Our Family

So on one of the days out in Utah Ben's folks rented this mammoth of a slide and had it set up in their back yard as part of our family reunion weekend. And oh my gosh...it was SOOOOO fun! The kids and adults loved it. It was entertainment for hours on end. In the beginning we just slid down it dry but the sun quickly made it too hot for the little kids. So we had no other option but to turn the hose on it, and it became on huge slip and slide. It was so fun to watch the little kids just shoot down it. My favorite was our little nephew, Oliver, decided to strip down and take his diaper off and go down. I've never seen something so funny...he flew down that slide and would bounce off the back wall. What a funny kid! Some of the adults even got in on the action, which provided for even MORE entertainment!

Ben getting ready!

Dad/Grandpa getting some words of encouragement

Natali prefering to watch from a distance

Dad finally got her to go. Cute thing covered her eyes with her hands at the top until they actually went. Next year she will be ready to do it on her own!

While mom was here we also went on a mini road trip down to Madison County to see the covered bridges and the birthplace of John Wayne. We found several of the bridges and made it into Winterset to see the house of John Wayne. We even found this tower which was tucked away in a grove of trees. When we drove up to it Natali shouted with an audible gasp..."oh my goodness...it's a princess castle." She could have stayed there for hours. It was great driving down these old dirt roads and through farm fields to find the bridges. My mom loved. Quite the different scene and pace of life from busy San Diego. It was only about a 40 minute drive from our house so it was perfect with the kids. They did great.

My mom was able to come out the week before Ben took boards. We had SO much fun. No matter what we do I always have a blast with my mom. Whether it is organizing kids clothes, finishing sewing projects, eating McDonald's breakfast, or going on mini road trips. I loved having my mom and the kids LOVED having Grandma. We crammed as much as we possibly could in the 5 days she was here. We discovered a place called The Machine Shed and I am pretty sure it will be come a staple in places we go when family is visiting. It is always sad to say goodbye and it never helps when your 3 yr. old starts crying in the backseat saying, "no...don't take Grandma to the planes...Grandma...come back to my house and play with me!" Oh how the tears flowed!