Ari and her friends

With all the attention Tia has gotten lately, I thought it would be nice to highlight Ari and some of the things she has been up to. I am kicking myself because she hosted a big smores and firepit party this last Saturday and I didn't get one picture of it. Oh well. This is from her birthday back in May. All of my kids seem to push my limits when I make their birthday cake. Tia wanted a painted watercolor cake one year, Ari wanted candied violets and candied orange slices on hers this year. 

I hadn't tried to do either of these things for years, and not very successfully previously, so I am happy they turned out!

 Family party at my mom and Dad's.

Now that Tia is gone, I have had a little more time to take Ari to things. Here she came with me and Brenda to the Art City days talent show. It was the usual mix of extremely talented youth, and people that really really shouldn't be on stage but nobody had the heart to tell them otherwise. That's small town talent for you!

 We took the opportunity this year to go to USU's cochlear kid's camp. It is a two day thing up in Logan where families come and the kids and their siblings have activities together while the parents learn and connect with each other. A lot of the information was old news for Jeff and me, but connecting with other parents is always eye opening and educational. We are all going through the same kinds of challenges with our deaf kids, and we got a lot of ideas. Once again, mostly from the other parents, and not as much from the classes. That was fine with me. We got an AirBNB cabin for the night in Paradise valley right near Logan, and it was so cute!

 And the valley was spectacular. So so green.

 We were able to compare equipment, 

Learn from the providers/vendors

and learn about the latest studies.

 The very best thing though was that Ari bonded with another teenage girl who wears an implant.

 Ari has been doing the usual stuff with young women activities for church.

 Riding her bike...

 and running with her Dad and Kai on the trail in Whiting canyon.

One thing I am really glad we did this summer, was a barbecue with a bunch of old friends from Utah school for the Deaf. My friend had emails from a parents group she had set up.Those teens just came right together like magnets. It was fun to see. They had so many experiences in common to talk about, and once again, it was valuable for Jeff and I to talk with the parents.

I love my Ari, and it is wonderful to see her start growing up and coming into her own.

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