Summer's Finally Here!

We had a really LONG winter in Edmonton this year and it's been somewhat of a cool summer up until now. Summer has finally arrived!!!

Every two years we have a huge Smith Family Reunion which is something I always look forward to. It's a great time to catch up with everyone and have a great time! Our extended family continues to grow and this year's family reunion in Fairmont, BC did not disappoint! For awhile I wasn't sure if we would be able to attend after I found out my due date with Blake was two weeks before the reunion. I guessed that I would likely be overdue again and would be cutting it close but I insisted that we be there. A lot of people thought I was crazy, but 5 days after Blake was born we headed out on our little adventure. We drove to Calgary and thought we'd give everyone a break for a couple hours. We met some good friends at a spray park for a picnic and had a hard time getting Zach to leave.

At that point, we thought we were doing so well as Zach had been amazing up to that point and Blake had slept the entire way! We left Calgary right at Zach's nap time, expecting him to sleep at least a couple hours. Unfortunately we didn't plan on Blake waking Zach up about 10 minutes into his nap and screaming at least 2 out of the remaining 3 hours we had left. I spent the rest of our ride literally squeezed between the boys, trying to entertain Zach and keep Blake happy. Welcome to the world of having two kids - just when you think you have things under control ...

Well, we arrived just in time for supper and had a great visit with everyone. This is a skit my mom organized of 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears'. Sooo hilarious ... but you had to be there :)

These two boys sure had a blast together!

Zach just loves his oldest cousin Lauren. You gotta love a spontaneous dance party in your pj's!

The boys were being Grandma's big helpers in making a yummy cake.

We spent a day at Wasa Lake. Zach preferred to spend most of the day on the beach. He really doesn't love being in cold water .

Blake enjoyed a snooze in the shade.

Lauren was finally able to get Zach out on the water and he loved it ... as long as he wasn't 'in' the water!

My dad sacrificed some sun time to sit with Blake in the shade.

After the reunion, we stayed for the rest of the week with all of my immediate family. They had a great pool at the condos but Zach only wanted to sit in the hot tub.

What a cool dude on his sweet ride!!

We had such a great week! Mark golfed a lot , Zach had a blast with his Bennett cousins and I was able to relaxed and enjoy lots of time with Blake. Thanks Mom & Dad for a fantastic vacation! I couldn't have asked for a better way to spend a week as a new family of four.

As if I didn't feel spoiled enough, my parents came up the following week to stay with us for a few days. My mom helped me out with the kids and my dad helped Mark with some of our basement renovations. Here's mom getting in some cuddles with her newest grand-baby.

Zach (and his mom) was desperately needing some play date fun a few weeks after Blake was born so we had some friends over for a pool party. So much fun!!!

At the end of August I decided to make the trek down to Lethbridge by myself with the kiddos. Luckily for me, I found a young woman last minute that was needing a ride down to visit her family. Zach has recently become my little parrot and repeats EVERYTHING we say. He didn't end up napping (thanks again to Blake) so we had a full 5 hours of commentary from the backseat. I'm used to it, but by the end of the trip, I'm sure she was ready to lose her mind!!

We spent a week enjoying time visiting with my parents, Kaleigh and a few good friends.

Blake is getting sooo big - it's hard to believe he's a month old already!!!

Zach had his first experience playing fetch with some dogs.

We timed it perfectly and were able to enjoy the Lethbridge Whoop-up Day Parade with some friends. Zach loved to wave at all the firetrucks and cars, but did get a little upset when the loud sirens would surprise him. I hope we can catch it again next year!

Zach got his first taste of Taber corn ... I think it was a hit!

We also got to celebrate Brody's 2nd birthday while we were down. Kaleigh did an AMAZING job on the cake and we had a great time at the Sterling Swimming Pool afterwards. Happy Birthday to my favourite nephew :) Love ya!