The Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open house--1st time around...

Okay--so I'm finally getting to the summer update--how sad is that? My kids have been in school for a month now and I still find time slipping by...

We drove to Saratoga Springs with my parents and stayed with my sis Amy. We went to church with them and then Kenna and Sadie went to I.F. with Grandpa and Grandma. Amy and I decided to brave the temple open house with the kids. It was really neat. The interior was beautiful and the view from the front of the temple was amazing. Carter really seemed to enjoy himself--Christopher--well, what can I say--mix one 3 year old who has been tied to a car for 15 hours in the past 2 days with any expectation of reverence and you get a MAJOR situation. I wasn't so sure about the whole "families can be together forever" thing after dealing with him--but since then he has redeemed himself--tonight as I was leaving his room after tucking in, he says--"Mom, you're the best mom ever"--so I guess I'll keep him for awhile :) But seriously--being at the temple made me think of Mackenna and Kelly who were not with us, and I felt truly grateful to know that with the blessings of the temple, we can be together--no matter what!

Yes--my 10 month old is swimming...

It's really hard to believe unless you see it for yourself--it really is neat to see. I'll admit I was a little skeptical at first--but...then I saw her face, now I'm a believer--(okay, I'm a dork--but if you sing it, it's kind of funny--and Kelly thought it was funny so I guess that's all that matters!) Anyways--we'll post a video soon!!

Under the sea....

I LOVE this picture!! My kids are little fish and it is so fun to watch them swim. Our swim instructor, Becki, gave me a CD full of water pics of the kids and they turned out so cute! I'll post several more so you can see! She had the older kids work alot on their freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly--even Christopher is practicing the butterfly and it is hilarious! I think it is so great that they all love the water--and it really is amazing to me that they can swim so well! Especially little Tess--I"ll post more pics of her--and hopefully we can get a video of her uploaded soon....and I seriously am planning on updating our trips this past summer--time just seems to fly...

Fun in the Sun....

So to get back to our summer update (which I hope to finish before fall...)here we are swimming with Grandma and Grandpa. My kids were in heaven and it was so much fun having them visit. There really is nothing like having a pool in your backyard--I know that it surprises my own family to hear that coming from me--of all my siblings, I am the one that probably hates water the most...but I have to say that moving here has converted me! I love it--especially when it hits 115 degrees here and the kids are bored--which has happened this past week--yuck! Anyways--we enjoyed swimming everyday that my parents were here and even Tessa can join in the fun now--she has been doing infant swimming lessons and loves to float on her back now--she just floats and spits--it's pretty amazing to watch--and a little depressing for me since she now swims better than I do. Oh well--maybe I'll take lessons next year :)

An FYI on FHE...

Hey all--just thought I would share the wealth! I have found the cutest blog for quick family home evening ideas that are really good for any age--and easy to adjust to the younger kids! I use this blog nearly every week and my kids have been LOVING it (which doesn't happen very often)--anyways it is www.fheinasnap.blogspot.com. You should check it out!!

My baby's growing up...

These pictures make me sad...I'm not ready to have a toddler yet! She is getting so big and has done so awesome in her swimming lessons. I got in the pool with her today and it was so hard to just let her go and watch her work to get her floating right. I know it's the hormones--but I thought about how like life that is--we hold our kids close and want to protect them from anything that could hurt them or be hard--but to survive, they have to be able to work it out on their own....well, in spite of all this heavy thinking...I think I'll still hold her too close for a little while longer....

A visit from Grandpa and Grandma....

My kids were so excited when they found out that Grandma and Grandpa "Idaho" were coming to visit--and that they would come and swim--which is the big and exciting thing to do at our house when it is 115 degrees outside! We had such a great visit--it's so fun to watch my kids with my parents!

We played and went swimming and I'm sure they would all agree that the main highlights of the visit were the Father's Day Steak Dinner--steaks grilled by Kelly, of course--and our dinner at Oregano's. It was so fun to have them come for a visit--and they were really brave because they even agreed to ride back to Utah with me and my kids in our van--my kids in a small, enclosed area for any length of time--not good...but my parents have earned their place in heaven--and after only two minor setbacks--a dead battery in Flagstaff and the DVD players not working for the kids, we made it to Amy's all in one piece.