A Once in a Lifetime Birthday with an Eclipse

I got to have an extra special birthday this year because not only did we get to celebrate the whole day at Lagoon, but it was also a once in a lifetime total eclipse. 

We got to Lagoon as soon as they opened. We knew we could ride a few rides before we had to watch the eclipse at 11:30. I think Brynn's face here adequately depicts the excitement we all felt. 

 Our first ride was the Terror ride AKA Witchy Poo (because of the witch that peeks her head out the window). This ride has been open for 50 years now, so it was pretty popular. This was the longest ride we waited in line for the whole day. We made Brynnli go on it with us, but she told us that she didn't like "dat witchy poo ride, cuz it was scary."

Then at 11:30 for a whole 2 minutes we got to watch the moon completely cover (well 90%) the sun. It was kind of an eerie and ominous feeling because it seemed like it should have been 8:00 at night, but it was in the middle of the day. We were lucky enough to score some eclipse glasses from Karly so we could look at the sun safely. 

 Tyler made this contraption before we knew we had glasses. This is what the sun looked like.

And this is what the sun looked like through the glasses. 

And this is a picture I copied off the internet. It was obviously photo shopped, but I thought it looked pretty cool. 

Another picture I copied off the internet. 

My favorite part was looking at everyone staring at the sun with their glasses on. 

 After that amazing 2 minutes, we hopped on the train.

 And then went on every single ride.

This was probably the best day to go to Lagoon. I think because of the eclipse and some schools had started, there were hardly any people at Lagoon. I asked a worker and she said usually they expect about 18,000 on a Monday, but there were only 2,000 people there. We were so lucky because we never had to wait in line. We pretty much just ran from one ride to the next. 

We made Brynnli go on some of the big kid rides like the tidal wave and the Lady Bug Drop, but even weeks later she still talks about how she wants to go to Lagoon, "but not on da scary rides like da boat and da lagy bug."

 Brynn preferred these rides. I think she went on this ride at least three times in a row.

 Makayla, on the other hand has no fear. She loved going on every single big kid ride. She even went on Cannibal three times! I was scared to death on that ride, but she loved it.

 Of course we had to hit Bulgy the Whale.

By the end of the night we were exhausted. What a great way to spend my birthday. 34 is going to be a great year, I can just feel it!

The End of Summer Soccer

I can't believe summer soccer has come to an end! Makayla and Caden had such a great season this year and we couldn't be prouder of our two cuties. Tyler really liked coaching his kids (maybe not so much the other kids), and he really taught them to love the game. 

 Tyler was seriously the best coach. He made sure the kids had fun, but he still taught them new skills and to try to be a good sport. I loved watching him at the beginning of each game when he would sit down with the kids and talk to them.

We were so proud of both of our kids. Caden struggled a little bit this season because he was moved to the older division with bigger kids. He struggled because he wasn't the best player, he had a harder time scoring goals, and his team didn't win every game. We would usually have to have a conversation with him while he was crying and trying to remind him that the most important thing was that he tried his best and had fun. Even if he didn't see it, Caden did so well this season and really improved. He scored a few goals, learned to assist, and really understood how to play defense. We are so proud of him!

Makayla did exceptionally well for her first season. She would get nervous before the games and would get super ornery and whiny. We would get so frustrated with her until we realized that was just her way of dealing with her nerves. Tyler was able to relate to her and calmed her down each week. But once she got out on the field, she really did so well. One thing is for sure, Makayla is a fast runner and super athletic. She really got in the game and did so well at defense. She even scored a few goals! We are so proud of her!

Each of the kids got a medal

But only Caden got a kiss. 

July 2017

Tyler and I have been getting up early in the morning to exercise. I usually complain about getting up that early, but when you get to see the sunrise, you really can't complain. 

 We went to 7-11 on July 11 for our free Slurpee.

 And to Cars 3 with our cousins

 We have been hanging out with our cousins a lot this month. We got together for Arctic Circle and splash pad. The kids had fun playing together and Tracy, Karly, and I had fun talking for hours!

 Seriously, how many drinks do 5 people need in a given day?

 We went to Kids Club (or Click Club as Brynnie says). This particular day was Superhero Day with Captain America and Spiderman. Caden was in heaven!

 They got their faces painted and made a craft.

 Brynnli was more into rolling around in these weird "seats"

 We had to make our usual stop at Panda Express for lunch. These kids can seriously eat here. Makayla no longer orders a kids meal, she get the regular plate and eats it all... she even manages to eat part of my meal too.

 We got to go up to The Land again over the 24th. We went on a really long 4 wheeler ride and got to look down at Hanna Land from the top of the mountain.

 Seriously, Hanna Land is gorgeous.

 On the actual Pioneer Day we celebrated with pie and root beer... get it? "Pie 'n' beer" day? The kids humored me.

 How cute is this? Makayla and Caden wanted to have a lemonade stand. They sold Kool-aid drinks and snacks. They sat out there for hours trying to sell their stuff.

 *I think there was more product eaten than sold

The kids had swimming lessons again. They both did great! Makayla was doing exceptionally well and got placed in the deep end (maybe prematurely?) This was her on the first day of the deep end and they were supposed to dive in and swim to the other side.

Makayla dived in, but then got scared when she came up for a breath and started to freak out. She was able to swim to the side and her teacher helped her out. It was a little scary for me to watch because I thought she was going to drown, but she did such a great job and swam to the side. I think it scared her because she struggled the rest of the class and went back to her other class (not in the deep end). The last few days of swimming lessons were hard because she didn't want to go back. Even though she was scared, we are so proud of her because she kept trying her best even though she was scared. 

 Caden, on the other hand, loved swimming lessons. He did so great and was so excited every day when I would pick him up.

 Seriously, I can't get enough of this boy. He is turning into such a cute little boy and loves everything superhero. Costo had Halloween costumes out (in July?) and Caden begged me for this Captain America costume even though he has never seen any show with Captain America in it. How could I resist this?

What a fun July! It's hard to believe summer is half way over.