The Patterson Family: Brooke 3.25 years

Dear Brooke,

Summer is here and you are not in school so we have lots of time to have fun! I am thoroughly enjoining being a stay at home mom and rarely think about my old work life. Daddy said goodbye to the ‘go fast’ so we could buy a motor home and when we got in it to drive home he looked at me and said “I’m glad we moved (to Utah) and downsized (our house), you can stay home with our girls and now we just bought an RV!”. Life is good....but I do miss my friends in Washington.

Brooke put my boots and Jason's belt on so she could be Jessie (from Toy Story - one of her favorite movies)! Jason and I added the hat and glasses. :-)

Whenever I ask you why you did or do something you say ‘because’. Its funny that I just read in my baby book that my mom said I did the same thing when I was your age. You say you will grow up to be just like me, I look forward to other similarities!

Last month the other Pattersons came for a fun visit! You played nonstop with Emma and now that we live in Utah we are sure to see more of them. While they were here we went to a children’s fair where you got to hold a variety of reptiles. You aren’t afraid of any of them and LOVED the snakes but don’t even think about asking for one as a pet!

You recently took a daddy daughter trip to Michigan to visit grandma and daddy had so much fun with you. Uncle Elliott and Emma came too for a few days so you got to play with her again and your second cousin Chase who is just a bit older than you. Grandma and daddy took you up to Grand Haven for a night where you had lots of fun on the beautiful sandy beach of Lake Michigan and flew a kite for the first time! The house was sure quiet with just me and Skylar and it stayed clean! :-) But I did miss the both of you and was happy to have you back home.

At the grocery store near our house.

Over the last few months you took your first hike, went to your first soccer game (we actually went to see the women’s USA soccer team play Canada before they go to the Olympics in a few weeks), got your first air brush tattoo, drove in our motor home from CA to UT in one day, took a tram ride up to the top of the mountain at Snowbird for Father’s Day.

At the soccer game.

Our first attendance to Park Silly Sunday Market (at Park City). Will definitely be going again! It was soooo fun with a live band, food and lots of artists' booths at the bottom of Main Street and it takes place EVERY Sunday!

Notice the market behind me at the bottom of Main Street? By noon it was packed!

For Father's Day we took my Dad and Gail to brunch at Snow Bird. It was a beautiful day, the food was delicious and the girls were great. After brunch we took a ride on the tram to the top of the mountain. I hadn't even been up Little Cottonwood Canyon since we lived here before but this is where Jason snowboards. Its so gorgeous and only 20 minutes from home!

You always refer to things as family with a daddy, mommy, Brookie, Skylar and sometimes Kolby. This pertains to everything where there is more than one in varying sizes like logs in our camp fire, rocks, stuffed animals, drawings of animals, play-doh people, and animal balloons (which I’m getting pretty good at making!).