Beach-action

Even though we told the kids we went to Utah instead of a big week-long beach vacation I couldn't pass up a quick one-nighter with the family. Brooks had to work in Myrtle Beach anyway so me and the kids decided to come along. After all, WHAT use is living 4 hours from the beach if you never go ONCE in the summer!!!!??? 

So two days after we got home from Utah, we packed up again for the beach.

Although the view was nice from our balcony, let's just say, I didn't pick a winner when it came to the hotel.

But hey, it had a hot tub which counts for SOMETHING, right?

Let's face it, we came for the beach anyway and we spent almost ALL of our time there while Daddy was working. Even Everly took to the sand this time. It got old for her during naptime and she didn't want anything to do with the water, but all in all, she wasn't too bad.

Sweet baby.

Kellyn was more brave this time too. She giggled SO hard when Aleeya and her would wait for a wave and then jump over it together. But this is about as far as Kellyn would go out.....thankfully. (easier to keep an eye on her this way)

The other 6 kids LOVE the beach though. I mean LOVE it and ALWAYS talk about it.

I was mostly impressed with Iris (usually more cautious) and Royce this time. I could NOT get them out of the water. They took some boards and kept riding the waves back in over and over.....for hours.

(hair-in-eyes. haha)

It was trickier to get the older boys in a picture since they would go out far, jump over waves, ride them in, dunk each other, etc.

A few times Royce wanted to be with the big kids and Bronson would jump over the waves with him on his back. It was so sweet. #olderbrothersarethebest

Obviously, I couldn't go in the water since I had my two land-locked babies.  I would just sit in my chair and look out at my kids all playing, laughing and enjoying themselves TOGETHER and I couldn't help but think, "They are so lucky to have each other". 

I was overwhelmed with that warm-Mommy feeling that tells me "I have the best job ever".

The day before we left I was on facebook and saw a picture of one of my close friends from when I lived in Brazil as a teenager standing in front of the farris wheel in Myrtle beach!!! I quickly contacted her and sure enough, SHE WAS THERE!!!! So I met up with two of my FAVORITE Brazilian friends EVER! (they are sisters)

My portuguese totally bit the BIG one, but still it was SO nice to get all our families together.

It was funny seeing our little girls interacting with neither of them speaking the same language.

Kellyn just warmed RIGHT up to Camila though, language barrier or NOT! She knew Camila would hold her and snuggle her all day, so she took FULL advantage of it. #opportunistchild

We are REALLY looking forward to spending more time at the beach next summer. This quick jaunt was just too short!

The LAST Day

Our last full day in Utah was spent at the Smiths and on a Sunday.

Brooks thought it was REALLY ironic how I would pack ALL my things for the 20 day trip in a carry-on and then decide to pack this HUGE dress for Everly to wear. I couldn't resist. #worththespace

After church two families full of cousins were going to come!!!! It felt like it was taking FOREVER for my kids so Brooks pulled out a little RLC game to play (stands for "Right, Left, Center".) Normally you play with chips but Brooks thought it would make it more interesting with each person starting with 3 Oreos. The winner gets all 18. Emerson ended up winning them.

Then Brooks decided to up the ante and gave everyone two chips and one dollar ($6 total). The smiles on ALL their faces are priceless just KNOWING they might get the money.

Bronson WON!

Aaaaaaaaaaand Royce didn't take it too well.

Kellyn just kept asking when (Aunt) "Jodi" would get there.....and she FINALLY did. 

I loved Bo's cute little photobomb.

Iris and Emma........inseparable.

A quick kickball game in the field and then ice cream from the neighbors. I'm sure they didn't mind 16 extra kids getting ice cream from them at ALL!

This girl-cousin-cuteness is just too much.

These two just melt my heart. Two-year-olds just two months apart.

Then the older kids and some of us adults went in the basement for a little "Around the World" in ping-pong.

 After that the COUSINS all played a little RLC with three quarters each for the chips. And the lucky little rascal, Bronson, won all the money again. Must've been this lucky kiss he gave the dice.

I ran Iris and Aleeya over to my sister's house who so GRACIOUSLY invited my girls over there for a girly-sleepover. (However, I was personally grateful for two less littles around while I tried to get everything packed)

I loved the pics my sis sent me.

 Xbox, matching outfits, doing hair and a fashion show. 

 They seriously had a BLAST!!!!! #aleeyasearrings

The day we left Aleeya and Iris were still at my sister's and Brooks took Bronson, Camden, Emerson and Royce to Lagoon to meet up with cousins.  I stayed home and packed while the babies slept. When I dropped them off Emerson got back in the van.... he was BURNING up with the constant fever sickness that someone had almost the whole time we were there.

They were a little late in getting out to the van when I picked them up so we were really rushing to the airport to get our bags checked in. Brooks shows the guy his license and then checks our bag and golf clubs in here.

"Mom take a picture of me with my suitcase"

I doubt ANYBODY noticed us walking through the airport.....we were like a stealth ninja family......Not.

All was well until we get to the security and Brooks does NOT have his license. He JUST used it to check in our bags but now did NOT have it. I went to the gate with all the kids and I could see some of the kids just stop and drop their heads to pray that dad would be able to fly on the flight (THAT WAS ALMOST LEAVING) with us. I wasn't so formal, it was just a constant replay of praying in my mind.

The plane started loading and no Brooks. He called me and asked if I could bring a check book and a credit card with Brooks' name to the security people they will let him through. I left Bronson in charge of some kids and I took the others and ran back to security....then RAN back to the gate.

Seeing Brooks running towards the gate was probably the best thing I saw all day!!

They held the plane for us and we were the last ones on....with all our carry-ons in every part of the plane. I just looked at Brooks and said, "I don't feel as settled going into this plane ride."

I should've known that was a sign. 

We had switched seats because of Iris' BEGGING to sit my Everly (HUUUUUUGE mistake, she can't keep her hands off her)....meaning Everly didn't sleep and kept demanding to get out. Not only THAT but we had her HUGE carseat taking up a ton of space. At one point we just stuck Royce in it.

It felt like musical chairs the WHOLE plane ride.

Well, except for Emerson, who was feverishly napping the whole time.

I pulled out EVERYTHING I could. Snacks, coloring, play dough, stickers, raisins-FOR-DAYS!!!, barbies, Legoes, stick-on-window things....

Everly was STILL antsy to get out and she is SO loud. Not crying, just loud. Brooks was walking up and down the aisle with her and I was sitting in the bathroom with her just so she could play with the water coming out of the sink (THAT'S how desperate I was). Once again we got comments from people on how good my baby was. WHAT THE HECK?!?!? DID THEY NOT SEE THE TORTURE I JUST WENT THROUGH?!?!? 

By the time we landed, Brooks and I were both SO stinking exhausted with JUST EVERLY!!!! (Man, am I grateful he made the flight!) I basically wanted to run out and kiss the nasty humid South Carolina airport ground.

Brooks ended up finding his license in his CHECKED luggage pocket (lovely) and then he took Everly (I was kinda done with her) to the hotel to grab the Yeti and come pick the rest of us up. It was 11 pm, but the kids still had PLENTY of energy to play around.

Except Emerson......obviously.....

When we got in the Yeti I couldn't BELIEVE how much I missed it.

It was SO nice being in our van with a AC THAT WORKS!!!!! And cool leather seats and SPACE!!!!  (We took out the bench RIGHT behind us so there's us, HUGE SPACE and then the kids. They can't hear us, we can't hear them in the loud Yeti. It works out great.) We got home at 2 a.m.

Unanimously it was HANDS-DOWN the best family vacation ever......but honestly, there is 

NO PLACE LIKE HOME!!!!

Ooooooone more trip home

While in Utah I was able to get a quick get-away with my sister in law at the temple and then out to eat. I haven't seen her in 8 years and she's one of those people you just miss being around.

Speaking of sisters......my two sisters, mom and I went had a Sisters-Sleepover at a hotel one night. The fact that NO ONE told me we would be taking pictures is quite obvious. ;)

I got to pick the place to eat. Of COURSE I picked one of my most favorite-est restaurant (that my husband doesn't like)...... CRACKER BARRELL!!!!!!

I love this little game on the table.....except when it tells me I'm "just plain dumb"

My mom did the best, apparently getting the title of "purty smart" leaving only two left. So next time she tries to convince me that "She's losing her mind" I will remind her of this game.

It was a fun night of laughing, crying (afterall, we ARE Degn girls), dancing, laughing and collectively swearing off ANY drink coming in a 32 oz. cup.... thanks to my sister Sarah.

Brooks and I loaded the kiddos up for one more visit up to my parent's house..... THIS time w/o all the cousins there. Not that the noise level went down or anything, my kids took care of that. But it DID give more time for raspberry picking....a LOT of it.

Honestly, if I couldn't find Brooks he was usually in the raspberry patch, because as you can see, you can get lost in there.

The kids basically all separated in their own areas be it the trampoline, zipline, "Girls-room", playing pool or hiding out and playing in the play-house. 

I didn't want to distrupt them but I had to get a picture. They were just too cute playing in there.... FOREVER.

Grams and Grampy also took us to the movie "Inside Out" and to Hyrum Dam to spend some water-time......we actually got the water time from the raining sky that day too. :)

Down a little ways from my parents house is a "water-hole" where a train runs by. Brooks wanted to introduce the kids to something HE always did as a kid and that was putting pennies on the train tracks to flatten them when they got run over. They REALLY thought this was cool.

There's a ropeswing at the watering hole that the kids had fun on.

That is, until Camden pushed Emerson off too fast and he fell in the freezing water.

Which only meant that Camden ended up having to be pushed in and completely submerged. #eyeforaneye

 Wellsville is such small farm-like town that you can just stand on the back of the truck riding back home.....with cows grazing in the background. It was fun seeing my kids have so much fun there.

Before leaving town we drove to Texas Roadhouse where my little brother is the manager.... we wanted ONE more quick visit to see "Uncle Boy" before we flew back home.

I love this picture Brooks took of us eating......Everly was SO SO SO busy there that I had to hold her in the death grip and couldn't cut my food. So just like when I was a little girl, by dad cut up my food for me.

One quick drive-by the Logan Temple where Brooks and I were married. My kids had never seen it!!! Such a special place for me. Oh, and I didn't edit the picture at all! Doesn't this look like the temple is glowing?!?!? So cool.

As I was walking through the house making sure we didn't forget a THING Brooks had to squeeze in ooooooone more pool game with my brother and niece. And he won, obviously, since they are hanging their heads in shame.