July Waves

One of the best things about July has been the fun water play!

We celebrated July 4th at Cowabunga Bay! We put in a long day there and had a blast. The kids loved the slides and we also spent a ton of time in the lazy river. Good fun!

So many family members came visiting this month from Texas!! It was so fun to hang out and do things with them. My kids' favorite part was the swimming pool at Nanna's hotel. We played there several afternoons. Here is Audrey playing hard.

We attended a little bit of Draper Days for the first time this year. We went to the Treehouse Swimming Party - and had a great time. And then we went to the party at the park for a couple hours. The kids loved this walk on water game. They played so hard for the entire time they were inside the ball. It was hilarious watching them try to get up and fall. I want to try it too!

I did my first Triathlon this month!!! It was the Echo Tri - I did the sprint distance. Chad came along and did the Olympic distance. I cannot believe how tired I got over doing just the sprint!!! I was not fast at swimming, very slow at transitions, and I was biking against several of the Canyon Bicycles' team - so pretty hard there. BUT, I rocked it on the run. It is hard to figure out how fast I did it, because the transition time got messed up and was included in the run part - but, I think I was running about 7 min/miles and ran past all of those bike team members! It was soooo fun to come on strong on the run like that! I ended in 2nd place in my age (me in the red shirt) - and it was pretty cool to get to stand on the podium!!! Anyway - I think I am hooked, at least on the sprint distance.

We always do swimming lessons in July at the Draper Pool. We have loved enjoying the summer weather in a great pool. Here is Carson actually swimming. All of the kids have made so much progress this year, I am very happy for them. They are getting independent and grown up.

We went to the float preview of the 24th of July parade. The kids always have a blast looking at every float and picking their favorite. They also always enjoy a balloon twist from a clown. We found the best balloon twister ever - and his creations are amazing. Fun day.

Yes, Chad is another year older! The kids were so cute planning his birthday party. We filmed a movie for him - and I learned how to edit movies. We all had a good time putting it together as a surprise while he was up at scout camp. He had a lot of loving presents from the kids and they all expressed their love for him. He is a wonderful man and we are so lucky to have him.

We also celebrate Chad's birthday by going to Lagoon every summer. Here is Graham - now 17 months old, riding the steam train around Lagoon. He is so grown up! He is suddenly trying to talk to us and finally enjoys some books read - but mostly he is just on the go all day long. What a fun little bug.

June Fairies and Fun

Okay - June has been great - school ended, and then we had a whirlwind of things to do.

We have found that Chad has ancestors from Draper! We spent a little time researching, and found that there were several buried in the Draper Cemetery. One Sunday, some of his family got together, learned about them, and then found them in the Cemetery.

Next - Kate's birthday party! We had 8 fairies come visit us during her party! The girls were so cute in matching wings and tutus. What a fun party! She is now 5 years old. I can't believe my little girl is growing up so quickly.

We had the Iverson Family Campout this month - and here we are at our campsite. We had a blast boating, swimming, fishing, biking, and talking. The weather was beautiful, the scenery amazing, and the company priceless. What a fun trip.

The next day was the Wasatch Back Relay race. This is my 4th year and Chads' 6th year. He always organizes a team - and it is a pleasure to run with them. They usually are pretty fast and competitive - and once again we finished in the top. (72nd of 1062 teams). As usual, there were struggles to get through. Chad got sick and we had to shuffle around a little. But, everyone came through. I had my toughest year - my set included a 10 miler and the hill known as "You Got to be Kidding Me". I climbed 1500 ft in around 3 miles. My biggest thing was that I didn't want to walk it - and except for about 10 steps, that is true. It was very tough, but you get such a rush from finishing an uphill run!!! Anyway, tons of fun, can't wait to do it again!

May - If April Showers bring May Flowers, what do May showers bring?

Okay - it has been the wettest May and Spring in Utah's recorded history. So, that makes for some cold soccer games and cancelled practices. However, we have managed to have a good month, anyway.

Kate had her first dance recital! She was so beautiful. She knew her dance really well, and was adorable doing the moves. We love this cute little girl. She was so excited for her recital. We had a recital countdown for the last 6 weeks. What a fun day.

This month was also Kate's preschool graduation. She did her parts so well, and it was fun to see her excited to be old enough for Kindergarted now. I am just not sure that I am ready. I can't believe that our little girl is getting so old.

We went to Arches for our annual Memorial Day camping trip. We went a few days early, and we managed to get pretty good weather there. We hiked to so many arches. But, I still get tickled to see us posing at the Delicate Arch. It is so famous, but there we are! Our favorite hike was to the Tower Arch. It was a little used trail at the end of a dirt road. But the arch was amazing, and so was having the whole thing to ourselves. We really had a blast. The kids are good hikers, and we managed to finally wear Carson out! The kids loved scrambling over the red "slick" rock around our campsite as well. We would hike all day, and then they would keep on hiking back at the tent. We camped across from the famous slick rock trail. What a cool world it is down there. Graham was a trooper. He managed to survive the sandy world, and he actually slept okay at night.

Can you believe Graham is walking!!! This is the day we got home from camping. Oh, boy! He is trying to walk more and more. Watch out world!

On Memorial Day, we visited the peace gardens in SLC. It was a pretty interesting garden. Chad found it on a bike ride, and we finally took the time to explore it. We all loved going to the different gardens and figuring out what country it represented. Here are the kids in front of the Chinese Garden.

Hopefully May showers bring exciting June fun.

April Getaways

So, the weather hasn't been all that great! We have had to really improvise to do the normal spring activities! This is the snow from the first Sunday in April - it was beautiful, but we would have rather had green grass and blue skies. Then, the second weekend in April, the soccer games were cancelled because of rain and snow. We are all itching to get outside and play!

Carson celebrated his 7th birthday this April. We had a blast with a Ben 10 party - complete with a glow-in-the dark alien shooting/ obstacle course in a dark basement. The boys loved it - they were so hyper it was hard to think. We love Carson so much, and we are proud of the smart young man he is becoming.

Luckily - Chad and I went on a cruise for a week in the middle of April. So, we actually saw the sun and enjoyed HOT Mexican beaches. We snorkeled and mountain biked in Cabo San Lucas, and zip-lined and para-sailed in Puerto Villarta. What fun adventures - got to love the tan we came back with!

It has been spring break this past week, and while most days have been cold and rainy/windy, we did do a bike ride on a day that was just cold. The temperatures are only in the 50's, but when it is sunny, you can fake it a little. Here is Carson getting ready to ride out on the trail. Chad pulled Graham in the bike trailer and I brought up the rear with the slowest of the kiddoes. They are all so full of energy - it is fun to wear them out a little outside.

Now for Easter - we celebrated Easter at Grandma's house yesterday for her annual party. We found eggs and had dinner. Everyone loves the Easter Party. Today, has been great. Easter Sunday is always special and I am so glad that we can remember the new hope that Christ's Resurrection brought the whole world - and us.

Well, still wishing for less clouds and more sun, but overall, we are loving our time together.

March Madness

Well, March was a ton of basketball, a little soccer, and lots of fun. We were loving watching the BYU Cougars battling in the NCAA tournament. I also had a church team I was playing on in our own regional tournament, and the kids all started soccer this month.

There were a few days, in between the snow storms that we finally raked all of our leaves. Carson worked really heard to make this HUGE leaf pile so he could jump in it. It is also finally warm enough to be back on the trampoline. Audrey is out there almost daily - even when it is cold!

Here is my Regions 2nd place team - we lost the championship in overtime! We had a fun season, and I have really grown to love these ladies!

Now, cute Kate. She has been so excited to start soccer. She has wanted to wear her cleats everyday for a week prior to her first game. She finally had a chance to play in her first game. She looks so cute in the Sandy City soccer uniform. I can't believe my little Kate is playing soccer.

Now for the cutest little bug, Graham. He is crazy - into everything. He climbs up and down the stairs all day long, and he has learned how to walk with his "walker" toy. He is getting more and more interested in trying to walk without holding on. It is fun to see him learn and grow.

Look Who's A One Year Old!

Happy Birthday to our cute baby!

Graham is One! We all LOVE our little Graham. The older kids found it hard to wait until his birthday! They were looking forward to him opening his birthday presents and watching him eat his cake. Audrey even planned party games for him to play. Good times!

He now cruises around and is totally crazy. He leaves a path of destruction behind by emptying all the drawers and cupboards he can, as quickly as he can. Torture for him is being held still. He is such a little sweetheart though. Love you, Graham!

In February we discovered two new places: Airborne Trampoline Area (awesome!), and the Topaz Mountain area. Airborne is only a few miles away - and the kids wore themselves out there. We had a blast.

Brad's family took us to Topaz Mountain - and we enjoyed looking for the topaz, obsidian, and exploring an abandoned mine. It was nice to be outside and let the kids run and look for rocks. THEY LOVED IT! Anyway, two new spots on our fun list.

Otherwise, we have been skiing, watched a lot of basketball - and ridden the emotional roller coaster that is BYU basketball. Chad and I are both playing church ball - so that has been fun. Also, the most recent snowy Saturday - we took the kids to the church gym and had a family sports day. VERY FUN. Winter sports are fun, but we are all getting anxious for spring.

January Flies By - Welcome 2011

Well - January has been great and thankfully quick. We have done more around home than usual - and it has been good to be low key. We have gone skiing a couple of times, and Cute Graham got the croup (he sounded so bad, poor little guy!). But, all in all, it has just been a uneventful, easy January. Chad and I are both playing basketball for the ward. The kids seem to have days off from school constantly! And, the weather glimmers warm enough now and then that Kate takes a little bike ride (she LOVES riding her bike). Everyone is good. Our biggest news is that Graham is now 11 months old! I can't believe he is almost a year old. He won't crawl, but gets around without it. Mostly in a modified sitting position. It is pretty funny to watch. What a cutie. Our family will start getting a little more exciting as the weather warms, I am sure. Right now we are just in "training". Happy 2011!