Family fun for JB's 60th

For JB, my father-in-law's 60th birthday we were lucky enough to get all the Burley cousins together and celebrate.  We first met up at Northwest Trek which was a blast. They have animals that can be found in the Northwest but have acres of land where the herbivores roam free and you ride a tram through to see them.

 Then the carnivores like bears, wolves, and foxes are in enclosed spaces. They also had a really cool playground for the kids to play on, but we didn't get to play on it for too long because it was when we were leaving and it started to really rain.

Mason had a great time with Crew walking around with him, talking about the animals, and even holding hands.  They also liked that they were wearing the same coat; I liked it too, because it was easy to keep track of them as they ran around all crazy.

Paige loved the tram ride where she could see the animals a little better and actually really close.  She would make noises, hit the window, and flail her arms when she saw the different animals like mountain goats, bison, and sheep.

The kids had a lot of fun watching the otters dive off rocks and swim in the water.

It was a great place and tons of fun for the kids.

The next day we took the ferry out to Whidby Island and Fort Casey.  I didn't think we would be there that long but the kids had a blast in the rooms and tunnels with their flash lights.  They were all really happy and loved climbing and looking for different places to explore.

We had a party with friends and family for JB's birthday the next day.  We prepped lots of food and the kids were in heaven getting to play the DS, watch shows, and spend time together.

The next weekend the Navasards came back from camping and we went to Larabee to find crabs and look around.  There were a few bloody knees, but mostly everyone was able to run around unharmed.  Christopher saw a big crab out in the water and with low tide, was able to walk out to him.

After some fighting and struggling, Christopher was able to catch the crab with the little pink net that our niece Macey had brought.  We got to see the crab and Paul held him up for everyone; all the kids thought that was pretty amazing.

Paige was happy once I let her out of the Mei tai and just kept running towards the water, after a few minutes of struggling, kicking and screaming, I finally just let her sit in the water and play. She was totally content and really happy to splash and play with the water.  Getting her out of the water to go home wasn't fun, but I'm glad she loves water.

Crew and Mason had so much fun together and are definitely a handful.  All the kids slept together in the living room downstairs and after a short time they were pretty quiet, then we hear from someone that Mason and Crew had escaped through the back door and were running around outside in their pajamas.  They were having so much fun and were too cute, we let them play outside for a while before telling them to go back to bed.

 Bedtime usually consisted of the kids listening to Mason tell them stories, since we didn't read him any before bed; and one of us having to go down and remind them to be quiet and go to sleep.

We loved being to see everyone and celebrate with them!

Trip to California

My sister Zoe is serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Madrid Spain, and we were able to go down and see her and be a part of her experience of going through the temple for the first time.

We were able to surprise my Mom and sisters and had a great time.

The cousins had lots of fun playing together; there was a lot of Smash Brothers ( a LOT), hide-and-seek, playing on the tramp (which Mason liked to say 'boing' instead of bounce..funny), playing baseball, swinging on the swings, hungry hungry hippos, making cookies, and playing and laughing all day.

I was so happy to be a part of Zoe going through the temple and being with family for that great experience, and of course we went for milkshakes after.

I loved seeing all my family and we were lucky enough to all be together and take a family picture with all of us.  The kids were great and sat still through all the pictures, even if we had to use a little candy bribe at the end if was a lot of fun.

Christopher was able to go on a bike ride with my Dad and they had a great time, and stayed a lot cleaner than last time they went, and of course had a lot of fun.

Loved laughing, talking, and singing with my family, getting to walk and run with my mom, reminisce with my siblings and enjoy everything about being at home with my family.

Happy Birthday Paige!

It happened, Paige turned one.

One year comparison

  

Paige 1 year Stats

Height: 2' 5.25'' (53%)

Weight: 21 lbs .05 oz (69%)

Head Circumference: 18.5 inch (94%)

 

This little girl definitely has her own personality and knows what she wants.  She is really happy and is friendly to everyone. She loves to eat food and hasn't found anything she won't eat.

She is usually sporting the side pony and bow to hide her sweet baby mohawk.

We had a small celebration for Paige while some family was up for Easter.  We sang to Paige and let her eat cake.  I thought with how much she loved food she would have dug in a little more but she was mostly content to eat the cool whip on the outside. She did however manage to make a bit of a mess and get some cake on GiGi's dog Teddy.

Paige loves to dance. She will sway and wiggle her hands anytime she hears music, fast or slow she dances.

Paige does this smiley thing where she tilts her head back, grins super big and squints her eyes shut; we think it's a way she tries to play with us and be funny.

She finally isn't being such a huge chicken and is actually trying to take steps in between furniture and to us. After she makes it to us she laughs and smiles, very proud of herself. Other times she will stand without holding onto anything and will clap for herself.

She has times of being very dramatic.  When she doesn't get what she wants she will cry and throw herself on the floor, legs and arms sprawled.  Sometimes she even kicks it up a gear and will roll from one side to the other while she cries.

Paige loves her animals and dolls. She doesn't play with them really but will hug and squeeze them.

She loves to bring us things, like toys or books she wants us to read. Then when we read a book to her she loves to turn the pages, slamming them to the other side.

She also loves to play in our pantry with the Tupperware and when she gets her hands on an applesauce she immediately brings it out to us holding it in the air, her way of asking us to open and feed it to her.

She likes to throw things behind her.  When she's done eating she starts to throw and drop her food off the side. She does the same thing with toys throwing them in quick, jerky moves behind her.

Paige loves her plastic silverware. At Pop Pop and Nana's house can often be found at the kid's cupboard with their bowls and silverware. She gets a fork or spoon and mixes in a bowl or cup; Mason says she's making chicken noodle soup.

EASTER FUN.

For Easter we hung eggs on the tree, did an egg hunt, played with cousins and had a great time with family.

We also managed to get the kids to sit still, be happy and look at the camera to take a family picture.