Labor Day....

With Cameron closing on a project the last couple of weeks and not seeing him but 2 hours at night, we decided to head to St. George for Labor Day to get a little R&R. The kids LOVE going and it was even better because Curt and Marissa had just moved there and they had cousins to play with! We did ALOT ALOT of swimming and alot of eating! What's better? Thanks to Curt and Merm for having us over for endless dinners and good times!

Watch out Michael Phelps!! Your competition is in the pool! Here we come LONDON!!

Because of the great weather, the kids played and played outside.

What is Labor Day without a BBQ.

Dont' mess with these two and their BBQ.

One of the many parks we played at.

Cameron could not go without a little Iceberg!!

Cam taught Jake to dip his fries in icecream. At first he looked at him really funny and then tried it and was HOOKED! We couldn't get him to leave!

We must have really wore them out!!

And last but not least!! I forgot to post about our sixth anniversary a couple of weeks ago. We went out with some really great friends and had a blast! Not to get sappy, but I have the best husband and he is the greatest father! Here's to many many years ahead!

Farm life to City life.........

I have felt I needed to release some emotional turmoil through blogging. As I said awhile ago after 30 plus years my dad and mom have sold our farm this last year and are moving. We have all been in denial this last year thinking it would never come. But these last couple of months my parents have started packing up our house we lived in pretty much our whole lives. The farm has been a place where all of us kids have learned to work, learn and play. With each year we saw and helped our dad plant and then harvest the crops. When we were younger we thought it was a curse to live on a farm, always doing random jobs like pulling weeds on the side of the road to "build character." But as time as gone by each of us realized what a blessing and opportunity it has been to be able to call such a wonderful place HOME. As I sit here crying and wondering how life will ever be the same with out the "farm" and potato harvest I think of what an awesome childhood I had and what great memories are yet to be made. SO, here's to making NEW memories in St. George!!

I thought of some things I have loved most about living on a farm....

My kids LOVED to help Grandpa feed the horses and cows.


My parents are the BEST gardeners. They always had an immaculate yard full of beautiful flowers and trees.
Even living away from home, potato harvest is always something we came home for. Homemade french fries and hot chocolate! YUM!

The many many horse rides I had while growing up and the many rides my dad took the kids on every time we came home.

The HUGE willow tree we planted when we were kids that has now taken over the yard.

The many hours we spent outside swinging on this exact swing set and the many hours poor Grandpa was out there swinging the grand kids :).

The best memories are the memories the kids will have of having a second home away from home and the many things they loved to do.

Misc.....

I can't believe this summer is almost over. School is starting and that means Alex has started her new preschool. She loves it and she loves her new teacher Mrs. Luna. She is getting so smart, she can write her abc's and numbers really well and she writes her name everywhere! She is definetly going to have her papa's smarts, she learns really fast and I know it took me forever to process anything into my brain.

Some ladies in my ward have started a Joy School this year for a bunch of 2-3 year olds and I decided to take the challenge and sign Jake up. He gets so upset to see Alex leave for preschool that I thought this might be a good time to get him into something that he can socialize and learn at the same time. I made the mistake of telling him he was getting to go to school in a couple of weeks with his good buddy Jack and now every morning he wakes up and says, " a school with Jack mom?" I guess I'll never learn.


I thought also that I would throw in this picture of me and my grandma at my cousins wedding this summer. I LOVE LOVE my grandma and she has always been one of my hereos and her and my grandpa are great examples of living Christlike lives. I hope one day I can live up to all they have taught me throughout my life. LOVE YOU gram!

Mexico...

Our cruise to Mexico was amazing! We couldn't have had a better time! Thanks to the Harman clan for making it happen. Our first day at port was in Cabo and we went on a private sailboat and went snorkeling. It was a really fun time and we even stopped in the middle of the ocean and took a dip (and yes, I did it!). The next day we went to Mazatlan and did para sailing. It was really cool, but probably a one time experience for me. I made the mistake and looked down and got to thinking there was only a strap holding me from life and death. The next day, and probably my favorite port, to Puerto Vallarta and we did some zip lining. It was WAY fun and if any of you out there go on this cruise you HAVE to go on Canopy Tours zip line! It was the best!

Me and Cam just had the best time relaxing and taking some down time from both of our crazy schedules back home. We sailed for alot of the days, but we kept busy with some karaoke, rock wall climbing, dancing and lots and lots of eating!! A BIG thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Balls for taking the kids for us, they are still begging to come back! We can't wait for our next big adventure!

GOOD TIMES!!!!

July......

We have had a busy but oh so fun July so far!! We just got back from Idaho last weekend from being there since the fourth. We took our first ever roadtrip there and it ended up being pretty easy. Cameron flew home after a long weekend and the kids and I stayed and helped the grandparents pack up the house for the big move to St. George.

I will start at the beginning of our adventure!!

The Fourth of July is always been a big deal for the Harman clan, it is a close second next to Christmas. We start off the day at the annual Rupert parade, which is full of tractors and horses, the kids LOVED it! We then headed to Uncle Kurt's for lunch and water play, the little kids loved the huge jumpy slide and the "big" kids enjoyed the boat. After a good nap we went up to Uncle Jack's for a serious firework show, and when I say show I mean 600+ people and certified professional uncles shooting off the fireworks. I got the finale on video for a sneek peek. (here's to you Kate)

From the looks of the picture, Jake must have not gotten a good enough nap for the fireworks, they didn't start until about 10:30.

One of the many activites the kids and I enjoyed were playing outside (which is a privilege when you live in Arizona during the summer.) We played our annual badmitton tournament, which between Mom and Dad both going down on a couple occasions, we had a great time playing. Me and Cris have the same T-shirt and since we were teammates thought it would be fun to dress in uniforms complete with football makeup. The kids favorite thing by far was to ride the four wheeler to see Grandpas new baby colt, we rode there at least twice a day if not many more. After riding the four wheeler, Jake would just lay on the bike and sulk because he wanted to do it again. He would ask anyone who walked in the door "motorcycle ride?" We had to hide the key because he was getting a little too smart. Jake and Alex played in the playpool Grandpa Kent set up many a times and loved screaming "Superman!" while jumping in. They also LOVED Grandpa to push them in the baby swing and go "Berry high!"
The kids always want to make Aunt Sue's sugar cookies while we are at grandmas. Jake wore some googles he found while mixing the batter with Aunt Cris, maybe he thought they were going to taste better, who knows with that kid. Alex chose a butterfly and flower cookie cutter while Jake stuck with the dinosaurs. If you look at the pictures you can see the difference in the frosting application of the two kiddos. Jake is ALL boy when it comes to doing anything crafty and Alex is such a perfectionist.

I have many more pictures from our adventure, but for now I am pooped from blog overload! Stay tuned!

Dance Recital....

We couldn't video at the recital, but I got a quick video at one of the practice rounds. (make sure to turn off the blog music)

Last night we had a great time at Alex's Dance Recital. Grandpa Kent sent a flower and balloons to her and she still can't stop talking about how special it is. The theme of the recital was Decades of Dance, they had so many cute 50's, 60's dances with awesome costumes. Alex's ballet dance was Doggy in the window. We are so proud of her for getting up there and not being scared. I was so nervous for her, but she got right up there in front of a ton of people and did her thing! Me and Cam got a little teary eyed at watching how grown up she has become. After putting on all her makeup, Alex came out of the bathroom and her dad saw her and said, "WOW, take that off!!" He didn't like how grown up she looked. We couldn't pick Alex back up until after intermission so we watched about 15 other dances and Jake was mesmerized at the colorful costumes and dances. He was also so proud of Alex, and when he saw her afterwards he said, "Alex, you dance, good job!" We asked Alex to pick her favorite place to eat afterwards, and after trying to explain to her that her favorite place was a small town place in Idaho and that it would take 13 hours to get there, she settled for her second favorite Red Robin. It was a fun family night and Alex can't wait to dance again next year.

Catch up...........

I know, I know, I have been slacking on my blog lately. Our life seems to be in the fast lane these days. So, here goes some catch up on what has been going on here in AZ. We have been swimming at friends pools to keep us cool in this heat, Alex started swimming lessons last week and is doing great, and Jake is keeping us entertained with his Kung Fu moves! We took the kids a couple of weeks ago to Kung Fu Panda, which I have to say me and Cam probably liked it more than the kids. We are HUGE Jack Black fans! Go see it if you haven't already.

While Cam was at scout camp, me and the kids packed up and headed to St. George to meet my mom and dad, Cris and Niki. The kids loved to just hangout with cousin Cole and be in the pool all day. Man oh man, a pool can make a world of difference in the heat! With visits from uncle "Mac", some Aunts and Uncles, cousins, and Grandpa and Grandma Great we had a great time! Cole wasn't a huge fan of his new Bumbo, but Jake got real good use out of it, we couldn't get the kid out! It was really nice to get away from our everyday duties and just relax and I even got to read a little bit.
Yesterday was Alex's dance recital rehearsal. Cameron had a Court of Honor and since Alex's friend Bay is going to miss the recital we took her along and had a great time. The two silly girls got a real kick out of showing me their french fries at dinner.

Well that is some of the exciting things we have been up to the last couple of weeks. We can't wait to get to Idaho for the fourth and enjoy the fun reunion and traditions of the Harman clan. We are also getting SO excited for our cruise coming up and the kids can't stop talking about getting to go to Grandma Jane and Grandpa Steve's house.

"Silly Daddy"

Jake loves to tell daddy he is "Swilly." Happy late Fathers Day! Shout out to the best husband in the world and to the bestest dad in the world and the greatest Father in law in the world! I'm so grateful for the great guys in mine and my kids lives. Cam works so hard to provide for our family and comes home to two crazy kids and wife that love on him to death! I couldn't ask for a better half! My dad has been and always will be my hero. He has always been one of my best friends and will continue to be the greatest dad in the world. My father in law Steve is got to be one of the funniest guys ever and we all love him for that. Too the manly men in my life HAPPY FATHERS DAY!! Sure love ya!

Big Boy....

We finally got Jake in his own "Big Boy Bed." We were a little worried on how he would do in a big bed and if he would realize he could get off and wander around the house. He has been doing great! He fell off twice, but seems to be getting used to it. A couple of days ago at naptime, I heard a noise upstairs and went up into our loft where all the toys are, Jake was there playing with the Little People farm and I said, "Jake, what are you doing?" He looked at me and said, "a sheep mom, I playing with da sheep and cow." Since then he hasn't climbed down but does wake up Alex if she isn't up yet which is kindof a pain cause us girlies don't do well with that. Now if we can just get him potty trained :).

SUMMER...

I have been a slacker on the blogging lately, it seems summer is always a bit busier with all the activites we have going on. We aren't huge fans of Arizona summers, but we try to make the best of it. Instead of getting a pool in the back yard this summer, thanks to the crappy housing market, we bought this beauty from Wal-Mart and the kids LOVE it! The wind picked up and Jake got a little cold and his lips were blue by the time he got out, but he didn't seem to mind much. The kids ask to get in the playpool as soon as they wake up in the morning. Cam's parents and sister and fam came to visit over Memorial Day and we had a croquet tournament, (which I will gloat and say I won), barbeque, bubble blowing with Grandpa, swinging, and eating WAY too much good food. It was a great weekend and can't wait to see Curt and Marissa more often. Our summer is going to be filled with lots of fun! First we head to St. George next week to visit my parents and sistas while Cam is gone to Scout Camp, then we get back for a couple weeks with visits from Tara and the kids, and then head to Idaho for the big Harman Fam Reunion and Fourth of July, then to my cousin Natalie's wedding, then head home for another couple of weeks and Cam and I are headed on our first cruise ever to Mexico without the kiddos! Yeah! It might get crazy this summer, but we are ready and willing to help pass the time until it starts cooling off again in the fall. Thank goodness for $20 plastic playpools!!