Mesa Mini Family Reunion

My Mom's side of the family had a mini family reunion for the few days leading up to Easter.  We went to Arizona and attended the Mesa Easter Pageant, got to go to the Mesa temple, had a family park day, did lots of swimming, played at the Phoenix Children's museum, went to Bahama Bucks (I'm pretty sure daily...gotta love that shaved ice), and just got to spend some nice quality time with the extended familia.

I was once again a lame-o photographer, but I at least did remember to pull my camera out at the Children's Museum (which may just be one of Carder's favorite places in the whole world).

There was this ball contraption, where you dropped them in up high and watched the ball roll through this whole maze of pipes and containers...I swear Carder could have done this activity all day long (hint hint Jake...maybe we should build one of these in our house)

Carder & Aunt Kimi

Ellie getting in on the fun

Carder doing what he called "his science"...I am not sure how painting some rock slabs with water is science, but sure

Miss Ellie & Brittany

There was this thing where you velcro spiders to a belt and then turn a lever.  Once you get the spiders to the top they hit a fan and go flying.  The boys found this hilarious.  This is Carder trying to scare me with the spider on his head.

One of the coolest things at this museum is the noodle forest. There are literally hundreds of  foam noodles hanging from the ceiling for you to run through.  I think Leon and my uncle Mark may have been having more fun then the kids because I'm pretty sure some workers had to make them stop running through the forest.

My Mom and her sisters (minus Krissi who couldn't make it because she is getting ready for a big out of state move)

Carder & Zac in the pencil car

Carder and Ellie in the toothpaste car (with Brittany in the background being unsuccessful in getting them to look at the camera)

Carder in the pickle car

doing his sour pickle face

playing at the sand table

After seeing Ellie get to put her feet on the table, Carder thought this was a great idea and tried to get up there himself.  We had to move on to our next activity.

In the arts and crafts room there is this giant paper mache castle that the kids can paint...

Jake got in on the fun

Leon tried his hand at the crafts too

While Carder was in the castle painting some older girls were also in there and I am guessing they must have dripped some of their paint on him because he had blue paint all in the back of his hair...

The blue spikes Dad gave him while trying to wash out the paint

While the rest of the family went back to their respective homes for Easter, my family stayed at Brit & Leons.  The boys had fun doing an easter egg hunt, coloring eggs with Mimi and eating their body weight in chocolate bunnies and ring pops. (like I said I was a loser photographer, so I didn't get any pictures of that stuff, but thanks to my madre we got a few of people in their easter get ups...)

Jaxon in his Easter suit

The Johnsons

Ellie

The boys in their Easter ties...and of course not one normal face from the little guy

After dinner we headed back to Vegas only to find an accident had shut down one of the highways we needed to go on to get home.  We had to sit there for 3 hours waiting for it to open back up (thank goodness for in-car DVD players...Carder was a little angel).  The little one inside me not so much.  I used to pride myself in never having to stop to go to the bathroom on a road trip, but the three hour dead stop in the middle of nowhere was the meanest thing you could do to a pregnant woman.  I tried to hold it, but with the wait being so long it just wasn't happening.  So after some major anxiety, several pep talks from Jake, and almost resorting to using one of my toddlers diapers, I finally mustered up the courage to be outdoorsy and ventured to the brush.  Oh how all your dignity goes out the window when you are preggers. 

[From Jake: My biggest regret of the trip is not getting pictures of Holli headed out on her trip to the brush -- one of my proudest moments.]