Surveyor's Lake 2016!

We had so much fun last year that we decided to go to Surveyor's Lake again this year. I got us all packed up and ready so we could leave Friday afternoon. Richard had to work a bit longer. So we ended up eating supper at home and then we took off. By the time we got on the road it was after 6pm. I wasn't feeling the greatest. Wasn't sure what was wrong but the longer we drove the worse I felt. So Richard said we were going to stay in Pincher Creek. We actually stayed in the Ramada there and the kids were super excited. It had a water slide and they had a blast swimming and going on the slide. I wasn't feeling good at all, so I didn't end up swimming at all. I went over to Walmart and got some medicine. Luckily after a good nights sleep I felt a bit better in the morning.

We had breakfast and then we were ready to go. Away we went. We decided to do a little sight seeing before we got to Surveyors Lake. So we stopped at the Frank Slide Interpreter Center. The kids thought it would be cool to learn more. It was super interesting. I learned a lot too. We got to go through the center and then watch a few movies on the night that the slide happened. It was super good. We all loved it. So glad we decided to stop and learn more. It was a fun morning.

Checking out the Turtle Mountain!

DJ thought it was funny that he jumped in front of my camera!!

Brianna taking a look!

Cadence had to look too!

DJ trying out one of the hands on displays.

Brianna jumping on a scale to see what a tremor would look like on a computer screen.

Richard with the kids all in front of Turtle Mountain.

Me and my kids!!

My four amazing kids! Love them all so much!

Cool picture of the mountains and the clouds!

Then away we went to Surveyors. We got there in the afternoon. We had just enough time to set up the trailer before it started to pour. It rained most of the evening. It stopped for a bit and I went for a little walk with some of my kids. But then it started pouring when we were on our way back. So I got wet!! The kids went to bed and I was sitting outside under our awning. It wasn't cold out, just wet. Then I saw my cousin, Rachel, walking to the bathroom. So I ran and talked to her. They had just gotten there that day too! It was fun visiting and we hung out a bit during our stay!

On Saturday it was a little cloudy but not rainy, so we went and set up on the beach. The kids had fun playing in the sand and water. It was fun watching them play. We stayed for a few hours, but then it started getting really cloudy and I was feeling some drops. So we packed up and got back to the trailer before it poured. While it rained, I had a nap and the kids had fun painting. I had brought some painting supplies and they loved that!

All the kids painting in the trailer.

Richard and Abbi getting the dingy ready to go in the water.

DJ and Brianna playing in the sand together.

Cadence swimming across the lake.

What a cute boy I have!

Brianna and DJ having so much fun together.

By Saturday evening it was beautiful out again. I took a few of my kids and met up with Rachel and her family. We were checking out the lake to see if we could find any turtles. It was so nice out that my kids ended up in the lake. In their clothes! Ha ha! They had a blast. There wasn't a breeze and they had so much fun playing!

Sunday morning we woke up and had to move our trailer to another spot. So we packed up and moved it. I had noticed that Brianna wasn't feeling that great. She just wanted to lay down in our bed. She didn't want to move. I gave her some Tylenol and then we packed up to move. She seemed to be doing better. Oh as Richard was backing up the trailer in our new spot I was guiding him. I told him to stop so I could check the back. I guess he didn't hear me. He kept moving and I screamed STOP! Well he slammed on the brakes and the trailer was seriously a inch from slamming into the tree. It was crazy. But it was all good! Ha ha! We were just one of those crazy couples for a few minutes that scream at each other! Ha ha!

After we got set up Brianna came back in and laid down. The poor girl was pretty miserable. I finally looked in her mouth with a flashlight and I could tell that she had strep throat. It looked horrible. So we packed up and went home. The kids were a little bit sad, but I needed to get her to the Dr's first thing in the morning. I did and sure enough it was strep. I took Cadence the same day in the afternoon and she had strep too. Sheesh! Good thing we came home. No fun camping with sick kids.

Even though it was a short, and rainy camping trip. We still had fun. Glad we went. It's fun to hang out with my family!

Richard Turns 40!!

Richard had his BIG birthday this year. He turned the BIG 40!!!! I was thinking and thinking of different things that we could do for him. I thought of doing a surprise party for him or decorating his van while he was at work. But then I decided to do something that he would actually enjoy!! We had his parents come over with Lisa's kids. We decorated the house downstairs and got a yummy ice cream cake. The kids were super excited. They helped me make a chocolate bar card for him too.

It was kind of a stormy day. We had a few moments of decent weather so we ran the kids out to the bridge so they could do some jumping with their cousins!! It didn't last very long, but it was fun while it did! Ha ha!

Then we came back and I started getting dinner ready. I made Richard's favorite, steak, potatoes with mushrooms and onions. It was actually really delicious! He seemed to be really happy spending time with his cute family! Ha ha!!

Then we sang Happy Birthday to him and had him blow ALL his candles out!!! The kids thought it was so funny at how many candles he had in his cake!! Richard had fun making the kids laugh so hard!! It was a fun night! I know he really enjoyed himself. We think that he is pretty great!! We love him so much! Happy Birthday Richard!!

July 1st FUN!!!!

This year Jill and Emily had the bright idea for us to be in the parade this year. They wanted to do a Paxman Float! We all agreed. The idea was a zoo float and it was called the, "Paxman Family Zoo"!! Mom and Dad were the Zoo Keepers. They followed behind on the quad. We also decorated that. So we all got together the night before at the farm. I decided to pull the trailer out and we'd camp out at my parents place. That way it didn't really matter how late we stayed up decorating. I'm so glad we decided to do that. It was so nice to be able to just come from the shop and go straight to bed. I stayed there till about midnight then I was done!

We woke up on July 1st and everyone ate breakfast and got ready for the day. We had to leave pretty early to get the float to town and for all of us to get there and get on the float. The kids were beyond excited about being on a float. Each of us had bought some candy to throw and we gave some to each of the kids. We told them not to throw to much at a time because it wouldn't last very long. We got everyone on the float with their animal hats and then we had to wait. The judges came around and we actually won 1st place. To say that Emily was excited is an understatement. She was jumping with joy! Ha ha ha! It made us all laugh!!

Look at all those cute animals locked in the cage!!

The Paxman Family Zoo!!

Evan made a pretty cute polar bear!!

Look at all those cute tigers holding the one lion!! So cute!

This little animal was tuckered out! Ha ha....you're a cutie Nate!

And there's the front of the truck. Yup most of those stuffed animals are my kids!

Yay, FIRST PLACE!!!

Showing the kids that we won first place!!

DJ was loving that we won money too!! ha ha!

Oh the cute little bear woke up!!!

The (almost) whole Paxman Family Zoo!!

The amazing zoo keepers!

Look at these two cuties!!

Brent and Emmett. He didn't want anything to do with his animal hat!

Kim, Ari and Cam!!! They look so fierce!! ha ha!

Evan was going to drive Emmett and Grandma around! Ha ha!

Then it was time to go! Away we went. Well we had waited so long that the kids were super excited to finally be able to throw some candy. Some of them ran out after the first few blocks! ha ha! I threw a few candies at a time, so mine lasted almost the whole time! It was fun to wave and yell hi to people. Mom and dad were behind us with the quad. They also had Emmett on with them. He was in heaven! It was a fun time! Once the kids ran out of candy DJ decided that it was up to him to entertain the people we were going by. So he would stand up and yell, "We Won 1st Place!" over and over!! People would cheer him on. So then he decided to start doing his muscles poses! What a crazy kid. The kids were laughing at him, which made him go even crazier. He was even dancing. It was a fun day in the parade!

After the parade we headed out to the farm for the annual Paxman Lunch at my parents house. We each brought a salad and they provided buns and meat. It's always fun to see cousins that I haven't seen in a while. I got to visit with Mark and his wife Lavonne. I saw them the night before at our 20 year high school reunion. I can't believe I'm that old! Ha ha! Seriously though it was so weird. So fun to see friends that I haven't seen in forever. It was a fun evening. But I loved sitting down and talking and laughing with Mark. Then Jessica showed up and we had fun catching up too. We talked for quite a while. Fun to see them!

I gathered all the Paxman siblings of my dad together with their spouses and took their picture together. They all make me laugh! It was fun taking their pictures. We were missing Lloyd and Scott, plus Randy's wife wasn't there either.

After everyone left we hung out outside and Cody brought out the little quad and motorbike for the kids to ride around on. That was a huge hit. It was funny to watch them drive around. Plus I drove dad's quad around and gave the littles a ride. Emmett and Nate love riding on the quad. They cry when I stop! So funny!

DJ loved driving the little quad around. He was in heaven!

Cadence finally got the nerve to try the motorbike. It scared her at first then once she figured it out she loved it. She probably drove around the house 10 times. So funny!! Way to go Cadence!

She was loving the motorbike!! Ha ha!!

Grandpa helping Abbi put on her helmet! So cute!

Brianna tried the motorbike and loved it too. She just zoomed around!! Ha ha!

Abbi crashed on the motorbike earlier and really bruised up her leg and ribs. She crashed hard. It scared her really bad, so she decided to stick with the quad. Poor girl. I wasn't there when it happened. She was telling me about it and teared up. She can be a tough cookie until mom is there to hug her then the tears come! Love her!

It was a beautiful day out and we just had fun hanging around outside. Mom and dad had some fun games to play outside and the kids had fun playing on the swing set. It was nice to hang out with family!

Hanging out at the swing set. That's little Nate. He is such a cutie!

Abbi and Grandma playing a yard game!

DJ waiting on the trampoline for his next turn on the quad!

Emmett loving all the candy the kids got from the parade! We filled a baggie full of the different candies that we threw for each of the kids!

We then had supper and then headed into town to go swimming with the Paxman Family. Ron Thomson rents the pool every year for that. So that was fun to go swim. It was a hot day, so perfect for a swim. After we swam we came straight home. I was exhausted. Like beyond exhausted. I could barely function. The kids were a little disappointed that we weren't taking them to the fireworks. But we promised that we would take them to the Magrath Day Fireworks. So that worked! Then we went to bed. Yay!! So tired! It was a good day!!

Trampoline Campout!!

Abbi and DJ had it in their minds that they were going to sleep the night on the trampoline. They got all their blankets and pillows and more blankets. They ran outside and set it all up! They were super excited to do this. I didn't think it would last long once it got dark. But they were pretty determined. They got all comfy and then decided that it was time to jump on everything! Ha ha! So funny!! They jumped and jumped and jumped! Lots of giggles too!

Then they settled down and got the ipad to watch a movie. They snuggled right in beside each other and watched a movie. They also had snacks. I went inside and told them I'd check on them in a bit. They were totally fine. It was a little chilly out but they were all nice and toasty warm!! They are so cute together!!

I went out just before 11pm to check on them. By this time it was fully dark and very chilly out. I told them that I was going to bed and asked if they were OK out there by themselves. DJ looked at me and said, "No!" He wanted to come in. Abbi was very sad. She wanted to stay, but I wouldn't let her by herself. She was kind of grumpy about it. But we hauled everything in and put them to bed in their own beds. They did have a fun evening out on the trampoline. Maybe when they get a little bit older. I wasn't sure about leaving them out there either. It's kind of a ways from the house!