The Land of Enchantment....Ballon Fiesta!!!

We made our annual pilgrimage to New Mexico to visit our friends Shawn and Amber. This year we arrived in time for the final weekend of the Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque. We got to their house Friday night around 11pm and woke the kids up (at 4:45AM) to head to the fiesta!!! They were such good sports - even Ansley! The morning was COLD - Especially coming from Gilbert, where we were practically still in the triple digits. Next time we would bring more blankets and some serious hot chocolate!

This was such an amazing experience. It was incredible to be up close to all of these balloons as they were inflating and lifting off. It was such a fun atmosphere to be a part of. People really take their balloon fiesta SERIously!

There were soo many different types of balloons - a haunted house, a witch, pepsi can, spongebob, and darth vader - just to name a few. This is most of the group taking a much needed rest.

More for Grandma

This is a little addendum to the last post. We are so excited that Jeremy finished his master's with an emphasis in Special Ed - only to have him leave that field for a whole different ballgame. After 5 years of high school special ed, he is now teaching 8th and 9th honors English/History at a small academy here in Gilbert. It's going to be a lot of work for him, but hopefully very rewarding!
He finally has his own classroom again after 5 years of sharing.
The decorations are sparse, but it's all his:)
Here is the view from the desk - obviously the kids were having a great time!

For Grandma Johnson

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO....Back in MAY, something rather important happened in our family...Jeremy finished his Masters in Education from ASU!! He missed graduation because it was Father and Sons Campout..(+I don't think he really wanted to walk) I had him pose with the diploma for his mom:)
We are so very proud of Jeremy and glad to hopefully have him around a little more! Way to go hon...What's next? Doctorate???

At Least She Thinks He is Hilarious!!

Last Night at the Beach

On our last night in California, we went to visit the place where it all started. Jeremy proposed to me 12 years ago on the beach below the Ritz Carlton in Laguna. I loved this pic of the family (one of the few since we had Ansley). A lot has happened in the last 12!!! Crazy.

A little Culture Never Hurt Anyone

I was raised in LA by parents who really enjoyed the arts. They took us to museums, concerts, symphonies, sporting events (GO DODGERS) and musicals. When I was younger, I must admit that some of these things were not exactly on my list of favorites. As I got older, I realized that a LOVE of these things had been instilled in me - even with all my childish protesting:) We decided to take advantage of the relatively new light rail system in Phoenix and take our kids to the Phoenix Art Museum!
The kids LOVED the train ride. To be honest, it might have been the highlight of the day!
Jeremy recently completed his masters degree - but is still coming to terms with the fact that some might try to label him a "sun devil". He is and ALWAYS will be a cougar!!!
The kids' favorite exhibit at the museum was called "Fireflies". It was a mirrored room with strands of LED lights hanging from the ceiling! So cool. You can faintly see their outline on the right side of the pic.
This is how it looked when the flash was on. It was so dark in there, I couldn't see what I was taking a picture of until after the fact! We visited that exhibit a number of times during our visit to the museum. It was fun because it was "hands on"!!!
We were starving by the end of our cultural extravaganza and saw this restaurant within walking distance. It was pretty sweet inside and we had a great time, once the babies fell asleep:)

Schools OUT !!!

Ellie just finished 3rd grade with Mrs Lucero!!! I can't believe Ellie is almost as tall as her:)
Ethan's last day of school was not quite as glamorous..He had the flu and missed the last two days. He did some napping and once he felt better -lots of reading!!! 1st grade is Done - We'll have to get a pic with his teacher once school starts!

The Big Kids

Ellie and Ethan both had some great opportunities during April. Ellie was able to go with her activity day group from church and go ice skating. It was her first time and she LOVED IT!! I asked her during the activity what she thought and she said, "I'm having the time of my life!!!"

These are just a few of the cute girls from our ward. Yes - true to form, I think Ellie is officially the tallest girl in primary!!! (at 9) She carries it well!!! Beautiful girl!!!

She also participated in a 6 week tennis clinic. (Her first real exposure to the sport) It was so fun to watch her out there. Jeremy and I both hope she will develop a love for this sport - and/or volleyball:) We keep telling her that good grades and a little sportiness will definitely go far when it comes to college admission. (never too young, right?)

Ethan and Jeremy were able to experience a little NASCAR with our friends. Ethan's report was that it was LOUD - but awesome...(red-neck in the making?)
Here are the boys having a great time. My only advice to Jeremy was to watch for flying tires and protect our son! Those videos on TV always freak me out!
Last, but not least - Ethan finished up another soccer season with coach John. He's been with this coach and most of the kids since he was 3. We are soo glad we found such a great group of people and look forward to soccer in the fall!!! GO Ethan!!!

Last Minute Trip

Two of my nephews received their mission calls and decided to go through the LA temple together. Steven - (Nancy and John's youngest) got his call to Mexico and Dan - (Mike and Michelle's youngest son) is heading to Salt Lake City!!! It meant a road trip without Jeremy as he was days away from completing his Master's project (YAHOO). I decided that as long as I made it to the temple, I could survive whatever else a three day road trip with 4 children could dish out. So worth it!!!
Ethan and Owen had lots of fun on the way to California. Poor Ethan was squeezed between Owen and Ansley but was a good sport....mostly:) We were in such a hurry until after the temple that I really got no pics of the morning. We spent Friday night at Amy and Jason's house and got up super early to make it to LA by 8am. My AWESOME niece Jenny offered to watch my kids while I went to the temple. (That was quite a feat with a 4 month old and the oft naughty 2 year old).

After the temple, we drove out to Ventura and spent the afternoon playing at the beach and eating yummy food!!
If you are picturing a warm soft breeze, paint a different picture....a cold brisk wind. My mom was freezing and we did everything we could to get her warm. We were laughing at her get-up, she looked like the unabomber.
Owen spent the afternoon putting sand in his root beer and drinking it. (I realized after about 25 minutes of trying to stop him, that I should just let him do it - he is the third child after all).
This shot was taken right before a big (size is a relative thing) wave came and knocked him face first into the water...I promise I was right there, just didn't think a wave that was 3 inches tall would knock him down:)
Ansley was there too, she is just soo chill that I sometimes forget to take her picture. I left her in her car seat because that was where she was the warmest. She is SUCH a good baby!!!



All in all, a great time was had on our road trip, even without daddy. My kids discovered the joy of the chicken dance. It is now the one song that without fail makes Owen stop what he's doing and groove. The video of Owen at the beach made me laugh because he thinks he is chasing a bunny....love that kid...

"No Coward Bears Our Flag"!

We were asked to make a "family flag" and bring it to a ward activity last Saturday. Jeremy, Ellie and Ethan jumped on the idea and immediately came up with their idea of what our flag should look like.
My brother Mike and family gave us a sign few years ago that has become our family motto - "Loyal to God and Family". The book represents our families love of learning - "out of the best books". The scriptures and article of faith are also representative of what is important to our family.
On the flag pole is the phrase "No coward bears our flag". This was taken from the hymn "Who's on the Lord's Side?" We are constantly reminding our children that they need to stand up for what they believe in and not be afraid of what other people might think!
This was such a great activity for our family - now we just need to find a place to display it:)

It Really Was a "Good Friday"

So we are always wondering what to do in this vast desert we live in. Jeremy and the kids had today off and we decided to get in the car and GO! We had thought about a trip to Payson and hopefully snow, but I kind of shot that one down as I was in the mood for more uncharted waters. Jeremy headed up the adventure and got a recommendation to our first stop - Burger House!!! Although the name is deceiving, we had it from a good source that this place has some of the best Mexican food in the state of Arizona and let me just say that it did not disappoint! We ate lunch, continued on our adventure and stopped back by to pick up more burritos to eat later and also grabbed a few for our neighbor!!!
Even Ethan - who can sometimes be a little "selective" with his taste buds liked this culinary fare!
This shot says it all - Ellie knows good food when she tastes it - or in this case, shoves it all in her face!!!
It was great to have no idea where we were going and therefore have the freedom to stop at every park or circle k or wherever. This park was a little pit stop to get the energy out before the drive home.
This slide was quite fast and the kids nicknamed it "the slide of doom".
Owen loves to slide but opted for a more toddler friendly one!
Ansley did not cry AT ALL - the whole day. She is such a sweet little thing!
We noticed lots of cars pulled off the highway and tons of people taking pictures of the Arizona wildflowers. Jeremy was a good sport and snapped a few shots for me!
This is only about 40 minutes from us and was sooo beautiful!
I saw someone picking some flowers and decided that if he was doing it, I would too - After all, it was Easter in 2 days and I needed a centerpiece for my table. Thank goodness we had the circle k cups to use as vases!