Chocolate and Cactus...

These things don't seem to go together. Especially chocolate in Vegas, since it has been over 100 degrees everyday of our vacation. We visited the Ethel M. Chocolate Factory and Cactus Gardens today. I have to say, from what we saw it wasn't much of a factory. There was a self guided tour where you basically walk through a hallway and get a couple samples of chocolate at the end. There were a couple of quotes on the wall I liked though. I didn't used to love chocolate like I do now. It seems like ever since I've been pregnant with my first child, chocolate is something I MUST have on a daily basis. Not to worry according to the factory though. Chocolate has all kinds of minerals, good fats like in olive oil, and releases endorphins that make you relax immediately. That makes sense - motherhood and the need for instant relaxation :)

The cactus garden is home to different rocks and drought resistant plants from Australia, South America, and other desert like climates. I wanted to take some home to my yard to do some xeroscaping! Some of those plants are so cool looking, and there wouldn't be any worries of my kids messing with them. They are covered in prickles.

We also went to a little lookout place where you can view the airplanes landing into the McCarran Airport. The kids got so excited about how big the planes really look on the ground compared to how small they are in the air. Too bad it's soooo hot here, we would have stayed longer.

M&M's and Coke

While in Vegas, of course we had to stop at these kid friendly attractions! The kids loved the free 3D movie where Red lost his "m", gambling. Paul keeps telling us that he "caught" the "m" that flew out at us in the audience. I love the innocence of Paul and Alanna. Jackson is a little "too cool" for a childish imagination anymore.

At the Coke Factory they have a little restaurant where you can get a sampler of 16 different flavors of Coke from around the world. I was going to get that, then I noticed that you could get a tray of 8 different Coke floats! Those were heavenly for an afternoon of heat reaching 111 degrees that day. I really had to limit myself to the ice cream part of the float since even a small amount of caffeine does crazy things to my body. We also broke James' cardinal rule of "no caffeine" for the kiddos. Oh well, we were on vacation! I should have snapped a picture of my kid's faces when I brought that tray to the table. It takes so little to make their day!

They had the Coke Polar Bear out to take pictures of. It is so funny because they will take pictures for free with your own camera, but the bear won't do anything funny like he will when you pay for the picture. For $20, (the cheapest price) you can get 4 little wallets with the bear biting some body's head and wrapping his huge paws around everyone. Not worth it though - we just settled for the boring bear family picture.

Red Cliffs...

We just discovered this magnificent gem just outside of St. George, The Red Cliffs. If you are a Utah native, you've probably been, but for anyone who hasn't seen them - go! It was a perfect destination for our family with young kids because the scenery was so unique and beautiful for James and I, and the hike was short through sand and rock which is what our kids love. It was pretty hot, but James and the older boys cooled themselves off in the water pools - inadvertently that is! James was trying to scale a rock to get to the other side and explore, and I kept telling him he was going to fall in the water because the rock looked so slick. He was very insistent that he WOULD NOT fall in the water, which made it all the more fun to watch him panic as he slipped into the cool pool. Paul and Jackson were also pretty surprised when they, too, slipped on a smaller rock and ended up sitting in the water. Anyway, the hike was almost like a mini condensed version of hiking through the narrows in Zion National Park. James and I back packed through them and spent the night on the trail about 9 years ago, and we have been itching to go back there ever since.

August...

Busy, stressful, glad it's over! This past month has taught me that I really need to appreciate and be grateful for what I have. It's a human tendency to always look at what you don't have, or what you wish you had. And it's awful! I am so blessed with a very supportive husband who is a great provider. I have 4 beautiful smart, healthy, energetic, and curious children. They are growing up too fast, and I am trying to savor every little stage they are going through. I get to live close to extended family and see them often. My brothers are THE BEST uncles in the world to my kids. When people ask me if I wished I had sisters, I always think "who needs one?" when I've got 4 awesome brothers! And last, but not least, on my list is my great home and neighborhood. I think it's great to have the drive to "always want more", but that drive should be focused on my top priorities - people I love, the gospel, etc. Those are the intangible " things" that bring me true joy!

Cousin Peter's 1st B-day Celebration!!!!

My nephew, Peter, turned 1 on July 28th. This was a very exciting event, especially since he and Blaze are so close in age, and I have decided that they will be the best of friends! We had a party his parents house with the whole family. Of course, presents were the funnest part. I think the favorite of all of the kids was a creation made by Peter Uncle Devon from his mom's side of the family. It was like one of those toy tables, but it had real tools and gadgets from around the house that babies really like to get into. It was hilarious watching Peter and Blaze explore the lights, the hinges, the hoses. I'm sure I don't know the names of most of the gadgets, but that is beside the point. I think Devon would be very successful at marketing his creation! Peter's Grandma Wright made him the most amazing quilt that I've ever seen. Each square was patterned after a drawing that my brother, Luke, created. Peter also received a fun pirate bath tub toy, and some educational baby books. It's just always fun to get together with extended family for any occasion. We look forward to watching Peter grow and develop - especially to play with our kids. They are always asking when Peter is going to be able to talk to them and run around.

1st day of 2nd grade...

I love the program that Jackson is in. His teacher, Mrs. Worwood, has a cowboy theme going on this year to get the kids excited about school. On the first day of school when I went to pick up Jackson, I was surprised to see a bunch of second graders with plastic cowboy hats and sheriff's badges on. Jackson and Chase got in the car and were talking a mile a minute about all the fun things they got to do - like drink root beer like a cowboy?- and how awesome their teacher is.

I was so impressed with Mrs. W., as well when we went in for back to school morning. She explained all of the things the kids would do during the year and her methods for teaching them and handed out studies that showed how we should go about teaching our kids vocabulary, math, spelling, etc. It's so refreshing to have teachers that actually care about teaching and look at it as a career they love rather than the drudgery that comes before getting married :)

Jackson claimed he was too cold of a July morning for him to stand outside for a picture, but I insisted. That's why he looks a bit awkward. Am I a bad mom for telling Jackson to wiggle his top baby tooth everyday so it will fall out and not look as bad as having one fully grown in permanent tooth and one baby tooth? It just drives me crazy to see how unbalanced it looks!

Growing Blaze...

It's been so fun to watch Blaze rapidly developing and wanting to play with his siblings now that he is scooting around to w hever he wants to go. I know it's just natural to want to be included, but it's so entertaining to watch Blaze sometimes "butt in" to activities whether he's wanted or not. It seems as though he even knows that he's being a stinker when he comes and demolishes railroad tracks, or knocks over blocks. He laughs about it!

Summer Fun...

What a photogenic bunch! I wonder where they get it from? I love that James gets irritated when trying to take pictures of Jackson and tells him not to do a "fake" smile or funny faces. James is THE KING of screwing up pictures :) He was chewing gum at our wedding reception and he messed up most of the pictures that way! I guess he is getting his payback trying to help me get decent pictures of our kids.

Couldn't I get just one with all 4 of them looking? At the same time, it's a great commentary on the stage of life we are in. I should just embrace the chaos.

Check out these ham hocks! It's tempting not to just take a bite out of one! Blaze absolutely loves the swing and could spend up to an hour in it. Alanna loves to swing Blaze - he doesn't always love that part though.

Alanna is loving her new bike. The first time she rode it she fell off a few times before she understood how to brake. The falls didn't even phase her, she immediately got back on the bike and was determined to go and keep up with her brothers. I love this little girl!

Blaze didn't want to be the only kid not on a bike. He felt like such a big boy, even though dad was pushing him.

So Proud...

Our #2, Paul, is off to Kindergarten. I can't believe he is old enough for school, but he sure can. He has been talking about it since Jackson was in Kindergarten 2 years ago. He's so ready to ride the bus and have stories to tell about what he did at recess for the day - and for HOMEWORK! He is James's son!

We had Kindergarten testing the day before school started, and we were so nervous. You see, Paul refused to talk to his preschool teacher or any kids in his class for 2 years! He isn't shy, it's just a game he plays about picking who he will open his mouth to. It's been a very frustrating battle, and I just didn't know what we would do if he acted the same way for Kindergarten.

The teacher, Ms. Metcalf, did a brilliant thing though. About a month ago she sent all the kids a special letter introducing herself and telling them what they had to look forward to soon. There was a picture of her on it too, and so Paul really connected with that and was anxious to meet her. He just couldn't wait! So today as we headed over to the school my chest was tight and my breathing was shallow because I just didn't know what to expect from him. As we entered the school and sat down to first fill out some paperwork, the lady helping us starting asking Paul questions and he went into his zombie state. But, as soon as we went into his classroom, he had no problems talking to Ms. Metcalf. I sat outside and was finally able to relax after months of worrying that Paul wasn't going to be socially ready for Kindergarten.

After the testing, Ms. Metcalf came out and said Paul is such a good reader and she will start sending him home with books to read right away. This is HUGE! I have had several friends ask when Paul was going to test and how I thought he would do etc. So, we are all THRILLED that he has chosen to actually be a participant in Kindergarten. His teacher will actually know that not only does he talk, but he can read and write and has a cute little personality. AHHHHH relief for the parents!