Carson's Sixth Birthday

Our little boy is now six. He's growing up so fast. Kindergarten has been great for him and he's learning alot and really progressing with his reading and writing. He seems to enjoy going to school, so that's a good sign. He doesn't tell us alot about his daily routine, but when he does talk it's positive. Though he does often say that he "worked on boring papers."

We had a couple of birthday parties for him. My parents came over on his actual birthday and we had dinner, presents and cup cakes. The following Saturday he had a party with cousins and friends. We had around 12 kids there so it was a house/yardfull, but was fun and Carson had a good time.

Here are a few photos from the night of his birthday...






Another one of Christina's fancy birthday cakes. Carson wanted the theme of his party to be tools...


The gathering of friends and cousins playing ring around the blanket, or something...


Carson checks out his new Spike Jr. dinosaur, from his cousin Noah. He loved getting new things to play with...

Spring Break, Part III

After spending time in quiet, beautiful southern Utah for spring break, we spent a couple of nights in Las Vegas. It was a huge contrast to where we had been. The city was extremely packed and walking the Strip was quite tedious with three young children, but we still had fun seeing many of the usual tourist spots.

Here's the family by the Excaliber. Apparently Elijah wasn't willing to hold still...


Elijah's favorite color is red, so I couldn't resist having him pose by this Ferrari. I think that's as happy as he ever looked in Vegas...


Clarissa near the Bellagio fountains...


We spent a morning in Circus Circus. The kids rode rides and we played games and won some prizes. Carson loved the air hockey...


Sponge Bob and his square pants...


The kids had fun playing in the pool at the hotel. I'm pretty sure Clarissa is saying "cheese"...


Carson floating...


Lijah jumping...

Spring Break, Part II

After Goblin Valley, we headed to Capitol Reef National Park and spent two nights there. The boys had a blast climbing all over the big rocks. The scenery there is spectacular, with so many unique rock formations and colors around every corner.



The boys seemed ready to scale those cliffs behind them...

Climbing around these giant boulders, that at some point broke free from the cliffs above...

We took a hike to Hickman Bridge. It wasn't the easiest hike, but the kids did great and we were proud of them for making it the whole way up...




Elijah's doggy had to make the hike with us. Fortunately the dog is still with us...

Hickman Bridge, worth the hike...

Clarissa was great during the trip...

Carson found a hole in the rock...

Spring Break, Part I

Carson had the week off school, so we headed south for five days. We had a great time despite some sketchy weather for part of the trip. It was the first time in a really long time that we took a trip with just our little family. It was nice, relaxing family bonding time. Our first stop was Goblin Valley in Central Utah. Goblin Valley was somewhere I had always wanted to go. Turns out it's not only is it one of the most unique spots on earth, but a great place for kids to play and explore.



After descending into the valley, Elijah said "this is heaven"...

Carson emerging from a couple of goblins...


Of course it was fun to play in the mud, until he realized that once he was wet, the wind and 40 degree temps were very cold...


That little girl in the purple sure stands out...

Elijah threw a huge tantrum in the middle of "heaven." Can you spot him?

The place is unreal. We managed to arrive and depart between the storms of the day...