Mid-State Fair...part 2

Tuesday we decided to go to the Mid-State Fair as a family.

Trey loved the animals! He called everything a "da", but hey...he's trying. The pigs were so muscular and clean. Pretty fun.
Kory petting a goat.
We watched the 4-H kids show their animals for a while. We think it's a great thing for kids to be involved in. Kyle and Tyler are old enough to do a small animal and we are thinking of doing it--maybe a rabbit?! We'll see.
The boys with a cow rear! My parents took us to the LA county fair when I was little. I still remember the smell of the cows! I laughed so hard when I saw Kyle walking through the barn with his nose plugged and gagging at the cow pies!
My entire life I've wanted to do one of these slides! When I saw it I was so excited for the boys to try it.

Notice how much fun they are having! I did it with Kory and he had an even better reaction--full out crying! Hey...sometimes the reality isn't as great as the dream! I enjoyed it:)

Today, the boys and I went back to the fair with some friends. The boys all got to ride a pony and my friend was sweet enough to get pictures of them all! Thanks Betsy!! Tyler had to be coaxed into riding the horse, but enjoyed himself! Sometimes, I worry about Tyler--he needs to be more of a kid! It was Kory's first time on a pony! He is a true cowboy!

Kyle some how got on twice! :) Great day!

Mid State Fair

Saturday the boys and I watched these twins while their parents went out on a date. It was a fun time. From what their mom says they love to look at our blog, so I thought I'd put a picture of them on our blog!;) Hey Guys!! They love this train! They played for hours with it. I love when other kids come and remind your kids of all the fun toys they have! I don't think my boys have taken that train out...since the last times the twins were over!! This week in Paso we celebrate the mid-state Fair. I felt like a total lame-o when I finally realized why it was called the "mid-state" fair. I'm such an idiot!! Anyway, it started on Wednesday and my friend told us about this cattle run they do to open the fair. It was pretty cute. We waited for a while for it to start and while waiting Tyler took some cute pictures! He's got a good eye for photography. He keeps begging me to get out our old camera so he can take pictures with it.
Anyway...here are some of the pictures he took.
Think they're brothers?

Wednesday night Trey found Monty's hat and had the best time with it. I couldn't decide which view was cutter--the front...
or the back!!

What is this?

I had this brilliant idea to pull weeds today! See those tall green plants behind the bushes...yeah, those are weeds with HUGE thrones. I'd love to know what kind of weed they are. All I know is... their roots are very long and very strong and in our battle to see if they were going to stay or go...
I LOST!!
While trying to pull one out, the root broke and I went rolling down the hill onto another weed just like it and yeah...it didn't feel so good! Anyway, if anyone has any clue what it is...I'd love to know!

On a happier and cutter note--Trey started folding his arms!! YEAH!! Yesterday morning at breakfast when I said, "Okay, it's time to pray." He put down his sippy cup and folded his arms. It is so cute!!

Thanks Michelle

While we were in Cancun Michelle braved our boys for a photo shoot! She got some really great shots of them. Here are a few of my favorites!! Thanks so much Michelle!!

I love this shot...Tyler holding up Trey's feet. Kory not wanting to put his hair in the grass.
Tyler is usually so serious, it was cute to see him be a clown...all the boys can do this with their eyebrows...they get it from their dad!

Kyle at home in a tree. Our little Monkey!

Kory, not sure about the photo shoot! Trey, happy to have all the attention on him! I love his round face!All four of the boys...no doubt this was no small undertaking! But wasn't it worth it!!

Thanks again Michelle!!

Never cry wolf!

Kyle is our dramatic son. He tends to over exaggerate his emotions, so you never know exactly how bad something really is. About 4 days ago we thought the kid was seriously ill and we were making plans to take him into the er. Then we mentioned to him the idea of playing video games and he was suddenly better! We were totally baffled. So, today Kyle was complaining that he was sick. I checked his head and he didn't have a fever, so I was having trouble being sympathetic. I told him his stomach hurt because he didn't eat his lunch and if he ate dinner he'd feel better. He wouldn't eat and wouldn't eat. After getting upset with him he finally started eating. Anyway...to make a horrible story short...he really was sick! As I was helping him shower I felt bad that I hadn't been more sympathetic to him earlier, but then I stopped beating myself up and explained to him that it's hard to tell when he's really sick because well, "He cries wolf." Lesson learned? Probably not!

We're Back!

What an awesome week! We cannot thank our families enough for their kindness in taking care of our kids for a week. We are fully aware that this was not an easy undertaking, but they did it with no complaints. Thanks so much! The boys had a great time!

The water in Cancun was beautiful and the sand was amazing. Of all the beaches we've been to we've never walked on softer, cleaner sand.
For Monty and I, this was our first vacation together, just the two of us. As much as we love our boys, many things we just can't do with them. The highlights of the trip were those moments! One day we went swimming in the water and as it had rained earlier in the day we were to only two people on the beach. The water was so clear we could see our feet as we swam. Unforgettable.

This was one of our favorite restaurants. As you can see every inch of the walls was written on, so we were a little worried, but the Mexican food was very good. They had this nacho plate that was bangin'. We ate Mexican food almost every meal. We vowed to take in the whole experience. They do have many American Restaurants, but we stayed away from those.
Neither Monty or I had ever been to a spa, so we thought it would be a fun thing to try. Monty looked particularly cute in his bathrobe!:) So funny. One size fits all does not consider Samoan men. They did find him some bigger shoes though. The experience was so relaxing. I was a little worried I'd feel strange and out of place, but it was totally relaxing and I'd do it again in a heart beat. We definitely couldn't have done that with kids.
Chichen Itza is one of the seven wonders of the world. They say it's about 1500 years old. It was so enlightening to see a civilization that old and hear some of the theories about how they lived. Seeing their towns strengthened my testimony of the Book of Mormon. As you see the construction it's amazing to think about Nephi and Samuel and caption Moroni--all those amazing men. They truly could have hid in those forests. The land is so flat it would be so easy to get lost and never return! Great experience.

The people were a little smaller than Monty though. I had to laugh as he tried to walk down some of the steps--people are sure bigger these days.
On the last day we decided to take a boat ride out to do some snorkeling. We were not disappointed. There were so many fish!! We saw amazing coral, an eel, and(the highlight) a sea turtle. We love sea turtles, so to see one in the ocean was an experience we will never forget. Oh, and a few days earlier we saw two sting rays. Monty and I with a Lamenite warrior! Thanks Monty for a wonderful trip. I had such a great time. Thanks for being a wonderful husband.

Vacation!

Tomorrow we are leaving for our vacation! We are so excited!! The boys are more than excited to stay with grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins and Monty and I are excited for the adventure that awaits us. Thanks so much to our families for being willing to watch our boys!! Chase--don't worry, the light sabers are packed!:) We'll see you tomorrow!