Lake Blanch, Florance, and Lillian

Memorial Day was good for us, we decided to go and do a little hike--McCallum's first. Although Ryan had already scheduled a day of shopping with her Nana, we took Mac up and hiked Lake Blanch. I must say, it was a harder hike than I anticipated. It was such a hard climb the entire way up. It's only about 3 miles to the top, but in that 3 miles you gain 2700 feet elevation. Needless to say, my hips are tights today! Ryan on the other hand spent some time shopping for the perfect backpack. Tomorrow she'll be testing it out for her first day of school!! Stay tuned for a post on that one tomorrow!

Lake Powell and more!

First I must say that my last post is no longer accurate. During the week Mac has learned himself how to walk! At Lake Powell he was walking all over the place. Not a main source of transportation yet, but getting there quick! That means that he walked at a year--tomorrow is his big FIRST BIRTHDAY!!

We were so luck this year... I mean how many kids can say that they get to go to Lake Powell three times in a year? We had such a good time. This trip it was just my parents and my one sister, Natalie, and her family. It was so fun, we were almost out numbered by kids this trip. Ryan was so big, she Knee Boarded, and caught a ton of lizards with me! I really had thought that she would not really want much to do with the lizards, but I was wrong. She wanted to hold all of them, name them, and let them sit on her hat and rest. I wish I would have got some pictures of her with the Lizard on her hat! I really need a water proof camera!!!

Mac had a blast at the lake too! He was so busy all the time! He finally got comfortable in his jacket--that made boating so much easier! He was intrigued when we would pull someone behind the boat! He liked swimming and would jump off the swim deck behind the boat! This kid is fearless! When it came to being on the house boat, this kid was impossible! We set up coolers so that he could not leave the front room when we needed him to stay put. However, he taught himself how to climb over the coolers fast! He also managed to climb up the ladders! He needed 150% of our attention just to keep him safe! (We would never give any less!)

Jared and I had a good time as well. Jared learned how to surf. Although he couldn't quite do it without a rope yet, he'll get it soon I'm sure! This trip I mostly surfed, but I did get to wake board too. Although I must say, I played it safe. After my brother Jeremy got hurt on his first ski run, I decided to lay off the flips! It was still a lot of fun!

I should also add a few of these pictures. I have been trying to get some good shots of McCallum for his first birthday, but it's been hit and miss. Yesterday I went out again in hopes of getting a quick photo opt with my sister Andrea--she makes the kids smile! However, Mac was tired and it was poorly planned. Here are some of my favorites though.

Turning one

Can you believe that this little boy will be a year?!! That's right he turns one on September 4th! Due to the fact that we will be away for his birthday, we decided to celebrate a bit early. Plus, if I made his cake at Stephanie and Jared's party it would get eaten by someone other than just me!

It seems like only yesterday that we were even waiting for this little guy to come! I can't believe how fast the time goes! All these months of growing and changing have just flown by. Now at one year old, McCallum is so fun. He's not quite walking by himself yet, but he gets around anything he wants to. He loves to make trouble. In fact, I think it makes him happy to hear me tell him "No." He is constantly getting into the cupboards that are off limits, or the cords that are not to be touched, or the remotes that are not to be played with. He loves to laugh, and is always smiling. Mac also loves the water. I constantly have to keep him out of the bathroom. Either he will try to get into the tub, or I find him splashing around the toilet! I try, but he can open the lid. At times he has even squeezed through the door! He's constantly on the go! I just love this little boy!!

Here are some of the photos from his party including the iguana cake that I made for him! It was a lot more work than I had planned... but it turned out great! I was proud that I did it without help!! Happy birthday my little guy!! We love you!!

28

I am a little behind on writing my darling Jared a Happy Birthday blog. I think I was waiting to do his party with McCallum, but I better not wait. So Happy 28th old man!

After Jared spent his special day working, I took him to Sportsman's and got him the gift of his dreams... a Leatherman tool. Wow! I really tried to get him to get another knife that he was drooling over, but he was just not committed. Funny boy! He has a wod of cash in his pocket, and he wont buy anything he wants. Silly! After we grabbed a bite and got the kids home and in bed. It was a good day. I hope Jared thought so too!

So lets all raise our glasses and toast to a man who works hard every day, who never quits smiling, and who never lets anything bother him! Cheers! I love you Jared!

Horses and 4 wheelers

We had a really fun weekend with our good friends Nate and Lyndsie! They put up with us crashing their family trip to the cabin. We really did have a great time! Ryan got to ride horses. She was so excited to see that there was a white horse... Maximus from Tangled. Although his name was Expensive. I thought we were going to have to let Nate and Lynds keep Ryan forever because she had so much fun with them.

Ryan also spent a lot of her time caring for a baby kitten. They were nursing it to good health and she loved that! She took that stinkin' thing everywhere! She fed it with the bottle, gave it naps, and gave it love. They tried to send it home with us, but that was an easy NO! She was so stinkin' cute. I guess she just loves animals!

Thanks Nate and Lyndsie! We had a blast! So much so that Ryan has been singing songs about you all day long. About how much she loves you and the horses!

Lake Powell

We got to go for a few days down to Lake Powell. It was a short trip, but we sure had fun! I was nervous that Ryan would be a little too afraid of the water, however, she did great! She just took to the water like a fish!! She even fell in love with the tube! She got to ride it several times with her Aunt Abbie, and Uncle Justin! It was a blast! I have to thank Abbie, Kevin, and Justin for letting Ryan go everywhere with you all day everyday!! She loved it, and to be honest... so did I. It was a nice break for me too!

As for McCallum, he did great too! He liked to swim, but it was a little cold for him. He really didn't like having to wear a life jacket on the boat either! It was like a little prison. It restricted his movement too much for him! He is just such a little mover, it was hard to be stuck in a jacket!

Jared ended up jumping off a small ledge into what ended up being three feet of water, and twisting his knee and ankle! To his credit, his dad and him were being very cautious, but had bad judgement. Lesson learned... NEVER, NO MATTER WHAT, JUMP INTO WATER THAT YOU ARE NOT POSITIVE WHAT IS BENEATH!!!! We had his leg checked out, and it is just fine! Lucky! The doctor was shocked there was not a break or fracture!

A Taste of My Own Medicine

I just have to blog this before I forget! I wish there were camera's rolling so that I could have this memory forever! However, I do not have my own reality show yet, so this post will have to suffice.

Ryan, recently got a new bike. It's a little 16" purple bike with pink training wheels and a little white basket on the front. She has been learning to ride it, but has not gotten the hang of stopping. The night we got the bike, Jared and I were out watching her ride it. She would go around and around the patio. Finally, Jared and I started pestering her about the need to be able to stop. We would tell her to go fast, then when we said "STOP" she would need to push back on her pedals, HARD. Well, this did not come easy. She thought that it was good enough just to coast to a stop. I tried and tried to explain that she needed to learn to break so that she could make it safely down hills. So we kept telling her to show us how to stop. It didn't take long for all of us to get a little frustrated. Ryan coasted to a stop, got off her bike, put her hands on her hips and walked right up to me and said...

"Mommy, you listen to me. I am riding my bike. Now you go in the house right now! ... Turd."

I was shocked. It was almost embarrassing that my little girl put me in my place like that. Jared was trying not to laugh, but doing a terrible job of it. I on the other hand just stood there in shock! Her tone was identical to mine when I get after her. In a way I was proud, because she didn't yell at me, and she didn't use any terrible language... so I guess I do okay when I get upset and have to discipline. On the other hand... she called me a "Turd." Maybe I should stop name calling!