our annual trip to the farm

 In August, the littles and I took our annual trip to The Farm so they could feed baby goats, and hold kittens and chicks.  They love this place.  It's totally my kind of farm too, because I get to see some fun animals, but it is totally clean.

We've been doing this every year for a few years, and it seems like each visit goes exactly the same, and yet it always seems to be exactly what we want it to be. 

kade and ky go to utah

 In August, Ky and Kade finally got to enjoy their Christmas present from 8 months earlier when we sent them on an airplane just the two of them to spend 9 days in Utah with Grandma and Grandpa.

 They were so excited, and not the least bit nervous about flying out there alone.  I was okay until I watched their plane take off and felt very oddly about the fact that two of my babies were in that metal tube launching itself into the sky, and headed far away without me.

 Of course, they were in great hands the entire week and had an absolute blast!  In fact, I think they had too much fun since they were completely angry about having to come home 9 days later. 

 My parents took them to Bryce Canyon for a few days for some hiking.  It apparently was very bright there.

 They got to see Great Grandma Adams

 

Meanwhile, I got to spend some time with just Krew and Everly doing some fun activities more geared to their age and interest level that can sometimes be hard to do when the teenagers are home.  We had a great week too! One highlight was seeing this bird exhibit at the local museum.  These two were in heaven.  Plus, we were the only ones there, so they could spend as much time as they wanted looking at each display.  

 Bart took these two to a fun hot air balloon festival one day

 We had fun at Bookworm Gardens playing around and seeing the pretty plants

 Yep, they still love each other

 Look at the fun fairy house they made together!

 Meanwhile, Kade and Ky continued to have the best week.  They got to go to the Provo City Center Temple

and eat at my favorite restaurant, Cafe Rio.  Yes, they are making those faces to taunt me on purpose.  It worked.  I was very jealous.

 Krew and Everly finally got to ride one of these ridiculous, expensive ride-on animals that they beg me to ride every single time we go to the mall.

 They also got to hold chickens at our friends house.

 That week, Everly also lost her first tooth.  I was shocked when I found out that it was wiggly, because she was only 4 years old!  She didn't know if she should be scared or excited, and I think this picture shows a little of both.

 The day we had to drive to Milwaukee to pick up Ky and Kade from the airport when their trip was over, we decided to head down early and make a fun day of it.  We had fun taking photos with these fun paintings again.

 I couldn't believe how closely Everly's eyes matched her shirt.  I'm constantly surprised when I look at her eyes that and see how green they are.  The rest of us all have blue eyes, so I never thought I'd have a little girl with the most beautiful shade of green eyes, and yet here we are and I couldn't be happier about it.

 We stopped at the zoo and Krew loved this bird show we watched.

We were happy to see Ky and Kade after missing them for 9 days.  I can't say they were particularly happy to see us and be back home though.  They keep asking when they can do that again!

weekend in chicago

In July, we met up with some of our best friends for a fun long weekend in Chicago.  I love getting away and spending a few days somewhere different than where we live.  Chicago never disappoints.

Our first stop was the Shedd aquarium.  We hadn't been there for years, so none of our kids remembered it.  It was so much fun!

 The dolphin show was a huge hit with everyone.

 Everly adores Ellison, and even though we only see them a couple times a year at most, she talks about Ellison all the time.  She even thinks that Ellison is her cousin.  How sweet is that?!

 Touching the sting rays is always fun!

 How the dads felt after chasing 7 kids around a crowded museum for hours.  

 How the littlest kids felt after waking around the city for hours.  Chicago is exhausting when you have little legs.

No kids can resist splashing in the fountain!

We recreated these pictures we took of the boys 7 years ago when we at the same fountain.  I think they turned out awesome!

 Fun pictures at The Bean

 This park is so much fun, but we were all a little tired by the time we got to it.  Next time we'll have to start there.

 The next day we spent at this super fun water park!

 We took a fun walk along the river

 The girls put these pretty flowers in Everly's braid so she could feel like Rapunzel

 We ended our trip with a stop at this fun butterfly garden.  It was so much fun to visit with our friends, and make memories as a family!