what is happening next in her life.

Papa was a kind dad to John, so now John is kind to his children.

Papa is a hard worker.

A.J.'s favorite thing about Papa is his laugh.

A.J. also loves that Papa shows interest in everything in A.J.'s life.

Papa loves Nana!!!

Papa is so proud of Aunt Leslie, our daddy, and every single one of his grandchildren.

Papa loves to see any of his grandchildren perform whether it is in a piano recital (which is long) or a football game (which is cold), he is there and loves each one!

We love you Papa!!

Tymber was obviously VERY excited!

Each of the girls picked a special gift for Papa.

We asked them if they wanted to create something for him or buy a little something...

Annie chose to draw a picture for him and help him open his gifts. :)

Brooke gave him an original piece of pottery she made in school.  She loved this bowl, and knew Papa would love it too!

This is Easton pretending to hold his note for Papa, which was left on the counter at home. :(

Papa read each and every card that these beauties created just for him!

Ellie chose an original Ellie pinch pot! These are great for holding little odds and ends.  (Great for small earrings too Nana!)

A better focused pic of Brooke and Papa with Tymber jumping in!

We love you Papa!  We are lucky to have you in our lives!!

Day 6~BEAR LAKE~Brookie's Birthday

Happy Birthday sweet Brookie!

I love, love, love this girl!

She is the biggest helper in our home right now, and she is simply amazing!

Boy do I love this girl!

Let me tell you 11 reasons why on her 11th day

She is beautiful!  Not just on the outside with her gorgeous smile, and flaxen hair, but on the inside.

She can almost always be found helping someone.  Whether it is changing the baby, fixing Annie's hair, or doing some girly thing with Ellie, she is wonderful!

She is a very hard worker.  She is one of the youngest in her class, but she works really hard and does really well.

She loves having friends, and is a pretty good friend to those around her.  She surrounds herself with smiling girls just like her.

She is a peacemaker.  Whenever conflict starts to arise in our home, she is there to help calm things down.  If Annie is sad because Tymber took  something of hers, Brooke is the one who puts her arm around Annie and goes on the search to find it.

She has the bed where everyone wants to sleep.  I don't know if she has ever truly slept alone.  It is so sweet to wake her in the morning, with her little sisters curled up next to her.

She is a little grumpy in the morning, but super sweet and very talkative at night.  She will follow me around just to tell me about her day.  Sometimes the same story more than once.

She loves to take care of herself.  She starting running to exercise, and she takes the time to get herself showered, dressed and hair perfect everyday.

She loves life.  She is one of the first ones to have me grab the camera and capture the moment.  I love her so much for this.

She loves to dance and tumble.  Did I mention she loves to dance and tumble?  Like, all the time. Everywhere!

She is a sweetheart.  Through and through!  I love you Brooke Elizabeth!

She got to spend her birthday in Bear Lake with the whole family this year! (Except Uncle Eddie~we missed you!)

She is a lucky girl!

She started her day with a "hair appointment" from Aunt Julie!

Timmy 2 Step was taking a ride on daddy!

Kenna and Ellie~BFFs!!

Annie and Lucy ready for their turn on the tube!

I could not get enough of this natural curl beauty!

Spencer and Reese taking their jobs VERY seriously!

I LOVE these little ones expressions!  Priceless!

I love the "thumbs up" from the girls and the crooked smile on Annie!

Easton, Spencer and Reese after Easton got his head bonked.

Two was the perfect number for some speed and fun!

Spencer, Brooke and Quinn are up...

Spencer isn't sure after hitting heads with Easton

I love this kid!

Brooke's faces are so her, that I couldn't choose which pic to use!

I love that all three of these girls have a different expression.  Fear, excitement, and "turn up the speed" please!

Apparently, tubing is tiring.

And watermelon is delicious!~

Lucy building away...

Caroline, Quinn, Ellie, and Kenna sharing a moment.  It is hard to have so much fun with all the girl cousins without a little drama.  My little Ellie sure was a stinker sometimes!

Annie getting some lovin' after waking up from her nap.

Did I tell you the vacation came with a free cabana boy?  Well it did!  Thanks John!

For Brooke's birthday "party", we decided to play a little pin the scarf on the birthday girl...

Stephen testing Caroline to ensure she wasn't peeking!!

Easton on the patrol checking on Ellie!

Little Annie was a little off...

Then we sang a little magic birthday song, to the "glowing" birthday girl!

She was pretty excited about her gifts!!

This is the "Pin the scarf on the birthday girl", that looks more like "tape a streamer as close to the beautiful drawing" as possible game. :)

The night ended with Brooke wanting a picture of our traditional birthday streamers.

I think it was a great birthday away from home!