Playing catch up--Vegas!

I've got to finish blogging about our vacation in June so here we go!

After spending a week in Cedar City at my parents' house we all headed to Las Vegas for a week. All of us, my parents, Thayne, Kailee, Harper, Spencer, Missy, Charisse, and Cory we all there. The only one of us missing was Elder Brett who had just entered into the MTC to prepare for his mission to Bucharest, Romania.

First on the agenda was to take out Carli's 2 stitches from her forehead. My sister-in-law, Kailee, was happy to help out and she did a beautiful job!

Here is Ben about to take off the band-aid with my Dad holding Carli

She didn't appreciate that at allHere is Kailee explaining to Carli what she is going to doThe cutting :) They came out very easily and quickly! Thanks Kailee! she is good as new. She still has a small red line on her forehead that you can see, but it is fading.

The water show at the Bellagio was the highlight of the trip for the kids. They loved watching the water spray and dance. I have to admit, it is one of my favorite things to do in Vegas, too. Our hotel was just a block off the strip just south of the Bellagio hotel so we could just walk down to see the show. We had to get creative getting the kids over there, though, so we wouldn't subject them to all the nastiness that is on the strip. There was a mall just across the street that we could walk through and come out right across from the lake where the show was and it worked out quite well.

Here is the group one of the nights we went to see the show. Mom, Megan, Charisse, Harper, Brandon, Ben, Carli, and Brooke in the stroller. Kate waiting for the show to start and Harper in the foreground.
Grandma and KateCharisse, Harper, Kate, and BrandonHarper, Thayne, and Kailee--what a darling family! They now have sweet little Beck in their family as well. Here is part of the show. It was so neat!Here's my handsome Brandon. What a cutie!Another view of the show.After the show ended we headed into the hotel to see the gardens which are so neat!
Charisse, Kate, Carli, Kailee, Thayne, Harper (in stroller), Ben, me (shocking--I'm in a picture!), Megan, Brandon, and Brooke (again, in the stroller)Carli, Brandon, and Ben having fun with the shooting water in the garden.Carli was fascinated with this awesome fountain of chocolate in the hotel--that's my girl! You can also see Kate in the background with her hands up on the glass. LOL!One day we went to a new outdoor mall that had this fun water fountain park, a playground, and little hedge maze. It was crazy hot so the kids enjoyed the water. Here's Carli enjoying the fountains.Harper wasn't so sure about the water in the beginning. What a cutie!Megan in the playhouse.

Kate and Carli

Brandon in his shades and Carli on the left. He wasn't into running through the water. I guess he's growing up?

We had fun in Vegas, but we won't be going back there anytime soon for vacation. It was hard to find things for the kids to do. We really enjoyed just being with family and hanging out together. We watched a lot of moves and played games and ate yummy food. Ben and I got to go see Blue Man Group and we really enjoyed the show! It was pretty funny and there were a lot of fun stunts.

After Vegas we headed back to Cedar City for a couple days and then started our trek home. We headed to the Phoenix area to see some good friends and Ben's brother, James, and his family. James and Lybi were expecting a baby girl any day and we were hoping she would be there by the time we got there, but no luck. Oh well--we were so happy to see you anyway!

We finally arrived home in TX and were happy that Ben got to stay home from work for another 2 weeks (awesome 4 week paid paternity leave!!!) so we got to hang out as a family, swim, and just enjoyed being together.

Trip Part 2-Snowbird

Saturday evening we arrived up at Snowbird and Ben's parents arrived a little later. It was wonderful to see them! They live in North Carolina so we only get to see them a couple times a year. They are great and we love being around them! Here's what the kids did when we got there:This hot tub is their favorite part of the lodge. It is right outside the door on the balcony of the room. Isn't that great?! So, every time the kids want to hop in they can just open the door and get in. Makes it so easy for us.Brooke just enjoyed being thereMonday we headed down to Salt Lake City. We stopped first at the little log cabin right outside the Church History museum. Here is NaNa (Ben's mom) with Kate, Megan, Carli, and Brandon trying to jump out of the way before I take the picture. Sorry Bud, too slow!Beautiful flowers outside the cabinNaNa and Brooke in the interactive children's areaCarli taking care of her "baby" in the interactive area. This place was really fun. There were all kinds of activities for the kids to do. Since the Primary theme this year is "My Eternal Family" they had lots of displays and activities that had to do with families.Kate helping Brooke touch President Hinckley's walnut treeI thought this pioneer blessing dress was so precious!Then we headed over to Temple Square. There is little in this world that can stand up to the beauty of one of the Lord's temples. We stopped in the Tabernacle for a quick peek. It still amazes me how the pioneers made such a beautiful building without all the tools we have today. These pipes are so inspiring.Brandon with PaPa in the TabernacleTime to stop for a quick snack. We had some dear family friends staying with us at Snowbird as well and a couple of the kiddos are in the picture with my kids.

Brandon, Adam, Kate, Carli, Megan, AmyNext stop was the visitor's center.

Ben, Carli, Brandon, Kate, Adam, Megan, NaNa, Amy, PaPa, BrookeIt all started with me and BenAnd this is the result! What a crazy beautiful family. ;) I have pictures of the growth of our family in front of the Christus from the time we were engaged. I will find them all sometime and post them. Don't hold your breath...it won't be anytime soon. :)A quick photo op in front of the fountain.

Amy, megan, Kate, Brooke, Adam, Carli, NaNaWe walked around the grounds of the temple over to the reflecting pool. This shot of Megan with PaPa is so precious to me. She loves to snuggle and PaPa is such a sweet man. This one needs to be framed. :)Kate saw some other kids pretenting to "swim" in the pond. Here's her interpretation. lol! She's so fun and imaginative.One last shot of the temple! Can you find the bird? (hee, hee...)

Life

Well, what can I say? Life right now is fabulous, wonderful, stressful, rough, happy, tearful, painful, fun, messy, and going too fast! We're almost to the middle of spring break. It has been pretty good so far and I haven't had to break up too many arguments. I must say it is lovely to not have to worry about getting up on time, feeding Brooke, making lunches, getting kids out of bed, stuffing backpacks, finding shoes, and making sure everyone is dressed and ready for school so they can be on time!

That's all before 7:40 am. ;)

Then it's usually a day of hanging out with Carli and Brooke, maybe doing some shopping, laundry, dishes, puzzles, reading stories, changing diapers, feedings, e-mail checking, and trying to tidy something up. At 3 pm it gets crazy again and we go pick up the kids from school and depending on the day, heading to girl scouts, staying at the school to pick up from chimes practice, hurrying home to get snacks before piano. Homework must be done, folders signed, dinner prepared, getting ready for scouts or activity days, soccer practice, and whatever else we may have going on. What a life. :) It's my life, though, and while there are days that are difficult to get through, and kids that are hard to deal with sometimes, I know that I am blessed abundantly.

I have a husband who comes home from an awesome job and helps with dishes, gets kids to bed, helps with homework if I have to be gone, etc. I have 5 kids who I know love me because of their hugs and kisses and newborn smiles. Life is not easy with 5 kids and a house to run, but life could be no more perfect than it is now when it comes to the important things.

My dad has been talking about abundance on our family website and I would like to share some quotes he posted by President Monson from the last general conference.

"I believe that among the greatest lessons we are to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not. I plead with you not to let those most important things pass you by as you plan for that illusive and non-existent future when you will have time to do all that you want to do. Instead, find joy in the journey—now..."

"We will never regret the kind words spoken or the affection shown. Rather, our regrets will come if such things are omitted from our relationships with those who mean the most to us..."

"Said one well-known author: 'Both abundance and lack [of abundance] exist simultaneously in our lives, as parallel realities. It is always our conscious choice which secret garden we will tend . . . when we choose not to focus on what is missing from our lives but are grateful for the abundance that’s present—love, health, family, friends, work, the joys of nature, and personal pursuits that bring us [happiness]—the wasteland of illusion falls away and we experience heaven on earth.'”

I have a beautiful family. Everyone is healthy. I have the gospel in my life. I have a fun and challenging calling which I truly enjoy. I have friends who support me and help me in every way I need. I have a nice home and plenty of room and plenty of food to feed my family. I am developing talents that I am so excited about.

Ben has a great job. He provides for us everything we could possibly need. He honors his priesthood and fulfills his callings at church.

Brandon is doing well in school. He is great at playing computer and video games and has an amazing mind. He has challenges and is dealing with them as well as he can.

Kate is beautiful. She is happy and friendly, talented, and smart. She has a creative mind and tries to get out of everything she can, but she keeps us on our toes. :) She's a doll when she wants to be. Her musical talents touch my heart.

Megan is sweet and sensitive, fiery and fun. She loves school and loves to play outside. She's my snuggler and hugger. She loves to give hugs and kisses.

Carli is 3. 'Nuff said. ;) lol! Really, she's such a fun daughter. It has been good to spend so much time with her. She is very good at putting puzzles together and loves to help me in the kitchen. She wants to show me everything she thinks is wonderful. She has the sweetest little voice (when she's using her nice voice) and I love to hear her talk and sing.

Brooke...is Brooke. She is the most wonderful and sweetest baby ever. She smiles at us and gives us so much love from her little 6 week old soul. We all just adore her and are so blessed to have such a beautiful sweet spirit in our home. She is definitely our little piece of heaven and we love her dearly.

I alluded to a few little challenges with the kids, but I am trying to be positive and see the good in everything. I want to be a more positive person and see the beauty and humor in more situations I would normally get upset about. I want to see the abundance in my life.

I am not an eloquent speaker or writer, but I hope I have gotten my point across.

Thanksgiving!

What a fabulous Thanksgiving weekend we had! Ben's brother, James brought his family all the way from Mesa to spend the holiday with us. Aren't they a cute bunch!?

We are so glad they came to visit! The cousins had a blast together! I remember spending many Thankgivings with cousins and I am glad that our kids have some of these wonderful memories now. We spent Thanksgiving morning at the playground because the weather was so perfect and beautiful. Here are a few pics of the kiddos having the time of their lives:

Sam

Carli and Joey

AdamMy GirlsBrandon and KateTime to eat! We fed the kiddos first and then the adults got to sit down and eat. It worked out really well and everyone got very full on all the yummy, yummy food! We also had the Putman's and Prince's over from church. It really was sooooo fun! I am so grateful to have such wonderful friends and family (this pic also gives you a little glimpse of the new paint in the kitchen)