Last day of the summer - with the Andrus'

The Summer with my brother's little kids finally had to come to a close.  Everyone wanted to make sure the kids got to see Anne while she was still in the hospital from her surgery.  (It would help make the sickness more tangible to the kids, so that they could understand why mom's not up and about serving the way she had been when they left to Utah).  While my folks got everything cleaned and packed, Kieran went and played at my sister's and Asher came to our house.

The girls had a blast playing tag through the maze that Scott mowed into the lawn.

They also took the 4-wheeler for a bit of a spin around the neighborhood.  Asher thought it was pretty cool. And anytime the pink quad is out, Scott always gets a quick ride too.

My Family at the Ward Party

Everyone enjoyed something different.  Ivy enjoyed playing in the kiddie pool, or cuddling in a towel on a lounge chair.

Jade, Asher and Kieran loved jumping off the high dive, but they spent most of their time on the water slide.  I couldn't really take pictures of them in the slide, so I hung out with Ivy on the lounge chair.

Everyone had a blast and we're looking forward to next year's Summer Bash.

Ward Party 2010

Our ward knows how to put on a great Summer Bash.  They rent out the local pool and have a huge pot-luck BBQ.  I always have a blast taking a million pictures of everyone enjoying their favorite poolside activity.

Day with the Fullers

Have I told you lately that I really enjoy our days out on the boat?  I do.

The day we went out with my sister's family was one of the best days for smooth water that we had.  Smooth enough we were able to convince Ivy to give it a try.  Harry and Luke gave skiing a try as well.  I love the trainer skis.  The front of the skis are connected and the rope is fastened to the skis.  Then the child holds on to the rope and an adult in the boat holds on to the other end.  Then as soon as the child crashes, the adult lets go.  I think I would have been willing to try water skiing again as a child, if they would have had the trainer skis back then.

Ivy did not get up.  But she promised to try it again on another day.  Maybe when she's five.

This outing was one of the most adventurous ones for the tube.  Luke flew.  Jade flew.  Harry changed seats. And the kids all had a blast.  But, I don't think Harry wants to ride in the tube again.  At least not for a while.  The flying didn't help Ivy get up the nerve to ride the tube.  She was happy staying inside the boat the whole day.  She and Z.

Lagoon #3

I love going to Lagoon with the family.  But i'm good with doing it once a year.

I don't get pictures of me and Jade together very often, so I loved getting one of the two of us after we got soaked on one of the rides.  

Lagoon #2

We rode as many rides as possible and waited in very few lines.  Ivy hated the "big" rides. Jade, Asher and Kieran loved them all. They would race from one ride to the next.  All though Asher had to take occasional breaks to settle her stomach.

Post Options

Lagoon #1

During a more trying day, while Anne was in the middle of a very intensive surgery, we took the family to Lagoon.  Scott's parents, my parents and Asher and Kieran joined us for a day full of rides, laughter and throwing up.  Well, only one of the group was throwing up, but she got feeling better by the second half of the day.  She took a break and went and got a new outfit that didn't smell. :)

The kids had a blast.

Anne's surgery went well and they felt like they got everything.  At this point, we were still waiting to know Anne's diagnosis.  But our thoughts and prayers continued.

Having fun on a tough day

Our family was hit with some really rotten news at the end of July.  Anne had planned on driving to Utah to pick up the kids after having spent the month with grandpa and grandma.  Instead, she ended up having such severe stomach cramps that she sent Tom to Utah without her.  Half way through his drive, Tom got a call that Anne needed to go to the hospital  She was rushed to the hospital and Tom turned around and headed back to California.

By that Sunday, Anne was preparing for major surgery and had been transferred to UCLA.  They were running additional tests and were determining the next steps.  At this point there was no diagnosis but everyone was so worried about Anne, but we were trying really hard to be positive and keep the spirit light for the kids.  Instead, they were entertaining us.

The rat costumes continued for the next couple of days and they learned how to do cartwheels while holding on to each others' ankles.  We continued throughout the week to keep the spirits as high as possible.

She Can Swim!!!! FINALLY

I need to swim with my girls more often.  The few times I was able to go with Ivy, she learned how to swim.  Yes, she took swimming lessons and accomplished only comfort in the water.   Two days with mom, and she was swimming without floaties.  There was so much excitement from that little girl after she realized she could do it.  When she wasn't swimming with me, she still used floaties.  Next year, we'll have to make sure those little arm floaters don't ever come back out of storage.

Wanna-be Model

Ivy cracks me up.  I've said that many times before.  This summer day was one of them.  She was posing all over the place with her silly goggles on her head, so I offered a quick photo shoot.  She jumped at the chance, that girl loves photographs.

The problem right now she's all about "hip hop" and thinks she's a "gang-sta" and will correct any label of "gangster".  She's got funk, and she wants you to know it.  Once we finally got past the hip hop girl, we captured the "wanna-be-model" in her.  She posed and posed and then returned to the hip hop girl posing.

She is such a little cutie and a funny little character.

Last day of swim lessons

The last day of swim lessons, the Scera pool allows the kids to play and enjoy the water features and the great big slides.  It's a day of lots of fun and memories.  They've enjoyed the end of swim lessons tradition with their cousins for several years.  One of these years, I hope I get to go watch.

Scenes from the Pool

Summer time is best spent at the pool.  Jumping, diving and learning new things.

I also love capturing the kids happy and wet faces while they enjoy the water.  Each one proud of their accomplishments.

ALASKA - Whale Watching

One of my favorite things from Scott's trip, is his whale watching adventure.  Scott and Mark took a break from fishing to enjoy the whales up close and personal.  Most of these pictures were taken not even zoomed in.  The whales were so close to the boat and there were so many of them.

They may have struck out on the fishing expedition but they struck gold with the whales.  They even got to see several killer whales.