Here are the pictures!

Long weekend fun!

We had a blast this weekend. Here are some pictures to tell the story.
We went camping at Miracle Hot Springs with our friends Mark and Buffy. Good times!

Edited: Blogger is acting weird. Pics later I guess! This one is of Olivia helping Jimmy crank down the stabilizer jacks. She is seriously into this camping thing. She loves halping pack and set up.

Quote for ya...

...but the biggest mistake I made is the one that most of us make while doing this. I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of the three on them sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages 6, 4, and 1. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in a hurry to get on to the next things: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less.
-Anna Quindlen

Side note

I have posted a new little side bar to my blog. It's the other blogs I read...check them out!

Happy V-day!

My husband and I are celebrating Valentine's Day next week because we are watching our nephew "chance-y poo-poo butt" over night. My little brother and his wife don't yet realize that once you have kids Valentines day begins to mean...16 valentines that you have painstakingly helped your kid write their name on, 32 pounds of candy, cupcakes and cookies injected directly into their bloodstream and not a healthy food in sight! It also means that you get to spend Valentines day with the 3 loves of your life and suddenly your life is fuller, richer, more meaningful and you say to your self..."Man, who knew I could love these 3 people (2 little ones) sooooooo much??!!"
HAPPY V-DAY TO THE ONES I LOVE!!

So they loaded up their truck and moved to Beverly...hills that is...swimming pools and movie stars

We are sooooo the Beverly Hillbillies!

My whole crazy family loaded into my parents big-ass-huge-as-a-tour-bus motorhome and went to Givens Hot Springs. My girls have been bugging Grampy to take them somewhere in the motorhome and he has been trying to carve out some time for a trip. Grammy decided they would be just as happy with a little day trip so we loaded up and went to Givens! All TWELVE of us...Grammy, Grampy, Mom, Dad, Olivia, Jamie, Uncle Warren, Aunt Casey, Aunt Kelsey, Uncle Joe, and Chance-y poo poo butt! It was a blast. I tried to remember to take pictures but I was having too much fun!

Oops, keep forgetting to post the picture of me in my new car. I got it for Christmas from my hubby! SOOO sweet! Lexus...mmmm!

My wonderful weekend

I had a really fantastic weekend with my kids and husband and I'm looking forward to many more stress-free weekends to come!
We went swimming at a hot springs in Hagerman on Saturday (which is always fun.) We went camping there a few times this summer and had a great time so we thought it'd be fun to take a day trip. If anyone is interested here is the website: www.mhsprings.com. It is so fun and I highly recommend a private tub for just a few bucks more. It's great for a family with kids or just as a couple. FUN, FUN!!
Then we headed home, picked up PF Changs take out and took it to my brother Warren's house to eat. They live in the north end so we took a little jaunt over to Goody's for ice cream and then across the street to Harry's (my brother works there) for a little "adult dessert". We headed home to put the kids to bed and Warren and Casey came over and we talked and laughed (hysterically) until 3 am!! It was a really great time. I forgot how funny my brother is! I really like his fiance too, she is so fun and we love being catty together! :-)
On Sunday my mom came over and took the kids to church then my husband, his dad, Warren and I went out to the desert to do a little target practice. 2 weekends ago was the first time I shot a hand gun and I am ashamed to say that I am hooked!! I have always been afraid of guns but my husband and his family are really into target shooting (my husband is an "expert marksman") and I have tried to avoid it but I went a couple weeks ago just to "watch" but I ended up trying it out just to say I did it. Well, this was my third weekend! hee hee!
Later that night my husband took the kids to a super bowl get together at his friends house and I stayed home...all alone...pure bliss! I went to Target and bought a few things for my house that I'd been meaning to get but didn't have time. I also bought some really cute valentine goodies for my kids.
It was a really, really good weekend. I am loving being home more often and enjoying my family.
One thing I realized this weekend...I have nearly stopped taking pictures all together!! How sad is that?! I made myself a promise to document next week a lot better. Hopefully I will have some fun pics to share. I do have a picture on my camera phone of me shooting but I have no idea how to get it from my phone to my computer?! Anyone?

Oops..I almost forgot..they have 3 alligators in a pond (fenced of course) at the hot springs! Super fun for the kids. There is also an alligator farm and a really cool national fish hatchery in Hagerman. And...the road to the hot springs is "Thousand Springs Scenic Byway" and it goes past our newest state park! The nature Conservancy jsut gave Thousand Springs Nature Preserve to the state of Idaho. It's a really cool place.