The Babi and Papou Visit

Over my birthday weekend we all flew out to Babi and Papou's house which I must add would probably never had been financial possible if my Mom hadn't sent some money to help cover our flights.

The flight out was awful!  We were unprepared for the fact that they wouldn't let us sit in one row because there are only 4 oxygen masked per row and 5 of us.  So, I sat in the row in front of Derek with Liv and a boy and he behind us with the other boy. 
The kids did not do well separated by a row of seats and it was constant climbing back and forth over the seats.  We only had one Ipad with a 3 way splitter so all the kids could watch at the same time.  However, they were not in the same seat so that and everything else was constantly being tossed over the seats.  By the time the flight was over, I was ready to rent a car and drive home!

Thursday morning first thing the boys discovered Babi and Papou's slightly terrifying balcony.

Then, we snuck our kids into a library class for toddlers that they were supposed to be registered for.  Luckily a few people were gone, so it didn't throw them off too much.  After reading Harry the Dirty Dog, the kids all painted their own dirty dogs.
 
Then, we stopped by Despo's house for tea.  Despo gave Liv a new dress which she practically lived in the whole week and Babi gave her a pink purse which she filled with all her little ponies and carried around everywhere.

Derek and George biked over to Despo's, and Mom and I biked back.  She tried to take me mountain biking on a road bike.  It was a little crazy.  That evening, Derek and I went to a Cubs game and Mom and George took all the kids to the park and then put them to bed for us.  The cubs were awful!  But, it was cool to be at Wrigley for the 100 year anniversary.

We ate the absolutely necessary Chicago dogs for dinner
Derek insisted on buying all the kids and himself Cubs shirts ($$$$$$), but the boys do look cute in theirs.

Friday morning we went to the local Wagner farm with my Mom's neighbors and their grand kids. 
Then, Aunt Kylie joined us.  Liv loves her Aunt Kylie and sort of attached herself to her.
Aunt Kylie introduced my 3 year old to the world of modeling and she was constantly wanting Aunt Kylie to do photo shoots with her for the rest of our time there.  I believe this time the request went something like this, "Hey Aunt Kylie, take a picture of me wearing this hat!"

On the afternoon of my birthday, all the girls (including Liv and she loved being one of the grown up girls all weekend) did some shopping.  My Mom gave me some birthday money to spend and I am so happy with the few new items I got that help make my 15 year old wardrobe feel less drab.  Liv called taking all the clothes to try on in the dressing room a "fashion show" and wanted a turn as well.  However, she had a hard time parting with anything and wanted to buy everything she tried on.  That night we had Chicago-style pizza for my birthday at a park and then later had a yummy fruity pizza type dessert.  Oh and Despo made me the most delightful Cheesecake that I ate way too much of all week.

Saturday morning Kylie gave Derek and I a taste of a crossfit workout.  We were all complaining for days later.  Then, we went to lake Michigan.  The kids loved playing in the sand and chasing the seagulls. 
All of them loved the water.

Poor Carter was shivering and turning blue but he did not want to get out!  Then, the girls had tea at Despo's again.  Later that night we went to my Mom's friends' house for an outdoor party with catered Bali food and Balinese Dancers and music.  The dancers were so nice and let my kid dance on stage with them

and play all their instruments.

Pretty sure my kids might have stole the show just a little bit.  Then, all the girls did a little more shopping.

Sunday we went to the local ward for sacrament and surprisingly sat right behind Derek's cousin!   Then, at the end the guy behind us commended us on how well we were managing our twins (even though it felt very out of control to me).  I guess he has two sets of twins!  He said his wife was a twin and cried the first time she found out she was having twins because she had heard the horror stories from her Mom.  Then, the second time she found out she was expecting twins she cried even harder from personal experience.  Bless that woman!  Derek and I get all stressed out at even the thought of repeating these last two years.  After church, we went to the Glen Bear Park and Garden.  Such a gem of a park: big sand boxes and play equipment and slash pad for the kids, a gorgeous lake with a path around it.  Ky and I ran a few laps in the HEAT of the day.

Monday morning we took the kids swimming at Mom's condo.  That was a little crazy without floaties and such.  Then, Geroge came and found some that had been there all along when we were about to get out. Next, we let the boys take a nap and when they woke up we tried to hit the Lincoln Park zoo.
 Unfortunately they were closing all the buildings right as we got there and hardly got to see anything.  We did get to see some lions.

My boys are way into animals right now, so I guess it was still fun.  Just maybe not worth all the hassle of finding a parking spot and such.  Then, we headed to the airport to fly home.  While waiting to get on the flight my flip flops broke lending me barefoot for the rest of the flight home and all the way through the SLC airport until we got our baggage and I could fish out some other footwear.

Other than that, the flight home was way better than the way out even with it being delayed an hour.  It was later in the evening and all the kids fell asleep.  Carter first, then Liv with her legs kicking and draped over the lap of this saint of a gentleman sitting next to us, and Camden finally fell asleep as we were descending.  We sat in the rows across from each other and the kids much preferred being able to see each other at all times.  Plus, and it made it much easier to pass things across the aisle as needed.

So, it was fun.  Good to see Babi and Papou and Aunt Kylie, but flying with all these kiddos is not something I want to do again anytime soon (or pay for when the boys no longer fly free in the near future).  We would use the curbside check in when we got to the airport which wasn't too bad, but then getting at our destination and somehow having to get from baggage claim to the car with 3 kids, a stroller, 3 bags and 3 car seats was nuts!  Liv was definitely expected to grow up and pull her own weight.

5th Anual Thorsted/Marshall Campout

Since we bought our house, we have gone camping with the Thorsted's every year.  We just determined that we have camped all the major Utah County canyons without really trying and, also without necessarily trying, each year some major calamity takes place.  Perhaps we are cursed.

The first year we camped up American fork canyon and the calamity was of my own doing really.  I was fairly pregnant with Olivia at the time and spent the entirety of the night it seemed getting off the blow-up mattress to go to the bathroom and back on and off and on (you get the idea).

The second year we camped up Hobble Creek Canyon and racoons got into our cooler in the truck bed and ate through most of the breakfast food. 

The third year we camped up Spanish Fork Canyon.  I was pregnant with the twins and Derek came down with some stomach bug in the night and spent the next morning lying around and puking while I (reminder...the one pregnant with twins) took down the whole tent and packed up the truck.

The fourth year the twins were only about 9 months old and we were only brave enough to go as far as Provo canyon just in case they were horrible so we could just take them home.  Well the kids were actually very good it was the weather we had an issue with.  Crazy wind storms!!!  We couldn't have a fire, had to spend the evening in the shelter of the tent which was flapping in on us all night.  A bunch of tent poles were broken and Derek and I didn't sleep a wink just watched as the roof of the tent with cave in on us and flap out wondering if we were going to blow away.

This year we camped up Payson Canyon just past Payson Lakes.  The campsite was beautiful and way up high in the mountains.

The boys were thrilled to be out of doors.
  All the kids loved sitting around the fire, roasting marshmallows and starbursts,

and the capri suns Annie brought.

The kids all slept pretty good- the dog as usual did not.  I think she was just so excited that she couldn't settle and kept circling around in the tent all night.  We got up, packed up

and walked around Payson Lake deciding we really should camp there one day.

Camden was being a bit of a stink and pretty much attached himself to my side the whole day.

Camden's feelings of Derek trying to give me a break from carrying him
So, all was going pretty well until we were about to embark on a hike up the Grotto.  When we arrived at the parking for the trail head, Annie informs us that Tyler is now in crazy pain suffering from a kidney stone.  Honestly cursed!  So, we all went home and Annie took Tyler to the emergency room. We are still hoping to get back up there to do that Grotto hike as a family before it gets too cold.

4th of July

The 4th was a fun family day this year.  I started the day by throwing together quite a delicious and festive breakfast without even planning it.
Derek mowed the lawn but I guess that's nothing new.

We remembered to hang up our flag- Liv helped

Poppi gave the kids all these cute red, white, and blue outfits, but trying to get a cute picture of the cute clothes was pretty much impossible.

We went to the Lindon pool.  All the kids had a blast.  We got there just as it opened and beat the crowds.

 We got slurpees
 
The kids all loved throwing pops on the ground.  Carter would do the fake out= pretend to throw the pop and then really put it in his mouth.

Liv got to stay up and go with Dad to (from what I have heard) one of the most impressive neighborhood displays of fireworks ever.  Tons of aerials and everything else plus our neighbor even ties fireworks to his motorcycle and rides around with them.

 I stayed home with sleeping boys-maybe next year we can all catch the festivities.