Family Reunion 2010

The Beckstrom's have decided to start hosting our own reunions every other year. The Veater reunion is so big and we just really wanted to spend time with our immediate cousins. Now, instead of my Grandma plus her siblings plus their children...we're hosting my Mom plus her siblings plus their children.

The 1st day we went to San Clemente Beach in Southern California. Amelia liked the sand, although this picture below is from the 2nd day when we headed to La Jolla Shores.

Amelia loved chasing the Seagulls.

Ruby and Amelia..already having a great time together!

Cousin Whitney

Lisa, Grandpa Mike, Uncle Mike, Ruby, Amelia, Nick

Grandma and Me. I can only hope that as I grow older and have grandchildren of my own that I can make them all feel as loved and special as Grandma makes each and everyone of hers feel. She is so honest, genuine, giving and non-judgmental. I hope I can be just like her!

Me and Marla

Grandma Great and Amelia

Uncle Mike with Ruby and Amelia

Grandma Shirley. I'm so excited for Amelia to realize how great her Grandma Shirley is!

Aunt Marla and Amelia

Sea World. We headed here with Mom+Mike+Lisa's Family+Whitney and Nathan. We had a really fun and enjoyable day.

Nick was determined to win this ridiculous whale in a basketball shooting contest. It only took $12

Whit and A

The whale was a hit but we ended up leaving it behind. We didn't have room to take it home with us...plus I absolutely refused to let it come into my home. On the last day, we left the whale on the hotel couch with the maid's tip on top of it. We all got a good laugh.

When we were at San Clemente Beach an entire pod of dolphins came swimming by. They were SO CLOSE to the shore. We could have swam out there and touched them. There seemed to be 30-40 dolphins, they swam around in front of us for a good 10 minutes. It was amazing! Everyone on the beach just stopped to watch.

The girl cousins

Brittanie. Brooke. Rachel. Amanda. BreeAnne. Makaela. Brianna. Whitney. Marla

Mills gets her ears pierced

I have always been positive that I'd wait to get my daughter's ears pierced until she made the decision herself. I'm not sure what changed my mind this Saturday. We decided to take the poor girl to Claire's and get some "pretties".

Grandma came along to hold her.

She cried a bit and my heart ached. I got to rescue her with a sucker, and the crying was over. Honestly, she only cried for about 1 minute.

Dad was also there...but slightly irritated with Mom for choosing to get your ears pierced.

Amelia showing off her"pretties". If you ask her where her "pretties" are she points to her ears and says "pretties". It's quite adorable. She never did touch or pull on them. They never bothered her a bit.

19 months and counting...

My cousin Brittanie came to town this Summer and snapped come pictures of Amelia and her daughter Ruby. They are just 4 months apart. I can hardly wait to see them grow up together.

This is likely the most perfect picture of my adorable little girl.

Or maybe it's this one. I can't decide. I just love her little face.

Yep. I even love that little face.

More like Mama

Mills FINALLY says "Mama". After 2 months of saying "Brianna" or "Breeea"! Not surprisingly, Nick thought it'd be hilarious to teach her my given name. Honestly, does he not realize that the word "Mama" is the most exciting thing for a 1st time Mother to hear? Ugh! Back to point....she's starting to look more like her "Mama" yes?

Swimming

Apparently Pampers can hold a bagillion pounds of liquid! Yep, forgot the swim diaper. This picture is one for keeping that's for sure.

The Ranch

We went to the ranch while we were in St. George. It's truly the greatest place you could imagine. Right out of a movie. Old ranch house. Old school house. Train tracks. Meadows. Horses. Swimming pond. Zip line. Rope swing. It's basically a child's heaven. I'm so grateful my children will have a lifetime of memories from the ranch. This is the only picture I got but it says it all. "The day was so much fun and now it's time for a nap in Grandpa's chair". Love this place!

Nursery

She turned 18 months. She's old enough for nursery. We had a plan. Take her into nursery, kiss her goodbye, wave bye bye, walk out the door. Go to class. We made it through everything but the go to class part. I'm officially the typical glue-your-eyeball-to-the-peep-hole-mom. She hated nursery. Cried for 45 minutes. Stopped crying when snack came out. What did I tell you? The girl can eat. Last week was much better. The crying only lasted 5 minutes. I wasn't prepared for the aching heart I had while listening to my baby girl cry on the other side of the door. All she wanted was me. I could have so easily fixed her fear and sadness. I didn't though, and I'm grateful. This kind of love is truly just unreal!

Pilzer's

Ironically, we both happened to be in St.George at the same time this Summer. Me at my Mom's, them passing through. It was a much needed visit. I was seriously needing to see them. 45 minutes wasn't nearly enough. I wanted a whole day with them all to myself. These kids are so dear to my heart. Even having my own child now and knowing the crazy amount of love I have for her, I still love these kids so much. They just about feel like my own. I guess they were for a few years. Sure miss their crazy guts. Sure love them. Hope they always know it.