Pismo Beach With Grandma and Grandpa

During Grandma and Granpa's visit we took a few days and went out to the coast. One of our favorite places is Pismo Beach. We eat at our favorite BBQ restaurant (Mo's BBQ) and then hang out at the beach for the rest of the day. Little Lyssie really loved the water ... especially walking with Grandma and Grandpa. She eventually got to the point where she wouldn't hold anyone's hand and ran out into the water. She's a lot braver than Joshua, who is just content playing in the sand and staying as far away from the water as possible.

Grandma and Grandpa on Pismo beach with the pier in the background.

Three generations ... Donald David Doll Jr ... III ... and the IV.

Grandma coaxed Josh into the water ... but as soon as she let go he ran all the way back up to our beach chairs and his shovel and pail. I think the water must have been too cold for him. He preferred the hot tub back at the hotel.

The water was actually great. The first few minutes were cold, but once you got used to it you could play in it all afternoon. We walked the beach the next morning and the water still felt really good. We prefer the water in August rather than in February. You can tell a difference. Everyone at least put their feet in the water ... some of us more than that. It was a great day at the beach.

Amy and Kella ~ Baptism: 1980 and 2008

Amy and Kella on their baptism days ... 28 years apart.

Machella's Baptism

Machella was absolutely beautiful the morning of her baptism. She wore the dress Grandpa Mark and Grandma Mindy sent her. She was so excited to get baptized.

Joshua wouldn't cooperate when we tried to take family pictures outside the church. He would much rather run around than pose for his big sister.

This was an exciting moment for both of us. Machella was baptized twice because she didn't go all the way under the water (my fault). The second time I did it I pushed her all the way to the bottom of the font. At least she'll remember that she was baptized twice. I confirmed her and the other priesthood holders who stood in the circle were ... Grandpa Doll, Uncle Jay, Bishop Bramwell, Mike Nicholas (our hometeacher), and Dan Price (my friend from work). It was totally awesome to baptize and confirm such a wonderful girl who is part of our eternal family.

Machella with Grandpa and Grandma Doll after her baptism. We also had Aunt Jenn, Aunt Ali, and her cousins Zoe and Noah visiting for the baptism.

Elyssa's Naptime

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Elyssa has now claimed my favorite place to take a nap. I know why she thinks it is soooo comfortable. Does she actually have to look as comfortable as I want to be? Maybe I can beat her to my favorite nap spot Sunday afternoon.

Kella's Special Delivery

The day of Kella's birthday there was a knock at the door and to her surprise there was someone delivering flowers for her. She called me at work and left a voice mail letting me know she got the flowers. Amy said that she was so surprised and thought it was the coolest thing ever.

Kella's 8th Birthday

We celebrated Kella's 8th birthday today. We thought I was going to have to work late on the 25th so we had her party one day early (Happy Birthday Eve). She had her favorite dinner (homemade ribs and corn on the cob) and requested a Boston Cream pie for her birthday "cake." Amy did a great job for her first Boston Cream pie ever.

Kella has wanted some clasp earrings since she got her ears pierced earlier this year. She loves earrings, jewelry and makeup. What a beautiful young woman she is growing up to be.

Kella is in to arts and crafts. This was from Amy... a jewelry making kit. She already likes making friendship bracelets. It will be interesting to see what she does with this.

The grand finale of her birthday was her guitar. She has been talking about a guitar for months now. We'll tune it tomorrow and she has books and DVDs to help her learn how to play. We'll probably get her into guitar lessons in the near future.

Happy Birthday Machella!!!

Kella's Baptism Interview

Kella went to her baptism interview tonight and is now ready for her baptism on August 2nd. She is so excited to get baptized. It's hard to believe that she was in preschool when we moved here and now she's on her way to the 3rd grade and getting baptized. We are so proud of her.