NOVEMBER 2008...Our Mexican Vacation

Our trip started last Sunday at 3:20 am when we woke up a little late to catch our 5:40 flight out of DFW airport! We quickly got all the kids up and made it to our flight with time to spare! WaHoo!! We were off. Flying was a new experience for Zach. He's been on a plane before, but he was too young to remember. He was excited watching the guys load the luggage, but as soon as the plane started moving, he was terrified! He had to hold my hand during take off, and he had to have the blind closed on the window. This became our routine for all future take-offs and landings. It was rather indearing and nice to be so needed and to know that I had the power to take away his fear and to have him believe that everything was going to be ok.

After flying through Atlanta and changing planes, we arrived in Mexico to see a rainstorm! It didn't stop us from heading to the beach the moment of our arrival. Everyone was excited to see the ocean and to play in the sand. We didn't want to be too rambunctious on a Sunday, and it was raining, so we did a Christensen Family Favorite, and threw rocks in the water.

We stayed at an all-inclusive resort about an hour south of Cancun. We had all the smoothies and food we could possibly want. So much so that Cami and Spencer got sick the first day after having too much! It was nice to have buffet meals with lots of choices and a few nights, we made reservations at some of the nicer restaurants for dinner which was fun, too. We basically spent our time going between the beach and the water park at the resort. Brian and the older kids enjoyed snorkeling and swimming. Cami's favorite things were the smoothies, building sand castles, and going to the kid's club activities. Emma loved the ocean, watching some of the fun contests organized by the hotel, and making friends in the kid's club. Spencer loved snorkeling, swimming, and playing sports with the other boys that were staying there. Will and Zach liked the kid's water park. Brian liked doing activities with the kids, snorkeling, and walking along the beach, and taking care of Zach when he woke up at 5:30 am! I loved watching the kids enjoy new things, and lying in the sun reading a book. Brian took us on a small hike through some jungle to see an ancient Mayan temple located just off the hotel property. It took some coaxing to get the kids to leave their new friends and activities, but once on the way, they were having fun. Like any family vacation, we weren't without some squables, some tears, and some cross words, but looking back, it was great. The kids did well during meal times, and during the flights, and even during the long lay-overs, and the drives to and from the airports. I'm afraid that we left Mexico without having really "seen" it. Our kids have this distorted view of what they think Mexico is like. To them, it's this fancy hotel where everything is available when they want it. We had a great time and it was a much needed break for all of us.

View our pictures by clicking on the link below!!

http://picasaweb.google.com/rachelekc/MexicoVacationNovember2008#

NOVEMBER 2008...Finally caught up!!!

Daddy & Kid Pyramid

!!HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY ZACH!!

I can hardly believe my baby is 2 years old!! He is terribly cute and is a load of fun as much as he is also a monster and a disaster all in one. Here's to you, Big Guy (still literally)! We love you and our family wouldn't be the same without you!!!

2006

2007

2008

Zach and his "worm cake". He loves bugs and cars and animals.

OCTOBER 2008

Emma's Soccer

Emma's soccer team is the Pink Panthers. She is a great player on the team and has turned out to be quite an asset to her team. They didn't win many games this year, but not for lack of trying! She plays with a bunch of girls from her school and some from another school nearby.

Will's Gymnastics

Will started a gymnastics class at the Little Gym. He climbs around and jumps off stuff so much, I thought it would be helpful for him to learn how to properly land and also to help expel some energy as well as to make friends to help in "unattaching" himself to me! This is a picture of him playing hide and seek at the close of one of his classes.

PUMPKIN CARVING AND HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Carving pumpkins for 5 kids is getting rather difficult...especially as their design choices become more intricate. Thankfully Cami and Spencer did their own this year. I really liked Cami's idea of braces on her jack-o-lantern!

Trick-or-Treating was fun with our friends. We get a whole bunch of candy without going too far from home. It was great to be out passing friends all along the way. Will was content to go only to the houses he wanted to...Emma and Cami had to hit them all, and Zach was fine riding in the stroller while Spencer was off with his friends this year.

SEPTEMBER 2008

September brought a new school year, preschool for Will, and a new season of football for Spencer and soccer for Cami and Emma. I wish I had more pictures, but I must have been too busy with other things. Here are some pictures of Spencer playing football in the Texas Stadium where his team, The Broncos, played one of their games. He had a great game that day...he caught an interception and ran the ball back 35 yards or so, which led to a touchdown in the next play. It was a great game and we had fun supporting him! Go Spencer!

Will and Emma had fun amusing themselves by making faces for the camera.

AUGUST 2008

August started with a service project through Brian's office. They had arranged for several families to go to the Red Cross and do whatever jobs needed to be done that day. Our family was assigned to help put some bunk beds together. I thought it was a great experience for our kids to see that there are people in the world with a lot less than we have and I hoped that they would remember this experience in the future. Here's a picture of us having lunch after the service was completed.

!!HAPPY BIRTHDAY WILL!!

Will turned 4 on August 4th. It was a big deal for him to have a birthday and it seemed to take forever to get here. He knows his b-day is after Cami's, but it's a long wait from April to August! Here's how much our Will has grown over the years:

2005
2006

2007
2008!!

JULY 2008: A Wyoming Adventure...part 2

The rest of our time in Wyoming was a lot of fun. We took the older kids white-water rafting (sorry...mo pictures) which was a blast! The water was cold and paddling was hard work, but we loved being in the boat. Spencer, Cami, and Emma sat right up front and were frozen by the time we got back to the bus, but it was great! Teresa baby-sat the little ones for us...Thanks! We also took a ferry ride across Jenny's Lake, and did a small hike through the mountains which was fun. Here we are with the whole group of us!

I love this next photo because it is so typical of the Christensen family. They turn everything into some kind of contest! First of all, the children were simply throwing rocks in the river, then Spencer tries to hit a part of the log in the middle, and before I know it, all the Christensen males joined the kids in trying to see who could hit the tiny piece of log sticking up! Too funny! :)

We also had a great time walking through Jackson Hole as we walked through the town and saw the wild west show they put on in the town square. The gun shots were a bit loud!! Will had to cover his ears most of the time, and the babies were crying. The kids also liked looking in the different shops for souvenirs.

THE DRIVE HOME

Our drive home was a long one, but early on, we took a little detour to a Mormon church history site where we could walk along part of the Mormon trail to Martin's Cove. We got to get a feel for pulling handcarts which we discovered was a lot of work...especially with people inside the cart. We didn't make it all the way to Martin's Cove, but it was a fun stop and a great learning experience for all of us!

JULY 2008 - A Wyoming Adventure...part 1

After visiting Idaho, we met up with Brian and his parents and headed to Jackson, WY. We stayed in a condo at Teton Village which is near Jackson. Brian's brother Mike was there with his family, and his brother Adam came, too. We loved the crisp morning air and the feel of the mountains around us. Every morning we went for a walk which was a nice start to our day. We did a variety of activities which included:

A Picnic and swim (not me) in the icy waters of String Lake

I just love this picture because it is so typical of motherhood! Here's Liz with twins (tanner and reid) in the stroller loaded with innertubes, floaties, and everything else!

The kids took turns stacking the innertubes and standing inside. It was so fun for them, especially when Emma lost her balance!

Right: The kids with their cousin Andrew

Left: The boys minus Will who was feeling camera shy. Spencer, Brian, Adam, Andrew, Mike, and Zach

The next day we went on the Alpine Slide and mini-golfing.

Brian

Cami

Teresa

Ralph

Liz and Andrew

Adam

July 2008 - Idaho, the great getaway

We arrived in Idaho on a Monday and there was non-stop action during our week there. Brian had gone back to Texas, but my brother Paul came to Idaho with us. We really enjoyed spending more time with him. We don't get to see him enough, so it was great for the kids to get to know him better. Here are some things we never miss out on when we go to Idaho:

Swimming in the little poolJumping on the trampoline with the sprinklerVisiting Jenson's Grove LakeVisiting Great-Grandma & Grandpa Jacobson's Farm

A visit to the local pool

And a trip to the Tautphaus Park Zoo in Idaho Falls

Wow! What a week. Thanks mom and dad for showing us a fun time. We were also able to visit my Grandma and Grandpa Herbst which is always a treat. I must have forgotten to take my camera because I don't have any pictures of the visit. It was great catching up with them and it always makes me a little sad that we live so far away from our families. I wish we could see you more. And a BIG thanks to Paul who helped get Zach to bed every night because Zach discovered how to climb out of the crib on this trip! It made bedtime rather difficult, and Paul rocked him for hours! Thanks for everything. We'll be back next year.