Short sweet summer....

Being on year round school has its ups and downs.

I am not sure if it is so good all the time!
For example, I feel like I have to smash all the fun
necessary into a 3 week summer! They have more time in June
also, but July, and the end of the school year just is more
summery than anything to me!

So needless to say I feel like I have/need to give them
some of the fun that was had to me when I was
growing up into 3 weeks!

Boy did we work hard to accomplish that this year.
It was a super hard year for everyone and we all needed
to celebrate new beginnings and new opportunities!

The boys have not had the best most confident
experience swimming.
In fact, down right disappointing to me!
I am NOT a good swimmer, Gregg is fantastic
so when they all of the sudden decided to be scared
of the water and not want to swim or do anything
with water, I decided swim lessons were LONG overdue!

It was so much fun! Jaxon and Kaden were in the same class.
Zeke got to take lessons with his cousins in the morning!
They all loved it!
It gave the boys so much courage and confidence I can't even tell you.
Just after one week of lessons, all of the boys were confident enough
to step off to the deep end of the pool with only noodles!
Such a big step for them!
Zeke at 3 was in the 6 foot and was not scared at all. He floated
and swam all by himself! I am not completely positive that was the best
thing but certainly a great start.
So much so that all of the boys made HUGE progress in the boat for later
trips during our 3 week summer! (More posts to follow on that one!
such a proud proud mama!)
A while back Gregg and I went to Boondocks with a big
group of friends (absolutely a memorable experience!).
I had never been there and while I/we were there
we both decided we definitely needed to bring the boys!
Oh my goodness was it fun!
They had so much fun!
The go-carts were by far the funnest for them!
I thought it was hilarious that Jaxon and Kaden
both mentioned how they 'ruled' the track.
They felt as though 'no one was any match for them!'
They also felt really jipped that they couldn't ride on the
bigger carts. Leave it to Jaxon to feel like he was ripped off
in some sort of way. Like someone was out to get him.
I was out to get him you know. I always try to make him miss
out on something! what a funny kid!

They enjoyed miniature golfing but found it much to slow compared
to everything else there was there to experience!
I think if they could have just driven the go-carts all day
they would have been happy!
That is until they experienced the 4D theater!
Over and over!
You would think the same coaster ride on a screen would
bore you....NOPE they just did it over and over!
Zeke liked it too!
What is summer without Popsicles?
Chocolate to be precise!
What a fun way to cool off!
But beware all those drippings on the front step...
you know those ones that are so temping to touch
and smear around?
They tend to make your fingers icky....
Yes, icky enough to ruin a good Popsicle!

Welcome little baby!

I got to take some pictures of my newest little niece this past weekend! Then I was gone all week and didn't have a chance to look at them! She is so darn cute. And seriously the sweetest thing ever! Oh I can only hope mine will have half of her sweet temperament!

Terri seems to be super happy and has totally forgotten she had a baby! She is out and
about more than me! I am sure it is partly due to the fact she is getting so much sleep!
Yes, this little angel is pretty much sleeping through the night already at 2 weeks!
Again, I can only hope. However, I am not holding my breath!

As for the pictures, well I know I am no photographer in anyway shape or form.
It is certainly fun to play with and keep learning though.
My brother-in-law (amazing photographer) was talking to me this past weekend
and let me tell you, he knows so much about photography and is so good at it,
I could only hope to grasp a small section of his knowledge and feel good about being
able to take a picture! He was showing me a bunch of pictures he recently shot and
one in particular really stood out to me. I asked him wow that is beautiful how did
you do that effect (referring to the edits done) he said none. That is just good
photography!
All I have to say to that is so so so much to learn!
I do love the little bums though!

Kids say the darnedest things!

Zeke: Mommy I have to go poo.

Mom: Okay go then.

(Zeke thinking and just sitting there)

Zeke: Mommy boys go poo under their parts.

Mom: (Trying not to laugh) Yes, Zeke so do girls.

Zeke: I mean kids go poo under the big bumpy things.

Just about to pee my pants now.

Kaden: Yeah, Zeke they are called Butts!

Zeke: (Laughter ensues!) You said butt!

Oh how funny! I guess all those late nights watching Bevis and Butthead with Gregg payed off as a warning of what is to come with boys! They never cease to make me laugh!

Beautiful Sister!

So LAST MONTH!!!! YES, I am a total looser and took these pictures of her and her little girls last month and I am just getting around to posting some! I am so sorry!
I talked Terri into letting me shoot some pics of her being pregnant before she has her other little girl! She was so kind to oblige me!
One thing I learned in this whole experience is that I SUCK!! Really! I have always had a HUGE passion for photography, I think mostly brought on by my brother-in-law (who is an amazing photographer!). I will keep on practicing and maybe it will sink in! People (myself included) think you have a passion, you have the equipment and you can do it! Oh it is so much more! I have so much respect and awe for all of those great photographers out there! Being able to capture what I want in my mind to print is so difficult for me right now. Besides the fact I am such a perfectionist (which is probably why I am so unhappy with the shots above it has taken me over a month to get them to my sister) I am just not happy with the results. SO SO SO MUCH TO LEARN!!

Memorial Day

Bummed out by our faltering trip to Lake Powell,

we/I decided we needed to do something
or I would have been home ticked off to no end we didn't do something! :)

We haven't been hiking, the boys wanted to go camping,
and I just wanted anything!

So we went to donut falls! How fun!
Simple easy fast hike!
Very family oriented.
Not too hard, or too long!
With a very exciting reward at the end...
or so we thought!

It is the end of May after all.
You would think the heat would have set in.
UM DUH Carrie!
It has been record cold!
I didn't remember but it also had recently snowed!
Now our wedding anniversary is May 22,
I distinctly remember going to Jackson Hole!
I also remember thinking WOW over 5 feet of snow!
But we live in Utah after all.....
Anyway, there was a ton of snow!


The majority of the trail was snow!
So much snow in fact,
we couldn't see the actual falls and get close like you can when the snow isn't there!
Honestly, it didn't damper anyone's spirits!
We had a few slips and slides,
but that just brought more adventure to our outing...
right?

Bummer? Yes!

I was still so proud of my boys!
We had fun none the less. It was a slow hike.
The information I found pegged it as an easy for family hike,
expected to last 1 hour total hiking time!
Well factor in the muddy trail and little 3 year old feet
it was 3 hours round trip!
That is okay!
We had fun!
We were not in any hurry.
We had no where else to go!
A little picnic in the car when we got back,
and everyone was out like a light before we got out of the canyon!

(or was that just me?)
(Dad is always trying to smooth Zeke over in to believing he is HIS little buddy! Little does Dad know.... it will never work! :) Zeke and I are attached at the hip!)

A Little UU humor...
Yes, son I would want to jump off the bridge if I wore that hat too! :)

Sometimes we need a down to earth look at those we put on pedistles! I love this little video what a great look at our Prophet and how such an inspired man is still that, just a man!

ARE YOU SERIOUS!?

So we are seriously bummed! I just love to BBQ in the spring/summer. I hate to cook in the kitchen and make it so hot! The BBQ just has a summer flavor to me!

Well not right now....I am hoping it will resume in a short while.

So seriously my awesome husband grilled me some fabulous fillets on Mother's Day! Then 3 days later we found this in our BBQ......




SERIOUS!

Then a couple weeks later we hear chirping and chirping....I mean LOUD chirping! And we find this! Gregg is surprisingly okay with it and not throwing a fit to have us take it out. He did however make me think when he said.....and we are going to cook on that after they are gone? Good point, however, I believe heat is the best way to sterilize things.

I do also believe we WON'T end up using it again either! I know Gregg too well! We will end up either NOT BBQing or getting a new one! How sad! I just love to BBQ....and I still have a few deliciously looking fillets in the freezer that won't be cooked.....sigh! what to do!?

The boys are just enamored at the thoughts and sounds of the little birds though.