Swimming with the Little Ladies

Last Tuesday night Karl and I invited Aaron and his three little ladies, Mallory, Halle and Lauren, to swim at mom's house. It was a treat to have the girls over and Karl and I loved swimming with them and hearing them giggle. Aaron didn't swim, but he made a great pool boy skimming the pool!

The girls are great swimmers, and before we knew it we went from evening to night swimming!

Lauren slept most of the evening, but woke up just in time for a quick drive around the backyard.

Uncle Karl and the girls.

It was a fun night for all and a great way to beat the summer heat!

A quick pick-me-up

Today I was taking a mental break at the office and I came across an article on-line that said one of the best ways for a quick "pick-me-up" that doesn't cost a dime is to look at old photos and smile. So, when I got home today I opened up an old photo folder and found a "pick-me-up" that was just priceless...

How can you not feel better after looking at these big brown eyes!!!! Ahh, aren't nephews the best!!

Fun in the summer sun!

With temperatures breaking 110 degress this Saturday, Karl and I decided to take advantage of the oasis in mom's backyard. What can be better then a cool pool on a hot day!! (What do you think about the new paint, Ana?)



With Mom gone for the weekend Karl decided to take it upon himself to give Tiki a swimming lesson. Okay, so he wanted to throw her in the pool but decided to ease her into the process.

I'd like to say she loved it, but "love" may be a strong word! She most definitely cooled down, but I think it will be quite a while until her next swim lesson!

Overall it was a wonderful day relaxing in the water and soaking in the sun!!

Happy Birthday Pops!!

Saturday was Karl's dad's (a.k.a. "Pops") 59th birthday.

And what do you give the man who loves to hunt....

A GUN!!

So Karl and all the siblings went in and got Pops a gun. Now Pops has a ton of guns...big ones, little ones, the kind that can stop tanks, automatic ones (he has special permits), semi-automatic, the list goes on and on and on (he has several large gun vaults)---- BUT, he didn't have this one ... a Sig .357. Now to me it looks like, well, a gun. However, I have been informed that it is a new and improved gun that shoots a .357 caliber bullet, which means it can shoot through car doors and stuff like that --- just what you need when hunting that all ellusive urban elk in its Cadillac Escalade! ha ha ha!!

We had a great time having lunch with Pops and some of the family . Though I don't know who was more excited about the gift, Karl or Pops! What can I say, like father like son! Aren't these a good looking pair? (the dog is cute too!)

Happy Birthday Pops!
We love you!!

Who needs Nacho.....

Who needs Nacho Libre and Eskeleto when you have your own luchadors....


Meet the Fau Family Luchadors.... (I couldn't come up with any great names that I could post without them killing me, or worse them getting even, so I'm open to suggestions....)

Move over Ray Mysterio.....

Watch out Mucha Lucha....

That's right, we're ready to take over the ring...and then the world!!

Who said you have to grow up ..... thank's to my brother and his discount mall purchase, we had plenty of fun posing for "luchador" photo ops!! Where is Eddie when we need him?!?!?

Food, Family, Fireworks...and Fourth of July Fun!

This year was a relatively quiet 4th of July for us, with Mom visiting Ana, Eddie and the boys in Oregon and most of Karl's family out of town, but we managed to have fun nonetheless! We had a good food-- courtesy of our BBQ chef...

Family to keep us laughing. Still hard to believe this my "little" brother and "baby "sister! I can safely say that Aniva and Tenny have the best laughs I've ever heard-- they acutally laugh the same, one is just lower pitched then the other!!

The latest newlywed couple... Aniva and David Green. Don't they look good together!

The fireworks were amazing.... we swam and had BBQ in mom's backyard, which is right across the freeway from GV Ranch, so we had an upclose and unobstructed view of the firework spectacular.

Over all it was a wonderful 4th of July!! What a blessing to celebrate the wonderful freedoms of this great country in the company of family. To all those who work to keep our country free, thank you for the sacrafices you make to keep us safe and our country strong!!!

Reconstructive Face Surgery Never Looked So Good!!!

Here are the photos you've all been waiting for-- Karl's new look! About 2 months ago Karl had upper and lower corrective jaw surgery. The surgeon moved the upper jaw forward and the lower jaw backward. Four hours and several metal plates and screws later and Karl was ready for his close up!


He was the BEST patient-- and took a liquid diet fairly well (his favorite was blended donuts and milk!!) What a handsome chipmunk!

The brusing and swelling were pretty significant-- many a night was spent curled up with an ice pack... but what a good looking smile!!

Even with a "wired" jaw, we still found time to get out and visit family! Here's Karl and his Dad hanging out in Overton.

And here's an photo from last week of Karl and I at my mom's house after church.... I love the way he looks in a suit!!

So, while we still have about 10 months of recovery time to go (the swelling should be completely gone about one year after surgery), Karl is doing well and enjoying his new bite and smile!!