The Hansens

New Years Eve

2011-12-31T06:57:00.000-08:00

We headed to Blake's Dad's house for New Years Eve and they had decided we were ringing in the new year with a Mexican Party. We got some Mexican dinner, had a pinata, and created our own Mariachi band with a house full of wild, excited kids:)

The pinata with the Sombrero that you had to wear when you took a swing at the horse

Sophie loves hats and tried the Sombrero on for a bit; the hat was so big you could only see Sophie's little legs sticking out underneath

Sophie checking out the donkey

Let the fun begin...we went youngest to oldest taking turns with the ensemble; the hat, blindfold, and stick in hopes that someone would bust open a hole to get to the candy

Peyton got the hang of things really quickly and in true boy fashion, loved waking the horse with a stick

We first lost the head of the donkey and it became Blake's new hat

Someone finally busted a hole and the kids went crazy, gathering all the candy they could

Thanks Papa and Grandma, we had a fun night ringing in the New Year.

Christmas

2011-12-25T06:48:00.000-08:00

I was ready for the Holidays early this year, which was so nice to breathe during the month of December. Allie is getting older and Christmas with Santa and our Elf (which we finally got a girl whom Allie named Snowflake) is getting more fun every year.

Grandma Julia buys the grandkids all Christmas PJ's every year. Natalia and Lilia's happened to match my girls this year

Blake was King Herod, and a wise man this year; playing dual parts for our family:)

Sophie was my angel for about 2 seconds

I love singing Christmas carols and love that my husband can play the piano for us.

Looks like Santa made it to our hosue...Allie's request for her Alexander Doll was fulfilled

Sophie also received a doll, but she absolutely LOVES stuffed animals. I guess that is why she loves her stuffed pig so much. She loved these stuffed animals her and Allie got and wouldn't put them down. We are grateful for another Christmas season we have had to reflect on our Savior Jesus Christ.

Yurt 2011-Whispering Pines

2011-12-23T17:12:00.001-08:00

It had been a few years since we had taken our annual yurt trip on December 22nd. I was excited we were back on this year. It's such a fun tradition and memory for the kids:)

All bundled up ready to ride in the Wee-ride

I can't believe that the kids are getting old enough to get themselves into the yurt; or it could also be the fact that the families are growing in number and kids are getting the boot out of the sleighs. Cam skiied/hung onto the wee ride/rode in the wee ride, but he made it. The conditions for skiing were not in our favor this year. It had hardly snowed and the trails were not groomed. It was difficult for all of us to make it in the 2.5 miles; we actually ended up carrying our skis and hiking in our boots for a good mile, but we made it

The Whispering Pines Yurt

The view from our yurt. I love being out in the middle of no where, soaking in all the birds that chirp, the wind that blows through, all by ourselves

Allie was my little greeter

Allie and Sophie hanging out on the bunk beds...the kid's favorite part about the yurt

Sophie was so cute! She was exhausted from the day already; this kid only loves to sleep in her bed. When we got inside the yurt and I set her on the bed, she immediately put her head down and said, "NiNi," meaning, "I'm ready for bed mom!"

Allie immediately got her bed all made up for the night

As you can see from the marker....we didn't have much snow. The snow level was just hitting 18" which is crazy for this time of year

The rest of the gang finally made it in and the kids were all in heaven

It gets dark early, so the kids were quickly turning on flashlights to color

Sophie was quickly loosing her sanity and didn't know what to do with herself. She finally laid down on the ground for awhile trying to fall asleep

These kids were also going crazy on us. I guess late nights in the middle of no where will do it to ya. You can be as silly, loud, and as crazy as you want and no one will hear you

This was a wonderful site for me....she finally gave in and fell asleep. Way to go Sophie!!!

The next morning we had breakfast, packed up, cleaned up, and headed outside to play for a little bit before heading back to the cars

Allie and Cam getting ready for some sledding

Sophie cracked a smile for me in the wee ride; I guess she was thrilled to be in there or thrilled to know we were leaving and heading home

The way out is much quicker than going in. Even though the conditions weren't great, we were mostly heading down, so by gravity you just go. Cam hitched a ride on the back of the wee-ride for a bit

Allie decided to ride in our sled being pulled behind the wee-ride and Cam quickly jumped in on that opportunity. What a fun way to get out! Allie wasn't to happy when the sled would get going fast, it would freak her out and she would bail out

Everyone survived and made it out alive though

Just had to post a picture of my gear that I took in. Blake was shuttling the kids in, and I had to carry in our clothing/sleeping bags. There were a few awkward things about carrying this bag. The first being it was a men's bag and it was way to tall for me. I couldn't keep my head up because it was forcing me to just look down. Secondly it is awkward to ski with a backpack; I kept wanting to tip over and on the way out I did many of times. But, it was all worth it and we'll be back next year!!!

Polar Express Ride to the North Pole

2011-12-18T17:09:00.000-08:00

We boarded the Polar Express for the first time; last year tickets sold out quick and we missed the ride. The train departs out of Horseshoe Bend and travels 1 hour up the railway to reach the "North Pole."

Waiting to board the train....Allie was so excited to ride the train. It was her first time on a train and a first for all of us up to the North Pole

We got there a little bit early and luckily they had heat lamps outside to keep us warm. Sophie is hanging onto the pole of one of the lamps....staying nice and toasty

Once we boarded we found our boxcar and then found our assigned table. Each table had the families name on it; it was pretty cute

Allie and Cam ready to get up to the North Pole

I printed out some Santa letters the kids could work on while we rode the train. I heard the kids could get a little bored, so I packed some activities to keep the kids busy

Allies letter to Santa; love how she signed it from her and Sophie. Looks like she had some help on her "wear" and "read" categories. I learned a few things about what Allie wants....2 front teeth. When I asked her about this, she said she wants to loose them for Christmas. Ever since the dentist said that her teeth are wiggly, she has been dying to loose the teeth.

Sophie coloring with Papa Jim; she is just starting to show in interest in scribbling:)

Sophie enjoyed climbing up on the table and standing; yes I have another climber in my household

The first person we met on the train was none other than......The Saber Tooth Tiger. WHAT??? Really not sure what he was doing heading to the North Pole but it was fun to have him join us

We ended up going with the whole Hansen clan and also brought my Dad and Deborah with us. Katie and Rod had a table right next to ours.

Grandma Deb and Papa enjoying the scenery on the way up

The kids all coloring

LOVE this picture!!! Sophie is such a busy body; you never know what this kid is going to do...here she decided to grab Blake's eye

Finally made it to the North Pole

Love this classic photo of Sophie meeting Santa; she was not thrilled about it

Family shot at the North Pole outside of the Polar Express Train

It ended up being a long morning and Sophie was so tired on the way back; Grandma Deb was entertaining her with the bells

On the way back Santa and Mrs. Claus came to visit us in our boxcar for a personal visit. Allie was very excited to be meeting Mrs. Claus; it was a first for her

The kids played a dice game on the way back. First to dot out all their numbers won; by the looks of it everyone's Gingerbread men got covered in Chicken Pox

Allie spotted Santa one last time toward the end of our trip and wanted one more picture with her and Santa. Thanks for the magical ride. We had a blast!!!

Nutcracker

2011-12-10T22:00:00.000-08:00

Allie and I headed off on a mommy daughter date to the Nutcracker. We usually attend this as a family, but Blake opted to stay home with Sophie, so me and Allie got to enjoy a mommy daughter night.

I can't believe how big my baby girl looks in this picture. She is growing up too fast!!!

A quick snap of us before heading out. Allie was excited to be wearing her fancy dress:)

Before the play started we got to check out the orchestra pit. We splurged and got some good seats up front so we could actually make it worth the night and see the people. Allie really enjoyed the play until the last 5 minutes when she crashed on me. Thanks for the fun night sis!!!

Gingerbread Houses

2011-12-10T17:01:00.000-08:00

It seems like every December we get to go and decorate gingerbread houses at the Histands. We got smart this year and found pre-fab houses; they were already put together

Our pre-fab house ready to be decorated

All we head to do was frost and decorate....Allie was really into the decorating this year. It was such a quicker process not having to wait for our walls to dry:)

The Johnson's

They brought a train that had to be built and weren't too happy with trying to get it to stick together:)

The finished house

Can't go wrong eating the extra frosting that is left over....right?

Finally smiling with their finished train

We had a second round of decorating this year with good old graham crackers.....I've got to remember that one for next year. When I was a kid I always made my houses with graham crackers and frosting. These houses brought back some good memories. Thanks to all our friends for having us over to decorate:)

Xmas Tree Hunting

2011-12-03T13:23:00.000-08:00

December has hit and the time has come to trek out and cut down a tree. We had missed out on the fun last year due to Sophie being so little. We were excited to head out into the cold to find that perfect tree!

We headed out with the Givens

The kids were troopers and headed right up the mountain with us to hunt for trees

Allie hiking along

The kids had a blast running down the road and sliding in their snow pants

Posing for a cousin pic

Cam and Allie hanging on the side of the road eating snow, life doesn't get much better

My good hubby hiking out with my tree...here is the story behind it.

Well....it was taking us some time to find a good tree. The trees were either to bare in spots, to tall, etc. etc. Really, you feel like you need that perfect tree. Well, Blake and I ran up a mountain to look. He told me he was going to the top to see what he could find. In the meantime, I found a tree that I was satisfied with. Blake couldn't hear me holler to him because he'd gone over the mountain. About 30 minutes later Rod started to follow Blake's footsteps and go on a search to find him because we were a little worried he hadn't returned. A while later I heard both boys hollering down to us that Blake was alive and he had hiked in a few miles to find me the perfect tree.

Blake and that perfect tree he found for us

Nothing like coming home, putting up that perfect tree, decorating it, snuggling up in Christmas PJ's and sipping hot cocoa. Tis the Season!!!

Thanksgiving

2011-11-26T01:08:00.000-08:00

My mom invited us to eat out with her on Thanksgiving this year and that did not sound appetizing. I haven't put in 30 years of making turkeys and pies to justify going out to eat for Thanksgiving. I felt like I needed to put on a feast; it's only once a year that you have to make this big dinner anyways so I told her just to show up with the drinks and I'd take care of the rest (with the exception of Blake making my mashed potatoes). Honestly, I did a lot of prepping and making on Wednesday so it ended up being a yummy, not so stressful meal.

My friend gave me a yummy recipe for a turkey in a brown bag. It was delicious and could have been even more delicious if I hadn't over cooked it. It wasn't dry by any means, but I think it cooked for about 30 minutes to long. We enjoyed this bird along with stuffing, veggies, potatoes, rolls, jello salad, pies. The best part was we had lots of leftovers. I love the leftovers!

Blake's brother came into town for the weekend and so the rest of the Holiday weekend we spent with his family. We went bowling; must be a tradition because it seems like we always end up bowling during the holidays with his family. I can't believe that is really Sophie in the picture:( She looks so big sitting with the big girls.

Allie loves bowling these days

Allie and Brynn

We love having Jane around. I wish she lived closer to help me out with my little ones. She is such a HUGE help and Allie just adores her

One tradition that we have kept alive for years is hitting up the Holiday tree lighting on the Grove. One more year of tree lightings

After the tree lighting we went for hot cocoa and then everyone headed to the cars. When we got to our car, we realized we had a few too many kids with us. We packed in like sardines until we caught up with the other cars and could unload a few. Three is nothing like the Holidays when you just get to play and have fun with the family!!!

Turkey Trot for the kids

2011-11-23T01:07:00.000-08:00

My ward if filled with a bunch of fun ladies and I have made some great friendships. One of my good friends through out the idea of having a kids turkey trot. The rest of us loved the idea and we all divided out jobs and helped each other put the race together. The kids loved it!

Allie at the start line. My friends was going to make the start line sign. All the rest of us envisioned a paper sign, but no, she shows up with a canvas sign on PVC pipes....WHAT??? Really, who does this? She said she wanted to reuse it for all the races we were going to do. Really......who said we were doing more of these.

Me and my friend put together the gumball necklaces while another friend whipped together all the "turkey medals" to also go on them

All the kiddos getting ready to race. There were two options that the kids could run, either a half mile or a mile race at our neighborhood elementary school

Good thing for Josh, our motorcycle cop. He escorted the kids at the start of the race

Allie running in the freezing cold

Pushing through the finish line.

Showing off her turkey medal

Cute turkey, cheese and tomato kabobs

Nothing like some good oranges at the end of the race too. Overall the race was a great success!
There were a few little mishaps that we will improve upon next time. Until we meet again at the bunny hop!!!

Milk Allergy

2011-11-17T00:55:00.000-08:00

Sophie has been having breakdowns on her bottom for the last couple of months. If anyone ever wants to try a diaper cream, I own every one of them:) We have been trying to figure out what is wrong and have been into the Dr.'s office a few times regarding the issue. Not only does Sophie have a rash, she was constantly stooling. The Dr. had thought that this was a yeast rash; which I thought the same thing. When her bottom would clear up for a day after using the prescription cream, the rashes would return the next day. I knew there was something else wrong. It killed me to change her diaper. When we would go to change her diaper she would scream because her butt was so broken down. Sophie would tell us immediately she was poopy by screaming and crying. I felt so bad and we finally got back into the Dr. to discuss the matters further.

The Dr. proposed that Sophie had a dairy allergy. He proposed that we could do allergy testing or just eliminate dairy and see how she would do. I felt like she mainly had a milk allergy. Sophie started on cheese and yogurt around 8 months and never had a problem. Around 10 months she started on whole milk after weaning herself from nursing and that is when we started to see the breakdown.

A poor shot of her bumb....it was like the stool was burning her poor bum. She had lots of bleeding sores on her bumb

Other than the sad diaper changes, which take up most of our day, we have had some fun times. Sophie is such a cheese ball; always doing stuff to make us laugh

Another thing you are into is putting things in your mouth and having them stick out

The other day I ran to put some clothes away in the closet and when I came back you had made yourself at home inside the dryer

Cheesing it in the dryer

Locks of Love

2011-11-16T01:05:00.000-08:00

Allie has wanted her hair cut for a few months. She wanted it trimmed up to her shoulders, so I tried to convince her that she would have enough to donate to Locks of Love and she could do a good deed just like I had. I think the idea and concept was a little hard to grasp for her and hence it's why it has taken her a few months to get to the point of being ready to cut her hair. One day she decided she was ready to cut her hair, so we made an appointment at 2 B A Kid, a fun kids hair salon in town.

Allie started out by getting her hair washed up

It was time to put her hair in a pony tail and measure out a minimum of 10". Then, snip, snip, snip of the pony

Allie and her pony tail. We had the video camera with us and her face was priceless the moment she saw her ponytail

Of course Sophie was a wild one on the car next to Allie

Allie didn't want to let go of her old hair; she hadn't seen her new do yet. We didn't want her to turn around until her new short hair was all done up

Her hair turned out darling!!! She looks so much older to me with her short do. We ended up sending out 11.5" of hair to Locks of Love

One last picture of that beautiful hair before it was sent off to Locks Of Love. I must say I was a little sad to see the hair gone; Allie had beautiful hair! I know that it will grow back, and someone will enjoy her beautiful hair. I am so proud of Allie and the great choice she has made. You make your mama proud!!!

1 year Rainbow Party

2011-11-15T09:28:00.000-08:00

Sophie loves balloons....anywhere we go she finds balloons. There will be balloons across the store that I don't see and she finds them. We were once swimming at the Y and there was a balloon floating up on the ceiling and Sophie kept saying, "bloon"-Sophie spotted it. So, your passion for balloons sparked my idea for a rainbow birthday.

My sweet neighbor helped me bring my vision to life. She brought her camera and followed me to an abandoned barn to take some 1 year photos that I wanted of you. I had seen this fun balloon arch somewhere and wanted to make it for your party and photo shoot

The rainbow outfit for the birthday girl.....a cheap $2 tulle skirt, a gumball necklace, and some scrap fabric for the t shirt.

Hanging on to your balloons....you didn't want anyone to get those balloons

Birthday Party Time with the family

We had the party over at the neighborhood clubhouse-there were plenty of balloons at the party

Yummy Cherry Limeade drinks

The rainbow cake

The cake maker-a.k.a. the mommy

The mini rainbow cake...I had intentions of making a mini six layer cake but totally forgot to take out enough batter from the larger cakes.....we ended up with a 3 tier mini cake.

Singing Happy Birthday....you weren't quite sure what to think of your cake. You hate anything mushy and soft, so you weren't a big fan of the cake

Allie was trying to show you the ropes of eating cake

The middle of the big cake....my favorite part was cutting open the cake, it looked so pretty!

Happy Birthday Baby Girl....it makes me so sad when my babies turn 1. Don't get me wrong, I love how fun and interactive you become over the next few years, I just love my babies.

Sophies' 12 months

2011-11-15T08:00:00.000-08:00

I can't believe that Sophie turned 1!!!
I'm just posting on here a few milestones you have hit at one year:)

Vocabulary: I can't believe how much you talk. We will say a word and you will copy whatever it is like a little parrot. These are a few of your chosen words you use every day: Daddy, Allie, Max, Kitty, Piggy, Doggy, Hot, Hat, Milk, Nana (banana), touchdown, Up, Peek A Boo, Clap, Yuk, All done, THAT-my favorite.

Here are the words you use to describe the following animals to us
dog-ruff, fish-smacks her lips, duck-quack, cow-moo, elephant-hand up, sheep-baa

We are working on your sign language, but honestly you would rather just say the word. There are a few that I make you use that you learned earlier and will sign rather than saying the word.
Signs: please, thank you, milk, more,

Teeth-just had two top teeth break through at 11 1/2 months
Walking...you are taking 4 steps at a time although you have walked across the room several times. You do not like anyone to look at you when you are walking; if you catch anyone looking at you, you immediately sit down.

A few things I love about you.

1-Loves to go down the kiddy slide at the Y all by herself; it shocks everyone. In order to get to the slide, Sophie does the bear crawl over to the slide because she hates the floor

2-You snuggle with me...I love it. You understand the word "snuggle" and will cuddle up with me when I say it. I love that you snuggle because you are on the move every singe day. All day long people comment wherever we go at how much you MOVE and how busy you are. Hence....it's taken me forever to update the blog because I am so tired at the end of every night. You are constantly wanting me to hold you but then you crawl, climb, bounce, & wiggle ALL over, but I love ya.

3-You are attached to your piggy....you love love love your pig and take it everywhere with you. You used to call it piggy, but now you refer to it as "OINK"

Halloween 2011

2011-10-31T21:56:00.001-07:00

With Halloween falling on a Monday this year it seemed like the week before was filled with endless Halloween Festivities. We had a ward party, school party, friend party, and then we finally had Halloween.

First up was the ward trunk or treat. We had Allie's good friends Josie and Peighton join us

Sophie has added a new word to her vocabulary....Candy. The funny thing is she didn't even like M&M's; she would spit them out.

Playing some games before the trunk or treat begins

Old neighbor buddies

Carving out a pumpkin for dinner in a pumpkin

Unfortunately we didn't carve pumpkins this year but we at least got to scoop out guts

We made some witches stew

Attempting to take a picture before trick or treating, I forgot what it's like with a 1 year old

The witch and her black cat:) Sophie didn't want anything to do with sitting with Allie

So, we got some of the kitty by herself

Allie loved running from house to house this year. We trick or treated in our neighborhood this year. It was pretty fun because they had a house decorating contest and lots of people went all out decorating

Sophie attempting to stay warm. I think that the cool fall is finally setting in

Oh the fun of sorting out candy

Sophie scored on sucker this year from her generous sis. Happy Halloween!!!

We Blinked and October was GONE

2011-10-29T11:08:00.000-07:00

Really, is the month of October almost over. We have had a whirlwind of a month and so we are wrapping our crazy month into this post. The nasty stomach bug hit our house a few different times, Blake was injured in a soccer game, and we enjoyed watching Allie in improve in her soccer games

Sophie caught the nasty bug 3 different times. This particular occasion we were waiting for Blake at work and Sophie starting vomiting in the car. I quickly hopped out and started to get the base and Sophie out of the car when Allie informed me she was sick from watching Sophie puke. Well, the weak stomach and gag reflux on Allie gave way and we had a 2nd kid puking in the car. NASTY clean up. So, we had some naked kids and a smelly car for the ride home.

Sophie enjoyed lots of Pedialyte during the month. She also has learned how to take lids off of markers, hence her new face painting

Blake ended up tearing a ligament in a soccer game. We had initially thought he might have broken his ankle or foot, but no breaks, just a colorful foot

The Dr. ordered him to elevate, ice, and rest for the first few days followed by crutches for a week with no driving, and then he got to wear a boot for 2 weeks

In the midst of people not having the flu we made it to the park on a few sunny days

Allie wrapped up her soccer season; it started to get really cold during the last few games

The girls always get to enjoy the parent's tunnel at the end of every game. Soccer really clicked for Allie the last few games of soccer. She made her 1st goal and really got the hang of it. It was finally fun to watch her!

Pumpkin Patch 2011

2011-10-08T22:28:00.001-07:00

Could it be that time of year again...crisp cool mornings, caramel apples, caramel Scentsy burning, apple picking, pumpkin carving. Oooohhhh I love it! We made an early trip out to the pumpkin patch this year and had a fun time with neighbors and family.

The girls and the giant pumpkin...really, can't anyone to look at the camera

Sophie really wanted to get down to touch the pumpkin; finally some cooperation with little people looking at me

We had seen pumpkins at the store and I swear this girl remembered what I was talking about when I told her we were going to see pumpkins. She was SO excited, although you wouldn't be able to tell by the look on her face. She kept repeating "bumpkin" the whole night.....to cute!

Hanging out in the corn

Papa and Grandma joined us this year; I don't think there has been a year they have missed joining us out at the patch. They are always good sports coming out with us and braving the cold.

Sophie loved the giant pumpkin

Visiting the petting zoo. Our neighbors all joined us at the pumpkin patch this year. We all got some special deal on pumpkin patch tickets from a neighborhood kid and they all expired tonight, so we all headed out. Having too much fun with all the girls!

A camel at the pumpkin patch petting zoo? We also saw a kangaroo! What a crazy petting zoo to go along with the crazy pumpkin patch.

Getting ready to ride the swings

Enjoying the ride-Peighton, Allie, and Josie-these girls are all so close-nothing like good friends

Sophie tuckered out by the end of the night, but she was thrilled to have herself a little pumpkin. Our wheelbarrow of everyone's pumpkins

Who's Grandparents do this? Ours do!!!! We love grandma and Papa for taking the kiddo's on the barrel train ride:)

To top off the night we cozied up by the nice warm fire that they had for the first time this year and ate our hearts content with doughnuts and french fries; bring on the Holidays!

A Night At The Museum

2011-10-05T16:47:00.000-07:00

We were so excited for this night to finally arrive. Blake is part of a group called E.O. All of the members own their own business and they are able to network with each other, have meetings, retreats, and plan fun things for their families to do. We were so excited for this activity and for the fact that it was actually going to happen because they had to go through hoops and loops to get it to work. Thanks boys!

So for the activity we met down at the Boise Art Museum. We started out the evening by having a pizza party in the museum, then went on to do art projects, followed by a flashlight tour through the museum, then wrapped up the evening with a popcorn and movie night. What other movie than "Night At The Museum" would be appropriate. The best and craziest part is we got to SLEEP in the museum. Even the museum workers stayed the night. We had such a blast!

Allie at our dinner table. The theme in the museum was "comics" hence the BAM decor on the table

Sophie pushed her little stool, that was just her size, around the art classroom while I chased her around. Allie and Blake worked on their comic characters and comic strips

Working on the comic strips

Enjoying the tour through the museum...hunting down letters that the artist used in the paintings

Me and the girls in the atrium of the museum where we were going to have our sleepover. There was the coolest art exhibit in the middle of the room; some huge, crazy, thing that was made into a circle from tiny pieces of wood and hoisted off the ground onto stilts. I was a little nervous one of the kids was going to run into it and have it come crashing to the ground

Lights Off, Camera, Action....Daddy and his girls ready for the show and ready for a sleep over

Sophie getting very sleepy. Sophie fell asleep down at the museum, which I was shocked about considering this kid loves her bed. I ended up taking her home later on because I didn't want her waking anyone up in the middle of the night. Thanks for all the fun daddy!

So Blessed!

2011-10-03T23:11:00.001-07:00

Feeling so blessed to have these two beautiful healthy girls; life is beautiful!!!

Where's Sophie?

2011-10-02T23:05:00.000-07:00

Sophie loves to go outside and be with Allie or she likes getting outside to hang out by herself. This kid does not mind being off all by her lonesome, in fact I have to watch her already because she gets into trouble. Lately when she sneaks into the backyard, I know right where she is because she has a spot she likes to be at....the tomato plant. Sophie loves eating the tomatoes whether they be my big boys
or the tiny cherry tomatoes. She also doesn't care if they are green or red; thankfully she tends to pick the red ones only because they are much more juicier

Chomping away on tomatoes. (Don't judge from the picture, I swear she isn't neglected but it was one of those days Sophie crawled around in her diaper for half the day and her hair was a mop in her face)

Pickin' it right off the vine. We teach them how to work early in our house:)

In it goes....YUM

I'm glad there is finally food for Sophie to munch on out in the garden. Before we had a harvest, she was always out shoveling rocks and dirt into her mouth. I'm glad she has found something nutritious.

Double Ear Infection

2011-09-30T00:54:00.000-07:00

Okay...I have to document the pain I have been in so that I can not forget down the road and I can be more empathetic with my kids. I have been diagnosed with a double ear infection and OUCH!!! IT HURTS! I can't function that well and my whole head feels like it's going to explode with pressure. Sometimes, I haven't understood my poor kiddos and their fussiness from their ears; now I understand.

Not a picture of one of my babies, but a note to myself that when they feel crummy like this, I need to cuddle them up, drug them up, and have pity on them

Clowning Around

2011-09-29T23:11:00.000-07:00

We've managed to have a little bit of a break and some fun here this fall. I just wanted to post some cute pics of the girls since it's been awhile.

Allie just makes me smile....she is just such a happy easy going girl and I relate to this girl so much!

This girl on the other hand cracks me up because she is so serious. She is opening up though as her little personality develops. We love her so much!!! She keeps me on my toes because I never know what the heck she is going to be getting into and where she is going to be if I take my eyes off of her.

I do know, Sophie loves to go anywhere where her big sis Allie is even if it's climbing up a flight of stairs. She now knows how to get herself back down those stairs too, which is great.

Consignment and Canning

2011-09-26T23:13:00.000-07:00

Seriously, where did the month of September go to? I can't believe it's the end of the month and what in the world have we been up to? Well, me and Katie (my sister-in-law) had our semi annual children's consignment sale- Boise Kidsignments- and that always takes up a good two weeks of my life. The sale is so worth my time and so much fun. Don't talk to the boys, they are set-up and take-down committee, and I think they have different feelings about the sale. I sure do appreciate them though! I end up walking out with a lot of good finds from the weekend as well as purging myself from things at my house. I love seeing all of our consignors and the familiar shoppers that return ever time

We hold the venue inside of a church in downtown Boise; it's such a great set-up but we seem to be busting at the seems for more room. Since we have taken over the sale from our friends we have implemented Credit Card Machines and this sale was our first at trying out a bar code system for the tagging process. I think we are done with the improvements for awhile. I feel up to par now:)

Once the sale stuff was wrapped up it was due time for canning; cucumbers, tomatoes and peaches were all ready. Here was my process: jars washed, sugar water made, food prepped and canned, jars sealed, jars washed off, put away under the stairs, kitchen cleaned, floors mopped and re-mopped, check, check, check

I bottled up Cucumbers for the first time this year with my friend Kelly. Katie and I bottled peaches once again, we are hoping we get a break next year:) I've been canning tomatoes from the garden every time I get a batch to build my stock for the winter. Blake is promising me he'll Salsa it up with me:) After we finish up all this Salsa I think I'm calling it good and settling in for winter.

Sophie 10 months

2011-09-15T03:06:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that you are almost 1; I hate that my baby is getting bigger. I am loosing my baby and I need another one around for me to love on!

You still LOVE food and you eat like a horse; no joke. You usually consume about what I eat whether it be a sandwich, 1/2 of a chicken breast, anything. One thing that drives me NUTS is you scream when your tray is empty. You shovel food in so fast that I really don't have time to eat until you are done. I'll put food on your tray, walk away to get something prepared for Allie or myself and then your food is gone in seconds and you are screaming at me. We are working on learning the sign for PLEASE

Some of your favorite things to do this month are open cupboards and UNLOAD. Oh the dreaded "unload phase" whether it be cupboards, trashcans, you name it

You are also climbing up on everything...we've got another climber around here

You also LOVE toilet paper. I don't recall Allie doing this, but you will crawl over to the roll on the wall and unroll the whole thing and just pick apart the paper into tiny pieces. Oh what a mess!

As you can tell you love a lot of things in the bathroom. One other thing you are infatuated with is the toilet. You love to splash in the water and one new thing that you started this month is loading things into the toilet. I have found stuffed animals, hair accessories, and paper products. One of these days we are going to try and flush without looking and you are going to clog thing up.

Can't believe I got this expression on camera. You absolutely HATE your bath. I guess I've traumatized you when you get the water poured on you to rinse out your hair. You freak out when you are put into the tub. I've tried to lately just let you play and have fun before dousing you with water, but you are still not to fond

Lately you've just been trying to escape on me. One of these days you are going to do it

Trying to lay back in the tub with sissy. I am trying to teach you signs, but you have been unsuccessful with learning them; you are one funny kid. I will sign the word "thank you" and say the word with the sign. You look at me and just say "dank do." Seriously me and daddy were laughing about it. You are to little to be talking back to us. Words that you have copied so far are kitty, daddy, boo, thank you and of course piggy. You are so fun and I love how we get to watch you learn so many fun things!

1st day of school-Tiny Hands

2011-09-09T08:00:00.000-07:00

Allie was thrilled to be FINALLY be going to school. All of the neighborhood kids had already started and all her playmates were gone. I had left to get in an early workout at the gym this morning and when I got home dad had told me you woke up at 7 am.. You immediately got dressed in your back to school outfit you had picked out the night before and were ready to go. I had bought the apple outfit years ago in anticipation of you wearing it to Kindergarten so I was thrilled beyond thrilled when you wanted to wear it for your 1st day of preschool:)

Mom and dad decided on holding you back this year; not at all for social, educational, or any of those reasons. You would have excelled just fine in Kindergarten, but we were selfish and we figured if we could have you one more year at home, that would essentially give us one more year before you had to leave for college:) Sophie would be thrilled to have you around for one more year to play with her too.

We are trying out a new preschool called Tiny Hands. We absolutely loved our preschool last year but decided to switch things up for this year. We don't know anyone but it sounds like there is a whole lot of fun that happens. Once a month the preschool goes on a field trip and once a month they have a day in the kitchen where they are baking. There are 7 girls and 3 boys so I know there will be some good friendships made. Good luck sweet girl!

You had told me you wanted your picture by the front door

By the school table

Out front....seriously did we really take this many pictures in all these places last year

One more goofy one before you have to sit down and be serious

Labor Day

2011-09-03T14:16:00.000-07:00

What a long post for a long weekend. For Labor Day Weekend we headed up to McCall with the Hansen Family. The point of our trip was to drive up to Grandma Susan's plane crash site. It had been 10 years since anyone had gone up there, so we wanted to take the long weekend to make the trip in. We first started by going to the cabin and spending the night so we could wake up and leave to the crash site, getting a few hours head start

Getting ready for the trip in. The boys had estimated it being a 2 hour car trip in

4 HOURS and BUMPY BUMPY roads in we finally made it. We had to take in the SUV, Trucks, and the Jeep because the roads were so bad. Sophie was not to thrilled to be bounced around in the jeep for that long.

The memorial rock that was brought into the crash site years ago

Grandma Susan's grand kids (minus Sophie) who was sleeping in the car

Kind of crazy that to this day there are plane pieces still strewn all over the meadow where the plane crashed. Every time people make it in they see how many pieces they can find and place them all at the memorial

Our little family

Pieces that we had found that morning

I had to bust out some new tricks to entertain Sophie because she was not thrilled we were back in the car seat #1, and also back on the bumpy road. The first new trick she learned was that when I asked her "how big is Sophie,' she puts her arms up in the air while I say, "SO BIG."

I also started to hide her piggy from her and I would put my hands up and say "where'd piggy go?" Sophie thought this was hilarious and started to turn her hand up looking for piggy. Love this little girl and the 8 hours of fun we had in the car:)

At least we made it back in time to cheer on the Broncos for their opening game that night

Sophie sporting her Bronco attire this season

The kids all slept out in the tent 2 of the nights we were up at the cabin

Allie wanted daddy to sleep outside with her, so he got to join in on the fun

On Sunday we drove up to the fire look out. We had a great view of Valley County

Allie braved the stinky port-a-potty

Sophie is such a big girl and figured out how to drink the water out of my water bottle

Love my blue eyed baby

Sophie had a blow-out up at the fire lookout, hence the naked baby. She was ticked to be back in the car on Sunday following our long day on Saturday

On Labor Day we were able to enjoy some nice weather and made it out to play on the lake

The kids enjoyed building sand castles

Relaxing in the hot tub. Sophie wasn't a fan of the hot tub

Blake and I did some surfing

Allie enjoying a boat ride, not so much for Sophie; she once again didn't want to be in a life vest. This girl beats to her own drum and likes to do what she wants to do, but we LOVE her

Princess Allie

2011-09-02T17:00:00.000-07:00

Allie got a cute Snow White costume in the mail today from her cousin; the costume immediately came out of of the package and went onto Allie. I can just see Allie's future of being a Disneyland princess. She is such a gorgeous girl and Sophie isn't quite sure what has happened to Allie.

Love these girls!

Spirit of Boise

2011-09-02T08:17:00.000-07:00

Well my family thought I was joking when I told them we were waking up at 6:30 am to head to the balloon launch, especially since we had a late night the night before. Well, I wasn't kidding and got every one up and moving. We had previously been to the Night Glow the year before but I wanted to actually see the balloons launch this year. It was such a fun experience and well worth the early morning. We got to be right next to tons of balloons as they inflated and then took off to soar through the sky.

Allie bundled up for the cold morning

A few family shots

Daddy and his girls

Allie and the USA balloon

We went and stood next to a few different balloons as they loaded up the baskets with the pilots and then took off right above us. One cute old man was blowing bubbles at us during take off

It was so much fun to see all the balloons soaring right above us. A majority of the balloons stayed right in the park which was so fun

Sophie absolutely loved the balloons, especially when they were up in the sky

Mommy and the girls

Lastly, there was Allie's favorite which was so fun to watch it blow up

M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E!!!

Allie's Rock Star Family Party

2011-08-27T22:20:00.000-07:00

In lieu of having a friends birthday, we invited the extended family over to enjoy some yummy cake. Allie wanted a rock star party so here is our attempt at making a guitar for the rock star. The cake was vanilla with a strawberry filling and frosting

The final product

Birthday Pics of the birthday girl before the family arrived

Blowing out the candles and making a wish

Had to get a few little "rock star" party favors for the birthday girl and cousins. I think they make great future Rock Stars or maybe Halloween costumes (Allie is wanting to be a rock star for Halloween)

Dirty Dash

2011-08-27T14:00:00.000-07:00

Blake, me and some friends in our ward were part of a team for a race called the Dirty Dash. I was very excited about it up until the day before. I got a little nervous about doing a team race where you are supposed to finish together and I wasn't quite sure what to expect. I had heard a few things here and there about the race, but wanted to know the low down.

Well we got up there and started out by running a short distance before we were stuck in a traffic jam waiting for the first obstacle; jumping hay bails. We jumped probably 1/2 dozen hay bails which seemed to get taller and taller as the course went on. We jogged for a bit and then we were met by cement tunnels whose bottoms were caked in mud; can't go around it, can't go on top of it....have to go through it:) This began our muddy adventure. Some of the obstacles that followed were jumping through lines of tires in the mud, scaling ladders, jumping over hurdles and then there was the final hill up to the water slide. After the water slide we were met by a large pool of mud that we swam through before crossing the finish line.

Due to the course being in the mountains, we only had a photographer at the end. I was so touched that my husband put up with me through the entire race. He pushed me when I needed to be pushed, he encouraged me when I needed it and we finished together. This was us going up the final hill which led to a giant water slide.....so much fun!

Blake in the blue....swimming through the pool of MUD

You can't see Blake here, only a piece of his head poking up, but he literally swam the last piece with his head in and all

Just crossed the finish line

Such a fun race....so glad that we were able to do it together

Check out Blake's side photo-he looks like Frankenstein

Team photo

Allie Turns 5!

2011-08-26T23:59:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Baby Girl!!! I can't believe that you are turning 5, but we have had lots of fun packed into those 5 years. Your big day had arrived and we had planned to just lay low and do have a family day instead of throwing you a party

For breakfast you wanted to go and get a bagel with cream cheese, so we decided to have the cousins meet us along with our neighbor Macy

For dinner we wanted to celebrate as a family and go somewhere fun. We had heard about Donny Mac's but had never been so we decided to try it out

We were lucky enough to get there as another family was leaving the car, so we took there place. There is one car in the middle of the restaurant that they remodeled and put a table inside of so that people can eat in it.

Allie and daddy

Me and Soph....it was a little tricky eating in the car without a high chair and having to hold onto the wiggle worm, but we did it

After dinner we took Allie to Wahooz where she got to do anything FREE for her birthday

She first wanted to go into Kiddie Cove

Swinging around

Next, she went and rode the go-karts with dad

Sophie has been standing all by herself lately. She loved watching the cars go round and round until she found some rocks to eat.

The final activity of the night was a round of mini golf

It had been quite a long time since Allie had golfed and now she is at the age where she actually gets it and had such a fun time playing

Happy Birthday sweet girl. It was so fun to spend such a great day with you and celebrate having you in our family! We love you!!!

I Looked Out The Window

2011-08-25T19:59:00.001-07:00

I looked out the window and what did I see? NO, not popcorn popping, but kids scaling the fence! Really??? Who does this; I guess my daughter and the neighbor girls and they are GIRLS, not boys. I had to just sit and watch and listen on my porch unnoticed for a little bit to see what the heck these kids were doing and saying to each other.

They had a plan to go around all 4 sides of the yard like this

I watched and giggled for awhile as I listened to them trying to figure out how to get down, how their bums were starting to hurt; and then for the sake of me not wanting to buy a new fence nor pay a hospital bill for my child coming down with the fence, I had the girls get down.

One last photo of the girls before exiting off the fence. Oh girls...time to go and play house:)

Western Idaho Fair

2011-08-25T00:21:00.000-07:00

It's that time again, time for the annual Idaho State Fair!!! I love the fair and get so excited when it comes around every year. I guess I grew up going to the fair when I was little so it only seems natural to keep going. Blake on the other hand can't handle the fair so after dragging him year after year with us, he kindly suggested we go during the day with other friends whose husbands don't want to go. Easy enough at this stage in our life that's just what we did; Allie and I even picked up Natalie to join us. We ended up meeting the Johnson's down there and between her and I we had 9 kids. We fit right in as the circus act at the fair :)

Allie loves feeding the animals. Guess she's an all natural compared to the Johnson's; they were petrified of feeding the animals and were cracking me up

Allie and Natalie loved and enjoyed the goats

Brushing the cows. The petting zoo is always fun because it's so interactive for the kids. Loved how it was

not very crowded the day that we went

Sophie got up close and personal with some goats; even got a few kisses from them

My friend and I fell in love with some cow girl hats and wanted to buy them for all the girls. The sad part was the hats cost $20 a piece, so we decided to grab pictures of the girls to remember how cute they were

There was a butterfly house at the fair this year and it was so much fun. They had little q-tips that you could dip in nectar to feed the butterflies. Did you know that butterflies taste with their feet? Learned something new at the Idaho Fair this year:)

One butterfly landed right on Allie's dress and Allie became a butterfly rescue hero by getting one picked up off the floor

We took a lunch break mid-day and the girls enjoyed getting cooled off from the ginormous fan

As tradition stands, Allie got to pick one ride to go on. She ended up picking out these boats that went around in the water....really not to exciting kid but heck you had fun! Another great year, great food, and great friends enjoyed at the fair.

Soccer

2011-08-23T19:58:00.000-07:00

We've got a soccer player in the house. Blake is very excited to have Allie in soccer. He loves working with her in the backyard and is so excited to watch her play. Me and Sophie on the other hand, enjoy being a sideline cheerleader learning the rules of soccer. I enjoy having Allie in soccer because then I can actually learn the rules of the game and start to understand Blake's soccer games a little more.

Allie ready to head to her first practice

Coach Del telling them the drill

Learning to run and kick the ball

A fun game the team played at the end was "crab and mermaid." The coach was the crab and all the kids were the mermaids trying to run by him and kick their ball into the goal. Then the next round all the kids wanted to be crabs with Coach Del; so fun! I guess learning to play soccer at this age is just a bunch of games.

Movie In The Park

2011-08-19T19:57:00.000-07:00

Dad was gone for the night so we decided to meet some friends at the park for Friday night movie in the park. It was on our list to do for the summer and it was a great girly movie-Ramona and Beezus. Allie and I both enjoy making caramel popcorn and watching the movie on the big screen. We've started a great tradition!

Lounging on the blanket. We got there early to get some good seats and have a pizza party with our friends

Sophie thought this was all fun and games until she was ready for bed 1/2 way into the movie. She finally gave up the fight and snuggled into me to fall asleep.

Two girls ready for the show-Lights-Camera-Action

Traiathalon

2011-08-17T19:59:00.000-07:00

How is it that my little 4 year old can say that she has done a triathlon and neither of her parents have. We had heard about the Splash, Pedal, and Dash last summer and wanted to try it out this summer. It was a 3/4 mile bike around the speedway track, a 1/3 mile run, and the swim was a slide down the giant water slide.

This was intense for a little kids race. They marked both of their arms and one of their calves so that they could tell which number was crossing the finish line. Still confused why they couldn't look at the kids race bibs, but I guess it makes them look tuff

Cousins Cam and Brynn joined in on the fun

Cam and Allie showing off their numbers....go #23 and #21

When we first got to the race and checked in they tattooed the kids arms and checked over their bikes. All the tires got blown up to maximum capacity so they were ready to race

Allie is lined up with the 5-6 year olds. She wanted to race with the older group since she is just shy of being 5!

On your mark.....get set.....GO!!!

On the speedway cruising around, we've done this once before but it was with training wheels.

Off to a sprint. Blake ran beside Allie during the run with Sophie and the video camera in tow

Crossing through the finish line and racing to get to the water slide

Helping Allie transition into her swimsuit...I accidentally pinned her bib number through her suit so we couldn't just whip off the tank:)

The finale down the water slide

All that hard work paid off for a medal, ice cream, and a cookie. Way to go girl!!! I am so proud of you. You put all your effort into this little race and we didn't hear a single complaint from you the whole time. Hope you enjoy that feeling of accomplishment after working so hard. You did GREAT!!!

9 MONTHS

2011-08-15T14:58:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that you are growing up so fast....only a few more months and my baby is going to be 1. Here's a few things you were up to this last month

The day after you turned 8 months you started to pull yourself up. I caught you in the bathroom standing at the toilet with your hands splashing in the water.
You are also at the phase where you pull yourself up in your crib and bounce around like crazy. It takes you awhile how to get yourself to sleep.
CLIMBER....climbing the stairs, climbing up the lawn chairs at the water park....anything that you can climb, you do it and you are so fast. Just the other day you were playing in the family room and literally seconds later I walked over to see where you went. You were already on the second flight of stairs.
You absolutely love the cat food which drives me INSANE. I have been trying to teach you "uh-oh", "yuk-yuk" anything to associate how you aren't supposed to touch the cat food. You are just to young to get this and so to keep me sane, so I can accomplish something, I put the cat food up on the counter. Eventually you are going to learn and won't want to eat the cat food.
MOBILE MOBILE MOBILE-See the nice picture below and you will know that you are on the move

You met the concrete at the water park and received your two abrasions to your left eye. The cat scratched you on your right cheek, and thirdly you had a large mosquito bit to your right forehead. We showed up to church on Sunday and I was sure someone was going to turn me in. Love you baby girl!

Yellowstone Adentures-Final Day-Yellowstone Falls

2011-08-06T23:24:00.000-07:00

The final day of our vacation we headed back into Yellowstone Park. We ended up going to the Lower Falls in Canyon Village, down through Hayden Valley and continuing down to the Lake.

We started off by saying farewell to the Givens clan who had to leave early-one more cousin pic

We made our way 3/8 of a mile down to the top of the Lower Falls.

It was well worth the hike. We were literally on top of the falls when we stood on the lower deck (seen in the picture below) and it almost made me sick-which says a ton. If the deck would have collapsed we would have been going down the falls

A view down the canyon from the upper deck

Next stop was the Mud Volcano, which is one of my favorites

We took the 1 mile loop around the boardwalk to check out all the bubbly, bubbly

The Dragon's Mouth I believe was the name of this one

We ran into a few more buffalo driving through Hayden Valley

After arriving back to the cabin and eating some dinner we headed out to fish one last time

We hiked down a canyon to the river and this beautiful fishing spot

Sophie made it down so she could enjoy relaxing with us

Warren really loved fishing-he was so patient which is hard to be when you are little

Such awesome scenery. I LOVE Idaho!!!

Well unfortunately the trip had to come to an end. We headed back home Sunday morning and made a stop for some lunch in Arco, Idaho. Fortunately every place in the county is closed except for Pickle's Place so we got to stop and enjoy lunch

After filling up with lunch we jumped over to Crater's of The Moon. I can't believe I am a native Idahoan who has never been to Crater's of the Moon. The only downfall to going here was my camera batteries were dead so all pictures were taken off the I-Phone

I was thrilled to learn there were caves to explore

We grabbed flashlights, strapped Sophie on and were ready for spelunking. So many fond memories of caving at Rick's College and so glad to be at it again with kids; only difference is a little bit more anxiety now

There were three caves that we went and explored-Blake's Beauty's by the Beauty cave. Definitely want to hit up Crater's of the Moon again and explore some more. It was a great ending to a wonderful vacation!

Yellowstone Adventures-Day 3

2011-08-05T23:21:00.000-07:00

After spending two days in Yellowstone Park, we thought we'd take a day off and stay in Island Park exploring all the things there were to do there.

The family sleeping comfortably in the full bed-can you see the spot where my body was lying-we were not expecting the children to join us in bed so we were just a little tight.

Who's the dum-dum.....cousins enjoying their suckers

The first stop on our agenda for the morning was Mesa Falls. Definitely worth the stop!

Family photo with the falls

It was so cool to see the rainbow shining off of the mist and I also loved the lush green vegetation growing on the rocks

Allie and Cam being silly

Daddy and Sophie outside of Big Falls Inn

Cousins

Cute Sophie

After lunch the kiddos busted out a paper airplane kit to work on

Sophie and Seth were quite the little buddies-only a year apart and they each thought the other was quite interesting

Later on in the afternoon we headed off to check out Quake Lake

The girls were the best with Sophie. She is not a big fan of sleeping anywhere but her bed and would get rather fussy in her car seat when she was tired, but wouldn't fall asleep. Cousin Jane road with us a few times and has a great little voice for being 8. She would sing to Sophie until she would fall asleep. Allie eventually chimed in to sing with Jane.

One of our favorite places ever was Harrimon State Park. The Park was owned by a well to do family back in the early 1900's and they donated the land to the State in the 1970's. It was so pretty there-what a dream it would be to own a ranch like this!

Allie tells me they were riding a horse

A beautiful view of the Teton Mountains

Allie and Blake on the trail. We took a little one mile loop walk around the park and Allie was a little frightened about stopping on the trail. It was getting dark out and Allie didn't want to encounter a bear. What a great day we had in Island Park!

Yellowstone Adventures-Day 2

2011-08-04T23:17:00.000-07:00

Today was probably my favorite day of all. We had a lazy morning at the cabin and then headed off to Yellowstone after lunch time. The afternoon and evening in the park was my favorite and we found our new favorite spot in the park-Lamar Valley

Jane, Brynn, and Allie

Matching hair for the day

Lucy and Seth felt a little left out so they jumped into the photo

Fun times with the cousins at the cabin

First stop in the park was Gibbon Falls. I'm absolutely awe struck by waterfalls-LOVE them!

Next, off to Norris Geyser Basin

Allie keeping me entertained along the boardwalk

Hoping everyone stays on the boardwalk at this attraction. There were hot thermal pools right off to the sides of this one

Love the bright colors in the pools

Cousin Pic

Of course a silly one

On our drive to Mammoth Hot Springs we got caught up in traffic. Everyone was stopped to check out the rack on this elk-HUGE

These girls all had a great time together. Hanging out at Mammoth Hot Springs

Soph and daddy

A little bum shaking by Allie and Cam along the way

After Mammoth Hot Springs we headed off to eat dinner at Tower Falls. At dinner we ran into a park employee who had recommended heading over to Lamar Valley to experience some wild life, including the hundreds of buffalo that roam the valley. Blake and I had read about this valley before the trip and were glad to hear another good review

This buffalo was down with the heard and started to make his way up the side of the road. He was heading right towards us and actually walked right passed the passenger side of the car. I was so scared, I crawled to the middle of the car and I didn't get a picture of him right next to my window

The buffalo kept trudging forward and made his way up to Scott and Jenny's van. Luckily he left us all alone and continued on his journey. It was such a fun evening getting so close to all the buffalo. Well worth the drive to the North East part of the park. We will be back to visit Lamar Valley.

Yellowstone Adventures-Day 1

2011-08-03T23:13:00.000-07:00

We love Yellowstone and were so excited to be back here with our little family. This year we met up with Blake's siblings and rented a cabin in Island Park.

The first day we headed over to the Upper and Lower Geyser Basin. First stop was Firehole Falls along the way.

Stopping for lunch before heading down to Old Faithful. The girl cousins having a great time.

Waiting for Old Faithful to erupt. The kids did a great job of patiently waiting because there were many false alarms during our 20 minute waiting period.

We had a horrible viewing spot for Old Faithful-we mostly saw steam-but here's to our family photo in front of Old Faithful just to say we went there

So far Sophie was being a good traveler, but it's only day 1

We ran into some elk as we were leaving the park. The first wild life of the day; I was a little bummed we didn't see any buffalo

After dinner we headed out to do some fishing with dad on the river

Cousin Photo

Allie is always a good sport and willing to pose so I can play around with the camera.

This girl on the other hand is always on the move. We had a great first day relaxing on our vacation.

Littles Trip-Final Chapter

2011-07-31T20:51:00.000-07:00

Our final days with the Little's were spent around a lot of water;
splash pads, the pool, and a stream.

Saturday we headed down to the Saturday market and afterwards had fun playing in the fountain down on the Grove

Later into the evening we headed over to the neighborhood pool to enjoy the heat of the night which tipped up to 100 degrees. There were thunderstorms blowing in so everyone ended up leaving the pool and we had it all to ourselves

Papa treated us all to some yummy U-Swirl after swimming

Hanging out on the fun couches

Sophie enjoyed my ice cream until it was gone and then she just kept chewing on the spoon hoping she would have a bite on there

Sunday we had plans to go to the park and race boats in the creek after dinner. While we got dinner ready I had my dad help the kids make their Juice Box Boats

The kids had fun decorating their boats with Papa and getting them ready for the race

Allie's pink boat ready for the races

Everyone with their boats-minus Adam-who didn't want to get his boat wet

The girls loved running along side the creek watching the boats to see who's was getting hung up in the trees and who's was in the lead

The girls finding their boats at the end. The girls loved racing their boats; I think they raced their boats 5 times with Grandma Deb

Racing neck and neck to the end

After boat racing we played for awhile in the park before another thunderstorm rolled in. The girls loved hanging out in the grass and trees before we had to pack up and head home. We always love when the Little's come and we get to play, play, play. So sad the another time had come to an end and I had to get back to reality; until next year!

Little's Chapter 4-Birthday and Rafting

2011-07-29T20:42:00.000-07:00

Well the day officially arrived; my 30th birthday! I wanted to go rafting but due to some scheduling issues we postponed the raft trip until the day after my birthday. The day of my birthday my sister and I hit up a decorating store in the morning and then headed out to lunch. After dinner-grilled veggies and shish-kabobs- we headed to PoJo's to use up a Groupon. We all had a good time, I love PoJo's. Also another fond memory of mine from when I was younger.

Papa and the grandkids

The grandkids

Allie enjoying a ride on Snoopy at PoJo's

I thought this game was hilarious; only in Idaho. The kids had to milk Bessie the cow to win their tickets

Happy 30th to me! I made myself an Oreo crusted, mint icecream cake-all my favorites

Story time with Papa and Grandma

Friday, the 29th, we headed out to Swirly Canyon to raft with the family

Luckily this stretch of the river is kid friendly so Sophie headed out on her first raft trip

Dad and the girls....Ainsley and Allie. Ains just loved being up at the front with Blake

Allie girl a little nervous about her first raft trip this year

Beautiful views of Idaho

Blake guiding us down river

Me and my girls

Sophie just loved standing up in the boat and watching the river water along side of us

Love the face Soph! We were glad to safely arrive at the end after loosing 3 pairs of sunglasses, a hat, and a flip flop after my sister and dad tipped out of the raft. It's always an adventure when you go, you never know what you are going to experience. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!

Little's Chapter 3-Lemonade Stand

2011-07-27T17:32:00.000-07:00

One of the things on our summer to-do list was to have a lemonade stand. I loved having these as a kid and thought it would be a perfect time to do it when the kids were here. All of the extra hands would be needed in getting what I had envisioned all ready

Adam getting one of the signs ready

I put the girls to work counting and bagging up lemon heads

Ainsley and Grandma Barb were making the Rice Krispie treats. I figured we couldn't just sell lemonade. Most people want a little treat to go along with their drink, right?

The crew with their finished signs. Hopefully everyone LOVES the kids' artistic talents that were displayed nicely on their signs

The finished goods

Everything set up and ready to go

Trying to flag down customers. My favorite part; watching the kids run around with their signs and hollering for someone to stop and buy something. They actually won over the Fed Ex man.

We ran out of goodies and ran back to the house about 5 times to make more lemonade during the 2 hours the lemonade stand was open. The kids were anxious to see what they had made in money. After paying me back for the groceries they each ended up with $5, which for a kid is a lot of money; that's why they had to pay me grocery money because without that they would have made a killing. Until next summer's lemonade stand ....

Little's Chapter 2-Water Park and Fishing

2011-07-26T17:30:00.000-07:00

After a relaxing weekend we headed out to Roaring Spring on Monday. Our weather forecast was 98 degrees and I don't know if people steer away from the park when it's hot, but we had a nice day at the uncrowded water park

This monkey takes after her sister.; she is constantly on the move. She loved climbing the slats on the lounge chair

Lovin' her view of the freeway

After our hot day of swimming, we headed off for some yummy frozen yogurt at Maverick

Enjoying yogurt and slushes

Didn't know that pay phones still existed in our world of cell phones. The kids thought this phone booth was pretty funny

Enjoying more time over at the school

Papa goofing around

We also had a great day of fishing with Papa

The girls examining their bate...the worms and learning how to put them on their rod

Allie patiently waiting for a bite. Fishing is a little hard for kids; Allie didn't wait to long before she needed a break and had to get up and run around.

I took over a few times. I love fishing; it brought back many fond memories of my childhood watching my own little girl casting out with her fishing pole.

Sophie had a great time waiting under the shade of a tree

Littles Chapter 1-Rodeo and Relaxing

2011-07-24T17:27:00.000-07:00

My sister and the kids arrived for the their annual Boise Summer Trip. We have lots in store for our fun filled week together.

I put Allie and the neighbor kids to work making a sign to welcome the crew

We got some great seats at the rodeo and headed off shortly after the Little's arrived

One of my favorite parts of the rodeo...the lights go out and the colored horses and riders put on a quick show

Little Cowgirl

Nothing like being at a rodeo with your cowgirl hat and Pepsi in hand

Over the weekend we enjoyed hanging around the house....jumping with the sprinkler under the tramp

Sophie is lovin' Papa's mustache these days

Sophie is so funny lately. She absolutely HATES doing her army crawl across the concrete. She hasn't quite figured out the crawling motion yet so she just pushes herself up and holds this position for a bit

We spent quite a bit of time over at the school

Playing on the monkey bars

Climbing up the monkey bars

Sophie monkeying around. Sophie was cheering on the Adam and Ainsley as they learned how to ride their bikes over the first few days

Allie, Josie, Peighton, Ainsley. These girls loved riding around the school track and riding through the sprinklers

Girls Trip 2011

2011-07-16T14:55:00.000-07:00

It was time for another annual girl's trip. My high school friends and I coordinated a "Boise Trip" this year. Everyone was coming home to visit family and so we reserved a few days for everyone to leave behind family and children to hang out at the cabin. We packed up food, crafts, the ladies, and a few babies.

Sophie and Maggie made the cut for the girls trip....two cute babies

The ladies hard at work....getting the evil eye for taking the photo

The big stack of triangles ready for the banners. We ended up making flowers, 14 bunting banners, and a few other odds and ends projects. It was so nice to get out the craft stuff and hit it hard for a few days.

Practicing for my days with twins:)

Sophie learned how to pull herself up on this trip which has proved itself fatal already. I already have caught her in the bathroom standing at the toilet splashing in the water and standing in the crib ready to jump ship

8 MONTHS!

2011-07-15T15:27:00.000-07:00

What you've been up to lately

You are on the MOVE. You are officially an army crawler and getting wherever you want to go. You are also standing at your activity table for quite some time. I have caught you letting go and just standing by yourself in the middle of the room.
You have had some cranky fussy spells lately; I have a hunch that you might be teething. You have been waking up on sporadic nights during the week and you will just scream. You won't nurse or take the binky. It's made for some fun nights for me:)
Whenever you see Max you spit. It's the funniest thing ever!!! You are spitting a lot of other time too, but Max will always initiate a spit from you. Because you are on the move, you have crawled after Max a number of times. If you bug the cat to much, he lets you know and playfully fights with you. On one occasion you got a small scratch on the face from him.

American Cutie

Always trying to move and get out of whatever is restraining you. Everyone has commented on how much you move lately. Y staff workers, people at church, the store. No one can believe that you are constantly wiggling, jumping, and bouncing, in my arms. Glad people are aware of how much you wear me out some times.

No that you are on the move watch out. Allie had built a big tower and you knocked the tower over in one swift motion. I love Allie's face in this picture....she was shocked you came from afar and destroyed quickly!

You and Allie are the best of buds

Sophie Asleep WHERE???

2011-07-13T15:28:00.001-07:00

You have always been a girl who loves your bed. You have a special pig that's in your bed that you just snuggle up with and go to sleep. Other than your bed you will occasionally fall asleep in your car seat, but for the most part you are too busy to fall sleep anywhere. Today I was getting lunch ready and set you in the family room with your sippy cup full of juice. Allie hollered over to me shortly after setting you on the floor that you were asleep. Sure enough I looked over and you weren't moving. In the middle of the carpet, in the midst of lots of action...ASLEEP

Guess you were really tired....you even stayed asleep as I transferred you up to bed

Eating The Cat Food-YUCK!

2011-07-05T23:12:00.002-07:00

Well it's official, we caught Sophie eating cat food. Blake and I had ran outside to do a few things in the backyard. We left Sophie inside with Allie and some toys and thought she'd be entertained. I knew in the back of my mind that she has been on the move....but I just didn't think that she was that fast. Well she is FAST. We were out in the back yard for just a few when Blake wanted me to go inside and check on her. I was welcomed to Sophie lying on her tummy playing in the cat dishes. She had cat food pieces dissolving on her face, one hand shoving more into her mouth and the other hand splashing in the water dish. She reeked like cat food, I immediately made her drink juice and doused her in the bath tub water.

Innocent little Miss in the moment

4th of July

2011-07-04T23:12:00.000-07:00

We headed up to the cabin for some fun in the sun, the water, and with the family. Here's a recap of our adventures from the weekend.

Me and my baby girl; she's growing way to fast

Max got an infection in his eye and required drops every 12 hours, so we couldn't leave him home. I know, twist my arm, we ended up bringing him up to the cabin with us. It was his first trip and he LOVED it.

The Fire Master.....cooking our dinners out in the fire Friday night

Tin foil dinners cooking on their coals....YUM

Blake was showing us how you could place Rhodes rolls right into the coals to cook. Then Rod had an idea to roll the roll dough onto a stick and roast it. Oh my gosh....best thing ever!!! We loved them so much Blake went to the store and bought more rolls for another round

We had a visitor in the tree; always lots of bats up at the cabin

Love me my hammock....I love having my hammock set up to relax in, I could spend hours in it

Saturday we had lots of playing outside; bike rides, swimming, hot tubing. I love having no schedule and just relaxing

We've been helping Allie learn to ride her bike without the training wheels. She loved riding in the wide open spaces up at the cabin

Sophie sporting some great bed head

Who says you can't swim in the hot tub on a hot day, all the kids enjoyed swimming in the hot tub all day long

Roasting more bread sticks and s'mores on Saturday night

I had to take a picture of the BEST s'more I have have ever made. It was golden all around and oozed out from my graham cracker and it was DELICIOUS!

More hot tub time late at night

Sunday we went into town for church, hung around, watched fireworks on the lake and had our own fireworks display

The girls all made microphones and were loving putting on concerts

Sunday night we drove into Cascade to watch the fire works on the lake

Blake had to savor the moment. Sophie is not a snuggler and she fell asleep in his lap on the way to the fireworks. He was in heaven so I had to keep getting shots of the two of them

Watching the fireworks right over us...so fun

Monday morning we packed up and headed back to Boise to celebrate the 4th. So grateful to live in the USA and have all the freedoms that we have....so blessed

Ultimate Urban Challenge

2011-06-25T22:46:00.000-07:00

We had an awesome opportunity to participate in a bike race through the streets of downtown Boise. The Make-A-Wish foundation is heavily involved with the cancer kids at the hospital. I have been at work many times when a representative was there to meet with the kids to discuss their "WISH." It's nice to see these kids become so excited about something so little, simple, and FUN that they get to look forward to and experience.

Last year the Make-A-Wish started a charitable event which helps raise money for the Boise chapter. I heard about this event after it had happened last year and decided to round up a group to complete it with this year. So, I rounded up my husband and the Givens. You compete as a team of four and bike across Boise completing challenges; kind of similar to how Amazing Race works, but on a smaller scale. The kicker is that the bike is your mode of transportation through the entire race.

There is a costume contest and we were the Superheroes; I figured it would be easy to outfit us with that theme. My good sported husband reluctantly complied and wore his cape. Thanks Batman!

The Batman Crew

The Superheroes....and some random guy who wanted a picture with us. Our 1st challenge started out in the Boise State Practice Field. We had to play leap frog over each other across the field, then run back and help one of our blindfolded team mates put together a puzzle. We took off from here to the streets of downtown Boise.

Challenge 2-We all had to run in place with an pedometer on us and burn so many calories collectively

Challenge 3-We biked to the BSU Gymnastics Center where we had to complete some balancing acts, somersaults, cartwheels, etc.

Challenge 4-We got hung up with all the other groups trying to find the location of the Roller Derby. They had moved their location and forgot to update us . We finally arrived and had the best time playing Roller Derby with the Derby Girls. Blake excelled and helps us win really fast.

Challenge 5-We headed off to the rock climbing wall and had to rock climb horizontally across the wall without touching the ground. I think this was almost harder than climbing straight up the wall.

Challenge 6- I was actually glad to be completing this challenge which was chugging a can of 7-up. Prior to arriving we biked up 4 miles of the Bogus Basin hill. Considering I am not an avid biker, this was a killer for me. I told myself I wasn't getting off my bike to walk it up the hill and I did just that; I pedaled myself slowly and made it to the pit-stop

Challenge 7-We cruised back down the hill and over to a park where each of the couples had to saw off a chunk of a log. It was an old fashioned saw and took some work to make our way through the wood.

If you barely held on it worked a lot easier

Throughout the race they had pictures of the six local kids we were raising money for

Challenge 8-Blake wore a kilt and we had to take turns rolling a ball down a field. The ball could not go outside of the lines they had marked on the ground

Slow and steady got us through this challenge

Challenge 9-Each team mate got to shoot 8 arrows. We had to collectively get the arrow onto the yellow or red areas on the target 4 different times

Superman assisting Batman

Luckily the boys collectively got the 4 shots we needed before the girls had to take the reigns

Challenge 10- We headed over to Park Center Pond and had to race around cones out on the pond. The girls were paddling on a canoe and the boys took the knee boards out

Challenge 11-We rode over to Les Beaus High School where we had to do a relay around the track on a little kids bicycle. Following the race around the track we completed Challenge 12 which was playing a quick game of Lacrosse and scoring a goal

Challenge 13-We headed to Golds Gym where we were learned a choreographed dance and had to perform it. I wish I would have had some pictures of the boys and their dance moves; it was hilarious!

It was off to the finish line from there....23 miles, 13 challenges, all in 3 hours and 35 minutes.
We'll be back for all the fun next year.

Main Street Mile

2011-06-24T22:44:00.000-07:00

Blake and Allie participated in the Main Street Mile this year. Allie got to do the kids run which was a 1/2 mile loop and Blake ran the competitive one mile race, which was 2 loops.

One mile down Main Street in Boise....Really, every should be out running this, who can't do a mile

Allie and Daddy in their shirts

All the kids get to run behind the "ice cream truck" When they cross the finish line the doors open and they all are rewarded with a popcycle

Allie meets Buster Bronco

The mascot wave of the race....it was pretty hilarious to see all of the different mascots racing in their full on uniforms

It was all fun until somebody got hurt. The Red Robin bird bit the dust right in front of us. This bird was actually really hurt, the called over the EMT's and had to escort her off the race course. I can't imagine running with those big heads on, I think I'd be the bird on the ground.

Blake and Allie crossing the finish line from the kids race. Allie was nervous to run all by herself, so Blake ran along side of her. Nothing like a little motivation along the way to keep you going

Allie's blue ribbon for completing the course

After Allie's little run....she was pooped. It always feels good to be done running even though it's not to funnest during the run; lessons to learn in life.

Blake making it 1/2 way, one more loop to run

Coming through the finish at 5:35....not to shabby but crazy to say there were quite a handful of men coming in before Blake so needless to say he was not the winner

Nothing like a cute sideline cheerleader to cheer you on. Sophie and I sat on the sidelines cheering everyone on. Next year I hope to be on the streets running!

Zip Line

2011-06-24T22:43:00.000-07:00

Blake and I celebrated our 8 year anniversary. I can't believe that 8 years have passed by; it goes by way to fast. I had wanted to take us zip lining last year, but was pregnant so I had planned to do it this year. Up in Horseshoe Bend they have a zip line coarse set up and we had heard so many good things about the place

Blake and I all geared up and ready to "ZIP ON"

Blake coming across on the first line

All clipped in up in the tree

Hanging out in the tree house

Blake coming in for a landing

Getting ready to head down "Wild Turkey"

Heading down Wild Turkey-a 1700 foot zip line-my favorite of the day

"Double Trouble"- The final set of lines and the only tandem set

Blake and I got to race down the last set of lines side by side

Trying to take pictures mid-way down the zip-line was a little bit more trickier than we thought. What a fun adventure! Here's to many more years of many adventures!

Fishing and Swimmming

2011-06-23T22:41:00.000-07:00

We have been enjoying our summer so far. We have been busy with lots of things and staying cool by enjoying many days spent in the water somewhere.

Hanging around.....love this girl

Sophie is starting to scooch her way around to wherever she wants to be. She also started a BAD habit that her daddy and Papa Von both have which is chewing her tongue. I don't know if this is a genetically wired problem, but it's horrible and I never thought my 7 month old baby would pick up on this

We headed out to enjoy the free fishing day with Papa Jim. The Fish and Game Department stocks ponds around the valley and opens them up to anyone to come and fish

Allie caught a little blue gill; to small to keep this little guy so he went back into the water

Grandma Deb soaking in some rays

Sophie hanging out in the shade

We have also enjoyed lots of water activities this summer. Allie is doing swimming lessons and loving them. She is really getting the hang of things and has started to swim short distances. It is really fun to see her love for the water and to see her progress. We also have enjoyed many days at the water park this summer. Hopefully there are many more fun summer days ahead.

Father's Day

2011-06-19T22:38:00.000-07:00

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!!!!

Allie and Papa

Allie and Daddy

Cute Allie girl was requested to wear her daddy's tie to sacrament and sing a few songs to the fathers with all the other primary children. We are so grateful for all the great men in our lives who are such a wonderful influence to all of us and glad we have this day to celebrate them! We love you all!!!

Dairy Days

2011-06-18T22:53:00.001-07:00

Another year has come and gone and it has rolled around once again. The BEST parade ever! Dairy Days in Meridian is here again and we were out to support it once again. Blake was out of town on a camp out, so we got to leave extra early and we went to the front line of the parade with some good friends.

Allie and Tyler waiting for their chocolate milk from the "dairy" truck

Allie is a trained parade spectator. She was waiving her bag yelling for candy from the get go

"A real cowboy with a lasso"-quoted Allie

Waiting on the sidelines with the Coltrin boys

Tyler and Allie

Sophie can't complain, look hard to see her milk mustache. She enjoyed the chocolate milk as well as the TCBY ice cream. This girl LOVES "people food"

Once again Allie was successful in obtaining her summer nightgown from the parade-an over sized milk shirt. We had come home and our neighbors also had gotten milk shirts-Josie, Payton, and Allie in their shirts.

Something new we tried out this year was the kids bike race at Meridian Speedway

The race for Allie's age group was one lap around the Meridian speedway. Allie was so excited to be racing her bike on the big track for the fast cars.

Hanging out on the finish line

Before the race they provided decorations for all the kids to decorate their bikes. Allie decked her bike out in streamers and even put a name tag on the front

On the start line with her friend Lucy

Listening to the safety instructions

Focusing so hard....I love it

I ran to the other side of the track to cheer Allie on and catch her going around the last corner

Everyone got a medal for finishing the race.... appropriately it was a cow bell for the Dairy Days

I promised Allie a ride at the mini "fair" after the bike race. We had a great year at Dairy Days; until next year!

Backyard Campout

2011-06-16T22:43:00.000-07:00

Dad was heading out on a camp out with the scouts and needed to set up the tent in the back yard to make sure all the pieces were around. So, he then decided, let's have a camp out in the backyard before he took off. Allie was very excited about sleeping in the tent, in the backyard.

Allie the next morning after sleeping in the tent. She loved it almost more the heading to the mountains to camp

Daddy and Allie rising out of bed from a good nights sleep. Only soaked by the sprinklers once in the middle of the night:) Mom got up to feed Sophie around 4 and heard the sprinklers on. I peaked my head in to ask Blake if he had turned ours off. Sure enough he told me he turned ours off. About 15 minutes later, through the opened windows upstairs I heard water spraying the tent, then Blake running inside and into the garage. Well, I guess he hadn't turned them all the way off :)

7 months

2011-06-15T22:42:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that you are 7 months old already. Life is busy and you are so much fun these days. You have accomplished so many things this last month.

You are officially sitting. After going to Lake Powell and being on a rocking house boat for a week, you have one solid core and your balance is great.
You are officially a binky baby. I can't tell you how bad I wanted you to be a binky baby. Binky babies are just more snugly and a binky is just a life saver in so many ways. It will probably bite me in the butt later and I probably should have just rolled with it since you were 7 months, but you just all of a sudden one day, took the bink. I was kind of crazy about it and very persistent about you taking the binky. I guess you just gave up the battle with me. I carried the bink everywhere we went and would always try to offer it to you with no avail. Well one day just recently you took it. I was shocked and you have been taking it every since. As well as taking the binky you also started to take the bottle. Go figure....7 months later. Way to go.
You are starting to stand for a few minutes at your activity table. I can't believe how big you are getting. You are also getting on your hands and knees and rocking back and forth. You are still rolling EVERYWHERE. I can't leave you on top of anything, you will roll off.
You have NO teeth yet. We have discovered over the last month that you are allergic to AVOCADOS. Go figure, why not, you have got some funky random medical stuff. I have fed you avocados 3x and you just vomit green frothy stuff for hours and do not feel good at all when you have them, so no more avocados.
Your medical news with your eyes is good news. Your EEG was negative and so was your urine which was checking for a neuroblastoma. The Dr.'s have called it spasmus nutans, a benign disorder which goes away by 1 year of age. We are so thankful for the many prayers that were said in your behalf

You and sissy.

Standing at your activity table

Your hair continues to grow like a weed. Mommy got it in three topsy ponys and then pulled that into piggys. It's so fun to have such a great head of hair for mommy to play with already. I love it! Happy 7 months!

Day 4-Tubing and Bonfire

2011-06-07T12:51:00.000-07:00

Tuesday we woke up with the boat intact and some beautiful weather to greet us. We got right to tubing....my favorite thing to do

Allie hanging onto Blake....what a way to ride

Girls turn...one of many for the day. The three sister-in-laws piled onto the tube for some fun

Riding on the molecule.....it seriously couldn't get better than this

Other than the chaffed legs later on in the day you get from hanging on for dear life

Cousin shot, getting ready for the bonfire

Best friends and sister-in-law...couldn't be better

Got a great stick ready for a s'more

Enjoying a great graham sandwich

Nothing completes the night better than a movie night up on the top of the boat.

Day 3-Adrift and Davis Gulch

2011-06-06T12:48:00.000-07:00

Monday morning we woke up adrift. The house boat had come untied and we were floating in the middle of our canyon. The boys quickly jumped on the boat and jetskiis to prevent them from getting smashed into the rocks. It was a very crazy morning trying to get re-anchored and we almost lost my little Allie in the process. So thankful for the protection over her this morning.

Wee hours of the early morning as people woke up realized we were adrift; the boys got right to work

Once we were back into shape with the house boat we took off to go on another hike up Davis Gulch. Blake carrying Allie across the deep water

Sophie had found her own snake for the hike. She loves her snake her cousin Adam gave her

Such awesome scenery

A crawdad that was found along the way

Sophie so happy to be out of her pack

The fam

The kids had a great time along the way finding tad-a-poles, frogs, lizardss

The girls

Don't know how this happened, but I had to take a picture of Sophie sucking a bink

The boys trying hard to pull the boat in during the wind storm

We spent the afternoon inside doing indoor activities since it was so windy.... painting nails

Play dough creation's...a cinnamon roll

The kids having a great time with the play dough

Some of the older generations masterpieces....a self portrait from Papa and Cory with his crown

The boys wanted to make sure we were anchored well so we wouldn't wake up in the morning and run into the same problem

Tough Boys

We had a family meeting at night to discuss "worst case" as Blake always puts it. Worst case was the boat getting blown over in the wind storm. We created a disaster plan of what to do. Needless to stay, I slept with life jackets at my side that night.

Day 2- Swimming and Indian Ruins

2011-06-05T12:42:00.000-07:00

Sunday we had a great day; a lot of relaxing and a little bit of hiking.

The girls rafted around in the morning

We brought a little blow up pool for Sophie to put up on top of the boat. Sophie LOVES the water and LOVES splashing.

Sophie drying off with daddy

I was surprised to find this little fish swimming in the water

Allie, Lil, and Cam worked for hours building their own rendition of Lake Powell in the sand

Lake Powell

Hanging out in the water with daddy. The lake water was cooler than in years past, but the weather was perfect so the water felt great after your body was finally submerged in

Sunday evening we headed over to the Indian Ruins. We seem to hike these every year we come

You can't tell from the picture but there is just a little trail up the side of the mountain to the top.

Kind of freaky for me this year. I was nervous that Allie didn't quite understand that if she stepped to far in one direction she would go plummeting into the water. I hung onto the strap of her life vest for extra comfort

Pictures from the boat of everyone hiking up. I can't believe the Indians really enjoyed living up on the cliffs and the trek it would take them to get home

The kids in one of the Indian homes

Sophie wasn't enjoying her ride inside the life vest. We had forgotten the backpack back on the house boat.

Everyone coming back down.... sliding forward down the mountain

Blake and Allie riding back on the boat

Hanging on the boat with Mama

Love this picture of Blake smiling at Soph

Sophie eventually learned it wasn't going to get her anything to scream in her life vest

A few things that were collected throughout the day-a baby frog

Love this pic of the kids checking out the frog inside the bin

Allie holding a frog