Wheelus

Halloween weekend 2011

2011-11-01T07:38:00.000-05:00

Halloween, Halloween, Halloween, Oh MY! It seems like Halloween came upon us really quickly this year. We were so so busy this weekend too, I felt a bit crazy. We did LOTS of fun things! On Friday, Brian had a birthday party from 4-6, the big kids had a Halloween party at 5, and Matt, Lexie, and I met his parents for dinner. Note- it was their first "official" Halloween party! We dropped them off, hoping for best behavior, and picked them up a few hours later. Thank you to AMY for hosting!! :) On Saturday we went to Devine Acres. It is a great place! They had TONS of stuff to do there. Some of the things the kids did were: painting pumpkins, mining for rocks, hay rides, fishing, tin cup golf, a few mazes, petting animals, etc. It was awesome. We will definitely be going back! They also grow Christmas trees and have fun stuff at Christmas time. We were there for quite a while. We ran a few errands and then rushed home to get ready for the Church Fall Festival and Trunk or Treat. This year our kids were Harry Potter, Herimione, and Alice (from Wonderland). Matt was Dracula, and I was a kitty. The kids had so much fun at the Fall Festival....lots of little stations with games and prizes, candy, chili dinner, candy, candy, candy. Did I mention there was candy? One of these years I am going to get with it and actually decorate the trunk to look cool, but we were just too overwhelmed this weekend! Monday, of course, was Halloween, so the kids got dressed up, AGAIN, and headed out to trick or treat in the neighborhood. I'd say we have enough candy to feed a small country. Or make their teeth rot out of their heads for sure. Whatever, it's once a year! :)

Red Ribbon Week Oct 24-28

2011-10-30T11:52:00.000-05:00

The kids had Red Ribbon week at school this past week. They loved it, because they got to "dress up" everyday. The themes for the days were:

Monday- silly sock day

Tuesday- college shirt day

Wednesday- western wear

Thursday- camo day

Friday- career day (Sydnee was a Fashion Designer , Brian was an Architect)

I can't remember the significance of each days themes, but there was some nifty little saying for each day...like the western day one was "give drugs the boot!" or something like that. Anyway, the kids had a great time.

Comal County Fair and Parade

2011-10-30T11:45:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago we got to participate in the Comal County Parade with Matt's work. The hospital had a float which the employees and their families got to ride on in the Parade. Matt works for the cardiovascular department, so the float was titled "The Heart of New Braunfels." Quite a nice play on words. ;) They did a great job on the float, and the kids had a great time riding and waving on it. After the parade, we went over to the Fair, which was SO fun! We parked for free (yay), got in for free (yay, YAY!), do a bunch of stuff, and had a GREAT time! The kids got to pet a ton of animals, make pictures, got to make wooden bug catchers, and go to all the fun booths. It was a decent weathered day- not TOO hot. We got cotton candy and icees! I love fairs, and I love that my kids love them too!

I finally did it.

2011-09-19T19:47:00.002-05:00

Finally, finally, finally. We've only been back a little over a month, but I was soooo behind on blogging. Today I took 5 hours and did it ALL! Holy cow! I feel so much better now that I'm caught up! We hope you enjoy reading our blog and come back often!

Are you ready for some football????

2011-09-19T19:46:00.000-05:00

YEAH baby! Football season is here! Not only for Brian, but for UT, Dallas, Boise, Utah, and UTSA! We are totally TEXAS fans ALL.THE.WAY! Every Saturday we get dressed in our Texas "clothes" and cheer on our favorite team. So far, they are looking good. Well, anything can look good compared to last season! :o Here's to a great season, Longhorns. Don't let me down! But if you do, that's ok, because I still love you anyway!!

Labor Day 2011

2011-09-19T19:40:00.000-05:00

On Labor Day, Matt took the day off and we went down to the zoo and Japanese Tea Gardens. It was nice to be together as a family! It was also nice that the weather FINALLY cooled down for once. It was so pleasant that morning, it was surprising!Of course, Zoo pics are pretty self explanatory. He He :)

August 25, 2011- San Antonio ZOO

2011-09-19T19:26:00.000-05:00

Since the big kids are back to school, Lexie and I are in need of fun things to do. I've had a zoo pass for the past couple of years, but I find I am getting the most use out of it now. Lexie LOVES to go to the zoo! Here's some of our fun times....

August 22, 2011- FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!!

2011-09-19T19:20:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it- I have a 1st and 2nd grader. Weird. Seriously, weird. The years have seemed to fly by. I can't bare to think of 8 more years from now when my oldest will be driving a CAR. Yikes. Ok, I will try not to have a panic attack about this post, and just put the pictures of them looking super cute on the first day of school.

August 15, 2011 McKenna Childrens Museum

2011-09-19T19:12:00.000-05:00

A while back I got a groupon for McKenna Childrens museum in New Braunfels. I knew the kids would have a great time, so the week before school started, we headed up there. It was WAY smaller than the San Antonio Children's museum, but the kids really had fun.

Port Aransas August 13-15

2011-09-19T19:08:00.000-05:00

The weekend we got back from Utah/Idaho we took a trip down to the coast with Matt's parents. We stayed at Port Royal, which we LOVE. The kids barely ever got out of the ocean the whole time. They LOVED it. Seriously- we went down to the ocean at 9am, came back to the room for lunch, went to the pool for 3 more hours, went back to the room for dinner and then went BACK down to the ocean. That was just on Saturday! We also went to the ocean on Friday night and Sunday morning! I love that my kids love the ocean- I wouldn't have it any other way!

Utah- August 2011

2011-09-19T18:50:00.000-05:00

On our way home we stopped back in Utah for a few more days of fun. Obviously- we couldn't get enough! We took the kids to surf n swim, went to see Harry Potter #7 part 2, burned hot dogs, and enjoyed seeing everyone again before we had to go back home. I've come to the conclusion that we just need to get a house here. ;)

5 generations!!!

Takin off with a Dew--I love this boy!

He's got a dew!!

Brian and Great-Great-Grandma Katie

Aunt Chris and Kate

me and my grandma katie

matt and I at HARRY POTTER #7 part 2

row 1 of the Harry Potter gang

Surf n Swim

Ashtyn entertaining the kiddos

Kate and Derrick

me and my favorite little nephew!

OREGON! end of July 2011

2011-09-19T18:37:00.000-05:00

At the end of July we went to Joseph Oregon with my mom and dad. Mom was selling her metal art at Chief Joseph Days. It's a small small town, but just beautiful. We had a ton of fun. We went to the rodeo, saw the parade, went to MANY little shops and booths, went to see Wallowa Lake, went to see Hell's Canyon, and, of course, Brian and Dad got some fishing in. It's a good thing I had a good time, because it was CRAZY trying to get there. 100 miles (at least) on tiny, windy(sp?) mountain roads. We could only go like 40-50 miles per hour and it took FOREVER!! I was so carsick- and I was a driver! Anyway, enjoy the pictures of our fun time!

My little cowgirl

Sydnee and Lexie

at Hell's Canyon

Hell's Canyon

waiting for the parade to start

waiting for candy during the parade

Chief Joseph days parade

try playing instruments on a horse- I dare you! :)

my girlies

at the Rodeo

Wallowa Lake

So Beautiful!

Warm River, Idaho 2011 part 2

2011-09-19T18:12:00.000-05:00

Katie Cunningham family

Dave Cunningham Family

Lisa (Cunningham) Noland family

Kate, Syd, Me, Ky and Mom at the falls

Grandma Sheryl and Grandpa Dave with the big girls

Kate and Ky

Me, Brian, Syd, Lex and Dad at Mesa Falls

At Mesa falls

Beautiful

Mom and the girls

Mom, Lex, Steven and Ash with Grandma Katie and Aunt Eva

Mom and Lexie

Kate, me and the big girls

The girls being silly in mom's kayak

Sydnee is 6!

Warm River campsite

In an old bear trap at Bear World

seeing grizzly bears

the biggest teddy bear i've ever seen!

Ashtyn and the girls

pretty wolf

mom and easton!

Warm River, Idaho 2011 part 1

2011-09-19T17:48:00.000-05:00

While on our trip we were able to also go to the Cunningham family reunion in Warm River, Idaho. We usually miss this trip because of off dates, but this year we got to go! It was on Sydnee's birthday weekend too! Don't let the name fool you- the water is FREEZING! We still had a great time though...we also made a trip into West Yellowstone, went to the Wolf and Bear World, and did a little shopping. My dad taught Brian how to fly fish this trip and he created a MONSTER! Brian LOVED it! He talked for HOURS about fishing- even in his sleep! He caught his first fish as well--he was a pro! :) We went to Mesa Falls and another set of falls too, but I can't remember the name of them. This is what happens when you wait months to blog- you forget everything! Again with the pictures galore, so this will be 2 or 3 posts. Enjoy!

Amy and Lexie

Brian casting a line

Hanging out with Bapo

The kids bombarding dad with fishing questions!

FIRST FISH!!

cutie fisherman

me taking the big kids on a river float

grandma and grandpa

tents

kate in a cage!

kate and easton in his rightful spot! LOL!

megan in a cage with the kids

Lexie with Ash and Steven

Me and Kate

Me, my kids and my great-grandma Katie!

Idaho part 2

2011-09-19T17:16:00.000-05:00

MORE FUN!!

Easton, Mom, and Lexie

Dad and Brian mowing the lawn

Ellie painting toes

The kids ready to head out on the river

me on the river

Mom and Easton

my 3 kids in the boat, kate and kylie

Kate and Easton- he fell asleep the last hour of the trip

Kate and Easton

Playing in the river on our pitstop

Lexie, Sydnee, and me in the kayak, and Brian in the tube

I love floating the river!

mom and ky

Sydnee riding the horse ALL BY HERSELF!

Idaho part 1

2011-09-19T17:05:00.000-05:00

Wow. I have a TON of pictures from our stay in Idaho. I guess that's what happens when you are on vacation for 7 weeks! I won't go into detail about each one, that would take FAR too long, but I will put a little caption under them. Just know- we had so much FUN! We always do, of course. We floated the river, played with the kittys, rode the 4wheelers and horses- A LOT, went to "town", played, played and PLAYED!

Kate and Brian on the 4wheeler

Mom being bombarded by the grandkids for a ride

Brian learning to rope

Brian playing with Charley

Lexie floating in the hot springs

The gang at the hot springs

Ellie and some kids. LOL!

E man chillin out

The big kids with their kittys

Lex riding the horse

Lexie and cuddles

Ellie and Lexie

Having lunch at Idaho Pizza Company

Ellie and Brian at Idaho Pizza Company

Brian GETTING roped. LOL!

Boise Zoo

2011-09-19T16:44:00.000-05:00

I love taking my kids to the zoo. We all LOVE animals, and visiting different zoos once in a while is fun for us. The Boise Zoo is pretty small, but it is very nice and the kids always have a good time. This year we also went in the butterflies exhibit which was VERY cool! Butterflies landed on us and everything! :)

Hiking the canyon!

2011-09-19T16:33:00.000-05:00

I love love LOVE to go on hikes when I go to Utah. Mike and Chelsy usually take me around and show me the cool spots. This year we went to a different spot that, for the LIFE of me, I cannot remember the name of. Oops. It was beautiful anyway! We even found a GeoCash (sp?) box along the way thanks to Derrick...nothing of much interest in it, but we left a granola bar!

Utah- 4th of July

2011-09-19T16:21:00.000-05:00

We had a whirlwind 4th of July weekend! Of course, we did the usual, sparklers, parades, bbqs, fireworks! The kids had so much fun, and so did I, because, I love the 4th! :) We also had Sydnee and Kylie's birthday party on the 4th- complete with red, white and blue decor and a flag cake! The pics are pretty self explanatory, so I'll just get right on with those....

Bear Lake Pictures [part 5]

2011-09-19T15:58:00.003-05:00

FREE DOJA! :)

The girls painting rocks

The Breakfast crew

chatting

campfire fun

CJ, Kylie and Sydnee

me, matt, derrick and kate

Derrick and Easton on the 4wheeler

awww Kyle and CJ having a swing

me and Lex on the beach

Me and Megan

Megan and Kate with braided hair. LOL!

The Obriens!

Bear Lake Pictures [part 4]

2011-09-19T15:51:00.000-05:00

Me, chelsy and Kate on our dinner night

feeding Steven a sloppy joe!

chillin out

Jake was hungry that night!

Kylie, Jake, Brian and Sydnee

Kyle hard at work on our breakfast!

Loaded down 4wheeler!

Derrick, Easton, Ash, Steven and me!

mom and amy being silly with ash and steven!

Daidre, Jake, Ashtyn, Ash, Steven, Lexie and gpa Dave

Payson and Kylie- Birthday kids!

Braiding hair

Bear Lake Pictures [part 3]

2011-09-19T15:44:00.000-05:00

Bones I saw while on the 4wheeler ride

When we got back from the ride, I took off my glasses and this is what we saw! YIKES!

Kyle and Kari- our tour guides

Alan and I

Mom and Grandpa dave

Grandpa's crazy hair-- I love it!

Scenery on the way

Kyle stuck in the SNOW in the mountain

Alan stuck in the snow!

Mom helping grandpa out of the snow- she's got guns!!

SNOW! In JULY!

the 4wheelers!

Ashtyn, Ashley, Steven, Daidre, Payson and Zach

me and grandpa dave one morning making breakfast

Brian and his rock

Brian up in the tree house

Daidre, Ashtyn, Jake, Brian and grandma sheryl playing cards

Bear Lake Pictures [part 2]

2011-09-19T15:29:00.000-05:00

McKenna, Jordan, Tyson and Tahni on the beach

Chelsy and Ellie on the jet ski

Chelsy, Dad, Ellie and Meg getting a ride down to the beach

Dad and his girls

Derrick and Ky on the jetski

Derrick trying to get out of the swamp (playing frisbee golf)

Cutie Easton

Frisbee golfers

Ellie, Chelsy and Meg on the beach

Horseshoes

Brian and Sydnee getting all sorts of dirty

laying out

Lexie got boobs!

Me and Kylie

Megan and Cj being crazy!

Bear Lake Summer 2011 [part 1]

2011-09-19T15:22:00.000-05:00

On our trip this summer, we had the privilege of going to Bear Lake for a week with the WHOLE extended family. That means my mom's parents, her 3 siblings, their spouses, *most* everyone's kids and THEIR kids. Around 40 people or so on any given day. Holy cow- that's a lot of people, but it was SO.MUCH.FUN! We went in celebration of my grandparents 50th wedding anniversary. 50 years people- that is an accomplishment! They rented a cabin, we had a mini "tent city", 3 huge trailors and we got to be there for a whole week. We rented jet skis, ate, laid out, swam, went on 4wheeler rides, ate, had fun fire nights, and ate some more. Did I mention that we ate? We seriously could've fed a 3rd world country for a month with the amount of food this crew went through. We also had a fun party for Grandma and Grandpa on Sunday night, complete with steak, cake and A SONG....written by my lovely mother and aunt, and sung by the grandkids. The granddaughters sang it best!! ;) It was so fun to be together, and I have the pictures to prove it. Thank you grandma and grandpa for getting married, and starting this crazy, wonderful family of ours!! I am going to do a couple posts with pictures, so as not to overwhelm just one post with them.

Kate, Easton, and Ellie on night 1

Tent city

The David Cunningham family

Dishing up cake for the anniversary!

My dad and lexie

the REAL personality of the family!!

The LOVEBIRDS!

The girl cousins singing "Grandma's House"

Grandpa dave swinging the rope to Lex

Matt, Syd and Chelsy (with Austin in the background)

Kylie, Sydnee, Payson, and Zach painting rocks

June 25-Grandma Katie's 90th Birthday Party

2011-08-23T14:36:00.000-05:00

Grandma Katie turned 90 this year! So, of course, they had a huge party for her! Luau themed from her love of Hawaii! It was a great turnout, and a super party for such a beautiful lady. I just love my Grandma Katie- she is my mother's father's mother. Got that? She is a wonderful example of faith, beauty, endurance, and everything I want to be by the time I'm her age. I am so glad my kids get to know her! I was her first great-grandchild, and Brian is her first great-great grandchild. How stinkin cool is that??

P.S. The stand up people are my sister, Ashley, and her husband, Steven, who couldn't be there for the party. Play a little game and see how many times you can find Ash and Steven over the next posts! :)

June 13-17: TBarM camp

2011-08-23T14:15:00.000-05:00

During the week of June 13-17, Brian and Sydnee got to go to TbarM camp in New Braunfels. Brian went last year and had an amazing time, so Sydnee was really excited to be able to go this year too. It's a week long camp from 9am-5pm...so they are there ALL day! Yay for me! :) They swim, make crafts, do bible study, and basically have a REALLY GOOD TIME! Each day had a "theme" that they could dress up for...Birthday Celebration, Noah's Ark, Mission Impossible, and Team Day. Both kids were on Team Omega. On Friday evening, they had a parent presentation and we got to hear from the kids counselors about what kind of personality trait they thought our kids represented. I can't remember right now what they were--sorry! My mind is crazy, but I will for sure come back and rewrite this when I remember!! After the parent celebration on Friday, we went to eat at Longhorn Cafe and cool off from being in 100 degree weather for over an hour! I forgot to get some pics of a couple of the days, but here's what I got!

June 11- Early birthday party for Sydnee!

2011-08-23T12:49:00.000-05:00

On June 11, we had an early birthday party for Sydnee. She wanted a pool party with her friends, and since we were going to be gone all summer, we decided to have it before we left! She had so much fun! She has some great friends who came to swim and share in the fun!

June 2- ZOO!

2011-06-06T15:00:00.000-05:00

Our pool got closed for a couple days, so last Thursday we made a spontaneous trip to the zoo. We haven't been in a while, so it was fun for the kids to go again. We also renewed our pass, so we can go anytime we want! We got there fairly early, so most of the animals were out and it wasn't TOO hot yet. It wasn't too crowded yet either. We also took a ride on the train after we were done in the zoo.

Last days of school!!!

2011-06-06T14:52:00.000-05:00

May 26-27 were VERY eventful! On May 26, Brian had an awards program and Sydnee had a singing program and classroom program for the end of school. It was so fun to see the kids perform, and "graduate" from kindergarten and 1st grade! I seriously can't believe it's summer already, and that these kiddos will be in 1st and 2nd grade next year!!

May 27 was the last day of school and the school carnival. They had so much stuff for the kids to do--3 huge bouncy castles/obstacle courses/train rides/dunk tank/golfing/throwing/FOOD/etc.... It was really fun for them!

Brian and Mrs Harris

Cutie girl ready to sing!

Cookie Walk

Making pixie sticks

Brian and Mrs harris

Throwing the football

Golfing

Tug o War

Sydnee having popcorn

Sydnee having a slush--do we see a pattern??? :)

Dunk tank

Sydnee and Mrs Haby

Sydnee and Addison riding the train

Beach to Bay 2011, Corpus Christi, TX

2011-06-06T14:27:00.000-05:00

Our friends, Angie and Greg, invited us to run in the Beach to Bay marathon relay with them on May 21st in Corpus. It is a full marathon (26.2 miles) relay with 6 participants. Each leg was between 3.6-4.8 miles. We also had Angie and Greg's friends, Jared and Kristen run with us. Matt ran the first leg. It was supposed to be a beach run, but the tide was too high and there was so much seaweed they had to adjust the course to just running the frontage road. It was about 3.4 miles. Jared ran the 2nd leg, and for not being a runner, he did AWESOME! :) It was about 4.67 miles. Greg ran the 3rd leg, which to start was up the bridge, and about 4.36 miles. Angie did leg 4 at 4.69 miles. Kristen did leg 5 at 4.2 miles. And I did leg 6 at 4.89 miles. I had the prettiest run I would say. It was along Shoreline Blvd...I got to run past all the huge houses on beach. But it was sooooo stinkin hot!! By the time I got running it was 11 am and SO HOT! It was so humid too- like 93%. I did my run in about 43 minutes, which I didn't think was TOO bad considering the heat and humidity. I think we all did VERY well, and had a great time. I cannot wait until next year!!
Are you wondering where my kids are all this time? Well, we brought our babysitter, Ashley, down to the coast with us! We would have had Matt's parents watch them, but they were on vacation at the time. Anyway, we brought Ashley and she watched them while we ran. It was so nice of her, and the kids just love her!
We got down to the beach on Friday...checked into our hotel...wandered around for a bit...took a walk along the bay, and ate pizza. Saturday morning, Matt and I got up at 4 and didn't get back to the hotel until 2! LONG morning, but it was great! After we got back to the hotel, we took everyone to the beach to hang out for a bit. The kids had tons of fun with their kickboards in the waves and Lexie loved playing in the sand and finding seashells. After the beach we drove out to Port Aransas, got some candy and walnut caramel fudge from my FAV candy store, went to eat at this new bar/grill that was actually pretty good, and then went souvenir shopping! Sunday morning I sent matt, ashley and the kids down to the pool to swim out their energy while I packed up the room. It was nice to have a couple hours of quiet! After we got all packed up and ready to go, we stopped to eat at this place called the Executive Surf Club. It was pretty good- I'd go there again. We also drove by the USS Lexington, which we will definitely be going to next time! That thing is HUGE!!

All in all, it was a great weekend, and we had so much fun!! I love the beach and can't wait to go again!

Mother's Day 2011

2011-06-06T13:44:00.000-05:00

Mother's Day 2011--

Breakfast: sweet potato french toast with fresh strawberries....my FAVORITE!

Gifts: sweet sweet pictures and notes the kids made at school, trivets with pictures the kids drew on them, and my favorite chocolates- Lindor chocolates with a smooth white filling! I love what they wrote on their pictures! Apparently, according to Brian, I am 13 feet tall and weigh 100 lbs! And according to Sydnee, I am 60 years old! HA! I love their perceptions at this age! :)

Church with sweet songs sung by the primary and yummy chocolate bars

Dinner at Charles and Sharons with great food and more gifts!

All in all it was a wonderful day. I love love LOVE my beautiful kids, and are so blessed to be their mother. They are great kids, and everyday I cannot believe Heavenly Father entrusted them to me. Don't get me wrong- all days are NOT perfect, but I do love being a mom, it's really all I've ever wanted.

FINALLY!!!!

2011-05-11T16:45:00.002-05:00

I'm FINALLY caught up!! Just in time for the end of the school year stuff and.....wait for it.....our trips to UTAH and IDAHO. You just wait and see how stinkin many posts THAT is! Oh and matt and I are doing a Beach to Bay marathon relay next weekend....I know you are just sitting on the edge of your keyboards waiting to see what's happening in our lives. HAHAHAHA! Thanks for reading!!

May 4- Field day at school

2011-05-11T16:44:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year for end of the year activities! Field day was on May 4. Brian and Sydnee got to be on teams in their classes and go through TONS of obstacle courses for 2 1/2 hrs! I didn't stay the whole time, because miss Lexie was being a pain. (not that I blame her though, she just wanted to participate too!) Anyway, here are some pictures of the kids doing their thing!

April 30- RACE for the CURE

2011-05-11T16:35:00.000-05:00

Saturday, April 30th, we participated in the annual Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. Yay! Every year, my family runs in memory of a dear friend, Allison, who lost her long battle with breast cancer. I put a little team together, made some matching shirts, and we walked/ran/sweated for the Cure. hahahaha! It was actually really fun to have a team (even if it wasn't my family girls ) and do something for a good cause. Next year we are going ALL out with our outfits and I hope there's not sooo many other conflicts that day, so I can have a bigger team.

EASTER- morning, hunts and dinner!

2011-05-11T15:11:00.000-05:00

Easter morning was the usual Sunday craziness, except we need to throw in basket findings, egg hunts and family pictures. BEFORE church. :) The kids, of course, were SO excited and could hardly contain themselves...especially when we gave Lexie a 5 minute head start on the egg hunt. lexie actually turned out to be the best egg finder!! She was talking about "finding another egg" for weeks afterward! HAHAHA! Charles and Sharon came over and went to Sacrament meeting with us, and then we went over to their house for another egg hunt and dinner. I love telling my kids the story of why we have Easter, and what it REALLY means amongst the bunnies, chocolate, baskets and eggs. I am so thankful to have these children, and hope the Savior thinks I'm doing and OK job trying to teach them of Christ and His plan for us.

April 23-dyeing eggs and making food....

2011-05-11T14:50:00.000-05:00

When we got home from camping on Saturday afternoon, we dyed Easter eggs, made potato salad, deviled eggs, and sugar cookies. (all the food was for Sunday's dinner) Lexie fell asleep on the couch and didn't dye any eggs. I think camping totally wore her out.

Ward Campout at Paradise Canyon Apr 22-23

2011-05-11T14:42:00.001-05:00

The ward campout this year was over Easter Weekend. We don't usually go to these things, but this year we decided Lex was old enough and we would brave camping in Texas. :) Nicole, Ryan and Rock came along too. We actually had a really great time! We went up Friday afternoon, set up camp while the kids played in the river, roasted dinner on the fire, had a ward devotional, roasted marshmallows, and then made it into bed around 11pm. Yikes! Sleeping was not so great because it was SO humid and hot. Seriously- we needed it to be about 15 degrees cooler or have a stronger wind, but overall not TOO bad. The men were up early the next morning to cook the ward breakfast. Early as in 615 AM. Holy cow. Too too TOO early for me when I'm camping. Anyway, we ate breakfast and hid Easter eggs for all the kids to find. The kids did their egg hunt, and then we played around for a few more hours before we packed up and left. It was actually a great weekend! When we got home...we had SO much more to do, soooo...stay tuned!!

Valero Tx Open

2011-05-11T14:05:00.000-05:00

We got tickets for the Valero Tx Open this year, and took EVERYONE. I was super nervous about how Lexie was going to behave with the whole "shhh be quite for the golfers" thing, but she did really well, and a golfer even threw her a ball! I even got to see my favorite golfers- Adam Scott and Cameron Tringale! Brian said to me "mom, I think it's ridiculous to go to a golf course and NOT golf!" Hahahaa! Cutie kid.

Spring flag football and cheer

2011-05-11T14:00:00.000-05:00

This spring we had more football and cheerleading! Brian and Sydnee are really progressing in their skills, and they love it!

Last year of the 20s....

2011-05-11T13:53:00.000-05:00

Holy cow- oh my goodness- this is the last year of my 20s. Mom sent me a great birthday package with a beautiful bracelet, my favorite chocolates, a COACH purse from her and my sisters(the pic is on my phone), my grandma sent me a great new quilt, and matt and the kids got me a new book, a gift card to Run On, and a gift card to a spa. YAY! We didn't have a 9 candle, so we just put the 2 and 7 we had, and added 2 more. Hahaha!

Let's not even talk about the age, and just enjoy the birthday pictures.....

Spring Break Hiking/Picnicing

2011-05-11T13:29:00.000-05:00

Spring break was pretty laid back for us this year. We stayed home most of the time, which was actually a nice break from our usual running around. To name a few activities....the kids rode bikes, took the dog for walks, played in the backyard, and stayed up late! Matt got to come home early a couple times and we had dinner picnics in the backyard, took a hiking trip to Frederich Park, and had a picnic on Saturday in Landa Park (in New Braunfels) . I didn't get many pictures except for Thursday and Friday and a couple on Saturday. Most are from hiking, but I thought I'd post them.

St Patrick's Day 2011

2011-03-29T16:56:00.000-05:00

This year St Patrick's Day fell during Spring Break. Yay! We spent the day being "green!" We had green frosted cinnamon bites for breakfast, made green jello shamrocks, got dressed in our green shirts, made shamrock pretzels, and had so much fun! I love love love St Patricks Day! Of course, we had to get a ton of pictures too.

Enjoy!

Basketball is over...

2011-03-06T20:04:00.000-06:00

Brian's basketball season seemed to FLY by! He had a great coach and a tiny little team. We were lucky if we had 4 kids there to play! All in all, I think the boys had a good time, and Brian really learned a lot. You could totally see their improvement from game 1 to game 8. I love that Brian has such an interest in sports and is ready to try everything. After the boys last game, we went to Beefy's Backyard to eat, hand out team medals and chat for a bit while the kids played. We didn't get very many good pictures during basketball season...the lighting was not really very good, ever. I think I posted all the good ones we had already, but here is one and then the rest are from Beefy's. We are starting a new flag football and cheerleading season in 2 weeks, and we are SUPER excited about that!

Lexie is 2!

2011-03-06T19:46:00.000-06:00

February 27th...Lexie turned 2! She had a Dora party which she was VERY excited about for MONTHS before! At Christmas time she was talking about her Dora party. hahahaha! We had Dora cupcakes, dora plates, dora balloons, etc...etc... Dora was all over our house. She loved it!

Lexie is soooo energetic and funny. She keeps our house so alive! She has been potty trained for about a month now, which is AWESOME! She loves Dora (obviously), coloring, playing outside and her brother and sister. She is so sweet, and is very concerned for others. She is so loud and talkative--she will say anything! I love love love my little Lexie-lou and am so happy I have the privilege of being home with her everyday. I could not ask for more.

Lexie got a haircut

2011-02-14T10:41:00.000-06:00

After a week of debating whether or not I should give Lexie's hair a trim...I finally did it! Her mulletish Carol Brady style hair was driving me INSANE! I cut it into a nice, cute little bob and it's SO MUCH BETTER! However, she looks more grown up to me, and with being potty trained and turning 2, I'm not sure I feel good about that. Where did my baby go??

Happy Valentine's day!

2011-02-14T10:31:00.000-06:00

Happy Valentine's day 2011! We made fun treats, wrote valentines, and love each other. Hooray. HAHAHA! Hope you have someone to love and someone to love you on this day of smooches, hugs, and general mushy-ness. here are pictures of our fun and my little lovies.....

San Antonio Stock Show and Carnival Feb.11

2011-02-14T10:20:00.000-06:00

On Friday, Feb.11th, I picked the kids up early from school and Matt came home early from work, so we could go down to the annual Stock Show and Carnival. It was dollar days ($1 for admission, drinks, hot dogs, popcorn, cotton candy and rides) so we knew we needed to be there early to beat the crowds. The kids love going and seeing all the animals and such. We let them ride a couple rides (only because it was dollar days--otherwise the prices are OUTRAGEOUS!!), have some treats, and go to the petting zoo. They got to join the San Antonio Rodeo little wranglers club and got a free tshirt! I can seriously see my kids being in this fair later on in life...Sydnee on her horse and raising a cow, Lexie with baby pigs, and Brian.....hmmm....Brian would......probably run the carnival rides. HAhAHA ! no, I'm really kidding, he loves the animals too, just not as much as the girls. Anyway, enjoy the pictures of our fun Friday!

February 4-6

2011-02-14T10:04:00.000-06:00

February 4th- Bella's 1st Birthday! also a SNOW day! yes, that's right...a snow day in San Antonio, TX. It was not even an inch, but there was ice under the snow, so they cancelled school. The kids were totally excited about that! We stayed in for most of the day- since it was in the 20s outside- and made Bella a birthday cake. Bella LOVED it! She was mostly a fan of the cream cheese frosting. The kids thought it was pretty fun to make a cake for a dog too. :) In the afternoon on their snow day, we ventured outside. the snow was gone, but we had a nice square ice patch on our walkway, and the car had icicles on it. The kids had great fun breaking those off and eating them. yum. ewww.

February 6th- we delivered some valentine treats to friends, and then came home to watch the Super Bowl. yes, my friends, the super bowl that Green Bay was in- AND WON!!! I have been a Green Bay fan since i was 14 and discovered how cute some football quarterbacks are! Thus began my love of football...hahahahaha. I really was a Brett Farve fan for those years, but there's something that I still love about Green Bay...maybe it's the giant cheeseheads the fans wear (i have ALWAYS wanted one of those), or the energy that's always present and Lambeau Field--Brett Farve or not. :) We wished we would've had people over and had a big party, but we didn't, so maybe next year.

What a great way to start the month!! Happy February!!

Jan 29-30th AUSTIN 3M Half Marathon!!

2011-02-14T09:41:00.000-06:00

On Jan 29th and 30th, Matt and I drove up to Austin so that I could run in the 3M half marathon. We had a great weekend! We drove up, picked up my race packet, checked into the hotel and then headed over to IKEA!! I love IKEA! San Antonio really needs to get one! We spent a couple hours at IKEA, then went to REI...also, no fair that Austin has 3 and we have NONE! I bought some accessories to go with my new BOB running stroller. Anyway, after IKEA and REI, we met up with our friends, the Nielsons, who had moved up to Austin from San antonio this past year. We chatted at their house for a bit and then went to eat at Olive Garden. (gotta carbo load you know! hahahaha) I'm so sad we got NO pictures! I wish they had never moved! It was so fun to see them again. After dinner, we said our goodbyes and went back to the hotel. I was seriously in bed by 830pm. I was so tired, and NERVOUS! My sister, Ellie, was supposed to come down and run with me, but that didn't work out; and our friends, Angie and Greg, had a death in the family and also weren't able to run. I was alone and running a course I didnt know, not to mention that it was SO.STINKIN.HUMID!!!! Oh man, it was so hot. I was dying. My clothes were dripping with sweat by the time I finished. It was really disgusting. Anyway, I tried to stay in between the 1:50 and 1:55 pacers. My goal time was under 2 hours, and I made that. I finished in 1:52:20. 1 minute faster than my time for the Rock and Roll. I really thought I was going to be so slow. I was so discouraged, and my feet were hurting so bad. Weird. I think I psyched myself out. Seriously. I had never had that much trouble with a race before--not even my first one! Hopefully next year the weather will be better and I'll have a friend.... :) After the race, we went to Einstein Bagels and Jamba Juice--my 2 fav places for post race food. We also went downtown Austin to go to the Texas store- of course.

January 15, 2011 Brian's first basketball game

2011-01-17T17:40:00.000-06:00

On January 15th, Brian had his very first basketball game!! He is playing with the I9 sports league again, which we love! He has never played on a basketball team before, and hasn't had much practice, but he did AWESOME!! His defense was so good it was almost annoying and he scored the only points in the whole game *6*. It was so fun to watch these kids....the whole first quarter, we kept having to yell "dribble the ball!!" "pass!!" it was hilarious! They finally caught on by the 2nd half. I think this is going to be a super fun season....Brian seems to be really good so far!!

cute ones I forgot

2011-01-17T17:32:00.000-06:00

I just found some cute pictures that I forgot to upload in the UT/ID posts. Enjoy!!

January 3-4 Driving Home

2011-01-17T17:11:00.000-06:00

We headed back home on January 3rd (at 4am). We had some bad road and had to go 40 miles an hour for about 1 1/2 hrs. Eww. That was annoying. We made it to Roswell, New Mexico about 6pm. We ate dinner at IHOP and then checked into our hotel. It wasn't as nice as the one in Durango, but it was WAY better than I expected. The kids swam in the pool and they had a very nice hot breakfast the next morning. The kids were excellent in the car again. Yay! :) We had so much fun on our trip, and I absolutely cannot wait until our summer trip!!

December 31st- New Year's Eve and such....

2011-01-17T16:56:00.000-06:00

On December 31st Matt went up skiing with Mike for the day, so it was me and the kids at grandma's. We played out in the snow for about 20 mins until our noses felt like they had frostbite. It was 13 degrees! We came in and i think it was Ashtyn and Mikayla who entertained my kids while I helped prepare goodies and food for the nights festivities. Big party at grandma's!! Yay! The best kind too--New Year's Eve!! Tons of aunts, uncles, and cousins came over for the fun. Grandma Katie prepared a great message about Grandpa Carlos. It was so neat to hear her stories, read things he wrote, and see all the old items she brought. I always love hearing Grandma Katie's stories--she had so many great adventures! After that we played Nerts for hours!! Seriously- some of us were up until 4am playing! My kids didn't even go to bed until I think it was 2am ?? Holy COW! My kids have NEVER stayed up that late before! Matt and I couldn't bare to tear ourselves away from the game long enough to put them to bed. Oh well...no harm done! Wait- there was harm done with the massive headaches that everyone had the next day, but we still had LOTS of fun.

December 29- Idaho, last day...sniff..sniff

2011-01-17T16:10:00.000-06:00

December 29th was our last day in Idaho. Bummer- I always HATE going home. Not that I don't love my home, because I do. It's just that I hate leaving my family. I wish we all lived closer together. Ok, enough pity party. On to our last day! We played, packed, and played some more! Mom and Dad took all of us out to the Triangle (Sweet's little restaurant) for dinner. It was yummy- as usual! Then we put the kids to bed and the adults stayed up WAY late to play Rock Band! We even got mom and dad in on the action--mom sang "Any Man of Mine" and dad sang "Good Time" and "She thinks my tractor's sexy!" It was AWESOME!!

December 28- The Discovery Center of Idaho

2011-01-17T15:34:00.000-06:00

On December 28th, we went down to the Discovery Center of Idaho. I had gotten a groupon for this place, and I thought the kids would enjoy it. It was a place full of hands on science stuff. There were a ton of people there since it was a rainy day, but we still had an good time. The best part about this place was that there was this little grocery store set up for the kids. They had mini carts, check out lanes with cash registers, shelves of play food, and even a produce section. It was SO CUTE! If I had a ton of money I would totally make a play grocery store in my house! HA! :)

December 25th- CHRISTMAS!!

2011-01-17T15:11:00.000-06:00

December 25th- I love Christmas! The kids, of course, got a ton of new, fun things. We had a great breakfast cooked by the guys. We played games, shot guns off the back porch, played in the snow and hung out together, and then had a HUGE wonderful dinner of ham, turkey, cheesy potatoes, etc..etc. :) Yum! I'm so thankful we got to go up to Idaho. It was so good to be together, and make great memories.

December 24- Christmas Eve! a Hayride and lots of fun!

2011-01-17T14:49:00.001-06:00

On December 24, we got to go to a friend of my dad's house and he took us on a hayride with his 2 HUGE clydesdale horses. These horses were giant! It was pretty fun--very cold, but fun. Well, except for the part when Lexie fell off. Yeah, sure, that wasn't funny at the time, but now it's freakin hillarious! Story--she was being annoyed that we were riding for so long, so, being the 21st century parents that we are, we gave her an ipod to watch Dora on. Hey- she stays quiet and doesn't scream at me- don't judge me...you don't have a "Lexie" Anyway, she, of course, dropped/threw it off the hayride. Matt leaps down to get it (we were only going like 3 miles an hour if that), and just leaves Lexie to sit on the haybale herself. (I was on the other side of the wagon) Well, do you remember from my previous post where I stated that lexie is like Randy from A Christmas Story when she is in her snow gear? She really is all puffy and can't really move much--which turned out to our advantage. She turned to go after matt and fell off! In the middle of the road. Almost by the wheel of the wagon. Thankfully, mostly in part to her puffiness, she wasn't hurt- just scared. Holy cow- all of us were totally freaked out, and Matt felt like the Parent of the Year. It's all good--it's Lexie. She was bound to fall off at sometime in the ride. ;)

Later on that evening, we had pizza for dinner, read the Christmas story from the Bible, opened our Christmas pajamas, and left food for the reindeer and Santa. I just love Christmas Eve- it's so magical!

December 23rd-Matt takes the kids skiing/snowboarding

2011-01-17T14:19:00.000-06:00

On December 23rd, Matt took Brian and Sydnee up to the ski resort called Bogus Basin to go skiing/snowboarding. Brian did snowboarding and Syd skied. Matt stayed with them and took them up and down the bunny hill. They really liked riding the magic carpet! I think they had fun- it was pretty cold, and it was a first for both of them. They said they wanted to go again, so it must've been a decent experience!