Going Camping!

Here are a few photos from our 2008 family camping trip. We had previously gone to fish lake, but we thought that we would take break from the long drive, and go to the Timpooneke camp ground up American Fork canyon. Despite not having flushable toilets and showers, we decided that the proximity advantages outweighed the luxury disadvantages.
The kids were pretty good, although Makenna was very reluctant to take naps, which meant a very irritable little girl at around 6:00 pm. Cole was very busy bugging the dog, and playing in the dirt. He wanted to hike up the mountain, run down the road, and climb through the bushes any chance he could get.
We went with Marianne's family, which made it a little easier since her parents have a small trailer. Cole managed to break the license plate off of the trailer, but I fixed the water pump while we were up there, so I figure we're about even.
Besides going without a shower for a few days, this camp out was a lot of fun. The kids had a great time. Makenna was very excited about going "kiking" (hiking), looking out for "chick-munks", and all-in-all, loved "camming". Cole made what should have been a relaxing mini-vacation into a worry-filled, chase after the toddler, stress-filled long weekend. Cole was very good at taking naps though, and it was very cool to see how excite he got over every little thing - Everything from going into the new tent, sleeping next to daddy, roasting marshmallows, and the little hike we took through Cascade Springs.
Marianne was great with the kids, and took them on hikes through the camp. She was ready to come home, but never complained about being covered in dirt (thanks to the kids climbing on her.) She did far more work than I did, by packing up and cleaning up when we got home.
We're already talking about where and when to go for next year's big camping trip!

She is her daddy's daughter...

The other day we were in the car listening to the radio and "Papa loved Mama" by Garth Brooks came on. After the song was over Makenna said "Me love Garth Brooks..." The reason that is so funny is because Adam is a huge fan of Garth Brooks. (That isn't even doing his obsession justice, but anyone that knows Adam knows how much he loves Garth...) So, when Makenna said that we both looked at each other and laughed. Adam then said that he thinks he loves Makenna a little more now. :) Makenna and Cole both love to watch Garth Brooks music videos as well. I guess that is genetic or something?

My little princess...

Makenna has turned into quite the little girl over the last couple of weeks. We pierced her ears about a month ago, which she has been wanting to get done for quite a while. Of course, after it was done I think she thought that we may have punished her, but she loves to look at her sparkly earrings in the mirror whenever she gets a chance now!! She has also taken to wearing her princess dress all the time and her princess shoes that she got from Grandma Pace. She twirls and twirls around in her dress. She has always been really into the Disney Princesses, but now she has moved into the Barbie phase. I can't believe how interested she is in Barbie all of the sudden. We went to Wal-mart the other day and had to look at the Barbies and she just kept saying "Wow, look at this one..." Last night, Adam bought her a Barbie and I got to hear her bright and early at 5:45am this morning exclaiming "Look!! Me have a Barbie!!" Here is a picture of her in all her glory, dress on, play cell phone, and her Barbie. Where has the time gone? She is only three and already she is quite a diva!!

Was I This Messy?

I know my mom is going to say "yes", but I haven't seen any pictures that have indicated that I knew how to consistently smear chocolate frosting across my face and hands as easily and as quickly as this kid. I mean, Cole has a natural talent for making messes quickly. Even if he's off his game one day, and he isn't creating a big enough mess by chance, he's very willing to perfect his routine and force a clean up on isle 11. I mean, the little man is rarely in a bad mood, but that's probably because he never has to clean anything up.

This is just a taste of what he can do. He's trying to be a "big boy", and wants to walk around the stores like his older sister. Yesterday I let him down at Lowe's so we could walk around a little. What harm could he do, right? He's not going to break the edger blades I was looking for. He certainly wasn't going to damage the waterproofing spray I thought about getting. Yes, that's right. I just thought about getting the spray, because on the way to our destination, he made a quick button-hook maneuver that would make a running back jealous, and darted down the lighting isle. It took only a second for him to pick out the most hideous rose encrusted glass cover, and smash it to the ground. Why can't Lowe's make their flooring out of carpet, or some type of memory foam? That would certainly have dampened the ear-splitting crash that rang throughout the store.

A few smug people smirked as they walked by. I'm sure they were just thinking, "I'm glad that wasn't my kid", but at the time I was sure they were thinking "ha ha, now you're going to have to pay for that ugly piece of ..." Anyway, I reported the incident to the nearest employee, and I jumped at the offer they made us letting us off the hook. Of course I wasn't going to pay for it if I didn't have to. I probably did them a favor opening up more precious shelf space.

Anyway, here is another picture of what our kids look like after a trip to the Dunford Bakery. Why can't Cole follow this example? A little frosting under the nose is nothing, compared to the picture of Cole that looks like he got a hold of can of Duncan Hines frosting and a spoon.

Is Cole Potty-Training?

Here is a picture of Cole that we took on Saturday. We thought that he was down playing in Makenna's room, but nope, he decided his feet were hot and the best way to cool them off was to wade in the toilet. So, he climbed up on Makenna's potty seat and relaxed. Absolutely disgusting, but he does look like he is enjoying himself. This kid loves the toilet, I would think that he would have outgrown this by now, but he still loves it.