Jumpin' Fun

This summer has been a lot of fun. Last summer we promised the boys something to play on in the back yard, we decided on a trampoline. The boys love to jump, especially with their Dad who can spike them up into the air. It has become the favorite activity. Especially when jumping while getting wet in the hose. It is very nice especially on the 105 degree days. 

Shane loves to be on the trampoline with his older brother, I am glad that he is a tough kid and doesn't mind falling on his bum. 

Jared loves to jump with his Daddy and counts the minutes until Aaron is free to be able to jump with him. 

Dallin is getting a lot braver on the trampoline, He loves to play and jump around and around in circles. 

Aaron is loving reliving his younger days on the trampoline. Gratefully there is a net now so we do not have to worry about the boys getting the same scars as Aaron has from his younger days on the trampoline. 

Shane misting the boys while jumping. 

 

4th of July Weekend

This past weekend we went to the Northern California Coast and camped for the weekend. The Camping part could have been better, but the beaches were perfect. We camped at Ocean Cove and the campground was great but the lack of flushing toilets and showers made the entire experience difficult. We had to go to a State Park and take showers there. 

The greatest part of the entire trip was the wonderful beaches. The first beach we visited was Black Point Beach. It was nice but the water was too dangerous for the kids to play in.  Then we found Stigel Beach ( lat=38.7158018844, lon=-123.459818025 ) We had the entire beach to ourselves and there were plenty of things to entertain kids and dog. The greatest thing was the rocks about 100 feet out that broke the surf so the kids could play in it. It was still FREEZING but the boys didn't seem to notice. We wished we had time to go back, perhaps another time.

We left on Saturday and headed to Bodega Bay to watch the fireworks there. (they had them on Sat. not Fri. still not sure of the reason for that. ) Dallin said that the fireworks were his favorite part of the trip. We sat in the parking lot that they were shot from. It was loud and very very cold. The fog rolled in an hour before it was supposed to start and I was wondering if they would still have the show. Well they did and it was a pretty cool effect, each firework lit up the entire sky. 

It is nice to be home, although I miss the cooler temperatures on the coast. 

Dallin at the camp ground. All the kids were covered in dirt from the second we got to camp to the second we left. 

Shane loved the s-mores, although I do not think he ever roasted his marshmallows he just ate them right off the stick. It was really cute because the stick was the perfect height for him to get the marshmallow to his mouth. 

Seagull

Jared and a Sand Flea he found while playing in the sand at Black Point Beach. 

Shane filling buckets to dump. Shane is anti-sandcastle he loves to stomp on them and when the others were digging a hole all he wanted to do was to fill it up again. 

A cheesy grin from Aaron. 

A view from Highway 1. 

An old barn on Highway 1. This is one of my favorite shots. 

Jared playing in sand at Black Point. 

Aaron and Darcy at Black Point. We didn't let him off the leash because we didn't want him in the water. They had all these warnings about sleeper waves that had killed lots of people. Black Point was supposed to be one of the deadliest beaches in California. 

Shane digging in the the sand at Black Point. He was so cute in his little hat. 

Shane and his cute hat. 

The view walking into Stigel beach. 

Darcy fetching drift wood at Stigel Beach. 

Darcy loved to rub on this piece of drift wood. It was really funny to see him try to get it out of the surf when the tide came in and picked it up. For some reason he really liked the way it smelled. 

Jared throwing a piece of drift wood for Darcy. 

Dirty Dog

Shane buried in sand , he sat there for the longest time it seemed he liked the idea of being buried. 

The funniest thing we saw was a cow on the little strip of land between Highway 1 and the coast on the way from camping to Bodega Bay. Its just not something you expect to see. 

One of the pictures I got of the surf breaking on rocks. I loved to variety that the Northern CA. beaches offer. 

Scenic Highway 1

Fireworks in the Fog. 

Growing Up

Dallin just came into the room and I scooped him up into my lap and asked him why he had to grow up so fast, it as making me sad. He told me that he had to grow up so he could drive cars and go to scouts and earn badges and swim in the deep side of the pool. I love the simpleness of life at 5. 

Pictures

Picture #1

Picture #2

Picture #3

I was again going through my pictures  I took at girls camp and I thought these turned out really well. I was able to show my pictures to a professional photographer that was there, and he said I had a really good eye and I just needed to learn the technical stuff. I hope that some day soon I will be able to go to school and pursue this dream of mine. Until then I guess I will just keep playing. Which do you like best? #1, #2, or #3?

Christy

Terrific TWO

My cute Shane turned two in May. I noticed I did not have any pictures of him up on the blog. What a Slacker Mom that I have been. So here we go. 

Happy 2nd Birthday my Darling little Boy! 

Shane knew exactly what to do with those candles. He blew them out like a pro. 

We found the cutest little frog back pack and thought he would love it. He had such a great time filling it with all kinds of treasures that day. Mostly his teddy bears. 

He Had to wear his new frog back pack right away. 

Shane loves to wear his shades and his frog has to go with him where ever he goes. That is good since the frog holds a few toddler essentials such as diapers and the occasional binky. We are trying to phase them out. 

Girls Camp 2008

This is early in the morning. 
This is the reserve that the camp looks over. 
Everywhere you looked you saw huge granite boulders. One was as big as a house. I liked this one it was right outside my cabin.


I had the wonderful oportunity to go and be part of my stakes Girls Camp this past week. I was a Second Year counselor to 8 girls. Girls are a world different than boys, especially when it comes to bugs.  I had a blast. I was able to refill my batteries as they say, up  in the beautiful mountains. I wish a picture could capture all the beauty that i felt while I sat and looked at my surroundings. My favorite time of day was at 5:30 in the morning when the girls were still asleep and the sun was rising over the hills, all the birds were singing and it was so peaceful. I was able to sit outside and enjoy this a few days. Other than the beauty the surrounded me I was also able to prove myself, I went on a 5 mile hike and had a great time. I could be a pioneer if I had to. 

Another great part of Girls Camp was what is called the Destiny program, a small devotional given each day. One was about a boy who dove for pearls and found one that was worth a lot, he saved it for his future bride. One day she went to the jewelers and was offered any 3 rings in exchange for her pearl. The story never told us how what she decided. We were to see what our pearls were and if we were willing to trade them.  That is the extremely condensed version of course. My favorite was the devotional given by Sister Wood on a book called The Parable of the Princesses by Jenny Philips. The song she played at the end was just what I needed to hear. The whole week was about remembering that we all are Daughters of a King. I am going to have to get that book. 

I even memorized a scripture in like 10 minutes. Mosiah 5:15 which is our stake youth scripture for the year. It was so much easier to be closer to the spirit when you had not earthly distractions to deal with, not once did I have to answer a phone. I didn't check my email or mail, didn't have to worry about money at all. I didn't have to worry about what was for dinner or if i looked presentable (because none of us did ;o) I had a lot of time just to be and it was nice. I recommend it. 

Brag Book Project

I think I am finally done with it! I am sending it to be published tonight. I think it turned out great. Tell me what you think

If you would like one as a cousin book let me know. I will let you know how much they cost.