Blasting Off!

We blasted off into our new unit for school today: Space Explorers! We visited the Mountain Skies Astronomical Society near Lake Arrowhead, where we got to look through a giant telescope and the kids learned a lot about space at a class taught by a real astro-physist!

I unfortunately missed the class due to this sweet little one who was not quite as interested in Space as the big kids.

Future Astronaut!

Neil Armstrong (aka Josh) came to visit us and share some information with us.

It was a beautiful Spring day to learn about space in the mountains!

Action Packed Saturday

This morning, while I was busy upstairs folding laundry and Ladd and Tanner were out running errands, Hunter occupied himself with this:

He cracked 2 and a half dozen eggs all over our kitchen and hallway. At least he was caught before he made it to the carpet!

So after a timeout, a stern talking to, and lots of mopping, we made it to our Family Saturday outing: The Riverside Airport Air Show.

Since we had been studying Air Explorers, Tanner has been really interested in airplanes. The boys had a great day and we saw some amazing things:

There is a lady on top of that plane doing all sorts of acrobatic moves!

This is a real water dropping helicopter that Tanner got to sit in and asked the Firefighters all sorts of questions!

We saw lots of planes that could do all kinds of crazy turns and dives. Ladd thought it looked fun, I thought the pilots were crazy!

After these awesome stunts, we met up with my dad at my Grandma's house. After watering the plants (Tanner) and completing some puzzles with the help of Great Grandma (Hunter), we headed out to dinner.

An Action Packed Day and everyone will sleep well tonight!

Yesterday, my kids learned...

To sail a Ship as Captain and First Mate...

To Tame Wild Flying Elephants...

How to explore the depths of the sea via Submarine...

Skills needed to pass their Driver's tests...

What it takes to blast off into Space (with Grandma as co-pilot)!

What a Pirate's life is like...

Survival skills if ever stranded on a deserted Island...

And about the wilds of the Jungle!

Most importantly, they learned how to have some Family Fun while visiting the
Happiest Place on Earth!

Yes, that is a double stroller and I am thrilled that my almost 6 year old
still wants to sit in a stroller on trips like these!!

Reuniting

Earlier this week my cousin Terry was in town on business and we were able to have a nice dinner with him. I have not seen him since my high school graduation! Hopefully one day I will get to meet his cute kids.

Later in the week my other cousins Brigitte and Mike were in town for fun. I haven't seen Brigitte since my wedding! It was great to see them. I told Ladd that Brigitte was my Jace. Both of my kids think their oldest boy cousin is the greatest person who walked the Earth, and I pretty much felt that way about Brigitte- it must be something about older cousins.

Brigitte and Mike with my mom and the boys.

We also reuntied with Ladd's law school buddies at a wedding. A couple who met at law school got married and had a beautiful wedding and reception at Strawberry Farms Golf Course in Irvine. It was a fun and elegant evening.

It is always a pleasure reuniting with people whom you think of often but are not able to see much! My new goal is to try to keep the distances between seeing friends and family under ten years, at least!

A FUN place to go...

Lawni and Brielle were down for a visit, so we decided to take all the cousins (minus Makaylee because she's too little!) to the Kidspace Museum in Pasadena on Saturday.

There was plenty of climbing...

Lots of bugs...

Tricycle Races...

Water adventures...

And plenty of FUN to be had be all!

We even managed to get everyone into two cars. Good thing Maquel and Jayme are such safe drivers with this precious cargo!

Ways to Save

These days I think we are all trying to save a little dough. Here is what I have been doing to keep a little more in the bank:

1. Less going out to eat! Homemade food tastes better and is better for you anyway. I make Ladd's lunches and I have stopped going to fast food restaurants. Macaroni and cheese is just as fast on those crazy nights!
2. A friend is a hairstylist and cuts hair from home. She is much cheaper, does a great job, and is more fun to talk to than someone at a salon!
3. Stockpiling. I try to limit going to the grocery store. Buying non-perishables (that we use!) in bulk when they are on sale saves a lot. I do go once a week for produce and other random things I might need for a meal, but I have a very strict budget on these weekly trips.
4. Less driving. I try to plan my day so that any errands I might need to do can be done in one trip. Who wants to load and unload the kids all day anyway?
5. Stay away from Temptations! Mine include Target and Michaels. I always spend way more than I planned when I go to those places.

What have you done to save money?

Sweet Sisters

Our nieces, Madelyn and Savanah, were baptized yesterday! The girls looked so adorable and were so excited to be making this important decision. It was a beautiful meeting. Lee baptized them and confirmed the Gift of the Holy Ghost on them. The girls sang a a beautiful song along with their cousin Peri. Madelyn and Savanah had asked their Uncle Brett to give a talk about the Holy Ghost and he did an excellent job. Madelyn and Savanah are such kind young ladies and always make you feel loved with a big hug and kiss everytime you see them. We are so proud of these sweet girls for choosing to be baptized.
After the baptism Jayme had everyone over for dinner to celebrate the baptism and the girls' eighth birthday.

Cousins!

Here is Brett with his baby. Makaylee is such a good baby and is such a doll!

Another Successful Hoyal Family Gathering!

Brotherly Love

How grateful I am for these two sweet boys!
This morning Tanner was drawing pictures for family members and then putting them in envelopes to mail out. Hunter is obsessed with mail and calls all mail "presents". He really wanted to open Tanner's "presents" but refrained himself when we explained it was not for him. Then Tanner disappears upstairs and returns with a "present" with Hunter's name on it. Hunter was thrilled to have an envelope to open and was even happier when he found a dinosaur drawing inside. Tanner told me it made him feel really good when he did something nice for someone else. Hunter kept saying "what a nice soo-prize" everytime he looked at his drawing. I agree, what a nice surprise to see our kids living the principles we are trying to teach them, at least some of the time!