Back to school already???

You know in about May I was so excited for school to be out because then our lives would slow down a little and I would be able to get so much done. Things like working out every day and going to the grocery store! Well here I am the last saturday before my kids go back to school, I don't think I worked out more than 3 times the entire summer, and I haven't seen the inside of a grocery store in weeks! Why is it that the "grass is always greener on the other side" theory is always so true for me? I am thinking how sad I am my kids are going to be gone all day again, but also now I can get everything done I need to do everyday! Ha, this time I am going to out smart the "grass" theory and just realize our lives are crazy busy and I never have time to get everything done I need to.

I truly am sad school is starting already. I love having my kids home, and not worrying about homework! And I especially love we get to sleep in (my kids don't even roll over until about 9:30 in the morning now!) But I am also excited for the new adventure of a new school year. Baylee is beginning a new phase in her life and I am so excited for her. She is an incredible person and I know she is going to do great in middle school. Tori and Kade both have great teachers, and they both have a lot of friends in their classes. I LOVE our elementary, we really do have the best principal in the world. And Cole is starting his school career in the absolute best pre-school ever. We have been so blessed to have all 4 of our kids attend Mrs. Purcell's school. She is a loving, kind, beautiful woman who has been such a blessing in our lives. I just hope she is ready for Cole, cuz he's nothin' like the other kids!

Today we decorated Travis' seminary room. He is really looking forward to teaching seminary again this year. He is such a great example to our family of service. He loves the gospel and he loves working with the youth. Seminary has been a really challenging calling for him as well as us but it has been a huge blessing in our family and I am so glad he gets to do it again this year.

So, whether we are ready or not here comes another school year full of homework, projects, and hopefully lots of really great memories! Oh, and I totally intend on being super organized and making to the grocery store at least once in the next week or so :)

Our Summer

Kenny Chesney Concert in Salt Lake

Tori's gym camp at SUU

Time Square

Travis's uncle's pet deer at Lindsey's wedding

St. Anthony Sand Dunes

Yellowstone

Waiting for the 24th Parade

Manti Temple

Wow it has been quite the summer! The end of June we went to Lake Powell for a week and stayed with Cindy on her houseboat. It was a ton of fun and Kade learned to ski, and the girls learnedc to wakeboard. No prettier place in the world to learn to ski and wake board than Lake Powell!

For the 4th of July we went to Salina and let the kids experience a good old fashion small town 4th. They had a lot of fun doing the races and watching the parade. Then Tori and I spent a week in Cedar City staying in the dorms for her gym camp. It was a great camp but I am way too old to stay in dorms!

On the 22nd of July we went to SLC for a Kenny Chesney concert and for the 24th "stuff" with Bob and Espi and their family. It was a ton of fun, the kids loved the concert and the fireworks and parade were a lot of fun. Then we left from their and went to St. Anthony sand dunes in Idaho for a week. It was so nice up there! We went to Yellowstone on Sunday and saw lots of cool stuff (including cute Mckinley Johnson from our ward!). Then we spent the rest of the week riding and playing in the water. We left Friday and went to Salina for Lindsey's wedding and finally made it home again on Sunday August 2nd. Travis had bought airline tickets and tickets to Broadway before school ever got out and he was going to surprise me and take me to NYC on the 14th, but Wednesday night he got a reminder email from the airline that our flight was actually for the 7th! So we emptied our suitcase from the sand dunes (yes I am kinda slow about that!) and repacked to go to NYC! Travis swore he would never go there so I was shocked. It was an awesome weekend, we did tons of fun things and we really liked the city. The people were all really nice, which we were shocked about, and the subway was fun get around on. We went to a Yankees / Red Sox game, saw Wicked on Broadway, saw the Statue of Liberty, went to the top of Rockefeller Center, and walked a million miles around New York City!

Overall, we are way ready to be home for a while. But we had an incredible summer and did some awesome things! WE are so blessed to get to do all we do :)