highlights from our Utah excursion

These are only a few pictures from our trip to Zion, but it's gonna have to do for now. It was a busy week and we had LOTS O' FUN!
Kev and Jen's wedding was not only a highlight, but the MAIN EVENT... so it's getting posted very first (even though it was at the end of the week.) Jen was a beautiful bride and she made Kevin one happy Groom!
It was very special to have all of my siblings in the temple together. (Cindy is the only one not married and stayed outside with ALL the grandkids!)
Jen has two sisters and she is the first to get married... so you can only imagine how overwhelming it must be for her to marry into a family this size. Jen is an elementary school teacher and is so natural with all our kids. We are so happy to welcome her into our family.
This is what the adults looked like behind the photographer-- trying to get the kids to smile.. I am so glad Brent captured it on his camera. (btw, Brent took most of the above pics.)

The kids had WAY too much fun at the reception. They didn't want to leave. After it was over, all the boys slept at one house and the girls went to another. I took a picture of some of the boys in Lori's 15 passenger van. It was about 11 PM and they stayed up several hours after this was taken. Party, party, par-TAY! (yes, Simon was invited to the boys' sleepover, even though he was wearing pink pajamas.)
The day after the wedding we went boating with some of our best friends ever. I've told you about the Poulsens many times before. We met them our first year in law school when our kids were just tots. It was 6 years ago when we decided that our boys MUST marry their girls. Since then, I've been trying to capture pictures for their future wedding videos. (although this trip made me think that our nerdy boys might not be in their girls' league anymore....)
It was beautiful and sunny one minute and HAILING the next. We got caught in a crazy storm and words cannot describe how much it hurt and how funny it was hearing our kids scream like they were going to die. Jason drove us safely to shore and the rest of us huddled together. As soon as we docked, we got dressed in sweatshirts and bought all the hot chocolate from the little shop near the lake. Before the storm, the kids were able to do some waterskiing (even Zack), Morgan got up on the wakeboard, and Suz and Aaron surfed. Despite the hail, we had an awesome time. We always do when we're with these guys.
Straight from boating, we went to Kennedy's 2nd birthday party at the Bradshaw's ranch. It was an awesome party-- horse rides, badminton, volleyball, yummy food and family. Who could ask for anything more?
And here are just a few random pictures that almost didn't get posted... Yes, Cindy has a handsome boyfriend named Matt. I've been (unfairly) hogging her all to myself this summer. She leaves in just a few days to start another semester at BYU. We're not happy about it, but we're happy for her.
A couple of years ago, our family was the only ones living outside of Utah. Unfortunately, a few others have left the nest. My brother Tim and his wife Rachel (who just had a baby 3 weeks ago and was a rockstar at the wedding) live in Michigan. My sister Kristy and her family moved to Atlanta last year. It's really hard to be so spread out... Just before the Kimballs headed back to Georgia, the three "outsider" families took a picture to hang on my mom's fridge.... just to prove how sad we are to live away from the rest of the family.

Going home is always bitter sweet. It's always so good to be together, but it literally takes a couple of weeks for us to recover, both emotionally and physically. We're trying to live out the rest of the summer the best we know how... and hopefully when the "school year" begins we will be back onto some type of routine. What a summer it has been!!!!

frogs and snails and puppy dog tails

That's what little boys are made of.

These pictures were taken a few months ago, but I can't remember if I added them to the blog or not. I think not.
These 4 boys are 4 months apart.. Simon is the youngest, but you can't tell by his size.
I met their moms (Karlin, Francine & Azy=some of my fave girls) at the park one afternoon in August. Utah has crazy weather and one minute it sunny, and the next it was HAILING on us. We loaded up our babies and didn't really get to say goodbye to one another because we were all dripping wet.
Anyway, good times. Cute babies. I am excited to watch these boys grow up together and be best friends forever.

Thanks for the colorful pictures, Fran!

a wooden spoon, a dish rag and the kitchen sink

this was my last resort. I NEEDED to make dinner and I had two busy, crazy little boys who NEEDED my attention. It's amazing what a little water can do for a child (and for their mother). They were deliriously happy for 45 minutes.... and would have preferred to stay there all night. But Zack kept trying to squeeze inside Simon's sink and Simon showed Zack how to squirt water from the spray hose... which made it an unhappy ending for all of us. It was beautiful while it lasted and the tile in front of my sink needed to be mopped anyway. I must think of a new solution before 5 pm tomorrow....

3/4 of a year

The 9 month mark has come and gone.

Simon has 7 teeth with #8 about to poke through.
He crawls like a speed demon.
He pulls himself up on the couch.
He loves to walk if someone is holding onto his hands.
He points at everything.
He says mama, dada and baba-- not directed at anyone in particular.
He proudly drinks through a straw.
If you say HEY! to him, he enthusiastically says HEY! back.
He waves bye-bye on command, often with both hands at the same time.
He loves bath time.
He eats everything in sight.
He is SUCH a happy guy, but only laughs about once a day.
He hibernates like a bear in his crib... nothing can wake him up.
His most common nicknames are "Sy Guy" and "The Big Fat Baby"

While in Utah he grew out of all the pj's I packed for him...
He's growing too fast and I just can't keep up!
He was forced to wear cousin Betty's pink 18 month sized snuggies.
and he looked oh so cute!
We sure love our masculine baby boy with lashes to die for..

Happy 9 month, Sy Guy!

home sweet las vegas

We spent 8 fabulous days with my family. The ENTIRE Clawson clan was there...all 54 of us! There is a lot to document, but the most important event of the weekend was Kevin and Jen's wedding. Here is the bride taking on all 33 nieces and nephews-- with a little help from her new husband.


It's a hard life living away from all of your family. My boys love their cousins so much and it's not easy saying goodbye. I was so happy to bring Cindy back to Vegas until the end of the summer. I am not happy that the end is only two weeks away..... boo hoo! Here's to hoping August doesn't fly by.