Giddy Up Partner...

... it's time for some rodeo fun!

If you can't tell by now, we love rodeos!

So for the Pioneer Day Holiday, (for those who live out of the state, it's a Utah holiday: July 24th -Celebrating the statehood of Utah and also just as important the brave and loyal people that were determined to cross the plains and deserts of this land and have Bringham Young say, "This is the place!" Hence the name of the holiday, our heritage; our Pioneers!) we enjoyed the day off with headed down south to Spanish Fork for the Fiesta Day Rodeo.

They had Sky Divers, Royalty and Princesses, Cowboys, a Clown that was a "Dare Devil," Wild Animals, an out of control Motorcycle, Great Music, Yummy homemade squeezed lemonade, Smelly Animals, More Cowboys, Mittin' Bustin', (for those who don't know what the heck that is...it is my favorite event...it is where kids; most of them who haven't even been on a horse, have to ride a SHEEP and see who stays on the longest! It is so funny. Cassie WANTS to do it next year...We'll see, but I don't doubt her ability at all.) Dusty Dirt, Fireworks, and even MORE COWBOYS!

Can you Blame us why we love rodeos???

The next rodeo is in 2 weekend up in Coleville, Utah and you better believe we already have our tickets for that one and we will have our boots on for that one as well!

Can you even believe it???

I can hardly believe that Summer is almost over and that it is now time for the excitement of back to school shopping!

The pressure of what backpack to get; there's so many choices. Nana even helped the girls by modeling the bags, so the girls could see what they would look like on.

Shake that bum Nana! You work it!

Speacking of choices, I can't believe all the different kinds of supplies they have now for kids. Gosh, it almost makes you forget that Kenzie is going into 2nd grade and Lanie in Kindergarten, I wanted to buy it all, but hey, not even a person going to college needs as much supplies as Target has to offer.

With only 24 days till school starts, Kenzie and Lanie are excited to get back in school, and the mom in me has mixed feelings about the whole thing...Who is going to be my big helpers with the twins? Who is going to cuddle with me in bed and be lazy watching Sponge Bob in our jammies? Who is going to go on our Sonic runs for a slushie? What about our weekly field trips, who is going to go with me now?

I can't believe that my "big" girls will be starting school again...

...and they couldn't be more excited!

After picking out crayons, markers, folders with glitter, (the more bling, the "cooler" with these girls) pencils, as well as a case to hold everything, oh don't forget the glue, scissors, and lunch bag, the girls were excited to go home and put everything together.

I can remember how much fun and exciting it was to buy the supplies, but what was even more fun was to go home and organize it over and over again and sit and look at all the fun new supplies that I just picked out for the first day of school, and I know that is what the girls are going through. They have "organized" their things the past two days and keep checking if everything is "ready" for school.

Well, with school right around the corner, that means no more late nights of playing, knowing that you can just sleep in. It means getting back to routines and habits.

Get ready for the dreaded word... home work or at my girls' age it means busy work for mom and dad. Remember I have already gone through school, if the teachers are going to send work home, have it age appropriate for the kids.

I hate to say it, but when School starts, Summer is over!!! I feel like it has just began. I am not ready to let my Summer go...
Here's to the next 24 days of Summer enjoyment with my kids before I have to let them go...

***Next School Clothes Shopping...this is dangerous with one of my girls, but this year I get to take 2 of the girls. This is going to be fun!***

Bring it on!

No one is safe when we have a water fight...

Bring it on!

Grab your water gun, grab some water balloons, and if you are lucky, you will be one of the first to grab the hose.

There is no teams in this game; it's all out war...

Everyone is out to get the other.

You can only think of yourself when it comes to our water fights.

There is no petty playing either...no "Barbies" allowed. We get down and dirty. You can tell from our pictures, we don't care about our hair or make-up...we have other things on our mind...the opponent or the enemy.

Dan will even get Nana...I think that he secretly enjoys it too much. How many times can you get your mother-in-law with water balloons over and over again and not get in trouble by your wife?

***Dan would say, "not enough"***

It was fun to watch Nana and Paps run around the yard, yelling and screaming with the kids.

By the time the fight was done, about 45 minutes of wet and wild fun, none of us had a dry spot on our clothes.

So Bring It On...We Dare Ya!

How do you beat this heat???

You go and spend the afternoon and evening at Seven Peaks Water Park!

Look at the fun we had and even the 100 degrees didn't even seem to slow the kids down!

Hey! Look who we ran into while we were there...the Livingston Family!
We ended up hooking up with them, and the guys went and did the slides and the us moms stayed with the kidos...then we swapped....Moms got to do the slides! Mackenzie and even Delanie went on the slides with us and they loved it, Well, not at first, but by the end of the day, they were going down many times.

Leave it to the Dads...Even Cassie and Miles went down the slides and surprisingly...they loved it and wanted it again and again. (Remember Miles is only 21 months and Cassie is 2!)

After spending 5 hours there, we were water logged, and amazingly no sunburns.

When we came home, we had Liza and Curtis with 2 of their 4 kids (Isaac and Riley) over for some hot dogs and s'mores. The kids had a good time roasting them over the fire, but their patience didn't last too long; they were excited to just eat the S'mores and kept asking if they were "done" yet...then somehow Marley (the dog) would "get" the food and we then had sad kids, but one happy dog!

It was a perfect night to sit under the stars and have fun with our good neighbors. Liza even saw a weired light..."maybe it was a UFO" I told her. Carson fell asleep sitting in his chair after his long fun day; he got no nap.

Finally the bugs started eating us alive and 11:00 pm came, so we thought we better get the rest of the kids asleep.

So when you ask the question, "How do you beat this heat?" Friends, Water, and Food is the best way!

Thanks you guys!

"Salon Dan," Not again...

...Pappy didn't learn his lesson from his last trip to our house!

Here is Pap's head and you can see that the color experiences from last trip didn't last, so Dan wanted to help him out again with his trends.

Dan has come to accept his baldness, so he wanted Pap's to do the same; so with a lot of convincing, Pappy finally let Dan take sheers to his head!

Here goes the hair...it is not like Pap's had a full head of flowing hair, so it really didn't do that much. Pappy was saying that he hadn't had his hair this short since grade school and that was in the 60's. He is going to be in shock to his new look...

Less then 10 minutes and the new hair cut is finished!
Dan is giving his sign of approval to the new do...or what is left of it.

Shock was the least of Pappy's reactions!

Pap's kept trying to comb his hair, but there was nothing there to comb.

So here are the 3 guys; Paps, Carson, and Dan, showing off their matching hair dos. "Just like Daddy"So with all hair gone, Delanie had to throw in her options and told Pappy that with hair or not, no matter what he looks like, she will always love him. So Pap's took that as he must look really "good" if a 5 year old says something like that.

Also, Pap's made a promise to never have Dan touch his hair again; first the hair color, now the buzz, so we better have gotten our laughs now, we won't get Pap's in the chair again.

Personally, I think it looks alright and just think, think of the money Pap's will save on hair products and time. I bet with time, he will enjoy it. and just maybe want it again. NOT!

Here ya go Simon...

...Your NEXT American Idol!

Tonight for Family Night, we all headed to the Thanksgiving Point Gardens, (again) and had the chance to participate in Monday Night Idol.

The kids (Cassie was the first to go up and show the other kids how to do it) and even FEEF went up to show off their talents. The kids did a medley of High School Musical songs, which made a Mom and a Nana proud.

The look on Kenzie's and Lanie's Faces were priceless as they never made eye contact with the people watching; their eyes were on the tv screen the whole song...it was super cute.

Then there was Cassie...No Fear! She walked up, accessorices herself, and starts singing. She is ment to be in the limelight.

Carson supported all three of his sisters as he sat on the benches and watched them, and when they were done, he would clap his hands. Not our little entertainer at all...oh well, he will be our family cheerleader.

The Results are in...

Feef's going to Hollywood!

We love you Feef! Thanks for being a good sport and making the evening a "HIT!"

The stars were out and shinning tonight...

...and Eliza and I couldn't be more excited!!!

Can you tell where we are at...

...Standing in front of the stage of the American Idol Concert!!!

This was Tuesday night...the second showing of the concert, due to the overwhelming responses to see our home town American idol...David Aruchuleta!

See, Liza went on Monday and LOVES American Idol soooooo much, that she said that she would go again...so here we are on the 15th row to watch a great concert...

I am soooo excited!!!

Here is Liza showing off her $25.00 program. (So worth the money...keep reading.)

Look how she is holding it so tightly...no one is going to take it away from her!

Look at me and my boyfriend...Don't we look so cute together!

Too bad I am older then him...just call me a cougar! He is still in high school and me a mom of 4, who says age is important??? He can sing anything to me...his voice is perfect. Even if he was to sing the phone book, it would be sexy!

Chikezie-Idol #10

Ramiele-Idol #9

MICHAEL JOHNS-Idol #8
(My newest Boyfriend...He is soooo cute and man can he sing!)

Kristy Lee Cook- Idol #7

Carly- Idol #6Brooke White - Idol #5Jason Casrol-Idol #4My Boy...DAVID ARUCHULATA- Idol #2

David Cook - American Idol #1 I personal think that David Cook is a bit over-rated...He is good if you like a lot of screaming and yelling.So as the finale, they all came out and sang "Don't stop the music" and it was loud, the way a good concert should be. It was great and a lot of fun. There was energy and excitement.

I love it and it was worth every penny!

So after the concert ended, which was about almost 3 hours, we didn't head home, we went out to stock the idols, yeap, Liza and I went outside where their buses were at and waited over an hour to meet with the idols! When Michael Johns came by to see us, I saw just how cute he is. I have to admit that I did get a bit hot and bothered when he came up. He is really that cute, even being sweaty!

It was fun and I felt like such a groupie, but I loved it. Simple things can make me so happy.

I am sad to say that I didn't get to get a picture with "my" David, he had spent too much time inside with the people in there, but I did get to give him a five as he ran by. I was so excited that I lost all control and screamed as a little girl...I have to admit....I also lost a bit of blatter control also...I bet David would just love to know that.

What a great night, something I am going to remember for many years to come! Here's to the next American Idol season that is coming here this winter. Nothing can beat this years' winners! Tryouts will be here next week, July 29th and that means Simon, Randy and Paula will be here in Utah!!!

***Thanks Liza for the memories and loving me for all my hollering for "MY BOYS!" (Michael Johns and David A.) and for being a good sport for wearing the David A. shirt that I made for you.