Hoover Dam

We wanted to take our kids to see Hoover Dam when we were in Vegas because we go there so often but never actually go and see all the cool stuff. I remember going to Hoover Dam on a field trip in Middle School and loving the visitor's center. We tried to talk it up to our kids because they thought it sounded lame. We got there and found out we couldn't bring Scout with us (we were on our way home so had him in the car with us). We even had to park at a different, further parking lot. I had to stay in the car with Scout while the rest of the family went to explore. That didn't go well either. They wanted to charge $10/person just to go into the visitor's center! What? That's highway robbery! We were so mad and so disappointed. We had just paid $10 to park in the lame Arizona parking lot and weren't going to drop another $50 to look at pictures. So we drove to the walkway to the bridge and walked across it to see the dam. It's a really cool structure and an impressive feat, but by the time we were there, we were all in pretty bad moods about the whole thing.

Especially this guy. But that's nothing new.

Penny Lost Her First Tooth!

She waited so long. All her friends had lost teeth and it was so exciting! It finally happened. She made sure to write a note to the tooth fairy telling her all about it: "Dear Tooth Fairy, I got my tooth out by biting an apple and this is my first one! Love, Penny"

Isn't she perfect?

Spring Break 2017- Moab

What a fun week! Full of adventure, family fun, frustrations, tantrums, and happy smiley faces. This bike ride was one of my favorite parts. Right before we left, Penny got a new big girl mountain bike and she did such a great job getting used to it on our long bike ride. Beckam had just gotten a new big boy bike with no training wheels but wasn't super confident on it so he was content to just sit in the bike trailer and let me do all the work.

Our Razr ride was so so fun. We had it all day and the kids did great. We stopped often to explore, eat, potty, and hike. I went through a huge puddle that ended up being 3 feet deep instead of the 8 inches I was guessing and we got soaked. The hood of the Razr flew off and we had to stop and run to grab it before it got run over by someone else. Also, I hit a rock and had to pay $420 in repairs, which is way less cool.

Penny found some charcoal that we wrote on the rock with. We later learned that this is a huge problem and it's ruining the beautiful natural structures in Moab. Our bad. Lesson learned.

Beckam and mom in our cool helmets. He was such a champ about the Razr. Sometimes it was fast and a little scary but he was brave and loved it.

 These two. They love each other.

One of the stops on Razr day was to a cool cave. We climbed all the way in and had to use our phone flashlights to see where we were going. 

Beckam fell asleep on the way back to the hotel. He was pooped. His helmet was so big and heavy that his head kept falling onto Penny so Adam held his head up from the back seat the whole time. 

We went to see Rick the Magician at the Moab outdoor theater. He was really funny and Penny and I got to go be his assistants. We all loved the show.

Our big hiking day was at Arches National Park. This is us in front of Landscape Arch. Beckam cried and whined the ENTIRE way there and then happily walked the whole way back. Turns out all he needed was to be able to blow his whistle after every hill. 

The Moab Rock Shop was one of my kids' favorite stops in Moab. We spent a couple hours total there. Beckam and Penny picked out a geode and the worker there cracked it. It was a dud- so the sweet worker let them pick another one and it was awesome! Brody and Bridger wanted to share one too and they picked a great one.

On the last day, we went on a hike to see real dinosaur tracks and Indian petroglyphs. It was a really easy quick hike and the view was beautiful. There was a paleontologist and an archeologist there being filmed for some tv segment so one of them answered all of our questions. 

Brody holding up an arch. Because he's a stud.

Our Week with Finley

I saw this perfect little girl come out of her mom. I have a special bond with her. Unfortunately, she lives in Vegas and I live in Utah so I don't get to see her much. Eliza and Finley made a trip to come see us for a week and it was so fun to be with them. Finley is a delight.

My kids were almost as obsessed with her as I am. They all wanted a turn holding her and making her laugh.

 Girls Day on the "slopes" (small hills.

The highlight was taking Finley sledding. She would giggle every time she got to the bottom of the hill. It was adorable. And her little cold rosy cheeks? All the heart eyes.

Beckam's ECG

Beckam has had tummy problems since he was born. We haven't known what to do- we took him off dairy 3 times to see if it would help, we tried probiotics, peppermint pills, chiropractor appointments, blood tests, and many other things. Nothing has helped. He complains about his tummy hurting ALL DAY. And eats more than anyone else in our family. The pediatric gastroenterologist finally suggested we get an EGD (esophagogastroduodenoscopy). They basically put a camera down his throat, through his esophagus and stomach and a little bit into his upper intestines. They put him to sleep with cotton candy-flavored gas and it was only about a ten minute procedure.

 He was such a champ. He got a little scared when it was time to say goodbye to us but he was brave and went with the doctor.

 He woke up to orange slushy drink and his special Woofy dog. He was happy and maybe a little confused. He drank it all up so they let us go home right away.

 Before the procedure, they had a nice lady come and explain everything to him and let him touch the gas mask.

He was so excited to get a wagon ride out to the car when we were all done. He got a little pack of play-do for being such a good boy.

The results: no Crohn's disease, no Celiac, no ulcers. He has either too much acid in his system or too little protection from the acid. He is going on Nexium twice a day (just like his dad) and we'll see if that helps at all. 

Dinos with Remy

Remy turned 5 and for his birthday, we gave him a coupon for a date to the dinosaur museum with Beckam. He cashed in and the boys had a lot of fun.

They raced through the actual museum in less than 30 minutes (A.D.D. much?) but then spend a good amount of time digging for dinosaur bones.

The best part for them was the gift shop. They spent FOREVER in there looking and playing with all the toys.

Like Mother Like Son

It makes me so happy when I pass a skill onto one of my kids and they enjoy it as much as I do. 

I've been into cross-stitching lately. I design families and then cross-stitch them. It helps me relax at night and it's a fun gift to give to people I love. 

j

Brody decided to do one of him, Bridger, and Scout. One Sunday, we sat together and worked on our own projects together. It made me so happy. I want my boys AND my girl to have sewing and creative skills.