Tooth triumph and troubles!!

Parker lost his first tooth this last week. He had been telling us for awhile that they were loose. We thought that he was feeling left out because Mckenna was losing her teeth.

You can imagine our surprise when Mckenna pulled out Parker's tooth! She was so proud that she was the one who pulled it out. It just goes to show that Parker really trusts his big sister. Parker was excited about the whole thing. He happily put his tooth under his pillow for the tooth fairy. The next day Parker told me that he wanted to lose another tooth so he could make some more money.

Poor Hayden is experiencing the pain of getting a new tooth. He has his top front teeth coming in. He is not too happy about it.

Hayden turned nine months old on Saturday. He is usually our happy little guy. He loves his new found freedom. He is crawling everywhere and pulling himself up onto things. In this picture he had just crawled out of his pants and up onto the coffee table.

Spring Break!!

We went to Zion national park for Spring break this year. It was beautiful and the weather was really nice. It was great to spend some time outdoors and enjoying the amazing scenery. I learned that the word Zion means quiet sanctuary.

The kids were really excited to set up camp. Halle was only one the last time we went camping so it was a new experience for her. She found this little window in the back of the tent and had a great time playing. She would poke out her head anytime that other campers went by. We stayed at a campsite right in the park. It was nice because it had picnic tables and flushing toilets.

Mckenna found this wooden slat and they had a fun time playing with it. They even made their own teeter totter out of it.

We spent our first day doing some of the hikes that were kid friendly. Our first hike was to the temple of Sinawava. We met all kinds of people as we were hiking. One older man that passed by exclaimed, "that is a good looking passel of kids you got there!"

Hayden was a good little hiker and enjoyed being in the backpack carrier. He even took a few naps as we were hiking.

I was surprised by how many waterfalls we saw along the way. It is breathtaking watching the water cascade over the giant rock walls.

I was also impressed by all the wildlife we saw as we hiked along. There were wild turkeys everywhere and they weren't camera shy. We also saw lots of deer, birds, fish, and squirrels. The kids were excited to point out every squirrel that came into view.

We also hiked to weeping rock. The hike was steep but it was well worth it. We got to walk right under all the wateralls. We enjoyed cooling off in all the mist coming from the falls.

Parker was cracking us up! He was using a stick he found as an antler. He provided entertainment for everyone that walked past. He picked up a stick on every hike we went on.

We hiked to the lower emerald pool. It provided another great view. I was impressed how well the kids did with hiking all day.

Mckenna is a good hiker and always keeps a good pace. She carried around the backpack with water and snacks. She even offered to carry Hayden on her back too.

We ate good back at camp. The first night we had tin foil dinners. The second night we did some dutch oven cooking. The highlight was the night that we made donuts. Thank you Kolter and Lindsay for teaching us how to make this delicious treat.

On Saturday we left the park and drove to Lake Powell. It was my first time ever going there.
It was beautiful and we enjoyed cooling off in the water. Hayden wasn't very happy about the cold water.

Lake Powell is one of Kev's favorite places. He was excited to take us to the marina and show us all the house boats.


Here is a picture looking at the view from off the end of the dock. We saw some houseboats that were three levels and 75 feet long. It is Kev's dream to have a house boat some day. One of the boats was called "never say never" and I think that applies to us as well.

We stopped to feed the ducks off the ramp. We had some leftover hot dogs buns that we shared. The ducks were happy to be fed and they followed us as we walked around to look at the house boats.

We went back to the beach one last time before we headed home. Hayden had fun just chillin in the sand. I love the way his little toes curled up as he kicked the sand.

Kev waded with the kids up and down the beach. They had a great time looking for clam shells and throwing rocks in the water. We had a fun vacation but are also glad to be home again.

Easter!!!

The kids had fun coloring eggs for Easter! It is a tradition they look forward to every year. The funny thing is most of my kids won't even eat hard boiled eggs. It is a good thing that Kev and I enjoy them.

We had our Easter egg hunt inside this year. The park that we normally hide the eggs at still had some snow. It is unusual to have snow on Easter Sunday. My cousins hid the eggs for the kids. They really got creative. Halle is getting out an egg from the inside of a flower.

It was Hayden's first Easter and he even got in on the action. He had fun grabbing the eggs and trying to put the whole thing in his mouth. We love our little guy. He cracks us up with his funny expressions and the way he can curl his tongue when he is happy.

Here is a picture of the kids with their baskets overflowing with eggs. They were spoiled rotten all day by their grandmas! They had more treats at the table, chocolate milk, dessert after dinner, and stuffed animals to play with.

Kenna and Kayley had a great time hanging out in the fort that they made. They even listened to conference in there.

We spent the rest of the day with more family. The kids had a great time playing with their cousins. Tucker and Parker were making their silly faces for the camera. Parker's is a little intense but that was the only picture I got of them.

My sister in law needed a picture of all of us and it was a good excuse to have another family photo. We had a great time celebrating Easter with our families!