5th grader.

Savannah was a little nervous about starting the 5th grade. Her very best friend ended up in another class, and they have been inseparable. She did end up getting the teacher she really wanted, so that was a little bit of positive for her.

Savannah is a smart young lady, and makes friends no matter what her situation is. She looks forward to learning, and is responsible with homework. I feel really thankful that I have been so lucky this first time around with a child I never have to worry about.

Every year we take the same picture of Devin with Savannah. This year Bina wanted in on the fun. Clearly Savannah doesn't think it is as cute or fun anything...which makes this picture all the more priceless.
 
I am sure 5th grade will take some adjusting, but I am also sure she will absolutely slay it! Can't wait to see how much she excels and learns. 

Kindergartener.

Devin wasn't excited to start Kindergarten, and I am not gonna lie...I wasn't thrilled about the change either. It was a lot easier to send Savannah off to school at this age, because she was ready and wanted it.

Devin sometimes has a hard time warming up to people. He is still taking and needing naps, and we of course got the afternoon block...making it impossible for him to have one now. 

I cried for most of his first day. 

Devin is quirky and can be hard. I hope and pray his teacher will fall in love with him like we do. I hope he thrives, learns, and decides to love it.

There is still a lot of wanting to stay home, and coming home to crash after a huge meltdown.

It would be easy to let him stay secure under my wing, but I know we can conquer big things...and this is just the first of them for us.

vegas baby.

Long before we knew we were having another baby, we planned our very first trip for just Paul and I. It was clearly long overdue, and we weren't about to cancel it because of pregnancy. We did have to change a couple of things we had planned to do, but we still had a long list of things to see!

We had never been to Las Vegas, and we had no idea what to expect. We stayed at the Stratosphere Hotel, and though it was nice, I would pick something different next time. It is a bit too far off of the strip for us, we wanted to be in on all the action.

The first night we were there we stayed around the hotel, which by the end of the trip we regretted wasting that time. We enjoyed going up to the observation deck for free being a guest, and the view was amazing. Paul is scared of heights, so he stayed clear of the edge. We also went to dinner at Roxy's Diner, which was less than desirable food. We people watched, walked around, and were more than excited to spend quality time just the 2 of us.

The next morning we started the day off right with Serendipity 3 for breakfast. Chicken and waffles, that is all I gotta say. Man, I still have dreams about that meal. We learned that portions are HUGE in Vegas, so we ended up sharing all of our meals. 

Our agenda this day was go to the top of the Paris Eiffel Tower, Mob Museum, bus tour at night.

We ended our night with good music, great people watching, and delicious food at Jimmy Buffet's restaurant.

We started this day off with Guy Fieri's restaurant. This little number was a pancake pot pie, filled with delicious berries. Yet another thing we shared.

Our agenda this day was Madame Tussauds Wax Museum, gondola ride, Michael Jackson ONE Cirque du Soleil show.

Right before we were to go in to the Michael Jackson show, I had a colossal win on the slot machines. I always knew Michael was my favorite. Then we went and took our seats in the nosebleed $100+ per person seats, and some nice lady came and told us to follow her. We were hesitant, but she took us all the way to the 17th row and gave us new seats!! It made for a pretty lucky night!

We walked until our feet couldn't take it anymore. We hit up the M&M store, Coke store, rode the monorail, we shopped, ate delicious food in between. 

For our first time in Vegas, we definitely saw a lot. We went to bed every night exhausted, and woke up ready to hit up the strip to see more things.

We couldn't leave Vegas without more Serendipity 3...hello frozen hot chocolate! 

I loved this trip so much. It was nice to reconnect with Paul, and remember all the things I love so much about it. We went home dreaming of our next trip to Vegas, and all the shows and things we didn't get to conquer. Definitely a trip to remember.

Galoon.

Every time we pass Lagoon, the kids always beg to go. We saw a killer deal on tickets, and we decided to go one evening. I told Paul that I should just stay home since I couldn't ride on anything, but he insisted I go and be the glasses, key, wallet holder/picture taker. Turns out that is a pretty fun gig watching all my people have the time of their lives.

We found out Sabrina is our dare devil. She wanted to ride on everything. I waited for her to start crying on one of the rides, but she just kept begging for more.

It was perfect having Devin and Sabrina ride together, and Savannah and Paul could go on the bigger rides together. The things that were too scary for Devin, Savannah was able to take Sabrina. 

We were afraid that an evening wasn't going to be enough time to enjoy ourselves completely, but it was just the right amount of time. Paul and I are feelin' old, sore, exhausted, but happy.

Treehouse Museum.

We started off the day early to meet at a friends house to carpool to the frontrunner {train} station. When we got there, I could not get Bina's car seat out. I must have had super human strength when I put it in last time. With Christy's help + 10 minutes of hard work, we got it. The kids and Momma's were ready to rock this day. We came armed with lots of games, treats, iPad's, and enjoyed a long train ride to Ogden where we had planned lunch and the Treehouse Museum. 

When we finally made it to Ogden we decided to head over to Tailgaters for lunch, which is inside of Fat Cats. This walk isn't very long, but in 100° heat + pregnancy shtuff...I was definitely questioning my sanity in doing this. The food was good, the company even better. You get free tokens with your meals, and so after lunch we played in the arcade. I told Christy the kids would have been just fine hopping back on the train at this point and going home. 

My phone died {such an unprepared blogger I am}. I got very few pictures of the whole reason we went on this adventure in the first place...the Treehouse Museum. The big girls went off on their own, something I have never done before. It is pretty small place, and was easy to find them. Except I didn't get to see Savannah's excitement over all the fun new things. They put on a play in their theater, and invite the kids from the audience to play the parts. The story teller was fantastic, and Devin landed the leading part {soldier}! I was so proud of him for being brave, this is something that surprised me he even wanted to do. Sabrina also landed the part of Granddaughter, and had to take a potty break during her big scene. It was hilarious and so fun. {In the picture that is Bina girl with the blue scarf on her head, and Devin talking to her.} Such a fun place to go. Kids loved it, and want to go back. We definitely didn't see everything. 

We thought we had left plenty of time to get back to get on the train. Devin decided he couldn't walk, everyone needed snacks, the girls were chatting and not paying much attention. Uh, we ended up running when realizing we may not make it. It wasn't pretty folks. When we finally got seated back on the train, I thought I may very well die. I must have looked like it too, because Christy looked concerned. Hahaha We thought it was smooth sailin' from there, it wasn't. They announce somewhere between Centerville and Woods Cross that the train couldn't continue, because something was blocking the tracks. At this point we had 3 sleeping kids, and just started freaking out. Christy said, you better start praying Evonne they fix the track so we can continue, because this could get crazy! After 30+ minutes sitting on a stopped train, lots of laughter, they decided they could continue. Crisis averted. We managed to make it back with only a few tears. This adventure was 10+ hours long, and we were all exhausted and ready for bed last night. 

The end.

ellison park splash pad.

With Paul working more in Northern Utah we decided to explore some places we have never been to.

Our first adventure was Ellison Park, because we had heard all about the splash pad there. Let me just tell you, it did not disappoint. I like to say it is the smaller, FREE version of Cowabunga Bay. 

My kids didn't ever want to leave, and begged to go back every time they heard Paul was going up North. The big hit for the older kids was the slide, and big bucket that dumps every so often.

If you ever wonder what is a must to pack in your beach bag, it is random tupperware containers! My kids love being able to fill them up with water to have water fights, or fill up water guns. Trust me, they always get stolen when we go to splash pads. So Momma's start packing some for your kids.

The only negative to this park, is there is minimal shade. You either need to go early, or bring your canopy.

The Chalk Art Festival.

We had never been to the Chalk Art Festival held at the Gateway. We had no idea what to expect, and were pleasantly surprised at how fun this festival is. So many talented people participate, and the kids loved seeing some of their favorite characters in chalk.

I loved that they had food trucks, and we couldn't pass up a big snow cone.

And we didn't forget to let the kids wear swim gear so that they could run through the water before heading home. 

It was the perfect little adventure. Definitely will repeat it in 2016.