A weekend surprise...

I just spent six days in Utah ~ and met my cute little niece for the first time! She is such a sweet little baby... I miss her already ~

(Don't look too closely... I had just gotten off the plane and am exhausted!)

I also spent time with my parents and sisters... I miss living close to them! They are so fun to hang out with ~ The time went by way too fast... I didn't get to see everyone on my list, I need to do better planning next time!

After a day or two I was missing this good looking gang back home!

Major Ouch!

Today Zeeny put some pressure on me... so, together we braved a

Spin class at the gym. It was definitely a great workout for us ~

we did some serious sweating, we even had fun (making fun of ourselves),

listened to some great music and left with incredibly sore bottoms!

I'm not sure which burned worse at the end... my thighs or my butt ~

Memory Tag ~

1. As a comment on my blog, leave a memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you know me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty fun to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you are playing along in this game of tag and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.

I hope you'll play ~

FYI ~

For an 8 year old, hearing your mother say,

"BE CAREFUL ~ IT WILL BURN YOUR FINGER!"

is not enough to make you stop touching it...

According to him, what I should have said was,

"BE CAREFUL... IT IS HOT!"

Now he has a big burn blister in the shape of a C on his thumb.

Hopefully, it will remind him to listen to his mother!

Swim Lessons...

This summer he's mastered treading water for 30 seconds, swimming from one side of the pool to the other, and made several attemps at the backstroke... but can't figure out why he keeps sinking!

She is still learning to go under without plugging her nose (just like mom), has fun "blasting off" from the side and loves jumping "like Tigger." I wonder if the swim instructor thinks the kids are two, instead of five!

He just likes to watch and soak up the sun... again, just like mom!

It's been fun this summer watching the kids swim ~

Deliciousness!

Welcome little one...

This is my new little niece, isn't she the cutest little thing?

She arrived a few weeks early and gave us all a little scare ~ one look with those big beautiful eyes and we'll forgive her! Click here to watch her grow!

A Fun Filled Fourth

I've always enjoyed the 4th of July, I love parades, BBQ's and fireworks!

This year we started our day by opening a fun package complete with cute holiday shirts from Grandma and Grandpa. Thanks, mom and dad ~ the kids loved them, the pink one was a big hit! The kids played outside with friends on the new waterslide all afternoon. We had a couple families over for a yummy BBQ, followed by a campfire to toast up S'mores... yummy!

When it got dark our neighbors pulled off a fantastic display of fireworks!

You can't beat watching fireworks from the comfort of your own backyard.

• Can you believe I didn't have my camera out all day? What a bummer!

One of those days!

After an exhausting morning of crying, whining, and fighting...

My cute kids made these cards in an attempt to have a happy day!

(click the picture to read what made my smile return)

It was like the return of Mother's Day!

Thanks kiddos!

Summer Celebration

Today was the last day of school! To celebrate the beginning of our summer vacation, we bought the kids a waterslide for the backyard.

The kids loved it and had a great afternoon!

She was the first one down, braving the freezing cold water.

Dads next project is to get the hot water running to the outside...

The little guy even got in on the action!

He loved the little basketball hoop ~ our little athlete.

A farewell to preschool...

Today was our preschool graduation.

They had a big celebration in the classroom with songs,

certificates for the kids and ice cream sundae's!

She has loved going to preschool this year,

and she is so ready for Kindergarten!

Miss Crystal and Miss Laura

Two of the friends who will be going off to Kindergarten with her next year!

As we were leaving the school, she was acting a bit strange in the back of the car... I turned around to see that she had started crying. I asked her why she was crying and she said it was because she loved her preschool! How cute is that?

Happy Father's Day...

Here are just a few reasons why my family loves my dad!

• He sends us postcards from the different places he goes for work.
• He likes to mow our lawn when he visits - we have a riding mower!
• Sometimes he'll call just to talk to the kids.
• His youngest three grandkids share his middle name.
• He doesn't complain when we put him to work digging holes.
• Sometimes his own snoring will wake him right up!
• He "stops by" on his way home from business in Washington DC - which is 8 hrs away!
• He is the best Grandpa we know!!

She's getting ready...

Last week she learned how to be a good Kindergartner for next year.

She ate school lunch in the cafeteria, watched a bus safety video in the library and ended the day with a ride on the big yellow school bus!

N Y C

I took a trip into the city with my super fun sister-in-law.

She had never been to the city so we checked out the tourist sites!

What is better than Frozen Hot Chocolate from Serendipity?

A Peanut Butter Frozen Hot Chocolate!!

Y U M M Y

Yes, I realize you can see up my nose!

Minne Ha Ha

We have always wanted to take a ride on one of the big steam paddle boats! My sister-in-law was visiting so we thought we would give it a try. Occasionally, we got a bit wet! We couldn't tell if it was a sprinkle of rain - or if it was mist from the steam. The kids loved it!

Do you think my hubby and his sister look alike?