Dominican Republic

Tait and I left the kids with my mom and went down to the Dominican Republic a couple of weeks ago for Bryce and Patricia's wedding. On a Friday morning Tait, Justin, Crystal and Bryce and I headed to Miami to meet up with Shaun and catch the next leg of our flight down to Puerto Rico. Our flight from Miami to Puerto Rico was delayed due to numerous reasons that were given; no crew, no gas, missing gas cap, no pilot, and finally missing flight plans. The worst part about the delayed flight was that we had already boarded the plane, so we had to sit on the plane for 2 hours before it even took off, it was the longest flight of my life. When we finally did reach Puerto Rico our connecting flight to Punta Cana, (the town where the wedding was held) had already left. The next flight to Punta Cana wouldn't leave until 12:30 on Saturday, that means we wouldn't arrive to the Dominican Republic until 1:30, and the drive to the hotel was another 35 minutes. This obviously wouldn't work because the wedding was at 11:30. The only other option was to arrive in Santo Domingo at 8:30 and find a ride to Punta Cana that would take about 3.5 hours. So with no other choices, we decided to fly to Santo Domingo the following day. On Friday night we slept in a hotel that was located in the airport, everyone was exhausted from the day of traveling and Tait and I fell asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillow.

On Saturday morning we all woke up early and went downstairs to catch our flight to Santo Domingo. It was a quick flight with a great view of Dominican Republic. We flew right over where our hotel was, and the beach looked awesome. We couldn't wait to get there. After collecting our bags and going through customs the 6 of us went outside of the airport to find a ride to Punta Cana. Luckily, Patricia's dad was waiting for us with the van/bus and a trailer to put our luggage in. When we got on the bus there was about 20 other people already on the bus that was from Patricia's family that were also headed to the wedding.

Patricia threw her wedding bouquet in the pool!

We were so grateful for the ride, I don't know what we would have done if Patricia's dad wasn't there. So we sped through the countryside and through towns as fast as the bus would go, serving around pot holes and mopeds. We were about 45 minutes away from the hotel when all of a sudden the driver pulls over and everyone get off the bus. I didn't understand what was happening, until everyone started sitting down at this outdoor restaurant/mini-mart and having drinks and sandwiches. Nobody cared that the wedding would start in 45 minutes, they were hungry. It was the strangest and funniest thing you could imagine. After everyone was finished they rushed back on the bus and drove as fast as possible the rest of the way to the hotel.

Once we were at the hotel we met up with Carl, Paulette, Kay and Kirt. Bryce quickly went up to a room and got dressed in the suit he would wear for the wedding. Our family kept asking Patricia's family what the wedding plans were, and each time the response was, "When Patricia is ready we will have the wedding". The wedding didn't start until 4:30. The wedding was absolutely beautiful! Bryce and Patricia were married right on the beach, and Patricia's friend did a great job conducting the ceremony. They read their vows to one another and the words that Bryce and Patricia said to one another were so sweet. The only problem was trying to take pictures without having topless women in the background. After the ceremony we had a dinner in a restaurant overlooking the ocean. It was a beautiful day.

The next 4 days were filled with nothing but relaxation. Tait and I were planted under a palapa on the beach from 8-5 almost everyday. However we did manage to play some water volleyball, keep-the-greased-watermelon-away-from-the-Dominican, cards, and go for a walk on the beach. Our hotel room was gorgeous! We had a beautiful view of the pool, palm trees, and ocean. It was wonderful to sit out on our balcony and watch the waves. At night we had to close the door because the sound of the waves crashing was to loud. It was a wonderful vacation.

Almost every night Tait and I would meet up with the rest of his family and have dinner together, I really enjoyed this for the first hour and half, but after that it got a little long. Almost every night dinner took at least 2 hours! Thank goodness for Tait's cousin Kirt, because he kept me entertained for most of the time.

Did I mention that this vacation was relaxing?

The next 2 pictures are the view from Tait and my palapa that were planted underneath for the entire trip.

Shaun was able to stay with Tait and I for Saturday and Sunday night which we really enjoyed. It was so nice to be able to spend time with him and hear stories about Savannah. On Monday Shaun returned to the airport to catch a flight home so he wouldn't miss his final exams. Unfortunately when he got to the airport he learned that the pilot was too tired to fly and his flight was cancelled. Could you imagine? So he returned to the hotel, and spent a few more days with us, this time he stayed in Justin and Crystal's room, since they upgraded to a suite. I wish Keri could have been with us, I missed her.

This picture is of the entire Punta Cana airport.

On Friday we flew back home to Arizona, fortunately it was very uneventful. It was great to see the kids and my mom. It is always wonderful to sleep in my own bed.

Tait and Shaun took pictures of each other sitting in this chair with this bottle of coke that wasn't even opened. It was so funny watching them pose for their pictures. I think this is Tait's new screen saver.

You know your not in the U.S. when...

Your the only woman wearing a top at the beach or pool.

You hear, "No problem, come back in ten minutes" every time you ask for help.

There are no clocks in the hotel rooms.

Hot water comes and goes when you are taking a shower.

If you brush your teeth with tap water, you will be on the toilet for the rest of the week.

You have your choice of watermelon, cantaloupe, papaya, banana, guava, or orange juice for breakfast.

Goat and ox tail are served at dinner.

There are armed guards on the beach.

Crazy Americans (our family), play "keep away" with a greased watermelon in the ocean on a red flag day.

You can't leave your resort without an escort because it is not safe.

Tanner's Birthday

Tanner had a great birthday this year. For his birthday he got the turtle that he has been asking for, he was so excited! To celebrate his birthday I took the kids and Tanner's friend to the zoo. We all had a great time. Tanner is growing up so fast, he is such a joy to have in our family. As each year goes by, I enjoy him more and more. Tanner, thank you for being who you are. I love you with all my heart!

Parker's Turns 5

Heidi is behind on blogging and since I have cracked ribs and a pinched nerve in my neck and am otherwise pretty useless, she asked me to catch up on her blog. I am a firm believer that if asked to do something you don't want to do, just do it really bad and you'll never get asked to do it again. That is why I keep breaking dishes. It also works with church callings. So here it goes...

Parker turned 5 on Aug. 15th and he got plenty of presents from family, friends, and grandparents. He got a robot dog which he named Hobie. Hunter is allergic to real dogs, so robots are as real as we're going to get. Parker takes good care of it and it has yet to have any accidents on our carpet. I told him the batteries are coming out if it ever does.

For his birthday party, we took the family and Parker's neighbor friends to Makutu's island. It is an indoor treehouse with lots of slides and places to explore. The kids had a lot of fun and didn't want to leave.





STUDENT OF THE MONTH!

Tanner got student of the month for his 1st grade class. We are very proud of him and how good he is doing in school. He is constantly correcting our bad sentences and telling us how to improve our grammar. He also enjoys "talking smart" with Grandpa Willis and has learned from his Roman numerals. Perfect for a mission to Rome or figuring out what Superbowl it is.

Labor Day = Off Roading, Sailing, Boating, Wake Boarding, Shopping, and Cracked Ribs

For Labor Day weekend we headed up to our cabin in Big Bear. We spent the holiday weekend with my parents and Bryan's family. Everyone had a great time, except for Tait cracking a rib on the last day while he was wake boarding, (he thinks he's still in his 20's) and Parker getting croup, (nothing like sitting in a steamy bathroom all night). My mom and I went shopping in Big Bear Village one day and it was a lot of fun. Bryan and I went off-roading together, and I really enjoyed spending time with him. Bryan took Tait out on the sailboat and they seemed to really enjoy it. Tanner and I spent a lot of time on the wave runner, and he finally conquered his fear of going fast. Parker and Hunter spent most of their time with Jeremy trying to find squirrels and gophers. All in all we had a great time, and I'm glad that we were able to spend the holiday together with my family.

Back To School

We started a family tradition a couple of years ago, that our family would go out to dinner the night before school starts. This year we went to Joe's Farm Grill. While we were there the kids found a great tree to climb. Before climbing, Tanner read a sign next to the tree that said, "Watch for falling scorpions". We decided to eat inside.

The boys were so excited for school to start. Both of the boys have great teachers, which I'm so thankful for. Tanner had a little difficulty switching from half-day kindergarten to all day school first grade, but he is doing fine now. Tanner is very busy at school this year, some of the things that are expected of him are; learning 30 new spelling words each week, dictation tests, poetry recitation, book reports, reading 20 books every 6 weeks, (not the easy ones) etc. To top it off, the grading scale at Tanner and Parker's school is different than the public school, 94%-100% for an A, 86-93% for a B. Times have changed since I went to school. In first grade the only thing I was worried about was what I was having for snack, and if I would get my favorite corner in the sandbox at recess.

With Parker, I'm just trying to get him to put his shoes on the right feet. He can tie his own shoes, however he still can't figure out what shoe goes on what foot. We will worry about academics later.

Ever since we moved in our home over 3 years ago, we have been having problems with our sliding glass door. We have had workers try to fix it, however we finally gave up and had french doors made for our home. It took a while to have them custom made, but it was worth the wait. It is amazing how much better the doors make the room look. Now I just need to find the time to stain them.

Tanner Starts Basketball

Tanner started basketball season this week. He is on a great team with awesome coaches and best of all, all of the games and practices are all local. Tanner has always loved playing basketball and he is actually pretty good, however Tait and I were a little nervous signing him up to be on a basketball team. Tanner was on a team once before and we didn't have a very good experience, but I'm glad we gave it another try.


Carl and Paulette came to see Tanner play his first game. Unfortunately the game didn't keep Hunter's attention and he fell asleep.

Our Camping Trip

First of all, I'm proud to say that I have fulfilled a life long fantasy of mine. This week Tait got a printer/copy machine, and I was finally able to see what it would be like to take a picture of my face. I have always wanted to see what it would look like with my face crammed against the glass. Every time I'm near a copy machine, (at the library, at work, in the grocery store) I have always wanted to have the courage to try it, however I've always been too embarrassed. I must say that it wasn't as exciting as I thought, and the thrill is now gone.

We went camping last weekend at Canyon Creek. Over all our family had a great time. The boys caught a ton of fish, a snake, lots of bugs, and for the most part I was able to relax. We saw about 20 elk, and woke up each morning to bulls mooing right next to our tent. Most of the time the weather was great, except for the time it hailed, (and the kids forgot to close the tent door).

Home Sweet Home

Long story short, I got home sick while I was in California. Even though I had a great time, I was tired living out of suitcases, and always worried that the kids were going to break or hurt something that wasn't ours. After Tait spent the 4th of July up in Big Bear he drove the kids home to Arizona while I was at Girl's Camp. It was so nice to be home. The first thing I did was plant my pumpkin seeds, and make bread. It was so nice to make a loaf of bread! (In Big Bear I was never able to figure out to make bread in the high altitude.) It has also been great to see my friends, I really do have great friends! (You're still the best, Pam.) Here is a few pictures of my home, I know it's not the fanciest, and I know that we still need to work on the landscaping, but I love it because it where our family has made the most happy memories.

4th of July

I flew to Arizona on July 2nd so I could go to Girls Camp. While I was with 130 teenage girls (getting no sleep, but having a great time) Tait was at the cabin with the kids and my parents fo r the 4th of July. They had a great time fishing, going on the wave runner, playing baseball, and just being boys.

This was the first year that I was not with Tait and the kids for the 4th of July. I really missed them, and I also missed my grandma Mable even though she passed away years ago. Grandma's birthday was of the 4th of July and every year we would go to her home to celebrate. Every 4th you could count on carrot cake and a ton of fireworks. Good times!