Antelope Island

We loaded up the kids and headed out to Antelope Island one day of their visit. Oh, we love riding in the car!!

My little buddy is such a champ. Give him a train and ball, some snacks and a sippy cup and he is good to go!! He likes to look out the window or play a game with the person sitting next to him.

The girls in the back found ways to occupy their time. 

Michael had never seen a buffalo before....come to think of it, I don't think Theresa had either. Both were impressed. 

The girls thought the lake was pretty. Not as pretty as them!! I can't believe my baby has grown up. It's a strange thing, for sure.

More of my Jo. Cutie.

We took a family pic with the timer on Kevin's camera...but it might be a while until I get a copy of it to post. It turned out pretty good.

Last but not least, me and Michael. We had such a good time being with the kids again. I cannot wait until this becomes a more regular situation. I miss them most dreadfully. 

Michael Visits Utah

Guess who came to see us in Utah!!! Yep...my favorite little man, and his family of course...and Jo and Theresa. But most importantly Michael came to see us!!

I got to be in charge of bath time and you know I loved that!! We snuggled and played with his trains and cars and sidewalk chalk and went for rides and played with his trains again.

For one week my heart was full. For one week I felt "normal" again. He is so perfect. And having my kids here felt so good.

Watching them play and interact was so fun. These two are the best of friends. I love it...and them!!

Jo in San Diego

Jo took a trip to San Diego. She went to (sort of) see her friend Allyson get married. But who did she run into there....TWO OF THE HUBERT GIRLS!!!

Dani and Heather were in San Diego to be there for the sealing of a very special little girl to her beautiful forever family. They were going to be at the San Diego LDS temple on the very same day that Jo was there. So of course they tried their best to find one another.

Heather has always been one of Jo's (and my) biggest supporters. I am certain we knew each other before we were born. Some people are just cool like that. Anyhoo...they got a quick pic and a hug and then they were off!! How I love this pic!!

Allyson was a beautiful bride and Jo had an amazing time being there to support her friend.

My baby is all grown up.

Geode Hunting

Here is a quick post about our trip to the middle of nowhere. It was a long drive (4 hours....2 of them being on a dirt road) It was beautiful...in a desert-y sort of way. Hot and dry and brown too.

"We" dug around hoping to find a geode or two. Jim dug and dug. 

And I very quickly lost interest. Sorry babe. It was hot. And boring. Because contrary to the info Jim had been given you don't really just walk around and pick them up. Not really. And someone might have said the word rattlesnake. Sort of killed it for me.

This is me being bored. I  was "digging". Can't you tell??

This is actually what the digging looked like and who was doing it. 

Squirrel!! Just kidding. It was a wild horse. There was a pretty big herd out there. They were fun to watch (as we were driving out of there!!).

These are some of our findings. Some were cast-offs that other rock hounds didn't want. LOL...I'm not really referring to myself as a rock hound. I just wanted to clarify that. They are pretty and all that...but now what?

I don't know if we will go back out there or not. We are finding lots of adventure here in Utah. It's fun to be back in a place that has public land to explore.

Kim and Jo

I didn't realize how much these two looked alike. I was looking through scrapbooks with Bridger a while ago and found the pics with Kim and my little Jo. B-man asked who the little girl with Jo was....yeah...They also both LOVE their nieces and nephews. Jo is probably Michael's favorite person. And I know Kim was (and is) at the top of Jo's list!! They are all so stinking cute together. These pictures just make me happy.

Breakfast Dates

Most mornings I have a breakfast date with this cute boy. He is the reason I get out of bed!! We eat breakfast and chat.

We talk about the day ahead and what we did the night before. He asks where Papa is. I ask him what he's eating. He will wrinkle his nose and sniff the air if his daddy is making eggs for him.

We laugh and play for a bit too. I love technology. I can't imagine living so far from this boy without it. He is the most amazing thing I have ever seen. I miss him. I miss all of them.

So Much Family Time

So many things to do with family close by!! Dad took me for a ride (a 4 hour ride...hello sun burn) in his favorite car. It is mine too, coincidentally. We drove the back way to Pocatello to watch Cooper and Cylie in their end of the year daycare program. Priceless.

I got to spend some time with this boy. He is a funny kid!! He reminds me SO much of Kevin at this age. The things they worry about, the speed at which they move, their tender hearts...they are brothers for sure!!

Who else could eat a corn dog bigger than your head!!

Then a couple days later I got to come back to Pocatello to see THIS GIRL!! She has a couple jobs for the summer and has been super busy. I have missed her. 

We celebrated this girls birthday. I can't believe Miss Cylie is 7 years old. Wasn't she born just last month??

Not even faking. She was awake one minute and telling me she was just going to close her eyes for a minute. Out cold!!

And of course our birthday celebration wouldn't be complete without a trip to Ross Park. The kids convinced Jim to get a slide pass and slide with them. 

Mr. Fearless here. He'll go anywhere!!

Miss Brook was all smiles coming down the slide.

I couldn't resist posting this pic of my Nellie dog. Usually if we point the camera or phone at her she shies away from it. Jim must have been really sneaky to get this shot. She's even smiling. She has become a pretty good dog. 

That is a quick recap of the last couple of weeks. I like having these kids so close. Now if only I could get mine here...life would be perfect!!