Hey, We're Still Alive -- And I'm the Worst Blogger Ever!

 I am fully mourning the end of summer -- give me 100 degree days over the 32 degree mornings we're getting here now.  The full swing of winter will be here before I can blink.

So here's a super quick recap of our amazing summer together....

We spent nearly a month in Florida at Dad's.  So relaxing, so much fun.  The kids were in heaven, hanging out by the pool and spending so much time at the beach.  I admit my tan was getting pretty nice.

 

Hanging out with these bathing beauties all day every day was great fun.  Each one increased his or her swimming skill level, and Joseph went from being afraid of the water to future Olympic competitor.  He made unbelievable progress.  By the time we left he was the strongest swimmer in the group.

 

Look at this cute boy!  Trying to make a grumpy face, but he's too sweet.

 

We spent a lot of time at the train station, Joseph and Dad both being huge fans.  We put pennies on the track and let the train smash them, and we took a ride up to Winter Park. 

 

 

Boy, do I love these kids!!!!

 

Another fun adventure in Florida -- an airboat ride on Lake Tohopekaliga!  We saw some baby gators and a sleeping mama gator.  It poured down rain on us, but we still had such a great time.  Out in the middle of the lake we saw the strangest thing -- a cow!  She had wandered away from her herd and was none too happy with us for getting too close.  The highlight for me was seeing a bald eagle in his natural habitat -- so incredibly cool.

 

Afterwards, soaking we as we were, we got to hold some adorable baby alligators inside the shop.  Seriously, look at that face -- so cute!

 

Bradley and Dad's dog Ace became best buds.

 

A highlight for my kids -- eating at CiCi's Pizza a few times.  Man, those kids can eat!

 

My sister, Becca.

 

 

And because we couldn't get enough gators, we went to Gatorland!

 

I do NOT like the way that snake is looking at my boy.

 

It really looks like my baby is standing there right in front of a viscious, man-eating alligator, unprotected.  Yeah, right!

 

Oh yes, baby, tha BEACH!  We went to Clearwater, Daytona, and Cocoa a couple of times.  Not only is it so fun to be there and boogie board and soak up the sun and play, it is SO much fun to watch my children have such a wonderful time themselves!  The kids were all naturals in the water, and as Joseph's confidence back home in the pool was growing, so did his beach skills.  By the end of the trip he was a boogie boarding expert!

 

 

Chris got to surprise us and come for a few days as well -- we were so happy after nearly 3 long weeks apart!  His kiddos were sure happy to get to show them all the fun they'd been having in Florida!

 

Sand castle building -- not to be taken lightly in this family

 

Look at this gorgeous surfer girl!  She is a natural on the beach!

 

We were blessed to get to spend a little time with my brother Matt, his wife Osmeillie, and thier crazy-adorable son, Jared!  Love my nephew!!

 

 

Hamming it up for the camera -- I think that's gonna turn out really nice.

 

My true love....

 

Love these sisters of mine -- missing our Amanda!

 

Chris joined in with the kids and their crazy pool antics.  They were so happy to have their dad there!!

 

Who is this grown up kid??

 

Pals . . .

 

It was sometimes too cold for me to swim, so I serenaded everyone by the pool.  They hardly ever begged me to stop.

 

This girl!!! This is my good buddy Jennifer from waaaaaay back in high school.  We played ball together and hung out a ton, but we hadn't seen each other in 20 years!  She lives near Orlando now and was gracious enough to drive over and see me, which I'm so grateful for.  I feel blessed to have her as a friend and really loved how, 20 years later, we are still the same goofballs as ever and could fall right back into hanging out.  She's awesome!

 

 

Ok, back from Florida now, but on the subject of friends, look who stopped by my house....it's my Tiffany!  Another friend from high school and YW who I'm so glad I've gotten back into touch with in the last few years.  Again, crazy as ever.  Like we've never been apart . . . or grown up . . . or both.

 

Chris and I have done a good bit of kayaking too, on the Provo River -- although not nearly as much as we would like to.  This is becoming one of my absolute favorite things that we do together.  Better than dinner and a movie any day!

 

As the summer waned, we took time to go for walks together.  One stop was the beautiful Bridal Veil Falls.  We went out to breakfast after, which was by far their favorite part, but I think they enjoyed the falls as well.  They sure are cute!

 

Ha!  Somehow the photo of them in front of the actual waterfall has disappeared.  Trust me, we were there!

 

Family photo and dead family photo

 

There's been a lot of scouting going on this summer -- even while we were on vacation!  Both boys worked so hard over the summer!  Bradley received several belt loops and is just a couple of requirements away from getting his Bear.

 

 

Nathaniel earned 11 merit badges and advanced to Star at the last Court of Honor.  I'm so proud of both of them for making scouting such an important part of their lives.

 

Chris grew a beard a scout camp -- isn't he the cutest??!!  I love him with a beard!

 

Thanks to Mel babysitting, Chris and I got to spend a night away, up in Salt Lake.  We had a delicious dinner together at the Market Street Grille.  He took these photos of me there.

 

And then we went out to the sports track for some grown up go cart racing.  THAT was some serious fun.  I highly recommend it.

 

YES, we saw "Wicked"!!!  I'm not even going to attempt to describe the awesomeness -- let me just say, it was awesome!!  Mel and Andrew and I had a great time -- Chris decided he would rather have the money and sold his ticket online.  Some date. 

 

Joseph loves riding in Mel's Mini Cooper......

 

 

So when she and Andrew decided to move across the country, I agreed to help them -- Joseph and I drove the Mini.  Ok, I did most of the driving.  He was pretty darn happy to ride along, watching movies and playing Angry Birds. 

 

We got to visit one night in Memphis with Amanda and Drew and another adorable baby nephew Josh, so Joseph took full advantage of the chance to get in the pool.

 

We got to spend a night in Augusta as well, so we got to see most of our family members there -- which is always a blessing.  I love my family so much and really treasure the time we get to spend together.

 

This was a cool tidbit -- I was showing Joseph where I went to high school and decided to stop by the baseball field to see if my name was still on the wall, and it was!  I was the statistician for the baseball team when they won the state championship, so I got a tiny piece of immortality at the school.  (By the way, the Chris Black listed here is not my Chris Black -- he went to a different school.)

Country roads, take me home . . . I love the beauty of the south.

 

When we boarded the plane to fly back home from Orlando, Joseph was a bit of a wreck.  It was finally dawning on him that his Aunt Mel wasn't coming back to Utah with us, and he was pretty upset.  I managed to coax a smile and an I Love You from him to text back to the family members we were so sad to leave. 

 

Chris took me to a work conference evening, which included a private concert with the group Lonestar.  I like some of their songs, but I wasn't a huge fan -- until that night!  It was an outdoor concert at Deer Valley, and it was raining and freezing cold!  We did all we could to stay dry with tiny ponchos . . .

 

. . . but these awesome guys in the band said, "Hey y'all, come on up here on stage with us and get out of that rain!"  It was pretty darn cool of them.  So all of us got up there and stood around among them, and they put on the concert just like normal.  It was a great show!

 

Just a parting shot of my baby boy -- this pure, untainted happiness makes me smile.  I love my kids so much.  I love my family.  Life is good.