March 2016

March was a very busy month for us. Here is a quick recap in pictures (it's actually not quick at all, but like I said we were busy so there is a lot to write about)! 

I played in a volleyball tournament that was a Friday and Saturday. I was a little nervous about playing because I haven't played in a two day tournament in a very long time and I am not in shape to just pick up and play that much. I got there Friday night and found out we had 6 matches that night and I got REALLY nervous. It turned out to be so much fun and my body held up just fine. We were undefeated the first day but ended up losing on Saturday so we didn't make it to the championship. We lost to the recent Dixie State team so I didn't feel too bad considering how old our team was and how tired we were!  

Meet Dirty Gert! We borrowed a book from the library a while ago about little baby named Dirty Gert who eats dirt. Ellie really does love to eat dirt. All. The. Time. Its kind of a problem. Dan sent me this picture while I was working. She makes us laugh.  

We were so excited to finally get sod! We have been looking forward to having grass since we moved in and it finally happened. We laid it all ourselves. My Dad came over and help and a couple neighbors wandered over here and there to help too. We really appreciated it. It turned out to be a really big job but was totally worth it. 

We've been doing a lot of yard work but at least we have cute little helpers. Unfortunately the little helpers usually make the job take twice as long. 

We literally laid sod from sun up to sun down. It was an exhausting day! 

But so rewarding to see this when we were done. 

We were dirty and tired at the end of the day but were were so happy to finally be done! 

A few days after we put our grass in we had a sprinkler pipe break. I took the kids in to work and traded with Dan and when he got home this is what he found in our back yard. Once again  Dirty Gert was very involved in helping Dad work! 

In March, the kids and I flew to Monterey to spend a few days with Amy's family. I was very nervous about flying with all three kids by myself, especially since Ellie is the busiest baby ever. 

Dan was nice enough to walk us to the gate, which eased a lot of my stress. It was so nice to have him there to help with the kids while we had to wait. 

Cason and Kami were sooo excited to fly. They each had their own backpacks filled with snacks, toys and an iPad (weborrowed my moms old one) so they could entertain themselves on the flight since I would be busy with Ellie. 

They were pretty sad to say goodbye to Dad. I love this picture. They sure love their daddy! 

Got their boarding passes and ready to go! 

I was nervous about the flights but I didn't need to be because the kids were awesome! I was so proud of them. Cason and Kami were so great and by some miracle Ellie fell asleep in my arms. It was truly an answer to prayers. 

After Amy picked us up at the airport we went straight to this cute little zoo by her house. It wasn't your typical zoo, most of the animals were just in cages and you had to take a tour and stick with the group. But because of that you got to get a lot closer to the animals. It was pretty neat. 

Part of the tour was feeding the elephants, which was definitely a first for us. Cason thought it was so cool! 

And Kami wasn't about to get that close! 

We went on most of our adventures while Ava and Lizzie were at school. So that meant that we had a 5,4,3,2 and 1 year old. It was chaotic but so much fun. Luckily Amy and I are both used to chaos and it was fun to laugh about it together. This is the best picture we could get of all the little kids. 

Swimming at Amy's community pool.

We decided to go for a scenic walk in Point Loma (I think that's what it's called but I could be wrong). It turned into quite the adventure. There was poison oak everywhere and the trails we were going to go on were covered in mud so we tried to improvise. We ended up taking a few wrong trails and walked around 5 miles. But we did have a nice little picnic on the beach. The kids were pretty tired at the end but I thought they did really good considering how far they walked. It was definitely a memorable experience. 

We also went to the Monterrey Aquarium. I was really cool, but Ellie was not very excited about being there. She just wanted to run around and wasn't very happy when I wouldn't let her. There were tons of people there so it was kind of crazy to try and keep our group together.

Our best try at a picture of all seven kids. It was so fun to be there and hang out with the Simposons. Our kids all play so good together and its so fun to watch them run around!

We flew out of San Jose and it was so nice. It isn't nearly as crowded as Las Vegas. We found a few empty gates and hung out with no one else around while we waited. There was even a little kids play area. 

It was such a fun trip and we were so happy to go home to see Dan! 

Kami started tumbling this month. She is so darn cute. She absolutely loves it and loves to show off all her new moves to anyone that will watch. It is pretty hilarious! 

I don't think anything makes me happier than when these two play good together. On this day they were reading together under their fort. 

We also went to Mesa, AZ this month to visit Dan's Grandpa Frank Kellch. He lives there during the winter and in Casper during the summer. On the drive there we took a little pit stop to walk over this bridge over the Colorado River. 

It was SO high and was making me very nervous. I've never really had a fear of heights but watching my kids get close to the edge was driving me nuts. I made them pretend the shadow was a balance beam on the way back across to keep them away from the side. I'm turning into my mom! 

We broke up the drive by staying the night in a hotel Flagstaff. Kami and Cason went to bed and slept great. 

Ellie on the other hand did not. I'm pretty sure this picture was taken at 1 AM. She really is not a fan of hotels plus she took a really late nap on the drive. We gave her a bath at midnight to try and calm her down. Dan also went down to the lobby multiple times for more milk. You would think we would learn our lesson and stop taking her to hotels. 

We had a great time at Grandpa Franks house. He has a pool in his backyard. Even though it isn't heated the kids had a fun time swimming in the very cold water. 

Great-Grandpa Frank, Cason and Kami going on a joy ride in the golf cart around the neighborhood. They loved Grandpa! They could not get enough of him. Any time he sat down one of them would crawl onto his lap. They had a million questions for him and just wanted to talk to him non-stop. It was so cute. He was such a good sport. I am so glad we got to go and spend time with him. It really was special to watch our kids and him interact. 

On our way way we stop at a gas station close to the Grand Canyon that has delicious homemade cookies.  

Kami played with my phone in the car on the way home and when I got it back I had about 3,000 pictures of Ellie, this one is my favorite. 

When we got home we could finally walk on our grass. We were pretty excited about it! 

I can't help but post a million pictures of this cute girl. She is so happy... and busy. 

Kami spends hours and hours on her swing. 

I took the kids to the dentist. I usually wouldn't take a baby this young, but, Ellie has a crooked front tooth that has a little chip in it so I wanted the dentist to check it out just in case. Its totally fine and he looked in her mouth for about 2 seconds so it was a major waste of money haha! 

Kami and Cason were champs. They do so good in these type of situations. I'm happy to report 0 cavities. Dan and I have never had cavities either so I hope that passes on to the kids. 

While Ellie was getting checked out Kami wrapped her arms around her and was whispering, "Don't worry Ellie, your big sister is right her." I could have died.

My mom had surgery on her foot and was couch ridden for most of the month. I felt really bad for my mom but during that time Kami became so attached to her. My mom would invite her over to do puzzles and just have alone time together. It really melted my heart. Ever since my moms surgery, Kami wants to hang out with Grandma all the time. She is constantly writing her cards, picking her flowers, etc. The other day she even threatened to not eat her applesauce if I didn't take her to Grandma's house! 

Easter was in March this year. The kids had fun dying Easter eggs outside while Dan and I worked in the yard. On Easter we had my parents over for lunch. The kids had so much fun looking for eggs and finding their Easter basket. It was a fun, low-key day. Cason and Kami have been learning the "Gethsemane" song in primary and have been singing it non-stop at home for the past month. Kami especially belts it out a million times a day. She also loves to preform it for anyone and will stop what she's doing to give a solo performance. They sang it with the primary on Easter and then two weeks later I gave the lesson in Relief Society on the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and Kami came and sang it to all the women in there for me. It was the cutest thing ever and she loved every second of it. I was worried she would get nervous once she was up there but she did great. It has been a great experience teaching the kids about the Savior and everything He has done for us. It is so neat to watch their little testimonies grow. They have instant faith when it comes to the Savior and Heavenly Father. They know they are there without a doubt and talk about them regularly. I just pray they always keep that knowledge. 

Last but not least... the girls and I make a quick trip to St. George while Cason was at school one day to have a lunch date with Dad at Cliffside!  Kami was in Heaven and Ellie wasn't too excited about  being strapped in to a highchair but did pretty good. We at least made it through the meal!