Mother/Daughter Activity

Hailey and I recently went to a mother/daughter activity at our church. It was really fun to have a daughter to take. Hailey was really excited because we made bracelets and I sewed a pillowcase for her and we had this photo taken together. Hailey is so much fun to do things with! We had a great time shopping for back to school clothes and doing "girl stuff".

Crazy Bath Time

This give everyone an indication of our daily life and what a typical day may consist of.

Karate

Hi Yah! Calvin, Hailey and Oliver have been taking karate all summer. It is nice to have them learning all about focus, respect, and obedience-"the karate way". I decided they were having so much fun and I was really liking what they were learning, that we are going to continue this fall. They have all earned their gold belts so far.

Labor Day

More fun in Estes Park on Labor Day! We went to the slides and miniature golfing with the kids. We had a picnic by the river and then stopped to see some elk on the town's golf course. I love being so close to the Rocky Mountains.

More of the Larson Family Reunion

It has been two months, and we are still talking about the reunion. We had a great time. The kids loved riding the horses. Calvin and Hailey had a great adventure in the "Mutton Bustin" portion of the rodeo. What a fun summer!

Rockin-R-Ranch Larson Reunion

We had a blast at the Larson family reunion at the beginning of August. It took place in Antimony, Utah at a Dude Ranch. We were able to enjoy horseback riding, hay rides, tubing, archery, canoeing, a zip line, and loads of farm animals. Our kids had a blast! At the end of the 3 days we had a family rodeo. Joel and I got to try barrel racing. Hailey and Calvin did mutton bustin. Jade and Oliver stuck to the pony rides. We got to do relays with all of the Larson's. Joel and I weren't sure what to expect but we had an awesome time hanging out with our family.

Hailey Learns to Ride her Bike

Hailey finally decided that she wanted to learn to ride a bike. It was prompted by a little competition between her and Oliver. Hailey learned to knee board but Oliver was a little too scared. Oliver said "Well, I can ride a bike!" So, when we got home from Grandma and Grandpa's lake Hailey said, "Mom, I want to practice riding my bike!" So..20 minutes later she was riding a two-wheeler. Good Job Hailey!

Rocky Mountain National Park

Joel has been working long hours recently (understatement) so on Tuesday he escaped and we headed for the mountains. We went to Sprague Lake and hiked around the lake. It rained so our picnic lunch was in the car. Later we headed to Estes Park to the kids favorite place to slide. We walked around Estes Park and got some ice cream. Cool day and it was good to spend some time with Joel.

Renaissance Festival

The day after the 4th we went to Larkspur, CO for the Renaissance Festival. It was kids weekend with the theme of Pirates, Princes and Princes. So the kids dressed up in their costumes and off we went. We had fun jousting - See Oliver's scared look. And Calvin and Oliver entered in the Pirate's costume contest. With Jack Sparrow himself judging. The photo is of Calvin giving his best "Argghhh!" to the audience. Oliver was a little more shy. We loved the costumes.

4th of July

The 4th of July is an awesome holiday. We went to my parents for the annual waterski party. I made my red, white and blue pie (KJ special). Jade grabbed on to this bikini in the store and would not let go. I love the belly in this red and blue starred bikini. We had a great day skiing and barbequeing with family and friends. We went to Longmont and watched the fireworks on Skyline hill and then over the Deb and Mike's to light off our own. Our kids were exhausted but we had a great day! Love this holiday!

July 3rd Rockies Game

Happy Father's Day Joel! I have figured out a few things about Joel in 13 years. He prefers to go places instead of stuff for birthdays and holidays. So for Father's Day I got him tickets to the Rockies game vs. the Florida Marlins. They won in 11 innings. It was a great game with "a little bit of everything". There were amazing fireworks after the game that were right over Coors Stadium. Very loud with music...just the way we like it. We did leave Jade with Grandma and Grandpa Larson thank goodness. Hailey looked cute in her 4th of July clothes and she loved waving her flag.

Around the House

Fun with the swimming pool! I painted the picnic table with three little helpers. It was a disaster. Hailey had paint strewn through her hair.

Oliver and Calvin added painted footprints to our cement patio. The kids had a lot of fun. Very memorable.

Summer Days. We are enjoying tons of fun activities around town at the park, movie theater, library, and swimming pools. I am going to be exhaused by the time this summer is over! It is surprising how much it takes to entertain four kids.

On July 1st my dad, Dee turned 68 years-old. He wanted a waterski party. Not a popular type of party for a 68 year-old I would suspect. Although he is the designated boat driver this ski season due to his total hip replacement surgery a few months ago. He is doing fabulous however and will be back in action for snow ski season. He and my mom are so fun to be around. He received a new sit on top kayak making it easier for him to fish. We gave him a lawn game called "Ladder Golf".

The last weekend of June we went to Moab, UT for our annual trip. We left Friday morning. Our friend Charlie came with us. We arrived in time to visit my friend, Janel and leave our kids while Joel and I went golfing. We went to our favorite pizza place and then on to the campground. This year we got a cabin-yes, we are getting soft.

Saturday morning, Charlie and I went mountain biking on a trail leading to Hidden Valley. We didn't make it to Hidden Valley but we had a blast goofing around in a place called Lunar Valley. It was like the surface of the moon with white ragged sandstone to bike around on.

In the afternoon we hit the river. Janel and Jeff gave our kids and Charlie a ride in their Sport Boat. Later we borrowed some single inflatable kayaks (Duckies) and took everyone down the river. Charlie was a good sport and took Calvin and Oliver and Joel, Hailey and I in another. It was a fun ride on the Colorado and the kids' favorite part of the trip.

In the evening we went swimming at the campground and Joel cooked dinner. Janel and her boys, Corbin and Chance came swimming. We made smores and enjoyed everything but the mosquitoes.

Sunday we went to church and then headed home. It was a great trip and we look forward to many more annual Moab trips. Everyone is always invited!

June 21st we went to the Colorado Rapids Soccer Game. It was Joel's birthday present. It was really fun to watch them and I was surprised by how much they head butted the ball. Joel and I decided the next time we will go without the kids. It was way to fun to watch and difficult to try to take care of 3 kids (who all wanted endless cotton candy) at the same time.

California Continued- Disneyland

We went to Disneyland again on Tuesday with all 27 of the Seamons' clan. I think I liked Pirates of the Caribbean the best. Calvin got really scared in the Haunted Mansion and when the light came back on he was really embarrassed because he found out he was wrapped around another lady who was not his mom. Hilarious.

Joel's Birthday on the Beach

We celebrated Joel's 37th birthday on Wednesday. He enjoyed the day boogie boarding, barbecuing and relaxing. We went to Medieval Times for dinner. It was a "Knight to Remember".

My brother Kelly was in town so he joined us at Medieval Times for dinner.

Thursday was our last beach day. We made the most out of it and Boogie Boarded from sun up til sun down. What a blast! Kelly joined us for some wave time later in the day.

Friday we took the kids to Sea World and caught a late flight home to Denver. It was a great way to end a dream vacation ( although it made for some grumpy tired kids on the home flight).

California Vacation Continued

Sunday we went to the San Diego Temple. Amazing structure! Then we posed for some family pictures. Annie Rigby the family photographer took them. Below is a cousin photo.

Monday was another beach day. Calvin loved to Boogie Board...and he was good at it too! Oliver and Hailey were also able to hang ten (maybe five) by the end of the vacation.