Washington D.C. Temple Trip

Yesterday we took a family trip to the Washington D.C. Temple. I am so grateful for temples on the earth today that allow us to be an eternal family. It was so fun to hear Brianna & Brayden get excited about seeing the temple. One of their favorite songs to sing almost everyday is "I Love to See the Temple." And of course, this temple has a special meaning to me because this is where I was sealed to my mom, dad, and sister when I was only one and a half years old. I am grateful for a loving Father in Heaven that wants us to be an eternal family. I know that families can be together forever, and that makes me so HAPPY!!!

Fun with the Bun (in the oven)!

We went to the beach a couple of weekends ago, and the Ryan and the kid's convinced me to let them bury me in the sand...So, I have to admit, it has been quite a while since I have done this, and my memory of how much sand (in all those weird places) gets trapped in your swimsuit afterward was a little off. Note to self....it will be a while until I do THAT again...but it was still very fun.

Dance Costumes!!!

This is one of my favorite pics of Brianna in her costume. Doesn't she have the best smile???
Pictured are the other two girls in her ballet class, Kate and Lacey. They did a wonderful job during the recital and I was so proud of all of them....especially my lil' dancer! I'll attach a video of their dance soon (it's on our video camera still).

Uncle Ray and Brianna

Ryan absolutely LOVES this picture of his brother and our little girl. And of course he should! Brianna was so excited to go to the beach and what made it really special was there her Uncle Ray got to go with her. It has been over a week now, and we are still hearing her talk about the fun family trip and her famous Uncle Ray!!! :) Thanks Ray for bring so cool!!!

Beach Day with Uncle Ray

We're ready for a fun day at Virginia Beach!

Uncle Ray helped out by carrying Brianna after she got tired from walking along the boardwalk.

These next two pics are kinda funny b/c they look like they go together....but no, Brianna did not push Brayden into the sand...he just did that all by himself! What a silly MESSY boy!

The boys (Ryan & Ray) had a fun time building a wading pool for the kids. The kids had a fun time digging, splashing, and falling into it!

Some quality Uncle & Nephew time!

This picture is to document the fact that both these young strapping lads decided that a water temp of 50 degrees was NOT going to stop them from diving into the water...personally, I think they're both CRAZY! It was pretty funny to watch them get the guts up to do it though. I think they were out there in the water for about 1 hour before Ryan just jumped right into a wave, and then Ray followed shortly after. I tried to get close enough just to take pictures and my feet were FREEZING!!! It's so fun to see boys just being boys! :)

Williamsburg anyone???

Ryan had a great idea to check out Williamsburg, VA. So, we packed up the kids, and some lunches, and headed out for the day (a little unprepared because it RAINED alot of the time we were there...but we still had a great time!) Here are some pics from our visit (and by the way....we didn't even buy tickets and we still had a great time!)

Brayden practicing his "sad"face for this pic! And next, we enjoyed a pipes and drum parade...it sounded really cool, and the kids really loved it too!

This is how we teach our kids to work hard! And check out this water fountain in a barrel! Cool, huh?

We asked how much a ride in the fancy carriage was....um, $20/person and the ride lasts 20 minutes!!! Yeah, can't afford that one right now!!!

The kids and I just relaxing after playing a serious game of Duck, duck, goose in the commons area lawn. I love spending time with our little family! Oh....the memories! :)

Our Easter Surprise!

Ryan and I have been training our kids to play quietly in their rooms when they first wake up (so we can get some extra Zzzz's and sleep a little later then 6 am on Sat. mornings). This has been working really great! So, the night before the Easter Bunny came (actually Fri. night b/c we celebrated the pagan side of Easter on Sat. this year) Ryan and I stuffed the eggs and set it out on the table nice and pretty for the next morning. Looks perfect...right????

Well, the next morning we wake up to Brianna saying to Ryan, "Dad, come quick, come quick! You won't believe your eyes! The easter bunny came last night, and he gave us candy...and we are EATING IT RIGHT NOW!!!! So, we both groggily wonder downstairs to discover every candy filled egg dumped onto the kitchen table, and the big chocolate bunnies opened and melting in their little hands! Oh, what fun to be a parent!!! Serves us well for trying to get a little extra sleep!!! hahaha...gotta LOVE KIDS! And we do, especially ours!