Zoo Day

On Thursday we met the cousins at the zoo. Poor Matthew. He had to go to school, so that's why he won't be in any of the pictures.

I'm kind of a big nerd, but one of my favorite parts of the zoo is the bridge leading up to the entrance. The bridge stretches out over a pond full of fish, turtles and ducks. I love watching the turtles! I actually secretly want a pet turtle. They are so cute. Anyway, it's one of James' favorite parts, too. If you look really close, you'll see some turtles in the lower left corner.

The kids wanted to climb this stump so bad. It was worth it. Look at those happy faces.

Jacob was so tired. He stayed awake, but he fought the sandman the whole time.

We had a great time, even if we only saw about 5 animals in 4 hours. The Phoenix Zoo has so many things for kids to do, that you forget that you're there to see animals.

Bikes, Jeeps and Kites

This past week we got to spend time with all the cousins from Tim's side. It was a ton of fun. Last Sunday we met at Discovery Park by our house for a picnic and lots of playing. The kids rode bikes, jeeps, and flew kites.

James was fearless. He would point his bike down any hill and go for it. He never looked at what might be at the bottom of the hill, like benches, people or ponds. Luckily, he missed anything in his way (and lucky for anyone that might have been in his way).

Matthew tried it out a few times. It wasn't for him.

He preferred "leisurely" kite flying. Why stand when you can sit?

The jeep was a big hit. Surprisingly, the kids did a great job at taking turns. At one point, however, I think Colin and Emily were about halfway to Scottsdale before they decided to turn back.

The battery lasted forever! When it finally started to wind down the kids took the jeep down hills. James isn't as skilled at steering the jeep as he was the bike. It is good to know which kid will flee the scene of crime.

Sweaty, tired and content; the end to a perfect day.

Desoto Caverns

We went the Desoto Caverns one day. It was a lot of fun. The caverns were really neat, but we all loved the stuff to do above ground.

Matthew and his awesome posing.

James trying to copy Matthew pose. Not quite. These pictures are so representative of these two, though. Matthew's wound a little tight and James is a little more out there.

Descending into the caverns.

James was really sad because he wasn't old enough to do archery.

Yep, those are toilets.

Julianne will be our hunter if we ever have to survive out in the wilderness.

Birmingham Zoo

Finally! I can post pictures, but it has to be done one at a time. So it takes a while.

While we were in B'ham we went to the zoo. It was a perfect zoo day, sunny and warm with a breeze. We had a lot of fun.

I love this face Holly makes. It's actually a happy face, believe it or not.

Matthew either has to pose or have a goofy face for pictures now. I'm not sure why, but we get some funny pictures.

Delaney was trying to pose like Matthew in this one.

Argh!

Blogger is not letting me post pictures for some reason. It's been doing this for about two days. Hopefully I'll have some up from my trip to B'ham soon.

Yesterday Jacob had his 6 month check-up.

He is 28 inches long-90% and

17 lbs 9 oz-50%. He is just like Matthew. Not only does the kid look exactly like him, but he is built like him, too. And just when I think he is getting his own look to him, I'll pull out a picture of Matthew at the same age and they're identical.

Jacob is still such a happy kid. His big, blue eyes are almost always smiling. Except when it's bed time. He is still not sleeping very good at night and I am just hoping for a full night's sleep soon.

But he couldn't be cuter and I couldn't be more grateful to have this little guy.

The other day Tim was outside with Matthew and had a funny conversation.

Matthew: "Dad, I'm a moron."

Tim: "No you're not. Don't say that about yourself"

M: "But I am a moron."

T: "Oh, do you mean a Mormon?"

M: "Oh yeah. I'm a Mormon."

This morning on the way to school, Matthew was telling me a story about one of his friends.

M: "Ben has a shirt that says 'My mom is hot!' on it. That's funny."

Me: "Do you know what that means?"

M: "That she's really fancy."

4 Lords and their Wench

On Saturday we went to the Arizona Renaissance Festival. We went with Tim's sisters, Amy and her fam, and Kristen. The people watching alone is worth the trip. Seriously.

Our cute nephew, Colin. He had Jacob cracking up.

When I first saw these girls, I thought, who would wear a fox tail like that? The answer? About 50% of the women at the festival.

Matthew and James got to pretend to be knights in a jousting competition. Neither one smiled the whole time. That means they had a blast.

The three boys got swords (thanks Amy and Brien). They had so much fun with them. And surprisingly, were very careful with them, although they did get in a few battles.

I love this picture. The pig posed, too.

Don't have a sheath for your sword? No worries. The back of your shirt works perfectly.

Cute Kristen. I keep hoping school never ends for Donavon, so that they'll stay here longer. We'll miss them! In the meantime, check out the hottie in the loincloth behind her. Oh yeah. At least he's not obese, like 80% of the people attending the festival.

And I'll leave you with one parting shot. This picture is honestly worth a thousand words and pretty much sums up a Renaissance Festival.