"Din - o - sirs"

Okay, so you're going to get annoyed by hearing my voice say "Dinosaur" a thousand times in this video, but you'll LOVE hearing Bladen say it over & over again. He is so stinkin' cute!

Labor Day

For Labor Day, Opa & Oma took us down to their camping resort in Acton, CA. It had beautiful picnic & BBQ areas & one huge pool. Opa & I stayed & cooked the Labor Day BBQ (there wasn't a whole lot to do because Oma got up extra early & prepped everything) while everybody else went swimming with the kids. The pool sounded great, but I was so sick to my stomach that I couldn't go. I was kind of sad about that. But I loved sitting & talking to Opa. It ended up being a ton of fun.

When lunch was ready, we rounded everyone up from the pool & had some wonderful food. . . hamburgers with the works, hot dogs, chips, beans, brownies. It was SO good.

Then after lunch we all headed back to the pool to finish the day off with more swimming. I'm so glad my kids love the water. They're getting to be good little swimmers. I love it.

At 3:00 we had to take off for home (5 hour drive), but we had a WONDERFUL weekend & can't wait to go visit Opa & Oma again soon!

Sunday Night with the Family

So for our after dinner snack, Oma made the coolest "Sundae Bar" I've ever seen. We had bananas, all sorts of candy, every ice cream syrup imaginable, whipped cream. . . do I need to go on? The girls had SO MUCH FUN building their own ice cream creations.

Lorien's was the most colorful. . .

Cadence's was dripping with chocolate. . .

And Taya's was pretty much a bowl of candy & whipped cream with a tiny bit of ice cream.

And the best part? We ALL got to make ice cream sundae's. Dad made milkshakes too for those who weren't in the mood for giant banana splits. I had a banana split. . . AND a milkshake. Hey, I'm pregnant. . . I can do that!

Poor Tylee. . . Bladen drank most of hers.

Bladen started walking. . . really walking while we were there. He's FINALLY getting it (thank heavens). Little lazy boy. ha ha ha. We still love him.

Then after the ice cream goodness, Cadence & Lorien built a fort to sleep in. They LOVE to build forts out of Opa & Oma's big bricks. They love it & look forward to it every time we are in town.

It was a very fun Sunday!

4 Generation Photos

You have to take advantage of these moments when you can because you never know when you'll have the opportunity again. Since Grandma Kinsfather was staying with us at Opa & Oma's, we decided to get a 4 generation photo taken with Bladen. We've had 4 generation pictures taken with all our girls, but this was Grandma's first with a great-grandson. Bladen was named after Grandma's grandfather so it made it even more special. We love you Grandma Kinsfather.

Unkie Tuhk's 30th Birthday!

While we were there, we got a chance to celebrate Tuhk's 30th birthday as a family with a huge birthday breakfast. I LOVE POTTER BIRTHDAY BREAKFASTS! Dad & I made some yummy goulash (also called "train wreck" or breakfast casserole). Mom woke up early & baked gluten free cupcakes for her & grandma. We had fruit too. It was YUMMY!

Bladen especially liked the chocolate cupcakes with candles in them & he made sure to make a huge mess on not only his church clothes, but all over daddy's church clothes as well.

Tarrish made it a little later in the day & we re-created our fun morning so she could be a part of it too. Did I mention I love my brothers & sisters? I love being part of Trek's big family. I love them SO much.

Happy Birthday Tuhk! We hope your day was as wonderful as you are. Love ya!

Human Hamsters

What could be more fun that HUMAN HAMSTER BALLS? At the Pirate Adventure area of the fair, we saw these things, but just passed them by. After visiting the dinosaur museum, we came back & decided to let the kids (both big & little) give it a "whirl!"

First they put you in the equivalent of a large plastic bag on water. (Yup, you don't see me getting in one of those!) Then they pump it up with air & let you float around for 20 minutes.

I thought Taya would get scared when the ball was not inflated, but she was all for it. She was hilarious! She couldn't ever get her balance to stand up, so she just lied down & let the current take her wherever it wanted to. She looked like a little daydreamer sleeping in a giant plastic ball. SO CUTE!

Bladen LOVED watching daddy. Well. . .Bladen was sound asleep in Tylee's arms until Daddy tried to be "cool" & ran splashing water on my iPhone, stroller, Taya, & Bladen waking him up. He was furious at first, but then he couldn't stop laughing at his daddy being silly in the ball.

Cadence, Lorien, & Taya had a blast, but Daddy was hilarious. He was trying SO hard to jump, run, & look silly in his ball. As the 20 minutes wore on, I could tell he was slowing down & when he got out he almost threw up. He was SO sick afterward. He said he felt like he ran out of air & couldn't breath & then all the movement made him super sick. I guess we're not as young as we used to be. ha ha ha.

After the hamster balls, we were exhausted. It was still hotter than hot so we took the train back to the front gate of the fair. It was SO nice to ride instead of walk. We had a GREAT DAY AT THE FAIR!

Dinosaurs. . . . RAAAAAAAWR!!!

Bladen loves Dinosaurs! He's loved them since he could roll over. His eyes light up, a smile crosses his face, & he gives the cutest "RAAAAAAWR!" you've ever heard. I just love seeing him around dinosaurs. It makes me smile. It's so fun having a boy!

There was an entire dinosaur exhibit at the fair this year. Since we saw the princesses & pirates for the girls, we HAD to see the dinosaurs for Bladen. I don't think the family believed me when I said that Bladen loves them. But when they saw him IN the exhibit, we couldn't help but laugh at his excitement. He couldn't take his eyes off them. He pointed & stared & made sure we all saw what he was seeing. His excitement made us all feel like kids again.

My girls like dinosaurs too, but they tend to get a little scared at times. They made sure they had Opa & Tuhk nearby to protect them just in case one of the dinosaurs came to life ("for real") & decided it wanted 3 little girls for lunch.

It was so much fun. It was probably my favorite exhibit at the fair just because of how Bladen came alive. His excitement was contagious! I love my little dino-loving man.