My side

If you wonder where we've been it's my fault! We have been in and out of town this month. But I believe that that's the way summer should be. This last weekend was My Side family reunion.

We couldn't all be there together at the same time, but most of us found a way to be there for a night or two. We are a crazy bunch.

{photo by farmboy}

here are some things we did:

We ate a ton! We each made our own homemade pizza. Delish!


We played games. Did a craft. This year's craft was decorating glasses. It was FUN! If you need an idea for kids this is a great one. Adults loved it too! {see top picture}


We went swimming a ton!




We played the fish pond game. And ate popsciles {you can see the leftovers on his face}


We celebrated pioneer day with bonnets and fireworks.



And well--We just hung out!


Here are a few of my brothers and sisters families that were that they I snapped a photo of. I forgot to take one of R-D's family.

Aunt Runnie


Aunt CC


Uncle L the Great


My family {taken by Uncle D---notice how tall the perspective is}


I had to get this shot of Aunt CC and her husband. It was too cute to pass up.


And Farmboy was happy to take this awesome picture of me and my sisters and Nonna. I love it!

"Pull Yourself Together"

....as grandad always says.

That's what I'm trying to do. So I would like to begin by sharing our trip to Houston.

Seriously in LOVE with these kids right here:








They are the BEST. Fun. Crazy. Playful. Exciting. Good. Loving.

My kiddos loved spending time with their cousins. We haven't seen them in over 2 years so pretty much Never considering Hy's almost 4 and Mini-E wasn't even born. We had a very relaxing time.

We saw a lot of this:


I mean A LOT (probably a dozen games or so). These boys are really great ball players.
We cheered them on and ate icys until we were blue in the face...literally.


When we weren't at a game, we were doing this...everyday!

Notice the pjs.

But most special thing we did was see this guy get baptized. Very special.

Nonna, Grandad, & Grandma J were all there for this very important day. It was a treat.

I am so grateful for wonderful family members.
I love that my kids have such great cousins and they they get along so well.



I couldn't ask for greater blessings in the world.

Thank you so much!

Halloween Festivities

Photos courtesy of Grandad.

This year, we headed down to Uncle R-d & Aunt Lala's house for some yummy chili & cornbread & the usual Halloween Trick-or Treating. HY & Mini-E weren't very interested in the pre-candy festivities. They were all geared up for the main event. But I tell you, that cornbread was FABULOUS! I should know, I had about 3 pieces.We headed out in the neighborhood with all the cousins. And we knocked on doors for about an hour and a half which is approximately one hour more than last year. The weather was unusually warm & Uncle R-d was smart enough to pile the two littlest ones in the wagon. HY ran with the big boys while Mini-E only had to lift her bucket for handfuls of candy. It was a dream come true for her.
And guess who showed up half way through trick or treating?
A very familiar witch. I'm telling you, she (Nonna) scared the daylights out of me. HY was pretty concerned about Nonna stealing his candy. I reassured him that it really wasn't her thing, but he may be scarred for life now!
After checking out our loot, we headed up to Midway for a night & a day "out of town." We spent our time swimming & just hanging out with Grandad. Mini-E is loving the water. And HY has no fear!
We can't wait for our next time at Grandad's Lodge.

Happy Birthday dear Grandad...

We spent the weekend in Midway with Grandad and Grandma J. We just LOVE being up there--away from the big city (if you can call Salt Lake a big city) & in the beautiful mountains.
We got to relax, watch all the session of General Conference, and enjoy being with family (cousins included). And of course, yesterday, we celebrated Grandad Grey's 69th Birthday!

I had a few more kids to make this shot more interesting. I thought it was fitting... We love you Grandad. Thanks for putting up with all of our chaos!

lunch, a lake, a wedding & no more golly woggles

This week has been crazy busy, but in a good way.

Here are a few highlights in no particular order:

Wednesday was too too fun with my girlfriends at lunch. A rarity that I always enjoy. Even if it isn't only once a year.

picture from Rachel

Still reading the Twilight Series. Finished book 2 on Friday and picked up Book 3 after our little canoe ride on the Day Break Lake. HY was in heaven. He loved reeling all that grass in!

Yesterday I got to shoot some pictures for my cousin's wedding. So much fun. It was truly a celebration!

A few more pictures here.

And the best highlight....HY & Mini-E are doing a bit better. Still a little sick, but not the total yuckies like we've had at the beginning of the week! Horray!

My Family

Saturday we had a family reunion complete with cousins and all. Just like the good 'ole days.

I have one crazy family.

VA-CA-TION

We've had a great week. Couldn't ask for much more.
We spent the week up in Midway at the Lodge.
This time we had a special treat. Aunt Runnie & her family came to spend a bit of time with us.
They just sold their home in St. Louis & are moving back to AZ in the fall. But first, a little quality time with the family.
We had so much fun that I'm sure that HY will go through withdrawals this week. He's already been a bit of a stinker this morning. He used to being outside & playing with all of his cousins, so this indoor-cleaning of the house- isn't his idea of fun. (Mine either but..)

I have to admit that it was so relaxing to spend a week with Farmboy & my family & not worry about anything. We had a few interruptions to our week (wedding, funeral, teaching, & work), but for the most part, it was nice and smooth.

Here are a few things we did this week:
-Tried to hike to Timpanogas Cave (unsuccessful)
-Successfully visited Cascade Springs (so beautiful)


-Went Swimming a dozen times
-Fishing Galore
-Visited nearly ever hot pots in the Midway area
-Watched movies
-Stayed up late
-Ate & Ate & Ate some more


-Took a million pictures (of course)


And one of myself...


I'm excited to tell you that it's not over yet. This weekend I'll be headed back up to Midway for a reunion. We just can't get enough! Yep, someday we are gonna move up to Midway.

Back Splash

A couple of days ago we headed back to the Splash Park. Only this time, we brought a few more cousins to enjoy the fun.

Here's the gang.

Too Cool B, Mini-E, Lovin' H, A-Kazoo, Big Boy O, Wonder M, Big T, AM, & HY.



I love this picture of Big T all wet! He's got the most beautiful skin. Lucky boy!
Such a great afternoon.
I absolutely love living around family. It makes everything more fun!

Easter Goodies

Everyone has Easter traditions. Our's are probably no different than most everyone's. We spend time with family. We have a delicious meal. We have an Easter egg hunt. The girls get new dresses. And the kids eat an unusually large amount of candy and it shows in church. That was about the gist of our day.

HY & Mini-E looked through their baskets from the Easter Bunny & got "hopped" up on candy BEFORE breakfast even started. This year I started a new tradition. The Easter Bunny brings books for the kids. Something about Spring or God, or Christ. I think it's a good tradition to start.

After wrestling with the kids during church, we headed over to Aunt Lala's house for some family time & dinner. Farmboy created a fruit platter that was exquisite. After dinner, we hunted for eggs. HY went with Farmboy & Mini-E was taken care of by Lovin' H. I was so surprised how quickly Mini-E picked up the hunting for eggs thing. She was all over that. Next year, she won't even need a helper.