Water Snake

Iowa is roasting!

 It has been so hot lately, most days getting into the 100's. Since we no longer have a swimming pool we decided to splurge and get a water snake to cool us off on these HOT HOT days.

We took the snake out for the first time today. We went out at 10:00 and it was already 90 degrees!!

The kids had a blast! But we only lasted about 30 minutes outside before it was way too hot and humid :( We wouldn't have lasted that long without the water snake to cool us off though...so thank you water snake for making it possible for us to be outside!!

We Love To Do The Zoo!

Today:

Cole and Ellie found a new tunnel and made friends with a Japanese Macaque,

our giraffe friends returned,

we made friends with the new sea lions,

rode the zoo train,

and Ellie crossed the swinging bridge for the very first time! With the help of her loving brother of course :) Cole held her hand the whole time.

Another great day at the Blank Park Zoo!!

Roughin' It

Happy Father's Day!!

The best daddy in the world got a tent for Father's Day from the most adorable kids in the world :)

And it's just the right size!

(And apparently fits in our living room)

We love you Daddy!! You are the best and we are so lucky to have you!

Saturday is a special day...

I love Iowa's crazy weather! We danced in the rain this afternoon...

 ...and a few hours later we were at a drive-in theater!!

T-ball, dancing, and a drive-in movie...what a perfect day!!!

The next Jeter?!

Cole finally found a sport that he loves. He started t-ball this summer! 

 He was so excited for his first game. He chased every ball that was hit, threw like a champ, and practiced his swing. He had so much fun and says he can't wait for his next game.  His baseball lovin' daddy was pretty proud :)

Elise wanted to get out on the field as well, but she didn't make it past the dugout this year. Next year El's!

Union Park

Union Park is open for the summer!! 

This is one of our favorite parks, and I think we will be here a lot this summer since we don't have a pool anymore. We love the splash pad...especially with our good friends Morgan, Addie, Aubrey and Eli!

And what's better than a splash pad at a park? One with a carousel!

Birthdays and Bowling

We went birthday bowling for my bday today! 

 Cole loved it...

 and Ellie loved the music! She didn't stop dancing all night...

...even to bowl the ball :)

 To make a great night perfect, Ben made me cheesecake!!!

Ben invited a few of our good friends over to share the cheesecake...and make fun of me for my age :)

He also gave me a new camera!! He really outdid himself this year.

It was a perfect birthday!!

Utah (Week 2)

The kids and I had a blast this last week! We spent a few days at Maryn's house and a day at Mindy's house before we went to Park City for Green-Cation 2012.

Cole and Ellie feel right at home at Maryn's house. They love to play with Kam, Kenz, Emersyn and Edyn!! Ellie found a new love: the tramp! And the kids thought it was hilarious to feed the "neighbors"...the goats :)

Monday Maryn and Mindy took us to the Hogle Zoo. It was super hot but we still had a ton of fun! We rode the carousel, watched the bird show where a bird took a dollar from Cole :), and of course we had to ride the train!

Wednesday we spent the day at Mindy's house. Her house is as good as an amusement park for my kids :) But silly me, I didn't take a single pic! There are a ton of fun toys, lots of kids running around, and Brittyn's beauty shop where she does Ellie's hair and paints her nails. The best part for me was when Mindy and Brittyn took me to get a pedicure!!

Thursday we went to Park City. All of my siblings were able to make it! We had the entire Green family minus GG and Grandpa. It was really fun to be with everyone and just hang out. We played lots of games and did lots of swimming!

My kids favorite game was the candy bar game...evident by Ellie's chocolatey face :)

 Ryan even brought his boat to Jordanelle! Cole is always talking about Uncle Ryan's boat so this was a super exciting morning for him...even if he only got in the water for about 5 seconds because it was FREEZING!!

 Of  course we went to the Park City resort to ride the Alpine Slide. They wouldn't let me go because I'm prego and Ellie was sleeping on Mindy's lap, so Cole went with my brother Tyson. He had a blast, but I think he had as much fun on the kiddie rides :)

 Ellie and Taya rode the Space Train while the bigger kids rode the Alpine Slide. Then, after a lot of begging from Cole, Cole and Ellie got to ride the carousel and the airplane ride too. They were in heaven!!

 We made a stop at the Olympic Park to see the museum and some people ski jump into the swimming pool at the training grounds. The kids loved the bobsled!

 Here are all 20 grandkids in order! Can you believe how lucky we are?!

Ben flew back just in time for family pics and to stay one night. The next day we spent at Family Fun Day in Sandy with free food, face painting, and bounce houses! Then we made the LONG drive home to Iowa.

We had a blast in Utah with our family! It was nice to get a surprise vacation, and especially to get to spend it with our amazing families!!