life in september

I wasn't joking about how much Kevin loves his new boots :) We cooked a "surf and turf" dinner together one Sunday, which consisted of a 17 ingredient sauce.  I honestly love cooking together with my family, but the amount of work we put into that sauce (the kids roasting veggies over an open flame) was definitely not worth the hype. But we made memories, right? 

A little Labor Day boating....

The sky was SO moody, but thankfully it never actually stormed. 

Daulton Dashers started up again and despite being very tired, Colby perked up when he saw the balloon arch out by the track at 6:45 AM. 

His goal for the year: run 30 miles!

Friday was Grandparents Day, so Papa went to celebrate with Colby. Grandma wasn't feeling well, but the boys enjoyed their time together.

The weather was surprisingly incredible for September, so we spent hours out front watching the kids play soccer and ate dinner al fresco. 

Snuck in a lunch date mid month...I love me some one-on-one time :)

The Activity Day kids enjoyed playing hockey with homemade hockey sticks.  At one point, a piece of the PVC pipe flew off a stick and hit me in the collar bone.  I thought I was going to cry, but thankfully I held it together. 

Some last minute homework in the car before drop-off...

Daulton Dashers with my boy. We went through a few rough weeks where we were butting heads quite a bit, but I've really been enjoying our time together recently. So proud of his commitment to running, especially since it's not his favorite. 

I enjoyed a birthday lunch date with my friend Sherry.  We almost always go to Salata and I love taking time to catch up. 

We took a boat ride on a Saturday afternoon and the water was glassy, so we fully enjoyed a few hours together. Kevin skied, Colby attempted to ski, and then I decided to take a whack at it.  I haven't attempted to ski since before we had kids and sadly, I failed. I basically had a nasal irrigation with lake water, so that was fun, haha.  I was getting leg cramps and had to stop, but maybe next time. 

It was a busy Saturday! Soccer, boating, a birthday party, writing a talk (all by herself), and watching the BYU football game...

Colby's love for his cowboy boots and belt is still going strong...

I was subbing as the primary pianist, so I had a front row seat to Brooke's primary talk. As I sat there, I realized that it would most likely be her last primary talk ever. 

Colby completed his " All About Me" box for school...

Brooke has been enjoying time crocheting...

I have no idea why the kids were in matching Daulton shirts since Brooke doesn't attend there anymore, but it's a cute picture regardless. 

House Pep Rally...

He even wore Kevin's old little league jacket since it fit the red vibe.  Brooke was sweet and offered to carry his backpack while he adjusted his gloves and football. 

Thursday night wiffle ball to celebrate Maverick's birthday. Such a fun group of boys!  (And I love hanging out with the mamas!)

We came back from our Florida trip (it's own post) and the next day was the third grade trip to see "The Three Little Pigs" at the opera.  Colby had fun riding the bus, but didn't have raving reviews about the actual opera.  But he sure looked handsome :)

I had a belated birthday lunch date with Danielle and Andreia. Turning 40 isn't too bad when you get to celebrate with great friends!

I took my Activity Day girls on a nature walk (starting at a park) and we lucked out with the BEST weather...

Friday morning Dashers with my buddy!  He requested that I stay and run with him again, so this is now our thing and I couldn't love it more. 

Brooke was quite the vibe when pajama day and "Anything But A Backpack" day fell on the same day. She was a little embarrassed walking into school and we were both laughing, but the administrators at the door assured her that she definitely wasn't the only one with a cooler. 

Went on another birthday lunch with Rachel and Joanna. I definitely felt spoiled with all the fun lunch dates with friends.  

Saturday night was spent having dinner al fresco while we watched the BYU football game.  Kevin grilled the yummiest tri-tip for tacos and the guacamole was delish!

That time when Colby asked Kevin to help him build a ramp for his bike, haha.  It took a lot longer than we imagined since we don't have the right saw (and it turned out more like a quarter pipe than a ramp), but I was still impressed. 

The final product!!

It was completely dark at this point, hence the need for a big spotlight, haha. Colby was hesitant to try it on his bike, so he pulled out his skateboard instead. 

September was full of activities and fun!

40th birthday trip

With my 40th birthday approaching, Kevin started asking what I wanted to do to celebrate.  I was thinking of local ideas, but then he threw out the idea of flying to Florida for the weekend.  I honestly hadn't thought of taking a mini trip, but I absolutely loved the idea. Our family loves everything about the beach, so it seemed like the perfect birthday adventure.  Kevin found reasonable tickets to Fort Lauderdale, so away we went...

We arrived fairly late, took an Uber to our hotel on the beach, and walked straight out to the water. 

We ate dinner on the boardwalk, then headed up to our room. The kids wanted to stay up and watch tv, but we knew we wanted to wake up early to see the sunrise, so we eventually went to bed. 

Waking up early was rough, but seeing the sun rise was 100% worth it!! Such a beautiful and peaceful morning!  I adore all of these pictures of my family.  There weren't many people on the beach, so it felt like our own personal time together. 

The clouds and sky were incredible...

My girl is a beauty...

I love these two so much...

Our beachfront hotel...

We found one of the trending "heart in the sand" photo ops and had to take advantage...

I'm so glad that Kevin encouraged us to go on this trip because it felt like such a special way to celebrate my birthday.

Kevin thought he was pretty funny with his 4-0, but it was fitting since this was my 40th birthday adventure.  We played at the beach, walked to a market for some brunch snacks and a case of water, walked along the Boardwalk, enjoyed some Ben and Jerry's, and played at the outdoor fitness center where I proved to myself that I could get across the monkey bars.  I was proud of myself, then looked down at my stinging hands to see that I ripped off a callus in the process.  It stung so badly in the ocean water and took days to heal, but I guess it was kind of worth it to prove that I could still do it?

Some of the treasures from our boardwalk shopping...

We bought the kids a volleyball and they were obsessed!  We had modified rules since there were only four of us, but it was a fun family bonding activity. 

Kevin discovered time lapse on his phone during our morning sunrises, so he took a little video of our volleyball action.

Lunch at Taco Beach Shack where they gave us free churros for completing a survey, time in the sand, swimming in the ocean (the temperature was amazing and we loved the clear water), and live music to end the night. 

Can't forget these pics, haha. Girl team definitely won, but Colby begged to play one more "Best of 3" balls and they won, so they threw up the #1.  Their pose was better than ours though, so we copied them. Brooke commented that since they both held up one finger, they were really second :)

Started off my actual birthday with another sunrise!  Can't quite believe that I'm 40, but age is just a number, right?? No better way to spend my birthday than with my family at the beach. 

Brooke found THE coolest shell that morning and we all tried to find one for ourselves. 

We always loved Hollywood Beach when we lived in Florida, so staying right on the Boardwalk was so fun.  Hotel Sheldon was pretty central and we loved being able to drop our chairs and umbrella off when we wanted to go eat. 

Our last day at the beach was a good one.  Although we only stayed for two days, we were able to do a lot since we were up with the sun!  We swam a lot, played more volleyball, ate a yummy Italian lunch, enjoyed overpriced ice cream, and listened to an awesome 90's cover band while the kids played in the sand. 

Such a fun and relaxing way to spend my birthday!  Couldn't be more grateful!!

No shirt, very sandy, no problem! 

It was dark when we were leaving the beach and I took Colby with me into a convenience store on the Boardwalk to grab a few airplane snacks. I had no idea he was so sandy until we were in the light and I was DYING, haha. 

No shirt, very sandy, no problem!  

We had an early flight the next day, so we let the kids travel in pajamas to make things easier. We were all pretty exhausted, but it was a great getaway weekend for my birthday. 

Here's to another year!!