Passed out!

Sleepyhead...

To much fun.....I rode my bike back to the cabin with Hayley and Sadie in the bike trailer after spending a few hours down at the playground and this is what I found...Sader B slumped over on Hayley's lap asleep. Hayley is such a great help and absolutely loves saders. She was so cute...we must have worn her out with all our fun! :-)

4th of July!

As we packed up to leave, I quickly realized we were not going to be able to fit everything I wanted to bring for a family of 5. So I made the executive decision to take Ryan's work truck, not exactly as comfortable as the Denali but we could bring our bikes which I thought would be fun, not to mention a port-a-crib, exersaucer, high chair, clothes, toys, crafts, bikes x 5, bike trailer for Sadie, etc. We had stuff piled over the top of the bed of the truck and 3 bikes on the bike rack hitch we must have looked like we were moving (Ryan would not let me take a picture of it because he was so annoyed).

The seating on the drive way up was tight as you can probably imagine, Ryan and I in the front with Sadie in her car seat between us, Shelby on my lap and the other three kids along the back. You can see where this is going...the kids were bugging after 2-1/2 hours in the truck, Sadie was crying and all Ryan could say was "at least we brought the bikes"...famous last words. In the end everyone was happy I made us bring the bikes because we rode them everywhere. :-)




All smiles at the parade even though she didn't
get any candy...sorry Sader B, you are too little :-)


Waiting for the candy to be thrown out!


These cute blow up hats were thrown out with
the candy...funny!


Tire swing seemed to be a hit with the kids!


Enjoying the parade in our our chairs.

Grumpy gus in the middle didn't want to pose
for another picture, Sorry Paige.

All smiles....how cute are they?


Riley, Ryan and Piage enjoying the pool.


Thanks for posing for all my pictures!

Homemade playdoh makes a huge mess :-).

Paige made playdoh breakfast, love green waffles!

Hayley jumping off the swings!


This was one of the best vacations we have taken in a long time... the weather was amazing, the kids got along great and we didn't want to come home. We rented a cabin in Showlow with the Victor's and the Pickets. This seems to be a tradition we are starting, last year we spent the 4th of July with these families too. The neighborhood we rented the cabin in had a rec center that was so fun...we played golf, fished, played tennis, ping pong, played on the playground, went to the pool and we could ride our bikes there from the house. It was a blast!

We went to the Showlow 4th of July parade, the kids thought is was great how they just threw out candy as they passed by and we watched fireworks from the neighborhood. The rec center had a carnival on Saturday with all sorts of games and face painting.

The dads golfed on Saturday and we hung out at the house and made homemade playdoh...the kids had a blast. Riley loved to play dance dance revolution at the rec center and Paige and I are thinking about going pro with Wii bowling.

Freeston Recreation Center

Hayley and Hallie, BFF!

Noell, Paige and Talan playing raquet ball!

The gang of kids that came with us the rec center.

I took a few kids up to the rec center to get out of the heat and get some energy out the other day...they have so much to do there, its awesome. They played raquet ball, rock climbed, basketball, volleyball and my favorite was the little girls (Hayley and Hallie) playing ping pong. They also have an indoor track that the kids can run around to burn some energy as well.

A day with the girls!

Paige got pok-a-dot and Hayley got glitter.


The massage chair...wish we had this at home.



Horrible picture of me but cute of Sadie!


How cute is this picture.....




For the summer we have been letting the kids choose who they receive there allowance...they can get the cash or pick an item which might take longer to earn. Well for the girls it was pay day today. They have been saving for four weeks to go get pedicures and go out to lunch. They had so much fun...it looked like something they could get used to for sure!

Girl talk

Yesterday we swam at the Flakes, I was floating on a raft and my girls wanted to play beauty shop. They used sticks to comb my hair, squirt guns to wet it and a few other tools randomly found in the yard for their beauty shop. As I laid there with my eye closed the girls were chatting with each other...these are the moments that remind me why I became mom...I love it! The girls were complimenting each other on their work, working together, talking about their favorite hair styles and helping each other make different hair designs. It was almost as if they forgot I was laying there as they chatted it up...so sweet! This is just the beginning of an amazing friendship between sisters - at this age it is day to day with getting along and playing but I hope will always be BFF! Paige 7 and Hayley 5-1/2.

Riley cooking.

Mickey Mouse face...great job!


Okay - so I am making an effort to teach my kids to cook. Yesterday Riley made brownies and he accidentally put 1 cup of oil instead of 1/2 cup so we added another mix and made two pans of brownies. This morning Riley made pancakes and he did awesome! He made the mix, cooked the pancakes and then cleaned up his mix. Great job Riley!

Day at the lake

Before we got hot and wet, all smiles!

Paige, Casey and Riley

Paige, Casey, Hayley and Andrew on the tube.

All the kids!

Saturday we went to Roosevelt Lake for the day with Papa Bob and Grandma Suzanne and all the kids. Everybody had so much fun. The kids tubed and swam all day. We ate lunch at the marina and got yummy ice cream. Roosevelt water level has totally risen and the lake is huge.