Blog Slacker Returns.

Here are some highly over due pictures of our trip to Zion's in April. We started in Zion's on Friday (drove down in the SNOW). When we got there it was snowy and chilly, so we opted out of any hiking and decided on dinner and the hot tub. That was a good call! Somehow we didn't manage to take any pictures of the hotel pool in Zion's, but it was amazing. Breathtaking views in to the park right from the hot tub! We froze getting to and from the pool, but it was so nice once we were there! Saturday we spent perusing the gift shops and museums in Zions and then we hiked up to the entrance of the narrows. We didn't go in - with kids that would be scary - and the water was SO cold! There were some crazy guys on a bachelor's weekend heading in to the frigid waters. Aah to be young and crazy...
Saturday evening we headed to St. George. In St. George we did some hikes up Snow Canyon, which were amazing. I've been to St. George probably 50 times and I have never done that. It was really nice and the kids had a blast. We saw myriad lady bugs, squirrels, and rabbits. And the lava rock was really neat as well.
Then we headed home. Way fun. Too short. Can't wait to do it again!


Svata is getting really good at taking photos. I thought this one turned out really great!


Sofie, waiting patiently for mom and dad to get ready to go to the pool!


Thomas and Liza, unaware of the fact that they are about to get left, while we go to the pool! Thanks trig!


Waiting for the shuttle to go up the canyon.


Thomas got a little bored while waiting and began throwing baseball sized rocks. Can you see the rock in the picture???


That's when it was time for mom to put him in the back pack. He wasn't thrilled about that! But at least he was contained!


Everywhere you turn, breathtaking!


Beautiful!


The kids had so much fun.


Especially with these little guys!


Me and Tina.


Thomas was getting a little heavy at this point...But I made it all the way up and down!!!


Gullbergs.


Snow Canyon.


Sofie's Ladybug friend.


Can you find the rabbit in this picture?


Swimming in St. George.


More Snow Canyon on our way home...

A horse is a horse of course, of course...

Our dear friends, Steve and Toni, who we only (sadly) manage to see a couple of times a year, took us out to see their horses. The animals were beautiful and Sofie and Thomas were completely fascinated by them.


Sofie insisted on wearing her cowgirl hat!


I think she's a country girl at heart. She should move there one day. Of course, she'll have to go without me. I need a mall. And a Target. And a Harmons. On second thought, maybe she should just stay here.


The kids got to feed candy canes to the horses. They thought that was about the coolest thing they had ever done!


I think Sofie named this one. Butterscotch. Now she wants a horse of her own! Guess I better get a night job!

St Patricks Day, the Park and the Zoo: Random Photos from March 2009

My Boys on St. Patty's Day. Aren't they cute!?


Thomas and Liza spinning.


Thomas' first trip to the Zoo.


Our favorites were the elephants and the penguins.


Thomas didn't so much like this elephant though!


All the kiddos. Look at all the boys acting too cool for school and then there's Sofie in her usual cheesy pose! Gotta love little girls!


Thankfully, no one fell in!

More Springtime Fun...

I am telling you, the only way I survive Winter in Utah is by reminding myself that Spring will be here soon enough so that we will once again be able to play at the park and ride our bikes around the lake. So when this beautiful weekend happened upon us, we took full advantage of it! We went up the canyon and had a picnic. And we played at the park. And we rode our bikes. And we played in our yard. Oh how I love the sunshine!!!! Why again do we not live in California???


Thomas and Grandma throwing sticks in the river.


Sofie, Thomas, and Grandma, looking for fish.


All morning while we were getting ready to go Sofie insisted that she did not want to go up the canyon, and would not have fun. When it was time to go home, we had to drag her out of there, practically kicking and screaming!


Proof that I am actually a part of my kids' lives! (Since usually I am behind the camera:)


At least a couple of us are looking at the camera and a couple of us have our eyes open. This is as good as it gets with 2 kids!


Little Tommy gettin into trouble on the playground!


Grandma with the kiddos on the teeter totter.


Sofie helping Thomas on the teeter totter.


Thomas, thinking really hard, about where to play next. Big decisions when you are 2.


Climbing the monkey bars.


Grandma trying to get Thomas to go down the slide!

A windy day at the park.

This was our first real attempt at the park this Spring, picnic and all. We wanted to ride our bikes up there, but the wind was really strong, so we drove. The kids forgot about the wind about 10 seconds after setting foot on the playground. And they had tons of fun.


They hung from the monkey bars.


Played tag with a flag they found in the grass.


Went down the slide. And Thomas also sent a few cars down the slide...


Sofie comforted Thomas when he fell...


And Thomas tried, several times, to "fix it!" but they hadn't turned the water on in this poor little fountain!

Sharkboy.

Thomas has a sweatshirt that has a hood shaped like a shark mouth. At first, he would never let me put it on him. But now he obsesses over it. Here he is chomping his shark teeth...



And showing me his big mean shark eyes! (I think they're just cute though, not so much mean:)

We also have fun at home...

We used to say that we didn't want to live in this house forever, and that our plan was to move in about 5 years. But now, we've grown quite attached to this home. We have made so many memories here and so many friends, and i can't imagine us living anywhere else!


Sofie, just hangin' out. She is so sweet. So lucky to have her.


Sofie, dancing on the XBOX HSM3 game.


Thomas, dancing on his XBOX "mat". he really does think this blanket is his mat. And he loves dancing to this game. He really thinks he is doing it. And he follows all of the moves on screen. It's so funny. I love that kid.


And don't worry, I kick some serious butt at this game. Ok, so Sofie usually beats me, but I try anyway!


Chasing leaves in the wind...


Caught some!