Oh What Do You Do In The Summertime?.....

What do you do in the summertime with your kids....when it is 110 degrees and scorching outside???

You spend a lot of time doing silly/simple crafts and things indoors in the air conditioning....

And LOTS of time in the pool!!!

We just bought this new "family size" kiddie pool for the backyard and the kids are loving it! We got it out today for the first time and the kids were out in it for literally 6 1/2 hours straight!!!
(with a break for lunch and snacks, of course!)

Since there are so many kids here all day (our 3 plus the 5 that I babysit) we used the big pool for the older kids and the little pool for the "babies". My kids call it the "swimming pool and the hot tub." :) Some kids lasted longer than others out there.

But even after the daycare kids went home, our kids were still out there forever! They LOVE to swim!!! I guess that's a good thing when you live in Arizona with 110+ degree weather and that's about all you can do if you want to get out of the house! :)

HAPPY SUMMER EVERYONE!!!

Minivan Mamma!

I swore I would NEVER own one of these:

I've always been an SUV type of girl......but when you have enough kids to need a bigger car (especially for long trips!), you can't beat the gas mileage or the spaciousness of a minivan! And I realized they sure make them a lot better and cuter than when I was little. :) And now I am the proud owner of a Dodge Grand Caravan......and I am LOVING it!!!!

Even my kids are in love. Their reaction was something to the effect of "You mean we don't have to sit by each other?!?!?!" {Which mom really likes too - less fights in the car that way!}

Oh the space and the freedom of extra seating! :)

Now all we need is some kind of destination for a road trip and we're good to go!!!

*Extras* from our trip to UT

Since we spent over a week in UT visiting with family, there were the "events" that we took pictures of (previous posts), but here are just a few "random" pictures of things that happened throughout the week.

The boys completely enjoyed being outdoors every minute that they could with the beautiful weather that was there! It was hard to have to bring them back home to the AZ heat when the week was over! Here they are playing with Grandma Lesa's hose in her backyard:

One of the nights all the kids wore their "Christmas Pajamas" from when we were in Hawaii last Christmas so they all matched. It was cute!

Yes, I have all boys. And yes, they like to play barbies with my little sister Jenna. What more can I say? {Just don't tell their dad!} :)

The last night we were there happened to be my little sister Jenna's dance recital! Since we live so far away I never get to go to her recitals so it was really fun for me to be able to go! It brought back so many memories of when I was growing up and in dance! Jenna actually takes from the same teacher that I took from so that was fun to see her too!

It was a very busy week, full of lots of things, but it was so much fun to be able to be there and spend it all with family!

10 years ago.....ah the memories!

Exactly 10 years after I graduated from Bingham High School, my little brother Kevin graduated from the same school! It was fun to be visiting in Utah that week and be able to go and cheer him on! Here is the graduate himself:

Kevin and me with his 3 little nephews! :)

Family that was at the house the morning before the graduation: our sister-in-law Ashley (Jared had to work), me & my kids, and our brother Steven.

And what would picture taking be without a little silliness?!

Me and 2 of my "little" brothers! :)

The graduation was at Utah Valley University in Provo, UT. It was good. Long, but good. I guess you can't expect very short with over 750 graduates!
Kevin is the one on the front row, very end on the right with the orange cords around his neck.

What shows on the screen right before they call his name:

Him walking back to his seat after getting his diploma. (sorry so blurry!)

After the Graduation was over, we went out to dinner at Rodizios Grill (so yummy! But oh so full afterwards!!) Here is Kevin, now officially graduated, at dinner:

After we got back home we took a few more pictures with the other siblings that were there:
Derek, Emily, Kevin, Jenna, Jared & Steven (only missing are Joshua and Aaron)

Congrats Big/Little Brother on your graduation!!!

Shawn's Baptism....

Saturday May 29th, the day after his 8th birthday, Shawn was able to be Baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints by his father, Mike McDougal. Since we were going to be up in Utah for a family wedding over his birthday, we were able to get special permission to have Shawn baptized there the same weekend so that all the family would be able to attend. It was so nice to have so much support from family and friends!

Here's our little family before the Baptism:

Shawn's 2 Grandpa's were able to be the witnesses making it extra special!
(I wish I had a picture of the 2 Grandma's who both gave talks at the Baptism, but I don't. Bummer!)

Shawn and Mike in their white clothes for the Baptism. Shawn was so excited!!

Shawn's Great-Grandparents were also able to attend! 4 generations in attendance! (Emily's Grandparents)

The Baptism service was wonderful! The talks were wonderful and the musical number the kids sang was so beautiful! I know the spirit was truly there and that Shawn felt that!

After it was over, we had a little luncheon/get-together at the McDougal's house. (Convenient since there were still tables and chairs in the backyard from the reception the night before!) :) Mike's brother BJ & his wife Leslie were SO NICE to make a wonderful lunch for everyone! they had catered the wedding dinner the night before and had a lot of left-over food that they offered to let us use for the baptism. It turned out so good!

The kids of course had fun jumping on the tramp (yes, in their nice clothes!) with all their family and friends that were there.

and to top it off.....a yummy ice cream cake!

I think Connor enjoyed the ice cream cake more than anyone else there, what do you think?!?!

Here is my baby boy who is now my big, 8-year-old boy that is now baptized!!!

Shawn -
we love you so much and are so proud of you and the choices you are making in your life! We couldn't ask for a better son and a good example to your younger brothers!
Congratulations on your special day!!!
Love - mom & dad