Cousin Time

 
My sister Annalee, has kids that are around the same age as some of my kids. She was nice enough, a few years ago, to have my kids come spend a few days at her house while we were trying to finish our house. Since then we have been paying each other back during summer vacations and Christmas breaks.
 

The kids get along really well and it is fun to see them interact together with their fun personalities. These are a few fun moments of the summer when my kids stayed at her house, and then they stayed at ours. My boys loved putting up their own little play tents and camping out in our bonus room after movies and popcorn. It was like our own little camp out with air conditioning! The kids were already planning their get together over Christmas break!
 

Bear Lake 2009 Part 2

 
Here are some more fun moments at Bear Lake. One of Jeff's cousins brought up a floating trampoline. The kids had a great time trying to jump and keep their balance from the waves at the same time.
 
Some of the older kids did back flips or jumps off the side for extra entertainment.
 
The kids get a little worn out from all the play, so it was fun to have them come back to the beach have a little treat while getting warm before they headed back in.
I love this candid picture of Tucker, just taking a break. A fun time for all.
 

Bear Lake 2009

 
Jeff's extended family gets together every summer for the Barton family reunion. This year it was our turn to be in charge. Bear Lake has been a fun spot as the old and young alike seam to have plenty to do. I love how the color of the water changes depending what the weather is like.
 
Even though the summer start out a little cooler, it had started to warm up the week we were there. The kids loved the water, and it was nice for me to side on the sidelines and watch. There was no way I was getting into a swimsuit this pregnant.

 
One of the best parts about Bear Lake is the water level. The kids can play on the beach near the water and be safe. They have to go quite a ways out to get in danger.
 
Tate did have a close call, as he was relaxing in his little boat and the wind picked up. The waves took him out a little farther than we felt comfortable with with out a life vest. So some of the cousins with their canoe paddled out to save him, and he was very grateful. He told us it scared him to be out there that far, and he said a good prayer and hung on tight. He told the older cousins, thanks for saving me! I think he learned a valuable lesson and we are glad he is ok.

Friends, Food & Fun

 
This past month we have been able to reconnect with some of our neat friends! They spoiled us rotten and we always wish there is more time in each day to spend with them.
 
We dropped in on our good friends Jalaire, Paxton & Jason(Dave was at work). Jalaire and I have been kindred spirit friends for over 15 years. Even though our paths have taken us to different areas of the country, we have managed to try and stay close. Her cute boys are the same age as Tanner & Tommy, so we are always comparing notes on how to raise kids. Even though we only see each other/talk a few times a year it is always so fun to get together and it is never long enough.
 
These cute little boys are all friends this time of year as they all share a birthday with in 3 weeks of each other, and their Mom's have been life long friends since High School. Julie, Trish and I have been friends for years,( sorry no pic of us) and so it is fun to have kids the same age with their birthdays so close. We try to get together to let the kids celebrate and catch up on each other's lives. We never feel like we have enough time, so we plan a second get away later in the summer where we can chat to our hearts content.
 

Tucker's Birthday Bash

 
We had fun celebrating Tucker's birthday last month. Each child gets to choose what activity they would like to do for their birthday or have a friend party. Since we had a family reunion in the area and it was pouring rain Tucker decided to go to the Treehouse museum. It was a great choice to get out of the bad weather we were having.
 

The kids had fun checking out all the different areas, playing "walking tag" & hide-n-go-seek. It was a way for them to release some energy with out having the staff kick us out for disruption. We then headed to Jeff's Mom's for pizza and ice cream, and the drive home. I think it was fun for everyone!
 
 

Catching Up/ Jeff's Big Birthday

 
Wow how time flies! Yes it has been over a month since my last post, but hey I have a few excuses. We have had a few things going on, plus this baby will not let me sit at my computer for more than a few minutes to check email. He wants the space to move around and spending time at the computer is not his favorite thing, hence the lack of posts! So I will try and play catch up the next few post of what is going on in our lives.

 

Jeff always jokes that he married an older woman, however our birthdays are just less than a month apart. I feel awful for not making a post on his exact birthday to celebrate his big milestone. We were in between trips, so we celebrated his birthday with our new brother in law Micah as he had a birthday two days before. Don't they look like brothers?
 

Jeff was nice enough to share his birthday outing with the kids seeing Ice Age 3, then off to a local cafe in our area for his big day celebration. We had other fun outings earlier in the month, to celebrate our birthdays. A trip to Texas road house & a camping trip alone with out kids. He got to do a little fishing and I got to read one of my books. Over all great birthdays!