The Daybreak Roar n Snore!

To camp or not to camp...that is the question. Rob and I debated back and forth on whether it would be fun/practical to go to the annual Daybreak campout and ACTUALLY camp out. I was for, Rob was against...and finally we decided to blame it on the rain...yeah, yeah. Although we decided not to set up an official tent, etc. we still went for the festivities and free food clearly. The boys had the time of their lives! Little did we know that in addition to the typical hot dog dinner and movie, this year they had animals to look at and pet (everything from snakes to chinchilas), and better still fire engines, ambulences, police cars and motorcycles! My boys were in heaven! They got sticker badges from the super nice fire and police men AND got to go inside and explore all the vehicles. It was like a dream come true. Zekie of course, tried to push the limit and kept trying to talk them into taking him for a spin around the block!

Zekes cheesin' it up next to his sweet police bike, sporting all his official sticker badges.

Caleb was pretty sure the best part of it all was the free Cheetos. I thought it would be fun to wear something "campy" for kicks, and went with this random hankerchief Rob's had since the 80's I'm sure. My "friend" told me it was "sooo ugly, it was cool." I'm still not quite sure whether to take that as a compliment or not :) Isaac's favorite activity was running around with two hypercolor pencils/magic wands yelling at the top of his lungs "Pocus! Pocus!"

My little SWAT team in full force. The city of South Jordan has never been so safe (or dangerous.)

Chillin' at Oquirrh Lake

One of my boys favorite summer activities is strolling up to the Oquirrh Lake, a man made lake about a 10 minute walk away. We have a ritual we do every time. It includes: packing plenty of snacks to picnic with, yelling "echo" when we go under the road bridge, throwing rocks at the bridge waterfall area, feeding the ducks, feeding ourselves, strolling up to the top of the highest bridge and chucking rocks into the lake below, and then half running home, putting kids down for a nap, and collapsing! It's fabulous let me tell you. Plus I get my workout of the day by pushing 3 boys in a double stroller uphill....bothways. K, not really but I run back so I'm positive I'm burning serious calories :)

These picnic tables are great because little boys can sit on top of them and be close enough to chuck cheerios to the duck, but still feel a safe distance away from them. Last time it was funny because all the ducks were being friendly and then a big fat goose came and chased them back into the lake so he could hoard all the food we were throwing. He was pretty aggressive and kept circling our table...kinda like a shark. Isaac was quite concerned and kept yelling "No ducky!"

Last time, we decided to break up the routine a little and fly a kite. Elmer Fudd, *ahem* I mean Zekie decided it would be a good idea to free the kite and see where it would go. Amazingly it hopped and skipped all the way across the whole lake, and then made it up and over the chain link fence into the weeds. I thought I would try and teach Zekie a lesson by hoisting him up and over the chainlink and then retrieving the kite. He was soo close to getting it, but alas he "heard" the icecream man and was distracted, and then told me the weeds were too "prickly" for him. Dah. Oh well. Little did I know at the time that my mom would be giving us 7 kites at .74 each! So now we can sacrifice them to lakes, fences, weeds, trees, whatever and then say, well that was fun.

Another fun thing to do at the lake is take one of the free kayaks out for a ride. This is the first year Zekie and I attempted to do so and it was quite the adventure. Zekie of course thought it was awesome...for about 10 minutes and then he was totally done. At that point though we were past the point of no return and I was bound and determined to paddle the entired loop (just check out my chistled arms)! It was a beautiful clear windy sunny day. We saw wildflowers, mountains, bridges, docks, waterfalls, and a beach full of happy sunbathers.

Zekie contented himself with trying to talk the fish into jumping into our boat to take a ride and directing me to either paddle left, right or over the top of the "ghosts"/air bubbles that the oxidate the lake with. Here is Captain Zekie doing a very dangerous stand up spin trick. Good times at the lake :)

Happy Birthday to Rob!

On August 9th, Rob turned the big 3-2. Rob had been in Florida all week for work, but luckily made it home on his birthday night in time for us to have a small celebration. The nice thing about him being gone was that Zekie and I were able to surprise him with decorations and my present. I "gave" Rob a clean office...and believe me, that was a BIG present.

We also made him a golf ball cake and did the usual singing bit.

Rob was kind enough to humor the boys by letting each of them take turns blowing out the candle. We always get our money's worth out of birthday candles!

Zekie LOVED helping me decorate. We left the streamers up for several days and the boys just couldn't understand why I took them down. "But it HAS to be Dada's birthday still..."

This balloon was not only festive but double as a game too. Zekie and Isaac had many a game of who can hit the balloon with their buttons.

The B's

This post is all about what Rob and I refer to as "The B's." They are: binky, buttons, blanket...otherwise known as MAJOR comfort items. Everyday and night before naps and bedtimes all 3 boys need to have their b's....or all heck breaks loose. Pictured above is Isaac happily sporting his b's. We now have a recently instated a kitchen drawer designated for Isaac's bink and buttons. Previously we tried to keep them in his crib, on the kitchen counter, or the fireplace mantel. None of these places were working out that well because of one big problem. They were all VISIBLE. Isaac only gets to have his b's when it's "sleeping time" but would happen by the previously mentioned places, see them and swipe them. Then of course before bedtime we would have to ensued upon an all inclusive search of the entire house before we'd eventually find them...in his tricycle trunk, behind the t.v., in the microwave...there was never anyway of telling where a 2 year old could have put them.

We have my mother "Nani" to thank for these buttons. The idea began when Zekie was baby and would always want to play with the buttons on your shirt. So my mom got this great idea to sew some buttons on a wash cloth so he could have his very own buttons to touch and twirl and bite, etc. They very soon became his special comfort item and still today 3 years later he sleeps and is comforted by his buttons. Then Isaac came along and needed to have his own buttons too, but funny enough, doesn't really care about the buttons. It's the tag on the washcloth that is his very special comfort item. Every night he finds the silky tag and rubs it between his thumb and fingers until he falls asleep.

Here are the twins. Caleb officially weighs more than Isaac now and is doin his best "don't mess with me, I'm a tough football baby" look.

You'd think that Caleb would have his own set of buttons too. As Isaac would say "Maybe...., NOPE!" Instead he has his very special blue blanket that he loves to pieces. Caleb has worked out a routine where every morning he chucks both his binky and blanket to the floor and yells to let us know he's awake. Then as soon as we come in and get him out of his crib he reaches with all his might, back to the floor and picks up his binky and blanket to snuggle once more.

The Ice Cream Man

He loved and cursed by millions across the nation. He is........the ice cream man. Rob is NOT a fan of the ice cream man. Maybe it's the outlandish prices, the children running in the street, or just the repetitive tune. Most likely though, it is because Zekie is at the other side of the spectrum and has a serious obsession with the ice cream man. He has been known to sit on the curb and cry into the air "Oh ICE CREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEM MAN!! Where are you?! I NEEEEEEEED YOU!!!!!" and will not be persuaded or consoled. On occasion we will be happily playing outside and then suddenly Zekie swears he can "hear" the ice cream man coming. *silence* He is NOT coming. This is why the last time the ice cream man actually DID come I was willing to get Zekie whatever ice cream treat he wanted. Even though it meant I had to write the ice cream man out a check. I know. Pathetic...but it made Zekie's whole week, so it was worth it.

The choice...

The taste...

The COMPLETE satisfaction.

Fun times at Utah Lake

On July 27th, Zekie and I had the priviledge of going boating with my sister Julianne and her husband Kenny at Utah Lake. We got to go tubing, feed seagulls, have a dance party, drive the boat, and live it up on a hot July summa day. It was tons o fun. Especially when Kenny took Julianne and I on the tubing ride of a lifetime...Zekie was holding on for dear life and so were we :)

There's something about being on a boat where you just can't resist the urge to pull a Titanic "I'm the King of the World!"

Zekie LOVES his Auntie Julianne! They have had a special bond since day one. We're so lucky we live close and can see her often.

Kenny was the best uncle to Zekes and humored him by letting him "drive" the boat. They spend quite a long time chasing seagulls and driving in circles...Zekie ate up every second! Thanks Julianne and Kenny for inviting us. We can't wait for next time!

Enrichment Hike

Let's hear it for fun times with the Ladies! Enrichment is THE best. I love having monthly activities where I can go bond with the women in the ward. I rarely take the time to schedule activities with friends on my own but do thoroughly enjoy it when it happens, so it's very convenient that the church does it for me :) The RS and the YW went on a hike to Lake Mary's and it was such a good time. The weather was perfect, the scenery lovely, and the company most enjoyable. On the way up the mountain Briton told Tamera and I about her exotic trip to Costa Rica and on the way down the mountain, Kelly told me horror stories about her pregnancies and births...so I pretty much got the full spectrum of conversation topics. All in all it was very entertaining and refreshing and I can't wait to enjoy my sistas company next month!