This is the Place...

...to learn about discipline! We went to the This is the Place with friends from our neighborhood on Wednesday. One of our favorite buildings was the schoolhouse. Jake and Cam both got to help with the demonstration.

We learned that there were 3 kinds of naughty in the Old Days:

1. For a minor mistake, you could stand on a stump in front of the class with your nose to the wall and your arms out behind you holding two heavy books.
2. For a foolish mistake, you could wear the Dunce hat in front of the class. See how sad Jake is?

3. For a major mistake, you got to lean over a stool and be paddled by the teacher in front of everyone! It may look like he's laughing, but Cam is crying, really.

There were so many fun things to do there and we only did about half of them in the 3+ hours we were there. We rode ponies, made beaded bracelets, beat rugs, used a wash board to do laundry, visited an Ironsmith, potted for gold (I called it 'panning' and was corrected), and rode the train. The boys liked it enough that we may go back again this Summer. If you want to go, go on a Wednesday - it's only $2 a person through the summer and it included everything I listed.

We had an awesome Saturday at the Lehi Parade and later at the Highland Water Pad with our aunts, cousins, and friends. We opted out of the post-parade carnival this year due to budget cuts, but I think the kids had just as much (if not more) fun playing in the water and not waiting in line!

Here is most of the group - family, cousins, aunts, one friend. Sorry, Zellers, you tried to distance yourselves from us and you didn't make the cut in the pictures! Hey! Who's empty chair in the middle of the photo? Iggit!

Sam was so excited as each float came by but he would get really annoyed when I tried to take his picture. He really liked the parade. Honest.

Talk about liking the parade! Manda was outta control, but she made some hot & tired kids on the floats smile and she earned us lots of candy so CARRY ON!

Cute Katie caught a hat from one of the floats. Luckily she had pigtails to help hold it up on her head!

I think this was the winner of our family vote on the floats.They knew immediately that it was from UP! called out to the characters riding on the float = more candy!

The candy was a little melty, but that doesn't stop my boys. We are NOT wasters! All three of the big boys needed a picture like this, but I will spare you the ickiness and post only one.

We loved the Water Pad in Highland.Look how cute Abby was for the first few minutes before she taken prisoner and drenched by the boys!

Miles was very eager to share his cantaloupe. I'm pretty sure this piece he shared with me had already been 'tested'.

The boys had such a great time playing Frisbee and soccer with Jared. The Frisbee landed on top of the control building, so Jared and Jake had to go on a rescue mission.(P.S. I sunscreened everyone except Jake - don't know how he got away - but, the poor kid is a lobster today!)

I'm really not playing favorites by posting two pics of Kate, but I think these are the only two pictures I have taken of her in four years where she actually looked at me and smiled! Isn't she cute!

Sam and James being rebels! Utah law states that you can't swim in public without a swim diaper. Lucky for us, Jared ran to Kohler's and found a pack of swim diapers for us to all share.

Sam explored every inch of the place! He loved the drains, the fountains, the taped off area of grass, and the water. I love this age - he's so curious about everything right now!

Father's Day Surprise

Me: "What do you guys want to get for Dad for Father's Day?"
The boys :"Let's get him a tent!"
Me : "Tents cost a lot of money. Any other ideas?"
The boys:" We want to go camping and we need a tent. Can we use the Jug Money?"
Me : " Really? The Jug Money?"
The boys : "Yep."

Jake received a refillable water jug with pennies in it for his 8th birthday almost three years ago.We've been adding to it over the last 3 years - coins, pesos, broken toys, cotton balls, etc.

We took it to the bank three times .
The first time it was closed.
The second bank didn't have a sorting machine.
The third time two tiny bank teller ladies hefted the jug and about died as they emptied all the coins into the sorter machine.

They had $166.18!!
(We put $140 back into Mom's account and they split the remainder)

Here they are with Dad after he unwrapped his gift. We wrapped it real fancy in some blankets! We chose this one because it would fit 8 people and it was really fun to play in while we were at the store.

The boys decided to give it to him Saturday so we could sleep in it that night. They were excited to help set it up.

Sam was a great help as you can imagine! The coolest part of the tent is the screen ceiling. We laid out and watched the stars until the boys fell asleep.

Then I went to my real bed inside!
Jared and Sam joined me about 2:30 a.m.
Cam came in around 6:30 a.m.and crawled in my bed at mine and Jared's feet.
Jake and Josh woke up at 7:30, jumped on the tramp, and went back to sleep.
Then, we did it all again Sunday night!

Water Fun

It was finally warm enough for our First Swimsuit & Water Day! Sure, it only got to 69* today, but the sun was out. The boys all shivered and had blue lips by the end of the day, but does that really matter when memories are being made?

Trevyn, Josh, Trayce, and Cameron daring to get close enough to get wet.

Sam and Trevyn loved trying to catch the ball as it shot out of the tunnel.

Josh is soooo cool! You wish you were him!
He wore those sunglasses all day while we were in the water.

Bridal Veil Falls

We were able to go to the Falls today with some friends from our neighborhood/ward. The weather was beautiful and the boys had a great time riding their scooters and playing in the water.

If you look in the center of this picture, you can see Jake's bright blue t-shirt. He climbed up a ways with his friend, Jayden, and I caught them on the way back down.

The water was still pretty cold so Cameron took Sammers across the water to sit on the rock.

Josh is my model child - "mom, take my picture!", "Mom, take this picture!", "Mom, get one of me here!"

Sam was dying to get in the water, but not bold enough to venture in to the cold!
(That's my Jocelyn, next to him, from my Primary class - she's the one that asked me if my mom ever helps me with my hair. When I told her my mom lives far away, she volunteered to come help me on Sunday mornings!)

A big group shot of all the kids that went. We had a picnic at the park afterwards and finished our adventure just in time for a storm that was coming in. Thanks Hollie for planning and inviting us, we had a blast!

Draper's Incredible Pizza Company

We had the car today, so we needed to go somewhere fun! We set a spending limit, did our chores, and set off for fun at the new Draper's Incredible Pizza Company. It was even better than we had expected! Here are some of the highlights:

• People in costumes met us at the door and sang Happy Birthday to Aunt Manda. Then, she got to spin the Wheel and won a pass to ride the go-karts!
• They load your 'tokens' on a debit card which also stores the number of tickets you win so there's no losing token or forgetting to get your tickets.
• The card holds money to play games and you can add 'attractions/rides for extra. Luckily we had a coupon (no kidding!) and they each got a free attraction. They chose mini-golf and go-karts between the three of them. They could've also chosen mini-bowling, bumper cars, or laser tag.
• It's only been open 3 weeks, so it was really clean and not too crowded.
• There was a play land for Sam so he was busy while the big boys played games.
• Jake was equally thrilled with the game area as he was with the buffet. It's all kid food! Pizza, tacos/nachos, spaghetti, sloppy joes, nuggets & fries, ice cream, etc. After getting your food, you get to choose one of four rooms to eat in. We chose the Drive-in. I think the others were Family Room, School Gym, and 50's Diner.
  

It was super kid-friendly and all of the employees were really helpful and happy. (Especially the go-kart technician that Manda invited to eat lunch with us!) It was a lot of fun and the kids were happy and exhausted at the end. What more could you ask for?

Manda's Birthday Slideshow

Manda turned 25 yesterday so we had to dress up like cheerleaders for her Sister Party. When it's your day, you get to choose the attire and the restaurant. I guess we shoulda been happy with the Laura Croft:Tomb Raider theme, but we whined and now we're wearing pigtails and face paint!Enjoy the awesome slide show Lib put together!

What else will these boys think up???

My boys come up with some of the craziest ideas. And, egged on by their dad and their uncle, they act on them!

May Recap

It's been so long since I've posted anything! Here's a quick recap of May and the beginning of June. (I wish I knew how to do it in reverse order!)

Are you using coupons yet?

I love couponing! We used a lot of our food storage while Jared was out of work and I've been slowly building it back up. This week, a new grocery store in town sent out FREE coupons for hot dogs, buns, chips, and soda. Now, usually, I would advise against getting tons just in the name of good manners - save some for the other shoppers. But, this sale has been going for a week now and there were still stacks and stacks of groceries to be had!
We found a bunch of extra ads just by asking people that weren't going to use them if we could have theirs. And, I have to admit, we did rummage through a couple of recycle bins. But, before you judge me, look what I got for
FREE!!!!

11 pkgs of hot dog buns
11 pkgs of hot dogs
11 bags of chips
11 cases of Shasta

for free!

And, whilst we we rummaging through the recycle bins, we found some "$10 of your purchase" coupons for Kohl's. So, we stop by there tonight, too. The boys needed some shorts and we found some great things on the clearance racks.

We got 3 pairs of shorts, 2 t-shirts, 1 button down shirt, 2 pkgs of underwear, and a pair of Levi's all for $9.74. Those two muchkins in the back were already paid for.

I'd have to say it was a pretty good shopping night for us!

Summer Camp - June 7

This summer I decided to do a Summer Camp at the house. This month we're doing a bug theme. We have ten friends in our morning session that are all 3-5 years old. Jake and Cam are my camp counselors. I've really been impressed at how well they work with all of these little kids. Maybe I should home school them so they can help me with preschool during the school year.. nah, just kidding. We'd all go crazy!

Utah Lake Festival - June 5

We're all about free at our house. So, when Lib emailed us Utah Lake Festival, we were all over it! The boys each received a booklet to gather stamps in as they visited each booth. Once the filled up their booklets, they got a FREE t-shirt. Then we got in line for a FREE hot dog and a FREE water bottle. There were so many fun things to do and they were all FREE!

it!
We climbed trees.

We went to see the giant hot air balloon, but right as we got there, they began to deflate it. So, we hung out in the shade for a while.

We played on the beach. Well, not really. It was a sand volleyball court, but it was cleaner than the beach so we let Sam play for a little while.

We went on a hayride around the marina and out to see the lake. We saw lots of people fishing.

We found lots of interesting booths to visit and we learned about fishing, conservation, wildlife, and how to get FREE stuff!

Memorial Day - May 31

Abby and Lib + all her people came over for Memorial Day. The good part of not having a backyard is that we can build a fire and roast hot dogs and marshmallows on holidays. I know you're all jealous! (I'm trying to look at the bright side of no grass, so pretend you're jealous. k? k.)


While we were BBQing the burgers, Brother Dodge came by to give the boys a ride in the jeep. He is such an awesome home teacher! All 4 boys hopped in along with all 4 of their cousins! That added to Brother Dodge and his grandson, Jack, and Ivan the Dog! It was like a clown car! The kids had such a great time even though it was a very short ride to the end of the street and back.

We roasted marshmallow and Starbursts out in the backyard until the Lehi Wind started up. The kids were worn out by bedtime which is always a sign of a good celebration!

Last Day of School - May 28

The last day of school is only and hour and a half for us. So, the kids were home by 9:30 and ready to be entertained. We decided to go to the Wood Park and have a picnic with our cousins. The boys had a blast and all three of the big boys were so good about taking turns helping Sam and pushing him on the swings.

We had a great time until about one o'clock. Cam stared feeling sick to his stomach and was throwing up by the time we got home. We spent the next couple of days, our first of Summer Break, taking turns with the throw ups. Yuck! But, at least we got that over with and now we can have fun!

Happy Birthday Jared - May 26

This birthday will be memorable for Jared, if for no other reason than his cake! I really can make cakes. I'm good at it. I think...Anyways, we bought the stuff to make cream puffs for his birthday. The boys were all geared up to help make them. Then, the morning of his birthday, Jared mentions that he doesn't want a silly cake, 'just round'. So, we tried to incorporate cream puffs and round cake.

We learned something VERY important:




Whipped cream will melt even in the fridge!



Go ahead, laugh at it.
Laugh at the ugly cake.
At least it tasted good!
And now, you won't need to laugh at me next time you see me!
(In my defense, I grew up in a Cool Whip family.)

Dance Festival - May 25

We were a little worries about the Dance Festival when we woke up the morning before with snow on the ground! Luckily, by Tuesday, the weather was great.

Jake's class did a dance similar to the Virginia Reel. He never could remember the real name, but he was not real thrilled with having to hold hands with a girl!

Cam's class did the Maypole. He wore his suit pants and dress shirt because they were supposed to wear 'nice' clothes. But, he had 'real' clothes in his backpack to change into.

Roasting in the Canyon - May 19

Manda went hiking in the canyon the previous weekend and told us we needed to go up for an evening. Being that she's our only girl and our oldest child, we try to listen to her. It was so green and gorgeous. Manda had scoped out a beautiful picnic area right near the river.

The boys built a big fire.
We roasted.
We ate.
We argued over what we could throw in the fire.
It was fun!

Manda and the boys

Cam & Jake
Jake is outgrowing the 'funnyface in every picture' phase, but Cameron is just getting into it! This is why our last Family Photo was 5 years ago!

This bridge went from the parking to our picnic site. That's Sammers (with Manda close by, just out of site of the camera). The river was mesmerizing for all the boys, big and small.

Petting Zoo - May 14

Our Thanksgiving Point pass is running out at the end of May so we have to take advantage of it as much as possible these last few days. Sam asks to see the horses every day! We took Trayce and Trevyn with us today and the animals were very friendly!

Sam, Trayce & Trevyn Josh petting the miniature horse

This little goat had pulled away the fencing near the corner pole. Sam had fun petting him and got a kiss that went from his chin to his forehead!

Of course, I forgot to bring quarters for the corn vending machine. The boys didn't mind, though. We scavaged for corn that other kids had dropped in the grass and got to feed the animals for free!