A Smoot Reunion

(Hailey and my son Max, in the pink glasses)

This weekend was my (Hailey's) side of the families reunion. For the Smoot (my dad's side) Kjar and Essig cousins to get together. We spent al day Saturday up at Pineview. 

Boating, playing beach volleyball, letting the kids run in in the sand, tubing and being together.

This is boat Captain Eric.

We brought our boat up as well as a couple of my uncles brought theirs. So Eric was on the lake most of the day taking everyone wakeboarding, tubing and etc.

This was the only nap my poor Max got all day, he fell asleep in my dad's arms out on the lake then we laid him down on a blanket in the sun, 10 feet from a beach volleyball game, and with all my noisy family around so as you can imagine the nap only lasted 15 mins.

(Ady and max both took turns with Ady's sunglasses, max loved them, I think he needs his own glasses)

Eric with a bunch of the boy cousins, Eric said they were INSANE in the tube wars!

The best babysitters and aunts, my sisters, Bree and Christa

We FORCED, as Breanna says, her out on the tube for a gentle ride, look at her face though, she hated every second of it.

My dirty kids played and dug in the sand all day.

Ady and her uncle Austin

(this is the only pics I got of the Smoots as a group, and they are praying together, how appropriate. 

After a full day at the lake we drove up to Monte Cristo, about a half hour away for dinner at my aunt and uncles cabin, although I don't think you can even call it a cabin, its more like the Kjar lodge, most everyone was spending the night up there after dinner, but we had to come home because Eric had to teach Gospel Doctorine today. 

We had a fun day with my family. We always do when we get together, we are such a HUGE group and my kids love running around with my cousins kids.

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Waterproof.

Eric's cousin Weston had this great camera in Ohio this summer, that was waterproof and shockproof. I really wanted to get one for our trip to Costa Rica in October, and it arrived yesterday. It is so awesome to be able to take the camera into the pool with the kids. Ady loved seeing what she looks like "as ariel"or underwater. 

tonight we had absolutely no plans, it was really nice, we just hung out, the 4 of us, swam, and watched 101 Dalmations. It was a nice family night.

I know it looks like all the pics I took today are of Adyson but Max was a little like this tonight.....

so he didnt much want to be in pics.

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Four Years...

Our Anniversary is a time to look back on the good times, a time to appreciate the present, and a time to look ahead and live our dreams together.

Happy 4 Years, Eric, and I love you more now than the day we got married.

You are my best friend and the love of my life.

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Scottsdale, Arizona

(Scottsdale Fairmont Princess Splash Pool)

We flew down at Scottsdale Wednesday as a family and just returned home today (Sunday) for some new scenery and some R & R. We stayed HERE at the lovely Fairmont Resort. Actually Eric had business down in Arizona and we (the kids and I) had always planned to tag along and play at the pool during the day. But we were especially grateful for the getaway this week after the drama with Max on Monday night. 

Eric worked Thursday, Friday and Saturday all day so the kids and I just spent our time at the resort, chasing bunnies, (they were everywhere), swimming, visitng the ducks in the huge pond at the resort, picking flowers and enjoying being together.

And for those of you who left sweet comments and concern for Max, we are happy to report, he was totally his normal, happy, sweet self in Arizona and we appreciate all the concern of our friends and family. We are still doing the follow up test and seizure clinic this week but we don't expect anything out of the ordinary.

(Happy Max and his mama)

We have stayed at this hotel last year while visiting Scottsdale and we just love their kids Splash pool, it is beach entry and is shallow for 30 plus feet so the kid can walk far into the pool without it getting too deep. One of the coolest kiddie pools I have been to.

They also have these big cabanas with sand boxes and toys underneath, the kids got sooo dirty but they loved it. Ady would say "I am ready for the beach now" which meant sandbox time.

At night when Eric got home we would spend more time at the pool and the kids enjoyed that time the best, Daddy is just so much more fun than me I guess. 

(matching camo suits)

Ady loved the waterslide at the hotel

Max loved yelling at the ducks in the duck pond from the shore.

It was a nice little 5 day getaway for us. One of the other wives from Eric's office Jen and her daughter Megan were there too, so they joined us at the pool during the day. We kept saying how hot it was and I kept force feeding my kids water so they would get plenty to drink. Then one night Eric and I got a babysitter and went out to a dinner with some friends, and I started to get dizzy and I full on passed out in the lobby of the restaurant, in front of tons and tons of people, I was really dehydrated. I was so embarassed. In all my effort to keep the kids hydrated in the over 100 degree weather of Arizona, I hadn't drank enough myself. Opps, I wont do that again.

Anyway, we had a really good time and every time I travel I think how grateful I am that I really do (most of the time) enjoy traveling with my kids so much. Eric and I almost always bring the kids with us everywhere we go and I am glad that traveling is something we enjoy doing as a family. Even though we look like a 3 ring circus going through security with all our "kid equipment".

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