We are in serious need of a beach around here.  If anyone has any extra vacations laying around you aren't using, send them our way! (unless they are to Mexico, we aren't too fond of swine)

Pictures from our trip to Lake Tahoe

Saturday we drove to Lake Tahoe.  It was beautiful!  Then on the way back to Reno, we somehow took a wrong turn and ended up in Carson City.  But that was kinda cool too to see our State's capital, it was actually pretty.  And the best surprise of the weekend was a little candy shop off the side of the road in Washoe that made the best chocolate, taffy, and ice cream EVER!
This is Travis and Tori's impression of Edward from Twilight.  This picture is so dang funny I had to share it!This was Travis jumping from giant rock to giant rock in the lake.
Travis bet Bay 5 webkins if she would get into the lake in nothing but her underwear and shirt.  But she had to get fully submerged.  As you can see from the other pictures, it was cold!  Bay is not someone to bet unless you want to lose, she will try ANYTHING!  (which is a little scary for her mom)  Anyway, the first attempt she couldn't do it because it was too cold, then Travis wouldn't let her try again.  But she did end up getting a Webkin anyway :)

Devilmom

Last weekend we went to Reno for Tori's State Gym Meet. We took Baylee with for entertainment purposes and left the boys home. (Thank you Grandma Janet and Grandpa Robin, and Mark and Lanae for taking such great care of our boys!)  Our flight was supposed to leave Reno at 5:00, well at 4:30 the lovely Southwest employee informed us and about 50 other 8 year old gymnasts and their families, that the wind was blowing too hard in Las Vegas and our plane had been grounded.  My first thought???  THE WIND ALWAYS BLOWS IN LAS VEGAS!!!  Seriously, I had to get home and the thought of sitting in an airport all night waiting for the wind to stop blowing was beyond my stability point.  Thankfully we were only delayed about an hour, yay!  

So we land in Las Vegas, pick up Kade at Grandma's house, pick up Cole at Uncle Mark's house and get home.  At which point this story really begins.  Baylee AND Tori proceed to remind us that, oh by the way, we have projects and reports that are due TOMORROW.  Had we worked on them?? NO!  Were they simple little book reports or something?  Of course not!  We are talking puppets and Powerpoint presentations!

Well there is something about air travel that naturally makes a person grumpy, okay maybe not but I am looking for an excuse anywhere I can make one up!  I was looking forward to putting the kids to bed and sitting in my bathtub the rest of the evening, but no, we started PROJECTS! (just for your information they had been assigned about a month before, but we didn't feel the need to worry about such things any time sooner)  At this point my evil split personality came out and I became the devilmom.  At one point I locked myself in my bedroom to try to stop myself from beating my child with her Geronimo Stilton puppet.  Please don't feel the need to call CPS, I didn't beat her with the puppet, I just wanted to.  It was so ugly at our house Sunday night though, Travis even stepped in and tried to help with the projects.  

With all it's ugliness, Sunday was very eye-opening for me.  I realized that I am passing my same bad habits onto my children, and I need to teach them to not procrastinate.  Also, with Bay starting middle school next year we have to find some way to be organized around here.  So we have reinstated the no TV on school nights (Travis said that 24 is an exception to that rule). And Travis made me go buy a white board to keep track of "school stuff".  

My kids are extraordinary people, that continually amaze me.  Even when I turn into devilmom  and yell and scream, they still love me and forgive me.  Not that that justifies my split personality, and hopefully she will never emerge at our house again.  But I am so grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow and be better today than I was yesterday with the help of my Savior, and a really patient family.

Oh, the projects got done.  Baylee got 100% on her report/powerpoint, and we are still waiting for Tori to present hers in class.  :)