Spring Break 2009

First of all, whoever planned Spring Break this early in the year should be fired. If you're going to give us a SPRING BREAK, then at least have the decency to plan it at a time when there is a greater likelihood of spring-like weather. Toward the end of April would be nice. Here are the lovely driving conditions that we enjoyed over Snoqualmie Pass, the Blue Mtns, and northern Utah:

Second, I would just like to give a HUGE shout-out to my 4 awesome kids. They endured FOUR days of driving, across some of the dullest, smelliest (Idaho really needs to do something about that cow stench along the highway), monotonous roads in the Western U.S. But they made it fun and I rarely heard a complaint - even when we were stuck for FOUR HOURS on I-90, waiting for the avalanche crew to clean up their mess.

Here's a quick photo journal of our trip to St. George. Unfortunately, it only covers the first half of the trip because my camera ran out of batteries and I forgot to bring the charger. But you'll get the idea - we all had a great time!

Our first day in St. George was Emma's 7th birthday. In keeping with Nathan's tradition of having the birthday child wake up to a fully decorated house, we (my mom, the boys & I) stayed up late hanging crepe paper and making signs.

We celebrated Emma's birthday dinner at Pirate Island Pizza - kind of a cross between Pirates of the Caribbean and Chuck E. Cheese. Gma & Gpa Russell drove up to share the weekend with us. Emma was truly QUEEN for the day.

Here's one of the pirate ships inside the restaurant. The cannons would periodically "blast off" and we would be caught in the cross fire. If you happen to have NOISE ISSUES, this may not be the most pleasant dining experience for you.

Adana had a great time playing with her cousin, Ella, who is 9 months (and about 20 lbs) smaller than her. Poor Ella had a hard time dealing with Adana's "exuberance." Think Amazon Woman meets timid Southern Belle.

The kids enjoyed the warm weather and even warmer heated pool. Our good friends, the Lewis family (whom we knew when we lived in Mississippi) just happen to live across the street from my parents. So they came over a couple times to swim and hang out.

Of course, sometimes Adana just couldn't be bothered with the hassle of putting on a swim suit. (In case you're wondering, she doesn't pee in the pool, even when she's skinny dipping. She prefers to get out and pee in the grass next to the pool.)

This is Aunt Katie's legendary CANDY SALAD. It was about halfway eaten by the time I shot this picture. The kids figure that (1) since it's called "salad" and (2) since it's served in a salad bowl, it must be healthy. Ugh.

One of our favorite Utah activities - 4-wheeling in the desert! Here is Emma riding with Gpa in the Razor. Jared, Micah & I each rode our own 4-wheeler.

Gpa and the kids, overlooking the soon-to-be new St. George airport.

After one ride, we hiked around a bit and found this great swimming hole in the middle of the desert. We didn't swim, but it was sure tempting!

There is no keeping the kids off the rocks. I swear I gave birth to a bunch of mountain goats.

Roasting marshmallows with some of the Lewis kids in Gma & Gpa's back yard.

And roasting Peeps. Mmmmm . . . crunchy colored carmalized sugar. To tell the truth, I think they taste better this way.

Playing the arcade in Gma & Gpa's basement.

Watching movies in Gma & Gpa's theater.

Seriously, it's amazing that I ever convinced my kids to come home!