Up to Norman's and some changes!

In September we went up north to visit Alan's brother Norman. We love going up north when we get a chance and we hadn't been to their lovely home in awhile so we spent the weekend with them. 

 While we were up there Norm took us up Provo Canyon to the waterfalls. It was so pretty and just starting to get chilly...well chilly for us. haha. I'd never done the hike or seen the waterfalls from anywhere closer than the car so it was really fun.

 Our little family.

Norm with Madison and 4 of his 5 kids. Thanks Norm and Taunya for letting us crash with you guys for the weekend!

Also, in September, Alan and I had a huge blessing granted to us. We had been trying to figure out for over a year how we were going to get out of our condo and into something bigger to accommodate our  growing family. It seemed like everything we tried just wasn't working and it was very frustrating. There was no way that we could sale it and with the new housing laws renting it out seemed impossible too. We'd kind of started to give up and just accept the fact that we would have to stay there for a few more years until the market corrected itself, when Alan talked to a friend of his who had recently moved away from St. George. They had kept their house down here and just  planned on using it to come home once or twice a month. Well Alan's friend was venting to him about how they weren't going to come down as much as they thought and the maintenance on it was just too much. He joked with Alan about us renting from them. Well, long story short, we moved in two weeks later and are renting our condo out. It's a hugely long story and if anyone wants to hear it all I'd be happy to tell you, but all I need to remember from it is that our blessings are seriously always answered. It may not be the way we think it will be or when we want it to be, but the Lord has a plan for us and knows best. That is something I know is true and that has been shown to me more times than I can count in our marriage.

August

 In August we spent some more time with Alan's family. Earlier in the summer Alan's brother Paul moved to St. George and we have been partying ever since! :) His sister's Alison, Emma, and their families came to visit in August  and we had a blast. 

Here's Matt and Ali...so cute!

 This is Jordan, Paul and April's sweet little boy. He is a week older than Kennedie.

 Ali and Emma's boys' had a blast playing on Alan's Ipad.

 And Abby, as always, was my sweet little helper with the girls! She is such a good big cousin.

While they were all here we took advantage of Clint's parents' boat and had a lake day. Clint is a great host at the lake. My parents were kind enough to take Ken for the day so we could have some fun with just Madison. She had a blast in the sand!

 Alan and Paul swam out to the buoy as usual.

 We all took turns on the banana boat, but I think the most fun time was when all the boys went. And had a "rough" ride. They had lots of fun!

 Also in August I was able to go down to Vegas with for a day with Jill, Beth, and we met Rachelle down there. We went down for a regional conference for Stampin' Up! It was fun and really good to get out for a day with the girls! These are a few of my favorite people! We went to a resort out in Henderson and it was BEAUTIFUL! I want to go back on vacation with Alan sometime.

These are some pictures I found on my camera of my girlies in August. They are so much fun and are growing up so fast! It's crazy, but I love them so much!

Nauvoo

This past July our family took a road trip for our family reunion in Nauvoo, Illinois. It was...quite an adventure to say the least. 24+ hours in the car with 2 little ones...we must be crazy! The girls actually did way better than I expected.

The first day we left super early and drove to Denver...well about an hour past Denver. It was our longest day on the way out. We traveled for 13 hours that day.

 This is basically how the girls looked the whole time. Lots of movies and bottles and treats...and Dr. Pepper for me!

 Alan's parents drove out with us which was awesome. We were able to split the gas and had extra help with the girls and driving.

 The second day we drove through Nebraska where we saw lots of this...corn! I swear I have never seen so much corn in my entire life. Quite boring to look at actually.

 We made lots of rest stops...the girls needed them. But so did we. 

The second day we made it to Omaha, Nebraska. That night we went to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory which was fun. The next morning we stopped at Winter Quarters. This is where the pioneers stopped for the winter. I went to the visitor's center there when I was 12 or so, but it was kind of neat to go back as an adult and see it. The girls are young to know the significance behind it, but they had fun things for them to do there too.

 They played with blocks. They were supposed to pack the covered wagon, but they just liked to stack them.

 Alan learned what it was like to pull a hand cart. They put a pebble under one of the wheels to show how hard it actually was to pull it on the dirt trails they went on and he had a hard time pulling it over the pebble. It makes you realize how hard it really was for the pioneers coming west.

 At Winter Quarters we met up with Alan's brother, Norman, and his family. They were driving out from northern Utah. It was fun to see some familiar faces!

 Omaha is right on the border of Nebraska and Iowa. That day we made it to a little town in Iowa called Ottumwa. I seriously loved this town. It was built around a river so there are like 8 bridges or something linking the town together. It was a really cool town with a lot of old churches and cobblestone streets. I told Alan I wanted to move there...until we fell asleep that night and realized a railroad goes through the town about every 5 minutes or so. Haha. Ottumwa has this huge water park that only cost like $5 a person so that night we met up with Norman's family again and went swimming. It was fun to be out of the car for awhile and get away from the humidity too.

 The next day we made it to Nauvoo. We drove into town and went straight to the temple to see it. What a beautiful place.

 After a quick visit to the temple we went to the cabins we were staying at to meet up with the rest of the family. Only about half of Alan's siblings were able to make it for various reasons, but we were able to see a lot of brothers and sisters that we haven't seen in a long time and it was really fun.

For some reason we decided to come to Nauvoo at the hottest and most humid time of the year. I'm not kidding you, the heat index was 110 degrees plus humidity and it was awful...you walked outside and were seriously drenched.

 This is the only picture I got of our cabins and you can seriously barely see them through the mist. It was ridiculous. Luckily though we had rented out the cabins plus a big lodge where the kids could run around and play and where we spent most of our time. There was a kitchen downstairs so we had all of our meals there as well. It was a really fun experience. 

One of the days the adults were able to go to the temple and do a session. It was seriously amazing. Definitely the most beautiful temple I've been in so far, not to mention the amazing spirit you feel there. Everyone needs to experience it!

 That night we were able to go to the Nauvoo pageant which was really fun too. Before the pageant starts they have all sorts of booths where you can learn all about what the pioneers did to entertain themselves. It was really fun to walk around and watch our nieces and nephews play the games. Our girls were a little young for it, but they had a good time too. Madison loved the nesting dolls. Her cousin Jake was showing her how to play with them. I thought it was a cute picture.

 The next day we took some time to see the historical sights of Nauvoo. By this point in our trip the girls were done with sitting still so we didn't get to see as much as I would have liked, but it was still fun to be able to go to the different places.

 The last night we were there we wanted to get a family picture of everyone who could make it. First we tried to get one of just the grandkids...I seriously love how this picture shows everyone's personalities so well. Haha!

 We finally got one of the kiddos with grandma and grandpa.

 Then we got a big group one. Everyone is there except Clint and Rob who were taking the pictures. Mind you this in only about half of the Paxton clan!

On the way home we drove to Lincoln the first day which was about a 6 hour drive, I think. The next day we were supposed to just drive to Denver and stay the night, but we decided we just wanted to get home. The girls were seriously done...mostly just Kennedie. So we just drove through the night and got home at 6:00 AM the next morning. That day we drove a total of 19 hours. It was a long trip with lots of driving, but it really was a lot of fun and we got a lot of fun new memories. But I think next time...we'll fly!

Life Lately

 

Moments like this one are hard to find these days. Daddy is very busy right now...but we absolutely love these times!

  

Alan has been extremely busy with school. I won't go into details, but the class he is taking right now takes up most of his free time. If we happen to get a nice day at home he usually looks like this. 

 

The girls and I try to be quiet so he can work without interruptions, but that doesn't always work out. On this particular night we decided to go to the park to have a picnic so daddy could work on his paper. Madison built me a sand castle.

 

Kennedie stood, yes STOOD, by me the whole time. Can I just say that my girls are getting too big too fast? Kennedie is standing all the time now and she took a step yesterday. Give her a week and she'll be running around my house! She is 9 months now. We went to her appointment yesterday and she weights 14 lbs. 6 oz. and is 27 inches tall. She is a full pound bigger than Madison at this age. That was kind of fun to see. In the picture she is eating a leaf. She will eat anything she can pick up in her little hands. She is so busy and naughty, but smiles the whole time so you can't help but love her! So fun!

 Madison is getting so big too! (At least age wise...she technically hasn't gained weight since like 18 months...) This day she had gotten her outfit dirty so I had to borrow a onesie from my boss...it's size 6 months and it fit her perfectly. So funny. Madison is my little helper and LOVES to help with Kennedie. Whether I want her to or not. :) Today she told me Keny was her favorite sister. Which was adorable. She also has been telling me lately that she wants a little brother. It seems like everyone is having boys right now and I think she wants in on the action. All I have to say to that is hahahahhahaha...not happening. I think I would go crazy to add one more to the mix right now. Can you believe I have a 2 1/2 year old (going on 14)? I sure can't. It's crazy!

 This is one of Keny Mae's fits. When she throws a drama fit she stands on her head. It's quite funny. I laugh at her and she gets more upset. She is still as dramatic as ever and makes the saddest face when she gets her feelings hurt. I'm in trouble with this one I'm afraid.

 Lately I've been working out like crazy. I'm doing crossfit, which is giving me really good results, but I'm going to zumba too. I never thought that I would like to do zumba. I thought it was crazy and I am seriously the whitest girl in the world...I don't dance. But I LOVE IT! I took Madison with me one night in her tutu. She really had fun in the beginning, but got bored with it halfway through. But she keeps asking me if we are going to go to "dance class" again.

 This past week we celebrated my dad's birthday. He loves fishing and being with family so we tried out a pond that is up on the hill off of red hills parkway. It would have been fun if it wasn't so blasted hot. We lasted maybe an hour.

 Madison was sporting her new boots.

 Afterward we went back to my parents and had prime rib...so yummy...and just spent time with the family. Kennedie was attacking the camera here. But I love the face she is making...she's thinking "what trouble can I get into?"

 Such a sweet girl...Ken that is :)

 And of course a post wouldn't be complete without a picture of Madison on papas farm. He now has added rabbits, or as Madison calls them "funny bunnies", to the mix.