4th of July

The 4th of July was super fun. We made homemade flags, a rice crispy treat flag and dressed up in red, white, and blue. Mom also came into town because she was going to fly out to help Cassie with the new baby. We ate a quick dinner and went to the fireworks. We got a great spot and had a blast with cousins. I think we were the loudest ones there. :)

Cabin '12

It had been about 4 years since we went to the cabin, so we were very excited to go this year. T.J. had to work, so I decided to take the kids by myself. Am I a little crazy? Probably, but we had a really good time. There were lots of hikes, lots of laughs, lots of heat, lots of food, and lots of tears, but it was totally worth it. I love spending time with my family!

Getting ready to approach the crossroads of our lives (an inside joke ;) ) 

Lyssa getting the kids a walking stick. 

Toph relaxing with Papa. 

Lyssa and Maura <3 nbsp="nbsp" p="p">

Part of the Gang 

Mila wasn't so happy this morning. 

Neither was Bentley (she was sad that the other kids went without her up the culvert) 

Swinging on the rope swing 

 Doing some crafts

Sitting on the big rock

Oh What Do You Do In the Summer Time?

Oh what do you do in the summer time when all the world is green? Or HOT if you live in AZ? Well, we had a great summer. We did lots of fun little things, big things and swam, swam, swam.  It was once of the best summers ever.

Mila having a few grapes. 

 Maura getting a hair cut from aunt Dallyn.

Playing in a homemade fort out of our "inherited" pool table. (Anyone want to buy it? :)) 

Playing dress-up instead of sorting dirty laundry.

Playing in the water.

And last but not least....SWIMMING!!

We swam everyday and most days twice. We love our pool!

Happy Birthday Maura!

Maura turned 7 years old last week! She was so very excited. The morning of her birthday we opened presents. We swam after school and went to eat Peter Piper Pizza for dinner. On Saturday we had a pool party and had a lot of family over. We had hot dogs and cake and the kids swam and swam. Maura was in heaven. I sure love that little girl. Here are 7 things about Maura:

1. She is a water dog. She is the first one in the pool and the last one out.

2. She is a good mama's helper. She has started getting Mila out of her bed and washing her and getting her down after meals.

3. She LOVES to snuggle.

4. She has a very strong love for stuffed animals.

5. She is super sweet and sensitive.

6. She loves math at school.

7. She loves cats.

 I had to add these little close ups of the kids faces. I just thought they were too sweet and shows each of their personalities. I sure love my kiddos.

On the road...

We headed out on our big journey on Saturday the 21st. We drove until we got to Columbus, OH. We ate pizza and swam. The next day we drove until Joplin, MO. Then the next day we pushed it to Amarillo, TX. While we were there, we were picked up by a limo with bull horns and taken to the Big Texan to eat. The kids loved all the big, fun things to take pictures with. The next day we drove until Flagstaff and stayed one more night. We finally got to our house by noon the next day. It was so exciting to be there. TJ saw it for the first time (and he loved it...phew!) and so did the kids. Everyone was so excited to be there. It took us a while to get settled and do some improvements (thanks family for all the help), but we finally feel like we are settled in. It's good to be home.

Last Goodbyes

I took the kids to school on their last day of school. It was sad to see them say good bye to their teachers and friends, but they were excited for the big move. 

The hardest thing was saying goodbye to Drew, Cassie and the kids. It was so great to have them in Buffalo with us. We miss our weekly dinners, morning walks, Sunday walks, sleepovers, and bike riding. We also owe them a huge thank you for the help they gave us when we packed and cleaned. Drew carefully loaded the truck for us and both of them helped clean the house the next day when I was laying in bed, sick with the stomach flu. We could not have pulled it off without them. We miss them so much already.