AZ trip part 3

Well, our trip started out Friday when Troy got off work, we took off and drove to Oklahoma City..spent the night and got up and finished the trip SAt. We stopped at a rest stop somewhere on the reservation and loved this teepee...here we are taking a break!

We finally arrived in AZ and met Troys mom and dad in Holbrook to eat dinner...wow a sight for sore eyes!! Then we headed to Papa Jack's favorite restaraunt Romos for his Father's Day dinner. Alot of Troys family came and met us too, here was the whole crew!

We had a special table in the back for our big group...wow were the kids ready to be out of the car!!

We stayed in heber for one night and headed down to the valley. This post isnt in order now..so here are some of the things we did...

Here we are ain Payson. Me and my big brother Joey..well now he's Joe, but to me thats my dad...my brother is Joey..so is his son...wow its confusing!! Here are all the teens! look at how big all these boys are...do they look like they think they are hot stuff or what???

Cute cousins! This is my brother Joey and his wife Annie's basement. The kids all had a ball playing with all the fun!

No we are not singing...my mom, me and my Aunt Judy hanging out...cant remember what we were looking at.

Here is Macee, Isabella, and Emma. These 3 girls had such a great time together! Isabella turned 6 on July 4, Emma will turn 6 in Sept and Macee in Dec. They are spaced 3 months apart. What fun to have cousins so close!

We spent one day at Hamilton Public Pool..this is the best pool. It cost $.50 per kid!!! and like $1 for adults. they have a fun kiddie pool with all sorts of stuff, a lap pool, 2 diving boards, 2 water slides, a whirlpool swirly thing and a small lazy river! We love this pool and especially love that it cost under $10 to take our family and my sisters family!! who needs Sunsplash!!

Here is Macee hugging me after she swam by herself...see pic below, yes out of order.

Macee learned to swim at the pool...here she is swimming to the side! She was a trooper, and even though she was scared, she wanted to so bad! What big girl she is getting!! This is one of our favorite pics...This is my nephew Hilton...he was just diving off the board, but look close...the boy on the other diving board is just right so it looks like Hilton is a big bird with that little guy in his claws or something!! Its great!

Jalan was such a champ...he was doing dives, flips and everything off the board! He isnt afraid of anything!

We spent on day in Payson with my brother and sister...this is from Joey's balcony..what a beautiful sight! Papa and Britton taking a little time out from all the dart playing, pool table, ping pong and lots of other games! We had a fun day!

We stopped up on the rim to take some pics of the kids

Troy and I up on the edge of the Rim by Woods Canyon Lake..what a view! Papa Jack doing one of this famous looks!!

The boys played lots of football actually lots of ball with uncle Brandon Uncle Jed, and Uncle Ryan. Here is Britton and Seth planning their revenge on Jalan!

Disnee and Chalyce being silly eating limes! sour face!!! Two cuties...Britton and Parker..what a bunch of cute kids we have!

We had to get a pic of the kids with a big saguaro cactus! We always took for grantid all the sights we saw every day..until we dont see them. We never realized how beautiful it all is there!

AZ trip part 2

So we decided to take a trip up to Slide Rock to camp out for the night and enjoy the water. Here is our camp. When we got there it was pouring rain, but it finally stopped and we had a wonderful time.

For dinner, we made yummy tinfoil dinners with hamburgers, potatoes, carrots, squash and onions! yummy!! Troy hates cold water and was trying to brave the water in the evening, it was kind of cool!!

Trying to help Brooke brave the water with him!!

Seth and Britton enjoying the water Jalan got brave enough to jump off the rock!

Macee and Emmie were so cute! Macee loved having a GIRL to play with for once!

The little boys seriously spent the whole time catching and playing with the millions of tadpoles that were all over. There were alot of little holes in the rocks that collect water and they made their own aquariums and had the time of their life! We took a hike up the river to this pretty waterfall...the girls enjoyed their shower for the day!!

this was the crew heading up to the waterfall...the scenery was so beautiful, even though it had been burned in parts of the area from the fire.

The big guys would clog up the water so it would back up, and when they let it loose, it would be sooo fast and alot of fun! Here is the slide

Troy being brave and going down head first!

Macee really wanted to go, so I took her on my lap, and it was a bad idea! she wanted me to hold on to her, and without hands to help me go down, it hurt!! ouch!!

The girls jumping off the cliff..it was so much fun

the whole crew hanging out and keeping cool in the wonderful water

Britton going down!

Jed, Nicole and Parker just chillin

the train of teenage girls! Chalyce, Brooke, Chelsea Hall, and Disnee

One evening we got together in the valley with Troys brothers and wives...we of course have our tradition of eating at Abuelos!! Here are the guys being funny...our waiter was "Spike", we had alot of good laughs!! Here are the wives! What a bunch of lucky brothers!! Wow how we miss the time we all lived in the same neighborhood!! We miss you guys!

AZ Trip

Our family got tickets for the Arizona Diamondbacks Game one night we were there. We took my parents and my sister's son Brendan was staying with us as well. Here we are in front of the stadium after we got off the train and got there. Troy is taking the pic and of course Macee was throwing a tantrum! So here is the rest of us.

Here is our row of cuties!! Macee and her daddy having fun!

This is the stadium from where we sat.

The kids all got to meet and see Baxter, the Diamondbacks mascot! Macee was too afraid, since a couple of nights before in Heber, Troy scared the crap out of her with Brandon's stuffed bobcat he shot...she didnt like it, and didnt like Baxter!! Jalan getting his autograph on his jersey.

Britton getting his!

Macee was in the playland when Baxter came in and the newscaster ladies and they had all the kids up on the jumbotron during a break...it was really cool, Troy and the family all saw her up on there! The kids enjoying the ballgame...there were alot empty seats!

My mom and dad came with us, we had a great time.

Jalan, Britton and Brendan enjoying the game and their souvenir bats. Their jersey's they got signed

This was us on the way back home, we rode the train from Mesa into Phoenix to the ball field. It was alot of fun!

We got to go to Damon and Julie's son, Joshua's baptism while we were there. It was held at the same building that Disnee got baptised in over 7 years ago! So we took this pic of Disnee in the same spot she had her baptism pic took a long time ago! All the cousins sang a song for the program, here they are practicing. What a cute bunch! Only a few of the Porter's were there, mostly the other side of the family.

After the baptism, we headed back up the hill to Heber. Heber has a great celebration, one of my favorite times of year is to go to Heber and participate in it all.

Heber has a little parade each year, well its not little anymore...there were so many people there, we got there 2 hours early and there were no spots left...we arent even where the parade goes in front of us....we have to look from afar!! it is tradition, but not too fun, and hot!! We are all anxiously waiting!

The little ones dont do too good in the heat! Its so high up the sun is intense! Yes Macee's face is that dirty already..on pavement!! she cried the whole way there, and so she smeared the dirt that collected and looks so clean already!

After the parade, we usually hang out at home, and then later head down to the baseball field to get set up for the fireworks. We go and hang out and eat dinner at the booths..and have a good time until the fireworks start.

Troy enjoying his dinnerUs

The whole gang hanging out and enjoying the festivities.

Nicole and Jed -what a great looking couple huh!! Brandon teasing his mom...

Mom and Dad Porter enjoying the people watching and visiting that we all love to do while we wait for the fireworks to start!

Macee and Maddie enjoying their snowcones!! Jalan having a little trouble blowing up the ball!!

Disnee, Brooke and some friends "hanging out" with friends. They really enjoy this time of year to see all their old friends and have a good time!!

Busy CRAZY summer!

Well I have really slacked on my blogging. In June our family headed on a 2 week vacation to AZ..and we drove!! It was actually a very enjoyable trip. The kids did soooooo good!! We got to spend alot of great time with family and friends. We spent a lot of time going from Heber to the valley, to Heber to the valley to Heber...but it was worth it. Here are some of the things we did while we were there:

Went to a AZ Diamondbacks game~got Baxter's signature on the boys jerseys, Macee was on the jumbotron??
Went to Hamilton Public Pool~so fun~Macee learned to swim
Went camping at Slide Rock!alot of fun, daddylonglegs, crying by Macee, bruises and scrapes afterward..but definitely worth it...
Went to the baptism of Joshua~such a neat boy! so glad we got to be there for it!
Saw the musical Wicked !best EVER!!
Saw the best fireworks show ever~Heber has such a great show, and cool weather and grass with no tics!! yeah!!
shopped and ate, and ate and shopped, ALOT!

The kids really enjoyed being with their cousins and relatives and friends. We always miss it back home when we go out there. Especially the FOOD!! We ate out more then we ate in...we have to get all of our favorites in...like:

Abuleos
Filibertos (like 10 times)
El Cupido(new favorite)
Bahama Bucks(only 2 times)
Tia Rosa
In N Out Burger (2 times)
Golden Harvest Chinese

Yes we LOVE Mexican food and miss it so much. There are a couple of places here, but nothing compared to AZ!! We had a blast and really enjoyed spending time with friends and family. We didnt get to see everyone very much, like Damon and Julie and family, we only got to see them a bit, and that was sad! There were so many people and places that it was kind of hard to get to see everyone very much. Thanks to all of our families who opened their homes to our crew and were so willing to share this time with us. The trip home was long and tiring, but we were all eager to get back to home and relax. Of course, I slept most of the way, so Troy said it was long! haha. I have such a good hubby to drive 22 hours there and back by himself! YUK!

99 Things

99 things
99 ThingsHere are the rules: Bold the things you’ve done and post on your blog!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea.
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you are not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold girl scout cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Got a tattoo
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee