Happy 4th of July!

I couldn't get this one to post before and I just love her little voice! I hope you all had a good 4th of July...we did!

Cocroaches

While in California, we had a girls night with Auntie Jessie. She made us an amazing chicken dinner, it was so much fun to hang out with her!! I wish I would have taken a picture of all of us eating, but of course I did not. What I do have is this video of Jessica and Rachel looking at the roaches that she and Brad feed to their chameleons. Rachel really wanted to play with them, so Mom, Jess and I got a good laugh out of it! Enjoy!

Chuck E. Cheese

Where a kid can be a kid!! Carolyn has every other Friday off and decided that on this Friday Rachel should experience Chuck E. Cheese first hand, so we went. Rachel loved when Chuck E. Cheese came out to take pictures! She also loved this ridiculous "sit in a chair and spin around" ride. Literally, that's what you did, sat (buckled in of course) and rode in a really slow circle...then you paid another token ($1) to do it again. She also went in the car with Barney like 50xs, although she's never actually seen that show and has no idea who he is she really enjoyed that as well. Ethan and his friend Nick came along and were happy to entertain Rachel. She enjoyed the super slow horse ride much more than they did. But the trip was for her, right?!? Ethan did have fun climbing in the tubs with her and pretending he was a gorilla trapped in a cage! This was a ton of fun and everytime we go by a Chuck E. Cheese's, Rachel wants to go!

Paso Fair

Rachel and I had so much fun when we went to the Paso Fair with Dad and Cat! Rachel loved seeing all the animals, the snake, the sheep, the goat, the horses and feeding the cows! We even made sure to get some ice cream while we were there! Rachel loved that part too, of course. And when all of her ice cream was gone she thought that it was only fair if Grandpa shared with her too! It was a blast and we're so grateful that we were all able to go!!

Fun Times with Carolyn and the boys

Rachel loved playing at Carolyn's when we were there and I loved enjoying the time "off"! Rachel was completely entertained while we were there!! She loved playing in the cars and getting her nails painted with Carolyn and the boys loved playing with her until they all got worn out! We were even able to go to the pool one day with Rick and the boys in Lompoc. It was a really neat pool, all indoors, nice warm water and tons of fun things for Rachel to play with, on and in! After we went to eat at an awesome little pizza place, that has the best bread sticks in the world! Although I cannot remember the name of the place, it's amazing!!

Family and Friends in Cali

We had a lot of fun while we were in California too! We spent time with Rachel's new friend, known as "The Other Lilly", Brad, Carolyn, Wes and Ethan, and the parents. We played in the pool, at the beach, on the slides and just hung out at home! It was so much fun!!

Playing with Grandpa and Gracie

Rachel LOVES dogs, as most kids do, but she really loved playing with Gracie! Gracie loves to play tug-a-war and hide-and-go-seek, so they were a perfect match! Dad and I had a blast watching these two play together! I have a cute video of Rachel and Gracie playing tug-o-war, but I can't get it to load, so these will have to do! I love Rachel and Dad's "Cheese" faces!!!

Making a Stepping Stone with Grandma Cat

We were able to making a stepping stone with Grandma Cat! I helped Rachel make a couple of these in Utah for the traditional "grandkid garden" for Granny and one for Auntie Peaches. But, Grandma Cat, being the fun lady that she is decided that because Rachel loves green so much that we should do a green stepping stone, so she dyed the cement green! We picked out some really cute little beads and some stone and put them in the stone! Grandpa loved the stone and it looks great in their garden. It was such a fun project and Rachel loved it! We can't wait for what project Grandma Cat wants to do next time!!

Grandpa and Gramdma Cat

It was really great to spend some time with Dad and Cat while we were home! Rachel loved playing at the park and Grandpa and Grandma Cat loved anything she wanted to do. They were so wonderful with her. We went to the park and for a walk around the park and then we went to the beach and the art fair. Rachel loved playing in the dinosaur park and in the big egg. At the beach Grandma Cat found a old fish skeleton and Rachel wanted to take it home. Again, I am so glad that Rachel loves the beach as much as me! She's going to love it even more the older she gets! And with this family, the beach is a must!

Family Time in Cali

We were able to spend some time with the extended family while we were in town too, which was wonderful! Rachel and I rode bikes one day to Avila Beach with Aunt Su. We played in the water, made a sand castle and then even got some ice cream! Rachel loves the beach, I can't wait to teach her how to surf! I did take her boogie boarding and she went out in the cold Pismo Beach until her chest, then I put her on the board and she rode it all the way into shore! I was so proud of her and she kept telling everyone about it, "...all by MYSELF!" We had a BBQ at Aunt Su and Mitch's house later that day with Randi, Amy, CeCe, Cahill and Logan. We made sure to all admire Uncle Mitch's new pond that he built and he made sure to point things out to Rachel! It was so great to see everyone and let Rachel get reaquainted with everyone.

Later we went to see Brad and Jessica at thier place. Rachel loved playing with "Lenny", Brad's camilian and making sure that no one touched "Angry Man", Jessica's camilian, because "Angry Man bites!" It was so good to spend time with them. I know they are super busy, so we were glad they were able to spend time with us!

After Surgery

The day we got home from the hospital Mom was so much easier than any of us expected. We had the hardest time trying to get Mom to just stay still! She just wanted to play with Rachel and run around, when she should have been doing nothing but laying down and sleeping! So I finally gave in and we went the 1/2 mile down the road to Waller Park for a picnic. It was so fun taking Rachel to the park that I spent so much time at when I was a kid. We brought a whole loaf of bread and she loved feeding the ducks. But she was not expecting the "Waller Park Ducks" which are the ducks that run right up to you and will literally grab the bread out of your hand if you do not feed them fast enough! She got so mad at one of the ducks for eating her bread that she threw her sunglasses at it! Unfortunately for her she threw them at the ducks in the pond and lost them! She told me to go in the water and get them, and I just laughed at her! She loved going on the swings and having Nana Ging push her!

We had such an amazing time with her in California. We are so grateful that we were able to come see her and spend some time with her during this time. She and Frank spoiled us with everything...DVDs, clothes, food, bubbles, a giant pool for Rachel, etc. and we used the truck the whole time we were there! Thank you Frank! We miss you guys!

Surgery

Mom had surgery in Santa Barbara and the whole family was there...Me and Rachel (of course), Brad, Nana and Granddaddy, Chris, Tricia and Frank. Rachel really enjoyed "helping" Nana Ging and the nurses prep for surgery. After surgery we were able to go see Mom and she looked GREAT! (Unfortunately they wouldn't let Rachel come see her because she was too young to be in the ICU and she was devistated! Thank goodness for the family, who kept her entertained while Brad and I got to go back and see her)! The tumor was much much smaller this time. (Last time it was the size of the palm of your hand and this time is was only the size of the tip of your pinkie)! During the couple of days in recovery the family made sure to make Mom laugh and smile and we even went for a walk with Mom. Rachel and I passed some time by swimming in the pool at the hotel. You can only contain a 2 year old to a quiet hospital room for so long before she needs to let out her energy! We are so grateful that the surgery went so well. The night after the surgery the rest of us went out for dinner and Rachel HAD TO play in the water fountain, so of course Uncle Chris joined right in with the fun!! We're so grateful to have been able to be with Mom for the surgery and that she is doing so well!

Before surgery!

Rachel and I were able to go to California in July for 3 weeks to spend some time with my Mom before her surgery. She had another brain tumor, luckily it was smaller than the first one! Before the surgery we spent some good time with her at the beach and with all the family that came to visit in Santa Barbara before the surgery. Rachel loves the water and had a great time playing with Nana Ging.

Kincher Family 2010

Thanks again to our wonderful friend Kami, here are our 2010 Family Pictures. It is so nice to have Rachel's birthday at the same time as our anniversary. That way we get family pictures and Rachel's yearly pictures take at the same time. Hopefully our next kids follow suit. These are only some of our favorite pictures... and we chose 11 of them to post on here. We hope you enjoy them too!

Nauvoo

Again this year we were lucky enough to go to the Nauvoo pagent. This year we even had two friends in the pagent! We decided to spend the night and just sleep in the car, BAD idea! It of course was a record breaking heat wave while we were in town, the heat index was at 114* during the day, the humidity alone was killing us. We slept in the car for about 20 minutes before sweating to death, then we moved into the tent with our friends Andy and Allena (who were in the pagent). And if you look closely to the picture of all of us in the tent, yes, that is a fan in the background, it was plugged in and blasting full speed all through the night and it was still hot!! The next morning when we went to get dressed and ready, I realized that I had forgotten to put Rachel's clothes in the overnight bag, I got them out and ready, I just didn't pack them! Good thing she's so tall, she just borrowed a dress from Allena! We went on a covered wagon ride, let Mark pull us in a hand cart, walked on stilts, played backwards baseball, went to the Red Brick House, saw Joseph Smith Jr.'s house and the grave sight of him, his wife and brother. It was a wonderful experience and if you have never been to the Nauvoo pagent, I strongly urge you to go!! I have seen it 3 times now and I ball my eyes out everytime! Uncontrollably, and you all know that I am not a crier!! The Spirit is strong there...it is wonderful!

4th of July

Okay so here are the 4th of July pictures from this year. We went to a wonderful concert in the park with our friends Julie Steinberg (as Rachel likes to call her "My Julie") and Marilyn Mapes. We had a couple of friends in the concert so it was very exciting to watch. Rachel made sure to sing along as they sang the Star Spangled Banner, it is one of her favorite songs. She knows all of the words, she should she has heard the song about a million times with all the hockey and baseball games that she has been to, she even hold her hand on her heart and stays quiet! It's so cute!! After we went to the Ringers house and the Jacksons joined us as we all went over to watch the fireworks on the top of a hill. We then came back for root beer floats and sparklers for the kids. We had a wonderful 4th of July. God Bless America!!

Utah in June

So this summer we were lucky enough to go back home in June, even though Mark actually had a summer job working for the Normal Cornbelters professional baseball team. We spent a lot of time with the family. We were able to go the the Salt Lake Temple and do baptisms with Leslie. It was a wonderful experience and it was the first time that Mark and Leslie had ever been to the Temple together. Rachel jumped on the "jumpaline" with Papa Ron and played with play-doh with Ron and Kim. (It does make more sense to call it a Jumpaline, we are jumping. Who's idea was it to call it a Trampoline? That doesn't even make sense, we're not Tramping on it). We were able to go to Aspen's 6th Birthday (we missed being at 2-5). Went to the Gateway with Leslie and Jeremy and took the kids to see Toy Story 3, then we let them play in the fountain. And of course we worked on the house...a never ending job as a home owner. Even if you don't live in your home! It was a great time and we were so blessed to see everyone!

Fire Station Bloomington, IL

It was so nice to know the fire captain in Bloomington, Bro. Leman, what a great guy! We were able to go to the station and see ALL of the fire trucks! Rachel loved it and had the best time. We could hardly get her to leave with us! She wanted to drive every truck. She even convinced Mark to put on this rather attractive plastic fireman's hat. She loves her Daddy and she is such a Daddy's girl!

Children's Museum-Bloomington

Rachel loves to play at the children's museum with her friends. She loves driving the tractor and smashing her face in this giant...thing that you put your face/hand/body into and leave your impression. This cute little girl with Rachel is Chloe, her friend from Bloomington. I came across these pictures and wanted to post them, because I meant to months ago. We sure do miss them!

Harlem Globe Trotters

We were lucky enough to get tickets to the Harlem Globe Trotters in Bloomington. We had such a great time. Rachel loved watching the "basketball guys" do tricks and dunk the ball. She's really loves sports, so it always makes it fun to take her to something like this!

Rachel's 2nd Birthday

Here is another picture of Rachel and Mark from her birthday when she got her free balloon at Toys R Us. She has such a great day. We had pancakes for breakfast, upon request of course and went swimming the rest of the day.

Rachel's 2nd Birthday

Here are some pictures from Rachel's 2nd Birthday. We had a great party in the park with lost of friends. I made her an Elmo cake to dig into and Elmo cupcakes for her friends. We also went to dinner as a family on her birthday, she loved her ice cream!

Sorry

Ok, so I have been terrible about updating the blog...to say the least! But I promise to do at least...2 updates a week from now on! We do have some really fun times in the Kincher house and I owe it to our families and friends to post them. We wish you could all be closer, but now maybe you can at least feel closer. Start looking for new posts starting tomorrow!