McEvoys are here!

Ben and Kim McEvoy and their kids stopped by as they were driving through town and spent a couple of days with us. They arrived really late Friday night. Saturday morning after breakfast, we drove to Zion National Park to hike around. At the end of the shuttle ride there is a hike called the "River walk" that is the beginning of the hike up the Narrows. It's a paved, stroller-accessible trail and I like going on the hike because you can see all the Park before you get there. The best part is that at the end you can jump in the water and wade around. The kids love that part. Along the way they stopped to look at waterfalls and bugs. The only thing I didn't like was that the squirrels have been fed so much that they aren't afraid of humans. We had some climbing in our bags while we went in the water. But other than that, it was so much fun.

That night, Ben, Kim, Madison, Bryan and I went to "Les Miserables" at Tuacahn. It was great and the night was overcast so it wasn't too hot. We were afraid it was going to rain, but it didn't.

Sunday morning they left after Sacrament Meeting. But it was a lot of fun to have them at our house, even if it was for a short stay.

Dance Class

Courtney started dance class again. After getting a leotard, tutu and ballet shoes from Grandma Pack, Courtney really wanted to take ballet. But it's an hour long and I didn't think she would make it through. I signed her up for another round of tap classes. The good thing is that her friend around the block wanted to take the class with her. So I pick her up and take the two girls to dance class. They are hilarious! Courtney likes to show her friend that she knows how to tap. It makes for a great time because they keep each other busy and there are only 4 girls in the class, so they get a lot of personal attention.

Courtney's Family Party

I am finally getting around to putting up pictures from Courtney's family party the night of her birthday. She was pretty spoiled with all the gifts, but she had a lot of fun. She wanted pizza and a baby doll cake. So I obliged with the cake (iced with purple, of course) and Bryan brought home the pizza. Courtney doesn't like fire so she wouldn't blow out her own candle. Ethan and I helped her on that one. It was a fun party.

Ethan's First Day of 1st Grade

Our little guy is a big kid now!! I can't believe it, but here he is in 1st grade. He rides the bus to Santa Clara Elementary and last year there was one bus stop for all the neighborhood and it was at our Stake Center (about 4 blocks away). Last week I called to find out what time the bus would be at the bus stop and was told that there were going to be two bus stops. The first is at the Stake Center and the second one is going to be at our house. Ethan was pretty excited.

After Ethan's first day of school breakfast (eggs and sausage) he got all ready and we went outside to wait for the bus. He put his backpack on the sidewalk to be first in line and we sat on the porch waiting for other kids to show up....but no one did. Apparently, word didn't get out that there was a second bus stop so everyone, except for Ethan, went to the Stake Center. When the bus arrived at our house, Ethan was the only one to get on. He thought that was pretty cool.

I drove behind the bus to Ethan's school to make sure he knew where his class was. He did a great job finding it and had no problems. Courtney and I waited around until his teacher called them in and then we went home.

At 3:40, Courtney and I went into the front yard to wait for the bus. It finally came at 3:48. Ethan jumped off the bus, ran inside and got a drink (it's 102 degrees outside). Then he proceeded to tell me that his teacher is "super nice" and that he had "so much fun!!" So today was a success! I'm so glad.

Here are some photos:

Courtney's 3rd Birthday Party

Courtney wanted a Princess Birthday Party and that's just what she got! We had 5 little girls, each dressed as her favorite princess, come to Courtney's party and it was so much fun. I bought Courtney a Snow White dress and she was so excited to wear it. Two other little girls came dressed as Snow White, another came as Cinderella and the last little girl came as just a princess. It was so cute. When they first arrived, we had them color princess coloring pages until everyone arrived. Then we read a story ("Snow White" and "Sleeping Beauty").

When we finished reading stories, we had them each decorate their own crown with puffy stickers. This was a lot of fun and even Bryan got into the action. Once they had their crowns on, we gave them each a wand I had made from a dowel painted gold with ribbon attached. They then played the "Freeze Game" where you stop moving when the music stops. They then danced to music for a while until it was time to decorate cupcakes and eat them. That was so much fun to watch them eat their cupcakes! We then washed up and opened presents. Courtney got a lot of princess stuff (pajamas, dolls, a hair brush that plays music, etc.). She was pretty happy about it all. Then they played in Courntey's room until their moms came for them.

Today is the 1st day of school so most of the moms got together and ate breakfast while their girls were at our party. It was a fun party and I had time afteward to make Courtney's princess cake.

Here's a video of them dancing around.



Here are some photos from the party!

Ethan's Swimming Lessons

Ethan had another round of swimming lessons in Diamond Valley (about 20 minutes from our house). He really likes his teacher and has a friend in the class, so it's easy to get him to go. He has really come a long way and loves swimming. Last year he wouldn't even float on his back and this year he can do it for 3 minutes. He's a little fish!

Here he is floating. He is the kid closest to his teacher with his toes out of the water.

Mt. Whitney Trip

Bryan, John (his dad), Andrew (his brother) and Mike (his brother-in-law) hiked Mt. Whitney last week. They left after Sacrament Meeting on Sunday and drove to Lone Pine to begin their hike on Monday.

Meanwhile, back at home the girls...and Ethan, played around. On Monday we went swimming at Sand Hollow Aquatics Center and then to Golden Spoon for ice cream. The kids loved it and Courtney got chocolate all over her face.

Tuesday, Grandma and Lisa took Ethan bowling while Courtney and I went to the eye doctor. Then Grandma, Lisa and I went to Tuacahn to see "Les Miserables," which was very good by the way. Wednesday we hung around and shopped. Thursday we girls got pedicures and then went to Ethan's last day of swimming and to Veyo outdoor pool. It was so much fun!

Friday morning we left Ivins pretty early in the morning to drive to Lone Pine, California. We drove to the trail head and picked up the van to drive to the Whitney Portal where the guys would end their hike. We thought we had plenty of time so we ran back to the motel, had a swim, ate some dinner and then were loading up in the van when the guys called to tell us they were at the Portal and ready to come back to the motel. We were so bummed! We ended up waiting for them on the street by the motel so we could greet them somehow.

After showers (which they really needed after 5 days of hiking!) we all went to dinner and then bed. Saturday morning we woke up, ate breakfast, took pictures and drove to Las Vegas where Grandpa and Andrew took a flight back to Denver. The rest of us went on to Ivins.

Mike and Lisa left today and Grandma leaves on Wednesday (she wants to stay for Courtney's birthday on Tuesday).

It's been so much fun and they all had a great time on the hike.