4th of July celebration

This 4th of July was such a fun one. We had a hectic activity packed day but it was a blast. The day started at 6:00 in the morning when I had to get myself ready for the day so I had plenty of time to get all the kids ready. Maddy had her 1st dance and cheer performance that day so we had to make sure her hair was done and curled before we left for the parade. We went to the parade around 8:30 a.m. to make sure we had a place to park so we could hurry to the park after to get Maddie there on time. We of course got stuck behind parade traffic because our planned route ended up being the beginning of the parade but luckily we had set up our seats the day before so we didn't have to worry about finding a good place to sit. The parade started around 9:00 am and it was so much fun for the kids. They got way too much candy but that's what it's all about. They had a blast with their friends and cousins. We arrived at the park around 10:30 a.m. and got Maddie ready for her cheer performance. As soon as her cheer performance was over we had to rush to get her into her dance costume for her little dance performance. And all the while we were hoping we wouldn't get rained on. Luckily the storm passed and it turned out to be a perfect day. It was so dang cute to watch her dance. After the park we went home to try to rest a little and visit with each other while the kids played. We had a BBQ that evening. Brandon rotisserie Tri tip and it was awesome. Cooked to perfection. Sharon came down from cedar city to watch Mataea her grand daughter and Maddie dance. Janet and her family was there and so was Brittany and Nick and Jamie and Krissy. Dinner was great. Afterwards everybody thought it would be funny to surprise me and sing Happy Birthday to me since I was turning 31 on the 6th. I didn't find it all that funny but the ice cream cake was good. After that we sat out on the front lawn to enjoy fireworks that Brandon let Braydon and Maison light. It was pretty scary but with his supervision it turned out great and safe. It was a pretty fun day and I am so glad I got to spend it with some of my family. Below is a little slide show of our time at the parade. Enjoy!

Maddie's 1st cheer performance

This is Maddie and her cousin Mataea's first Cheer performance. They were so cute and did such a good job.

This is Mataea doing her stunt she is the one in the center getting ready to be lifted. It was so cute. Maddie was on the other side doing the same thing but we couldn't get pictures. Maybe next time.

Here is Maddie poseing in her cheer uniform. She better get some good use out of it because it was not cheep.

Maddie and Mataea poseing together right before the performance. What cute cheer leaders.

The girls showing off their angles.
I think I am having way too much fun with all of this. I guess I should since she is my only girl.

Maddisons 1st dance performance

This a Maddie's 1st dance performance. She did pretty good for only being in dance for less that two months but she still has a lot of things to learn. Here she is trying to watch the teacher so she is a little bit behind the others.

Maddie is in the far back corner. I think she is pretty cute myself.

This is Maddie and Mataea who is in the same dance class. They have a lot of fun together. Arn't they cute?

Maddie poseing in her costume. What a little princess.

And again what a poser. She loves it!

The Most wonderful vacation in the world.

The begining of April we took a cruise to the Carribean with My brothers Rob and James and their wives Ginger and Dayla, My sister Janet and her husband John and My neice Brittani and her husband Nick. We had so much fun. We spent the first day at sea and it was great. All the food you could possibly eat at any time of day or night. Room service whenever we wanted and midnight buffets. Yes I gained six pounds on this trip but who cares. How often do you get to eat gormet food like that. I could live like that forever. It went by so fast but is something we will never forget. The first island we visited was the Grand Turks. This was the most beautiful island. We took a catamaran boat ride and went snorkeling. That was great fun and I even had a dolphin pass right in front of me. That was soo cool. Brandon and Nick went diving for those huge conk shells and almost drowned in the process but they were successful in finding them, we came home with 4. The next Island was Puerto Rico and boy was it beautiful. We toured the island and the Bicarrdi Rum factory which was quite interesting. We went to a fortress that surrounded part of the island. It was amazing. We went shopping and I,m telling you the streets were narrow. The next island was St. Thomas. It was so much fun going threw all the little shops and trying to get the best deals on souveniers. The last island we went to was Holland Americas own private island in the Bahamas called Half Moon Kay. It was by far the most beautiful. We rode horses in the ocean, snorkeled, and just soaked up the sun. 7 days is not long enough for a cruise. It went by way too fast and was the most fun I have ever had. We will definatly be cruisers from now on. The next one will hopefully be Alaska. I have already posted some of the pictures of the islands but will soon be posting more when I get more time. There are so many fun pictures I want to share but not enough room for them all so give me more time and I will finish posting what I can.

Chillin on the Ship

Have no clue what Brandon was doing here but we were all sitting on the back of the ship waiting to disembark from San Juan.

Brandon and I just relaxing. something that don't happen at home. We enjoyed every minute of it.

Brit and Nick enjoying the night also just relaxing and having a good time.

James and Dayla actually hanging out with us. It was such a fun night and the weather was perfect. What more could we have asked for?

San Juan, Puerto Rico looking down from the Fortress that was along the islands coast built to protect the people from intruders. It was awesome to see the hard work that was put into it. It took the people who built it 150 years to complete it. Amazing!

Brandon and I sitting on the top of the fortress looking out over the ocean.

A view from the fortress looking at their government building back behind.

A gorgeous picture of the island looking out into the ocean. It was so beautiful there.

A picture of their government building that was built out of solid marble inside and out.