party all day long

We have been so busy enjoying this summer sun and I love it!  This summer is full of work travel for me, so Ben and I vowed to party in our free time like it's 1999.  Booo for summertime work travel.  Don't these people know I only get 2 solid months of sun with my family?!



We finished off Oliver's birthday with a little ice cream celebration.  Did you know Oliver loves vanilla custard?  A few months ago Ben and I went to the local custard shop, Sheridan's.  YUMMY is all I can say about the place.  Anyway, they saw our cute dog tagging along on our little date and asked if he would enjoy a small cone of vanilla as well.  "Ummm, is that safe?" I asked.  "Yeah!!" responded the 16 year old worker, "We do it all the time."  Well, this kid must know what he is talking about I thought to myself and excitedly obliged.  If only we could make all our decisions listening to16 year old boys.

When we gave Oliver the cone he was in dog heaven.  What a fun treat!  We decided to celebrate his big day the same way.  Vanilla custard cone - yes please!

We invited Britt and Matt along to complete our little celebration. Oliver was a hit and the experience was complete with his party hat and food flags, and of course an interested little boy in plaid shorts telling me to hurry and feed my dog because he's hungry.  "Yes, little boy.  Aren't we all always hungry for ice cream?" 

Matt and Brittany invited us to the beach to celebrate the 4th of July.  Have you ever been to the beach over the 4th?  Holy craziness, you need to go.  It didn't hurt that the day was incredibly gorgeous, the weather was perfect and the company was super fun.

Matt and Britt really set the bar high for 4th of July shirts.  Brittany was sporting a sparkly patriotic kitty and Matt an Eagle.  There is nothing more patriotic than that.  They put us to shame.

Here is something you should know about our Oliver, he is terrified of loud noises.  This may or may not be because I drop just about everything I touch so he is used to items falling past his head and banging onto the floor.  Basically anytime I pick up something he backs away. He also hates lawn mowers, nail guns, vacuums and diesel trucks.  That being said, we did not know how he would do on a beach full of people lighting off fire works.  I figured he and I would end up hiding out in the car until the party was over.

When the night started getting loud, and I started getting cold, I pulled him up on my lap and he feel right to sleep.  He lay curled up in my lap for 2 hours sleeping.  He missed the party, right up until a few minutes before we left, I was so glad.

I was also glad that when a firework went crazy and shot into Brittany's stomach she wasn't hurt.  Her shirt started a little fire, but Matt got that out quick.  4th of July success! 

We had so much fun on the 4th we decided to make another beach trip a few days later too see my good friend Ashley visiting Lincoln City with her family from Utah.

The beach is always good for a couple things: good food and fun shopping.  It's not always reliable for good weather.  We got lucky, yet again, because it was GORGEOUS.  

It was so fun to spend time with Ashley and let her get to know Ben better.  As we drove home that evening Ben looked at me and said, "I really like the beach."  Me too sweetheart, me too.