Let's see...absent from blog world since May! Very bad indeed! :) We have been busy--room makeovers, backyard fun, two week road trip beginning in Northern California & on to UT (which I drove with the kids!), swim lessons, park & movie trips, play dates, etc. etc.! I've been horrible at documenting it all. I have a bunch of pics to share. Sorry we've been gone for so long but WE'RE BACK!! :)
Ever happen in your backyard on a Sunday afternoon? 
They were so proud
The only way to get them to bring it all back inside was to give in to a sleep on the tramp request. BJ had to work in the morning. They are all pretending to be asleep. It was fun, until 3am when my toes were frozen & my legs were cramping from Jake laying on my bottom half. Transferred to the family room...ah warmth! But a fun memory :)
Allison LOVES tuna. She'd have it for breakfast(which she has before), lunch & dinner if I let her. She finds a way to get into the cupboard to get a tuna can & find me.
The girls room got a makeover for their birthdays. Loren was the most excited--she was DYING for an "older girl" room. Lindsey didn't mind the light pink walls & butterflies but Loren was ready for a big change & we had a lot of fun doing it! Three little girls in a room, but it came together!
First we painted the walls mint green, hung sheers & I found hot pink blankets & shaggy pillows. Then we made pillows. This was my first attempt & it was so fun. I sewed, the girls stuffed & helped a little with hand sewing to close them up. I was so surprised at how easy it was. My sewing abilities have usually only been with mending or hemming curtains!
The black & white polka dot fabrics were inspired with covering these little chairs forever ago & so I found similar fabrics & we really had fun doing projects together. In the process, the crib was converted to the toddler bed & Allie got some freedom--which means I get a visitor almost nightly around 4am.
All the pillows! The girls were in heaven & I was proud!
Then the girls painted letters for their names & we modge podged scrapbook paper shapes & ribbon to decorate. They LOVED these. 
I inherited this flower basket (thank you Lindsay!) so I painted it black & found some huge hot pink daisies to put in.
We painted this magnet board, glued on beads & made magnets with clear stones & scrapbook paper & scrapbook flowers.
The girls have kept it pretty clean & are very happy. Lots of little projects & if you know me at all you know that once I get into a project I just have to get it completed and check it off. I love this stuff & it was fun to include my daughters & make it a fun memory together. 
The end of June we started our road trip beginning with my sister in law Paige's bridal shower In Northern California. Couldn't miss it! Here are all the women in the family, BJ's mom, four sisters, me & Veronica (BJ's oldest brothers wife).
Allie was the only child aloud from the clan & she LOVED that ribbon!
Paige--so adorable & ready to be married! August! Yay!
Pool party with the cousins!
Cousins are always just the best of friends.
From the family up north we drove out to Sacramento & stayed with our really good friends, Jena, Mike & their 3 boys. Kids had a blast...just like old times.
Then BJ flew home & I started the next morning for UT with the kids. We got in to my Aunt & Uncle's house pretty late--mostly because I had to experiment with how to keep my tail light from hanging by it's cords & banging the bumper. I was so glad it wasn't a major flat tire that was making that horrible sound. Bungee cords worked. Here are my youngest cousins on my Dad's side--the youngest cousins of about 60 I think!
I was so excited to find out that a bunch of my extended family was getting together for a BBQ while I was in town! I miss being near them all. I just love seeing my kids find instant buddies with my own cousins kids! Family is so wonderful.
Here are my sisters & all our girls. My sis Nat in the middle is holding her Ellie who we hadn't seen since her birth. So fun to be together.
My girls with their cousin Aiden--my brother Connor & his wife Amara's son.
My sister Jess surprised Loren & Lindsey with colored extensions for their birthdays. Loren was VERY excited. She turned 9 while we were in UT & had probably three parties with all the family we saw. BJ flew in for the 4th of July & for the weekend--so nice.
We spent three nights with my grandparents & while we were there we had a cousin sleepover. Being at "Oma" & "Opa's" (great grandparents in Dutch) house is a major highlight. These are my cousins (I'm the oldest grandchild on my Mom's side) & they are just a little older than my kids. My kids ADORE them & they all have so much fun together. Wonderful memories made. We were all spoiled by my grandparents!! We love them so much! 
I'm so proud of my little sister Jessica & her husband. They launched their own salon business --Olivia Jade Hair Studios--in Saratoga Springs, UT. We finally got to see it all completed. It is beautiful. She is so talented! Any UT locals need to check it out. We got some cute makeover hair-do's in there!
Here is a peak inside with her products & little boutique. Video of my sis & her salon will be posted on our website, myplace2sell.com, soon!
Sleek hair stations. Seriously! Jess! You guys are amazing!
So I've posted a million pictures & could have posted several more--it has been such a long time since I posted -- but here is another highlight & for all those visiting UT you've got to go here. My kids absolutely LOVED the Gateway fountains in Salt Lake City. We've never seen pop up fountains like this! They were so soaked!!
They can't wait to return!We had such a great trip. The driving got old for sure but it was all worth it. There were so many friends that we wanted to visit while we were there but it became a family focused trip. It was so nice to have the time to hang with my sisters & spend so much time with my grandparents & extended families on both sides. We'll be back & to all those buddies I couldn't connect with we'll hook up soon! Since being home we've had some FUN & I'll post soon about all that! It's been nice to be home & back in routine & recovered. Can't believe school starts for us in 2 weeks. Hope you all are great & hope to hear from you soon!
