Lake Tahoe

I love spending time with Emily and her family. It was soooo nice to get away on a vacation. Lake Tahoe is one of my favorite places, I think it is so beautiful. Emily and I had so much fun trying new recipes and cooking healthy. We made salads, lettuce wraps, stir fry, etc. Emily was supportive of my diet and had already figured out recipes that I could have before I got there. Thanks Em!!! The first day I got there we went shopping and to lunch....two things I love :)

Parker and I!Emily and Hannah at lunch! It was so funny, Hannah loved the spinach from my salad.
We went to a brand new outdoor mall. Toward the end, it started to poor down rain. Parker was a good sport, the rain didn't bother him at all. This is the only time it rained during the trip. It was a hot summer rain storm.

Sand Harbor Beach!We spent the entire afternoon at Sand Harbor. Parker loved the water. I was impressed that he would wade out all the way to his neck. Hannah was mellow and hung out in both the water and also played in the sand. Em and I had a great time with the kids. It was a relaxing day at the beach.

I buried Parker in the sand...this is right after he busted out!Hannah play in the water.

Parker and I had so much fun playing with this fish....striper. Parker would throw it and then we would see who could get to it first!Cute little Parker! Seriously look how clear the water is...amazing. Hannah totally cracked me up. She kept doing model like poses. She loved watching Parker play in the water and if we would call her name, she would whip her head around.

It was a fun day at the beach!

On Saturday we drove around Lake Tahoe. It took us 5 hours with all the stops. The lake is so pretty. Here is Russ, Em, and family at the Emerald Bay overlook.

We stopped at the Old Tahoe Cafe for lunch. After lunch we stopped in Tahoe City (north part of the lake). Our last stop was an overlook with a hiking trail that took you down closer to the lake. It was a fun day!

After church Parker and Hannah were out sitting on the porch reading books. How cute is that? I had so much fun with them. I love it that Hannah likes to be rocked and they both liked to be snuggled. They both have such cute personalities!

I love Hannah's cute little laugh!

Ahhhhhh!

I love this picture of Em and Hannah!Sweet Girl!

After lunch, Emily and I went to Sand Harbor Beach to relax. We had so much fun out on the lake on rafts and just chatting. We also read magazines and just had sister time. Thanks Russ for watching the kids while we relaxed! As always I was super sad to leave.

Happy Birthday America!

I had a good 4th of July weekend. I saw the movies "My Sister's Keeper" which was a tear jerker and "The Proposal" which was funny! I spend Friday with Andrea (we went to the movies, dinner, and shopping). I am getting a bigger office at ISAT and needed to be moved by Monday at 8:00am so the new therapist can have my office. It took me way longer than I thought so I spend a lot of the weekend moving and decorating my office. My favorite part of the weekend was spending the 4th of July with Steve and Jaime's family!

I love Gracie, Ethan, and Elsa!!!

Gracie, Jaime, Steve and Ethan being festive with sparklers. Steve lit some flowers and a few fancy fountains for us before the big firework show. We had fun with sparklers and pop its also!

"Firecracker Sparkler Girl"

Ethan and I waiting for the fireworks! It was awesome because from Jaime and Steve's backyard we could see the Thanksgiving Pointe Fireworks.

The gang (Matt, Elisa, Dave, Lynda, Jaime, Steve, Elsa, Ethan, and Gracie all cuddle up in a blanket) all cozied up ready for the fireworks! Thanks Jaime and Steve for a fun 4th of July!!!

I appreciate being raised in a patriotic family. I have many fond memories of 4th of July activities (flag raising, patriot songs, swimming, BBQ, 4th of July Program, and fireworks). I feel blessed to live in our great country.

Happy Father's Day

I feel blessed to have such an awesome Dad. It was extra nice to be able to spend time with him in Florida a few weeks ago. He is a great example and a calm stabilizing force in my life. Dad is also quite adventurous, especially when it comes to things like roller coasters, river rafting, and trains. I have many fond memories of rafting down the Kern River. I also knew that if there was a roller coaster around there was a pretty good chance we could talk Dad into riding it. He also created the most fabulous backyard ever! It is hard to think about Dad without thinking about his love for trains. Thanks for teaching me that if I work hard at something, I can achieve it! Happy Father's Day Dad, I love you!

Family Fun in Park City

For Father's Day Weekend we went to Michael and Ashli's time share at the Canyons. We had a great time. As soon as we got up there, we went to Cafe Rio! It was pouring rain so we were glad to get back to the condo. Gracie and I watched Nancy Drew while everyone else went swimming. The Condo was really nice. There was a nice kitchen, a big jetted tub, steam showers, etc. We all decided to bring our favorite snacks....check it out

Fun times!

Holy Cow...we had everything!

I was gone for Elsa's birthday so I brought her present up to the condo. She is so sweet! We played Apples to Apples, which was so much fun. We all had a midnight snack (chips and queso) before heading to bed.

On Father's Day we made breakfast at the condo. Jaime made a delicious breakfast casserole. We also had donuts, lots of bacon, and OJ. Ashli and Michael gave us a tour of the resort (condos). We couldn't believe what a maze it was. There were indoor pools, outdoor pools, game room, grocery store, activities center, etc. We were planning to take the gondola up and hike; however, it was raining and most everything was closed. We decided to go to the outlets instead. I hope Steve had a good Father's Day. I love watching him with his kids he is such a good Dad. I can tell the kids think he is the best ever. We all had such a good time in Park City together we are planning to go again next month! One more getaway before Jaime has her baby. Look how fabulous she looks!!!!

Hoogle Zoo!

I love spending time with Melissa and Ashton. We hadn't seen each other in a while so we planned several weeks in advance to meet at the zoo. It sprinkled earlier in the day but we decided to go anyways. The weather was pretty good for the first hour and 1/2.

We are all set to check out the animals!

I love the giraffes. Melissa took a photo shoot of one of the giraffes that was acting like she was auditioning for America's Next Top Model (one of our fav shows). The giraffe was being all coy and we definitely thought she was smiling with her eyes. She was fabulous!

I thought this elephant was so cute eating a snack!
It started pouring rain! We checked out a few more animals on our way out. We were seriously drenched by the time we left. Even though it was a rainy day at the zoo, it was fun to hang out with Melissa. Ashton is so darn cute. He is starting to talk and can run now!

Animal Kingdom

Family by the Tree of Life!
As soon as we got to Animal Kingdom, we all headed straight for the Safari. We heard the animals are out in the mornings and wanted to make sure we saw them when they were all frisky. Mom and Dad look so cute...dressed perfectly for a Safari.Callie and I on the Safari. We loved all the animals. On this path we saw a SNAKE...no it was not it an aquarium. What the freak??

Mount Everest Roller Coaster was one of the highlights of the animal kingdom. I went on it three times and was good. Ed, Dad, Cater and Callie went on it a lot more than that. In fact we went back another day just so they could ride it again. Becky, Mom and I busted over to the Finding Nemo show while they rode it over and over. I LOVED the Animal Kingdom.

Disney World

I love the castle at Disney. I remember when we were old enough to split off with siblings and cousins, the castle was usually the meeting place. It still warms my heart :)

Fun picture with Minnie Mouse!

As soon as we got to Disney, Callie was on the search for the perfect "stuffy." She was drawn to Pluto but knew he wasn't the perfect one. When she found Doug from "Up" the search was over.

Mom, Cater, and Callie (and Doug) waiting in line for Big Thunder Mountain. Dad's favorite! Cater was a huge fan of this ride also. I was sooooo blasted hot at Disney. Becky was a good sister and busted out of line and got me a diet coke!

We all rode the Jungle Ride together. When I was little I thought the animals were real and was basically terrified especially since the hippos and elephants were in the water. Funny that I remember that b/c I must have been pretty young (at least I hope so, it would be a little sketchy if I was 10+ and that freaked out). Ed and Becky on the Jungle ride. I love this picture of them...so cute!The girls watched the Electric Parade and ate Mickey ice cream while the boys rode Thunder Mountain a few more times!Us girls just being silly and festive at Disney. Becky won the most festive award...check out her shirt! We were all jealous. Throughout the day we chatted about childhood memories from family vacations to Disneyland. Disney really is a magical place especially when you are with family.

Epcot

We went two half days to Epcot. There was so much to do and see!

A family picture with Goofy!

I loved the Mission Space ride. Isn't Callie a cute little Astronaut???Waiting for Honey I Shrunk the Kids show!It was so hot. Cater and I were so happy to find the Coca Cola store. They had all kinds of samples and of course I bought a frozen coke to keep cool. Mom and Cater waiting in line for the Test Drive ride. Another fun ride. The line was over an hour so we had a lot of good conversations to help time pass. We had pastries in France and Norway. One of the nights we were at Epcot we ate pastries while we watched the firework show over the water.Cater, Mom, Dad, and I stayed and visited the countries. We tried to get a picture of Cater in each country. He has a great sense of humor. Here we are in Norway! We took this picture after we rode the Storm ship ride or whatever it is called. Check out Cater!Japan! Mom and Cater were sure having a good ole time hamming it up :)

Fun Times!!

I was so glad that Becky talked me into going to Florida. It was such a fun vacation. We had a great time at all the parks and also had a fun time swimming, going out to fun dinners, and hanging out at Down Town Disney. Mom, Dad, and I stayed at the Disney World Hilton Resort. Callie and Cater took turns spending the night with us at our hotel.

Callie's turn to spend the night! Callie made sure all of her stuffed animals were comfy before we went to sleep. Actually, Cater spend most of the nights. One of the highlights of the trip for me was watching the NBA Playoffs with Cater. After a full day/night at the Parks, Cater and I would go down to the Hilton lounge and watched the games from usually 10pm to midnight. Cater is a night owl like I am. We would have ginger ale, popcorn, and usually a late dinner. We had so much fun chatting and cheering! Mom and Dad joined us one night!

Swimming at the pool!Since we stayed on site, we could take the Disney Transportation to all the parks.

Family at Hollywood Park. My favorite thing at this park was the American Idol Experience! I also like the Tower of Terror ride!

Thanks Ed, Becky, Cater, Callie, Mom and Dad for such a fun vacation. I loved spending time with everyone and can't wait until I see you all next!