Tucson, AZ

The desert.

I'm here...safe and sound...with all four children by my side.

At some points yesterday, I was doubtful...not that we'd actually get here...but just in what state we'd be in! :-)

Friday was spent sorting, and resorting...packing and repacking. Going back and forth on how many suitcases I could actually expect Tyler and Amy to drag around with them at the airport...we had several practice "walking-with-the-suitcase" drills!

Saturday morning dawned and everyone hustled about the house getting ready to go.

Daddy took us all the way to the gate and amidst tears and hugs we left him in Charlotte to board the plane.

I have to admit...if it were not for my faithful friends diligently praying for me and my sweet family eagerly awaiting me...we might not have made it here! :-)

We had the expected craziness of trying to get four children settled into their seats, open their snacks, find the missing toys under the seats, clean up the spill, etc.

It wasn't until the second flight that things got a little hairy.

We barely made our connecting flight in Dallas...rushed through a line to grab some lunch and hurried onto the plane.

Once we were at our cruising altitude I quickly realized that the DVD player was below us...not under our seat...but in the stroller that was safely packed below the PLANE!!!

Oops!

But if you know me...I don't usually just have one "oops"...it usually ends up being a cluster or so!

Sure enough, about ten minutes into the flight...Jackson was happily playing with his playdoh...when all of a sudden the contents of his stomach emptied out all over himself, little Hailey, and myself. Unfortuately, the baby Bjorn was just not enough of a helper...and I had to hand off Hailey to a complete stranger in order to calm Jackson down and attempt at a clean-up. Wouldn't you know, my sweet carefree baby started screaming as soon as she was passed off to the passenger in seat 23D!!!

Oh well...all of that is behind us now! We are happily tucked into my parents house and enjoying every minute of being here! Yes, my children are still adjusting to the time difference...yes, they all woke up this morning around FOUR AM - but the week is brimming full with cousins arriving, aunts and uncles and grandmas visiting. And sweet fellowship with some very special friends...

After church today we headed to my childhood haunt, Peter Piper Pizza with our dear friends, the Lewis'.

The kids have very vague memories of Carson and Katlyn but after a few rounds of ski ball were talking like good ole buddies!

Tammy and I have been friends for a long time. Shared lots of laughs, tears, frustrations, heartache, and most importantly...growing in the Lord together. She has always been a friend that exhorts, admonishes, encourages, and leads by example. We spent several hours today sitting in the exact same spot...and catching up on all the time we've lost.

And now...I'm off to bed...hoping and praying that the early risers will stay burried under the covers at least until the sun comes up!!!

What do you get when you put three girly-girls together for the day??

All things pink, sparkly, shiny and FUN!!!

Amy had her two sweet friends, Darcy and Sophie, over for the day last week.

Tyler was quick to make his exit with his friend Jack...having no desire to be in a house full of girls!!!

After playing "house", dolls, Barbies, and "princesses"...the girls came down asking to put on make-up.

Amy quickly turned into the designated "make-up artist" and was telling the other girls how to apply eye shadow, lip gloss, etc.

To hear her talking...you would think she is an expert on all things glamor!

(Believe me...she does not get ANY of that from me!!!)

Most of the things she said weren't exactly true...you don't really brush your eyelashes...or put blush on your eye lids...but she acted like she knew exactly what she was doing...the other girls just followed her example and even asked her for beauty tips!

I was biting my lip the entire time...trying to keep the giggles concealed!

I decided to step in for the nail polish application!

This little one was too funny...she looked at me in all seriousness and asked why in the world girls just want ONE color on their fingernails...when really you could have TEN different colors! :-)

We compromised with two different colors...as there were two other girls patiently waiting for their pretty nails!



After getting all "dolled-up" and taking pictures the girls were quick to run outside and jump on the trampoline..."drying their nails" apparently!?

It was such a fun day with such fun, sweet girls! I am so thankful and blessed that Amy can share in this with her friends!!

And I am so thankful to have such a sweet little girl who shares it with me!!!

Just as we sat down to eat dinner last night...a crazy wind, rain, hail storm cycled through our backyard. The kids watched the backyard toys get tossed here and there and began to get a little bit worried about the trampoline. I assured them that the trampoline wouldn't be picked up by the wind...it was too heavy and the wind wasn't strong enough to pick it up.

Not five minutes later...we watched the wind pick it up and slam it against our neighbors house!!!!

We all rushed to the window to check to make sure it hadn't shattered any of their glass windows or doors. It was really hard to see through the rain...so Jason had to brave the elements and make sure everyone was okay.

Thankfully...no one was hurt.

Unfortunately...it did break their outside lamp, their screen door

and put several large holes in their siding!

And sadly...there will be no more children jumping on our trampoline!

The wind was strong enough to snap the medal frame clear through.

So jumping in knee deep gully washers will have to be our new past time!

Once the calvary arrived (aka Jason) the Jimenez Family vacation TRULY began!

Everything seemed a little bit easier...not quite as many catastrophes...and there were a lot more smiles!!!

Amy has always wanted a hair wrap...like the big girls...so we promised that this trip to the beach she could get one!

(I was just thankful it wasn't a tattoo she was asking for! :-)



I tried to pay close attention as the woman wrapped Amy's hair...I seriously doubted it could be that hard to do at home. But...I got a little distracted and pretty soon it looked like this...



... super cute...but too complicated for this mommy to figure out!







What would a vacation be without a few treats here and there!

This is my favorite one of them all...





...hot and fresh Krispy Kreme doughnuts!!!

The last day at the beach we were able to hang out with our friends, the Bruces.

The boys were so excited to spend time with their best buds!

Total beach bums! These two were in the water the ENTIRE day!!!

So while the vacation itself was far from restful, calm, and relaxing...

it was jam-packed with smiles, sunshine, sand, and sweet family time!!!

First time at the beach!!!

Jackson had never experienced the beach before. He fed off of the excitement around him and asked about the beach for the last week or so. But nothing prepared him for the fun he had today!!

Throwing mud back into the water...it just would not stay put!

First sand castle at the beach!!

First friend at the beach!
Tyler made a new friend within MINUTES of unloading all our paraphernalia.
And what a friend...Flynn was Tyler's buddy for the rest of the day...and even taught him how to boogie board!

First nap at the beach...
This sweet little girl was SO good all day long!
She was so content to listen to the waves...watch the people passing by...and doze off every once and awhile.

Insert FIRST catastrophe of the day...after this nice little nap...I realized I had packed everything EXCEPT Hailey's bottle. What to do? We left all our stuff...and headed back to the condo to grab the bottle. Needless to say...the kids were not too excited about this interruption! Oh well...

First "sandy" snack at the beach...
Jackson didn't seem to mind the extra crunch covering his pretzels!


First lunch time at the beach...
This tent was such a lifesaver for the two little ones! It kept them out of the direct sun and a little bit cooler!

Insert SECOND catastrophe of the day...as we were packing up to leave the beach (amidst crying baby, whining toddler, sun burnt children) this tent became my ENEMY!!
For the life of me, I could NOT get it to fold up. No matter what I tried...it refused to cooperate and instead caused sand to fly in all my neighbors faces!
I finally had to give up...and my little hero, Tyler, had to carry it out to the car as best as possible. It was not easy!


It just got worse after that...

As we were walking out to the car...Tyler lost control of the tent and it hit some nearby beach combers! Oops! I ran to get it and the stroller tipped over with both babies in it! Double OOPS!!!
At this point, I was seriously doubting my capability of getting everyone safely to the car...and honestly...I was already looking up the tent on amazon.com in my brain...because it was getting LEFT AT THE BEACH!!!

Thankfully...we all got home safely and sandy! After getting everyone bathed and tucked into naps...I headed back outside to tackle the beast of the tent. It was not going to defeat me!!!
It took me forty-five minutes...but I FINALLY got it back into its little case! Yes!!! Victory!!!

Insert final and WORSE catastrophe of the day...
Refreshed after naps, we headed out to Target to pick up a few things.
Jackson had been fussy...but I chalked it up to him just being tired.
We had barely been in Target two minutes and Jackson threw up ALL over the floor!!!
I informed an employee and then rushed home.
Poor guy was super overheated. Once he cooled off and chugged down some juice he was back to hopping around like crazy!!! In fact, after recovering he was so hyper and crazy that the person staying in the condo below us came upstairs and complained about the noise...insert embarrassing moment of the day!!!


A few firsts at the beach...good and bad!
Thankfully, my wonderful, amazing, strong, capable, caring husband is joining me tomorrow!!!
And hopefully, I can sit back and relax once he gets here! ;-)