Our Summer Vacation Part Three- Painting Grandma's House

Last year Dustin's mom had asked us to paint her house for her. Actually, she mentioned it needing painting and Dustin volunteered. Then we got pregnant with our little princess and so it turned into Dustin painting the trim, fixing the problems on the main part of the house, and painting those parts to match the yellow. He worked sooooooooooo hard. I had no idea what he was getting into. It is a huge job! Pamela wanted to go gray and she let us choose the shade. We lucked out with Dustin's cousin having a friend at the Sherwin Williams who got us an awesome deal. Since I couldn't paint, I weeded all her flower beds and planted new flowers. It was really fun and I think it looks great with the gray paint instead of the black. It was all done by the time Pamela threw a baby shower for me and the baby. I don't have any photos from it but Dustin's cousin Jeannie should be sending photos soon. It was a lovely evening, with prayer holding off the rain!

Our Summer Vacation Part Two- Bryce Canyon & Zion

Here we are in Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks. Some of us camped and some stayed in an adjoining hotel. They were both owned by the same people so those of us who camped could use the pool at the hotel. Nice. We hiked in the daytime and swam in the evenings. I had never been to Bryce, it is quite breathtaking- both the scenery and the elevation: 8800 ft! I had no idea. It was also very dusty and I finally had to let it go that the kids were just going to be dirty until we got back to civilization. (Yet another reason I was loving the pool!)

Our Summer Vacation Part One- Salt Lake City

Warning: This vacation might take me a while to blog about. We were gone from June 13th to July 24th and visited family in three states. It was a lot of fun but there's something to be said about being at home again!

PART ONE- SALT LAKE CITY, UT

Our first stop was Salt Lake City, UT with a visit to Dustin's Aunt Linda's. This was to be the meeting place as Dustin's family gathered for a reunion at Bryce Canyon National Park. While in SLC, Dustin took the boys to Lagoon with his childhood friend Chris and his son Devin. I opted to go resale shopping with Aunt Linda instead since rides are definitely out of the question right now. Yeah, I've visited Disneyworld twice while pregnant and that's enough. We also took the kids down to temple square. We had a wonderful time visiting the visitor's centers and seeing the tabernacle. Once Dustin's family from N.C. arrived we were off to Southern Utah and the national parks.

BIG NEWS! BIG NEWS! BIG NEWS!

DUSTIN MADE RANK!

Just look at all those stripes!

Back in February, Dustin tested for Tech Sgt. The list was posted just today and he made it! His line number (he has to wait in line to sew-on behind people who were higher ranking or higher scoring) is pretty low, with lower being better, so we won't have to wait long until it is official. This is big news for the Douberlys! We are so proud of Dad!

Happy Birthday, Jeffrey Joe!

Jeff turned 5 today! He had his well check-up today and is a super healthy boy who's ready for Kindergarten. Here he is with his cake and presents. I just love the cheesy grin. He had a fun day with lunch out at Pizza Hut, time in the sprinkler, friends over for dinner, and cake and presents. I am exhausted! We head out tomorrow for our super summer vacation. We'll be gone until July 25th. Jeff (and Henry for that matter) will have lots of birthday fun while we're gone, too, since our extended families have stuff planned for Idaho and Oregon. Gosh these kids are spoiled. I've got to run now- still lots and lots to clean and pack! We'll be in SLC by this time tomorrow!

A new quilt for a little man on the way!

Dustin's friend Brian Heath, who he met in Basic Training, is expecting their first little baby next month. Dustin wanted to make them a quilt and he wanted to do it himself. Life got busy and time flew by and finally he just asked me to make it. Since we are leaving Saturday, I decided just to get it done before we left. I asked Dustin if he would help tie it and then he could say he at least helped. It's pretty stinkin' cute with boats, lighthouses, and fish. The back is made of the striped material. I sure hope Brian and Tiffany don't check out our blog in the next few days so that it can still be a surprise. If not- it'll soon be in the mail and they can see it themselves. :)

Little League Awards Night

Henry getting his award from the coach, also known as Dad.

Henry with his award and Little League pin.

The Braves!

Last night was Henry's second to last baseball game. The Youth Sports Director came out to hand out participation awards to all the kids. This season sure went by very quickly. Henry and Dustin both had a great time, improved their skills, and learned more about the game. The last game is this Thursday and then we're off on Saturday for our super vacation in Utah, Idaho, and Oregon.