St. George

We have been planning a St. George trip for awhile now. When we were single (my use of the word "single" just means after we were married, but before we had kids) we used to go to St. George all the time with Kenny and Cherice (when they too, were single). We would go on hikes, swim, and go see a play at Tuacahn. So, since we've moved back to Utah, we having been planning on going. First things first, find babysitters for the kids so we could go see a play. So, we brought our two nieces with us, Chelsie and Courtnie. We invited Donnarae down for the fun too. On our way down, I wanted to stop at a place we had gone to over Spring Break when I went to Snow College. It is a place called Red Cliffs. It is a campground, and day use park. There is an awesome hike through red cliffs. From what I remembered from 11 years ago, was that there is a stream/river that flows through the canyon. We used the rocks as a slide, and we also jumped off a cliff into a deep pool of water. Well, dumb me, didn't realize that in June there is no water. So, we went on a really hot hike, realized there was no water, and turned around. I was really sad, cause the kids would have LOVED the water. Here is a picture of all who went. When we realized there was no water, and decided we should turn around I made everyone get together for a group shot. Thank heavens for timers! We soon headed off to our hotel. YEP! A HOTEL! YEA! As soon as we got there, we got into our swimsuits, and headed for the pool. They had an indoor and an outdoor pool. Which was nice, cause then we didn't need to worry about sunscreen. That night the adults went to Tuacahn and watched Cinderella. It was fun. My dad works in St. George, and stayed at the same hotel as we did, so early the next morning, Kenny, Troy, and my dad went golfing. When they got back, we went swimming again, then went to Nielsen's Custard Shop, and then headed home. It was a quick trip (cheaper that way) and was definately fun to get away for a day! To all of you who are still "SINGLE" live it up! Go and do LOTS and LOTS of things! You'll NEVER be "single" again! We had a good time, and the kids did too! Next time, we'll go back in the spring, so we can play in the stream at Red Cliffs!

Bear Lake

We went up to Bear Lake on Saturday, to play with Doug's (Troy's Dad) new watercraft. Pretty much all of Troy's family went up, and we had a great time. I will admit, I was a bit grouchy. Kristin had been up on Friday night until 2:30 coughing, and having a rough time, and I was up with her. Then, we woke up at 4:00 a.m. to leave for Bear Lake. So, I will admit, I was a bit grouchy.

I did have a good time though. I held Haley pretty much all day. I NEVER get to do that! Now that she has a bottle, it's very rare when I get a chance to hold her while she's eating. Haley snuggled me most of the day, she never does that! I loved it! She's definately a Momma's girl.

The boys and Kristin loved playing with their cousins, and playing in the sand. Troy took the boys out on the waverunners, and they were sissy's. They got less "sissyish" as the day went on. I'm sure they'll get used to them. I made Troy take me out on one. Since having kids, I'm not the thrill seeker I used to be for some reason. I used to love playing on waverunners, trying to throw myself off...I did love going out on one with Troy though...I don't think he likes it much, but I did.

Most of Troy's family was camping on the Property that a few members of Troy's family owns. Troy's parents have a Fifth Wheel and his sister and her family have a motor home. Others camped in tents. Most of you know, I despise camping...Oh, I can do it, and I will and I have, but it's not my favorite - SO FAR FROM MY FAVORITE THING! A few reasons why: I think all the stuff you think you need, and buy, costs just as much as staying in a hotel, wierd bathrooms, no shower, wierd bathrooms, dirt, stickers, did I mention wierd bathrooms? Since we haven't lived in Utah, by family, we haven't really gone camping much. We have a tent, but the last time we used it, I was pregnant with Jake. Trying to deal with a baby in the dirt, needing warm water, trying to keep sunscreen on, is a bit of a headache. I'll stop complaining now. I don't think I need excuses not to camp, I can do it, it's just that I don't WANT to do it. But, there are sacrifices you make for your kids, and I think this is one of them. On Saturday night, Troy's parents said we could stay in the living room of their fifth wheel. We were planning on driving home, but it was nice sleeping there, making the day last a bit longer. As we were sitting around the campfire, roasting marshmallows, I spied with my little eye a perfect picture spot! So, I made Doug and Lee Ann pose. Here it is! I love this picture...

Lazy Saturday...

Many of you know that Troy works on Saturdays. It's one of my most boring days...mostly, because other people are doing family things, so we usually just stay home. I have been needing to go to the grocery store, but dreading it, because who in their right mind wants to take 4 kids to the grocery store on a Saturday????????? Not me. Anyways, my dad surprised us Saturday morning, and said he was taking his dogs on a walk. Naturally, Jake and Kyle wanted to go. So, he took them to Copperton to walk the dogs. That put me with 2 kids at the grocery store! WAHOO! So, I found a waterballoon launcher and water balloons at the grocery store, and I stopped at Target for a little kiddie pool. We got home and set it up. Cherice brought Daxton and Kinlee over. The kids LOVED the pool. It was 100 degrees outside, and I thought the water was freezing, but they didn't seem to mind! (Oh, Jake has face paint on, leftover from the ballet bbq - if you're wondering why his face looks funny)

Oh, funny story, Cherice and I were trying to show the boys how the water balloon launcher worked. Cherice and I each had a hold of the handles, and the boys were pulling back the rubber band. Well, they ended up launching a water balloon into 2 backyards over, landing on their deck. Cherice and I dropped the launcher and thought about running in the house...just like we would have done if we were 10...we told the kids that they probably shouldn't aim in that direction, and let them do it on their own...

I love the backyard! It would be the greatest if we could get that cement and fence done...all in time...Anyways, Haley loves being outside too! Here she is on a beach towel! Oh, I took her to the Dr. on Wednesday. She weighs 12 lbs 3 oz! YEA!!!!!!!!!! She broke the 12 lb mark! Maybe her 3-6 month clothes will start fitting now! I bought her size 2 diapers today, hopefully they won't be too big!

When Troy got home, we decided to go to the Herriman Rodeo. I know, I am not a "rodeo" person, but it was a lot of fun. The kids had a blast! Troy's dad used to ride bulls, so it was fun to show the kids something that their grandpa had done. As I was there, I kept thinking what a different world rodeo people lived in, than I live in. I guess that's one of the beauties of America...we all do what makes us happy, or at least we all should! We're off to Bear Lake in the morning, to help "break in" Doug's(Troy's dad) waverunner's that he just bought. It should be a fun day! The rest of Troy's family is camping...but we're just going up for the day. I don't know how camping is going to be with Haley. I imagine it's going to be horrible...just wondering how I'm going to make her a warm bottle in the middle of the night, while she's screaming for one...oh well, a few more weeks until I have to have it figured out. In a few weeks, we are going back up to Bear Lake for a family reunion...we'll see how it goes! Any suggestions?

The Dance Recital

Kristin had her first ballet recital on Friday. She was a cat. She did so good. She got stuck behind a girl, and it was really hard to see her, but she did great. After her dance, we let her come in the audience and watch the other girls. She loved it. She kept telling me she needed to get back on stage and keep dancing! I really love the place she goes. It's called Wasatch Arts Center. Kristin's recital lasted 45 minutes! GREAT! It was a Pre-K and Kindergarten recital. It was nice, so you didn't have to sit through a ton of other dances! They had the other recitals on other nights. I think they split it up into 3 different recitals. I also like it because they want the girls to be modest. I understand that once the girls get older, traditional ballet costumes are a little less modest, but who wants their 3 year old running around looking like a 2-bit hooker in a ton of make-up and immodest clothing? NOT ME! Also, it's not competition dance. They only have 1 recital a year! And, the cost for the costume is $25.00. My reason for putting Kristin in ballet, is not so that she will be a professional dancer, but so that she can have fun, get excercise, and think she's a princess. So far, it's been all I've wanted!

For her actual recital, her hair was in a cute little bun, but I did her hair for ballet pictures like this, because her hair doesn't go very good in an actual pony tail...I don't know why, but it's bumpy on top!

Everyone came to watch Kristin dance! Papa and Grammy, Grandma and Grandpa, even Grandma Great, and Aunt LeAnne! Lucky little girl...

Another Haley update...

So, I received the "official" denial letter from the insurance company. They won't pay for her formula because "it is not being administered through a feeding tube". SO DUMB! Troy wants to appeal it. I don't know what the point is, but he can try, if he likes...I don't have time to deal with it.

I decided to take Haley to an allergist. I haven't started feeding her normal food, and so before I did, I thought it might be a good idea. So, we went today. My insurance wouldn't cover it, and I had to pay $167 out of pocket. It turns out, she's not allergic to anything! NOPE, not even milk...hmmm...the doc said that just because she isn't allergic to it, doesn't mean she's not intolerant of it...wierd...so, back to nowhere, I guess...The allergy test was sad. I had to hold her so that they could poke these things in her back. So, she was crying, and kept looking up at me, I'm sure wondering why on earth I would let someone do that to her. It was so sad...She came home, and fell asleep. Kristin must have snuck in her room, because when I went to check on her, I found these stuffed animals...sweet girl...

Notice Haley's thigh...it's getting chubby...

As for the rest of the kids, Kyle has a few weeks left of school. Jake is going on a field trip to Thanksgiving Point farm tomorrow. Kristin starts preschool July 25th. She's so excited...I can't believe she's that old! All the kids are in swimming lessons now. It's great, because they all go at the same time, but are in the level appropriate classes. I'll have to take a picture on Friday. The boys are doing so great! Kristin will hopefully get there...

Denied...

The insurance company is refusing to pay for Haley's formula. Insurance companies are evil, I believe...loopholes...the doctors and nurses who reviewed her case, didn't think her formula was necessary. FUNNY, she would die without it...seems kinda necessary to me. Here's a picture of her at the beach...she's definately worth more than all the money we're going to be putting out for the formula...

Our Trip...

It is our last night at the beach house. Not so much a beach house, but a house on the cliffs overlooking the beach...It's been nice though. Everyone is asleep, and we are getting ready to leave in the morning. The girls (Haley and Kristin) and I are driving with my mom to Tulare, CA and she is doing a presentation for one of the schools there on Tuesday. Tuesday night, we are headed through Bakersfield on our way home. I am hoping I can drive all night, so we can be home late on Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. I am anxious to be home, and get all my work done that has been piling up since I've been gone. Plus, the backyard is ready and waiting for the kids to play! AND, Erin is coming to visit on Friday! WAHOO! I find out in the morning if insurance is going to pay for Haley's formula...keep your fingers crossed...Anyways, back to our trip...

Disneyland was so much fun! (We ran into some people we had known from Oregon, Matt and Shannon Phair. It was fun to see how old their kids were. They moved from Oregon 3.5 years ago.) Kyle was tall enough to go on all of the rides. And he did. He didn't like Splash Mountain the first time, due to the fact that he got A LITTLE wet. And, he wouldn't look at me after Tower of Terror. He liked the rest. All the kids (except Haley) got to go on Matterhorn. Kristin covered her eyes the whole time, cause she was scared of the monsters, but she liked the ride. The favorite was Buzz Lightyear. Seriously, over 3 days, we went on it at least 20 times. It was one of the rides the WHOLE family could go on, and Troy and I kept trying to increase our points. For those of you who don't know, on the Buzz Lightyear ride, you are given a laser gun, and the whole ride has targets through it, and triangles are worth the most points, and if a target is lit up, it is worth more points. My highest was 110,000 points (I was an L-3 ranger - for those of you who understand Buzz Lightyear lingo) Troy's highest (I think) was 245,000. I think he lied. ;) Here's a picture that shows the cars and the guns...

The kids did so great! Really. Kristin had a few girl tantrum moments, but for the most part, the kids were good. It was so fun being on a family vacation, too! We did what we wanted, when we wanted, and we didn't have to worry about other people's schedules. Good times! We bought our Disneyland Trip package through Costco Travel, and got a free breakfast with the characters. Here's the kids with Minnie.

In Disneyland this year, the theme is: A Year of a Million Dreams. They were randomly giving away these necklaces that were called dream fast passes. On the tag on the necklace, they had little tabs, that were good for a fast pass at all the rides. So, basically you didn't have to wait in line at any of the rides with fast pass lanes. On our first day in Disneyland, I saw people with them, and trying Erin's positive thinking trick, I was trying to "will" myself a necklace. On our third and final day of disneyland, with no necklace so far, Troy took the kids on Matterhorn and I waited with Haley. When he got off the ride, 2 workers handed him and all 3 kids a necklace. They walked up to me, and showed them to me. SO NOT FAIR! It was me who had done all the positive thinking, and I didn't get one. It actually turned out fine, because there are very FEW rides we can all go on, and between stroller switch ride passes and fast passes, that whole day, we didn't wait in 1 line. SO NICE! We had gotten to Disneyland that morning at 8:00 and didn't leave until the park closed at 9:00pm. We managed to get on all the main rides at Disneyland and California Adventures in 1 day, with the dream fast pass. Here are the "winners" of the necklaces!

After our 3 days in Disneyland, we picked Jason up and headed to Santa Cruz for Michael's Wedding. While we were waiting to check into the Beach house, we went to the boardwalk. Since our kids wake up so early, we got there before it even opened up, and it was a little chilly. A worker there offered to take our picture.

Saturday morning, before the wedding, we headed to the beach. It was pretty chilly, but naturally, the kids didn't care. They got in the water, and played in the sand. They weren't happy when we told them it was time to go!

Here are the men before the wedding. Except for my dad, he had gotten kicked out of his bathroom, and was the last to get ready.

Here's a picture of the flower girl - Kristin. Maria's niece, Maya, was also a flower girl. She is a little younger than Kristin, and didn't understand the concept, she dumped her basket over, and there was a pile of flowers in the row, but it was so cute! Kristin did what she was told, a little slow, but she did it. Thanks for doing her hair, Katie!

Here's Mike and Maria. My batteries conveniently died immediately following the wedding, so I didn't get any good shots, but my dad did. Sorry I posted the picture of your eyes closed Maria, I just didn't have any other pictures!
The wedding was awesome. Maria looked fabulous. Mike looked as good as he could look (teasing...)The reception was a lot of fun too! Maria's family had made authentic Mexican food. There was dancing. Kyle was really irritated (to tears) that he "shakes it like a white boy". We'll have to work on dancing at home. Maria's nephews (that Kyle had been playing with all night) could really move. Congrats Mike and Maria! Love you guys! Sorry for the eternal post, but I knew if I didn't do it in one shot, it wouldn't get done!