Temple tour

So while we were in Utah we went to four of the temples! Xavier had been wanting to go to the temple since a FHE lesson we had months ago! He really wanted to go inside and kept asking when we were going to the Navoo Temple! It was a lot of fun and definitely something we can't experience in New Jersey. I am amazed at the beauty of each temple and am so glad that I can share them with my kids! We will have to do a temple tour on the east coast as well!

A vacation from my vacation......

Huxley, Eliza, Xavier and Eric "clean" the tennis court.
Delaney, Bella, Huxley and Blythe take a break in the shade.
Xavier and Avery eat popsicles.
Aunt Jill, Ben, Bella, Me, Chris, and Xavier after breakfast.

So Me and Kristin put the kids in the car and headed to Utah. I was off to stay with my friends that used to live in Jersey Martha and Eric and their 4 adorable girls. Kristin was meeting up with some of her old friends as well! We had such a great time catching up and playing with new friends with new toys! I also spent the day with a friend of mine from high school that I hadn't seen in a few years as well! We swam at my Aunt Jill's pool and spent time with our cousins. They didn't even know we were coming. It was great fun and Utah is refreshingly easy to get around! Nothing like New Jersey! We were able to do some scrapbook shopping and hit the distribution center and seagull books! It was great! We're glad to be back at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Xavier told me a few times that he missed Grandpa so we're lucky we still have another month of our real vacation!!

Uncle David had a farm EIEIO.......

Xavier and Bella on Jack.
Bella holding a chick.
Xavier holding a chick.

Bella and Xavier petting Tutu.
Bella on top of Tutu.


So my brother David asked me to babysit his kids for him out on the farm! I agreed and knew the kids would love all the animals. So Uncle David took them out and showed them all the animals and they were in love! Before he leave he tells me I have to feed the sheep. He then says oh Janey can do it. Janie is 4. He shows me where they need to go and explains how easy it is and that when you let them out they run to their food and I will have to do nothing especially since Janie the 4 year old can do it! Well I can now say four year olds can not feed sheep and 30 year olds from the city have a hard time as well! The sheep did not just run right to their food. No they ran around me in circles for about 10 minutes. I was in flip flops mind you. Finally I got it all under control and as I was I found myself sining every church song I knew that had the words sheep and Shepard in them! I think that really helped me handle them! Next time I babysit for David there will be no farm chores included! I'm okay with being the family city slicker!

The Fabulous Five

We are family.....I've got all my sisters with me!!


Very Rarely are we all together! That's my fault because I live in New Jersey! I get reminded of this fact quite a lot! But since I have been here I have gone to 2 sisters lunches where we were ALL together! I wanted to take these pictures because I love my sisters so much. As you can see we look quite a bit a like and that doesn't bother me anymore. Tracy is in the yellow chair she is my oldest sister, Heather is on the other side of me and she is the sister closest to me in age. (my brother is in between us) Catherine is sitting in the stripped shirt. She is just younger than Tracy and Kristin is sitting in white. She and I are very close friends even though I hated her growing up! We all have our own story and our own ways but we all started the same and we'll forever be sisters! I am so blessed to be spending the summer with them and making memories with the women I hold dearest to my heart! I love you guys!!

3 and 4

Xavier blowing out his candles on his birthday.
His birthday party cake.
Bella blowing out her candles on her birthday.
Bella's birthday party cake!
Singing Happy birthday at their party!

My babies are growing up way too fast! This week we celebrated both of their birthdays. Xavier is now 4 and Bella 3. On their real birthdays they had pancakes for breakfast with candles in them that they of course blew out and then we had a big family party for the two of them where they were showered with gifts from my family who they rarely get to celebrate with! It was so much fun for them and for me! Since I am not at home I don't have any baby pictures to put up of them but I have to say what a joy it has been for me to be their mother and how blessed I am to have two incredibly great kids! It makes me sad to see time fly by so quickly and that each year they are another year older until one day they will leave my home and make a life for themselves beyond me! Boo Hoo! So I will love them to pieces until then! Happy Birthday X&B!!

Fourth Fun

Xavier Buying his first fireworks!
Bella trying to find the one she wants!
Their first sparklers!!
Roasting marshmallows for S'mores.

Shucking corn on the cob for our dinner.

Happy Fourth of July! I hope you all had a great party! We sure did! We celebrated all day long. We swam in the pool and ate great food! Eugene made some gourmet burgers for lunch and dinner we had steak and bbq chicken with tons of great side dishes of course! Xavier and Bella got to do fireworks this year so that was pretty exciting! They have never bought their own before and have never seen them up close. (fireworks are illegal in New Jersey) Xavier loved the smoke bombs and loved each and every firework and would yell again, again when they were through! It was so fun to see him be so excited. Bella couldn't have cared less. She was watching them a bit but also playing with the dog climbing on the golf cart and running around like a crazy lady! Hard to imagine! All in all it was a fabulous day and I am so glad my kids got to spend it the way I did every year growing up!!

French Braid

Bella and Grandma.
Bella's french braid.
Bella just being so darn cute in Grandpa's recliner!

Isabella got her hair french braided for the first time ever by Grandma. She was really good and my Mom said it was easy to do even with all those curls! She looks so adorable and I will be learning how to do this while I am here so she can have her hair french braided in Jersey too! I'm also thinking about getting her hair trimmed while I'm here but I've NEVER cut it so I really don't know what to do?!!? Help!!

Boise or Bust!!

Bella and Xavier follow along with the safety demonstration. Pedro would be so proud!

The discovery of head phones, music and changing the stations.
An in flight movie!

We're here!! Getting here was a little harder than I anticipated but we are here none the less! We ended up flying in a day later due to some "issues" at the airport but we did fly out the next day from Newark instead of LaGuardia. Remind me I will never fly out of that place again! Anyway....the kids were AMAZING on the plane and great in the airports! I didn't even bring a stroller and it was smooth sailing! There was no crying or screaming or wanting to run down the aisle so I have to say I am a truly blessed woman! We are already having too much fun in Idaho so we will have lots of post of our summer here! We miss our friends in New Jersey but we'll be back soon!