It's Not Every Day You Turn...

60!!! We celebrated Susan's birthday at the Grand Lux. We gave her a book of letters that everyone in the family wrote including the grandkids and Lisa put together a "life video" that we watched later.

Cheers! Here's to another 60 years!

I love any excuse to come here and have these:New Orleans Beignets. And I'm almost positive they are fat free!

Guess who's here?

GG!!!!!! Of course she arrived right on schedule with her backseat and trunk overflowing with surprises! We love when she gets in her car and zips up the mountain to visit!

In three days, we have already packed so much in:

A picnic at the park
feeding the ducks
Uncle Doug's birthday party at Chatfield reservoir with foil dinners and smoores
Shopping at Kohls
A walk around the Gardens Nursery
Lunch at Costa Vida (She loves Mexican Food! Wink, wink!)
A visit to the container store
Ice cream cones
A family night swim at Aunt Cindi's pool

All this fun has made the boys sleep like rocks! I love it!

(Kendall getting ready to fall asleep)

Giggles

Nathan:
"This cold ice is makin' me feel FRESH!"
"Is the insides of our bodies gross?
"There was a ladybug in the pool and it washed all it's spots off!"
"Did you listen to your mom ALWAYS when you were a kid?"

Nathan:"I have a headache."
Me: "What does your head feel like?"
Nathan: "Like my head hurt. I'm so exhausted and I feel like I need to drink some orange juice."

Kendall:
" Look at the sprinkles, mommy!" (sprinklers)
"Actually, I do want some."

Splash!

It was a HOT day and we were all craving water! Me, Sara, Charlie, and some of the wives (whose husbands are selling for Doug this summer) headed up to Splash to play for the day.

The boys loved this place and the moms loved it even more because it was SO kid friendly!

Our favorite part? The water slides! I love Nathan's face in this picture. I had a blast taking turns with Charlie taking all the kids down them!

I want Jake and Tanner to know that if they ever get a hankering for slides again, to call Aunt Alisa!
It's official. Kendall is a thrill ride junkie. I could barely peel him away from the slides. He could not get enough, and I'm saying that VERY lightly.

I loved to hear the boys little giggles as we zoomed down. It was mixed with excitement and sheer fear!



Being pregnant doesn't even stop Charlie! She is so much fun! Cooper is a fish for sure. He's not afraid to try anything!

The pool closed for adult swim (and some other reasons) so we headed over to the sand pit. It had water features and tons of toys. Again, hours of entertainment that the mom's were loving!



I seriously LOVE these boys and am SO grateful they are here. I'm so glad we are all able to make such good memories. I know I needed them to be here this summer!

Father's and Sons...

This is the look you give when you go on your first fathers and sons camp out and are thinking, "Where is my mom? She would never let us enter the HATCHET THROWING competition!"

The boys did survive the weekend and had a blast! Lots of boy bonding in the woods! Great food, awesome friends, and plenty Smoores!

I stayed behind to keep the home fires burning and had actually had quite the time myself, but shhhhh, don't tell Justin! My mom, Aunt Cindi, Cody and I, went and had pedicures. Seriously? I thought there was no hope for my feet but those little Chinese ladies are magic!

My mom and I had a slumber party that night. We kicked my dad out and watched movies until we could not stay awake any longer. Okay, so we got through half of one before our snoring was waking each other up. Laughing, we said our good-nights and departed to our rooms.

I woke up missing my guys and ready to hear all about their fun night.

A Good One!

What is dad's favorite food?
Nathan: I think it's quesadillas with salsa on it! (He is actually right.)
Kendall: Lunch and bubblegum

Where is dad's favorite place to go?
Nathan: On a mission.

What is dad's favorite color:
Nathan: Black
Kendall: He likes to COLOR a picture. Black, green, yellow, blue, and purple.

It has been so fun to watch Justin evolve into a dad. From the first time I told him we were going to have a baby and tears welded up in his eyes to the times I called him and told him I was taking the kids to the ER for stitches and he was there in minutes.

I love how involved he has been with the family and know that when things get tough, he is in it for the long haul.

I love that at the end of the day, he looks at my tired (more like haggard) face and hands me the keys and tells me to go take a break- he'll put the kids to bed.

I love how sometimes I'll hear talking in the bedroom and go in there to see piles of books he's reading to the boys.

I love that my kids think his favorite thing to do when he comes home is, "To have me and Kendall and mommy run and give hugs and kisses."

I love that he never gets tired of pushing Kendall on the swing or playing catch with Nathan.

I love that sometimes I will catch him "tearing up" and when I ask him what is wrong he tells me, "Oh nothing. I was just thinking of something one of the boys said."

I love that when I have a newborn baby, he is able and willing to hold him forever.

He is a good dad.

Enjoying the Little Things...

I love summer. It's all about sitting on the back wall, with your cousins, indulging yourself with an ice cream and having no other cares or worries in the world!

Lily Gulch!

What a great way to get some energy out! Open gym...Ahhh music to my ears!
Highlights:
1. The foam pit. This is sure to burn 2,336 an hour.
2.Naps that afternoon were especially good.
3. Seeing Melissa, Jaycee and having Kendall tell she was Aunt Sara.
4. Singing to all our favorite Disney songs on the loudspeaker.
5. Tons of happy boys and a cousin fix!




Aunt Sara catapulting Jake into the foam pit. This Kid can fly!

The Z.O.O.

A beautiful day. The kids were happy. Thus the moms were happy. The seals put on a wonderful performance (a huge perk, they never disappoint :)) The picnic lunch was wonderful. Our brains got full of animal knowledge. We all got in some great exercise!

When can we go back?

JAM!!!

What is it about having a stockpile of jam that makes you think you are ready for a huge famine this winter? I feel like saying, "Bring it on!"

Oh wait, all I have is a few dozen jars of jam and some tomato sauce.

My trusty assistant strapped on his frog apron and off to work he went. Eating all the Raspberries that is. Totally the best part.

It's Pouring!

So grab an umbrella and go see if you can find some HUGE puddles! WOOO HOOO! And then try to help Kendall keep his umbrella open...or not.

Oh, What Do You Do In the Summertime?

Pile the kids in the car and take em' to Moon Farms! This lady had turned her land into a little museum complete with a petting zoo.
She had tons of miniature houses, each with a theme for the kids to play in.
The rabbit pin had about 17 rabbits for the kids to catch and pet. Hannah had no problem catching them, ever.
The summer is never complete without tons of foot races, picnics, a camp out in the tent in the backyard, water balloon fights, and a trip to Cabelas.
Kendall wished there would be just one more water balloon left!