Happy Birthday Harry Potter

July 31st is Harry Potter's (& JK Rowling's) birthday, so being a Potter myself, I always try to plan some sort of "birthday party" for the kids in the neighborhood to celebrate Harry Potter with me.  We send invites to all the kids/teens' friends & we dress up in our house colors.

I made 2 cakes ("made" as in I bought 2 cakes, scraped all the frosting off of them, then refrosted them myself to fit the Harry Potter theme.)

We had a large bowl of Bertie Botts every flavor beans along with some fruits & veggies to snack on.

Craiger went all out & dressed up as Dumbledore which cracked me up.  It was SO funny watching him sit there with all that hair in his face for the whole movie.

We watched Harry Potter 2 since we had a lot of little ones this time that hadn't read very far into the book series.  We wanted to keep it as spoiler free as we could.

Half way through I served them all some butterbeer, which they loved.

Taya's friends from FSY came over which made it extra fun for her.  I'm loving these great kids she met at FSY this year.  They are super sweet & they have so much fun together.

 

FSY - Taya & Bladen

Towards the end of the month both Taya & Bladen had the opportunity to go to FSY (for the strength of youth) camp. . . the same camp that Lorien worked at all summer.

FSY is a great opportunity for teens ages 14-18 to go meet new people, spend time on their own in a college dorm, read their scriptures & experience spiritual classes & insights, go to dances, play games, & so much more.  It's always been the highlight of the summer for my girls & I was glad Bladen got to go this time.

Bladen & Taya weren't in the same company so they were in different areas/dorm on campus & didn't see each other for most of the week which was good & bad.  I think it's good for them to be on their own a little bit (they are best friends & worst enemies so time away from each other is good).  I think they were a little sad to not be together though.  They really are super close.

Bladen was in Heritage apartments & had 5 other roommates in his apartment.

Taya was in the Helaman Hall dorms & she also had 5 other roommates.

To say they had fun is a complete understatement.  Bladen is quiet so I think it was harder for him to put himself out there & meet people, but he did & he had a lot of fun.  Taya who is a social butterfly was in her element & she told me this was the best week of her entire life.  She made SO MANY FRIENDS.  Usually when you make friends at these camps, you text for a little bit, & in time you lose contact.  Not Taya.  She's hung out with her roommates a few times & has really been hanging out a lot with a sweet boy she met there.  He invited her to his school's seminary dance & just this week asked her to Homecoming at his high school.  She is SO HAPPY.  She's been needing some good friends & this camp gave her exactly what she needed. 

 

Canyon's Play Preparation & Parade

Canyon worked hard all summer long preparing for his play

Broadway Kidz Heroes & Legends.

Broadway Kidz is a wonderful non-profit organization here in the valley that has been doing kids' plays for over 25 years in this area.  The director, Kevin, has done this FOREVER & he is the very best.  He makes sure every kid has the spotlight at some point in the play.  He wrote the play & it's AMAZING.  You laugh, you cry, you get attached to what's happening.  He uses music from the last 5 decades which makes it fun for both kids & adults to watch.  The set pieces are incredible & the costumes are amazing.  It is a top notch show & I'm SO glad we got to be a part of it this summer.  We will be back next summer 100%.  Canyon is already talking about "next year!"

In July, we got to walk in the Draper City parade for Draper Days to let everyone know about the play.

Canyon got to ride in the truck, sing, & wave his flag.  He was SO excited.

It was a long couple of hours of walking in the hot sun, but I think the kids had a blast.

By the end of July, I had finished making/thrifting/putting together all of Canyon's clothes for his parts in the play.  He was in 10 numbers total with several solo lines & songs which was REALLY fun for him.

Canyon as a Signer of the Declaration of Independence:

"We're Not Gonna Take It" - soloist & lines

"Revolution" - dancer

"Electric Slide" - singer & dancer

Canyon as a pioneer:

"Rodeo" square dance - dancer

"Trek West" - actor

"Strong Enough" - soloist

Canyon as a Funky Dancer:

"Livin' in America" - Funky Dancer

He also wear the offical "Broadway Kidz Costume" in several numbers:

"Kids in America" - singer, dancer, announcer

"More to Me" - choir

"For the Glory" - choir

I was so proud of all the hard work he put into this play.

 

July Disney Family Movie Nights

For my birthday, my friend Nancy gave me a fun cookbook that had recipes for every Disney movie you could think of.  The kids decided they wanted to take turns picking a movie to watch together as a family, then make a dinner & dessert that fits the theme of that movie.

Canyon was first.  He chose the movie Fantasia & made the most adorable Mickey Mouse Sorcerer cupcakes you've ever seen.  They were messy & took forever, but we had fun doing it together & he was SO proud of how they turned out.

He also made bacon, Mickey Mouse pancakes, & strawberries/blueberries (to match Sorcerer Mickey's outfit.)  It was perfection.

Then we wound up delivering the cupcakes so a few families in our neighborhood (because there were only 5 of us & a TON of cupcakes), then sat down & watched the movie together.

The next family movie night was Taya's turn.  

She chose The Princess & The Frog for her movie.  Together we spent the afternoon learning how to make beignets together.

She also made some Southern red beans & rice, fireflies (pineapple), & gator tails (celery).

They all turned out delicious & the movie was great as well.  It's one of my favorites.

 

YW Girls Camp 2024

Girls Camp this year was a lot of fun.  This was my first year going as a leader here in UT & it was Taya's 2nd year in the ward.  We drove up to Ogden Canyon (up by Eden) to a beautiful little campsite up there.  We spent 4 days just spending time together as young women doing crafts, swimming, hanging out, eating, hiking, & having fun.  I think all the girls had a great time.

Unfortunately I couldn't stay the whole time because I had to take care of my parents as well as pick Craiger up from his drone camp in Price.  I ended up driving back & forth to camp for 2 of the days & then missed out on the last 2 days.  The girls did everything they could to try to keep me from leaving.  I truly wished I could have stayed.  It was so much fun.