~Birthday Boy~

Happy Birthday to our sweet Tyler. He is 6 years old and getting bigger everyday. He had a great party with friends and family. (pictures to come). We love this big guy so much. His smile is so contagious you can't help but smile with him.

~Summer Fun~

We spent two weeks in Arizona basking in the fantastically hot but delightful sun. My kids were so excited to see their grandparents and cousins. They enjoyed every minute of it. We spent a lot of time at the pool. Tyler and Katie both jumped off the diving board this year. They have become little fish. Now if they could learn how to swim. Katie took her floaties off, jumped in and sank to the bottom. Hopefully this next summer we will be able to do swim lessons.

On the 4th of July we went to a flag raising ceremony at the church and had a delicious pancake, sausage, egg, bacon breakfast. I love how there is a unity in traditions. It was great to see my nephew Shawn help with the flag ceremony.

These are the cute hats we made for the 4th of July. We needed some kind of activity for the kids when they couldn't go outside. They really loved making them and they looked really cute too.
This is the men slaving over the stove to feed all us hungry people. Okay so I can't really speak for others but I was hungry.
After breakfast, we went to the 4th of July parade in Safford. It was my kind of parade. Short and to the point. We had great seats right at the beginning of the parade in the shade. As soon as the parade was over we went to get sno cones. I think we had one almost every day we were there. I think I could eat them everyday. Colorado really needs sno cones.
We ended our day with a pot luck, swimming and fireworks. It is hard to take great pictures of fireworks without your tripod.

It was a fantastic two weeks. We had a great time with family and friends, enjoyed the weather and pool but mostly we are so thankful for the freedoms we enjoy every day. We are so very blessed to live in this free country. Thank you to all the many service men and women who fight to protect our freedoms every day.
It reminds me of Captain Moroni and the Title of Liberty:
"In memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children"

Operation: Sticker Therapy

Hi! This is Abigail the day before her 2nd birthday. You can see her central line and her surgery scar.
When she was 19 months old she was critically ill, and diagnosed with cancer - stage 4, high risk Neuroblastoma.
She has been through a lot - with a lot still yet to go through. Abigail loves stickers and they offer distraction and entertainment during multiple hospital stays.

Our goal with Operation: Sticker Therapy is to receive enough stickers to be able to put some packets together to share with other children we meet who are fighting for their lives. We encourage you to donate some stickers, and then know that you are blessing the loves of some precious children.

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Thank you for your kindness and generosity, and may it be returned unto you!

If you would like to make a financial donation to Abigail, that would be greatly appreciated. You can do so by visiting this site:

Fans Across America

or by including a check payable to "Abigail Goss Medical Trust Fund" with your stickers.

Thank you dearly!

Please contact me if you have any questions or if you would like more information on Operation: Sticker Therapy at

tricia.bastian@gmail.com

Katie's 3rd birthday

This is how far behind I am. Katie's birthday was April 28th. I just took her 3 year pictures and I am just posting her birthday.
For Katie's birthday we had a small family party for her. Katie decided she didn't want a cake for her birthday, she wanted a donut. She loved it and thought it was the greatest ever. We had yo yogurt, went to the duck pond and then bowling. One of the presents she got was "Llama Llama, mad at mama". She absolutely loves that series of books. They are her favorite! which I love because she loves to read. It is GREAT!
Happy birthday Katie Beth!