Meet Spot....Our New DOG!!!

Meet Spot....we just got him...isn't he cute? CJ put this cute dog suit on - came out on all fours barking and insisting that we call him spot. Preston needed to dress up too, so we got the POOH outfit out of the closet and he was happy. Who needs a real dog when you have SPOT and POOH?

Julie's Home

We were home for about a week, and headed back down to Nana and Papa's to welcome home Sister Julie Smith from Brazil! However, we forgot the camera.......so we will have to contact the Smiths to get some of the pictures from the trip! Welcome home Jewels...it was good to see you again! Yipee. She was a great missionary, had amazing experiences, and now speaks fluent Portuguese.

I have a Little Two Year Old...

AGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...enough said!
Curious little man that is into everything! I left him for a second to go and answer the door....came back and he was in my "good" meaning expensive lotion...all over the hair and face! At least he smelled good for the rest of the day!

Next, I came out of the shower to find...a kid and the carpet covered in Parmesan cheese! Plus...a whole jug of apple juice spilled on the ground (you can see it if you look closely by the fridge...all I can say, is thank goodness for a good vacuum and a steam mop. Saved my life. (I even got a little tongue attitude...gracious!)

The Mud Pit and Cousins....dangerous

The favorite thing on this trip to Nana and Papa's house was the mud pit...aka - the garden which hadn't been planted yet! It was the perfect spot to occupy some curious kids that love dirt and the hose. And the combination...well, you can guess MUD! The kids were in heaven. They loved running from the mud pit that had "made" with the hose to the swimming pool. Fun times for all!




Preston was so enthralled with Nicole and Corey's new little baby, Lacey. He loved to see the baby, touch the baby, talk to the baby, etc. He was in heaven when Nicole said that he could hold her. As you can see...he is in high concentration at the moment! He did a great job!


CJ and Easton were two peas in a pod. They did everything together. The only problem, is now everytime we go to Nana and Papa's house, he expects that Easton should be there and is disappointed when he's not.

Off to the other Grandparents!

We had only been home a week, when we headed off to the other Grandparents house! 6 of the 7 Smith kids were all going to be home at the same time! Bryce is getting married to Amy! Yipee. It was fun to all be together again. (Julie is on a church mission in Brazil). We were all together for that short amount of time...and did we take a picture? Only at the wedding, so I will have to contact Bryce and Amy to get one!

Just Us...Family Time

On the way home from Idaho we stopped in Kellogg, ID for some family time. We stayed at Silver Mountain Ski Resort...no we didn't go skiing in May - but they have an indoor water park that is great for families. So, we stayed in the condos (which are amazing!) and had two full days in the water park....we had a blast! Clay and Laura tried out the surfing wave (no we didn't stand up surf...pretty much boogie boarded), went on several slides, and spent lots of time in the kiddy pool...all in all....great together time, everyone having fun!

Not complete without....

A Trip to the Farm is not complete with out rides on all the machinery. We took several spins on tractors, swathers, and four wheelers. We had a great picnic lunch as we took the four wheelers out to the sand dunes, went up and down the hills, and then ate lunch. We have lots of toy tractors in the house, but the real things are just too cool! The boys needed a ride daily!

Preston the Dog Lover

Preston absolutely LOVES Dogs....and since we will not be getting a dog any time soon..we let him get his dog fill from the neighbors and Grandparents. He definitely filled his dog time with this trip....he was constantly with the dog. If he was outside, Preston was looking for the dog, laying with the dog, playing with the dog, LOVING the dog....I think Nala, the dog, was actually exhausted by the time we left and glad to see us go!

Taking some time OFF on the Farm

It was time to have some time away...so we packed up our bags and headed to Idaho! It was so nice to be together as a family - no work, no deployments, no callings, no school, no cleaning, no cooking, just fun....play time! The farm is a fun place to come back to...Clay loves his roots, and is excited that his boys are just as fond of the farm as he is! The boys LOVE the tractors, the dirt, the four wheelers, the open fields, the animals, the exploring old junk yards for lost treasure...you name it, they love it! It is really fun to watch their excitement.












Grandma sure makes a good horse too! She pulled those kids around the yard with that handcart until she couldn't see straight...and the kids loved her for it! But, don't worry, we didn't make Grandma do all the work....all the adults took a turn too! We just got Grandma on film! Go Grandma!

The kids also love the cousins. Kids galore at Grandmas...they all played really nicely together, which helps! Preston and Cage are really close in age and abilities, so they got into some good "wrestling" "punching" "and karate" matches, but everyone came out alive and loving each other...whew.