Away they Go.....

Today was Lauren and Taylor's first day of school. They were both very excited. When we got there Lauren immediately started hugging her friends and they all started bouncing around. Taylor was a little more on the coy side. He wouldn't let me pose him and take pictures with his friends. I think he was more nervous but still excited. They both have great teachers this year!

Only two more weeks until Josh starts his last year of preschool. I'll have 7 1/2 whole hours to myself each week. What will I do.... (let's just keep our finger's crossed that he'll actually go!)

Oompa Loompa

Today I actually kind of felt like a good mom. We did something a little on the educational side and fun. I've heard from a couple of friends how fun the tour of the Sweets Candy Factory is and since there are only 2 days left of summer vacation, we decided to go.

Lauren invited her friend, Jillian, and Taylor took Noah and we all had a great time with free samples and everththing. The tour is free, but of course, we had to stop in the little store and spend $14+ on candy. My candy of choice was the chocolate covered cinnamon bears!

Lagoon

The kids wait all summer to go to Lagoon. It seems like a good thing to look forward to right before school starts. The kids love looking on the internet at all the rides and they map out everything they want to go on. Lauren did a good job, but it all kind of flew out the window for the boys. They were both really nervous to go on stuff. Parley and I had fun trading off who got to go with Lauren on the "big" rides and who stayed with the boys in the "kiddie" area. We got there when it opened and stayed until it closed. We had a great time and completely wore ourselves out :)

Before and After

Today Lauren got her braces and expander/retainer on. She was very brave. Right now her mouth is a little sore but not too bad. She'll have a beautiful smile in no time. Actually this is phase 1. I wonder how many "phases" it will take...

Early Morning Fun

Last Friday Sandy City had a little balloon festival. I found out through my mom that my friend Heather's dad and brother would be flying. The only problem with ballooning is that they have to do it so early in the morning, especially in the summer. It works best to have the air cooler. The day we went it was a little too windy for them to fly. They all did a great job putting on a show for everyone by inflating. Actually Heather's dad even flew a little. Lauren had such a great time and Bronson (Heather's brother) was great about letting her help pack it all up. She loved it and it brought back great memories for me!

Giddy Up

Our first day in Sunriver the kids over 8 got to go on a 1 hour horse back ride. It was so much fun and so beautiful. Part of it was down by the river. Lauren had really been looking forward to this. She was excited to graduate from the ponies to the horses. Taylor wasn't ready for the big horses yet but had a good little ride on "Houdinni."