Church end-of-summer party

Our ward celebrated the end of summer with an outdoor party & swimming Friday night. The Activities Committee wanted a "Fiesta Theme" party. I volunteered to decorate (I'm glad the Activities Committee will let me help!), and with the help of my Lovey and two nephews, Isaac & Thomas, we were able to dress the pavilion. When we arrived at 3pm, we were met with strong winds & a down pour of rain, which delayed our decorating. We wondered if we were going to be able to swim - the pool had already evacuated everyone because the rain was so bad - but after about an hour the rain stopped & the winds calmed. I still had 3 pinatas to hang, but decided against them - partly because my helpers needed to get home, and partly because I was afraid everyone (adults included) would take swings at the pinatas. I'll be returning those pinatas on Monday.

The Activities Committee had a great feast for the ward: large tortillas, meat, refried beans, chips, diced tomatoes & chopped lettuce, nacho cheese sauce & grated cheese, plus the sides that other ward members brought: relish trays & homemade fudge, and the Bishopric provided Creamies for dessert.

Isaac & Thomas - without whom we would still be unloading food from the Activities Committee's cars!

Me & Lovey

Dinner for Mary-Gail & Rebecca consisted of: chips, grated cheese, & chocolate Creamies

Rebecca & Mary-Gail sitting on Auntie Carol's lap after swimming.

Swimming with the girls was such a delight! Rebecca went down the kiddie slide - twice - and was going to go for her third time when the person who was bringing her to me got distracted and "forgot" that Rebecca couldn't walk alone. The next thing I see is Rebecca face-down in the water!!! Adrenaline shot through me as I snatched my drowning daughter out of the water and mouthed off to everyone. They were just inches from Rebecca and didn't notice! Rebecca's face showed the most horrifying look as she continued to cough up water. No more having other people help me - Rebecca was glued to my hip from then on.

We moved to the other pool, and within seconds Mary-Gail was face-down in the water. Seriously?! The excuse this time was, "the pool is slippery." Didn't I just eat you all alive with Rebecca's near drowning? I glued Mary-Gail to me from then on.

Aside from my daughter's near-death experiences, they had a good time. Rebecca wanted to go down the "big, giant slide," so Lovey took her. And then MG wanted to go, so up we went. I could hear Tony & Becca's "whoo-hooo"s as MG & I went down the slide. Our girls love tunnels, and we all say, "whoo-hooo!" when we go through a tunnel, so I was thrilled to hear Becca & Tony holler as they went down. My face was sore from smiling & laughing as MG's little voice hollered her version of "whoo-hooo!" That was cute!

The girls were shivering so badly - to the point that their whole frame shook and wouldn't stop. Tony & I couldn't get their shivers under control, so sadly we left the pool earlier than anticipated. We wrapped their little bodies (twice) in our beach towels, and held them close as we walked back to the pavilion to share our experiences with Aunt Carol & Uncle Jack. Rebecca & Mary-Gail sat on Aunt Carol's lap, still shivering, as they told Aunt Carol about the pool and the slide. Uncle Jack gave the girls their 3rd Creamie of the night, and the girls' shivers didn't stop them from eating the Creamies either! I hope Aunt Carol & Uncle Jack are prepared to give the girls their daily does of insulin! lol