St George Escape

Madi and Robby were off track the last 3 weeks of October and James had to head to St George for work so the rest of us decide to tag along. I will admit that by the end of 3 days with all of us in the same Hotel room - mom was a ready to come home but overall it was a great trip. James had the car most of the time so me and the kids hung out at the hotel and went swimming most of the time. The hotel had an indoor and outdoor pool so it was perfect for all times of the day. I think our kids could swim forever. Monday night we caught up with the Bain family who now live in St George and we went to a local farm that had a corn maze, hay ride, play area, steer roping, trains and petting zoo. The kids had a blast and you would think that our kids and the Bain kids were long lost friends - they had so much fun together. Thank you to the Bains for a great evening! On Tuesday we headed over to Snow Canyon and went hiking through the red rock and then went to the Sand Dunes where the kids played for about 2 hours. It was beautiful and a lot of fun ... we were happy to have awesome weather! On our way home on Wednesday we decided to stop at Cove Fort... besides the 30 degree drop in temperature since we left St George, it was really interesting (even the kids liked it). Overall... a great little vacation!

Crazy Hair Day

The kids had crazy hair day at school the other day -- they had so much fun coming up with what crazy hair-do they would do that day(Madi thought about it the entire week before. Madi ended up with a side bun, a side braid and a back ponytail. Robby ended up with spikes(not many other options for brillow head) and then they both had pink highlights. Elli's hair was done just for the picture ... (aka: bed head!) The morning was crazy for me trying to get it all done before school because it is always hectic in the morning but after looking back at the pictures it was well worth the chaotic morning. The kids had so much fun and they looked great.

For the Love of Soccer

Well, Soccer season is in full speed at our house. James is coaching Robby's team (The Red Fire Dragons) and is the assistant coach for Madi's team (The Silver Dophins). So since the beginning of September ... Wednesday & Thursday nights and all day Saturday are sll Soccer ...YEA!!! The kids are loving it so of course we are the supportive parents who won't be sad when October 25th rolls around. They both have been playing really well this year and it is fun to watch them learn and get a little better each game. This is Madison's first year with playing with goalies on each team - she has done it a few times but says she doesn't like it very much. I would say they both play best when they are playing "fullbacks". Here are some pics to share the joy of the season with all of you!

Can you say "Little Miss Homemaker"!

Ok, so as I was looking back on the past week - I thought to myself, when did I get this old?

First I was called into Young Women's as the Beehive Adviser this past Sunday and as I have started hanging out with these awesome girls I realized that even though it seems just like the other day that I was there age - it was actually many, many days ago!

Then to make me feel even more "maternal" I decided that I was going to tackle the task of canning and freezing this fall. So off to Grandma's for some tomatoes in which I made salsa and canned tomatoes and then thanks to my nice brother in law who was in Perry I was blessed with a bushel of fresh peaches. I am so sick of blanching and peeling produce I could puke... but overall I am very excited at what I accomplished!

Also - for all you fellow BHS graduates out there -- guess who is the mia maid adviser - good old Mrs. Watts from adult roles - she is now a counselor at Bountiful. She is a great lady and great with the girls. Small world!

1st Day of PreSchool For Elli

I can't believe that our little Elli is starting Preschool - she was so excited. Robby and Madi went back to school in August and she has been asking everyday since when she gets to go to school. I should be said that my baby is old enough for preschool but I have to admit that I love the couple of hours of kid free time 2 days a week.

The first day of school she came home and told me that she learned hopscotch and criss-cross applesauce. Yesterday she came home and had gotten the "star" award for sharing the barbies with the other girls during play time ... these are big accomplishments for our little 3 year old! There have been no tears from Elli - she is always ready to go with her back pack on!(usually at 9am and her school doesn't start until 12:30.) We love this crazy little red head!

Yea -- Swiss Days!!

Well you know that Fall is officially upon us when the annual Swiss Days Weekend occurs. James keeps commenting that summer is over and he can't believe it -- I will agree that it went so fast this year. But I am always happy to see Swiss Days upon us because it is always so fun to shop till you drop! I was able to browse all the booths with my friend Steph from Pocatello on Friday -- this was her first trip to the hallowed Midway event (she commented to her husband that she would be gone for a couple of hours only - Ha Ha - was she in for a surprise!) But she made some great purchases with my expert advise, of course! On Saturday, my sister in law and mother in law came up and we made the treck again to the booths and of course some shopping had to be done with the fam - Dad and Gayla- which included some good purchases for the new addition to the cabin. However, the newest crazy shopper to the Swiss Days Clan would have to be Madison - I have not seen her that excited for a long time - it was so funny. She has been working hard the last 2 weeks to earn 5 dollars to add to her own 5 dollars to spend at Swiss Days. She then got spoiled by Grandma and Grandpa with a little more money -- so she couldn't wait to shop the day away. She couldn't fall asleep the night before and then she was up by 7am begging me to go "right now"! (What have I created?) Grandma Gayla and Grandpa Bobby walked around with her in the afternoon after I had met up with Steph and Madi loved every minute of it and was so proud to show me all her purchases.

I always love going to Swiss Days and running into so many people that I love and may or may not have seen in a long time. It was a beautiful weekend at the cabin -- lots and lots of fun!