August

August was a very busy month! We had 2 major vacations planned! At the beginning of August, we went to Yellowstone with my family. It was so much fun! My parents booked condos for all of us, and we went to see all the sights.

Yellowstone was amazing, of course. Our first day there was very drizzly and wet. We all thought, as we waited for Old faithful in the rain, that we weren't sure this was going to be a great week. But the weather was great after that day!

It was so fun to see all of my family, and to spend the whole week with them! Besides Yellow stone, we also went to the Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center in West Yellowstone village. The kids loved to see the bears eating and hang out with their cousins all day!

Each evening, 2 families were assigned to cook for everyone, and we would all get together for one big meal. It was a crazy, chaotic time, yet really fun time.

We also all went swimming together a few times. That's what's great about staying in condos!

There were 5 babies born into our family in 2010. This was the first time we were able to get them all together! Left to Right- Evan and Jared Rappleye (August), Alyssa Rappleye (July), Briggs Ford (May), and Sean Doyle (November). It's amazing how similar they all look! They must be cousins.

Over all, It was a great trip to Yellowstone, but best of all was the reunion with my family. The only ones who were missing was Richard and Callie. (They went away for the summer to install alarm systems.) Bottom left corner-Monica and Ruston Ford + 6, front right- Mom and Dad, middle right-Mindy and Lafe + 4, top right- Roger and Tasha + 1, top left-Ryan and Jocelyn + 3, across the middle- The Doyles.

On our way home from Yellowstone, we decided to stop off at the Idaho Falls Temple. It's a beautiful place, and a beautiful Temple!

At the end of August, we went to Lake Powell again. This has become a yearly trip that we’ve taken with some friends of ours. John’s taken up skiing and he’s getting better every time.Erin went cliff-jumping, knee boarding, snorkeling, and swam so much that she came home with swimmers ear. She also learned to ski!!! She’s tried before, but this year she was successful. She loved it. Devin went cliff jumping too! And he really liked knee boarding and the jet ski, but his favorite thing to do this year was tubing. He was always asking if we could go tubing. Colin slept on the top of the houseboat for the first time this year. In years past he’s slept inside with me, but he was a big boy this year! He also just loved going out on the boat and especially loved the jet skis. I was kind of worried about taking Sean to Lake Powell, but he slept great, even for naps. And he was easily entertained by swimming, going on the boat, or playing in the sand. He loved it!

July

It's already August, and I haven't even blogged about our 4th of July or Devin's birthday! Here it is: We went to a really fun Family reunion on the 4th of July weekend. It was in Richfield and there was a ton people, a ton of good food, and an awesome water slide! The kids loved the water slide, but got cold really quick. We had a great time!

Then Erin went off with her cousin to Fish lake for the weekend. That was really weird, to celebrate the 4th without her, but she had a great time. They went down to Richfield for their 4th of July celebration. There she caught a fish with her hands! And won a gold fish in a game. What a fun weekend for her! Thanks to Mindy and Lafe for hosting her and taking care of her while she was with them!

As for us, we went home and had our own fireworks celebration. The boys loved the sparklers.

I love fireworks and as you can tell, so does Colin!

We also had the kids in swim lessons for the first 2 weeks of July. Devin passed off his level 1 with flying colors.

He even went off the diving board without any help from his teacher!

Erin is in level 4 and is swimming like a fish.

She went off the High dive! She was a little nervous at first, but once she did it once she decided to do it a few more times.

We found this cool splash park near our house, and one morning while John and Erin were out skiing, I decided to take the boys out for a little fun of our own.

There was also a a dry play ground there where the boys could warm up and dry off. That was Colin's favorite part.

As for Devin's birthday. It was a lot of fun.

He was so excited to get a star wars Nerf gun and a new Lego set, among other things.

We had a birthday party for him at the end of June before all the kids got out of school and went on family vacations. I had the party planned for outside, but we had to improvise when the wind became torrential and interrupted all our games. All in all, though it was a really fun Pirate party, and Devin tells me now that the Treasure hunt was his favorite part. Happy 5th birthday Devin! I'm so proud to be your Mom!

What a busy Week!

My Birthday was Sunday the 19th, and between My Mom and Dad bringing me a cake on Saturday, John taking me on a date to see Harry Potter and shop for home decor, and time to scrapbook on Sunday afternoon, I had a great Birthday! Devin was sick that day, so John took care of him all morning. I didn't have to clean up any puke and that makes it a great Birthday! Not to mention that John made dinner and Erin brought me breakfast in bed! It was really nice.

On Tuesday, we met up with one of my good friends from CA, Andrea Barney. They came into town for the week, so we went to the museum of Natural history with them. The kids had a great time, and it was great to catch up with the Barneys again.

On Wednesday, I drove to Delta to help my Mom and Dad get ready for company. My Sister and her family were coming from Iowa, so everyone was coming to see them. We had the whole family there except for my little brother Richard and his wife Callie. (We missed you guys) It was a full house, so I helped Mom clear out a room for an extra bedroom.

My kids had great time playing with their cousins! We played cards, ate a ton of good food, and had a great time catching up.

We also went bowling while the babies were sleeping. It was fun to see some of the techniques used.

Great Form!

Did I mention that we went to a parade on the 24th of July. It's a holiday here in Utah where we celebrate the day the first pioneer settlers came into the Salt Lake Valley. Erin and Devin got another huge bag of candy each at that parade! Erin decided to make some money and go door to door selling it. She made $2.10! Now that's a little entrepreneur we have!

Yesterday was Erin's first day of 2nd grade. Yes, we are on Year round school here, so we start in July. She had a great day despite missing the bus home. She even lost a tooth on her first day of school! Now how many people can say that happened to them?!!!

Happy 4th of July!

We went to Delta for the 4th of July this year. On Friday, I decorated the kids' bikes up and then they were in the kids parade!

Erin shot off so fast that I didn't see much of her. Devin went fast at first, but when he went past the grand stand with all the people clapping he started to wave! He smiled and waved at all the people, and the more they clapped and laughed and waved back, the more he waved. It was so cute! What a little show man he is! After the parade, we stayed at the park to watch my Mom play in the Delta Orchestra. The kids loved the music.

At the Parade Saturday morning, Colin sat comfortably on Grandma and Grandpa's laps in the shade while Erin and Devin did all the hard work of collecting candy. They got a ton of Candy!!!!

After the parade we played at the park on those blow up toys and slides. It was so hot, though that we didn't stay long. Later we set up a pool in the back yard and they all cooled off.

We had an awesome BBQ and then we drove home. My sister Mindy Blessed her Baby Zack on Sunday. I forgot my Camera though, so this will have to do until I get some pictures from someone in my family.

This week I signed the kids up for swimming lessons. Erin didn't want to because "I already know how to swim Mom!", but now she's glad to be in lessons.

Devin is loving the lessons! He's like a fish!

By the way, I forgot to post that John and Erin got their purple belts! I'm so proud of them. They have to test on their moves, but also on sparring. At first Erin didn't like sparring, cause the boys would hurt her, but all of a sudden she's so good! In fact, her Sensei called to see if she would come early on graduation day to spar with someone who still needed to test. She gave him a run for his money!