Viva Las Vegas...

Last week we took a vacation to Las Vegas!  We stayed at the Tahiti Village & had so much fun!  So much fun that Tyler said, "I never want to leave Las Vegas because they have a lazy river!"  That was definitely his favorite part!

We drove to St. George the first day because we weren't sure if Sophie could make it all the way in one day, without driving all of us crazy in the car.  Surprisingly she did so good!

It was a fun night...we went to dinner with one of my favorite cousins Mandie & her cute family.  

Our kids loved her little girls!  

Sophie, Gracie, Kaylie, Libby, Zack & Tyler

When we got in the car Libby said, "I wish they were our actual cousins that we see all the time!"

I agree, I wish we were able to get together more too!

We stayed the night & the next morning we headed to Vegas!

We took a group picture in the elevator...there was a mirror on the ceiling!

We celebrated our "14" year anniversary the first day we were there.

My parents only stayed a few days so we tried to fit in some of the fun places before they left.

We ate at one of our favorite buffets at Treasure Island...

 I guess I should say our favorite "dessert" buffet!

Steve enjoying some ribs!

 My cute parents!

And the best part...

Sophie was asleep until I finished eating!

Then we went to the Mirage to see the volcano...

The Bellagio...

 We love the dancing fountains!

 Always one of our favorite places to go!

The gardens were beautiful!!  

It's hard to believe that most of the decorations are made out of fresh flowers!

New York, New York...

Then the rest of the trip we would :
RELAX...

EAT...

SWIM...

They went swimming EVERY day!

Even Grandma came down the lazy river...we had a good laugh when I was helping her on the tube & it flipped over on her!  We couldn't stop laughing!

And

GO OUT ON THE TOWN...

Sophie really worked on her walking skills & would stop & say, "hi" to EVERYONE!
People love her...one lady at the pool kept saying how beautiful she was and that she should be a Gerber Baby.  It was cute!

Then we were walking along and had a Deja Vu moment from when Libby was about 1 year old....

Libby 2002

Libby 2012

Time goes by SO fast!!
We tried to get a pose with Sophie...

She didn't like it!

 So Zack took a turn...

 He cracks me up!

Libby took a few pictures of the beautiful flowers & palm trees...

I wish plants like this grew in Utah.

Our trip was fun, but sometimes there's no place like home!

This was the sunset as we were driving back home...beautiful!!

Lagoon Day...

My kids look forward to this every year...Lagoon Day!
Steve's work is always so generous & pay for the whole family to go to Lagoon & they provide a dinner.  As always we have so much fun!  

This year we left Sophie with my sister Shelly & it was nice to be able to give our other kids some attention...lately she takes all of our energy!  She is one BUSY girl!

They headed straight to the splash park & got soaked!

  Tyler really got it...

He's in the blue right in the middle of the water!

He was dripping wet!

He was so soaked Steve had to take his shirt off & wring it out before he went on the first ride!

It was a fun year because Tyler was (barely) the right height to go on most of the bigger rides!  

We went on the Wild Mouse, The big White Roller Coaster & a whole bunch more.  It was great!
The Dinosaur Drop was the only one we went on in Kiddie Land this year.

 Of course we also went on the train.

Tyler cracks me up...

As we went past the animals, he was plugging his nose because they do kind of stink!

It's a fun way to start off the summer!

Dance Festival...

At the end of the year our school has a Dance Festival.  

 Zack's grade did an Indian Dance...

 Libby's grade did a Western Line Dance...

It was fun to see & they both did a great job!

Zack's been BUSY...

It seems like the end of the school year is so busy!  There are always so many projects due!

Zack had a Poetry Program...

He recited two poems.

Here he is with his fan club...

A Golf Extravaganza...

He was also chosen as the CEO (Chief Example to Others) for the month of May...

His teacher said he was her "tech" guy.  He always helps her out!  Then the principal asked, if he could call him down to help when his computer wasn't working right & this is the smile he made...

It was cute!

He was also in the 3rd Grade Talent Show...

He played the Star Wars theme song on the piano.

Libby's Wax Museum...

The 5th Grade had a Wax Museum this year. 

 Libby had to write a report on Sybil Ludington...

Dress up like her...

Share her report orally with everyone in the school...
This is what she said,
" Hi, My name is Sybil Ludington.  I was born on April 5, 1761.  I was the daughter of Abigail & Colonel Henry Ludington.  I was a heroine of  the Revolutionary War, my act was similar to Paul Revere.  I rode twice the distance & was only sixteen at the time.  I became famous from my night ride on April 26, 1777.  I rode my horse Star to warn colonial forces of the coming of enemy troops.  After the war, I married a man name Edmund Ogden & together we had six children.   "
She did a great job!

We still have one more week of fun & then school is out!!  We can't wait!   

Catching Up...

It feels like I'm behind on blogging...Here are a few of the things we've been up to!

I cut my hair at the end of March!  I've never had it this short before, but it's a nice change.

Sophie also got new sunglasses for Easter & she LOVES them!  

She'll actually keep them on!

It's so cute!!

Tyler is ready for Kindergarten!  He had his birthday checkup in April & did awesome!

  He was so excited to get his birthday shots...I thought that would change when we got to the doctor's office, but he didn't even cry!  

He's such a great kid!

He made everyone laugh in the waiting room when they called his name.  He was so excited he jumped right up and went hopping up to the nurse!

Then after he wanted to celebrate by getting a cinnamon roll from Quilted Bear!

My aunt Alayna actually gave him some money for being so brave & he got a new Webkins too!

He picked one just like Zack's... a Sloth!! 

My kids took pictures of them in the car...I find the most interesting pictures on my phone!

Libby got her bottom braces on...

We've been waiting over a year for her one tooth to come in all the way  & now her jaw is healed, so she was finally able to get them on!

This picture is from Easter & she chose pastel color elastics for the holiday...she comes up with some pretty combinations!

Steve found out he actually has Crohn's Disease.  He had to go through quite a few tests & we were a little bit worried that his small intestine might be infected and that he might have to have an ileostomy bag again.  He did NOT want that to happen, but it turns out he just has gallstones.  They said he didn't have to have them removed yet, only if they start to give him trouble. 

 Now that they know it's actually Crohn's Disease, he will be starting a new treatment & hopefully this will help alleviate most of his symptoms.  

He has been through so much & always keeps such a good attitude!  

It seems like there is always something new to learn!  We are glad to have finally found a good doctor that is so much better than his last one.

Sophie had her "1" year checkup!

The Dr. said she passed with flying colors!  

She is definitely my smallest baby & a very picky eater, which has been a little frustrating lately, so I have to figure out how to get her to drink milk & eat better! 

 I'm hoping her teeth will cut through soon too...sleep would be very nice to have again!  

We sure do love our little lady though, she has a way of making everyone around her happy!

On Sunday, May 20th there was Solar Eclipse.  

All of the kids had a fun time looking at it through my dad's welding glasses.  

It's scary to think you could go blind if you looked straight up at the sun!  

The kid's were quite excited to see it & it won't happen again until August 21, 2017!