Afternoon Amusement

I pulled Dallin out of school early today so I could take the kids to Disneyland. I love this time of year there! We met up with our friends Dee and Jolene for a little bit (it is Dee's birthday!) and we rode Pirates of the Caribbean together (Spencer screamed like a crazy monkey down each drop). I took the kids on a few other rides and ended up seeing more of our friends there (hi Dursts!).

The highlight of this little afternoon adventure was Claire dressed up as Alice in Wonderland. She was adored by many and was on a desperate search to actually find Alice (a difficult task).

As we were leaving the park, the parade was coming to a finish and on the second to last float was Alice!! I grabbed Claire, hoisted her up and yelled "ALICE" with her over and over until she finally heard and saw us. Alice blew kisses, waved, went and got the Mad Hatter to come and
wave as well.

Claire's eyes sparkled... she was in heaven. That little moment was worth the trip. Thanks Alice. See you again next week Disneyland, or are we too exhausted?!

Bithday Barbecue

Where has this past year gone? I swear I was just hugely pregnant waiting anxiously for my baby to arrive, and somehow time has whirled around me and that "baby" turned one today. I remember when Dallin was a baby, we would celebrate each monthly birthday (ie: woo hoo, you're 3 month birthday!)... sorry Spencer. The third child syndrome. None-the-less, we LOVE our little tiny bug and are so grateful that he is a part of our family!For Spencer's first birthday, we decided to have a big hoopla. We sent some cute Backyardigan invitations to Spencer's favorite people (babysitters, church buddies, gym buddies, adopted grandparents, etc)... anyone who has been a special part of Spencer's life so far.

We spent the entire day getting ready for the festivities and Spencer seriously walked around the house all day like he owned the place... he knew something was up and that whatever it was, it was most definitely for him.

Once party time arrived, we had a really fun BBQ with lots of his good buddies.

The kids ran around the backyard (Spencer included) while the adults chatted. We had a lot of fun, but my favorite part was the cake segment of the party.

Spencer sat in his birthday throne, everyone sang to him, Claire instinctively blew out the candle for him, and Spencer went to town. He was given the entire top layer of the cake that my talented friend Heather made. Spencer began his cake demolition by smacking it... frosting was flying everywhere and Claire was there to catch it. He put his mouth on the cake, got a taste and then the snarfing began.

It was priceless. Here is a little video for the grandparents (sorry about the soon-to-be crick in your neck)...

After the crowd left, we opened some of his gifts and let him play for a bit. You should always be allowed to stay up a little later on your birthday, right!? Spencer partied until the wee hour of 8:30 and then passed out.Happy 1st Birthday to our sweet little Spencer.p.s. Spencer started walking last week and hasn't stopped since!

Firefighter Feast

A few months ago, the scouts in our ward held a fundraiser complete with a spaghetti dinner and silent auction. We bid on numerous items in the auction and ended up winning a huge pumpkin for Halloween, window washing, and dinner with the firefighters at a local station. We finally cashed in on this dinner tonight and had a great time!We got a babysitter for Spencer and the rest of us headed to Old Town fire station #12. We were greeted by 4 firefighters (the other 8 were out fighting a fire) who showed us around the firetruck and fire station. We eventually sat down together around a huge table to eat the yummy food that had been prepared for us. Just as we were about to take our first bite, the alarm went off and so the fire fighters took off... leaving us to eat dinner by ourselves... in the fire station... alone. It was hilarious. Peter had a meeting shortly after, so he took off leaving me, Dallin and Claire to watch over the station. It was a little weird, but the kids had fun. Our fire friends returned about 45 minutes later, ate their dinner and we had dessert together. It was really interesting to learn about their day-to-day activities and we thoroughly enjoyed our time spent with them. Thanks "dirty dozen" for letting us come, eat, roam, house-sit, and visit with you! Hopefully we won't see you anytime soon :).

Ocean Overnighter

For Labor Day weekend, we packed up the car and headed to the beach with some great friends. We camped on the beach for 3 days and had a fabulous and very memorable time! Here are the highlights...

The kids had so much fun climbing all over lifeguard tower #10 that happened to be right next to our campsite. I think we need a lifeguard tower at home to help occupy my children :)

We played in the sand, made big holes, found sand crabs, moved rocks into a huge pile, etc. By the third day, even the kids were exhausted.

Dallin learned how to boogie board (thanks to Justin, the resident ocean activity expert!)

Spencer loved being outside, playing in the water, digging in the sand (and eating a little too), and having some special time with his best buddy (dad),

he wasn't too fond of his beach prison (ie: the port-a-crib), but he managed a smile for this picture.

We had sand everywhere (I am still finding it)... in our tent, clothes, shoes, car, towels, pockets, beds, etc. It was worth it.

Nothing quite like good friends at the beach...

Our tent and it's master builder... the kids slept soooo well (I attribute their zzz's to the wonderful sound of the ocean).

Labor day happiness...

Dallin spent an entire afternoon searching for seaweed so he could squish the "poppers". I think Doritos were Dallin's mascot for the weekend.

Claire jumping over the waves...

No camping trip is complete without a late night marshmallow roast next to a roaring campfire...

The kids sleeping quarters...

Our kite flying adventure...

Thank you Nilson, Crump and Draeger families for such a wonderful Labor Day weekend!