What a June!

This June has been very busy with summer vacation activities. I went to Loveland, CO with Raymond's sisters for the weekend. We had fun getting pedicures, eating out, shopping, and just visiting without any children or men-folk. It was a lot of fun and I'm glad I can relax with them. As soon as I got home we set out for the Grand Canyon. I had not been since I was a toddler and Raymond had never been, so it was an exciting adventure for the entire family.
We arrived early in the morning and stopped at Desert View Watchtower. The view was fantastic even though the tower was not open yet. Here the kids saw a rabbit and a lizard. The wildlife was one of the kids favorite part of the trip, especially the lizard.
That evening we took a hike to Ooh Aah point on the South Kaibab trail. It was beautiful. It was the parents favorite part of the trip. Here are some of the beautiful views.


We also watched the sunset. The next morning we hiked down the Bright Angel Trail. The kids and some of the adults only went down a little ways. Juliann made it to the 1 1/2 mile resthouse while Raymond and Lee went down to the 3 mile resthouse. Jim and Josh walked six-miles in to Plateau Point.


The next morning we stopped by the Indian ruins and stopped by Desert View Watchtower again so we could go inside. The three older boys all earned their Jr. Ranger badges and were very proud of that accomplishment.



We had a great time with Jamie's family. It is definitely one of those "must see" places.

Guess what? I'm still around!

I know it has been a very long time since I wrote on my blog. But we are still here! S and A just finished 2nd and 1st grade. G finished preschool and will start kindergarten in the Fall. They are all very excited for Summer Vacation. We will be starting our official Summer Schedule tomorrow.
J is the princess that likes to wear pink every day. Aa is a very active toddler that likes to find mischief. He is very cute though and does everything with a big smile!

Raymond is still working at Sterling ATM. He is also busy trying to sell the property we have in West Valley. We may rezone it to commercial property and lease it to a dance company instead. It is a lot of work for him to do. I am gearing up for summer and still teaching piano and voice lessons. I am also preparing for baby #6 in September. Now you are all updated, right?

New Job!

Raymond started a new job. We are so excited for him. He is working for a company that deals with ATM surrounds. He is helping with inventory and shipping. It has been a change, but we are excited for it.

Halloween

Look at me. I'm updating my blog. Finally. Well, first let's talk about Halloween. J and S knew what they wanted to be. J would be a princess, and S would be a tiger. I knew what I was putting on Aa, a little Blue's Clues costume. G and A kept changing their mind. G went from a bat to a knight to refusing to wear a costume. A went from a ninja to something I can't remember, and ended up as a snow leapord. We celebrated Halloween on Saturday the 30th by attending the "Boo at the Zoo." We had a great time. It wasn't too cold and the handouts were great. Aa particularly liked the small rodent and reptile house. He liked all the small furry animals. He would say "kitty" and try to pet them through the glass no matter what was on the otherside. He didn't care if it was really a bunny or a meerkat. S got to pose with the tigers while A got to touch a snow leapord pelt. After the zoo we went home and carved our pumpkins. Then the rain started. We were worried about our trick or treat plans, but it let up enough for Raymond to take the kids for a little while. We had a great day!

A and J's birthday bash

Here are some pictures from A and J's birthday. Enjoy!

Busy Summer Part Two

While my sister was in town we took a trip to Yellowstone. It was fun. My favorite part is seeing the geysers and other thermal features. While we were at Old Faithful we also got to see Caslte Geyser, Beehive Geyser, and Grand Geyser all go off without hardly any waiting. It was exciting and special. Those are ones not everyone gets to see, especially not within just a couple of hours. S especially liked Grand Geyser. While we were waiting he wanted to leave. He didn't want to wait. After it went off though, he was glad he waited. He learned that some things are worth waiting for and you have to be patient. I love it when they learn life lessons.

We didn't see a lot of wildlife until the last day. That day we did get to see quite a few bison. I was glad because A was getting a little disappointed and he was much happier after that.

An Exciting Month

July sure has been an excting month for us! We attended the Crane Family Reunion in Idaho to start out the month. It was a blast! The kids loved hanging out with their cousins. We played a lot of great games and visited Crater of the Moon. We even got to do a service project there! It's great that the Crane family has incorporated service into their family reunions.

Next we celebrated Raymond's birthday. We made three different cakes for the event all at his request. They were German Chocolate, Tres Leches with strawberries, and Better than almost anything cake. We also got tickets to see the Paul McCartney concert. It was so fun!

The next weekend we had a family reunion with Raymond's extended Crane family. We and Raymond's mom were the only ones in his family able to attend, so it's good we went! They had a dinner at a park, which pleased the little ones. Each family presented a talent for entertainment. Since we were the only ones there, we sang a song Raymond wrote called "Dreaming of You." It's one of my favorites!

My sister came to visit from Texas with her family at the end of the month. They spent the night at the parade route for the 24th of July. S went with them. We met them there in the morning and had fun watching the parade.