We had Derek, Britnie, Ellie and Hailee over for a BBQ on the 24th of July. It was a blast and of course there were more "stink balls" (aka smoke bombs) and sparklers. I got to hold Hailee (every picture that I'm in shows me holding her!) most of the time which was so fun and she smelled so good! The kids had a blast playing outside and even did a little dancing on the lawn, it was a real treat!

We had a very fun 4th of July. We went to the parade in Provo which was really fun. Tom and Lesa always find a good spot and are nice to save us a seat. The parade was good and the weather was great because it was a bit overcast that morning so we weren't sitting in the sun feeling like we were baking! An insurance company usually has free goodies and this year they had yummy ice cream cones that were a hit! Later that day we went to Grandpa and Grandma Rich's for a BBQ. When we got there one of their "deer" friends was napping in the back yard (they have deer year round at their house, one deer even came inside their house!). Cole thought it was sooo cool and had to get closer. The amazing thing is that the deer didn't even bat an eyelash until Cole was just a few feet away. Then the deer stood up but still didn't run away until Cole got almost close enough to touch it. Amazing! We had water fights (I think everyone was soaked by the end, especially Grandpa) and a yummy BBQ. Then we did some "stink balls" which is our way of saying smoke bombs, and sparklers. We had just one collision when Claire and Macie were running through the smoke and ran right into each other. Macie was sure her arm was broken! She recovered momentarily when the sparklers came out.

We took a little trip to the Thanksgiving Point Barn to visit the animals. It's a really fun place and you can see everything and ride a pony in about an hour -- Perfect! Macie and Cole loved the goats. They are VERY friendly and like to eat right out of your hand. There was a baby goat that Justin loved but he couldn't get a good picture of it, too bad!

This goat and Cole had a staring contest, I think the goat won!
".....please, take me with you!!"
This was Macie's first time riding a pony, it was a total success!
Cole picked the biggest pony because he wanted it to be like riding an actual horse, rather than a pony.

Another fun summer past time......Hanging out with our friends Eli and Jared!!

Grandpa played soccer with Cole at Derek and Britnie's house and we had fun watching and eating watermelon. Grandpa and Grandma and Shalisa and Evie were in town in anticipation of the arrival of Hailee, our new neice/cousin.

Macie and Ellie like to play soccer too (or maybe just Macie, Ellie is scratching her head like she's thinking "why am I doing this?")

And here, Evie is either thinking "I love my mom who gives me yummy watermelon" or "wow, this is the perfect napkin!"

The Saratoga Splash was a blast. It gets better every year. Cole and Macie love the inflatables but after an hour and a half even they were too hot and too tired!

Note: the girl in the bottom photo is not me (too bad, I do love giraffe print halters!)

Fun on the Farm

Last week we went to Vernal for a few days. We stayed with Justin's Grandpa and Grandma Southam on their farm. And yes, it is a real farm with cows and everything! Cole and Macie played in the dirt and ran around exploring everything. Grandpa Southam has some really cool old tractors that he has restored and Justin took Cole and Macie on rides and even let them steer! Grandpa Southam took Cole and Macie on a contraption fondly referred to as the "Magic Carpet." It is a piece of plastic and some old carpet on top that Grandpa attached to the 4 wheeler with a rope. Cole and Macie hopped right on and off they went through the field! Who knew riding on plastic and old carpet could be so thrilling, it's a whole new world (he he!).

One highlight was holding one of the teeny tiny new kittens that Justin found burrowed in the hay in the shed. He wrapped it up in a towel and the kids just couldn't get enough of it. They were soooo cute with the little kitten who barely made a peep and just looked at them in bewilderment. It is hard not to bring home a little kitten like that, but thankfully our cat Twizzler is a reminder that they grow up and it's not the same!



Another highlight is that Cole got to drive the 4 wheeler all by himself in the field. Yes he is 6, not 16, but he is a very capable 6 , so says his mother! He drove mostly straight then Justin would yell "turn" when it was time to turn. He also got to pull Justin and Macie on the Magic Carpet. When he finished his feet barley touched the ground (which is probably ok since there was cow poop everywhere!).

Cole, Macie, Jason and Kelly (sorry Amber if I spelled her name wrong!) had a great time making a muddy mess in the "mud box" which is like a sand box but with mud, obviously. They got the hose out and made islands and rivers and a GIANT mess. What fun! Macie loved the little red wagon (which she sometimes called "dragon," close enough right?!) Cole caught some bugs including a tiny little green grasshopper. I tried to be excited but I do not like grasshoppers, thank goodness this was just a little one!

While we were in Vernal Cole, Macie and I stopped to visit a friend of ours that we have known since we were newlyweds. Jon and Laurie Stearmer were married about the same time we were and we met while we lived at the Cottonwood Apartments soooo long ago! We have kept in touch over the years and they now live in Vernal. We had such a fun visit. Laurie made cupcakes for the kids (they have two, Rebecca and Ryan) and a YUMMY salad for the moms. Cole had a great time playing with Rebecca who he says kept "scaring" at him (that is how he says staring). He said he might be in love with her but that she wasn't in love with him, she just thought he was funny. They evidently talked about their feelings for each other. Should I be worried?

We also went to the Field House and Dinosaur Park (or something like that, I guess I can't remember the official name). That was very fun too. We saw a short movie and looked at dinosaur bones (which we got to dig up too), fossils and arrow heads. It was a great rainy day activity!