Rachael would have been 12 on August 1st. We celebrated with 12 dozen red roses and lots of balloons in the YW colors which we released at 8:01 PM (the time she was born!)
Alexander and his grandma!
Peeling potatoes with the family
Flying a kite with Uncle Rich
Some of the cousins!
McKenna and Lauren
I wish I could tan like like Xander!
Xander and Mason enjoying their treats!
Mason and I going on the slide!
We got our first ripe tomato, Mason and I were so excited! We sliced it up and ate it with salt and pepper, yum! I also had lots more red potatoes than I thought I would get! I made creamed potatoes and peas with them. Our peas and lettuce are finished, they were delicious!
The girls went to Camp Fife for day camp this year. I was able to go with the girls which was fun. They learned all about different types of airplanes, went zip-lining, shot guns and bows and arrows and climbed the rock wall. The girls had a great time! Lauren even came home and told her dad what a great archer her mom was! lol
I finally found the fabric I bought forever ago to make Lauren's bean bag in a basket on the top shelf of my closet! I'm sure there was a good reason I put it there. I made a curtain for her closet, a valance for her window and a big cushy bean bag to fit her window seat! She is in 7th heaven with her own private reading nook! Anytime she is missing, I know right where to find her!
I was so tired of the paint in their room, it's amazing what a new coat of paint will do! I need some ideas for room decorations. I wanted to make quilts, but I found these cute candy apple green down alternative comforters for $20 on Walmart.com. Mason actually picked them out, green is is Favorite color! I'm trying to figure out how to maybe incorporate Star Wars in the room somehow, maybe some vinyl or posters? 
Megan and Mason playing cars in the tent!
The kids had a blast building a fort!
How cute!
Lauren telling "ghost stories", they were all laughing, so she must be a good story teller!
Alexander being buried in the sand!
Eric playing frisbee on the beach
Lauren and Sierra buried themselves in the sand too!
Mason was showing Megan something in the coloring book, how sweet!
There's a motley crue!
Family picture in front of the cave
Wow, my garden boxes are filling up! It is amazing to watch how quickly things grow, especially with as much rain as we've had! I didn't water the garden the whole month of June, pretty amazing! All we have been eating so far has been spinach and lettuce, but the kids think it's pretty fun to pick their own food! Now I'm not quite sure how to harvest things. It's hard to tell when it's ready! The red potatoes have had flowers for weeks, the pea pods are getting bigger and the carrots are about a foot tall. Lauren pulled out an onion last night and it was about two inches in diameter. No peppers yet, but the tomatoes are getting bigger. The peas are almost as tall as I am and keep falling over, they are getting too heavy for the cage and stakes. This is so much fun!
The wedding party
Lauren with curls, look close, it's a rare site!
Mason and Maren, lol :)
My kids, impossible to get them all to look and smile simultaneously!
Whew, what a night!
Friday Eric's youngest brother Scott got married in the Salt Lake Temple. I was able to take the train downtown and Eric and I had lunch together at the Lion House Pantry before the wedding. The wedding was the last one of the day and started about 1/2 hour late, so about 3:30. The reception was at 7:00 in Layton which made for a pretty crazy evening. We have wonderful friends who took care of our kids, got them dressed and ready and brought them to us 1/2 way! We couldn't have done it without them! Kelsie came to Jen and Mason's and performed a miracle on Lauren's hair! Thanks so much to all our good friends! Congrats Scott and Tori, and have fun in Hawaii!!!
What could be better than friends and popsicles? What a fun time Mason and Megan had running through the sprinklers, swimming in the pool and eating popsicles! Ahhhh to be 3 again!!!
Congratulations Alexander! He has loved kindergarten this year. He has made lots of good friends and learned so much! Thanks Mrs. Woods for a fabulous year!
Pumpkins on top, just planted seeds, watermelons next, one seed, one plant, then peppers, jalepeno, chili, and sweet, lastly green onions and yellow onions. 
I planted my tomatoes Saturday, went to IFA and bought plants. I have one beef steak, one big beef, a grape and a roma. Then I just planted zucchini seeds and my cukes are coming up.
I just planted the second half of carrots, lettuce, spinach and beans. The peas and potatoes are coming up like crazy. I also planted eggplants and artichokes for the fun of it. We'll see how they do. I still can't believe I'm growing a garden!
Hiking in Moab!
Mason asked me if he could throw rocks in the river! I said of course, throw all you want! He seemed very surprised at my response. It's sad that we are always telling them no, don't throw rocks, then you have to tell them to be a kid in nature!
The pool was very refreshing, yeah, summers almost here!
My Aunt Barbara and I brought all our beading stuff and taught everyone how to make jewelery, even my Uncle Dee! We went a little crazy in the rock shop in Moab! We actually even stopped at Hobby Lobby in Grand Junction on our way to Grand Mesa to get more findings to go with our rocks from Moab!
This was the family ranch in La Sal. We found directions and drove right to it. It had been decades since my aunts and uncles had been there, maybe 50 years. They used to go there as kids and stay with grandma and grandpa and help with the farm. They grew potatoes and cabbage among other things. This was the cabin, the one side has since fallen down. The family sold the property in the 70's I believe. Mason told my Aunt Joan that he thought we should fix the cabin, he must have though it needed some work!
Mason found an old pot and part of a rusty old trailer hitch.
We also got to check out the root cellar, Mason said it was kinda dirty! lol
We just had to stop at hole in the rock and get ice cream!
This was the little rustic cabin we stayed at up at Grand Mesa. As you can see by the stove and fridge, it hasn't been updated in a while! There was hot water for the bathtub, but no shower! The funniest though was the tetering potty, it wasn't hooked down very well!
This is the cabin, I'm sure hunters and fisherman use them alot!
We had fun on the boat across the lake! You couldn't buy a view this incredible!
This was our cabin on the lake! The view was breathtaking! Mason loved all the birds, chipmunks and beavers!
These were my creations, we had fun beading!
Everyone was so proud of what they made, we had to take pictures. I was very impressed at the originality and creativity. I think we got em hooked!
