Florida Highlights Take 2 - Fun Times

I love this picture of Baili and Me because it reminds me of a conversation we had just before we took the picture. Baili is super sweet and always showing love to me. I appreciate her thoughtfulness and the fact that she still likes me......i'm hoping that last through her teenage years. She wrote in the sand....BAILI + MOM=Heart

Grandma is always taking pictures....I mean ALWAYS. Her camera is always at the ready and shes so busy snapping pictures that she's rarely in them. Joe had mentioned that someone should get a picture of her taking a picture. Although I didn't capture "the stance" (which is a lunge as low to the ground that she can get) I think this picture is awesome and typical of what the rest of us usually see when we turn around and hear, "smile for ganma...." hahah....we love you grandma!

Kami's pink sunblock - she was a true surfer chick!

Jacob and his house of cards. Aunt Amy introduced the kids to a simple but time consuming game of building with cards. They had hours of fun (with moments of frustration) building and admiring their creations. For those of you who know Jacob, you know he is very focused and meticulous so these are two of his best creations - SMILE!

The girls buried the boys on our last day - if you look close you can see the outline of their bodies

Our favorite date place in New Smyrna is NORWOODS restaurant. Since last year I had been dreaming and tasting their fillet minion medallions......oh my gosh....they are so good and Im salivating about them now so I can't write any more about that! Sam loves the scallops, fish and of course the time with his honey - that would be me! We went there twice courtesy of grandma taking the kids for us! Memories......

Ridiculously Backblogged!

It's taking me so long to get around to blogging these days that I publish the blog right after I write the heading, ummm with no content.....sorry about that!

So I have pictures from Florida and back to school still to post. I guess I will just post the pictures and suffice it to say that Florida was a blast. It's always fun hanging with the family, relaxing on the beach, eating our hearts out and for some of us (not me) playing cards till the wee hours of the morning - that would be Sam and co.

School has been going great. Kids love being back in school and Kami is now in kindergarten which fills up her morning and frees up mine! It's so weird to have all four kids get out of the car and I drive off alone - oh the sorrow, mixed with bliss.....hahah!

In other news....I certified to teach ZUMBA!!! I'm so super excited about this because it's been a long time, like 3 years, coming. It was an amazing all day training, which was sooooo fun! I auditioned at the YMCA close to where we live and got hired. I think I will be teaching a class in the next few weeks. I'm so pumped!

Kami's birthday was yesterday - she is 5 - so weird! I can't believe our youngest child is 5. I miss the baby days but so enjoy hanging out and having relationships with our kids. Now that they're older it's fun to talk with them, get their perspective on things or see and hear their imaginations go wild. I will post a separate post of Kami's birthday pictures.

What else.....oh today went out to play on Lake Mead with the youth from our ward. It was great. Weather was perfect and the water was just right. It was my first time tubing (hanging on a tube being dragged by a boat - seriously who comes up with these things?) I'm obviously not a lake goer but it was really fun.

Oh the joy!

A blood curdling scream from the bathroom this morning made it pretty clear that Baili was doing Kami's hair. She just learned how to french braid and does it well but Kami is a drama queen and was squealing like a limb was being cut off. I tried to help the situation but it ended with Kami bawling "I want mommy" and Baili stomping off and slamming her bedroom door...."I'm never doing her hair again!"
Good morning world..................
So a few minutes later upstairs I thought I might help the whole ordeal by pointing out to Kami that her sister is just trying to help and if they can't make it work, she might have to go to school with her hair undone or (as in todays case) half done with one french braid and the other side sticking out like a scarecrow. Kami's response was that I could just do it.....well?
The funniest part and the reason I dont want to forget this glorious experience was Ryan's comment as he listened to Kami's lecture....."Kami, you look like a psycho maniac with your hair like that..." ummm, helpful? I dunno?

Florida Highlights - Take 1 - Cousins

Food Games - Young Women July 2010

FYI - I pounded down my cupcake and took 1s place!

All good things must come to an end

and this includes my little "sabbatical" from the blogging world. I felt totally unmotivated to blog even though there was lots going on and Ive been taking lots of pictures. So were back from our vacation to Florida and kids are back in school. I love how that creates immediate order to our lives. Chaotic order but order none the less.......
So lets start with where we left off. Girls camp.....wow that seems like a year ago. It was my first girls camp in years, actually since I went to girls camp as a young woman myself. Initially I was NOT excited. I am not a camper by any means. The few times that Ive tried to connect with my inner "wilderness Annie", I have fallen short and gotten so frustrated that I swore I would never try again. A few camping trips pregnant probably didn't help my attitude. I don't like being uncomfortable or dirty so pretty much a Super 8 is my idea of roughing it. So.... I brought along a machine gun....lol just kidding! We got to shoot this awesome rifle which is actually replacing the AK's the military use in Afghanistan. I took this picture just for my Dad because I thought he'd be proud considering our IRA roots - (umm JOKE - that was a joke......)

BUT girls camp was awesome! We stayed at the Stewart Ranch in Cottonwood, just north of Alamo. The scenery was beautiful, leaders got to sleep in a cabin and the 16 teenage girls didn't fight with each other - BLISS! We did fun activities, crafts, hikes, survival training (umm, decapitating & roasting crickets...was not my idea), water fights, morning devotionals and evening firesides and testimony meetings. Friendships were created and sharing spiritual experiences together was probably the highlight of the 4 days we were there.

It's amazing when you take stress & technology out of the picture how much more we appreciate the world around us and the people around us. I love my young women, all of them, and enjoyed the time together on the mountain. Oh also the food was FABULOUS thanks to our camp cook.