June

Ice cream cake to celebrate the end of school/start of summer break!

The kids wanted to wash the car.  Some neighbors joined us.

We missed going to the zoo last summer so decided that we needed to go right away, the first week of summer.

It was the week after they opened up the new Savannah area so it was pretty busy.

The kids didn't seem to notice the crowd, though, and had a super fun time with their cousins.

Stockton, Chloe, Molly, Abby, Brynn, Tessa, Ben, Grant, Gavin, Grace, and Spencer

The giraffes used to be my favorite but I think I have a new favorite...the polar bear and sea lions.  They are super fun to watch swim around!

We also enjoyed the new splash pad that they have there now.

Stockton and Gavin

Molly and Chloe

We waited the longest I've ever waited for the train but couldn't leave without riding it.

Stockton and Tessa

Molly, Chloe, and Abby

I brought back the Summer Bucket List this year since it was so successful last year.  I tweaked some of the activities...took some off and added some different ones.  The very first thing they chose was to go fishing so fishing we went!

We went to the Spanish Fork Resevoir, as recommended by a neighbor, and it was our lucky spot.  I think we caught close to 10 fish which is probably more than we've caught if you combine all our fishing outings as a family!

Molly liked to try her hand at casting and did okay, but was easily frustrated when it didn't go so well.  Tough growing up lessons.  She ended up having fun though and was the only one who would touch the fish.

Stockton and Brynn liked watching Justin reel them in from a distance.

 

They also enjoyed walking down the ramp, putting their feet in, and then running back up the ramp.

Camille talked us into signing up for the Dirty Dash so we left all the kids (10 of them!) with Grandma and Grandpa, piled in Eric and Heidi's Suburban, and headed to Heber for some muddy fun.  Here we are before the race started, nice and clean:

Megan, Justin, Eric, Heidi, Camille, Matt, and Brett

It was muddy, and it was fun.  Camille and Matt brought a waterproof camera but it was quickly ruined in the mud.  I think they salvaged a few pictures.  There were lots of pictures online, taken by the race photographers, but they were pricey.  I did want some sort of "after" picture so I bought the downloadable version of all of us at the finish line, covered in mud.

Matt, Camille, Brett, Justin, Megan, Eric, and Heidi

The second activity chosen from the Bucket List was to make Power Ranger T-shirts.  Stockton really wanted a Power Ranger Samurai costume for his birthday, but it was $75 so I knew that he wasn't going to be getting that.  This, however, made him very happy and you'll see him wearing it a lot in subsequent posts.

To make the shirts, we went to the DI and tried to find solid colored T-shirts in their preferred color (yellow for Molly, red for Stockton, and pink for Brynn).  Then we picked up some black fabric paint from Walmart and took all our supplies home to create the shirts.  All it took was some duct tape to mark the lines and some time for drying and a few hours later they were finished.  Voila!  Happy and excited kids!

When Justin got home that night, he told us to hop in the car, that we were headed to our favorite little spot up Hobble Creek Canyon where the kids like to throw rocks in the river.  Of course, we didn't hesitate to get in the car and were there in no time.

We had a good time playing by the river, exploring the walking path, and watching Justin try some fishing.

Sometimes my kids play together and that is when life is sweetest.  They are pretty good buddies, most of the time.  Can you tell what letters they are making?

My mom and dad decided to put in a pool this spring and it was about time we got up that way to enjoy it!  I took the kids for a couple days and let them swim.  We were not disappointed...the pool was just as great as everyone had been telling us it was!

While we were there, I had Jeff take a look at something that had been bothering Molly's gums.  I thought it was a blister or a canker but it was actually an abscess and her tooth needed to come out.  We are lucky to have Uncle Jeff in the family because he took her to his office on a day it was closed and got her all taken care of.  She had laughing gas, the Novocain shot, and then out came her tooth.  She did really well, with only a little bit of tears.

After she said to me, "It was a good thing that we had Jeff do it, because I'm sure that any other dentist would have made it hurt much worse."  The tooth fairy came that night and rewarded her more than usual, but considering what she had to go through to get it out, I'm sure it was justified!

Superdad!!

The day after Jeff pulled Molly's tooth, she pulled one of her own.  Her front tooth was so loose and Justin told her to save it for him to pull.  Well, she saved it (Jeff volunteered to pull it while he was doing the other one, but she told him no) but she actually just pulled it out herself.

That was a pretty exciting time, with visits from the Tooth Fairy two nights in a row!

The Brown's were here in Utah for about six weeks so we were able to get together a few times.  When we barbecue at Gene and April's house, it always seems like there is some sort of wrestling match with the dads and the kids.

that is Justin buried under all those kids

Someone usually gets hurt but they bounce back quick and head back for more.

The next activity from the Bucket List was to eat pizza at a park.  Justin was working late that night but I'd already postponed it due to rain so I was determined to go, even if it meant he couldn't come along.  Maybe next time.

Anyway, we have done this a couple of times over the past few years and we always go to the same park in Springville.  The kids love this park and no one else is ever there...maybe that's a bad sign.  It's the only time we ever go to this park.

My kids are happy with pizza for dinner no matter what. 

I still let my kids lick the beaters when I make brownies.  It's just one of those joys of childhood, right?  And maybe I still like tasting a little of the batter myself.

Our Primary had a Daddy/Daughter dinner.  The girls could dress up as princesses, but since Molly's a bit past that stage, she decided that this was her fanciest dress.  Can't believe how grown up she is getting.

Next up on the Bucket List was to make marshmallow shooters so we did this one quiet Sunday evening at home.  All it took was a couple of plastic cups, a balloon, and a bag of marshmallows.

Those marshmallows flew!  It was so much fun running all over and shooting each other with marshmallows.  Definitely a success!!

We did a neighborhood water party with hot dogs and snacks and this huge slip 'n slide.  Molly stayed on the slide for the whole time; Stockton and Brynn were a little more hesitant but loved it once they tried it.

And the time came again for Grandkid Camp which is something all the kids look forward to and anticipate.  Brynn had reached the magical age so she even got to go! 

Grant, Stockton, Brynn, Molly, Abby, Ben, Gavin, Chloe, Grace, and Tessa

Justin and I made it up there on Friday afternoon and were able to watch them play some fun games my mom had planned for them.

Ben, Molly, and Gavin playing musical hula hoops...Molly won

rainbow tag

Unfortunately, Friday was rainy and Saturday wasn't quite warm enough for the beach.  I honestly don't think the kids even cared, they just had fun playing with each other and being at the cabin.  They played a few more games Saturday morning.

Grant and Stockton trying to catch the water balloon before it popped

We'd been wanting to do the go-karts in Garden City for a few years now but never seemed to get around to it.  Since it wasn't beach weather, we decided it was a good day for go-karts and raspberry shakes.

Molly couldn't decide if she wanted to drive the kart on her own or ride with a grown-up.  It was a pretty hard decision for her to make, but she ended up driving on her own and I think she was happy she did that.

We had to be home for Sunday so we took off after dinner Saturday night.  Molly was getting a little queasy after the canyon so we stopped and walked around the Logan temple, even though they were in their jammies.

We have roots in Logan since we both went to school there and Molly was born there so we always enjoy driving around some places that mean more to us.  But we eventually made it home and that's the end of June!