The Beach

On Saturday of our trip to San Diego we went to Coronado Beach. It was beautiful, and the perfect day to be at the beach. I loved the smell, the breeze and the views. While I was still up on the beach, Scott and my Mom went with the kids to venture out into the water. It was such a joyful scene, to see my little family holding hands & laughing as the waves lapped up to the shore. It gave me a little glimpse of what heaven might be like, relishing the simple things and experiencing joy in our posterity.


The kids had a great time. We were there for several hours. One pastime was burying people in the sand. Each of the kids got their turn to be buried, and Scott was having a blast doing it. We also buried my sister Elizabeth, then made the sand around her look like she was a mermaid. It was pretty awesome. I had no idea Scott had such sand sculpting skills! (say that 5 times fast!)

All in all it was a beautiful day, topped off with a great meal at a local Mexican place, suggested by a guy in the guard booth at the beach. He actually showed up at the restaurant later, saying that after telling us about the place he was craving it, so he had to come!

After dinner we were back on the road to Arizona. It was a quick trip, but I'm SO glad we went!

Sea World

My Mom & sisters arrived Wednesday the 3rd. Scott's break was going to end that coming Monday and we wanted to do something really fun and memorable during his break, so on Wednesday night we said, "What the hey-- let's go to Sea World!!"

We got up early the next morning, around 4 am, to make the 5 1/2 hour drive to San Diego. It was a blast! We went both Thursday & Friday. The kids loved it! There were so many fun shows, neat exhibits and cool animals. I'm really glad we went.

I didn't want to bombard you with pictures, so I just made this little collage. Feel free to click on it to blow it up if you can't see some of the smaller ones very well.


Center: Our whole group waiting to see the Shamu show "Believe". Michael says Shamu was his favorite part of Sea World and that he loves him.
Going clockwise from the top left...
* Emma chillin' in the stroller.
* Shoulder rides around the park. Was it really necessary to bring in the stroller?
* SISTERS! Moriah, Savannah, Jillian, Elizabeth & Sariah. Katelynn really, really wanted to be in this picture.
* Scott & Jilly
* Michael & Emma at Manna Ray Bay. They have this big tank where you can pet the manna rays. The kids loved it, and we spent to last part of both days there.
* A group shot (minus my mom and I) at the Shark Encounter. There is this tunnel where the sharks are swimming right over your head!
* Katelynn, Sariah & Mom heading to our next exhibit/show/ride.
* Katelynn, Emma & Michael having a sword fight.
* No picture montage of Sea World is complete without a shot of Shamu! (or a couple of his friends. They all look the same to me...)
* Katelynn & Mommy riding "Elmo's Flying Fish".

It was great to get away for a few days. A good time was had by all, and great memories were made.

The Move

Whew! What can I say about the move? Long, arduous, insane, exhausting, (insert your favorite blecky word here). From Friday to Tuesday I think I had a TOTAL of 6-8 hours of sleep. Yes, TOTAL!! Dr. Pepper was my friend that weekend.

Here is a picture of the girls helping pack. Katelynn & Emma actually packed that box of DVDs. I was impressed.


This is what Michael was doing while the girls were packing. Lol!


Getting the truck was a fiasco and a half. When Scott called to check on the reservation, they said it would be available at 5. He said, "Oh, we don't need it that early!" They said, "No, that's 5 pm." Crap! That was a problem, 'cause the guys who were coming to help out from the church were supposed to be at our house at 8 to load the truck. The U-Haul people told Scott that they opened at 8 am and he could come get it then. So, we went over there about 20 till 8, and there was a HUGE line. Then, when it was (finally) Scott's turn they said they didn't have the size we RESERVED available . Luckily, someone came up to the counter right then with the size truck we needed and Scott was able to get it. While Scott was getting the truck, I met the guys at the house and had them start to take stuff out to the lawn. Once the truck got there they were able to take 2 loads over, then during the rest of the day Scott and I took over another load or two. (Yes, we have a lot of crap stuff)

While the guys from church were helping Scott load and unload the truck, I took the kids over to a friend's house to play. They have triplets 5 months older than ours, so the kids had a blast playing. After the helpers left and I picked up the kids we just kept working and working and working ALL WEEKEND! We took a break on Sunday to go to church, then more and more working.

On Monday I had a doctor's appointment that I wanted Scott to attend. (side note: NO, I didn't NOT want Scott to attend because I have any kind of news whatsoever to share or announce. I just hate going to an appointment with a new doctor alone, and I feel that more of my questions are answered when he is there and when he tells the doc he's in med school. That is all. The End.) During the appointment some friends of ours watched the kiddos (thanks, guys!), then afterward-- your guessed it-- more and more work! We finally got the last of our stuff out and the last of the cleaning, touch-up painting, etc. finished Wednesday.

It was a very long weekend, and I'm glad to say that we are getting things unpacked and organized here at the new house. It's nice to put things away, knowing we will be here for a few years. I think it's shaping up to be a nice place!

Phoenix Zoo

At the beginning of Scott's break we decided to go to the Phoenix Zoo as a family. We were able to get in for FREE because they were having a special Family Zoo Day sponsored by Fry's. So, if you showed them your Fry's VIP card at the ticket counter you got 2 free admissions to the zoo. And, on top of that, if you had a receipt from Albertson's for buying any Al Fresco sausage product you got a free child's admission. Score!!

It was a gorgeous day for the zoo--not too hot and overcast, so the animals were out!! It's a pretty neat zoo. The pathways are really nice, and there's a section where it's like you've been transported to South America and the animals are along this path through the jungle.
1) Emma hammin' it up.
2) Michael brushing a goat.
3) Katelynn brushing a goat.
4) Katelynn cheesin' for the camera.
5) Michael riding a "horse" with Scott. Scott was doing the "William Tell Overture" while bouncing Michael on the horse, and he was loving it!
6) Emma brushing a goat. They had a really good time in the petting zoo.
7) A spider monkey, up close and personal. They have this really neat exhibit (the only one of its' kind in North America) where you go into this huge cage and are right there next to the monkeys. The kids, especially Michael, were in Monkey Heaven!
8) A family pic in front of the "Savannah".

It was a great trip to the zoo. We were there well past closing time, and the workers didn't even care because they were busy feeding the animals. If you haven't gone to the Phoenix Zoo yet it's worth checking out! (but I would search online to see if you can get any good deals first, 'cause it is not cheap!)

Back online!

Yes, I will be posting all about the move, our trip to San Diego, my Mom & sisters' visit, school, crazy kiddos and all that jazz. I just wanted to do a quick post to say that after a (seemingly) long hiatus of no internet service whilst moving we are BACK ONLINE!! *insert applause & cheering here*

So, yes we are alive, and yes you will hear about our adventurous couple of weeks. We are all alive & well, and busy getting settled into our new place. Scott had a two week break from school, which was great, and now he's back to the ole grindstone. Can you believe they have school all summer long, then only get one week off before Fall semester starts?! Who came up with THAT idea?! Because I know a few pod students and their wives who would like to have words with them.

Well, friends-- look forward to lots of fun posts, pictures and cute and/or funny anecdotes. Ciao!