It's What Fun Is!

www.lagoonpark.com

The kids and I (minus Kesh 'cause she had to work) just spent a fun-filled day at our local amusement park, Lagoon, yesterday.  I took the two youngest with me while the two older boys went off to ride the "big kid rides."  I texted my husband while there that the look on the two little one's faces was priceless!  Huge, ear-to-ear grins!  Running from ride to ride!  Going back to the same rides over and over!  Jaggyr was so excited that he got to ride on his very first roller coaster ever!  The yells of excitement when we were on a ride scared me because I thought he was afraid. . . nope!  Just uber excited!  It was a long day and we had an absolute blast! 

Jaggyr has already started school and Ella starts this week so summer is coming to a close.  My older three don't start until the end of August, though.  We have had so much fun, but I am ready to get back to painting and DIY.  School always brings some sense of structure back to our lives that I am craving right about now.  Along with the start of school also comes sports, practices, games, fund raising, etc.  But I am ready for it. 

Mini Vacation

I have been MIA a little bit lately.  I actually had a weekend off last week and decided to take the kids to our cabin.  My parents and my youngest sister and her 2 boys also came.  We decided on Saturday that we were going to take a little road trip to Bryce Canyon National Park.  I haven't been there for many, many years and my kids have actually never been there.  It is so ironic that people travel from all over the world to see the National Parks in Utah and my kids (oldest 17 years old) are just now seeing Bryce.  Better late than never, I always say!  Here are some fabulous pics of our adventure:

Here is their first look at the towers of Bryce.

While on the shuttle bus, the driver said Ebenezer Bryce

said something to the effect of this being a lousy place

to find a cow.  Kazen thought that was funny.

I believe Jaggyr is a bit dumbfounded.

Absolutely gorgeous scenery!

If you click on the below pic to enlarge it you can

actually see people walking on the trail below.

Now that's a hike!

Trevin and Kazen were the only two that were

willing to pose for pics.

This picture was taken at Bryce Point.  This lookout means

something special to me as my grandparents were

actually married on this exact spot.  My grandma grew

up in Tropic, the little tiny town you can

see down in the valley below.  My grandpa grew up in Hurricane,

but both of them were working at Bryce one summer when

they met and fell in love.  Because this was where they

met, they decided to get married here.  My grandpa has since passed away, but

I think about him often.  I have such fond memories of my

grandparents from my childhood.  It was a special feeling

to actually stand where their wedding took place.

Here is Mammy and 4 of her 11 grandkids.

If you haven't already noticed, Dax hates

posing for pictures.  I just have one thing to say to him,

WAAAAAA!

As we were walking back to the shuttle stop, there were

a whole bunch of tourists stopped at the base of this tree,

looking up and taking pictures.  I followed suit and

this beautiful bird was waiting for his close up.

Here are Ella and her little cousin, Brody.

If you have never been to Bryce, you really should make the time to go visit this magnificent place. 

This is from the NPS website http://www.nps.gov/brca/historyculture/index.htm:

Bryce Canyon is a small national park in southwestern Utah. Named after the Mormon Pioneer Ebenezer Bryce, Bryce Canyon became a national park in 1928.
Bryce is famous for its worldly unique geology, consisting of a series of horseshoe-shaped amphitheaters carved from the eastern edge of the Paunsaugunt Plateau in southern Utah. The erosional force of frost-wedging and the dissolving power of rainwater have shaped the colorful limestone rock of the Claron Formation into bizarre shapes including slot canyons, windows, fins, and spires called "hoodoos." Tinted with colors too numerous and subtle to name, these whimsically arranged rocks create a wondrous landscape of mazes, offering some of the most exciting and memorable walks and hikes imaginable.
Ponderosa pines, high elevation meadows, and fir-spruce forests border the rim of the plateau and abound with wildlife. This area boasts some of the world's best air quality, offering panoramic views of three states and approaching 200 miles of visibility. This, coupled with the lack of nearby large light sources, creates unparalleled opportunities for stargazing.

Thrifty AND Chic?

Yes, it is possible to be thrifty and still find amazing items for your home.  You can also find gently-used clothing at an ounce of the price.  Case in point. . . I took 2 of my kids with me to the DI (which is our local version of a thrift store).  The one in particular we went to had just moved to a new, much larger building, so we were anxious to see what treasures we could find there.  I usually have the best luck finding clothes for my girls, in particular my youngest, Ella.  Ella has grown about 5 feet tall in the past year and so all of her pants and shirts are too short for her.  Plus, she needed summer dresses, and we found just that. 

Here's Ella's haul!

She will be darling in her "new" outfits!

This little Downeast Girl dress cost $1!

She informed me that she would be wearing

this on the first day of school.

Here is a set of chipboard letters

from Making Memories, $1!

I thought I might use the outside

as a stencil for some signs.

How can I possibly go wrong for $1?

Now, you might ask, "What do a cute ornate jar

with a red lid and a nutcracker have in

common?"  Absolutely nothing!

Jaggyr is just in love with nutcrackers.

He didn't go with me to the DI, so he

gave me some of his hard-earned cash

just in case I might come across a

nutcracker. . . and I did. . . and

I couldn't pass it up for .75 to make a

little guy happy.

Nutcrackers actually scare me

more than a little.  Their eyes

are so far apart, their teeth are

always showing.  I don't know, they

just seem a little creepy to me.

I got these 2 shelves which were identical,

until I painted Caromal Colours Parchment

over the black on one.

I liked how it turned out, so will

be painting the other one as well.

These shelves were $2 each.

You can't find prices that cheap,

except maybe at a yard sale.

It took me less than an hour

to paint and distress the white shelf.

Total Transformation!

This may look like an ordinary whiskey

barrel with beautiful red geraniums and

sweet potatoe vine, but what you don't know

is that I bought a hanging basket full of

red geraniums from The Home Depot

on clearance for only $5, regularly priced $26.97!

I just separated the geraniums and re-planted them.

So not only do I go to thrift stores, I

seek out clearance prices everywhere

I go!  You just need to be willing to search.

I got a package of the little flags at

Target in their $1 section and placed

them around my yard.

Below is the wood flag I got at a yard sale

for only $2.  I also used this as a pattern

to make more flags.

As you can see, we are so ready for the 4th of July!

Thrift stores truly hold treasures if you

are willing to take the time to search for them.

By now, I have a hard time paying full price

for really anything.

Next stop, Extreme Couponing!

Summer Fun with the Slip N' Slide

Summer seemed like it was a little late in coming this year.  I'm not complaining because I love spring weather, the thunder storms, the cool nights, highs of about 73.  But, the kids were sure ready for some summer weather so we could pull the ole Slip N' Slide out!  Summer finally came and here are some great shots of the kids with the neighbors.

Here is my Little Guy, Jaggyr!

Jag can make it all the way to the end

on one slide!



Next up is Grace, our neighbor,

and Ella's Best Friend. 

And here is Caybie, Grace's Brother.

(And a little cutie too!) 

Their mommy just had a brand new

baby 2 weeks ago, a little girl named Lucy!

Talk about a little cutie!

Caleb is not quite ready for the belly slide

just yet, so he sticks to the knees

then he crawls the rest of the way!

Here's my sweet Ella!

She is going to hate me when she is older

for putting this picture on here!

Ella decided that was quite fun,

so here she goes again!

Jaggyr likes to make sure the slide

is straight and everything is just

right for the next contestant!

And here are the 2 besties! 

They love to play together!

Fun times were had by all.  I have a feeling this is going to be a summer staple.

I had better stock up on the popsicles.