St. George Day 3

Today is our chill and relax day. Its a little weird being on vacation on Sunday but we do our best to try to keep things pretty low key. We got up and grabbed some breakfast today they had sausage and eggs as well as the other options. I love watching these 2 and their conversations its like they are in their own little world. And when they pretend it can get pretty hilarious.

 After breakfast we headed to the swim pool. The room key only works on one gate so the girls "patiently" waited while Matt went around to let us in.

 And before we even got our stuff set down they were both swimming laps...they were pretty excited about the swimming thing. 

 Then there was the water fighting

 What an amazing hubby and dad we have

 Here Matt is teaching the girls how to swim like a mermaid...lol

 After dried off a little we went to play on the playground...also at the hotel...awesome I know

 Gracie kept saying "oh I love the playground" and "thank you for bringing me to the playground" it was so cute

Then we came back to our room for some lunch and for nap time.  The remainder of the day we just hung out. The plan was to have picnic dinner at the temple but at 5pm it was 103 we decided to stay and play in the pool more.

St. George Day 2

Saturday morning we all slept in til about 9 then headed over to the main office in the hotel for the buffet breakfast. The girls were in heaven they had everything from waffles to biscuits and gravy to cereal to fruit and granola. It was a pretty good mix and variety. We found a little table of the patio and enjoyed out breakfast it was quiet, in the shade, and the kids loved watching the birds look for worms on the grass. Then we went back to our room and got ready for our 1st hike of the trip, Red Cliffs. We were all very excited to hike to the waterfall. The trail head is about 15 minutes north of St. George and we were in for a major disappointment to see they had the road to the trail head shut down to widen the road. There was no way in except to hike an extra 2 miles to the trail head. Matt and I decided it probably wasn't worth it and that the girls would be so tired. So we sadly packed up and headed back in St. George we were all a little sad and weren't quite sure where to start with the rest of our day. while driving back we decided to stop at kid to kid and I was very glad we did. The girls were each able to find themselves some disney figuring. Hallie picked out the ones from Little Mermaid and Grace the ones from Cinderella. They have played with them a ton! Good purchase for sure.

After that we hit up the outlets for a hour or so before we decided it was time to grab some lunch. After lunch we headed back to the hotel for naps. Our girls are both at the age that if we schedule time out in the day for naps that the rest of the time is so much more enjoyable. Matt and I usually watch a show or as I am now blog while they sleep. Sometimes we even nap with them too! Then after a couple hours we headed back to the outlets to finish up a few stores we didn't get to previously. I had told the girls if they were good we would stop at the chocolate store and they could pick a treat. So just as we finished shopping we swung by and grabbed some goodies. Hallie and Gracie both picked caramel apples and I picked a giant square of toffee. It was all delicious!!!  

 Then we figured it was time for some actual dinner. The girls really wanted pizza so Pizza Factory was an obvious choice. I was thrilled to find out they have a gluten free option as well. 

 By the time we got done eating it was almost 8:30 and time for bed. So we headed back to the hotel and called it an early night we were all in bed and asleep by 10. I think the late night the night before had caught up to us. Another great day in the books for our trip. What I was reminded about today is that Im not at my best when Im tired and that even when plans get messed up there is still a lot of fun to be had.

St. George Day 1

Friday morning we got up and ready to head to St. George we were all pretty excited to get away and spend some time with just our little family. There was a couple days when I wasn't really sure this trip would come together. A week before we were supposed to leave St. George got a ton of rain there was flooding and unfortunately grandma's house in Washington was flooded to the point they had to tear out carpet, sheet rock, and some cabinet. We had been planning on staying at her house so we then began to scramble to find a place. We were on a pretty tight budget since we have a few other trips planned before the end of the year and so much money set aside in our "travel" budget. Luckily we found a great hotel complete with 3 beds and a kitchenette and when we called to book it they even took off an extra $25 a night since it was last minute it really couldn't have worked out better. We were all packed and ready by 10 so we hit the road. The girls are great travelers and are content to watch a movie, color, or read. There is an occasional request as to when we will be there or for a snack but for the most part we hardly notice they are there...lol. I love having the time to talk with Matt about life and our plans without him being distracted and sometimes we play the question game involving the girls. Sometimes they surprise me and we all learn more about each other and have a good laugh. We made 3 stops one for gas and one for lunch and ended up getting to St. George about 3pm. It was great timing since we could check into our hotel at 3. We got checked in and went to check out our room. Then we headed out to do some shopping and grab some dinner before heading to Tuachan. We stopped to buy some souvenirs and take some pictures before we headed to find out seats. I had forgotten how beautiful St. George was so peaceful.

Then we found our seats just as they made the 1 minute to show time announcement. The girls quickly made friends with an elderly couple that sat next to use. They were so cute and sweet with the girls. They happened to be from Layton and are currently planning on building in Rollins Ranch. Once the show started the girls were captivated didn't take their eyes off the stage. Tuachan had used some amazing props and water features that made it so cool. I don't think me describing it would ever do it justice. The girls sang a long with the songs...it was so cute. 

A couple hours in they had an intermission to change the scenery. We got up went potty and got some snacks.  The girls were excited to get their picture taken in the cut out signs they had. The sweet couple next to us bought the kids Little Mermaid toys from the souvenir cart they were thrilled! Seriously so sweet!

 After the show we got to meet and talk with some of the characters. The girls thought everyone but the eels were cool

 The line for Ariel and Eric was FOREVER so we took pictures from the other side of the line. We were all ok and happy with that.

The show was longer than I had anticipated. We got out about 11:15 and headed to our car with 2 tired girls. They didn't even last til we got out of the parking lot and they were both out! 

It was a fantastic 1st day on our little st. George vacation....can't wait for the rest of it!!!

Happy Birthday Kerry!!!

With all the rain and cooler temperatures we have been getting it isn't optimal weather for boating. So after we made plans to spend Saturday boating then BBQ at our house it became a not so great idea. So we moved the BBQ to Sunday and the weather was perfect. Brit, Carson, Kaylee, and Livi joined us as well as Joy and Kerry. We were able to sit outside and eat while the kids mostly played in the backyard. We had grilled chicken and zuchinni, watermelon, jello and pasta salads. And for dessert we had smore and cheesecake bites. It was a great night for a celebration.

Brower Double Date

Last Saturday we were excited to get to double with Chris and Krissy. So I will quickly update for our sake in the future. Chris casually dated Krissy shortly after he came home from his mission. They got to a point they were trying to decide if they would be part of each others future. Chris wasn't really ready for anything serious and decided to break it off and date other girls. But Krissy really liked Chris and really felt like they should continue to date with the possibility of it becoming more. So as you can imagine she was really disappointed when he didn't feel the same way. But shortly after breaking it off the church came out with the age change and Krissy decided to put in her papers and go. She was called to Chile. While on her mission she occasionally thought of Chris but had come to terms before she left that he would probably marry before she returned home. After she had been out about a year Chris felt the need/want to write her as you can imagine she was nervous but excited to hear from him(thinking he may be writing to tell her he was getting married). They exchanged emails regularly for the remainder of her mission. I think at this point they knew that there was something there they wanted to explore. After she had been home a couple of days they were able to get together and see one another. It was like they had never been apart. They are now making plans to get married and start their future together. Anyways back to the double date. Matt and Chris had talked about wanting to get together for a double date and Saturday was the day. They got to our house about 5 after a few quick instructions to our babysitter we were off. We all rode together and we had decided we wanted to do BBQ. So we chose a place rated number 1 in the state 4 years in a row. One thing that worked out really well is that it was in Huntsville so it gave us more time to visit both going up and coming back. The drive was beautiful I love the area a lot. Conversation was so easy and we talked about so many things. Everything from serious stuff to lighthearted silly stuff. We finished our food and just sat and talked for another hour or so. Krissy comes from a really tight knit family much like mine. Im really hoping I can have a relationship with her much like I have with my own sisters. She also loves to boat which is my favorite. I think there are things that we can really teach/help each other with to make us better women/wives/mothers and I can't wait for that. She has talents that I am not the best at and vs versa. I really can't remember the last time I laughed so hard or so often. As the sun started to set we decided to pack up and head for home. We went through Mountain Green to get home so we could take Trappers loop...another beautiful drive. Once we got home we made sure the kids were settled in bed and settled in on the couch for more great conversation. By 11 we decided we should probably call it a night. We had such a great time getting to know Krissy and seeing her with Chris was so fun. I can't quite explain how much of a carefree and enjoyable night it was. Matt and I are looking forward to many more double dates with them its so fun to have family to double with that is more like friends.

Family Date Night---How to Train a Dragon 2

I just can't seem to get enough of taking the kids to do fun things. Im not sure really why it is but I find myself wanting to take them to do and try so many things. We have been waiting quite awhile for How to Train your Dragon 2 to come to our favorite movie theater, Moviegrille, and last week it finally did. With all the rain we have been getting it has been hard to get out and enjoy the last of summer so a movie was a great option for us. The girls were so funny and wanted to order their food by themselves. The movie was great..full of action and excitement to keep everyone interested in the movie. It was another great night spent with the ones I love most. I really do love family date night! I hope that it helps us to build a great relationship with all of us for years to come.

Rain, Rain, Rain, & Beets

August has been full of rain, rain, and more rain. Don't get me wrong Im not complaining at all I love the rain and with the rain has come wonderful cooler temperatures. I can almost feel the fall in the air. And of coarse with fall comes bottling season. When there was a break in the rain we got the beets picked and bottled. We ended up with about twice the beets we did last year and bottled 12 bottles. The girls were a great help and we got it done in 4 hours start to finish. I love teaching my girls canning stuff. I have taught myself and really hope to pass that skill on to them.

 The girls have also loved playing the the rain. Im grateful for the rain to fill the lakes and streams.

 Silly Faces

This particular night the girls were playing outside while Matt and I secured down the boat. I think we have finally found a way to keep it completely dry...I guess we shall see.

Although all the rain has limited our boating time I really hope it continues so we will have more water to boat on when the sun comes out.