Summer 2011- Part 4

I know it seems like these posts should be done with, but we did a lot of things while in AZ this summer.  It was a quick 4 weeks and we made the best of our time. After we left Sierra Vista and all the other Mayberrys, we headed north to see my family.

We made a quick stop and hung out with my good friend, Amy and her sweet kids.  It has been so nice that these last couple of years we've been able to see each other every summer.  It is a full house when we get together but the kids get along well and we are able to catch up.

It just so happened that all the Miller's were going to be able to make the family reunion this year (thanks for moving it so we could attend).  We wound up just staying in Camp Verde and hanging out, it was so great to spend time with family, especially since we hadn't seen them in some time.  Kevin wasn't able to stay that long though so once again he missed hanging out.  I don't even think my nieces and nephews know who Kevin is!  Now for the picture over load...

We hadn't seen Jett since he was a couple of months old.

This was our first time meeting this sweet girl!

It wouldn't be a trip without some wrestling time with Uncle Ben, he is so tolerant of my kids!

Aunt Caitlin had a good excuse to sit out of the wrestling match (look a that cute belly!)

Popsicle time! (Pepper was sleeping and Catilin was still cooking the baby in her belly)

Isaac

Ryley

Aubree

Ben

Livi

Emilee

Jett

Ethan

Reese

Lacie (I hadn't met this sweet face yet either!)

We then headed to cooler weather, and spent a day in the woods. We played horseshoes, ate some good food and rode four-wheelers. It was a good time to be had by all.

Seeing who has the bigger belly.

All the grandkids (Caitlin is having the 12th one this month)

I think these four played for the championship, not sure though.

Ben wearing Grandpas hat and looking so handsome!

Summer 2011 -Part 3

The main reason we headed west this summer was Scott, Kev's brother, was getting married. A week or so before the wedding we found out that Kev's parents were going to get to come home for the wedding! They are currently serving a mission in Kiev, Ukraine. It was so great to spend time in Sierra Vista, see the family and be part of Scott's wedding. It was such a great weekend.

Scott and Brooke- Gila Valley Temple

Grandpa Jim and Ralph

We stopped by to visit Grandpa Jim and Connie in St. David

We finally got to meet the adorable, baby Henry.

Playing games with Grandma Marti

Hanging out with cousins

Summer 2011- Part 2

My parents so graciously excepted the offer of taking our kids for the weekend so Kev and I could run away.  This was totally last minute so we are so grateful that it all worked out.  The kids were so excited to hang out with their Grandparents!  We escaped to Sedona (we spent the first two days of our honeymoon there 10 1/2 years ago) and had a couple relaxing days just spending time with each other.  Kev and I had planned to drive to Flagstaff and take the chair lift up the Peaks but it was closed.  So instead we headed to my Grandma Miller's and went to dinner.  I sure love visiting with my Grandmas, they are such amazing women who I greatly admire.  After a few days away we headed back to CV to collect our sweet kids (they were sad to see us return because they weren't done having fun) so we could head south for a wedding.  We couldn't leave though without taking the four wheelers out for a spin...

Ryley went first and by the time I made it back outside with the camera she was done riding, I promise I do try to take pictures of her.

Ben's turn

Olivia's turn

She couldn't decide which way to ride, she was a little worried she'd fall off.

Ethan's turn

Ethan was also a little scared, if you look close enough you can see him grabbing onto Kev's shorts for dear life!

My sweet Ryley

Summer 2011 -Part 1

Yes, I do realize that it is the beginning of Fall but I'm going to make an attempt to fill you all in on our crazy summer. Kev went on block leave and had two weeks off so we decided to head for AZ the beginning of July. After going back and forth we decided it would be best for us to drive instead of fly. So we found a sitter for the dog, packed up and headed out. We originally planned to leave by noon on a Friday but Kev's battery on his Jeep died on his way home from work. By the time we got that squared away and on the road it was 9pm. We also went back and forth on whether to leave late at night or get up earlier and make a go of it. Since I had already had a liter of Mt. Dew and Ethan took a late nap we headed out. It was not long before all the kids fell asleep (Kev was out before we even pulled through town). I drove until 4:30 in the morning, I had made it to Jackson, Mississippi then decided it was time I got some sleep. We traded out and I tried to catch some sleep, I couldn't seem to get comfortable or fall asleep so 45 minutes later Kev and I switched out again. I then drove until we got just out side of Shreveport, LA and then we stopped for breakfast. We had been in the car for 12+ hours so we ate, went to Wal-mart for coloring books and crayons,stretched out our legs and then got back on the road. We then stopped in Abilene, TX and stayed the night there. We were dog tired at this point (and I had just been pulled over and given a warning for speeding) so we decided it was time to stop for the night. We headed out somewhat early the next morning, stopped in Wilcox, AZ for dinner and to see Kev's sister and family and then rolled into good ol' Sierra Vista around 9pm Sunday night. It was a long drive but the kids did surprising well. I think it made a big difference driving through the night the first night we started out. Well we only managed to stay put for about 24 hours before we headed back out on the road. With all the fires in Southern AZ and the fireworks being cancelled we headed to San Diego with Dave, Lacy and their girls, along with Uncle Scott for the following four days. We had a blast and it was such a fun week. It was a little crazy to have left the east coast on Friday and be playing in the waters of the West Coast by Tuesday! Our kids love the beach and spending our time with their cousins was even better. Sorry for the novel, now enjoy some pictures...

After driving for 7 hours we let the kids stretch their feet with a walk on the beach

I couldn't get Ryley to hold still long enough to get a good picture!

Uncle Scott was such a good sport with all the nieces and nephews, his one last howrah(sp?) before getting married

Ryley spent most of her time in the water, it wasn't that bad but the air was about the same temperature so it got chilly at times.

Ben and Uncle Scott trying skim boarding, I even tried it and ate it a couple of times, so fun though!

 Fun in the sand!  What is a trip to the beach without someone getting buried.

Livi and Ethan trying to make a pool for when the tide came in.

It was so neat to see all the sale boats out once the wind picked up.

We pretty much just hung out at the beach in this adorable little cottage(I can't beleive I forgot to take pictures of it). It was so nice to just relax and hang with family. We made it to Sea World on Thursday and then headed back for AZ by Friday evening. We stayed with Nate, Lori and Reese till Sunday and just enjoyed being together. It hadn't been to long since Reese was with us for a week so the kids settled right in and just played. Kev and I got to have dinner with Aaron while Nate and Lori put all the kids to bed, thanks we sure enjoyed a night out! After church we headed north to Camp Verde, more on that in the next post.