Bridal Veil Falls

Family outing time!  How about an exhilerating climb up to Bridal Veil Falls, and a picnic?  Sounded like a super fun idea to the girls.  And it was a hit!  McKel mostly just loved to throw rocks at the fish in the little pool at the bottom.  Avril's adventurous side came out and she was determined to climb her way all the way to the top!  Mike made the treacherous climb with her.  Meanwhile, mom watched from below, having a mini heart attack.  Much to mom's surprise, Avril and Mike made it ALL the way to the top!
The girls love getting outdoors and in the dirt.  I only wish we could do it more often.  It was a real treat for them.

Mike and Avril after the long and steep climb to the top!

Two of my sweetheart loves

Mike snapped a photo of the three girls at the bottom of the falls

Happy girls!

Here you can see why mom was having a mini heart attack...

Avril feeling accomplished, at the top of her climb!

A pic Mike took at the top, below the falls

These are the moments to treasure...

Lotsa rocks to climb!

A nice shot of the waterfall

 



A very happy....and very dirty Avril!

Lagoon A Beach

Since we bought season passes to Lagoon, I try to take the girls to Lagoon as often as we can.  The girls are always up for the fun time!

McKel checks out the splash pad for a little cooling off!  Cutest smile ever!

On the way to Lagoon the girls told me they wanted to try out the waterpark there, Lagoon A Beach.  Unfortunately, I didn't bring along their swimsuits so we made a stop at the Children's Place to find some swimwear.  The girls picked out these swimming suits... unfortunately, they were both a bit too skinny for these designs so I had to use hair ties to hold their bottoms up!  We made it work and they had a blast, looking adorable all the while...

Sweet sisters showing off their new swimsuits!

Happy girls!

Avril smiles for the camera

McKel is all about the fun!

Whee!!

Chillaxin in the lazy river!

Hi mom!

Here comes Avril!

While the girls were floating around the lazy river mommy was following along the side.  The girls managed to get separated and as I followed McKel, Avril somehow got ahead of us and mommy about had a heart attack searching for her.  I was panicking and recruited a lifeguard for the search.  We did find her quickly, not far ahead along the river, but talk about a worried mom!  Upon reuniting with Avril, I was squeezing her tightly when I felt a sharp sting on my finger.  I looked down to see a mean wasp just being plain mean!  It flew away as the pain surged in my finger, and it started to swell...

Um, ouch!



Here is a pic I took to send to Mike and show him the pain I was in...

Despite the scary Avril disappearance and bee sting pain, we still had a good time together, making another family memory.  Love my girls to pieces.

Fun

Here are just a few random shots and a video demonstrating some of the fun and silliness that goes on at home.
 

The girls decided to sport some hats around the house...

 Mike snuck in a shot of me.  I was reluctant to be in the pic :/  But I guess its a good idea to have some shots of the photographer in there...

Avril and McKel check out something cool on Mike's phone...

It's nice having a family that feels complete again.  We are still adjusting to life in South Jordan, Utah, but I am definitely grateful for what we have... I love that the girls are happy.

McKel's Surgery

Poor little McKel had to go in for her second ear tube surgery. The first set got turned around inside the ear canal and was causing fluid build-up and infections.  The Ear Nose & Throat Physician recommended we have more permanent tubes placed in her ears.  McKel was such a trooper.  She was her happy-go-lucky, simply adorable self, and made all of us smile.

McKel shows off her cute foot slippers and tiger scrubs before the surgery...

We watched McKel head down to the operating room with the Doctor... hard moment for a mommy

McKel comes back from the operation a bit disoriented and confused as to what is happening.  Such a brave girl, that cute little McKel...

Way to be brave, McKel.  Mommy loves you with all my heart!!

Nana and Papa's House

Just thought I'd add a few adorable pics of the girls at Nana and Papa's house.  The girls sure do love and miss their Nana and Papa up in Logan.  They always have such a fun time when they go to visit...

A cute froggy and a sweet tiger!

Avril LOVES to play dress-up!

two cutie pie girls!

McKel's personality is much like that of Tigger, so this outfit is fitting... Bouncy, bouncy, fun, fun, fun, fun, fun!

Avril is under there somewhere... :)

Thanks for being such awesome grandparents and for helping make fun memories with the girls!  We love our nana and papa.

Rockwell Relay 2014

This year for the Rockwell Relay we didn't have the amazing photography skills of the Jones family, so the pics are minimal, and not quite as breathtaking.  The ride was still gruelling, of course, and a memorable challenge.  We had two Mikes on our team... another rider from my dad's work (ThermoFisher).  Here are a few photos from the gorgeous ride:

Our teammate Mike leads the pack, allowing fellow Rockwell Relay-ers to draft off him...

An example of some of the picturesque views along the route

And here is a shot of my Mike, after a wretched hill climb, he treks along...

This year I didn't finish all of my legs, but I did my best under the circumstances. And the circumstances were... if you watch this video you will find out! Unfortunately, a couple of weeks after the race I found out it wasn't going to happen this time around... but at least we know it can happen for us...

Silliness

I needed to get a pic of a receipt to send to someone, so I pulled up the photo album on my phone to find this goofy pic:

It made my day.  Avril must've grabbed my phone off the counter and snapped a photo of herself.  It sure was a nice surprise for mommy to find :)  I love my kiddos, they bring me so much joy... those silly girls!!