The Best Motel in Burley...

Actually it should have read "The Bates Motel in Burley." We went up to Idaho for a little family vacation and decided to stay in Burley. It was a pretty place, but as for our hotel - I just wish I'd had my camera. It was literally the spitting image of the Bates Motel from Psycho, I kid you not, only dingier and dirtier and scarier. We were in room #2 and there was no phone, no garbage can, no pictures on the wall, little curtains to barley cover the window, a moldy tub and a broken thing barley holding the bathroom sink in place. We even had to use a real key to get into the stuck door and there was no dead bolt. It was one of those rooms right out of the movies where I just knew we were going to be murdered in our sleep. Even Dave was creeped out which doesn't happen much. So you might be wondering why I picked this lovely building to let my family stay overnight in. Well here is the website and a picture of what I thought the room would look like. http://www.burleysbestmotel.com/ Then when we went to check out everyone was still asleep. When someone finally came they just said, "next time just leave the key on the desk." Next time?! There won't be a next time. Oh well, now that we are back home safe and sound we can look back and laugh:)

Lots of "firsts" at the Hogle Zoo

We are a zoo loving family, so we come here a lot, but yesterday was filled with a whole bunch of "firsts" as we explored the zoo.

First #1. Kira is happy and not whining:)

First #2. We got to see the baby monkey and he came up really close to us to eat the leaves on the other side of the cage. It was so cute.
Then momma monkey came over to supervise.

First #3. Kira got to hold a real elephant tusk. It was really heavy and she was excited.

First #4. The sloth was awake and I saw his face. He's usually asleep so I was excited to actually see him moving around.
First #5. The new carousel is open and Dave and Kira took a ride on it. Kira rode on the snake...
and Dave rode on the Jaguar. They were cute having some daddy/daughter time.
First #6. Finally behind bars! Dave took this opportunity to catch our "dangerous animals" in action:)

First #7. We got to see the cute baby giraffe.
First #8. Bryce actually woke up for a little while to enjoy the zoo. We had such a fun day.

swingin' in the summer

Bryce is 4 months!

I can't believe that Bryce is already 4 months old. The time has flown by and I am enjoying every minute of it. Here are some of his favorite things...taking a bath, getting his diaper and clothes changed - he laughs and laughs when I take his shirt off and on, sucking on his fingers, and sqwaking like a baby teradactyl for hours on end. He is a joy and a blessing in our lives. We love you Bryce!

Oh, one last thing. I got Dave a father's day card that plays the NFL theme song and Bryce loves it:) He kicks his feet and does his teradactyl sqwak and his daddy is SO proud!

The All New "Teddy Bear Picnic" Song

Okay, so have any of you seen this movie? (I know it's old, but I wanted to share something.)It is one of the things that makes me smile and I love it. One of the main reasons for this is because of the song that Ashton Kutcher sings as "Elliot" the one horned deer to his friend Boog the bear. It is to the music of "Teddy Bear Picnic" which I learned, and loved, in the first grade from Miss Labrum. Elliot doesn't know it but he makes up the words to it and it goes something like this...

"Once there was a magical elf
who lived in a rainbow tree.
He lived downstairs from a flatulant dwarf
who was constantly having to pee.
One day the elf could take no more,
so he went and banged on the rude dwarfs door.
And what do you know, they suddenly both were married."

I even learned to play it on the piano. I think this is hilarious, and you may think I am a little childish and stupid, but who isn't, at least sometimes. It really is funny - especially with his actions!

If you want to see more on this go to www.sonypictures.com/homevideo/openseason. It's so funny.

Rainy Day / Sunny Day Fun

Our weather in Utah just amazes me. One day it is sunny, then snows. The next it rains and is sunny again. Who ever knows what to plan for, but here are some things that we did, one on a rainy day and one in the sun.

Rainy Day
Thanks to Dave's cute cousin Amy we had a great idea and a great playdough recipe:) We spent about an hour (which in child attention span time is like an eternity) and just played playdough and made food. It was so fun. Kate made cookies...
and I helped Kira make a "cherry" pie which turned out really cute.

Durning all of this, I, Megan, made banana bread. Yes, folks. You read right. I made banana bread. For those of you who know me best, you know that I am really very scared of bananas. I can't explain the phenomenon behind this, but I just am scared of them. So for me to peel a banana, let alone a brown, squishy, smelly banana and then mash it up to make banana bread is a big accomplishment for me. I was so proud! I must love my family lots because they are the reason for my breakthrough:). I'm even told it tasted good.

Sunny Day

Today it has been so sunny and hot so we did the pool and water balloons. Here is Kira and her friend Jaycee.
Kate getting ready to throw one. I love her "I'm about to do something evil smile":)
the balloons floating in the water looked cool.

Armfuls of water balloons to throw in the street - we have to get them all now or someone else will take them before we can run back!
Throwing them was Kira's favorite part.
Here's one in the air.
And here's the street after we were all done. Lots of fun on a hot day.

Our Cute Family

the so-called adults:)

Create your own family sticker graphic at pYzam.com

This is so fun! Thanks for the idea Krista!

I've been Tagged!

1. Four places I go over and over:
* To the computer to check my blog - I'm so addicted!
* To sit in front of the TV and watch movies- I'm also so addicted!
* Walmart - it's the only store in town.
* To sit on my front porch - my girls love to play outside, but do you think they'd play in the backyard with all the fun toys where I don't have to monitor so much? Oh no. It has to be out front. Oh well, it gives me an excuse not to clean my house:)

2. Four people that email me the most:
* My sister Amy
* My Dad
* Potterybarn
* Redbox
I never really look at emails, so no one emails me:)

3. Four of my favorite foods:
* Iced Sugar Cookies from Blimpie
* Strawberries
* Jr. Mints
* Lindor Chocolate Truffles - to die for!

4. Four places I'd rather be right now:
* Shopping - At homebodies, target, potterybarn, old navy, anywhere!
* At my moms - she takes good care of me and the kids. I don't have to think so much about being a mom:)
* A hot bathtub with a good book.
* Blimpies - so I could be eating a delicious sugar cookie:)

5. Four movies I would watch over and over again:
* Anne of Green Gables
* Along Came Polly
* All Ten Seasons of Friends
* PS I Love You
and a ton more...(Krista, I also love Troop Beverly Hills!)

6. Four people I am tagging:
* Jenny Hansen
* Katie Thalman
* Julie Mulcock
* Jodi Powelson

There's a little about me. That was fun.

Arches National Park

Our family went with some of our friends to Moab and Arches National Park these past several days and it was so much fun. We had a great time playing and seeing all of the beautiful scenery. We started by staying the first night in Wellington, and here is Bryce taking his very first swim!

I had to include this picture of the best bed head ever! This was after our first night staying in arches and Kira 's hair was EVERYWHERE and even had roasted starburst in it. Fun for mom to get out!
These are some of the beautiful rock formations we saw when we first drove into the park. The first one is the Three Gossips and the next one is just one I think looks cool.

The first (and only) hike we went on was to Delicate Arch. It was a fun hike, a little hard with kids, but they enjoyed it too. Here are Angie, Kate, Kira and Jaycee holding hands and hiking up the trail.

Bryce has the life! Too bad you can't enjoy all the perks of being a baby when you are a baby. He just got to ride along and enjoy it all. He even took a little nap on the way to the top.

Daddy and Kate hiked together most of the time. They are best buddies.

Kate taking a break from all the strenuous shoulder riding.

We finally made it to Delicate Arch when a downpour of rain started, so we only stayed for about 1 minute. (Long enough to get a picture!) We were disappointed that we didn't get to stay longer but with the wind and the rain being so strong, we had to get the kids down pretty quick.

Delicate Arch ended up being the only hike we all went on because the rest of the trip looked like this. Rain, rain, and more rain. It never stopped and with the sand and the wind it made it pretty miserable.

Enjoying the view from the car at our campsite.The next morning we were all cold and damp, but it was still fun. The kids slept great the whole time and they loved sitting by the fire in the sprinkling rain.
The guys!
After staying the night in the rain, we decided to pack up early and go back to the hotel in Wellington for our last night. Here is Dave and Kate on a quick hike to the "Windows" area of Arches. Dave was really bummed we didn't get to do more hiking, so he took this opportunity to get in a little extra one.

Even with all the rain and the changes in plans we ended up having the best time and made some great memories. We will definantly be going back!