Summer is here! We always have fun finding things to do to beat the heat here in El Paso. Snacking on watermelon is one of the kids favorite things to do.
Even the twins love it! Melody loves watermelon a bit too much because she tries to eat the rind.
On the first official day of summer vacation Mommy was distracted for a few minutes and these two colored on their faces! They definitely know better so not quite sure what was going through their minds.
On our way to playgroup the twinnies held hands to cross the parking lot.
We have an apricot tree in our backyard that we mentioned in the blog last year. This year we had another great harvest and everyone loved them!! Fresh apricots really are super delicious and we will miss having a fruit tree in our backyard!
Sweet brothers. They have a special bond and it's sweet to watch them play together more and more as Christian gets older.
Pool time! We have a pool in the backyard every summer because it's easier than Mommy watching the little twins at a water park or public pool.
Fun in the sun!
These four sometimes fight but they love each other so very much!!
The grass was growing really fast and Tyler needed to mow so to protect himself from allergens he came up with this face contraption made up of a neck scarf and goggles. It worked but Rachel thought it was pretty funny.
Happy Sunday selfie! You can tell it's hot outside by Christian's red face.
Dress up is still a favorite of Me Me.
Sylvia posing in her new watermelon ensemble. I have no idea where she has learned to "pose" for pictures but she strikes a model pose like an expert.
One day each kid got to invite a friend over to play. Here is Andrew with his friend Ryder who recently moved here.
And here is Sylvia with Grace. They did makeup and dress up and had lots of fun.
One summer day we had lunch at Tom Lea with our friends. They wanted to hold hands as we were leaving.
Keeping cool in the backyard.
We love museums. We've been here several times but the kids still enjoy it.
They actually added some things since we had been here last.
We took this picture because it looked like something Grandma Carson would want for her nativity collection.
Say cheese!
There is just one scary part in this museum... a woolly mammoth being hunted in life size 3D depiction.
There is a little garden path that connects the two museums. Here we are traveling to the second one.
Sylvia posing by the giant desert plant.
It;s fun to play on the vehicles at the Border Patrol Museum.
We go to the YMCA regularly also. Here is a sneak peek at the child watch play area. Christian already saw Daddy and is running to the pickup area.
We always take time to play at the YMCA playground before we leave.
Swimming!
Andrew and Sylvia set up a nice place in the sun to warm up and dry off after swimming.
So fun.
The girls were whispering while Mommy was running errands and it was too cute not to snap a picture.
Sweet sisters. They like to have matching hairstyles almost every day. This day it was pig tails.
Melody reading in the car.
Hammock fun. Christian still has the brightest blue eyes.
BYU boys and reverse matching girls. The kids all planned their outfits so they would match each other.
Christian looks so cool in his new BYU shirt from Grandma!
A very rare moment in the life of Christian. He is laying still! He normally is on the go unless he is sleeping but here he laid down to relax and watch a movie for about five minutes.
Melody loves her puppy. She is just waking up and coming down the stairs to play.
Picnic in the backyard!
Boys playing football.
Chipping away their ice experiments.
More hammock time.
It is a little hard to see in the picture but Melody got into Sylvia's makeup and put it all over her face.
Another classic Sylvia pose. She is showing off her goggles.
Little fish.
Christian will make a BIG fuss if he isn't the one in charge of the hose. We are filling up the pool a bit more.
The big kids were playing camping and made beds in the hallway. I had them move it into Andrew's room and later Daddy read to them before bed in their cozy spot.
Matching hair styles again. It's a little hard to see but it looked pretty and colorful.
Even though we have a huge bathtub in the master bathroom, it is getting crowded with all four kids bathing at the same time.
Such cuties! We are really enjoying summer vacation.
I love this spot in our backyard!
Taking a break from playing by watching some shows. Anytime they snack while watching a show or movie they know they have to sit at the edge of the rug.
Andrew's adult tooth has started to grow up behind his baby bottom teeth! He better lose it soon.
Brothers
Of course we love the library. They had a fun space station set up for kids to play with.
Daddy was inspired by the fun set up he made a similar one at home for the kids to play with.
We get about 20 books every library visit and we go once a week or every two weeks.
Time to load up the van. We love seeing the mountains every where we go in El Paso.
Tyler surprised Rachel with a cake decorating kit and so this is just a practice cake. Rachel wanted to try out some of the different frosting tips for flowers and the kids were excited to eat cake.
They like to have one person out the hammock to swing the kids inside, this time it looks like Sylvia was on swinging duty.
Here we are at a work picnic for Tyler. The kids had fun at the playground and bouncy house and we enjoyed catered Subway sandwiches.
The kids even play in the pool when it's dry! It's a nice place to sit down.
Nice hat!
Andrew's eyes started getting really red, puffy, and itchy after he was rolling around in the grass and it seems he may have some allergies.
Good as new after a full nights sleep.
Cute twinnies having a snack after church.
This is what Family Home Evening looks like at our house... pretty crazy. But Andrew has a new found interest in giving the lesson each time so that is helpful.
Oh Melody. You are too cute for words.
Playing at the park with friends one evening.
Christian looks like he is riding into the sunset.
This mattress is like an inside jungle gym for our kids. We set it up as a slide or they just jump on it. It has been a source of endless fun and perfect when it is too hot outside.
Coloring on the cool drawing pads from Aunt Lissa.
We had some friends from ROTC over with their families and this was the only picture, when the kids were playing with water balloons. We should have taken a picture of the men that knew each other at BYU. But it was a really fun cookout.
Our kids, post party.
We should get shirts made that say, Saturdays are for hiking.
If we go early enough it is not too hot.
This is the kids favorite part of this particular trail.
This morning our hike turned into a nature walk because we went a different way and saw a lot of creatures.
Here's a big creepy crawly millipede.
We saw a some lizards and bunnies hopping around too.
The kids loved exploring.
The twins did not want to ride in the hiking backpack when there is so much to see.
After hiking the kids played on the playground and drank lots of water.
Swim time.
We love playing in our backyard.
Eating lunch outside is our favorite when it's warm out.
Mommy got a much needed haircut!
Christian loves sucking his thumb and his green blankie.
Melody looking ready to go!
Having fun at home and ready for more summer adventures!!
