It's Officially Summer Break!

We are finishing up Cliff's first week of a well earned summer break.  We decided to start the summer off right, with a little canyoneering and a family vacation.

School ended just in time for Memorial day weekend, so not only did the teachers have off, but our other friends with, shall we say, less noble professions were off too.  This made Monday the perfect day for a canyon.  We decided to do Christopher Creek again, it's close to Grandma and Grandpa's house for Paul to stay the day, and is a great canyon with lots of bang for your buck.  We headed up to Grandma and Grandpa's house Sunday after church and stayed the night, along with Sarah and Jeff, and Dustin and Chanel met us at the trail head.

Christopher Creek is such a fun canyon with lots of swimming, jumping, rappelling, and natural slides.  We even learned about a slide we had rappelled last time that had a crazy drop off at the bottom and was so fun.  It is also so pretty and reminds you that Arizona isn't all just dirt, rocks, and spines.

Then we headed back to Grandma and Grandpa's house for a nice bbq dinner.  Paul had a great time with his great grandparents, too.  They took him out shopping, for a walk to the neighbors, and I am sure chased him around trying to keep him out of all Grandma's awesome treasures.

On Tuesday morning, we left for our family trip to San Diego.  Cliff got us free passes to Seaworld for being a teacher, so we wanted to take advantage of the chance to take Paul.  On Wednesday, we spent the whole day at the park.  It was a chilly 70 degrees and overcast (personally, I was wishing I had a sweater).  We looked at all the sea creatures, went on a couple of rides (not Paul's favorite), and saw the shows.  Paul's very favorite was the sea lion show.  He was clapping along with the music and had a grand time.  It was so neat to see all the sea creatures close up and learn more about them.

At the end of the day, we headed to a delicious Korean restaurant and then to take a look at the San Diego temple.

Then on Thursday, we headed to the beach to play before heading back to Phoenix.  Paul enjoyed playing with his toys in the sand but still hates the ocean.  He got real mad when I stuck his feet in the water and when the waves knocked him on his bum.

As you can see, Paul also snacked on the sand throughout our time at the beach.

I would say we had a great kick off week of summer break.  Now we are back in Phoenix, and its 110° F (117 tomorrow).  So I think it is safe to say, we need another trip.

Paul's First Birthday

Well, it has been 4 days since we became the parents of a one year old toddler.  He is definitely still my little baby though. As of May 19th he is 21 lbs 15 oz, 30.3 inches tall, and had two tiny teeth but the day after his birthday one of his top ones popped through and a couple more are starting to poke out. He loves to be outside, runs to the park as soon as you put him down on the sidewalk, and loves to play in the sand. He is super talkative, dances around, started sleeping through the night, eats everything but still loves to nurse, and really knows what he wants these days.  Even since turning one, he has gotten more demanding and started to really let us know when he doesn't get what he wants.  He gives the sweetest little hugs, too.  He wants applause for doing any little thing you told him to do and starts clapping for himself.  He is definitely an adventurer and will run around a corner out of sight without fear, though we can't say the same for mommy.

Here is an overload of pictures from his birthday photo shoot.

Considering how much he likes food, he wasn't nearly as into his cake as we thought he would be.  He did some licking his fingers and stuck a bit in his mouth but then he ran off to go play with his new shopping cart. 

 Then Saturday we had some friends over for a birthday bbq for him.  Cliff grilled burgers and hot dogs but it was quite a hot evening so most of the party happened inside.

Getting sung to and before he tried to touch the fire. 

This was before he decided his cake was great and after he tried to touch the fire and freaked out. 

Showing off his birthday onesie and carrot.

After he decided his cake was a good thing afterall

I think he ate more of the chocolate than his giant yellow cake.

Paul had a great first birthday.  We are so grateful to have this little angel in our lives and for all the friends and family who show their love for him each day, too.

Jam Packed Spring Break

Last week was Cliff's spring break.  We were so excited to have him home for a week and had lots of plans and events going on.

On Saturday at the very start of spring break, we picked up our BYU friend Mckell and her 6th month old little girl at the airport for her annual Phoenix trip.  On Sunday we went to church and Cliff cooked some delicious bbq.  Then Monday we went to babytime at the library and then to the Desert Botanical Gardens.

On Tuesday, we took a trip to the Phoenix temple with Mckell and Sarah.  I think it was all of our first times getting to serve there.  We took turns going in to serve and watching the babes.  At one point, Cliff was the only one out and he was walking around the temple carrying two babies (one of which was not happy that he was not her mother) as other patrons passed and asked if he needed help. Paul loved playing in the fountain rocks.

After the temple, we headed to South Mountain for a nice afternoon hike.

Then on Wednesday, the six of us took a day trip to Sedona.  It's a little over two hours away and we have been meaning to go since moving here.  With the red rocks and such, it was like a little mini southern Utah.  We did an awesome hike called Devil's Bridge because of the rock bridge at the end of the hike, checked out a church built into a cliff, and just enjoyed the sights of nature.  

Paul was loving it up in his hiking throne

Family picture on the bridge

The bridge from below

The little guy passed out on the hike back.

The girls... stopping for a chat?

On Thursday, we relaxed and had a group dinner.  Then Friday, we got some stuff done and then went to the Mesa Temple Easter Pageant with Curtis and Katie.  We love watching the pageant.  It reminds us of the life of Jesus, His teachings, and His sacrifice and resurrection so that we too will live again.  It helps me get in the spirit and remember what this season is about.  

Saturday, we had a family reunion in the afternoon and got to hang out with lots of relatives that we only see every couple of years.  Then we spent the evening with my parents, who stayed with us for the weekend.  Paul loved playing with his grandma and grandpa and we all had a good time.  

Sunday was my uncle Brent's wedding.  It was a great wedding and we all enjoyed the party and spending time with family. 

At the wedding

This little guy got so much love this weekend.

Blue eyed boy with blue eyed Grandpa

Cliff's spring break seemed to fly by way too fast and we were bummed that my parents' visit was so short but we had a great break and had a lot of fun.

Valentines/Presidents' Day in St. George

We hadn't gotten away for a while when Anthony and Jessica Dunster invited us to join them in St. George for the long weekend.  We jumped on it pretty quick despite the 7 hour drive because, well, we have been itching for an adventure and we always love to see friends especially when it has been a while.  We were really excited when we found out Cliff not only had Monday off but Friday, too. So, we cancelled our Valentines roller skating date and on Friday morning, headed off to Utah.

Paul's new book kept him entertained most the way.

Paul was a trooper and didn't fuss a bit till he had already endured around 6 hours in his car seat.  He enjoyed his new book, ate lots of cheerios and poured even more down every crevice of his seat.

On Saturday, we enjoyed a quiet morning, hanging out with the Dunsters and relaxing.  Then we headed to dinner with the Sorensons who were in the leadership at our old singles ward.  After dinner, we headed to Dixie Rock for a little hike and a great view of the city.

The Group at Dixie Rock

At the top with a great view of the city and the temple.

The kids exploring some tunnels and holes in the rocks.

On Sunday, we attended sacrament meeting at a nearby chapel and then in the afternoon, drove over to Snow Canyon State Park for a leisurely stroll on one of the trails in the park.

Even the kids enjoyed the trail. (Please note, this is a trail and we are not letting our son crawl across the street)

Then we had a Valentines dinner of steak and potatoes. Yum. And the smoke alarm only went off 20 times while it was broiling.

Giant, delicious stakes.

Monday we headed to Black Rocks for some rock climbing.  Cliff and I had been climbing here on our vacation a couple years ago and there are some nice and easy walls for those of us who haven't climbed in ages.  We had a lot of fun climbing and the kids enjoyed playing in the dirt, eating rocks, etc.

Cliff and I on the wall.

Paul (aka dirty bum) inspecting our gear.

So overall it was an awesome trip with friends and we're looking forward to our next adventure!