San Diego Vacation

This summer was definitely the summer of vacations for us.  Never in our 11 years of marriage have we ever travelled or done as much as we did this summer.  It was just one of the times when you just have to take advantage of the time you have....and we sure did!

 

I have wanted to take the kids to San Diego for years! In fact, besides the day we spent at the beach a few years ago while we were at Disneyland, we haven't even had our kids at the beach!

Well, all that changed this summer! We finally spent some time at the beach and we had such a blast! I haven't been back to San Diego since before Cole and I were married, so it was especially fun for me to go back to a place that I spent so much time as a girl....so many good memories surrounded me and I shared as many as I could with my sweet kids!

 

First of all, we had to play some frisby in the grass!  (There is nothing like being all hot and sweaty before you hit the waves!)  I was actually really impressed with how much fun it was to play frisbee with the kids! They are growing up so fast!

After we were all pretty hot, we hit the sand!  We built sand castles, seached for shells, and attempted to boogey board! Of course, then we learned that we were definitely at the wrong beach for that, and just stuck to jumping the waves!

We had so much fun looking in the tide pools and finding all kinds of creatures formerly unknown to us "desert rats!"

And of course, the sea lions were a huge hit! We actually went to "Seal Beach" twice because we just couldn't get enough of those crazy things!

 

Down by the banks...

Still playing catch-up on the lazy days of summer, and good heavens, do these pictures make we want to go snatch my kids out of school and soak up the last days of warmth before fall comes.

 

This summer we spent so many days playing in the river just down from our house.

At first, I was a little hesitant...I mean, who knows what kind of chemical run-off, germs, etc. are in that thing! But then I realized that I grew up without the fear of any of those things and that I desperately want my children to be fearless and adventurous...so off we went down to the river!

 

At first, they were all a bit hesitant, but within a half hour or so, they were running through the lazy current, splashing, squealing and exploring! Oh how my heart smiled at that!

This cute little frog is one the boys had raised since he was a tadpole.  They decided that the river was the perfect place to let him go.  At first, he struggled a little, but eventually he figured it out and began swimming in the mild current on the side! Watching the boys have their "proud mama" moment almost made it worth all the hassle those little tad poles had been!

One of their favorite things to do was to have races down the current on their boogey boards!

And of course, we built sand castles and went exploring for hidden treasures!

Boy oh boy, was it ever hot this summer, but with the water all around, it just didn't feel near as bad!

I would plop my chair right in the middle of the current and read a book while the kids played their hearts out! We would waste the whole afternoon out there just playing and using our imaginations.



It was definitely a summer "down by the banks" that the kids (and I) will never forget! 

The Sweetest Reminder

I'm not going to lie...life gets awfully crazy around here.  Some days I feel like there is just no possible way I will ever be able to keep up with the constant demands of being a mom, wife, employee, business owner, daughter, Young Women's secretary...you get the idea.

 

But then, in the middle of a seemingly crazy day, amidst my begging for my kids to "PLEEAASSE" put their things away and find their scriptures, this is what I found.

Sweet little Allison, fervently trying to speak to her Heavenly Father.

...And even though I know there is still much to do,

I am reminded that I'm doing all right!

The Boys and Ball

Anyone who knows me, knows that I keep no secrets about my love of sports! 

Some of my greatest memories in life revolve around my adventures on various sporting trips or the memories made with my lifelong friends/teammates. A huge part of my life before Cole and the kids were sports....and I would never trade one of those moments.

 

I guess that is why it is so fun to watch my kids starting to make some of those memories for themselves.  This summer Brandon and Brock made their very first All-Star team! (and they weren't excited one bit;)

 

These two went to try-outs at the beginning of the season to see if they would even be able to "play-up" in the 9 year old bracket.  At the point that they tried out, they were only 7. More than anything, Cole just thought it would be a good experience for them to go to try-outs and see what it was like.  Imagine our surprise when coaches began coming to us to try to recruit them to their teams!

 

Long story short, they played in the 9 year old league and were even voted to be part of the All-Star team.  It was such an awesome experience for them.

I loved watching how excited they were when we got to their first practice. 

I love watching their facial expressions when they got a great hit off of some pretty amazing pitchers!

I loved eavesdropping in the hallway at night and hearing their non-stop chatter about the upcoming games....

I loved the way they cherished those jerseys and hats. I'm pretty sure they slept with their jerseys the first night they got them!

 



I loved the friendships they made and the sound of the boys cheering eachother on.

I loved the way they bonded as a team, regardless of school, grade, age, etc.

I loved the way they "trash-talked" and were so confident that they could "take" anyone!

I love that Cole was able to coach that awesome group of boys and that he and the boys got to experience it all, together, for the first time.

I love watching how proud Cole was when Brock made his amazing catches in center field, and when Brandon kept snagging bullets at 3rd.

I love that they won some and lost some, but that they were proud of themselves no matter what.

I love that they learned that being a team player and a good sport is important....

and I especially loved that we beat the Wolfpack (St. George's "elite" traveling team!)...{wink!}

 

Most of all, I loved sitting back, watching my boys play a game they love. I loved watching their natural talent show through and loved watching them shine and grow.

I sure love this sweet group of boys and how good they were to each other. 

And I sure loved those coaches. They taught those boys how to play the game with class and energy!

Yes, sirree! These boys definitely made some awesome memories this summer...memories they will have for the rest of their lives!