Labor Day 2014

Dan and I had great intentions of doing something fun with the kids for the first school holiday of the year.  But in the morning, we hadn't planned anything specific (other than a BBQ at my Dad's in the late afternoon) so Dan and I traded off working out first thing.  While Dan was at the gym, our good buddies the T family called.  They were heading to the beach...SO I made Dan a nice breakfast, had a cold glass of water waiting for him, and smiled big.  It was 9:05 and I convinced him that we really wanted to meet up with our friends at 9:30 to head to the beach.  He agreed! 
We packed up a quick lunch, grabbed the essentials, and left about 9:40 to head to Sylvan Beach--a mere 35 minutes from our house.  It was busy but we got our spot staked out, set up our shade tent, and had a blast.  Our kids LOVED the sand and quickly warmed up to the waves and water (especially Brooke).  We splashed and played and tried to body surf and generally had a good, sandy time.  We ate our lunches around noon and stayed a bit longer.  We were home by 2 for naptime.  It was a great morning, great friends, and a pretty decent beach.  I'll definitely go back.

The 4 big girls...

The 2 medium girls...

Jack's first beach trip--he was a fan.  Like most kids, he tasted the sand and liked it.  He also really enjoyed sitting in the surf with me.

Our tent...

Our view...

This pic makes me smile.  Kenzie scratched her foot within about 2 minutes of arriving at the beach.  So this was her parents' attempt to protect her from the flesh-eating bacteria that had been recently found in Texas according to the local news.  She survived.  The taped-on bag only lasted through a few waves :)

Trying to make sand mermaid tails...

Little Mal wasn't sure about the water at first.  Here she is escaping back to the dry sand...

The T family...

I feel like this pic should be titled "Childhood"--I love it!

Candy, 3 years old

Megan, 6 3/4 years old

Brooke, 5 years old

Maddie, 5

Megan T, 7

Kenz, 3

Jack, almost 10 months

And Mal, 17 months

While the kids napped, Dan and I tried our hand at jalapeno poppers (jalapeno half filled with cream cheese, wrapped in bacon, and baked).  They were done just in time to head down to Dad and Sally's house for swimming, dinner, and spending some time with Sally's son Charlie (we met him briefly the day before when he spoke at church after completing his mission in Salt Lake).  I love spending time with my family.  It was fun to swim, laugh, eat, and play together.  Oh and the poppers were SO GOOD!  We will definitely make them again from time to time (but only when we have loved ones to share our calories with!).

Grandpa and Jack...

Amy, Hailey, Zach, and Ty...

The little girls :).  They are as cute as they are loud.  Brooke, Megan, Chloe, Molly, and Candy...

First Day of School 2014!

I knew that August would fly by and sure enough, it felt like we had barely returned from our Utah trip when it was time for school to begin again! 
We met the teachers on Thursday, Aug. 21.  Megan's teacher is Ms. White.  She is new to our school but seems very affectionate and Megan seemed happy to meet her.  Megan was excited to see a few familiar faces in her class this year--friends from last year, a friend from church, and a friend from the neighborhood.  That is a big help for my anxious girl.  She was happy on the first morning. 
Brooke's teacher is Ms. Dorsett who taught 1st grade last year.  She also seems nice.  Brooke doesn't have anyone she already knows in class, but for her, that is probably a good thing (at least for her behavior--she loves to chat!).  She was a little nervous at the meet the teacher night, but she seemed thrilled on the first day.

Dan worked from home on the first day so he could be there to walk the girls in and welcome them home.  It was an exciting morning.  And our usual Monday grocery swap seemed so quiet without the 4 oldest kids there! 

Brooke showing off the dress she picked out with Grandma.  She was happy we arrived at the same time as her old Joy School friends Breanna and Maddie.

Megan was excited to see Megan T before heading in to class.

3 big kindergarteners!

We dropped Brooke off first.  She held my hand a little tighter than usual but didn't protest when we said goodbye.

Megan decided she wasn't having the desk pic this year.  I took one anyway.  I'm just that kind of mom :).  She seemed happy to be returning to school and was excited to know her way around this year.

Easter Week 2014

Easter is becoming one of my favorite holidays.  I just love reflecting on the life, death, and resurrection of Christ. 
We had a family night about Easter on Monday (April 14), but ran out of time to color eggs.  Mondays are busy with dance followed by family night followed by bedtime!

So we decorated eggs on Tuesday April 15 before dinner.  The kids loved it.  My sister Jamie has been posting pictures of her beautiful Ukrainian eggs all month, and we thought it would be fun to use regular dyes and sharpies to achieve a similar effect (but with less fire/wax/clothes-ruining-dye).  I had fun decorating my eggs and the kids LOVED it.

Daddy and daughters...

Mommy and her boy...

Megan let me use a curling iron to do her hair for school on Wednesday April 16.  I was hopeful she'd let me do it again for Easter Sunday, but she wasn't having it.  I think it makes her look so grown up!

Megan had the day off for good Friday and we had a busy day with a birthday party in the morning, playdates for Brooke and Megan, and enjoying the amazing weather at the park in the afternoon.

Then on Saturday April 19, we had a fun Easter party with Dad and Sally at their home.  They heated the pool and we all swam when we arrived for a few hours.  After a delicious and beautifully laid Easter dinner, we headed to the yard for egg hunting, the annual raw egg toss, and chatting in the fantastic spring weather.  I grabbed a few pics while we were outside (but missed Dad, Sally, and Tyler--the ones who actually live there!). 

Candy and Molly

Megan and Chloe

Dan and Brookie

Carrie and Jack

Shad and Amy

Zach and Hailey

Sunday morning the kids were up around 6:15, but we convinced them to snuggle with us til 7 since Jack was still sleeping.  The Easter Bunny left us yummy treats and the kids were so excited to find eggs (10 each) and their baskets.

Their baskets held a new little book for each girl and new goggles for swim season.

And I needed one shot of all of our beautiful eggs before they became deviled eggs for our Easter dinner :)

It was nice to have church at 11 this year since it gave us time to get ready and do a few pictures before church.  The sun was bright and I should have found a shadier spot...so we got lots of cute, squinty eyes!

My favorite of them all:

The kids weren't having anymore pictures, so Dan and I documented that we were there with our most compliant kid--thanks Jack! 

Then we came inside and took the most beautiful pictures of my boy.  I just LOVE them.