Water Fun

  This last week, we had a lot of water fun.  My brother has been wanting to take Ashlyn to Water World in Denver since she was like two years old.  Every year, we talk about it, but summer always gets away from us and we don't end up going.  This year, I knew Ashlyn was at the perfect age, so I was determined to make it happen.  We asked her if she would rather have Joey or myself go with her and she picked me.  Her and I don't get a whole lot of one on one alone time these days.  It was so special to both of us to get to spend the day together.  Despite a major traffic jam, lots of crowds, and a major rain storm, we had such a good time.  The three of us had so much fun riding rides and soaking up the sun.  Ashlyn is such a daredevil it isn't even funny.  I am a big chicken when it comes to water slides.  I only ride the tame ones.  Ashlyn picked out literally the steepest, scariest slide in the whole park and said she wanted to ride it.  This slide is literally straight up and down.  We checked if she was tall enough, and she was.  So I told her that I would watch from the bottom and she could ride with her uncle (they rode separately as it was a one person slide) .  She came flying down that slide with the world's biggest smile on her face.  She told me she wasn't scared even a little bit.  My brother and I were laughing because the only people riding this thing were teenage boys and grown men.  I still can't believe she rode that thing.  I just really wish I could have gotten pictures of our fun day.  We decided we will definitely be going every year. 
    While we were in Denver at Water World, Joey decided to take Gracie and Dawson somewhere fun.  He took them to a park we have never been to downtown.  The park has a giant splash area.  Joey said Dawson had a blast running around and just ran and ran.  He ran so much, that when they got home he preceded to head straight to the couch where he took a three hour long nap.  That must mean he had a great time!  Joey was able to get pictures of the fun they had.
   The kids spent the weekend in Buena Vista with their grandparents.  As usual, they had a great time.  On Monday, Joey drove up bright and early and they all went fishing.  Joey said the kids loved the boat and loved running around in the sand. 
   What a fun week we had this week playing in water.  We will be so sad when summer is over!

The splash park

I have to get to this park.  It looks pretty neat.

I'm glad the boys got some father son time too.

Gracie relaxing at the park

Sweetest face in the whole world!

Fishing with Papa

The sand beach they loved

Lakes are fun!

Dawson showing the stick he found.

We had a garage sale this week, and Joey made this lemonade stand for Ashlyn.  She just loved it.  I had to squeeze the picture in some where. 

Denver Trip

   Last week, we went to Denver for a fun overnight trip.  Since we aren't going anywhere special until September, we decided we wanted to do a short little get away.  The kids and I went along with my mom, sister, and Ella and Jameson.  We had such a fun time!  We started our trip on Monday at a new to us place called Heritage Square.  It's near Golden, Colorado and a neat little place for kids.  We didn't stay too long, but the kids had fun riding a train, and getting to get in giant balls and walk on water.  They had a pretty cool maze to that the boys loves running through to find hidden clues. 
    After Heritage Square, we headed to the south side of Denver to our hotel.  The kids were just dying to go swimming.  We checked in, and headed to the pool.  They had such a good time swimming and the best part was that we were the only ones in the pool.  We literally had to drag the kids out to go eat dinner.  We decided to go to Sweet Tomatoes for dinner since its very casual and we know the kids like it.  They all worked up quite an appetite and I think they all ate their weight in macaroni and cheese and jello.  After dinner, we were right by Park Meadows, so we went to do a little shopping.  We stopped by the Lego store where the boys got a treat, and the American Girl store where the girls got a treat.  The kids wanted to go swimming again when we got back to the room, but they were just way too tired.
    The next morning, we were up bright and early.  The kids wanted to squeeze in one last swim before we left.  So, we put on her suits and had a great time again swimming.  I think they could have swam there all morning.  After a quick breakfast at the hotel, we loaded up and headed to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.  We have been to this museum several times and I think I fall more in love each time.  They just added a 3.5 million dollar discovery area.  The kids loved it.  That museum is so big and interactive my only complaint is always that there isn't enough time to see and do everything.  There is always next time  Sadly, after the museum we headed back home.  We all had a wonderful time.  Even though Denver is close by, it is such a great getaway for us because there is so much to do up there and we always have a blast.  

Ella resting on a rock at Heritage Square.

Riding the train

The kids were dying to try this.  It looked like so much fun!  Ashlyn had a blast!

Dawson on the other hand, didn't seem to get the hang of it.  He just laid down the whole time and kind of used it like a raft of sorts. 

Poor Jameson wasn't big enough to do the water walkers. 

Ella loved it just like Ashlyn. 

These are the only shots I got of Gracie, but I assure you she was there

This is part of the new area at the museum.  They have all these water tables that the kids loved. 

Ashlyn immediately went to the dinosaur dig area since she wants to dig dinosaurs when she grows up. 

Dawson and some lights

This was  like a giant Ipad that they kids could draw on. 

They all really loved these blocks for some reason.

The kids as ancient Mayans

Checking out the stuffed animals

Dawson comparing his hand to a bear's paw

Hopefully the only time Ashlyn will ever be that close to a bear.

More bears

Trying out the machines in the health area. 

They had some health pirate show.  Ashlyn and Dawson both volunteered to be helpers. 

The space area

Ashlyn doing an experiment

Dinosaurs!  Ashlyn's favorite thing!!!

Four Months Old

    Graceyn is now four months old!  My oh my how the time is just flying with this girl.  She is a totally different baby since she was born.  It is truly amazing how much they change in four short months.  Her personality comes out more and more each day.  Like I have said from practically birth, Gracie is just simply a sweet, sweet little girl.  She loves people and loves to smile.  She is just so happy go lucky.  She has the sweetest disposition in the universe.  Being around her just makes you happy.   She is truly one of the best things to ever happen to me.  I almost have to pinch myself daily to remind myself she isn't all a dream. 
      Sleep is going much, much better for Gracie.  I transitioned her to her crib a little earlier then I did with her siblings, but she is doing so well.  She goes down so easily.  She usually goes to bed around 7:00 p.m.  Her first wake-up varies quite a bit.  It can vary from 1:30 all the way to 4:30.  The longest she has made it was 5:15!  She is sleeping like a champ.  Although, the oddest thing I have noticed is that once a week she has a really bad night where she is up a lot.  It only happens once a week, and seems to happen weekly without fail.  She had a rough night last night, but I know she will do much better night tonight.  She is also sleeping like a champ in her crib for naps.  I put her in her crib and she will usually take a good two hour nap.  She loves to sleep with her arms spread wide out.  It's pretty darn cute.  She takes two long naps a day and sometimes a shorter third or fourth nap. 
     Graceyn continues to have such a love for her brother and sister.  She always has the biggest smile for both of them.  They continue to love her to pieces.  The only problem is, they are often fighting over her attention.  It's cute, but at the same time still fighting.    They were at their grandparents this last weekend and didn't get home until Graceyn was already in bed.  The next morning, they both literally sprang out of bed to see her.  They both were so excited to give her kisses and talk to her.  I think they missed her way more than they did us. 
      Graceyn continues to be a master at rolling over.  She is go good at rolling back to belly, but hasn't mastered the belly to back yet.  I know it will be soon.  She still loves to swing in her swing.  I think she loves the swing because it allows her to look around and watch all of us.  I often put her in the swing when I'm cooking dinner.  She also still loves her play mat, but it getting a little big for it.  We started to put her in the jumper which she is crazy about.  She also loves to take baths.  We put her in her special little bath seat and she just kicks and smiles away.  The kids love to help with her baths too.  Another favorite of hers is being read to.  I read her books every night before bed.  Her favorite is, "You Are My Sunshine".  She also loves her mama and loves to be held and kissed. 
     Last Monday, I took Graceyn in for her four month check up.  She now weighs 14.2 pounds (51%) and is 25 inches tall (74%).  Clearly, she is doing a great job eating and is growing perfectly.  Her doctor asked me if I had any concerns about Graceyn.  I told her there wasn't one single thing I was concerned about.  I don't know if its because she is my third child or she is just a perfect little thing, but I can truly say she is developing perfectly!  Her doctor agreed and said she looked great.  We did have to end the appointment with dreaded shots.  Luckily, Ashlyn had insisted on coming along to hold Gracie's hand.  I know it helped. 
     I can't think of much more to say other then we all love our girl to pieces and we are so blessed to have her in our lives!  Here are the 4 month pictures I took of her.  I think out of all the monthly ones I have taken, these definitely are starting to show her personality more. 

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