I Wanna Soak Up the Sun!

Mike is out of town, so that means I don't go to bed very early....and it's a good time to catch up my blog!

(Someday I will use my Photoshop Elements to fix the red eye and doctor up my photos...someday)

We made a trek this weekend to try to find the sun! The smog has been soooo bad this past week or so and it had finally made us want to flee! So, Mike got off a little early on Friday and we headed south! We made a quick (not) stop in Lehi for some sushi.....kind of becoming a tradition- and didn't end up getting into S.G. until about 8:30p, but plenty of time to grab a few things at the grocery store and then hang out watching 'Willy Wonka' with the kids. The kids love having their own rooms and the tv's in each room are a huge bonus! Brandon takes turns sleeping in each room....

We woke up the next morning wanting to see the sunshine and were so excited to get out and enjoy some January outdoor activities, but it was RAINING! We thought...we just drove 4 hours for this!?!?!? Even though it was raining, it was still warmer than Kville, so we loaded up the kids and did a little shopping.

Diva Sydney showing off her new clothes
I think the girls have finally come into their own as shoppers when we walked through the doors of Childrens Place and they were like kids in a candy store! Within one minute, they had each picked out 2 complete outfits! Mike & Brandon decided this was too much mania for them and headed toward the toy store (KB-which is now out of business). I calmed the girls down, set some limits and then we picked out some cute clothes.
It was fun for me to see them sooooo excited!
Brandon's new rockstar shirt...and army guy pants-picked out by Dad-he likes having a boy!
Amanda getting her camera ready....we need to learn how to download her photos....sounds like a job for Daddy. Amanda showing us her new clothes and cute polka-dot shoes!

After shopping, we went to In-n-Out Burger! A brand new addition to the S.G. area! We got there early as we expected it to get crowded.....and it got crowded! By the time we left, there were 20 cars in the drive-through-Twenty! We told the kids that Uncle Evan loves this place and each had a fry in his honor. Evan was deployed this month and left on Tuesday for Krygstan (I'll have to look up how to spell that correctly). We are proud of him and his service to our country and are praying daily for his safe return and for Jamie & the kids.
Love you guys!
We needed to find some shoes for Amanda for the girls' theater class performance which is this Saturday. This will be their last show as we are pulling them out...just trying to simplify a bit. Anyway, the production is High School Musical and Amanda is one of a few Sharpay's. Sydney is a cheerleader. Amanda needed high heels she can dance in, so we walked from lunch over to Payless Shoes. Again....shopping mania commenced! It was so strange!
The girls had the best time trying on all sorts of shoes! Amanda wears a 3 to 4 in kids sizes and was so excited to find out that she can wear a 6 in womens sizes! This started..."Can I have this?" Each girl left with 2 pairs of shoes, I got a pair of shoes and we got Brandon another pair of sneakers as his are getting small.
Mike was smart and didn't join us at the shoe store until we were done. He and B went to Best Buy and picked up Lego Star Wars for the Wii. That equals boy happy!
Present for Brandon?
Or Mike's present to himself?
After that morning, we decided we needed a break! So we went to a movie. We saw 'Hotel for Dogs' a Disney type movie about kids who take in homeless dogs and make a new home in an abandoned old hotel. Cute for kids....we were bored. Then, this started the whole "Can we get a new dog?" begging from our kids again. We are holding out for the right time. Mater has made us dog-shy about getting another dog although I think we both would like the kids to have one while they grow up. If we could only have Tucker and Bax back!
After the movie, we called Kay & Bud. Kay answered the phone and made fun of us for bringing the fog and rain to St. George! Aaron & his little family and some friends were also down for the weekend. K&B had Staci's kids all week, so Stace & Kev were also on their way to pick up their kids. We went to their house for dinner and a good visit.
They warmed up the hot tub to 98+, but didn't warm up the pool...it was about 60 degrees. The kids got some borrowed suits and jumped in the hot tub. It wasn't long before they all were in the pool! And even some, like 4 year old Tate, were going down the slide! Crazy! I wish I had my camera with me.
We had a great time visiting and the kids LOVED hanging out with Staci's kids! It was a fun surprise in our weekend! We haven't seen Bud & Kay since last Easter. We were giggling at how cute Bud was, because when he saw Mike was wearing his Sugar Bowl Champs locker room hat, he went and got his....the were twiners! Then, Bud tried to sell it to Kevin for $50!

After a lazy Sunday morning, complete with the blueberry muffins Brandon had been asking for, we started cleaning up and packing to come home.

The girls writing in the guest book the details of our trip and a thank you to G&G Arv!

We started driving in snow about Fillmore (right, Mikey?) and it was solid until we got to SL. We stopped for dinner in Draper....just glad to be past point of the mountain and not stuck in snowy traffic. We hydroplaned a few times over our trek! Then, onto G&G Arv's for a family get together. We tried to make it to Gibby's, but it didn't happen and we were a little anxious to get home before the snow made it harder.

We pulled into the driveway about 9:15p. Brandon was BEGGING Mike to play their new Star Wars game. So, as I put the girls to bed, Mike was a stellar Dad and played Wii with Brandon for a little while. The next morning, Brandon woke up wanting to play Wii with his Dad again and Mike stayed home from work for a little while to grant his 3 year olds wish. He is so sweet!

Mike late for work....

So, the verdict on our weekend? Completely worth the drive! We had a great time as a family, the sun came out eventually and renewed our spirits, and we were able to relax!