June

So, our summer has been really fun this year.

I have yet to hear the kids say that they are bored. I'll take that to mean that they are having fun!

We started our summer out in Santa Cruz.

Camping on the beach, the pier, and good friends is a recipe for a GREAT time!

We just hope they invite us back next year!

Then I found this GEM of a bug. Totally grossed me out!

I thought it was one of Hunter's million plastic bugs that are always strewn throughout the house.

For some reason I poked it with a stick before I picked it up. It was a good thing I did!!

It's a Jerusalem Cricket, or Potato Bug.
Gross!!

I finally have two little girls that love to eat!

My parents flew out to see us. It was a great time, but I am lacking on pictures. (of course!)

Hunter finished t-ball.  His coaches said that he was the most improved! He had a blast.

He also finished his year of T-K. If I could do it over again, I wouldn't have done it. There was NO academic increase for him over the year. It was okay for him socially though. He acted up quite a bit because he was so BORED! I have to brag; he's at a 2nd grade reading level and hasn't even started Kindergarten yet! This was his teacher Mrs. Sakamoto. She was great! I can't even imagine a class of 20 boys and not a single girl.

We have spent lots of days at the park. The kids love to play and we most often go with friends.

Mckinley got her first manicure at a salon. She was so nervous about it I could hardly get her to look at me. I don't think we'll be doing it again for a long time.

More time at the park . . . 

We also went down to Elk Grove to a bounce house. The kids had a great time. Hunter was running around so much that I couldn't even get a picture of him.

Madelynn had NO fear. She climbed up the big slides and all over the bouncers.

This last weekend we made our way on a three hour trip to go to the beach. The kids have never been happier.

Madelynn became a sand monster.

Pa Phil was excellent at watching the kiddos. It's a good thing there were 3 other adults close by.

I never thought I'd see the day where this kid would love a nap at the beach over chasing the birds.

Mckinley and daddy loved the down time and caught up on the snuggles.

Hunter and I played in the water and found some sand dollars.

We had a great time!

Long Time, No See.

WOW!!!! It's been a while since we've been around!  

Well, here is an update, but I'll warn you that there isn't much order to this whole post.

Hunter has to draw a journal page everyday at school.

Obviously, he's a little behind on the times, and a little obsessed with M. J.

I took the kids to Disney on Ice. They loved it!! 

They are already asking to go again.

This little Miss turned one!

... and we rode the carousel at the mall to celebrate. 

We made a trip to Utah for a special surprise.

We spent a day playing at the Chalet in the snow. 

Hunter and Papa Cardon built a couple of snowmen.

Here was the surprise!!

Mckinley got a new bike.

Lots of time was spent in bed watching movies.

Mckinley actually ate a hamburger!

We watched  General Conference and played conference bingo.

We've been riding bikes a LOT. 

This ride we found a dead butterfly, and Hunter loved holding it.

The girls LOVE watching movies together.

This was either Little Mermaid or Sound of Music.

They both LOVE to sing to the Sound of Music.

We made a "semi-spontaneous" trip to Disneyland.

We found out that Madelynn is afraid of her shadow.

It was SO funny to watch!

I managed to get all three kids on a ride by myself!

(even if there was a little bit of sibling rivalry)

Hunter loves his Tigger tails.

(and went on Splash Mountain to earn this one)

Mckinley in a happy moment!

Madelynn caught a nap with Pa during the Aladdin show.

My dad and I got to go on Indiana Jones. We were almost to the front when the ride broke down.

Hunter started T-ball.

We are loving watching his team play!

Madelynn also decided to take a bath

... with her pajamas on!

Shaving Cream Painting

I've been very hard on myself lately thinking that we just get stuck in a rut of doing the same thing 

over and over.

So, I have been looking on pinterest for ideas of things to do with the kids. I found an idea for bath time.

We started with all the kids in the bath, and then we got Madelynn out. But not before we snapped this shot.

(I love the fact that Hunter is lurking in the background!)

The website I found said that it wouldn't stain the grout.

LIAR!!

That's all I have to say!

So, I sat down at my computer tonight to post a little to try and catch up on the going ons around here, when I realized that there isn't much to update on. I've been really bad about taking pictures. I have a bunch of pictures on my phone, but I'm not the most apple savy person, and I don't know how to quickly move the pictures to the computer.

Life with three ACTIVE kids is crazy! I have a hard time keeping up with them. I read a quote that I loved, "Cleaning the house with the kids still home is like trying to shovel the snow while it's still snowing." LOVE it!! I try my hardest to keep the house clean, but man! Those kids can destroy a house in 2 minutes flat!

Hunter is loving school. Well, most of the time. He asks me every morning if he has school. Most of the time I get a "YES!!" but some of the time it's "NOOOOOOOOO" He has really stepped up to the roll of big brother. He is a giant help to me. I really think I'd loose my head if it weren't for him. He's always reminding me of things that I'm forgetting. He is still the sweetest kid; loves to cuddle, especially with Madelynn.

Mckinley is a firecracker. That girl has an attitude that can go from 0 to 60 in 1 second. She has gotten a million times better than she used to be. She loves her mommy. She's starting to warm up to her dad, but it's usually Mom. Anything that she needs help with, I have to help. She still is a picky eater. Getting better, but still picky. She will play a game Erik made up, "Ready, Set, Meat" basically, you put a bite on your fork and say ready, set, (whatever food you have on your fork. (meat, potato, beans)) She still has to sleep with her "Koka dots" She loves all things Ariel. She has also become a great big sister. She and Madelynn will actually play together.

Madelynn is almost a walker. She has taken 11 steps at best. She's getting gutsy and can take 2 steps between objects by herself. She loves to climb the stairs. The second I take the baby gate down, she's going up those stairs. She is the happiest baby. I rarely hear a peep out of her. She can say, dad, daddy, hi, and sometimes say mom.

Erik is mostly enjoying work. The work part he loves. The politics of medicine he hates. The health care system in this country needs some serious work. (but that's a whole other post that I won't even start here.) He loves playing basketball on Thursday nights with the elders quorum. He loves playing with the kids. He's great and puts them down to bed almost every night. He stretches their bedtime out just so he can play with them more. I don't mind too much, because that means I get to sleep just a bit longer in the mornings.

All in all things are going well around our house. We love visitors!! (That is a hint to ALL our friends and family!)