Southern Cali Trip 2012 with the Rich's

Every couple years Jim and Joanne take the family on a little vacation with the kids.  This year we headed south to San Diego for a week of FUN in the sun!

ROAD TRIP....Livvy was definitely entertained with her stickers...for a least a part of the 12 hour drive!

We wasted NO time finding the pool.

Livvy and her daddy

Corb, Sammi and Mason were like 3 peas in a pod.  There were CONSTANTLY attached at the hip!

There's my Happy Monster!!

Sammi was being adventurous with a big leap into the pool

Even little Chance was able to enjoy the refreshing water

LuLu and Jadesy were such GREAT little buddies for entire trip.  They stayed busy....oh did they stay busy!!

Since Jadesy is definitely MY child, we hung out in the hot tub...a lot!

The resort had a fun splash pad

They kids LOVED it!

There was even a water slide.  Jadesy was TICKED that he didn't meet the height requirement and couldn't go down.  LAME!

Corb went again and again and....

Here's Sammi showing off her mad slide skills 

And after a long day of swimming.....Jadesy was spent

OH so spent!  Time for a nap!

The next day we headed to Sea World

 Cobe and Corb were so excited to ride an actual FUN ride....so UP they went with Ben, Mason and a little hesitant Sammi

 And DOWN then came....LOVE the look on everyone's faces...especially Sammi's

 SPLASH!!!

Everyone looks so happy...except for our little Sammi...poor girl!  She had NO idea what to expect! 

IT WAS AWESOME!!!  Jaden was loving the Elmo ride (similar to the Dumbo ride)

He wanted to ride over and over...

While we were riding Elmo, Coby and Corb found the teacups

I think Cobe's about to lose his lunch....YIKES!

Poppy and Lu found a sweet tank filled with sharks and sting rays.

Lu was mesmerized!

So was Sammi as she told Honey all about something INTERESTING I'm sure!

Then we went to see the Shamoo Show.  It was pretty awesome!  These whales are amazing!

I couldn't believe how far out of the water they could jump!  

Later we went to see the Dolphin show.  I LOVED it!  I blew the Shamoo show OUT of the water...literally!

 

There's a shot of me and my Corb as we watched in awe.

Even Livvy's attention was grabbed...

I love this shot of Livvy and Poppy!  Very tender.

There were seals...which were pretty amusing and funny!

Jaden was in HEAVEN!

We finished the day off by heading to the Beach.

Corbin wasted NO time diving on in...

...and Jaden was NEVER too far behind him!

Those waves were rough....look at his broken shovel!  What the....

But the waves were NOT enough to keep this little fish out of the water

He LOVED it....

Every. Single. Second of it!

Here's our cute Poppy....He noticed these seagulls coming closer and closer to our blanket of snacks....

So, he ran after them and chased them away.  It was SO funny!  Those birds must have been scared silly...I'd say they may have pooed their pants...but you get the general idea!

Coby is always throwing the boys in the air, and they love it!  They always have!

Here's miss Sammi Sue burying her feet in the sand.

LOVE this shot of Lance and Livvy.  Lance unfortunately lost his wedding ring a few minutes later!  I bet he was wishing he was on the FREQUENT "I lost my wedding ring AGAIN" plan like Coby!  I think Coby's on his 5th wedding ring since we've been married!  Wowza!

Mason found a shell and was pretty excited about his find.

Cute family picture of Livvy, Marse and Lance

OH how I love those boys of mine....I bet Jack was jealous!

Poppy and LuLu chilling on the beach after a little ocean swim.

Here's our family...notice I'm not in a suit....that water IS WAY TOO cold for me!  

Here's my chilly little bubba asking me to "hold YOU mommy..." Nothing like a cold wet baby to really warm you up!

But the boys and Coby LOVED their swim!

Bobby, Duncan and Sara were able to come out for a few days and we were totally excited!

I'm glad they got in a little beach day for their little family.

Looks like Duncan was loving it!

Honey and Poppy were so cute, they had tee shirts for Disneyland made and let the kids color their own.

They loved them and had to do the Ring around the Rosies dance while wearing their new shirts to show Honey and Poppy how excited they were!

The next day we headed to Disneyland.  Here we are standing in front of Jack's little stone just outside the gates of Disneyland.

Honey, Jadesy and Corb met Sully...

And then as a family

Here's the Welch's, Corb and Mason on a Bug ride.

Here's Jadesy and I in our own hotair balloon.

Daddy and Jadesy on the Bugs Bumper Cars

Corb got them!!

Next was the Soarin' over California ride...my favorite!  Corb and the older kids were so lucky because they got to ride twice due to the rider switch passes.  LUCKY ducks!  I can't wait til Jadesy is tall enough, he is going to LOVE this ride!

But don't worry, he didn't miss out too much....

They headed over the to the Big Brother Bear Wilderness park

Here's a shot of Cob, Corb, Ben and Mason in the Tower of Terror

Then we headed to Midway Mania and got to have a 3D shooting ride.  I was so excited to go with Corb...even though he totally kicked my trash!

Jadesy and Mason watching the big "ship" pass by!

Next we hopped on the Pirates Ride.  Jadesy was saying"Arrrrrr"

He looks thrilled doesn't he...probably because we told him he COULDN'T have that ridiculously EXPENSIVE pirates hat!

The carousel has always been a hit with this little nugget and just my speed...for the moment***more to follow on that note on another post perhaps***

Next we hopped onto the Jungle Cruise.  I remember the first time I rode it.  I was nine and the crocodiles were crazy interesting!  I always love the little dialonge given by the guides!  SO whitty!

Even Livvy was loving it!

I think Corb was sick of taking pictures at this point...but not Coby and Jadesy, they are all TEETH!                        

Then the delirium started to set in

Then came the much needed NAPS

These girls were tuckered out!

The next day was kind of chilly and looked like rain.  We stayed in a had a little craft day.

We painted ceramics....I can't tell you how much I LOVE how Jaden sticks his tongue out every single time he concentrates...which is pretty often!

And there it is...

Corb painted a snake

Liv painted the table...

After painting...the kids found other things to do like sit in the arcade and pretend to play the games.

Liv was an EXCELLENT driver!

Dunkin was a fabulous shooter

The boys and Poppy played pool

Then we rented fishing poles and took the kids fishing

Everyone caught a fish and then we released it back into the pond.

After we washed our hands...we went back to Honey and Poppy's and decorated cookies

Here's Liv enjoying the fruits of her labors

Honey and Poppy brought these AWESOME and LARGE bubble wands. 

The boys had contests seeing who could make the biggest bubble.  And then the kids chase them down and pop them.

Corb and Jadesy learned to play a little golf with Coby.

"Go to your home ball....are you too good for your home?!!"  Name the movie...(Happy Gilmore)

We all had so much fun!  Thank you Honey and Poppy for taking the time to take us all on such a fabulous trip.  Everyone had a ball and we can't wait for the next adventure.  LOVE you!

A little announcement....

"Look at me from the side....do I look different to you?!" (**name the movie**)

It's official!  After 10 long months of trying....I am happy to announce that Coby and I are expecting baby #4 December 6th!!  It's been a hard 10 months because normally, we blink and we're pregnant.  This one we had to work hard at!  In fact, and I hope it's not too much information, Coby said to me..."I'm ONLY ONE MAN!"  So, there you have it! Goodbye Size 25 BigStars....hello elastic waistbands!  

**(Aladdin - the Genie)**

Playing in the Dryer

I LOVE these boys!  They play so nicely together...when Corbin isn't teasing Jaden that is!  Today I caught them playing in the drying with flashlights.  It was so funny!  I love watching them play together.  Jaden adores Corbin the same way Jack did.  I'm glad they have each other.  I often wonder what it would have been like to have 3 crazy brothers running around this house.  I miss that chubby little boy every single day, but not a second goes by that I'm grateful for what still do have.  I love my boys all 4 of them (Coby included).  They are the best thing that's ever happened to me.  I've said it before, but I'm one lucky girl!

Happy 5th Birthday Jack Joo

 

Oh how I miss those blue eyes...

Today would have been Jack's 5th Birthday...

So, here we are...putting flowers on his grave. 

We get balloons...

write little messages to him...

and send them off to Heaven for Jack.

And there they go...

It's always a hard day.

 

We miss him so much.

I could never get enough of those big blue eyes.  Or those chubby Jeffrey Holland jowls of his.  He was the sweetest, most loving baby I've ever seen.  And he loved me...he truly loved me.  I know he loved his daddy too.  I remember Coby leaving for work the morning of the accident.  Jack ran to the door after it closed and cried and pounded on the door because his daddy was gone.  I often wonder if he knew it was the last time he'd see his daddy on this Earth.  I breaks my heart each time I see Jaden running after Coby and crying because Coby's had to leave for work.  I know he's busy.  He tells me that he's doing "a great work".  It's still hard every single day to wake up to the reality that has become our life.  Our heart long and our arms ache to hold him again.  Someday that will be a reality, but for now, I have my memories, my Coby, Corb, Jaden and baby #4, family and good friends to hold me over until that day comes.  So, Happy Birthday Jackie Joo!  We miss you!  

PS...Thanks to all those who continue to remember each year.  You kindness never goes unnoticed. We are very blessed to have you in our lives.

Mother's Day 2012

Mother's Day is an extra tender day for me because we're missing one of our boys.  I've been told that he's a missionary up there.  I'm still waiting for my Mother's Day phone call, and this will be my 3rd Mother's Day without Jack.  It's always a little bittersweet every single year.  Coby always makes sure that Mother's Day is extra special every year.  This year was definitely NO exception.

These two little boys helped to make it extra special!

I got to sleep in for starters!  Then I was blessed to see these cute little things when I first opened my eyes!

 

They made me SUPER yummy French Toast...one of my favorites. 

I got flowers, an AWESOME card and flower from Corb and Jadesy. 

They were  SO excited and I loved seeing their cute faces as they gave me their presents.

Then after church I came home to find THIS...(above) with a lovely little note from Amanda .  She said that she felt inspired to get it for me with help from our little Jack.  I LOVE it....I can't say it enough!   She is truly a DEAR and an angel on Earth.  I cried...then promptly had Coby hang it up. 

Coby continued to make the day amazing!  I wasn't a fan of what we were having for dinner that night (hot dogs...blah) So, Coby in his sweetness headed to Costa Vida and got me a pork salad.  I must ad that he drove around for a while because nothing was opened on Sunday.  He's the best!  (Sorry I made you break the Sabbath babe.)  I sure do love my boys all 4 of them (Coby included).  Thank you all for making this Mother's Day so special. 

Goldilocks Bike Race

This year it was my goal to sign up for 4 big races.  The Goldilocks Bike Ride was one of them.  I'm not exactly a bike rider....but I wanted to do it anyway.  It just sounded so fun!  And so, I convinced Lanae to do it with me. 

I had a little hiccup a day before the race.  My registration hadn't actually gone through as I had originally thought.  But not to worry, Lanae in all her "creativity" saved the day and worked out a way for me to still ride!  She found out that a bunch of her friends were already signed up and so we made it a girls' ride.  I wished I would have had a road bike.  Originally, we had signed up for the 40 miler...but after about 15 miles in...on a MOUNTAIN bike....I gave Lanae the old "PLEASE don't make me eyes" and because she's awesome like that...she gave me a little wink and we veered away from the group and finished the ride together!  

Here we are reaping our REWARDS for our hard days work....It was DELICIOUS!  I've NEVER seen such an amazing spread of deliciousness at the end of a race before.  This race was awesome.  The weather was spectacular, the company was even better and we got necklaces at the end!  Pretty sweet!  The only drawback was missing my little CorbiMac's last soccer game.  Wished I could have been there.  Luckily, he's pretty forgiving and so the day ended on a good note.  

Soccer - Colorado Rapids

 We signed Corb up for Murray Soccer again this year.   

 His team was called the Colorado Rapids and they were pretty amazing!  He got to play with a few of this friends from school (Colton B., Matt, and Parker)  He had a BALL!  

 And even got a trophy!!

Here are a couple of his "fans"!!

It was so fun to watch how much he'd grown from last year.  He made a few goals this year and played so hard that he came home red faced every single time!  He's always a good sport and tries his best.  I certainly love this little boy of mine!