Quickies

We started out our week with a state holiday . . . Pioneer Day. That called for an evening of fireworks at the house - which promptly turned in to a quick run out between the raindrops to light sparklers. Then we had a quick visit from Grandpa and Grandma G. They stopped in for a few nights on their way north for a reunion. We tried to hitch a ride with them, but dad and mom said they would miss us too much. We had a quick visit to the Dinosaur museum. No matter how many times we visit the museum, we always find something new to learn about. We love the two super giant dinos - they really are huge. This is just an ankle bone and a foot.And, of course, our regular picture with a baby triceratops.
We did manage to spend more than a few quick seconds playing in the sandbox and yard this week. Mom and dad found this cool excavator as an addition to our sandbox toys.
It has become a new and quick favorite!Ahhh . . . still nothing like a good water fight. Why does daddy always seem to win?And we had a quick trip up to the cabin on Saturday night for a cousin's party for daddy and Uncle Noley. Sam and I took off for a quick hike.
A cow moose and her twin babies came by for a quick visit - about 10 yards away from us. They didn't care a bit that we sat and watched them. They just needed a drink of water, a little yummy grass to chew on, and a few licks on the salt and mineral licks. A quick, but good week!

Sam Alert: Hey everybody - Sam here. As always, enjoy a few quick pics of me from this week.

#1 - Hanging out with Aunt Cathie up at the cabin. #2 - enjoying myself with a yummy ice cream sandwich. My eyes actually glazed over just a little as I licked myself in to ice cream oblivion. (Biting ice cream gives me a serious ice cream headache - I choose to lick, even the chocolate cookie sandwich parts.)

#3 - who says that squirt guns are only for water fights? I put mine to work watering plants. Gotta have the big gun for our giant sunflowers.And #4 - me modeling the t shirt that mom made for me. Sambo . . . that's me!

Rocks, Cars 2, and the Zoo

Wow - this summer is flying by so fast, it's hard to believe. At the beginning of the summer we made a list of all the fun things we wanted to do and we're trying hard to check some of them off. We got a few things done this week.

First up - rocks. If you haven't noticed . . . we're boys . . . and boys love rocks! We found these cool rock excavation kits and daddy worked with us this week to dig down and find our rocks. It took us two days worth of digging but we did it. And it was fun!

Can you believe that we've never been to a real movie theater to watch a full-length movie? We decided to go to a local theater that is NEVER crowded and see Cars 2. There was only one other family in the theater with us - which was good when Sam decided he couldn't sit still after about an hour. The movie was GREAT!

One of the things mommy has been wanting to do for a long time now was go to the zoo. She got her wish this week. The zoo has a dinosaur - Zoorassic Park - display going for the summer. We thought it was almost better than seeing the live animals. But then, we love dinosaurs. Here is our annual picture with the gorilla. My how we have grown up!

And here we are with the rhino.

We rode the zoo train. Always a good time!

And then there were the dinos. There were 13 animatronic dinos around the zoo for us to find. And they were pretty scary! They moved and roared. The life-sized T Rex was especially scary! Finally we found the T Rex that was in the swamp - he didn't move or make noise, so he was our friend. And we found this little mommy and her baby - they both spit water at us. Needless to say, they were some popular dinos! Note Sam's finger in his ear - while this one spit, she also roared.

The carousel is always a favorite. We got to ride twice. I chose a snake for my first ride and then a seal for my second ride. Sam rode a zebra and then a penguin.

It was a very warm day - we were worn out by the end. But we did enjoy seeing the "real" animals as well. The baby elephant is always fun to watch. It was a great outing.

Our neighbors have some grandsons visiting for the weekend and so we got to go over and play. They got out their super cool tramp/water slide. It was so much fun.

We were jumping/sliding pros by the end of the afternoon. Flips and twists and belly flops were our favorites. Ahhhh summer . . . last a little longer, please!

Sam Alert: Hey everyone - Sambo here. I may not have a two-hour attention span yet, but this week I found out that I {LOVE} {LOVE} {LOVE} movie theater popcorn. Is there anything tastier? Give me extra butter please.

Daddy snapped this picture on our way home from the zoo the other day. I like to title this one . . . "Pooped Out"! With the zoo map still in my hands - that's talent!

And finally, I present - Sambo, the elephant. Yes those are socks on my ears. Seriously, could I be any cuter? Sam out!

Farms, Water, and Mighty Machines

Our week began with a really fun evening at the Farm Country at Thanksgiving Point. We learned all about wool and sheep. We made wool bracelets, learned how wool is used, and got to spin a real spinning wheel brought over the plains by some pioneers.

We fed the animals.

And rode the ponies - even Sam. Last year he went through a phase where he didn't want to ride. This year, we couldn't hold him back even if we wanted to. I am an old horse-riding pro!Yee Haw cowboys!Oh - and there was some yard work - isn't there always!?!?We've been spending our afternoons out poolside. We used to trust dad . . . now, not so much! A water fight is always fun! And getting warmed back up is fun too.

On Saturday, we took advantage of a free day up at the Bingham Copper Mine. We got there early to avoid the crowds. One of our most favorite parts was the bus ride up to the visitor's center. We've been wanting to ride a bus . . . and we got our wish.Check out this super giant tire that goes on the super giant dump trucks that work at the mine.And you know me . . . anything that runs on rails is a instant favorite with me. This is an old rail car and hydraulic scooper that was used to haul out the ore.

Here's a look down in the mine. You can see some of the giant dump trucks and the super duper giant excavator over on the far right bottom. If you look hard you can see two regular sized cars/trucks over on the left side with the dump trucks. (Mommy's dream is to drive one of these dump trucks one day!)

A great week - hope your week was great too!

Sam Alert: Howdy y'all. Enjoy some pictures of me from the week. Up first - me completely and totally enjoying my first bus ride. Granted it was a "tour bus" and I was hoping for a "school bus" or a "city bus" since those are the kinds of buses I see driving around everyday. But I still loved it!
And then here I am with my friend "snake". He was a friendly guy, but mommy still wouldn't let me take him home.And last - a riddle. What do you get when you mix a wet boy with a sandbox? Sam . . . every evening this week! He he he. Sam out - have a good week!

Fun at the Cabin

We've been enjoying some great weekends up at the cabin lately. There's always so much to do to keep us boys entertained. We never have a quiet minute.
Here we are playing in the moose trough/Copper's bathtub. And we have rock shops that we open periodically to sell to pretty much anyone who'll buy. Sam will sell his rocks for any amount he is offered - I, on the other hand, drive a very tough bargain!

We had a big fire one night . . .and roasted marshmallows. Look at that cute, gooey face!

We played and played . . .

. . . and cooked . . .

. . . and cleaned.

We went to the top of the mountain to watch the fire works all across the Park City area.

And probably our most favorite thing - water fights and marshmallow shooters.Here we are after a big water fight.And here we are after our "wettest" water fight. We think Uncle Noley was the wettest. Let's just say that everyone's clothes had to go straight into the clothes dryer!

And of course you can't forget the daily pancake toss. One weekend we decided to leave a few pancakes for the chipmunks and when we came back the next weekend, they were gone. "You're welcome" little chipmunks!
Oh - there was also some sleeping and lots of napping (mom!). And daddy introduced Uncle Noley to "Angry Birds" on the iPad . . . we may never see daddy and Uncle Noley again :-(There was a fun evening of song and dance - Tooty Ta.
And lots of reading. Thanks for some great times at the cabin! We always hate having to leave!

Sam Alert: Hey everyone - question - do you think it is possible to have too much fun? Nope - me either. It took a long time getting here, but boy what a great summer we are having!
Here are two of my most favorite things . . .

1. Water fights. I LoVe water fights! 2. Water fights. Did I say how much I love a good water fight?And finally, for your viewing pleasure . . . have you ever heard of the great sculpture called "The Thinker"? We'll I have my own take on this pose - and I use it quite regularly. Enjoy everyone!