the good life.

do you ever tell yourself "life is good?" i just love those moments. they don't come all of the time and in between there are the: "can we just get through the day," "can it get any worse," or "can everyone just leave me alone" moments. i'm on vacation with a family of six, (the majority of whom I had a hand in bringing to the earth) and i am feeling extremely grateful and blessed. as i watched taylor, jackson, kate, and chad playing in the waves, and looked at levi sleeping peacefully in the sand, i thought to myself.... "life is good."

happy places.

disneyland.
jedis.
friends.
roller-coasters.
lines.
fun.
sun.
del mar.
ocean.
good food.
relaxing.
reading this.
sand castles.
princesses.
amy.
byu volleyball.
sand.
we love warm weather.
we love spring break.

a day at the beach = exhaustion at the dinner table

happiest place on earth.

last week we went to disneyland for a few days.... we really love disneyland.
i got the template for this page at designer digitals.

last minute...

The show was as fun as ever, and we had a great turn out. I always look forward to the conversation with such creative, and talented women. Check out Andrea's blog for pics.
Check out one of my purchases.... so adorable.

So on a last minute whim, I took the kids to Provo to see Amy's last home volleyball game. (Chad was on another bike race... no comment:) We left at 8:30 am on Saturday, watched the game and then drove home the next morning. Even though 10 hours of driving in a 30 hour span (with three children) wasn't my idea of a great time, we we're so glad we were there to see Amy in all her glory. She played so well, and although her punk coaches probably won't give her props, she definitely deserves it. Although I am sure most of you don't understand the volleyball lingo... she had 57 assists, 18 digs, and 9 blocks... (that's considered pretty freakin' awesome!) They won the match against UNLV, and it was great to be there to see it happen!

We love you AMY Roonie!! Way to go!

Kate was so exhausted from the trip that she slept through the game.
(I'm sure Amy felt her support anyways)

ALOHA

We're back from an amazing week in Kauai, Hawaii. I get a little freaked out before going on vacations with out my kiddos, and was close to saying, "I'll just stay home," but once I got out the door, and got on the plane I was O.K. This was our third year in a row going on a trip with this group of friends, and it's always and adventure and a fantastic time. We stayed in a house in Kilauea (on the north shore of Kauai) with amazing views, tennis court, and pool.

Best memories:
... boogie boarding with the girls and getting completely worked by a few massive waves
... playing charades and watching Andrew try to act out "saffron"
... bonfire at the beach playing "Maffia"
... eating, eating, and more eating
... our team winning the "name game" (twice) :)
... the tennis tournament that Charles and I came close to winning (total underdogs)
... awesome zip line
... dinner at the house cooked by a fantastic chef
... being with Chad for 8 days straight...

There were a lot of firsts for me on this trip:
First time:
... going to Hawaii
... on a zip line
... eating shaved ice (tasty)
... snorkeling
... running in underwear (I forgot my running shorts)
... swimming in lava pools
... seeing a sea turtle in the ocean
... being away from my children for 8 days
... having a bonfire on the beach
... sitting at the beach in pouring rain

Thanks Mom, Krista and Anthony for taking such great care of our children so we could have such a wonderful adventure!

wailua waterfalls

on the zip line

view from the house

now it's back to reality...

vacation....

Kauai, here I come... see you in a week...

Kolob

This past weekend we were lucky enough to go to the beautiful mountains in Kolob, Utah. This time of year when the leaves are changing is breathtaking. Being in Vegas, we don't get to see that happen so the kids were pretty excited to see "the leaves changing like in the book."

Thank you Jolley Family for your hospitality and your scrumptious crepes.

Labor Day Fun...

We went to Parowan and Brianhead (in Utah) for Labor Day this weekend. Chad's parents invited us go with them to their condo in Brianhead.... so beautiful, and much cooler weather than the 107 we've been dealing with in Vegas. We headed to the Iron County Fair in Parowan, and the kids were in heaven. We went to the Rodeo, and I am sure the people behind me wanted to beat me up because I kept asking Chad questions like:

"What is the point?"
"I kinda don't get why they are almost killing themselves....?"
"Why do those girls rat their hair so much?"
"So..... they are making the choice to get on that bull,.... right?"
"Is that clown guy supposed to be funny?"
"What is a pig run?"

On Sunday, we tried to take the kids to church, but left about 20 minutes into it.... it just wasn't going to work. After a little convincing, (I don't enjoy driving), we went for a drive and saw beautiful Panguitch Lake and it was worth it... just beautiful. Then we took the kids on a little hike up the mountain, and played some Gang of Four with the in-laws. (Chad won... as usual) On Monday, we headed to the Parowan Labor Day Parade... what a cute town! The kids were begging to come every year. I think we may have to make it a tradition.

Parowan Labor Day Parade. Aren't those tractors great!

Corn Dogs at the Fair.... Actually, Kate just licked the ketchup off the corn dog.

Smore Time...

Fun times were had in Utah... the weather, the activities, the mountains, the family... all wonderful.

The only bad part was the ticket in St. George from a psycho, power hungry lady cop, who had nothing better to do than pull over a mom who went out of her lane while trying to turn into the gas station... (lame...)

On a whim, I decided to take the kiddos to Lehi, Utah to visit my amazing aunt Lisa. Today, we had some fun visiting quilt shops, furniture stores and of course the Dinosaur Museum. Kate kept calling the Dinos, "cute bunnies".... strange.... we made fossils and saw a 3D dinosaur movie. What a fun place!

Poor Jackson was so worried about Dad being home all alone. He said, "What will he eat?, He doesn't know how to make food?" I told him Dad would be just fine and would probably go out to eat. He was still worried and said, "Who will tell him to go and get something to eat?"

We miss you Daddy, hope you aren't starving......

Don't you just love vacations?

Del Mar Beach, and then Lake Powell.... what a luck family we are!

We can't get enough of sand, sun, and water.
I love the summer time, I love vacations...