Sunday, July 27, 2008

San Clemente Vacation

This past week we went to San Clemente, CA with the Watts family for a little camping and beach trip fun. This pic was taken our last day after playing hard in the sun and dirt for 5 days so we all look a bit "swarthy" as Kirt says. It was a great trip and the Watts were so fun to be around and the kids really enjoyed hanging out together. Thank you Watts Family :)This post may be a bit long with pictures, but I enjoyed everything so much it was hard to pick favorites. So enjoy scrolling through them, the photos mainly speak for themselves.
Beach Fun!
Dallin and Elaine loved playing in the surf. The last time we took them to a beach Elaine was a baby and Dallin about 3, so it was a new adventure for them.

Just hanging out with the kids. (I'm using Elaine as a 'cover-up' here).

Daddy digging with the boys. This is basically all Taft did on the beach, dig and dig and it was heaven to him. The water scared him and Brigham would scream if I even got near it holding him.

On our last day at the beach Brig finally was enjoying the sand and stopped screaming if Mom and Dad touched the ocean.

Elaine was a Boogie Boarding maniac. She loved it!


Kirt also enjoyed diving into the surf on the Boogie Boards.

I like this pic b/c it was our last moments at the beach and Lori convinced me and Sara(Stoddards were in town and joined us this day) to make the most of it , leave my warm towel and dive into the cold water one last time for some Boogie Boarding. I'm glad she did, it was a blast!

Legoland Day
We took one day out from the beach to go to Legoland! The kids enjoyed going on many rides and seeing the Lego statues. It was a fun little adventure, but we don't think we'd go back. A bit subpar compared to Disneyland and geared to the younger kids. But we're glad we went, it was fun to see the kids enjoy themselves.

Lego Star Wars--Dallin was loving it!

Thomas the Train--Taft was giddy!

The kids with their Lego Licenses. That was one of the big highlights and must do's for them. They even took a driving test--yikes!

This was typical of most of the rides. A little vehicle to spin around or go up and down in. It was great b/c Elaine was able to go solo on them which she loved. Kirt and I were Taft's riding buddy. There were a couple 'bigger' rides, but the hour long line was not possible with wee ones in tow.

I love this picture as Briggy is the same size as the little Lego men--funny!

Camping
This was our first time camping for more than one night as a family. It was surprisingly enjoyable :) Kirt was excited to use his new dutch ovens and whipped up some tasty vittles. The last night we had the yummiest peach cobbler as Lori suggested it and then we all craved it :) The kids loved getting dirty and sleeping in a tent.

A fun shot of all the kids hanging out. After a day at the beach we'd come back and shower everyone off before dinner. They all look so fresh and clean. They made friends with a boy from the campsite next to ours who hung out in the evening with us. He had an English accent --a little Harry Potter according to Dave. Dallin got his address so they could exchange Pokemon cards.

Tide Pools
After packing up camp and a lite brunch at 'Surfin Donuts' we stopped by the tide pools in Dana Pointe. Unfortunately, the tide was in so we didn't see too much anongst the rocks. It was a fun little last hurrah with the Watts before our long drive home from our fabulous week in San Clemente!

Friday, July 18, 2008

Fire Station Fun!

On tuesday we went with a group of friends to tour the Gilbert Fire Station. After the tour I concluded that Firemen have it pretty good. They work 10 days a month, have a gourment kitchen, a well equipped workout room, big screen T.V's, leather recliners to watch training videos, own bedroom as they are encouraged to nap to be well rested. Sign me up!!!

Hanging out by the fire truck. The kids enjoyed running around the station, although Taft was surprisingly reserved. Just in absolute awe, I guess as he LOVES anything to do with fire trucks.

Here's those recliners I mentioned. The kids quickly filled up the cozy chairs. Even Briggy recognized the quality resting place and was happy to snuggle up with Elaine.

The fireman pole!
This was the highlight, I think. Dallin and Elaine couldn't wait to see it. Fireman Hans demonstrated going down, but due to liability issues this was as much fun as the kids could have on it.

A fun shot of our group learning the ins and outs of the fire truck.

Saturday, July 5, 2008

A Happy 4th!

We had a fun and relaxing 4th of July. The kids think it's fun wearing their 'flag' t-shirts together. And yes they say 2007--I'm a bargain shopper. Except, today I went to Old Navy to grab some for next year at 50% off and they'd sold out of T's before the 4th--bummer!

For a little afternoon entertainment I got the kids some waterguns. Dallin is obviously having a blast drenching his sister. Since it was 112 degrees out, she dried fast Ü

We invited the Woodard and Linford families over for BBQ dinner and swimming. We had a great time with them just chatting and hanging out. They're fun company and the kiddos all seemed to get along great. We have been blessed to make some neat friends here in Arizona (that includes those of you not pictured here) Ü

After dinner it was refreshing to take a dip in the pool. Although, after the kids got done splashing or rather attacking Erin and me, we were quite drenched. I think I still have water in my ear.

What kind of summer holiday would it be without ice cream! We polished off the night with some treats and while letting the kids run wild Dad's played air hockey and Mom's visited.
This day was definitely an upgrade from last year when we'd barely moved here and just went out to chinese food on the 4th Ü