just some pics.... for future refrence.

I wanted to have these pics to look back on- nothing exciting here. Just so I can refer to them later. LOL. My brain is getting old and I want to remember these rooms. Funny. 

Girls Camp 2014

Gloria was able to go to girls camp with our ward this year. She had an amazing time. We missed her a TON at home. It was hard to be without her, but I am glad for the wonderful experience she had there. I love my girl!

Camping

I try to be a positive person. I'm even reading a book called "The No Complaining Rule" with my kids so we can all be more positive. But, there are some things that need to be documented, so that if I ever get a crazy idea in my head about camping again, I can go back and read our experience and learn from it. Like childbirth... but worse! It's camping.

So, we went with Travis's family camping last week. We went to Bear Lake and we stayed in a camper. It was TOUGH.  We had 6 kids (2 ages 2 and under) and 2 adults all sleeping in a teeney tiny trailer. There was virtually no sleeping. For anyone. Ever. It was miserably hot, so no one could get cool. Ever. Not even at 1am. We were all sweating. And awake. Unfortunately. We had a twin bed, that was shared with 3 people. A couch that slept 2 people (barely, and one of them.. me... was hanging off the couch most the night) and 2 kitchen benches that slept 2 girls whose legs hung off the end, with a playpen in the middle of the girls- which would have been perfect if our daughter didn't snore and kick all night, constantly waking up the baby- who cried and woke up Max, who cried and woke up dad- who cried (seriously) and tried moving all the kids around to get kids into better sleeping positions - which would inevitably wake up the baby, again, and start the whole cycle over again! When the kids were all really awake (up with the rest of the family and out of the camper, during day time), it was a constant vigil of making sure no one was touching fires, running with sticks, sneaking to the lake, stealing every body's stuff from the various camp sites and hiding it, biting, kicking, crying or taking off poopy diapers and leaving them anywhere they felt like it. Needless to say, it was HARD. 

Do I regret it? No. I'm glad for the time we had to spend with family. Will I do it again? Ummmmm.... not like that. Next time we will rent a cabin close by and appreciate nature during the day- then sleep in air conditioned rooms with running water and toilets.  We loved spending time with family- we hated camping. It's just not something I enjoy. And that doesn't make me any less of a person. Or mom. It just means that I don't like camping. The end.

Another Summer favorite!

We love going out on the boat.... even in this drought there are still lakes to swim in!! Last week we went with Samantha for her birthday, and she got up on the wake board for the first time! Yay Sam! 

Swim Lessons

Swim lessons are one of my favorite parts of the summer. The kids love them, we get to hang out at the pool and just relax. This year the biggest kids were at another camp, so it was just the 4 youngest for our 2 weeks of swimming. The kids love the water and it is nice to just sit back and watch the kids. 

Family sport night

Nearly every Monday night for the past 6 months, we get together with 3 other families and play sports (mostly soccer, but once we played basketball). We play total family style with everyone playing together- the 1 year olds and the 40 year olds- we are all on the same field playing together and having a blast. There is a lot of leniency for the little ones (they don't try AS hard to kick the ball away from someone holding a baby) but it is still a tough game!  We are all usually exhausted and sweaty by the time we are done (90 minutes or so is about all we can handle). There are no breaks- just people taking turns being the goalie when they can no longer run or breathe :)

This is one of my favorite nights of the week. It is so fun that all the families want to play with all our kids and just spend time together. I am always playing the game, so I never think to take pictures, but last week as we were cleaning up, the kids all started summersault races across the lawn, so I grabbed a few pictures of them. They all have so much fun together. 

Happy Birthday Samantha!!!

Our Samantha is turning 16!!  I cannot believe it. She was such a little girl when we first moved here and now she feels like a young adult.  She is such a neat young woman and I love her so much. We love every time we get to be with Samantha. She is so fun and a great example to all our kids. She is a member of our family. Our honorary daughter/sister. I am so proud of her and how hard she tries to choose the right, always.  Happy birthday to our sweet girl!! Love you, Samantha!