Tyler's new uniform
Sunday, July 31, 2005
July 31, 2005
July 31, 2005
Seriously! Where has the summer gone? The kids start back up in 3 weeks. We have school registration starting on Thursday. Wow. Time flies, huh?
We had a semi quiet week and enjoyed much better weather than last week. We went to the free kids movie "Racing Stripes" this week. We had never seen it before and it was actually pretty cute. Only 2 more movies left to see this summer.
On Friday, we went biking as a family. A sister from our ward stopped by and said that they had rented the Marion pool for the evening if we would like to come. As you can guess, the kids talked us into it and we really enjoyed ourselves. Kayla truly doesn’t have any fear. They had a high dive that she went off many times. Bob went up once and said it was way too high. Anyway, it was an enjoyable evening.
Tyler finally got his Tae kwon do uniform and is so excited. I have to figure out where the patches go and how to alter it since it’s a bit big on him. Marisa and I have been taking pilates together. She can do several of the fancier things that I can’t. There is one where you are laying on your back and you carry both legs all the way over your head and touch the floor behind your head. If I did that now, my spine would literally crack in half! Stupid since I was actually doing back shoulder rolls 9 months pregnant with Marisa. Ughhh!
Today Bob and I taught the 12-13 year olds Sunday school class. We had 12 of them. What a funny class. It was an entertaining hour, that’s for sure.
Well, I am off to make chocolate chip cookies. Have a great week!
Seriously! Where has the summer gone? The kids start back up in 3 weeks. We have school registration starting on Thursday. Wow. Time flies, huh?
We had a semi quiet week and enjoyed much better weather than last week. We went to the free kids movie "Racing Stripes" this week. We had never seen it before and it was actually pretty cute. Only 2 more movies left to see this summer.
On Friday, we went biking as a family. A sister from our ward stopped by and said that they had rented the Marion pool for the evening if we would like to come. As you can guess, the kids talked us into it and we really enjoyed ourselves. Kayla truly doesn’t have any fear. They had a high dive that she went off many times. Bob went up once and said it was way too high. Anyway, it was an enjoyable evening.
Tyler finally got his Tae kwon do uniform and is so excited. I have to figure out where the patches go and how to alter it since it’s a bit big on him. Marisa and I have been taking pilates together. She can do several of the fancier things that I can’t. There is one where you are laying on your back and you carry both legs all the way over your head and touch the floor behind your head. If I did that now, my spine would literally crack in half! Stupid since I was actually doing back shoulder rolls 9 months pregnant with Marisa. Ughhh!
Today Bob and I taught the 12-13 year olds Sunday school class. We had 12 of them. What a funny class. It was an entertaining hour, that’s for sure.
Well, I am off to make chocolate chip cookies. Have a great week!
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
July 27, 2005
July 27, 2005
Wow! What a long, fun, hot week we had with my family! They had a heat wave and several days the heat index was between 110-115. I bet they will never come visit again. Of course the exact day they left a cold front came through and dropped the temp to a gorgeous 70! Figures!
Well, we left last Tuesday after Bob got off work and met my parents and my sister and her 3 kids in Nauvoo. We were just in time for the pre show and it was so awesome!! They had tons of people dressed up in pioneer clothes. They had dancing, crafts, handcart races, stick pulls, stilts, a bagpipe band, log sawing etc. We had so much fun. We even saw some old friends from Flagstaff- what are the chances of that?? Anyway, the kids went on the handcart and Marisa helped pull. They only went a little ways and she thought she might die. Gave her a good idea of what it might have been to cross the plains. Yuck! Bob creamed me at the stick pull- I went flying. We really did have a great time.
Then they had all the children march with the bagpipe band to take the American flag to the stage. Then we got to see the Nauvoo temple pageant. It was so cool. It was such a beautiful setting with the temple set up on the hill in the background. After the pageant, we drove to Bob’s parents house. They were so sweet to do a "bed and breakfast" for all of us! Plus, we felt extra lucky to have all 4 of our parents in the same place at the same time.
The next day, Wednesday, we went back to Nauvoo. My parents and sister did a temple session while we took the kids on a wagon ride with horses through Nauvoo. It was so flippin hot. We were all drenched in sweat! After the fun ride, we took the kids to the area called "Pioneer past times". We had a fun picnic lunch, let the kids play in the sprinklers, and played all sorts of fun pioneer games. Then we picked the other up from the temple and went to the Nauvoo fudge factory (a must do!) And then took them to the Mississippi river to the pioneer crossing and where Marisa had been baptized. We let the kids get in the river to cool off and we skipped rocks. Then we drove back here with my family to Iowa. That night we watched "The Pacifier" and I laughed hard again. I just think it is such a fun movie!
On Thursday, we took an easy day. Everyone unpacked, we did grocery shopping, laundry, etc. That night we watched "Ice Princess" . We let the kids run in the sprinklers and play with the hose- they were out there for several hours having an absolute blast.
On Friday, we went to see "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory". We all enjoyed it a lot. It was so fun to go all together. When we came home, my mom gave all the kids t-shirts from the movie. It was a hit! We did a fun Mexican food evening with home made tortillas, kid friendly margaritas, and homemade guacamole dip. Yummy!! After that, us girls went clothes shopping. I really should start my own business designing clothes. We had fun and finally found Marisa some skirts that fit and look adorable!
On Saturday, we went to clean the church and the kids played in the gym where it was nice and cool. Then Bob and I took our kids (not Alayna-we finally had a babysitter) to go see Star Wars III. It was so awesome!!!! Even the kids loved it. So we decided we will have to see all 6 in a row at Christmas. Anyone want to come???
On Sunday, it was the hottest it had been all week. It was just awful. But it was fun taking the family to church. That evening we did a sing though of the Messiah (to prepare Nina and I to come sing in it in Utah next April). We watched home videos, make chocolate chip cookies, and watched the movie "Handcart" (which was cool since we had just been to Nauvoo and pushed one!)
On Monday, we went to visit the Amana colonies. It is a city of German immigrants who settled here around the same time the Saints moved to Salt Lake. We went to see many stores. We went in a bakery, chocolate house, fudge factory, lace shop, kids toy shop, Christmas store, etc. It would have been much more fun if it hadn’t been so hot!!! We did have lunch at a German Restaurant with authentic German food. Bob and I split a German Schnitzel meal which was excellent. Then we went to the Holiday Inn which has an indoor waterpark. We got 1 hotel room so people could hang out if they didn’t want to swim. It was so nice since it was indoors and we probably spent 4-5 hours there. The kids were going crazy in it.
Yesterday my family headed back to Tennessee and of course the temp dropped. It was so fun to have them here to visit and spend time with. Sorry this is more of a log of what we did. Today I am running off all our newsletters since we got married to make copies for each kid. Figured I should get caught up now. Our love to everyone!!!
PS- Just a reminder that if you want to see any past newsletters you have missed, they are archived on the side.
Wow! What a long, fun, hot week we had with my family! They had a heat wave and several days the heat index was between 110-115. I bet they will never come visit again. Of course the exact day they left a cold front came through and dropped the temp to a gorgeous 70! Figures!
Well, we left last Tuesday after Bob got off work and met my parents and my sister and her 3 kids in Nauvoo. We were just in time for the pre show and it was so awesome!! They had tons of people dressed up in pioneer clothes. They had dancing, crafts, handcart races, stick pulls, stilts, a bagpipe band, log sawing etc. We had so much fun. We even saw some old friends from Flagstaff- what are the chances of that?? Anyway, the kids went on the handcart and Marisa helped pull. They only went a little ways and she thought she might die. Gave her a good idea of what it might have been to cross the plains. Yuck! Bob creamed me at the stick pull- I went flying. We really did have a great time.
Then they had all the children march with the bagpipe band to take the American flag to the stage. Then we got to see the Nauvoo temple pageant. It was so cool. It was such a beautiful setting with the temple set up on the hill in the background. After the pageant, we drove to Bob’s parents house. They were so sweet to do a "bed and breakfast" for all of us! Plus, we felt extra lucky to have all 4 of our parents in the same place at the same time.
The next day, Wednesday, we went back to Nauvoo. My parents and sister did a temple session while we took the kids on a wagon ride with horses through Nauvoo. It was so flippin hot. We were all drenched in sweat! After the fun ride, we took the kids to the area called "Pioneer past times". We had a fun picnic lunch, let the kids play in the sprinklers, and played all sorts of fun pioneer games. Then we picked the other up from the temple and went to the Nauvoo fudge factory (a must do!) And then took them to the Mississippi river to the pioneer crossing and where Marisa had been baptized. We let the kids get in the river to cool off and we skipped rocks. Then we drove back here with my family to Iowa. That night we watched "The Pacifier" and I laughed hard again. I just think it is such a fun movie!
On Thursday, we took an easy day. Everyone unpacked, we did grocery shopping, laundry, etc. That night we watched "Ice Princess" . We let the kids run in the sprinklers and play with the hose- they were out there for several hours having an absolute blast.
On Friday, we went to see "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory". We all enjoyed it a lot. It was so fun to go all together. When we came home, my mom gave all the kids t-shirts from the movie. It was a hit! We did a fun Mexican food evening with home made tortillas, kid friendly margaritas, and homemade guacamole dip. Yummy!! After that, us girls went clothes shopping. I really should start my own business designing clothes. We had fun and finally found Marisa some skirts that fit and look adorable!
On Saturday, we went to clean the church and the kids played in the gym where it was nice and cool. Then Bob and I took our kids (not Alayna-we finally had a babysitter) to go see Star Wars III. It was so awesome!!!! Even the kids loved it. So we decided we will have to see all 6 in a row at Christmas. Anyone want to come???
On Sunday, it was the hottest it had been all week. It was just awful. But it was fun taking the family to church. That evening we did a sing though of the Messiah (to prepare Nina and I to come sing in it in Utah next April). We watched home videos, make chocolate chip cookies, and watched the movie "Handcart" (which was cool since we had just been to Nauvoo and pushed one!)
On Monday, we went to visit the Amana colonies. It is a city of German immigrants who settled here around the same time the Saints moved to Salt Lake. We went to see many stores. We went in a bakery, chocolate house, fudge factory, lace shop, kids toy shop, Christmas store, etc. It would have been much more fun if it hadn’t been so hot!!! We did have lunch at a German Restaurant with authentic German food. Bob and I split a German Schnitzel meal which was excellent. Then we went to the Holiday Inn which has an indoor waterpark. We got 1 hotel room so people could hang out if they didn’t want to swim. It was so nice since it was indoors and we probably spent 4-5 hours there. The kids were going crazy in it.
Yesterday my family headed back to Tennessee and of course the temp dropped. It was so fun to have them here to visit and spend time with. Sorry this is more of a log of what we did. Today I am running off all our newsletters since we got married to make copies for each kid. Figured I should get caught up now. Our love to everyone!!!
PS- Just a reminder that if you want to see any past newsletters you have missed, they are archived on the side.
Sunday, July 17, 2005
July 17, 2005
July 17, 2005
Another busy week flies by! I have never seen summer move so quickly! It has been quite a bit hotter here, so we stay inside more. Our tomato plants are growing so great and we have even been able to eat a few grape tomatoes and they were awesome! My roses however, got attacked by some very nasty beetles who ate all my roses. We sprayed and they still kept coming. So, this weekend Bob got some heavy duty spray and went in like a commando and blasted those stupid things. There were so many that it looked like I had black roses that moved. NASTY! I think they are all dead now, so hopefully these poor roses can try again.
Tyler and Kayla passed their Tae Kwon Do orientation and earned a yellow stripe. Tyler decided to continue on and Kayla chose to quit. Tyler is doing very well in the class and learning so much stuff. Now I think we need to get him a punching bag so he won’t use the sisters for practice. His sister actually elbowed him in his "private" area today and he cried and turned purple. Not good. He is also becoming a huge helper in the kitchen. He loves to help me cook and he even cracks eggs better than his dad (who got shell in the cookie dough today).
Kayla has decided to start volleyball in the fall. I think she will do very well. She definitely loves sports. She is also becoming very apprehensive about school starting even though it’s a month away. Thank heavens here they have registration the first week of August and we find out who her teacher is. Then a week or so before school starts they have an open house where we can meet the teacher and other kids in the class and see her classroom. I am hoping that will ease many fears.
We went shopping for Marisa’s school supplies this week. She is so excited she can hardly stand it! I hope this year goes really well for her. She also will have a pre-registration day as well as an orientation day which should also help ease any fears. She and Kayla have been doing this computer program which is teaching them how to play the piano on our keyboard. They are really working hard and can play one song. They need to learn a new one quick though- the other one is driving me insane.
Alayna. What can I say? I chose to put her back in diapers and she was so happy and this week she has decided to start potty training herself. More power to ya, little lady! I will say we have had lots more laundry, but she is trying and that counts for a lot. Oh, and she has decided she is a princess. She is ALWAYS in some kind of costume. When I went to the store the other day, she was adamant about wearing the bright yellow sunflower costume. As my mother always said, "You gotta pick your battles". So, I let her wear it and you wouldn’t believe the attention she got. I will never get her in regular clothes again. She is always saying "I look so pretty today", etc. She has a healthy self esteem which is a good thing. What a character, I tell ya!
I am going back to school when the kids do to renew my teaching license which expired. I only have to take 6 credits so I can easily get it done this year. Then I will exchange it for the Iowa one and hopefully start teaching again when Alayns starts kindergarten. We shall see how things play out.
We have a fun week ahead of us as my parents are coming to visit from Utah along with my sister and her 3 kids. Boy do we have a fun party planned. I will tell you all about it next week.
Also, a special Happy Birthday to Grandpa Hart! Have a great week!
Love-Kris
Another busy week flies by! I have never seen summer move so quickly! It has been quite a bit hotter here, so we stay inside more. Our tomato plants are growing so great and we have even been able to eat a few grape tomatoes and they were awesome! My roses however, got attacked by some very nasty beetles who ate all my roses. We sprayed and they still kept coming. So, this weekend Bob got some heavy duty spray and went in like a commando and blasted those stupid things. There were so many that it looked like I had black roses that moved. NASTY! I think they are all dead now, so hopefully these poor roses can try again.
Tyler and Kayla passed their Tae Kwon Do orientation and earned a yellow stripe. Tyler decided to continue on and Kayla chose to quit. Tyler is doing very well in the class and learning so much stuff. Now I think we need to get him a punching bag so he won’t use the sisters for practice. His sister actually elbowed him in his "private" area today and he cried and turned purple. Not good. He is also becoming a huge helper in the kitchen. He loves to help me cook and he even cracks eggs better than his dad (who got shell in the cookie dough today).
Kayla has decided to start volleyball in the fall. I think she will do very well. She definitely loves sports. She is also becoming very apprehensive about school starting even though it’s a month away. Thank heavens here they have registration the first week of August and we find out who her teacher is. Then a week or so before school starts they have an open house where we can meet the teacher and other kids in the class and see her classroom. I am hoping that will ease many fears.
We went shopping for Marisa’s school supplies this week. She is so excited she can hardly stand it! I hope this year goes really well for her. She also will have a pre-registration day as well as an orientation day which should also help ease any fears. She and Kayla have been doing this computer program which is teaching them how to play the piano on our keyboard. They are really working hard and can play one song. They need to learn a new one quick though- the other one is driving me insane.
Alayna. What can I say? I chose to put her back in diapers and she was so happy and this week she has decided to start potty training herself. More power to ya, little lady! I will say we have had lots more laundry, but she is trying and that counts for a lot. Oh, and she has decided she is a princess. She is ALWAYS in some kind of costume. When I went to the store the other day, she was adamant about wearing the bright yellow sunflower costume. As my mother always said, "You gotta pick your battles". So, I let her wear it and you wouldn’t believe the attention she got. I will never get her in regular clothes again. She is always saying "I look so pretty today", etc. She has a healthy self esteem which is a good thing. What a character, I tell ya!
I am going back to school when the kids do to renew my teaching license which expired. I only have to take 6 credits so I can easily get it done this year. Then I will exchange it for the Iowa one and hopefully start teaching again when Alayns starts kindergarten. We shall see how things play out.
We have a fun week ahead of us as my parents are coming to visit from Utah along with my sister and her 3 kids. Boy do we have a fun party planned. I will tell you all about it next week.
Also, a special Happy Birthday to Grandpa Hart! Have a great week!
Love-Kris
Sunday, July 10, 2005
July 10, 2005
July 10, 2005
Hello! This week was actually a slower, more laid back week. We needed one of those really bad. We still did our regular activities and not much more than that. Yet, we still seemed so busy. Kayla and Tyler had Tae kwon do and Marisa had orchestra. I am still taking yoga and pilates and happy to report I am looking less scary. We did go see "Sharktale" as the free movie for the week. The day we went they had 900 people show to see it. Boy was it packed!
We had a fun night at Enrichment this week. They had a joint mothers/daughters night, so I was able to bring Marisa and Kayla. We took a cool class on how to make the perfect pie crust and even tried it out last night. It wasn’t perfect, but they did a great job and we loved making it. Even Tyler and Alayna helped. Then we took a class on alterations. It was so cool as they actually bought clothes from the junior sections, modeled them, and then modeled what they had done or altered it to to make it modest. Does that make any sense? Anyways, it gave us some good ideas on what to do. Marisa even learned how to sew a slit without it being seen. Cool! Looks like we have some work to do.
Well, that’s all I have to report this week...
Hello! This week was actually a slower, more laid back week. We needed one of those really bad. We still did our regular activities and not much more than that. Yet, we still seemed so busy. Kayla and Tyler had Tae kwon do and Marisa had orchestra. I am still taking yoga and pilates and happy to report I am looking less scary. We did go see "Sharktale" as the free movie for the week. The day we went they had 900 people show to see it. Boy was it packed!
We had a fun night at Enrichment this week. They had a joint mothers/daughters night, so I was able to bring Marisa and Kayla. We took a cool class on how to make the perfect pie crust and even tried it out last night. It wasn’t perfect, but they did a great job and we loved making it. Even Tyler and Alayna helped. Then we took a class on alterations. It was so cool as they actually bought clothes from the junior sections, modeled them, and then modeled what they had done or altered it to to make it modest. Does that make any sense? Anyways, it gave us some good ideas on what to do. Marisa even learned how to sew a slit without it being seen. Cool! Looks like we have some work to do.
Well, that’s all I have to report this week...
Sunday, July 03, 2005
July 3, 2005
July 3, 2005
Wow! What a great week we had on vacation. It was a much needed break and we had such a fun time. We left on June 25 to Springfield, Missouri which is where Bob’s sister, Debbie, and her family live. They just bought a home so we were able to go see their gorgeous new place. Most of Bob’s family was able to be there as well so we kind of had a mini reunion.
The trip itself was about a 7 hour drive and of course, took us a bit longer. We took a "short cut" which put us on this crazy dirt road. The kids thought that was pretty funny though. It was a beautiful drive and thank heavens the kids behaved. The next day we went to church with them and then had a nice relaxing evening at their new home making orange julius and scones.
However, we lost power during a lightning storm, so the scones were put off for a short time.
On Monday, we went to "Crystal Caverns". It was less than 5 minutes from their house. There is this couple that runs it. He is 88 and she is 86. They took us on a private 80 minute tour of the caverns and it was so cool. We saw some very neat formations and then they gave the kids their own rocks from the cave to take home with them. The weather all week was blistering hot, but the caves were a welcomed relief at 59 degrees! Debbie and her family finished moving out of their old home during the afternoon. We had a fun FHE put on by Debbie and her family that night and then we played games.
Tuesday was a big day. We spent it in Branson, Missouri. It was so hot that it registered 103 while we were there, not counting the humidity. The weather just made it miserable. We went up to Table rock lake and visited the fish hatchery. They had a tank with these huge trout in it and Alayna went right up to them and said "Blah blah blah, me me me, blah blah blah blah me me me". (Its what the trout say to Nemo’s dad in Finding Nemo) I was laughing so hard. I guess she thinks that’s how they speak! Anyway, we went out and saw millions of fish at the hatchery and even got to feed them.
Then we went to a fun picnic area with a playground to have lunch. Afterwards, we went to Table rock lake to skip rocks and relax a bit. Then we saw the "Acrobats of China" show. It was the highlight of my day. I was absolutely amazed at all the cool things they could do. Our kids loved it, even Alayna didn’t get antsy until the very end. I am sure I could never bend that way. After one amazing performance by this couple, Tyler leaned over to me and said real loud "I bet you and dad could do that". I had to laugh as there is no way on earth we could do any move they did!! Unless Bob dreamed of being smashed like a pancake!
After that, we went to a famous "roll throwing" restaurant called Lamberts. They actually come out and say "hot rolls" and you put your hands out and they huck them to you. If it falls on the floor, oh well, they send another one to you flying through the air. They come by with all sorts of foods that they just plop on your plate if you want it. I ordered a salad and it was the biggest salad I have ever seen. I barely dented it and it even served many adults for lunch the next day. It was such a fun place to eat and the kids really got a kick out of it. Even Alayna caught a roll. Then we went back to their home and did a night of fireworks. Bob and the boys got a huge assortment and we had a blast-literally! The kids even did sparklers.
On Thursday, we went to the Springfield Zoo. It was another VERY hot day. Alayna loved seeing all the animals. We were able to feed birds, goats, cows, giraffes, etc. Alayna though that was the best thing ever. At the end, we found they had a place where water shot out of the ground so we all raced over and got wet. Even Bob and I got soaked. It was too hot not to. That afternoon, Debbie took us to a huge fountain that has water shooting all over as well as a wading area. Boy did all the kids love that. Yes Bob and I joined in again in our clothes. It was so much fun!
On Friday, we went to this HUGE place called the Bass Pro shop. It had boats and ATV’s and everything you could ever want or dream of for the outdoors. It was quite a place. It even had a McDonalds and fudge shop inside. So, you can guess where we went for lunch! We came home hot and tired, so we stayed in for the rest of the day. We watched the movie "The Pacifier" that night and I REALLY loved it! It was very funny. The kids even want to se it again.
On Saturday, we drove with Grandma and Grandpa to Nauvoo. We stopped in the Ozarks at the Osage Beach for lunch. It was so beautiful and the weather finally started to cooperate. We definitely plan to go down again someday and spend more time there. Maybe spend the day on the water? We got to Nauvoo in the evening just in time to see the BYU Ballroom dance team. They did an AMAZING performance which the kids LOVED. Today Kayla was even dressing up and dancing around the house like they did. I loved it, but I must say I felt pangs of regret for not having been a part of that at BYU. Oh well, can’t do anything about that now! We drove home and made it by about 11pm. We all zonked out and have spent today trying to recoup. The kids have been a bit crabby and I can understand since it was a long week. Tomorrow we will have a fun day enjoying the 4th. We invited several people over and none responded, so I guess it will be a private party which is just fine with me.
Sorry this wasn’t a detailed report, but we just wanted to share with you where we have been and what we have done. I will post even more pics on Wednesday, so look for them. It was such a joy to spend time with loved ones and we are excited for much of the Ribera clan heading our way in a few weeks. Congrats to Joe and Diana on the news of their new baby, a special Happy Birthday to Joe! Happy 37th Anniversary to Mom and dad. And a Special Happy Birthday to Nina! Sheesh it’s a busy month. James and Brandi, we are so excited about your new blog!!!!! Our love to you all and have a happy and safe 4th!!!
Wow! What a great week we had on vacation. It was a much needed break and we had such a fun time. We left on June 25 to Springfield, Missouri which is where Bob’s sister, Debbie, and her family live. They just bought a home so we were able to go see their gorgeous new place. Most of Bob’s family was able to be there as well so we kind of had a mini reunion.
The trip itself was about a 7 hour drive and of course, took us a bit longer. We took a "short cut" which put us on this crazy dirt road. The kids thought that was pretty funny though. It was a beautiful drive and thank heavens the kids behaved. The next day we went to church with them and then had a nice relaxing evening at their new home making orange julius and scones.
However, we lost power during a lightning storm, so the scones were put off for a short time.
On Monday, we went to "Crystal Caverns". It was less than 5 minutes from their house. There is this couple that runs it. He is 88 and she is 86. They took us on a private 80 minute tour of the caverns and it was so cool. We saw some very neat formations and then they gave the kids their own rocks from the cave to take home with them. The weather all week was blistering hot, but the caves were a welcomed relief at 59 degrees! Debbie and her family finished moving out of their old home during the afternoon. We had a fun FHE put on by Debbie and her family that night and then we played games.
Tuesday was a big day. We spent it in Branson, Missouri. It was so hot that it registered 103 while we were there, not counting the humidity. The weather just made it miserable. We went up to Table rock lake and visited the fish hatchery. They had a tank with these huge trout in it and Alayna went right up to them and said "Blah blah blah, me me me, blah blah blah blah me me me". (Its what the trout say to Nemo’s dad in Finding Nemo) I was laughing so hard. I guess she thinks that’s how they speak! Anyway, we went out and saw millions of fish at the hatchery and even got to feed them.
Then we went to a fun picnic area with a playground to have lunch. Afterwards, we went to Table rock lake to skip rocks and relax a bit. Then we saw the "Acrobats of China" show. It was the highlight of my day. I was absolutely amazed at all the cool things they could do. Our kids loved it, even Alayna didn’t get antsy until the very end. I am sure I could never bend that way. After one amazing performance by this couple, Tyler leaned over to me and said real loud "I bet you and dad could do that". I had to laugh as there is no way on earth we could do any move they did!! Unless Bob dreamed of being smashed like a pancake!
After that, we went to a famous "roll throwing" restaurant called Lamberts. They actually come out and say "hot rolls" and you put your hands out and they huck them to you. If it falls on the floor, oh well, they send another one to you flying through the air. They come by with all sorts of foods that they just plop on your plate if you want it. I ordered a salad and it was the biggest salad I have ever seen. I barely dented it and it even served many adults for lunch the next day. It was such a fun place to eat and the kids really got a kick out of it. Even Alayna caught a roll. Then we went back to their home and did a night of fireworks. Bob and the boys got a huge assortment and we had a blast-literally! The kids even did sparklers.
On Thursday, we went to the Springfield Zoo. It was another VERY hot day. Alayna loved seeing all the animals. We were able to feed birds, goats, cows, giraffes, etc. Alayna though that was the best thing ever. At the end, we found they had a place where water shot out of the ground so we all raced over and got wet. Even Bob and I got soaked. It was too hot not to. That afternoon, Debbie took us to a huge fountain that has water shooting all over as well as a wading area. Boy did all the kids love that. Yes Bob and I joined in again in our clothes. It was so much fun!
On Friday, we went to this HUGE place called the Bass Pro shop. It had boats and ATV’s and everything you could ever want or dream of for the outdoors. It was quite a place. It even had a McDonalds and fudge shop inside. So, you can guess where we went for lunch! We came home hot and tired, so we stayed in for the rest of the day. We watched the movie "The Pacifier" that night and I REALLY loved it! It was very funny. The kids even want to se it again.
On Saturday, we drove with Grandma and Grandpa to Nauvoo. We stopped in the Ozarks at the Osage Beach for lunch. It was so beautiful and the weather finally started to cooperate. We definitely plan to go down again someday and spend more time there. Maybe spend the day on the water? We got to Nauvoo in the evening just in time to see the BYU Ballroom dance team. They did an AMAZING performance which the kids LOVED. Today Kayla was even dressing up and dancing around the house like they did. I loved it, but I must say I felt pangs of regret for not having been a part of that at BYU. Oh well, can’t do anything about that now! We drove home and made it by about 11pm. We all zonked out and have spent today trying to recoup. The kids have been a bit crabby and I can understand since it was a long week. Tomorrow we will have a fun day enjoying the 4th. We invited several people over and none responded, so I guess it will be a private party which is just fine with me.
Sorry this wasn’t a detailed report, but we just wanted to share with you where we have been and what we have done. I will post even more pics on Wednesday, so look for them. It was such a joy to spend time with loved ones and we are excited for much of the Ribera clan heading our way in a few weeks. Congrats to Joe and Diana on the news of their new baby, a special Happy Birthday to Joe! Happy 37th Anniversary to Mom and dad. And a Special Happy Birthday to Nina! Sheesh it’s a busy month. James and Brandi, we are so excited about your new blog!!!!! Our love to you all and have a happy and safe 4th!!!
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