3 Men & A Little Lady

Friday, October 18, 2013

{Playing in the Monument}

We love to hike the CO National Monument. We love being outdoors and enjoying the fresh air and burning our kids energy!

We all like hikes that include a lot of climbing! The minute we walk on a straight path, Owen starts whining that he is tired.

Playing on the red rocks!

My kids have no fear of heights and I have to look away often because I am afraid one of them is going to fall to their death. Kenny reassures me that they are safe and that I worry too much! I remind him that I saw Owen fall of Fish Head Rock! I pray for my children's safety everyday, especially days they go hiking!

Friday, October 11, 2013

{Haunted Maze}

It is a Halloween family tradition to go on a Haunted adventure with our older kids. In the past we have gone on a haunted hay ride and through a haunted house. We decided to try a haunted maze this year.

The boys loved the slides and the jumpers!

The maze wasn't nearly as scary as what we have done in the past, but we still let out some shrills! I love having my heart race and having my kids holding onto me stricken with fear! It never fails that they are scared, but beg to go again when its over.

Monday, October 7, 2013

{Haunted Forest}

We invited over half of our church ward for s'mores and to go through our haunted forest! We had a great turn out with at least 15 families. The evening was cool and cloudy, which made the forest even more spooky!

The boys have quickly made new friends!

Mya helped me arrange the graham crackers and chocolate.

The boys had a blast setting up all our spooky decorations!

The haunted cemetery!!!! It really is the burial spot for a couple of dogs and the ashes of loved ones!!!!

The evening was a blast and we have decided this needs to be an annual tradition! The only sad part about the evening was that Drew had in his mind that he would lead groups of people through at a time just like when we took him through the haunted house last year. Unfortunately, a lot of teenagers didn't want to listen to a 10 year old, which was understandable. Next year I think we will just have him be a scarer!

Saturday, October 5, 2013

{CO Biking}

We moved to an area where everyone bikes. They bike for very long distances like 30 miles and bike up the monument and trail ride. Since we've been here, in the first month, we've known two people who have been in serious biking accidents. Bro. Hillan was riding too fast down the Monument and was hit by two cars! It is a miracle that he is alive and now has ribs of steel. After hearing these stories I have decided that I am not wanting to be that serious of a rider. Don't get me wrong, I like to bike, but lets be honest, I prefer to bike along the river trail and to follow Mya!

We went on a family bike ride along the river trail. It was beautiful and I realized I really missed experiencing the fall season. I wasn't able to get pictures of the boys riding because they went at a much faster pace than I did!

Mya and I enjoyed moseying along stopping to look at the river and trees.

Mya and I caught up to the boys at this cool tree!

Drew and Ian explored all over as they again waited for Mya and I.

Drew rode so fast that he rode right into the river! He said he forgot how to use his brakes since his bike was in the storage unit for so long!!! This kid always gives us a good laugh! We sent this picture to Uncle Gabi and he said Drew can already cross off two areas of a triathlon!

I love spending time with my family. We are so blessed! :)

Thursday, October 3, 2013

{Resurrection}

As I stated earlier, Kenny is attempting to have our children relive his childhood! A few of his favorite memories came from playing in a tree house his dad made and jumping on his rectangular trampoline. The boys have heard stories about the tree house and were eager to move here, so that they could have a tree house. I was more excited about the trampoline! Kenny went to work on resurrecting the tree house and I went to work on resurrecting the trampoline!

Kenny's dad built this tree house years ago, but surprisingly the wood was still very sturdy. Kenny added a couple extra steps to the tree to make it easier to climb and one more board, so they don't topple over the edge. And with that the tree house was ready to be played in again!

Its definitely not a beauty, but its up in a tree and the boys love it!

The boys have been sweet in helping Mya get in and out of the tree house. She has only been left up there by herself screaming for help a handful of times! :)

The tree house was wonderful motivation for Ian to do his homework. Usually homework can be quite a struggle in our house, but when its done up in a tree it is done willingly and promptly!

I LOVE this picture of the 3 boys. They have made their tree house a cool reading nook!

The death of the trampoline is an amusing story! It hasn't been jumped on since the Tosh Keller accident. When Kenny was in college, he brought his friend Tosh with him home from BYU. Tosh is flamboyant and fun and Kenny swears he is Cher and Elton Johns love child! He went out to jump in the early morning when it was cold and took a big jump and split the trampoline across the middle of the mat, landing on his behind on the cold frozen ground! He limped to the house, after letting out a few whimpers of "Help." He walked in dazed and hurting and pointed out the window to the trampoline. Everyone looked at him and started laughing! Tosh did say, "As I remember, I rebounded quickly enough to make Granny Chesty's famous Biscuits and Gravy!"

Since the death of the tramp in the 90's it has been sitting under a tree rusting.

The frame is a beast and Kenny, Kate, the boys, and I lifted it up and over a fence and then I babied it back to life!

I have always wanted a trampoline and have been asking for one since I was a child. Our neighbors had one, so my parents didn't think we needed one too, which was probably true. I begged Kenny to get one for our boys, but he felt like our California backyard was too small.

My father-in-law Kelly and I put the new mat on and spent the day jumping before the kids came home to their early Christmas surprise! It's for them, but since it arrived on my birthday I felt like it was for me! A childhood wish come true!!!

The Summers' tramp is back and better than ever with a new paint job and mat. It has a great bounce!

The next generation of Summers' kids could not have been more excited about the birth of the trampoline!

As Mya started jumping she said, "This is the best ever!"

The boys heard Mya and I squealing and came running to the backyard after they got off the bus. They were so surprised and jumped on the trampoline until it was too dark to see!

Now that its getting colder, they have come up with a new way to enjoy the trampoline!

Mya and I jump on the trampoline together everyday while the boys are gone at school! I love to listen to her giggle as we play on the tramp!

Kenny is teaching the kids all kinds of fun trampoline games!

I am grateful my kids are getting to experience the resurrection of the tree house and trampoline. They spend hours outside playing every day and that is a win-win for our whole family!

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

{Blossoming Friendships}

My kids had wonderful friends in California and it was sad to leave them. I worried about them making friends in Colorado, but luckily they have hit it off with lots of new kids and we plan play dates regularly.

Ian, Drew, Will, and Ben

Gavin and Ian

Ben, Gavin, Carter, Jacob, and Ian

We like to invite a big group of boys over and play football, kickball, and volleyball in the field.

Owen's little buddy Dax

We wish we could have brought all of our California friends with us to Colorado! That was unrealistic, but we did bring "Man's Best Friend" with us!

We love our four legged friends!

I am grateful for the new friendships that are blossoming here. I received a blessing and was told that I would make friendships here that would last for eternity! I look forward to getting to know these fantastic Colorado people better!

They say the cutest things.....

Mya, my little girl, said in her prayers last night, "Please help us to be strong and healthy like the Hulk!"

Owen almost ran straight into a woman as we entered a dark parking garage. As I told him to watch out, he quickly yelled, "Well she's all black!" Coincidentally she was African American! She was wearing a black dress, which is what he was referring too!

Owen told me today, "You are the best mom I ever had! I love you all the way up to Jesus!" He also loves kissing and told Kenny, "I just want to stay home from school and kiss mom all day!"

Drew lost a tooth at school when he bit into his apple. He felt the tooth inside his mouth as he was chewing and when I asked him about it, he said, "I didn't realize it was mine and I wondered if it was one of the workers!"

While at church, a teacher asked the kids what happened to Jesus right after he was baptized and brought up from the water. Ian enthusiastically raised his hand and said, "He asked for a towel!"

After a long struggle with my boys, to get them inside, bathed, and into bed, I yelled, "I am done, go to sleep!" Owen looked up at me and said, "Mommy I'm sorry you're sad, but the problem is that you don't beat up Drew and Ian. Just beat them up and I will be on your team!"

We are not a family who eats beans, so when Drew went to a friends house to play and eat dinner, he was hesitant to eat the burrito that had refried beans in it. When I picked him up he said to me, "Mom she put mud inside the burrito!"

Aunt Connie pleaded with Owen to shoot his daddy with the gun instead of her and his response, "No, he's the best daddy i've ever had!"

I begged the boys to quit fighting and Drew looked at me and said, "Its not Mothers Day anymore mom!"

Owen got kicked in his "man hood" and said, "Oh, I hurt my Tenders!"

Drew asked this morning, "Mom in 2011 can we get a cat?"

Everytime I feed Mya prunes, Owen comes up to me and says, "Me like chocolate mom!" I give him a bite and his face turns to total disgust.

Owen ran up to me after wrestling the dogs and said, "Me see Cassie's boobies!"

While I was nursing Mya, Drew walked in and said, "Is she done drinking from your boob?" I replied, "No and it is called a breast, thats the proper way to say it." He looked at me puzzled and said, "No thats the Spanish word for it."

Kenny opened the fridge and said, "Something in here stinks." Ian looked at him and said, "Dad, sometimes I toot over there!"

Last night as the boys were saying good night to Mya, Drew looked up at me and said, "Mom, Mya has a boy haircut!"

Drew was reminding me about how when we saw macaws in Hawaii, that one of the macaws was chewing on a woman's hair. He said, about the macaw, "Thats not very nice, it's not choosing the right."

My favorite word Drew and Ian used to say when they were toddlers was, Laddie- for water. I thought it was such a cute word. Owen comes to the fridge and points his little finger and says, "Wa-Wa" for water. So cute!

Last night Kenny went in on a call to deliver a goat and Ian came into our bed. He climbed in and snuggled up beside me, he usually snuggles into Kenny. I asked him why he was snuggling with me and he said, "I can snuggle you because daddy isn't here mom!" He is such a daddy's boy.

Ian is such a daddy's boy. The other night Kenny had to go to the clinic and Ian was sobbing for him for a good twenty minutes because he wanted to go too. When I asked him why he was so upset he replied, "I just want my daddy, he is my favorite boy!"

Birthday parties celebrated in California are usually BIG! There is always a huge jumper, pinata, food for the whole family, and tons of presents. Well we went to a party last night and the boys spent 2 hrs. jumping in a big jumper. On our way home we saw another party going on that had an even bigger jumper with a slide attached. Ian asked, "Can we go to that party too?" I replied, "We don't even know who those people are. " His response, "Well lets just go ask them their names."

As we prepared to go to the Glenwood Springs pool in Colorado with Kenny's four sisters Drew impatiently said, "Come on girls, you're taking too long!" Kenny told him, "Get used to it, this is what men do, wait for girls to get ready."

Much to my dismay I found black ink all over our white sheets on our bed. I of course went straight to Ian and asked very sternly, "Did you write on my sheets with a pen?" With an innocent look he replied, "I was just trying to write my name."

Drew was watching me as I divided my hair into sections with clips to straighten it. He looked up at me and said, "Wow, you look beautiful!" Then when I was completely done with my hair he said, "You're a cute little mommy!"

Ian was dipping his finger in Kenny's contact solution and then touching his eye. I asked him what he was doing and he replied, "Just putting my eyes in mom!"