JOYful weekend

My mom came down for a visit this past weekend and we had a fabulous time. She got in late Thursday night. I didn't tell my girls she was coming, so when they woke up on Friday, it was quite the surprise. We picked Leah up from school and then we headed south to sunny (and incredibly humid) San Diego. We got there about 45 minutes before the sun went down and headed straight for the beach. Leah and Annie strapped on their suits and hit the water. Leah loved it, Annie was a bit apprehensive, and Lucy thought we were all crazy. We went to Sea World on Saturday and saw all that we wanted to see. The new Sesame Street addition is great and my girls loved it. Before we started the trek home, we went to Seaport Village. It was fun to wander around the shops and inhale the ocean air. When we got back to Vegas, my mom and I hit the Barry Manilow show. It was an interesting experience. On Monday we went to the Lied Children's museum. We wanted to check out the Grossology exhibit, which was awesome, but the rest of the museum was terrific too. I am a little sad that we had never been before, but now that we know about it, we will definitely be returning. Thanks mom for a great weekend!
Annie getting accustomed to the beach Cute beach babies

Lucy enjoying some beach time

Watch out Sport's Illustrated

Strike a pose We love Shamu Zoe and Abby Cadabby and us Bert and Ernie rule Getting ready for the 4D movie Ready for the show Manatees are the best Lucy's first encounter with the sea cow Lucy diving right in with the sting rays Check out the starfish Annie enjoying the tide pool Lucy would just reach in and grab out the starfish Bird's of a feather Lucy riding the merry-go-round-she wasn't so sure about the ride Leah on her horse Annie on her trusty stead Barry Manilow shaking his stuff Annie and the Snot man Making farts
Annie doing some shopping (all ice cream) Leah ready to purchase her groceries Annie fixing the car Leah adding the washer fluid Annie girl the pilot Running to catch their flight Playing the gigantic Operation game

Training them young

Since moving to Las Vegas, our family has become big fans of In N Out burger (come on, how can you not be a fan?). Well, we have this little antenna topper that looks like a soda cup from In N Out. It somehow ended up in the toy basket and Lucy has discovered it. She has just figured out how to drink out of a straw, and discovered this little cup. She doesn't just play with it, she carries it around and will take a sip every so often. She thinks there should be something in there for her to drink. It is quite hilarious and she is just so pleased with her little self. She is 10 months old and doing all sorts of fun things. She is officially crawling (no more army style), she is pulling herself up on things, she has her first two teeth (I am trying to get a picture, but her tongue is somewhat problematic), and she is enjoying new real people foods (she likes graham crackers, corn on the cob, chicken, and marshmallows). This is a fun stage and we are so glad to be a part of her new discoveries.

She is just parched

Having a sip Refreshing
She thinks she is so funny

First Day of Kindergarten

Well, the first day of school has finally arrived. Leah has been ready to go for weeks and she was excited for the big day. She kept calling today her "special day" and asked if anyone was going to say congratulations for her "special day." I told her if she finishes kindergarten she will get congratulated, but today we would wish her good luck. She went right on in and had a fantastic day. They read a story about a raccoon on his first day of school. He was a little afraid and a little shy, but he made it through the day because of the advice from his mom. The kids colored a picture about the story and sent home their handprint. It was quite tender. They learned the rules for the playground and played hopscotch. All in all, I think it was a success. The only one to get emotional was Annie. She said that she missed Leah and wanted her to come back. Brian even got to sneak away to see her off. It is official, I have a kindergartener.
The traditional porch picture

Getting some love from the wise, old owl

Giving Annie a comforting love
Leah with her friends from the ward, Mallory and Elizabeth (who are both in her class)
Proud mom on the first day of school
Brian wearing his Del Sol shirt for the first day back
Posing with the cute neighbor girls
Marching into the classroom
Waving good-bye to mom

Utah Extravaganza

We were in Utah for almost two weeks. We crammed in lots of fun things and it was fun to spend time with the fam. Here is a quick run down of some of activities we participated in.

Oquirrh Temple Open House Joy's RN graduation-my mom is awesome!!! Annie enjoying a s'more
Yum-o-gotta love the mallow, graham, and chocolate
Old Faithful
Peek-a-boo at the cabin in Asthon Climbing the pig at the Frostop in Ashton, IDLucy enjoying a kid's meal treat-OREO The SWEET Candy Factory tour-it was fabulous (Lucy has a beard net on her head) Enjoying the Pionner exhibit at the Treehouse On the boat at Pineview Snoozing on the beach Leah taking a plunge Annie hanging on the beach Making the best of the broken boat situation

So proud of herself for sneaking a Capri Sun and drinking from it

The new dragon ride at Lagoon

Brushing a ginormous cow at the fair

Getting our redneck on at the Demolition Derby

We also went to a Raptor's game where Leah received a ball from the 3rd base coach. She got three autographs and then signed her own name on the way home. We went to Bear World, which was phenomenal, but I forgot my camera. We went bowling, ate at lots of our favorite haunts, had a BBQ with friends, tried a fun new ice cream shoppe, partook of numerous snow cones, and stayed up too late. It was quite a trip, and we had a blast.