Beach and Volleyball

 

Benjamin had his last tournament in California and I took the kids down for some beach time. They were all so excited and we loved our weekend. My girls take after me and are definite beach girls. We went everyday and loved it even though it was so crowded. We even got to sneak over to our favorite Porto’s and grab a delicious treat. The kids saw Peyton, a star in some Disney and kid shows they love. They were so excited and she is so sweet with them. 

The kids boogie boarded every day. Emma even got blisters she went so hard core! They caught so many waves and I loved watching them come in smiling so big. Emma was a rockstar big sister and cousin and helped all the kids learn how and be able to ride the waves. I even got in and almost got completely wiped out by a wave. 

We brought snacks and games for the kids to play as we watched benjamin play all weekend. The tournament is all set up for downtime with mini golf, lounge chairs and giant outdoor games. 

We built a sand castle on the beach and the kids buried Noah. When we got back to Richard and Sheryl’s house the kids went and jumped in their pool after each beach day. They couldn’t get enough of the California weather and sunshine. We had fun being able to have dinner with them and play some games. Usually we are traveling and so busy, so this trip was great! 

I got the kids a wave surfer toy. Navy had the best time with it. You throw him into the ocean and the guy rides the wave back to the shore. He was pretty fun to watch too. 

Benjamin’s team won Bronze! I’m so glad we could be there to support and cheer him on with our friends and the other coaches. Go United!

Schraft Family

For Mother’s Day, us girls got my mom a photographer for family pictures. She was scheduled it for by Charlottes graduation and we were so excited to get them back. 

We went up to mount charleston and it was perfect weather up there. It wasn’t hot, windy or cold, which makes for great pictures. Look at these amazing people!

We had all 9 grandkids. The kids played and ran. Luke tried to hide that smile from the camera and he did a pretty good job, but we were sneaky and caught that smile. My kids are trained and pros now hahaha, they know they smile and can be done, so we were quick and I love their faces. 

We have so much love in our family and I love the examples my parents and grandparents give us. Something we all look up to with their love and kindness. My sisters and their sweet husbands are so amazing I’m so grateful for all of these guys. 

Kylee and Jordan are so fun and look how good the dogs did too. We love them and the fun, adventures they bring to our family. 

My grandma was in town and we had to grab out pictures with her. I love pictures so much and the memories they bring. I can spend hours going through pictures reminiscing so I am always grateful for more. 

We got our five girls pictures too. I couldn’t be more grateful for these beautiful women I get for my best friends! 

I love my family and could say it over and over. I’m so glad we got these pictures. Wonderful people I get to spend forever with. 

 

Beach house girls trip

Yay for girls trips. My niece Hailey turned 15 and invited Emma and I to a beach house in California. We were so excited to celebrate the birthday girl on the beach and how cute are these girls?! It was Melissa and I, with Emma and Hailey, and Linda and Deedee, Umi got to join us that night. Deedee got the girls the cutest beach bags filled with all things needed for the trip, sunglasses, towels, sun screen, matching bracelets and Stanley water bottles. Such a fun gift to get ready for our week. 

We left bright and early and went to San Diego. We went to Old town and walked around shopping. The girls cracked us up in one of the stores that had lots of mini items. The girls got these crazy bouncy moon balls and we were all getting in trouble with them.  I also got a remake picture of Emma from 5 years ago at a cute diy candle shop.

Next stop we went to see all the seals. There were so many and it was so fun to watch them. They were so active we got to watch them play and bark and swim. There were so many babies laying with their mamas too. In one picture of the girls I got a picture of the seals kissing in the back ground. Craziest animal was a squirrel that wouldn’t move and kept screeching so loud. The girls made it the sound of the week lol. 

Back in the car and we made it to our beach house in Oceanside. It was so pretty being able to see the ocean from the kitchen and living room. There was a balcony with a fire pit we spent lots of time on. We also walked right down to the sand and down some rock stairs to the water. We loved watching the surfers every morning and even saw a lot of sail boats. The dolphins had perfect timing our first spotting was right when we got to the beach house and then right before we left we saw our last dolphins jumping right in front of us. 

While we were there we hit up a farmers market in little Italy. We got delicious dumplings and treats. The girls were loving on the fresh fruit and the boys serving it hahaha. We found our favorite dip/hummus too, I think we are all still craving that. 

Out came the sun and we soaked it all in. We walked the pier. The girls were so cute and making us laugh. They wanted to boogie board so I rented some and the girls loved it. They spent so much time in the water. I sat and had the most blissful time reading my book. I even got to see my friend I grew up and haven’t seen forever. 

 For dinner Melissa made Hailey’s favorite soup Zuppa Tuscana which happens to be mine too, delicious. 

The girls had the best time, these cute cousins laughed and joked all weekend. Melissa and I loved being able to watch them while we got to chat and relax. They definitely made us laugh and we made memories that will last forever. I love that they are friends. 

We went to the top gun house and had to take some pics out front. We then went to the best souvenir shop that had it all. We hunted those piles and found our sizes in everything we wanted. The shirts and sweaters are so soft and a great memento for our trip. We ended at a cafe where I had the best raspberry orange pancakes. Everything was so good. On our way out of town we passed another farmers market and had to stop to see if our hummus guy was there. He was sadly not, but we found other fun stands that we got to do a little last minute shopping at. Thank you Hailey for wanting us to celebrate with you, we can’t wait for our next trip. 

 

Charlotte’s graduated

Can’t believe the baby of us five girls is done with high school. She worked so hard and finished with honors. Charlotte even got to speak and announce at the graduation. She definitely is a light in our family and we are all so proud of her and can not wait to see what she goes and does! 

Party time celebrating our grad! Swimming, games and cake. Charlotte is off to BYU Idaho in the fall so we will love on her like crazy till she leaves. 

 

May

Jake turned 36! Happy birthday babe, he got sushi and spoiled with everything except my homemade cheesecake that I wrecked and burned! We were all devastated and I still am mad about it. Benjamin and charlotte on their last day going to school together. Benjamin also got lots of pool and friend time because he got out of school a week before the other kids. To end our school year Noah broke his big toe and was in a boot and crutches. He was wrestling/racing Navy on the stairs. Dang kids. 

Noah’s end of the year field trip. We waited all year for this and it did not disappoint. We got to raft down the Colorado river and our entrance was right under Hoover dam. We had a great guide who would point out and show us all the details and history of the river and dam. Mrs. Reid was a rockstar and got in the river and caught a crawdad for all the kids too see. I loved being able to go and hang out with the kids and see Noah and his friends. 

Rockstar Aunt Kylee took the boys to the lake for the day. She is for sure so much fun and they loved it. Rafting, fishing, paddle boarding,  games and more. 

The girls wanted some summertime blonde so I put some highlights in and Navy is obsessed haha. She is a mini teen, probably even more so than Emma. We had everyone swimming at mom and dads when Taliah and Ben were here! Ben and Robert were all in with the kids wrestling and wars. Summer started I love the picture of the boys sleeping in the loft with ghost. Navy, Noah, Jake, Kylee, Jordan, Ben, Taliah and I all binged the planet of the apes movies and then went and saw the new one. 

Noah and his besties Elsie and Janie had the best time at an end of the year school party. 

Family pictures coming soon and all my selfies with my favorite people! 

 

Schools out

The kids grew so much! Love these sweet faces and so proud of all of their hard work this school year. We will have two high school kids, um what? Navy is also moving to third grade and Noah fifth grade- they will both be upstairs at school and Navy is so excited.

Noah earned his Nevada citizenship award by memorizing all Nevada state facts, papers, song, etc. he worked so hard and got it all done. Navy rocked her year and grew so much in all areas. 

Emma’s 8th grade graduation. She has been at the school for 9 years and it will be so crazy having her somewhere else. We are ready for something new and exciting. She has made amazing friends that we love and will keep.