Abducted by Aliens on the 4th of July

Obviously all our pictures aren't on here but I think you can see that we had a great time....lots of laughs, lots of adventures, and most of all, lots of driving! We drove from Vegas to Albuquerque, NM, then to Roswell, NM, to Carlsbad, NV, back to Albuquerque, NM, and then back to Vegas.... crazy!!!!

Here is a snapshot of our trip:

Hanging out at the KOA halfway between Roswell and Carlsbad

They had a fun, free firetruck ride which Blake LOVED... It was a pretty cool old truck.

Storytime with Uncle Brian...of course! Brian makes up some pretty crazy stories though.

Swimming with Aunt Cindy

We did make it to the Carlsbad Caverns and they were pretty awesome. We went late in the afternoon...took the elevators down and HIKED OUT!!! Not a very good idea but the only feasible one at the time. We were able to stay and see the bats come out at dusk.

Blake hitching a ride on daddy's back... what a way to go!

Even with getting to ride the whole way up and down he was exhausted that night!

The whole reason for the trip was the 4th of July and of course that means fireworks... YES we kept Blake up to see the fireworks...and NO he was not impressed. Maybe next year.

Again it was a fun trip and we love to be able to make these great memories and share times with great friends. We know Blake won't remember these yet but we have pictures to share and
great stories to tell him and soon enough he will start to remember!

The Great Outdoors

We decided to be brave and head out on our very first family camping trip. We weren't sure how things were going to go and how Blake would respond so we kept it simple and close. We packed up a few things and headed down to Boulder Beach at Lake Mead. The weather is already getting a little bit warm but we thought it would be okay, especially for just one night.

Blake was very excited to be there. I don't think had had any idea what was really going on but he was excited to just be outside and run around. He was also excited to try and "help" daddy with whatever he was doing. It didn't take Blake very long to get really, really dirty. It looked like he had been camping for a week and we had only been there an hour!

After setting up camp it was time for lunch and boy did he eat good. Being outside and playing definitely works up the appetite, and somehow food always seems to taste better when you are camping anyways.

He loved to just play in the dirt, pick up rocks and then dump it out and do it all over again. Lots of time was spent doing this. He also enjoyed feeding the birds with the popcorn we brought along. Some went to the birds and some went in his mouth!

When it was time to get the fire going Blake was there to give his dad a hand.

And then the two boys sat back and looked at what they had accomplished. This was one of our biggest worries but Blake did really well with the fire. He stayed far away and we didn't end up with any injuries!

He and I cooked our hot dog dinner on the fire he had made.... and later

We made Smore's too. He was pretty excited about that treat.

After keeping him up WAAAY past his bedtime (hoping this would help him fall asleep in the tent and stay asleep - which worked) he was up early in the morning with the birds. Here he is with his "oh so happy daddy".

This is the face of a successful first camping trip.

And this is the face of one too... and very tired face... We were ready to head home! But we will do it again soon for sure.

Disney Date

WARNING: Photo Overload...

We went to Disneyland and there were a TON of us. I thought it was going to be a disaster... with kid and adult meltdowns... long lines... arguments over what rides we were going on... and just pretty much the "happiest place on earth" coming to life... but we had a great time. The kids were awesome. We had a few issues with diapers, and needing new clothes for a certain little boy, and it was super HOT but overall it was a great day and we did a bunch of stuff and made it onto a ton of rides. SUCCESS!

Blake, mommy and Minnie

Lori, Jordyn, Minnie, Brad and Kaitlyn

Blake and Jordyn....two peas in a pod. They were so fun to watch during the day and became such great friends.

Blake and mommy on the "merry-go-round" at California Adventure

Auntie Laura and Jordyn on the "merry-go-round"

One tired little boy....one of those kids who falls asleep at Disneyland...you always wonder how that can happen!!!

Blake hitchin' a ride with Al

Blake in his Mickey Mouse shirt.... ready for a full day at Disney

Blake doing some coloring while some other are waiting in a line

Auntie Boo (Carey) on Dumbo with Jordyn

Time spent with family

For the first week of May Blake and I had the opportunity to spend a week with Auntie Laura and get to know some of our relatives just a bit better and hang out with them in CA. It was so much fun and we loved getting away for a bit and I think it was fun for Auntie Laura to have us there so she could get a chance to hang out with Blake too!

Our family from Canada were coming into town so they could go to Disney (and who would want to miss that chance) and we thought it would be fun to see them especially since we hadn't met their little girls and they hadn't met Blake either... It seemed like a win-win situation.

It was so much fun. The kids had so much fun hanging out together. Disney was a blast (HOT, but fun...photos to follow)...and we had a great BBQ, and just a wonderful week thanks to a great hostess.

Lori and baby Kaitlyn (who started walking for real at Auntie Laura's house)

Blake getting some love from Auntie Laura

Jordyn trying to stay cool....but her red cheeks say otherwise!

Blake watering up

Jeri (with her crutches), Al and Kaitlyn

Grandma Jeri and Kaitlyn

Lunch with ducks

After all the train riding we had worked up an appetite so we decided to head just a few minutes down to the road and enjoy some lunch by the lake...and with a few ducks and fish!

My dad had brought home some popcorn from the theater so we had plenty of popcorn to feed the ducks and fish and thought it would be a nice way to relax and enjoy the afternoon...and keep Blake entertained as well.

A mid-throw shot of daddy feeding some of the hungry fish

Our lakeside table at the restaurant. We were all hungry and the food was good...

Checking out the ducks and fish

A train ride

Grandpa Mike and Grandma Holly came down for their annual March visit (Mike has a work conference that he attends which means a visit with us!) We hadn't seen them since Christmas so we were really excited and Blake was excited to show and tell them all the new things he could do.

Our first outing was out to Boulder City on Saturday to go and ride the Nevada State Railroad. Blake was probably the most excited about this but we all thought it would be fun and the weather was perfect.

All Aboard!!

Blake paid close attention when we were boarding and noticed he needed to give the man his ticket...so when he found an extra ticket he was DETERMINED to give it to the man. Pretty dang smart and adorable to watch.

Ready to ride the rails.

A boy and his daddy....

Big Bear or bust

We were able to get away for the weekend and enjoy some time with our friends from CA...Marvin and Maria and their daughter Arianna. We were bummed when we arrived in Big Bear to find NO SNOW...but we still had a great time. Dan tried his legs at skiing for the first time and enjoyed it. He was sore but had fun.

Blake was sick for most of the trip unfortunately but that didn't stop him from running and playing with Arianna.