Summer Happenings

We are having a pretty busy summer. I'm trying to get pictures of all of the fun stuff. We've got a lot more summer to go too so stay tuned!

The girls in their birthday dresses. What happened to my little babies?

I love the look on Alyssa's face!

The girls are both in a begining Karate class this summer. They have already advanced from their White belts to their Yellow belts.

Kayla receiving her new belt.

Alyssa receiving her new belt. When Quanjinim Scott gave her the belt he announced to everyone, "I hate to admit it, but she is my favorite!" She's so cute in her little outfit!

My two yellow belts! Kayla is going to continue with Karate when school starts but Alyssa has decided she'd rather do swimming again.

Monday night we met up with a few of the families from our ward for Family Bowling night. It was a blast. I haven't bowled since we've got married and boy did it show! I stunk! But we still had a lot of fun. I think we are going to have to go more often now because the girls loved it too.

Alyssa showing off her cool shoes. She wants a pair to wear all of the time!

The 4th

This 4th of July we wanted to do something different. We were supposed to go camping but a week before we were supposed to go we got a call from the State Parks saying they had to cancel our reservation because there was too much snow on the roads to get to the campground. WHAT! Too much snow in July! Crazy! Our neighbors drove past where we were supposed to stay a couple of days later and yes, there was too much snow. So... we had to change our plans.

We loaded the kids up in the Jeep and headed to Colorado Springs. We've been there quite a few times and there's so much to do that we never get to it all.

This trip we decided we'd go to the Fine Arts Museum.

Ummmm..... it was SO boring! We must have picked the wrong time to go because the exhibits were not even remotely exciting. I mean... I could do art work better than they had.

The only thing that interested us was a statue outside.

When we went to UNM there was a statue that we called the Ugly Man Hands statue. Now, I'm not sure if it's still at UNM or if this is the same one. But it was there! The exact same statue.

Check out those ugly man hands on that women! And the face! Woof! Ha! Ha! It sure took us back to our college days.

Saturday afternoon we went to see Kung Fu Panda 2. I highly recommend it. For a cartoon it was very funny. The girls (and Joe) loved it. It poured the whole time we were in there so we made a good choice.

After swimming we took the girls swimming in the hotel pool. Swimming's always fun for the girls.

Sunday morning we went to Garden of the Gods. It was packed! We couldn't find any parking close to the coolest attractions. We eventually found a spot near some of the smaller attractions and went for a hike that ended up only being about 1 mile or so. Just enough for the girls though.

Our pathetic attempt at getting a family picture by ourselves.

We tried to drive up Pikes Peak but there was so many people that traffic was at a standstill and Joe wasn't about to take his standard up there. It would have been a pain to move a few feet at a time the entire way up. On our way home we stopped at the outlet mall in Castle Rock to get Kayla a new jacket. Then once we got home we crashed and watched a movie.

The next day we were lazy and went out for lunch. Then the girls played with their new Slip and Slide. Joe had to show them how to do it. Unfortunately I didn't have the camera ready when he did. He was fully dressed when he did it too!

We ended the day by going and getting Dairy Queen and watching the town fireworks from the library parking lot. There was no music so it was hard to keep the girls interested.

It was a nice relaxing weekend.

Alyssa's 5th Birthday!

Alyssa had her 5th birthday in June.

For her special day she decided that she wanted to go swimming so that's what we did. She finally got brave enough to go completely underwater without any help. We had a blast. That is until Kayla cut her foot on the bottom of the pool and we had to leave.

After we swam Alyssa chose to have lunch at Burger King. The BK by our house has an awesome play area. They have video games and a basketball court along with the usual playground.

We went home after that and relaxed for a while before the girls had their Karate class.

Alyssa's favorite color is yellow. This is the birthday dress that I found for her and she LOVES it. I think it fits her personality pretty well too.

After Karate Alyssa chose Olive Garden for dinner. It's a family favorite! Yummy!

Of course the cats always have to be in the middle of the present opening!

Alyssa wanted Beta Fish for her birthday too. The red one on the right is now gone. It got a weird fin disease and died a week after we got it. Luckily the pet store had a 2 week return policy so Alyssa got to go pick out a new one. The new one is blue and red.

A yummy ice cream cake from Dairy Queen!

A great way to end a fun filled day!

Happy Birthday Alyssa!

Joe's New Ride

Well, the time has finally come when we had to replace Joe's 99 Nissan Sentra. It has served us well, but we won't be missing it because it has been too much trouble lately.
In high school Joe had an 87 Jeep Cherokee that he loved. When he left on his mission he sold it to my dad and I drove it during my senior year and my first year of college. I loved that car too. Jeep doesn't make Cherokees any more but they do have a new car, the Patriot. It is very close to the Cherokee. That is the car Joe chose. It is also the same color of his old Mustang which was the first car he ever drove.
So, here is Joe's new car. A 2011 Jeep Patriot Latitude.

These pictures were taken in the parking lot of the local high school. Joe chose the 5-speed Manual because it gets better gas mileage. The only problem is I have never learned how to drive a manual car. We were in this parking lot so he could teach me how to drive. I never thought I'd be 27 and need to have my husband teach me how to drive! The lesson went well. I didn't end up crying, he didn't yell, and the car is still in one piece so I say it was a success!

Kayla's Birthday

The day before Kayla's birthday we had a BBQ with Steve and Kari Ann's families.
The weather wasn't the best but the kids had fun playing together and they even got to wack at a pinata.

Sam took his turns very seriously.

Collecting their loot.

Enjoying some ice cream.

The 7 Year Old Birthday Girl!

Kayla got two beta fish for her present.

Waiting for cup cakes!

Making a wish.....

Happy Birthday sweet Kayla!!!!

Bruno Mars and Memorial Day

When Kari Ann was in town we went to the Bruno Mars concert. It was so AWESOME!!!
We had so much fun!
Sam got to come with us too.

BRUNO!!!
A guy named Mayer Hawthorne opened and Janelle Monae also performed.

On Memorial Day we took Kari Ann, Keven, and Jaylee hiking in Heil Valley Ranch on the other side of Longmont. These are the pictures Kari Ann took.
The girls on the way.

Stopping for a snack.

Big paw prints. Maybe a bear?