Zoo with the Zufelts a summer tradition

Every summer the Zufelts have invited the kids and I to the zoo.  I thought my kids were getting too old, but I was wrong.  The zoo has added some fun things were the kids can play.

The petting zoo has been there for a while.

I love the butterfly house.  Here Holly with her elephant ears ( no I am not making fun of her, but that is what she calls her pony tails) and Zoe trying to catch a butterfly.

Josh and Ainslee at the brand new water splash pad at the zoo.  It was pretty amazing and the kids could have played there all day.

Water comes out of that giraffe's mouth.

Thank you Brenda

This summer our wards playgroup was able to go swimming every other week at Brenda's community pool. It was so nice.  Thank you Brenda for sharing with us.

Not only that but one day she bought us ice cream from the ice cream truck, something I never do because I am so cheap.  It was a  first for my kids and they thought it was so cool.

Teed Trip

The kids and I drove to visit our good friends the Teeds. It was well worth the drive.  We stopped at Katies in-laws the first night and went to Nauvoo for pioneer day (didn't even plan it that way).  Here we are in the upper room of the Smith's general store.  It was an overwhelming feeling to think this is the room where the Relief Society was organized, Sister's who had a desire to serve and give everything.  I wanted to have a quite moment to myself and I could have blubbered, but with five kids running around it wasn't gonna happen.  I will say that it was alot larger than I had expected.

As with everything we did this summer it was hot and humid it felt as if it was 100* out.  Holly loved this place she loves playing home.

Aren't  they cute.

Yeah, I am glad I wasn't born in the pioneer times, I have no idea how they were not fainting all the time without ac and with so many layers on.  In the winter it might have been nice, but in the summer torcher.

Here they're learning to make twine.  This was a really fun spot in Nauvoo.  They had several demostrations that the kids really got into.  Josh liked the candle making and twine making.  Learning about how they baked bread in their bundle ovens was fasinating and did you know they made cloth out of reed.  They soaked them until they were soft and then brushed them and through a process made cloth.  Everything they did then was so time consuming, we have so many conviances.  We want cloth we go to a fabric store. Or better yet a sweater we hit some buttons on a computer and 2 days later Amazon sends it to our house.  It took them 2 years to make a wool coat from start (shearing the lamb) to finish. I should never think that I do not have enough time, I should think I need to better prioritize my time.

This was one of the best parts of the day.  Josh just wanted to be with the Christus.  He said mom I don't want to leave him.  I was able to take my kids a side and bear my testimony to them and let them know that I know that Jesus is my Savior and that he loved both of the kids, that he died for them that they may live again with their Heavenly Father.  It was a precious moment.

The temple was beautiful.

Later that week we went to the lake with the kids.  It was perfect.  The depth was not too deep and they had a great time.  It wasn't too this day and Katie and I just sat in the shallow water talking and watching our children play.

 The kids so desperatly wanted to make a sand castle.  It had rained the night before and the sand was really wet and didn't want to hold shape.  Luckily someone had made this big hole.  Holly filled the middle with sand and wah-la a sand castle.

Don't have a picture of this, but on one of the days I was there we thought where is Faye ( the littlest one)  Katie found her outside on the hammock with all the other kids (Josh 8, Holly and Mabel 5, Charlie 3 and Faye almost 2).  Josh was reading them the Bible and the kids were just sitting there listening.  Wish I could have gotten a picture.

 

I really miss Katie.  She is a friend I could just turn up at her house for no reason at all and just hang out.  Our kids get along really well and we can play Skip-bo for hours, actually we can play any game for hours as our kids play in the background.  She is funny, sweet, down to earth, and spiritual, some day I hope to be like her.  I really hope the sisters in her ward know how lucky they are to have her.

Take me out to the ball game

We went to Mormon day at our local baseball field to watch a baseball game.  It was dollar hot dog day.  The concession stand person said they have never sold so many hot dogs.  I thought she has never had so many Mormon's there before, we are a frugal people!

Holly loved hang out with the other girls from our stake.  Some older girls (actually young adults)  took the kids to the kids place area to play.  Can you dig Holly's side pony tail?  She did it herself.

Josh trying to get the game.

And us, should never go with someone taking a picture going up, but going down. I love when we get to go together as family.  One of the best parts was we got in free because of a reading thing the kids did.  They each got two free tickets.  I think this may have to be a family tradition as long as we can cash in on that.  We didn't stay for the whole game or we would have been there to midnight it was slow going but Don and I enjoyed it.

Family visits and summer

So here we go, the summer review.  Sometimes I think back about a summer and think that was a busy summer, but what did we really do.  Thank goodness for pictures.  So for the next week we will have summer review/catchup.

My brother Mike and his wife Arwen and their kids: Dallin, Eden, Marion, and Emmalynn came for a quick visit and we loved every moment of it.  They live overseas so anytime we get to see them is 
wonderful.  They came for Josh's birthday.  They came and stayed at our house.  All the girls in the same room (giggle-giggle) and 
 Josh and Dallin bunked it in the basement.  Poor Dallin got sick at the very end, but other than that we had a wet time.  We went to the downtown splash pad and the communtiy pool.  We had Josh's birthday party.  And of course staying up late and playing games. 

I love to play games.  I can play cards with my sister Arwen for hours, and we did.  We talk, eat, play, laugh, get loopy, it's awesome.  I really miss them.

Not only did my brother and his family come, but my parents came too.  Oma and Opa, as soon as they left my kids want to know when they'll come back.  The really sit down and play with the kids and listen to them.  The should get grandparents of the year awards.  While they were at my house Dad was introduced to Skip-bo and played many games with Josh.  Mom and Dad were introduced to Angry Birds on my sisters I pad.  I love when my family is all around me.  I guess that is what the celestial kingdom will be like.

Holly's style

Holly picked out this outfit all by herself and I thought she looked so cute. she looked kinda grown up. Or it could be that the jean jacket brought me back to JR high days and I pictured her as a teenager. She needs to stop growing, stop looking cute, stop having crushes on 12 yr old boys, stop wanting make-up, stop loving high heel shoes, just STOP.

Oh by the way. I was on the phone with my mom the other day and Holly wanted to know what the weather was like in her (meaning my mom) land. My parents live in California.

Summer Reading Festival

The kids and I went to the library reading festival downtown. We had a real good time we got to do a few free crafts, ate some popcorn, split a shaved ice, played in the water, saw some zoo stuff, put pots on our heads, jumped in the bounce house you know the usual.





It was the perfect weather and the kids were really well behaved. It was and I quote "The best day ever", you know we get a lot of those around here. We must be doing something right.





Oh and Holly won 3 free dance classes, yeah! Mommy loves free.

Summer list

Last summer I was very structured with our time, and I would probably be so again this year if our free summer movies hadn't turned into our 3 dollar movies and we weren't going to be gone half the summer. So I am trying to go by the seat of our pants. But, you know me I can't let go totally, with that said the kids and I made a list at the beginning of the summer of things we'd like to do. Here it is: Go to the splash pad, zoo, a museum (Josh is obsessed with this one, but there are no great museums here), movies (only one time this year instead of every week), play at a friends house, go to Fort Louden, go to Greenville, go to a fun park the Roses told us about, Bounce house, go to a park and play, go to McDonald's, a family date (this was Holly, when I asked what do we do on a family date she said we go out to eat, ohhh), putt-putt golf, movie night, have an all day movie day-at home, picnic at our house, have a play date, go swimming, go to Oma & Opa's house, go to Tu-tu's house, go to Grandma & Grandpa T's house, Make ice cream, go camping and have s'mores, go to the library, ride our bikes at the park, go to the beach and make sandcastles, see fireworks, go bowling, feed the ducks, go bowling, and go to Lookout point.





Pheww, that is a long list, but we've already been able to quite a few and mostly for free, because friends have invited us here or there. So, thank you for all those who are helping us make this THE BEST SUMMER EVVVVVVEEEERRR!!!

Family Truip to Atlanta

In April we decided to take the kids to the Atlanta Temple open house. We drove up Friday evening and stayed at a hotel. The kids were way impressed. We even got to eat there and there was fruit for Holly and doughnuts for Josh. Does life get any better?





We packed our Saturday. First is was of to the temple. The tour was quick, but the kids thought it was neat. Holly loved the chandlers and Josh said that he felt the Spirit.

Me and the kids in the courtyard.

Next we went to the Fernbank Natural History Museum. Josh LOVED the dinosaurs. I wish we had more time here. We found the coolest kid play place in the last 15 mins we were there.

Don let me get a couple of goofy pictures of him.

After dinner at Outback another exciting and special thing for the kids (and mom and dad too) we headed over to Stone Mountain where once the sunsets they do this amazing laser show off of the mountain. This is a carving in the mountain of General Lee and part of the confederate army. (I tried to take pictures of the show I just couldn't get the right setting).

We spent one more night and drove home. We really had a fun family time.

FREE, FREE, FREE

The children's museum was free. So Katie and I packed up the kids and went we had a fun time. We dressed up and played and even played outside and ate our packed lunch.