The Harris Family: 2013

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Marx Reunion

The second weekend in August we attended the Marx Reunion and went camping for 2 nights up near Joe's Valley. My parents planned it this year. It was a lot of fun and my kids loved every activity. They had a blast, but slept awful so Nate and I were pretty exhausted by the time we went home.

Jace loved playing in the fire with sticks (such a boy)

On Saturday we did some face painting.

Don't you love how well my soccer ball turned out?

I didn't pack warm enough clothes for the kids so my sister Cindy and I drove down the canyon to get reception to call our sister Ang who was heading up that evening. We asked her to bring some warmer clothes for my kids. While we were gone, Nate took the kids fishing at Potter's Pond. They both caught something so that was good because the only experience they have had with fishing was at a trout farm where you are guaranteed to catch something. Little do they know you can wait for hours without ever having a bite.

Jace hooked 2 fish at a time

Here is the video of Callie catching hers.

I love this photo. So cute!

Jace loved playing in these lounging chairs.

Jace with his cousin Kade. I just had to get a picture of how cute he was in the clothes Ang brought up. She was a life saver.

Here is Callie in her warm clothes. So cute.

This picture is of Callie comforting Jace after he fell down and was sad.

There was a fun activity with white elephant gifts. This picture is what Jace and Callie scored.

Now that my kids have had a taste of camping, they want to go all the time. We will have to make an effort to plan a couple of camping trips next summer.

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Ouzts BBQ

The first weekend in August, Barbara came into town with her sisters Regina and Leora so Victoria (Nate's cousin) organized a family BBQ. We took the opportunity to take some group photos.

Below is everyone that was present from our family (Daren and Heather had just moved back to Utah the previous week)

This photo is of all the Ouzts cousins present (LtoR: Rachel, Rob, Peter, Daren, Nate, Jared, Victoria, Kim)

The kids had a lot of fun playing while the adults visited.

Callie with Ava (Rachel's Daughter - Does that make them second cousins?)

The whole group photo (minus me behind the camera)

It was fun getting to visit with everyone since we do not see them very often.

Other July Activities

Over the 24th of July we went with the kids up to Park City and stayed a couple of nights and just relaxed and played. They loved swimming in the pool.

Callie started Piano Lessons. This is her with her keyboard, but we have actually bought a digital piano since.

4th of July

Time to play catch up on some posts.

On July 4th we started our morning out with the Annual Ward Pancake Breakfast. Then we all rushed back home to get ready for the bike parade. In our neighborhood every year there is a bike parade where children get to decorate their bikes and ride in a parade. Both Callie and Jace were sporting flag capes this year.

The parade started infront of our house and we went to the park about a 1/2 mile up the street.

Callie and Jace won a trophy for the best decorated family (luckily their mom stayed up late the night before getting everything ready)

We then did a couple of the little snake fireworks. I thought it would eventually wash away, but the stains are still on our front walk.

Luckily it didn't stain Callie's hands black.

And the kids had some playtime in the backyard with daddy while their mommy prepared and cooked their 4th of July dinner tradition of kabobs.

Monday, August 5, 2013

Swim Lessons

In July I had Callie and Jace both take beginning swim lessons. They loved it and it definitely helped them be less nervous of the water. Callie had gotten pretty good at floating on her back by herself. She needs help getting starting, but usually when you let go she can keep up by herself.

At the end of each class the kids had 10 minutes of free swim time. They loved going off the diving board and would usually yell "Cannon Ball"

Jace turns 3

On Sunday, July 14, Jace turned 3 years old. I can't believe how fast time has flown by. We had my family over to celebrate that day. We celebrated June/July birthdays, but also made sure to make it a special day for Jace since it was his actual birthday. He was the only one who got to blow out candles. And of course that cake was chocolate (his favorite).

Part of the group that was there.

My Aunt Cheryl and cousins Kyle and Brooke were visiting from Virginia so they were able to come and spend the evening with us.

We also had a friend birthday party for Jace on July 23. We rented an inflatable water slide and set up our pool and had a "Fun in the Sun" party.

Jace had fun with all of his little friends. We had pizza for lunch, played in the water, had a pinata, and of course opened presents and had Strawberry Shortcake.

Birthday man taking a break from the cold water.

Since Jace's party took place in the morning, we invited kids from the neighborhood kids to come and play with us in the afternoon (there were about 25 kids at that time) and then after a couple of hours we sent them home and had family only time with the slide. Nate took off early from work and Kade, Kylee, and Gage (Callie and Jace's cousins) came down and spent the afternoon with us playing.

The slide needed to be completely dried when they picked it up, so part of the time we were playing on it dry. Daddy sent them down rolled up in a towel. They love playing with their daddy!

And of course wrestled with them.

Callie and Jace both loved doing backwards somersaults down the slide.

It was a great day, but very very busy and tiring. The kids (and their mommy) were worn out.

Fun with Family

After the wedding was over, we were able to spend a few days having fun with family. We took the kids to an indoor play land called Jungle Jim's. Callie and Jace has a great time with some of their cousins, aunts, uncles, and Grandpa.