California Trip

Great Grandpa turned 90 this week and Nana and Aunt Carol planned a party for him. We wouldn't have missed it for anything. Since it was fall break, we left on Wednesday after school. We stopped in St. George for the night.

The next morning we ate continental breakfast before leaving to California. 

We arrived Thursday afternoon. Jaxon got a bear from Nana that was Aunt Andas. He named it "heart apple bear" and adores it. 

The next morning, Poppy chases the kids around dressed as a crazy person.

Then we went to the beach. 

Then the next day went to great grandpas 90th birthday. 

Mexican Rivera Cruise

Sometimes its nice to get away, its even nicer to be able to do it alone. This summer, Paul and I escaped with his brother Larry and SIL Jessica on a 7 day Cruise to Mexico. It was a ton of fun.

Fun on the boat...

Our first port in Cabo San Lucas. We were supposed to go kayaking but due to wind our excursion was canceled. It was actually a lot more fun to play at the beach then eat out. It was so hot in Cabo, it was perfect (the ship was pretty chilly).

 

Our second stop was Puerta Villarta. Paul and I did an excursion by ourselves called the extreme adventure. I was very nervous about it after reading the brochure but it was probably the most fun thing we've ever done. We rode a speed boat, saw piranhas in the water (there were supposedly crocodiles too!), rode donkeys, went off roading, zip-lining (coolest/scariest thing ever), repelled down waterfalls. It was seriously A.M.A.Z.I.N.G!

We had a blast with Larry and Jess and can't wait for the next vacation!

 We always miss the kids but are so lucky we have great family to take care of them. While we were gone, Nana and Poppy took them to San Diego for a few days at the beach. Kade's favorite thing in the world to do is stay at a hotel so he loved it (so did the rest). They swam in the pool all day and had the most fun.

 My mom had a hysterectomy a few weeks before and was still recovering. The girls were big helpers to Nana and Poppy. Kade loved helping Poppy with the yardwork (he dressed himself this morning lol).

They had a blast with their Nana and Poppy.

California Vacation

Our vacation this year was a good one. We spent two weeks in California. Paul had to work so I drove the kids a little early to California. These kids are finally old enough that it wasn't too awful (even though it was almost 12 hours). The kids ate snacks, played with their toys, watched movies. They were very entertained. Did I mention Moose was with us :) ? We ended up driving to my grandparents home and stayed two nights. Great Grandma and Grandpa always provide  a good time. There was lots of spa time (the kids love love love the spa) and even Great Grandmas famous Mickey Mouse Pancakes with M&Ms.

Then we went to the San Diego Zoo with Nana and Poppy. This Zoo is our very most favorite and Great Grandma and Grandpa always get us free tickets which makes it affordable :) We ❤ it! My mom was still recovering from surgery but you would never know it. 

All the kids in the African Exhibit. It was super hot on this lion but they were such good sports.

Momma & Kids in front of the Zebras.

 All the zoo fun! Kylie's favorite was the flamingos, Bailey's were the bears and Kades were the Koalas. Jaxon loved being by Poppy. They are best buds.

 Then we went to Oceanside beach with Poppy, Nana, Great Aunt Robin and Uncle Jim (Poppy's Sister/Brother in law). It was freezing most of the day but you'd never guess it from how much Kylie and Bailey played in the water. They're pretty brave, we kept having to make sure they didn't go out too far. They loved the waves. Jaxon had no fear of the water this year either. It was a little nerve racking. Kade was much more interested in the sand. He built all kinds of sand creations. Beach day is usually my favorite. There's nothing I love more than sun, sand, and relaxation.

 

The last two days were spent relaxing and getting ready for the Cruise. It was a great week!

California Adventure

We love going to California. I miss living there but am so glad we get to visit at least once a year. This year, we decided to go while Paul was at his sales conference in Arizona. He was able to fly in and out of Ontario so he spent half the time with us. We all had a great time! I took way too many pictures again so I'm going to show you the highlights. For all our pictures click here

Day 1: Sea World
Our favorite were: feeding the dolphins (awesome!), shamu shows, fireworks, the polar bears (Kade), the dolphin show (Kylie), Seal show (Bailey), and just being together! The kids each got $25 to spend of their own money and spent it wisely. There was no asking over and over of anything and everything. Kylie chose a white seal stuffed animal and dolphin necklace, Bailey chose a baby shamu and turtle necklace, and Kade chose a polar bear. We had a fabulous time!

Day 2-3: Visit Great Grandparent
Monday morning Paul flew out and we headed to my grandparents house for the night. We ate mickey mouse pancakes and swam in the spa. It was so much fun and I'm so sad I didn't think to take pictures.

When we got back to my parents, the kids decorated their own beach pails my mom bought them. I made some vinyls before we left, they each chose what they wanted, then they decorated them. It was a lot of fun!

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Day 4: Oceanside Beach

We sat in the sun, played in the sand and splashed in the ocean. L-O-V-E-D it!

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Day 5: Hanging out

Paul came home around noon, so the two of us went to lunch. It was nice to spend some time alone. Then we ran errands (boring I know) and that night my Aunt Robin and Uncle Jim came to dinner. It was so much fun seeing them. Again I didn't take pictures. I'm not sure why I forget when we are hanging out at home... 

Day 6: San Diego Zoo

On our final day, my grandparents gave us 4 free passes to the San diego zoo. I <3 this zoo. It has every animal and is just beautiful. We saw tons of monkeys (they have a whole section of all the different monkeys), tigers, pandas, lions, elephants, zebras, bears, koalas, turtles, alligators, crocs, gorillas, hippos, and so much more. It was a great day and a great way to end the vacation!

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We had a great vacation and can't wait to go back!