Pioneer Children

July was a month full of parties.  We had a ward party in honor of Pioneer Day.  Addy was the cutest little pioneer ever!  We decorated the wagon for her to ride in. 

Our bishop talking to all the kids about the pioneers who came across the plains to Utah.

Then the kids had their own mini trek around the church parking lot.

Hayden just zipped around the parking lot as fast as he could.  The kids decorated their bikes too.

 

Our stake went on Pioneer Trek in June.  The youth came in their trek costumes and shared stories with everyone.

They had a station that was a small pool filled with ice and water.  It was to give the kids a feel for how cold the Sweetwater River was when the pioneers crossed.  Hayden was tough and stood in it longer than most kids.

Halle liked the activity where you could make your own rag doll.  Mckenna and the other beehives were in charge of the button on a string game.  I didn't get any pictures of that.

Our friend Will convinced Hayden to sneak up on Kev and thow a water balloon at him.  Hayden threw the balloon and it just bounced right off Kev.  The funny thing is the picture makes it look like Will threw it.  We also enjoyed ice cream.  I made strawberry banana ice cream to share.  Homemade ice cream is one of my favorite things about Summer.

Mckenna's Luau Party!

We were so busy during Mckenna's b-day month of June that we waited until July to have her friends party.  We decided to go with a Luau theme this time.

 

Mckenna and I made these for all her friends.  She also was a great help decorating and getting ready for the party.

The first game we played was trying to get the Oreo from your forehead to your mouth without touching it.  It was hilarious to watch.

 

The girls got really into it.  Some tried laying down thinking that would make it easier.

 

We also played volleyball with a beach ball.  It went over the fence several times but that only added to the excitement of the game.  Kev ref'd and Halle kept track of the score.

 

We made snowcones for the girls also.  It was a great way for them to cool off after the game.  We had several Jelly Belly flavors.  The favorite of the night was the Purple Island Punch.

 



 McKenna enjoying  her snowcone with her best friend Tessa.  They are both such cute girls!

 



Mckenna opening her presents on the tramp.

 

A group picture of all the girls at the party.

 

Here is another group picture of them jumping on the tramp.

 

We set up a white sheet and projected a movie on it for them to watch.  Mckenna chose out the "Lego Movie".  It is one of my kids favorites right now.  It was cool watching it outside.  I had fun hanging out with Mckenna and her friends as the Moms came to pick them up.  I remember being twelve as such a fun age!

Hayden's 5th Birthday!!

Our Hayden turned five on thursday July 17th!  He is a whole hand now!

 

He had such a fun birthday!  It was full of excitement.  He started off the day going to summer preschool.  He has enjoyed having Mrs. Cooper as his teacher.  It has been a great way to get him extra ready for Kindergarten. He took some otter pops to share with his class for his b-day.

 

The next fun adventure was swim lessons.  He is in a preschool level 2 class. 

 

I had fun taking pictures of him during class.  He was splashing his teacher in this one.

 

After swimming we stopped by the store to pick up his balloons.  He chose out a Jake and the Neverland Pirates balloon.  It is his favorite show to watch right now.

 

Hayden chose pizza and crazy bread for his birthday dinner.  It was nice being able to eat outside.

 

Hayden getting birthday hugs from his Grandma Sue.

 

I made him a pool party cake this year.  I really enjoy decorating this one.

 

The kids loved it because it has a lot of candy on it.  Hayden blowing out his candles.

 

We bought him a new pool with a slide for one of his presents.  Hayden and the cousins had fun playing in it without the water.  Hayden continues to have lots of energy and excitement for life.  We love you little bud!

Reid Ranch 2014

We always enjoy our Grant family reunion at the ranch each year!  We came up a day later this year because we were waiting for Mckenna to get back from girls camp.  We just crammed as much as we could into the day and a half that we were there.

 

Addy going for a walk with her Grandma Sue.

 

Great Grandpa Grant had his supply of M&M's for all the great grandkids.

 

I love the fact that we don't have to cook while we are up there.  The kids had fun eating lunch with their Grandpa Ken.

Archery is always a favorite with the kids.  They get better each year.  Aubrey and Halle having fun together.

Addy and I had fun swinging together after lunch.  I taught Hayden how to hang upside down from the swinging bar.

They have a new "little horse" this year which they call Willow.  I thought that was funny since Willow is one of my favorite childhood movies.  Halle was fixing Willows hair for him.

 

We swam both days at the pool with all the cousins.   Halle and cousin Halle were both jumping in at the same time to make a big splash.  It was fun hanging out with the other Moms.  We were swapping tips on how we do chores and laundry at home.

 

How many kids can you cram into the sauna?

 

The kids can't get enough of cousin Kyle.  He wrestles with them and carries them around on his shoulders.  I can't get over the fact that Kyle is going to be a senior in high school this year.  He was like five years old when I first met him.

Cousin Haley was the only one in the family working at the Ranch this year.  She gave Mckenna and Liz a lift to archery.  Mckenna and Liz had fun hanging out together again. They are both the oldest Great Grandkids in the family.

Our nephew Blake had his birthday while we were at there.  Here he is opening up the present we gave him.

They have lots of fun games in the conference center.  Parker and Tucker played some air hockey together.

We had our family program that night.  Grandma Grant shared some stories from her childhood.  I enjoyed seeing all the black and white pictures of her.  The Grant sisters also performed a musical number.  It was some of the songs that their Grandmother used to sing to them.

As we gathered around the campfire that night I noticed it was a full moon.  It looked huge.  I learned later on the news it is called a "supermoon".

Kev and I enjoyed hanging out and talking with all the cousins that night.

When it got even darker the moon began to look like this.  The clouds even looked like ocean waves.

 

The next morning most of the family headed down to paddleboats.  The plants in the water had bloomed this year and we were floating in a sea of petals.  Mckenna and Liz took a turn in one of the canoes.

 

I took this picture right before we rammed into Aunt Karen and Sadie.

 

Mckenna, Liz, and Grandpa got in one more ride before we left that day.

"Back in the saddle again"

The day after the fourth we headed up to the cabin for the day.  The kids had a lot of fun hanging out with their Calderwood cousins.

We were excited to ride the horses.  We have been so busy the first of the summer this was the first time of the season.

Blake and Addy were entertained playing with their sticks on the trailer.

 



We were out on a gator ride when we came across Kev, Cole, Nate, and Halle on a horse ride.

 

We found another buttercup patch.  I have pictures of Parker and Halle just like this when they were about this age.

Hadyen went for a ride on Duchess with Grandpa.

 

Nate brought up his drone to the cabin.  It has a Gopro camera attached to it.  He has filmed some awesome videos with that thing.  He even filmed the fireworks up close later that night.  Now Kev really wants a drone of his own.

Kev convinced me to go on a horse ride.  Which is a big deal since I haven't ridden in years.  I was thrown off a horse when I was younger and ever since I don't enjoy it.  It was good to conquer my fear and go for a short ride.  Kev was beyond happy that I went riding with him.  He even called Kenna to come take our picture to document it!

 

Addy and Great Grandpa enjoying their dinner.

 

I took a picture of Kev and the kids at the rodeo.  Addy refused to wear her cowgirl hat.

 

The bareback riding was exciting this year.

 

We always enjoy the firework show at the end!  It was cool because we could see a flashing green light which meant Nate's drone was filming the whole thing.  Good times with the Foster family!