Lake Powell Day 1

Tuesday Matt worked half day and then we headed for Lake Powell. We stopped and grabbed lunch then headed to meet Kim & Ez so we could caravan. Before we even got to Kimber Grace was asleep and Hallie fell asleep shortly after we left Riverton(where we met Kim & Ez). It made for a pretty quiet ride but Matt and I enjoyed it and caught up on our visiting since he has been gone so much lately.

 Once we got to Fillmore the girls woke up for potty breaks and a treat stop at the Maverik. The girls had slushies and Matt got a Coke to keep him awake for the remainder of the drive. At that point we let the girls play on the playground while we waited for Kim & Ez who had stopped at a different gas station. Kimber called and said to go ahead they couldn't get the hatch on their pilot closed that they would catch up(which was true since we couldn't drive as quick with the trailer). We did much better on gas mileage this year getting an average of 10 mpg. So we headed for our next stop Kanab.

We met up with Nic & Ky who had come from Vegas but had blown a tire on the trailer outside of hurricane  so we all got there at the same time. We grabbed some dinner and gas and got back on the road for our last hour of driving. All the kids did pretty well. Once we left Fillmore we turned on the dvd player and we only knew they were there when they need a new dvd...it worked out quite well. We pulled into Lake Powell just in time to fill the trailers with water and to get camp set up by dark. It took us just over 7 hours with stops to get there. We had our pick of the beach since there weren't many people there. Lake Powell was 36 feet lower this year than last. Its one of the things I love about Lake Powell...every year the scenery changes. And Wednesday morning we woke up to this! Oh how I love this place!

Nate decided to sleep on the back of the boat rather than the tent...I remember doing this when I was his age. He said he slept really well.

 Then there is Hallie who was asleep on a bed when we went to sleep but when I woke up I found her on the floor. I wondered how long she had been there.

We always take early morning ski trips the water is beautiful and smooth perfect. Usually the kids are up a lot sooner than they usually are at home and then come back for breakfast and early naps.

 This was a great time to get everyone sun screened and prep'd for the day

 We always packed snacks in the boat in case someone gets hungry which Hallie did and her teeth showed it (notice the chocolate in her teeth from her granola bar)

Then once the water got choppy it was time to head in for some "real" breakfast that one morning consisted of swedish fish...but your only young once right?

Having the trailer was so nice it also allowed for some different food choice including frozen gogurts...Gracie really enjoyed those

Then of coarse there was time spent playing in the sand

And even some time to float and swim in the water

Before everyone was tired and ready for another nap

After naps and lunch we headed to do some cliff jumping...well some of us me not included. Since I have had kids jumping off a cliff has lost its awesomeness. 

 Then some volleyball/badminton and of coarse more napping....that's what vacation is all about!

The afternoons were hard because the wind would blow and made it pretty miserable since it was so strong in blew sand every where so we made dinner in the trailers and just relaxed to pass the time.

Nate's Endowment

Shortly after Nate got his mission call the planning began as to when everything would go down to get him prepared to leave in August. With everyone's plan this summer it made it a little difficult to find a time but the best time seemed to be right before Lake Powell although it has made for some crazy planning and a busy trip it was definitely all worth it. The girls and I flew out a couple days before Matt so we could enjoy more time with the fam.

 We spent  Wed, Thurs, and Friday hanging out, swimming and doing a little shopping for Lake Powell. Gracie sprouted gills and has made me even more nervous about Lake Powell. Every time we turned around she was jumping into the pool....no fear this child has. Hallie has changed a lot from last year and quickly climbed to the high point of the wall and was jumping in on her own.

Of coarse I cant forget the grocery cart rides that both grandma, Kim, myself, and Nate all gave seriously so fun and funny all at the same time.

Friday night Kim & Matt flew in after work with Luke well after bedtime. Saturday morning we swam, had full breakfast, and had naps again(even a 1 hour time change is rough on little girls schedules....really rough). Shortly afternoon Nic & Kyle got there with the kiddos. We got ready and headed for the temple. Have I mentioned how hot it was a whopping 118 degrees on our way to the temple(I really do not like Vegas and the heat is just one of the many reasons)! We had a wonderful session and after the temple workers gave us the opportunity to have our picture taken in our temple whites. It was a pretty neat experience.

We went home to BBQ and get the kids to bed then Sunday morning bright and early Matt and I, the girls, as well as Kim & Luke headed for home for a few short days before we will head to Lake Powell. We had a great but busy trip. Since we got home Hallie had a solid 4 hour nap and Gracie is now on her 2nd 2 hour nap...I think we wore them out good. Im glad we were able to be there to spend time with family as well as be part of Nate's special day.

Hallie's 1st Official Dance Recital

The 1st week of June Hallie had her 1st official recital. She did a great job and the smile on her face said it all.  The danced to splish splash and her costume was themed after a bath towel 

I have been slightly disappointed with how it has all worked out. She did one dance that totaled all of  45 seconds...I would have liked her to danced more of coarse. But she had a great time. Hallie is now 44 months. She is getting so grown up and I may or may not have shed a few tears at the recital. I always wonder how she got so big so fast. She is such a sweet, thoughtful, and tenderhearted little girl. She is still very petite but currently wears a 4T in shirts and pants more for the length and 3T in shorts or capris. Last week I took the remaining few items out of her closet that we 2T more so I could give them to Grace than because they don't fit anymore. Hallie is very easy to please a typical day for her includes getting up about 8-8:30 asking to watch tv while having a sippy with warm hot chocolate and usually some fruit, dry cereal, or a granola bar. If we get ready for the day she likes to pick out her own clothes and has gotten very good at matching cute outfits together. She has been disappointed with the weather change she is a fan of pants and long sleeve shirts so Im constantly sending her back down stairs for a "summer" outfit. She is a very bubbly and social kid. She loves to have friends come over and is for the most part a very good sharer. We recently bought a couple of power wheels(a barbie jeep & a 4-wheeler) she loves them and will ride them for quite a while in the back yard, the sand box is also a big favorite as usual. She loves to play with the puppies mostly once they calm down and will listen to her commands. She is getting better at keeping her panties dry and still a couple days a week will nap otherwise I try to keep her in the habit of "quiet time" but sometimes it falls just as Grace is waking up so it gets forgotten so get other things done.  She is so great at being a big sister and can be very protective if someone is not being nice to grace. She always wants to make sure Gracie is included and has a part in everything. It warms my heart and really does make me happy. She loves to go for walks and ride her bike at the cemetery near our house. She still loves to read and we have started reading the boxcar children series at first she asked where the pictures were and I was a little concerned she wouldn't like it but she is attentive and asks questions as I read.  I have tried hard to do activities or read with her while Gracie is a asleep so we just get some Hallie mommy time. Each year she becomes more involved in the garden and flowers she loves to water them and watch them grow. She has her moments with eating sometimes a ton and other times she just snacks. She can be very emotional when she is tired. She sleeps about 12 hours at night and loves bathtime. She is still VERY into princesses and we are doing our best to put a positive spin on being a "princess" We love our sweet girl and couldn't imagine life without her

Shay's Shower

The 1st weekend in June my sisters and I were involved in planning Randy & Holly's daughter Shay's bridal shower. We were so sad that we will be in Lake Powell when she gets married but wanted to be there for some part of it. Each of us only took 1 child...which was interesting and had Nic & I looking for our other child most of the day. Hallie is getting old enough to be very fun as a tag a long. We went to lunch and then the shower Hallie loved the cake pops.

Memorial Day

My mom and dad asked if we would be the ones to take care of visiting and placing flowers on our pasted family members graves. To be honest we have always just used memorial day as an extra vacation day to enjoy time together but decided that we would give it a try. Hallie was a little confused about giving flowers to people that have died and live with Jesus. We did our best to explain it all to her and then she wanted to know what she would be giving to them. So we found the little pinwheels and she seemed content with that. 

So at each grave we placed flowers and a pinwheel. We visited Grandpa Harris, Grandma Robert, Grandma & pa Norr, and uncle brents.

When we got home we got ready for Grandpa & ma Brower & Nic& Ky to come BBQ with us. That also meant that I got in my required Kinley cuddle time...I so miss that my girls are pasted this stage.

Sunday morning everyone woke up not feeling very well. Matt laid down with Hallie and pretty quickly they were both asleep when Hallie woke up she had a fever and we decided that just Matt would go to church.

For the next week we battled fevers and not feeling good after a couple days Grace got it

And then a couple days later Matt and I both ended up with it as well we had lots of pj and no makeup days spent doing  lot of sleeping, cuddling, and watching tv.

Only now a couple weeks later are we all getting over it now that its the 1st week of June!

The zoo & Lego exhibit

Having a pass to the zoo has been so fun but it has also been fun to just go and not worry about taking a million pictures because I have already taken so many. So here are a few of our day.

Hallie loved stopping at the store and using a chart just her size to get snacks for the zoo.

I couldn't resist taking some pictures of the lego exhibits they were so cool

The kids love the cave to watch the polar bear..he was so entertaining while we were there jumping in and out of the water tank.

The tiger paced back and forth like he wanted to eat all the kids...it was a little creepy

The monkeys in this display are also legos 

We couldn't resist riding the carousel I love the look on their faces.....the smiles are priceless

These displays are also made of legos. Hallie loves these pictures and how she got to be a monkey

It was sun safety day so they gave out these cute sun visor hats and color books

Nic, my zoo partner in crime and one of my best friends

The water ball is always a favorite to play with as we head to the gate

For the special lego exhibits they had going on they had a tent with large legos  for the kids to play with

It was another fun day at the zoo and we are ready for many more