Haylee's New Activity

Haylee recently started a new activity. When we moved here, we debated about dance. She has been doing dance since she was 3. It was hard to "give" up a hobby she had been doing for 5 years and she was afraid to try something new. But I got to thinking about the future and I told her she might would like to try cheerleading so she could learn some skills to try out for the middle and high school teams. So, she said ok. She started the season in June. She is on their performing team here. They also have a competative team. Haylee has been really excited to learn tumbling and dancing. She is overwhelmed by how much they have to move to new positions during their dance though. I can't wait to post more pictures as the season progresses!

Chick Fil-A

In July, was Chick Fil-A's customer appreciation day. If you come dressed as a cow, you get a free meal! Well, this year we lived near one AND I was up for the challenge. So I made spots on the kids bedtime tee shirts and colored their faces and off we went.

Laycee Logan and Trent
Haylee, Me, Laycee

It was so fun. We all got free meals (what is better than that?!) and we got free samples of menu items. They handed out free toys to the children. AND the cows came out for some appearances and to meet their fans. It really was a great time for all of us. I can't wait until next year!

4th of July Fireworks

The morning of the 4th, Dave's family had a little get together (well I say little, nothing is little in their family) and we were able to play games. And then in the afternoon, we headed over to Schneph Farms for fireworks. This location is really actually close to our house, but I like to be up close and personal with fireworks. We were always lucky as children to go see the fireworks and I want to share those memories with my children. This year I have to admit, I wasn't really up to it. I was tired, still having morning sickness (which was evening sickness for me) and there was a horrible storm brewing, but I found the energy to take the kids over there anyway.

Here is Logan with his serious face before he starts his dancing! I have a video but we will see if I can get it to upload.

And Laycee was dancing too.

You can see here as the storm started coming it. That is all dust. AZ is horrible for storms because we will get these dust storms with no rain which leaves the next day even more hot and humid. We were worried the event would be cancelled.

We were lucky though and the show went on. After, thousands of people rushed to their cars to get out of there before the storm really took hold of us all. And I was lucky to make it. I was thankful we were able to go and enjoy our time and that the weather held off for a little while longer.

Linzi's Visit

The beginning of July, my sister Linzi came over from TX for a short visit. Of course, when she showed up, she ran off to San Diego with Haylee and Brooklyn. But thats ok because Lynnae and I did a children swap and I had the boys have a sleepover and she took Laycee for a sleepover. Anyway, when Linzi got back with some very tired girls who spent too much time at Sea World and WAY too much time in the sun, we had a little get together. Her step daughter had brought along some sparklers for all of the kids to do that night.

My two men. I love them




Laycee was ok with these but Haylee of course loved them. Haylee loves all things new and adventerous.

It was so fun to see Linzi since we dont see her often. And Haylee loved her time in San Diego with the girls. It was a great visit and perfect way to pass a little summer time.

Sleepover

No summer is complete without a massive sleepover. Loni, Kevin and I had tickets to the Britney Spears concert this summer and Joe and Lynnae were on a weekend getaway. My dear mother was brave enough to take on all 11 children herself. Here are 3 of the boys that she had to keep close by to get to sleep. But they talked for days abotu how fun it was to have a sleepover with all of their cousins. Maybe I should host a sleepover like this more often... although I don't know if I could handle it!

Visitors

Ok so I have been kind of at a standstill with blogging. My days seem to be endlessly long and when I sit down in the evening, it is time to talk to Dave. When I am done talking to him, I look at the pictures that need to be blogged and suddenly feel overwhelmed by the task I have so unsuccessfully kept up on. Sometimes I sit in amazement how when Laycee and Logan were babies, yes babies, I found the time to blog and track their every move. And yet here I am with more "time" than ever and somehow the task is too daunting. Well this morning, I have a little free time. So we will see if I can get a little blogging done. Oh be prepared for some serious back dating and one of these days I hope to catch up. I would love to blog about my thoughts and pictures that are happening in the present. So, way back in June, we had some visitors. Julie, Charlie, Gavin and Jessie stopped by. They are some of our fondest friends from Italy and now it has been YEARS since we have seen them. They were coming through the area, so it was exciting to have them visit.

Our house was not yet unpacked, but we were at least able to have enough stuff and room to accomidate them. It was so fun to spend some time with old friends and catch up on life. It is amazing how time changes. I have noticed that a lot lately actually. Since moving back to AZ, we have ran into several people I knew in high school. It is such a weird feeling but then so interesting as well to see how life changes. When you are young, you are so limited in your knowledge of life and life's tracks and yet as you grow, it is intersting to see how everyone is so unique and different. Thanks for stopping by Julie and Kids... we miss you!!

Canning

I hope I didn't post this already. But lately, I have taken an interest in canning. Mom was able to get some chicken in bulk and I didn't want to freeze it. I like canned chicken for some of recipes. So, Dave's mom came over and showed me how to pressure can the chicken. I was so excited to see all of the hard work in the end. A week or two later, my mom came over and helped me make plum jelly. And then this week, I am hoping to make peach jam and maybe something else peach. Maybe cobbler or salsa. Not sure. I have really taken a liking to this new skill and I cannot wait until my next project! And even better, Dave is super excited I have finally found a hobby I really enjoy. Oh I dream of the day when my shelves are full of yummy cans looking just like this!

Spa

On our last day at the resort, the girls were treated with a special time at the spa. The boys and I went swimming while the girls went off to be pampered.

They ended up so dressed up and beautiful. It was such a treat and so enjoyable for them. All in all it was an amazing treat and a great birthday surprise. My favorite part was it was only an hour from home! We weren't required to be in the car all day and there was minimal stress. I was thankful for this opportunity to spend with the children and to get away.

Cracker Barrel

As I mentioned, on our second day, we headed out for breakfast at Cracker Barrel. Since we were in no hurry, we stayed to play a little checkers and relax.

The boys were really into their game.
Laycee was really into looking cute as always.

And Logan was really into his candy as always. It was fun and the children were so good at breakfast. I was glad they enjoyed a hearty meal prior to our day of fun in the sun!

Arizona Grand Resort

After dinner, we headed over to the hotel to check in. We were staying at Arizona Grand Resort!

We were welcomed by a beautiful fountain.
Here is the entrance to the hotel.

And these are the rooms.

The resort includes admission to their water park. So the first day, we just went to the pool since it was in the evening time. The next day, we went to breakfast (pictures to come) and then spent the day at the water park. It waas SO fun and amazing. The kids loved it. There was a wave pool, 3 slides, a pool and a lazy river. It is so hot in AZ, so there were some mid afternoon heat issues, but it was an amazing trip. We really had a great time! Then on our checkout day, the girls were in for a surprise (more details to come)!

Birthday Surprise

The end of June, I surprised Haylee and Trent with a special trip. This was a joint birthday present for the two of them. I figured since Laycee and Logan have to share every year, they surely can share one year. The first surprise was dinner at Rainforest Cafe.

Haylee, Laycee, Logan, Brooklyn, Trent and Bryce. They each could bring a friend to their surprise and Brooklyn and Bryce are who they chose.
At the end of dinner, they got icee's to go!

Some birds that the kids loved.

The boys could not get over the fish.

It was a really fun dinner. My children have never been here and it was fun to watch the "animals" and enjoy some time in a fun environment. After dinner though, they were really excited to see where we were headed next!

Bedrooms

Yes July has been a crazy month over here. We have been busy traveling and passing the time. So, I am going to attempt to catch up on some blogging. A little while ago, I had posted pictures of the painting we did to the girls and boys room. So here are the finished decorated projects. I got those pictures from Hobby Lobby and the chandiler was bought online. The bedding is from JcPenny's.

You can see the girls have been busily using their chalk board. The shelves and bow holder are from Hobby Lobby and the Lambs are from Scentsy. I love the girls room. I need to make curtains but I am so pleased with how it turned out.

I did a solar system theme in the boys room. These Wallies Stickers were bought on Amazon. Man it took forever to decide how to do this wall.

Here is the magnetic wall with the stars. There will be a moon over here too as soon as I get it hung up.

I really had so much fun decorating their rooms. It was neat to come up with an idea and find all of the pieces to make it work. I am however so thankful the work is over! Hope you enjoy!