I feel like I haven't blogged in forever and they I realized it has been several months. But don't feel bad for us, we have had a few fun things occur in our lives other than just the usual school and work.
One of those fun things was a fairly impromptu long weekend in Louisiana to visit my family. It had been at least a year since I had seen any of these amazing folks and I was thrilled to be with them even for a short time.
We had lots of fun...
On the deck
My wedding was my father's excuse to build this wonderful deck by the way.
Nothing better than a loving family around a fire pit.
There was quite the game of fanning the smoke so it would follow someone else.
Hence the flailing limbs.
My mom makes the best breakfasts ever,
which is probably why it is pretty much my favorite food.
I had the fun of handing down the tradition of BYU gear to Ethan, but neither he nor Jared were very happy about taking a picture to commemorate such an occasion.
It was Valentine's Day weekend and we had a Heart Hunt for candy.
Really love seeing kids running around the yard.
Checking the score!
Trevor entertained us often with his wonderful instruments of guitar and voice.
Music is such a wonderful part of our family fun.
My sister is pretty handy with a camera and did me the greatest favor of taking a few pictures of Ryan and I as I haven't had any really good ones since the wedding and as you can see
his facial hair has increased tremendously since then. In fact he hasn't shaved
since the morning of our wedding. My very one mountain man!
She did take one where you can actually see how much taller he is than me.
The kids couldn't get enough of hunting for the hearts and then sharing them.
The men got in some practice with the ax on our old picnic bench.
Everyone loves Grandma.
And Aunt Melanie is always good for a tackling hug.
It was so pretty we played apples to apples with the kiddos outside.
Everyone had a partner
We got some very interesting combinations.
I tried to video chat with my other sister and her girls and this is what happened.
I am not sure who wanted the most attention.
Then it was craft time.
It was Valentine's Day weekend but it was also the weekend before Mardi Gras.
Which meant I couldn't leave without some amazing King Cake.
Cake on a fork.
We took a trip to the pool and had so much fun.
A few years ago I taught Ethan the proper way to splash and I have to say he was an enthusiastic student and still keeps in great practice, as you can see.
Always have to make sure people know the photographer was there too.
One of my favorite traditions is bedtime stories.
Best cuddle time ever.
It was a short trip but well worth the time and effort.
Family is forever.
