Ocean City, Maryland

This past weekend our friends, the Caprio’s, invited us to go to Ocean City, Maryland with them. We woke up early, packed up and headed out by 7 am. Four hours later we arrived. There was a lot of traffic that we didn’t expect! Despite the long drive we were happy to be next to the ocean. We set up on the beach and dove right in. Ben took Hallie in and she cried every time a wave hit her. Kyle requested a turn after he saw his sister out there but quickly decided he didn’t like it either. The rest of the day we spent with just our feet in the waves and playing in the sand. The kids were so great! They love love love the beach. The highlight for me was when my friend Faith and I went down to swim and got washed up from the waves. Oh man I laughed so hard when Faith got beached that I didn’t see the wave heading straight for me and I got trashed. Now I have sand burns that look like a sunburn. lol We saw a storm rolling in that evening so we packed up and headed home at 7pm. We stopped and got some fresh fruit and vegetables at a farmers market and made it home just after 10p.m. That was one full day! I can’t wait to do it again!

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My beautiful girl having fun!
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Kyle chilaxin but not wanting his picture taken.
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They were very cautions around the waves.
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Brother and sister getting along!
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This is by far my favorite picture of the trip. He is just so cute!!!
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Kyle and little Belle playing.
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I can't resist taking pictures of him!
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Hallie watching from a distance as Gabe gets water for their sand castle.
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Kyle loves doing what daddy does!
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Burying each other in the sand.
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Eating her favorite food in the world-Watermelon!!
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He was so exhausted that he just laid down and eventually fell asleep for an hour or so.
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View of Ocean City as we drove away.
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Proof that I was there.
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Kids ready to go home.

Ocean City we will be back!

Color Me Rad 5k

I had the awesome opportunity to run in the Color Me Rad Richmond 5k with my friend Kami, and her friend Courtney. We drove down the night before and stayed at Courtney’s house and made a girls weekend out of it. When we woke up in the morning it was raining and we were more than worried. If it was a normal race then it would suck but it would be doable. The color race however would be completely ruined. We prayed really hard and kept our hopes high. As we drove the hour from Courtney’s house to the race the sky cleared up and it ended up being the perfect weather for a July race. It was overcast and cooler but not raining. Humid yes, but hey we are in Virginia.

The race was awesome. It was really relaxed and fun. No nerves just people having fun. It wasn’t even timed. We got plastered with color as we ran the course. Note to self: Next time get covered in more blue and purple-it shows up much better in pictures.  (We were covered in pink and orange!) I can’t wait to do this race again!

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All white and clean before the race started.

 

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Such an attractive trio!

 

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The pink color station up ahead.

 

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Love us!

 

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My color lines!

 

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Color cloud!

 

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All colored up!

 

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Kisses to our fans!

 

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Pure happiness!

 

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The pregnant Kami needs to pee. Hurry up line! lol

 

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Officially labeled RAD!

 

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Ready to get cleaned up!

You would not believe the clean up. lol

Kyle’s 2nd Birthday

Kyle turned the big number 2 two weeks ago. He woke up to balloons all over his room and a mom singing Happy Birthday to him. Every time I asked if it was his birthday he would say “NO!” haha We continued the festivities that night by having a little party with just the four of us. We had pancakes and smoothies (two of his favorite foods) and we opened presents. I had a really hard time deciding what to get him for his birthday. He has so many toys already (thanks to my mom). I decided after walking Walmart up and down that CARS dishes and utensils would be the perfect fit. He got a bowl, 2 cups, a fork and a spoon, all from the movie “CARS” which he loves!!! Sounds lame I know but he has been obsessed with eating with them every day since.

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Listening to Nana sing him happy birthday on the phone.
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Kyle's favorite thing is still BALLS so I made him a ball cake.
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Festive Dinner
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Handsome Birthday Boy
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Blowing out the candles.
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Cake time!

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Proud of his presents.
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Such a happy boy!

Oh I love this kid. I am constantly attacking him with kisses. He is such a good little guy. He has his terrible two moments where he is emotional but then he will kiss me as we walk down the stairs or just come and hug me randomly. I love it! He still loves balls and is his dad’s dream come true when he will sit still and watch sports highlights. He is amazingly coordinated. Anyone who sees him with a ball is stunned at his skills. He can hold a ball in one hand and hit it with a bat in the other. He can drop kick a ball, catch a ball, throw a ball, and make baskets from 10 feet away. He is our superstar! He has been very slow talking but has started picking up everything in the last few weeks. It is so fun to hear him say things like, “shoes off!” when we come home. He still idolizes his sister and follows her everywhere. Sometimes he even goes so far as to dress up in a princess dress, but after a couple minutes he asks for the dress to be taken off. I don’t blame him. Princess attire was not designed with comfort in mind. lol He loves most food but will not eat veggies or potatoes (unless they are in french fry form-go figure).  He does love love love smoothies and so that is how we get veggies in him. He is still a little rut and the 24 month shorts drown him but I think that will have to be something he gets used to. 🙂 He has to buckle his top strap in his carseat by himself because he sees sister doing it. He loves playing outside and goes up and down our front steps which drives me nuts because it makes me so nervous. He has quite the personality and loves to be a BIG BOY.

 

Life is better with Kyle around!!

 

Utah Trip (part 4 & final)

The last part of our trip was spent in St. George with Ben’s family. We rented a house with a pool and man was it heaven! It was great spending time relaxing with family.

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Hallie loves watermelon! Just look how big that piece is!
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Kyle loves watermelon as well. We ate lots of fruit and veggies per Crane tradition.
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Ky taking a rest from swimming.
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We couldn't keep Hallie out of the water. Everyone was calling her a "Goldfish" which I think suited her very well with her hair and all. I'm so proud of the good swimmer she is becoming.
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Kyle and dad just relaxing. Those two together are something else. They are so much alike.
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Taking a break and eating a popsicle.
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Since we won't be together for the kids birthdays we thought it would be fun to celebrate them early with the family. Giant muffins as cake and presents! Can't beat that.
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Grandma Crane always gives the best books as presents. Thanks LaRae!! p.s. Hallie has planted a kiss in the backyard and we are still waiting for it to grow. 🙂
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It is hard for me to put into words just how great a time the kids had with all the family. They really didn't want to come home.
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Hallie loves her aunt Marci. They spent hours playing together. This picture is when they were taking turns teaching swimming lessons.
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A little personal instruction. 🙂
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All of Ben's siblings are so great with the kids! Here is a rumble match with uncle Tyler.
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Our anniversary was on the friday we were in St. George. Ben surprised me with tickets to see Aladdin at the Tuachan Theatre. They had 3D moments in the play hence the glasses.
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On the way back from St. George I couldn't resist taking this pic of Tyler and Kyle snoozing. These two really took to each other on this trip. 🙂
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Our little family.

Well that’s it for our Utah trip. It was truly an answer to our prayers. Great time with great people. We wish it could have lasted longer but it will have to suffice until next year. We are so grateful to have come from such great families.

Utah Trip (part 3)

The next stage of our trip was a Romrell reunion. We played at my parents house for awhile and then packed up and camped at Cherry Hill for a few days. It went by way too fast and we wished we had more time. The kids had the time of their life. These few days were better than disneyland ever could be for them.

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My parents still have this little jeep around that my brother and I used to ride around in. Hallie LOVED it and did such a good job driving around. This is when she gave a ride to my cousin's boy Zander.
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Kyle chased the jeep around until he got a ride. I love this picture!
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Playing in the motorhome while the grown-ups set up camp. Carson (My brother's son) Hallie, and Kyle.
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Playing in dirt, one of their favorite things to do.
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It was my parents 30th wedding anniversary so we threw them a surprise party.
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A picture of their wedding day on the cake. It was awesome!
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Some of the gang that came. Combination of mom and dad's families.
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Fun game that we played at the camp site.
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Ben was the best at this game. He played everyone and beat them. After he beat everyone I decided to go against him. I won! It wasn't even a competition really. haha
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Movie night outside.
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Lazy river!

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Hallie refused to go down this slide because she said she was scared of real and pretend dragons. (It was decorated like a dragon.) Kyle had no reservations and didn't know what he was getting himself into. The slide ended up having scary parts in the dark and with smoke. Kyle didn't cry but when we asked if he wanted to go again he firmly said "NO" haha
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Hallie and my dad pretending to be pirates.
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Me and mom trying to get a tan. I was a little over protective with myself and applied sunscreen so much that I didn't even get a tan line. So sad!
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The Ky man!
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My dad and the kids playing.
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Me and Ben riding one of the water slides. We had a blast.
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Mini golf. Hallie, Nana, Kyle and Ben.
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Ben at the batting cages.
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Dad at the batting cages. He is a stud and I wish I was more like him.
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Me climbing a rock wall for the first time in my life. I did two sides of the wall.
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This was the hardest side of the wall. I tried it for about 5 min or so and couldn't get up at all. The kid who worked there said he had only ever seen 2 people climb that side. Ben was up for the challenge and went right up. My husband's a super star! Now the kid has seen 3 people climb it.
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My dad and Ben playing a very competitive game of basketball on trampolines.
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I love this picture of Hallie and my grandma Chenie. (P.S.Hallie dressed herself. She said that flowers and flowers matched.)
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The kids with my grandparents. Pop and Chenie.
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Hallie being a goof ball and Kyle just being cute.
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My dad took us flying. We circled over their house in Riverton and then did the same thing to Ben's parents house in American Fork.
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Me and my twin in the backseat of the plane. My head set wasn't working properly so I could hear everyone but I couldn't talk. It was seriously the quietest I have ever been. I'm not even that quiet in church. I was frustrated. lol
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Oh Utah you are beautiful!
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View of Utah lake.

Side note: Kyle fell on the steps of the motorhome the day we got to Cherry Hill and chipped his front tooth in half. Sad day! Good thing he’s still super cute and it’s only his baby teeth.

 

Utah Trip (Part 2)

Friday night I was able to get together with some of my old roommates. We missed several of our gang and wish they could have made it but you know how life is. We were lucky to get five of us together. I love these girls so much. College was a true highlight of my life. I wouldn’t have changed a thing about it! College shaped me. I became ME. On top of missing these girls I miss how much I used to laugh. That night when we got talking we all admitted that we aren’t as funny as we used to be and we miss that part of us. We all used to be hilarious! It’s true.

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We played a game called "chocolate unicorn" where you see how many dingdongs you can balance on your forehead. As you can see I have quite a large forehead and was able to do quite well. lol This is the left over.
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Juls, me, Lisa, Kari, Britt

Love you girls if you are reading this!! Thanks for making me laugh.

 

p.s. Lisa thanks for letting us chill at your house!

Utah Trip (part 1)

Last week we got back from one of the best vacations we have ever had. We have been saving up and also looking forward to this trip for over 18 months now. In the days leading up to the trip there were dinners that were intrupted by “Utah, Utah” chants. Yes that’s how excited we were!

We were able to spend 10 days in Utah. They were jam backed with seeing as much family as possible. Here was our iterary:

Thursday: Leave house at 4 am VA time, arrive in Utah 11 am UT time. Nap. BBQ with Ben’s cousins.

Friday: Hang out with my fam. Ben fix families cars and motorhome. Roommate reunion for me.

Saturday: Drive to Burley and spend day with Ben’s grandma and cousins.

Sunday: Still in Burley. Visit Ben’s other grandparents and uncle. Drive back to Utah.

Monday: Set up camp at Cherry Hill Water park with my family. Parents surprise anniversary party.

Tuesday: Swim, Swim, Swim! (Cherry Hill Water Park)

Wednesday: Still at Cherry Hill. Rock climb, batting cages etc. Pack up and leave. Go flying with my dad.

Thursday: Drive to St. George with Ben’s family. Swim!!

Friday: Swim, Swim, Swim. 5th Wedding Anniversary. Tuachan theatre to see show Aladdin.

Saturday: Swim, Swim, Swim. Iron Chef competition!

Sunday: Drive back to Salt Lake. Visit with my parents one last time.

Monday: Fly home.

(If you read all that I’m impressed. It was for journaling purposes.)

Now on to the exciting things. The pictures!!

 

IDAHO TRIP

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My parents driving a tractor.
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Me and My mom twin.
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Ben taking the kids for a ride.

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After the tractor ride Hallie got a private tour of the dairy that Ben’s uncles own.

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Swinging on Grandma Stoker's steps.

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We love Grandma Stoker!
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We love Grandma and Grandpa Crane!

 

We loved our visit to Idaho. We wish we could have stayed longer. The great thing is that just by going to church we saw everyone in Ben’s extended family. They all go to the same church house! It was very convenient for us. 🙂