world's biggest slip and slide

What do you get when you combine a giant hill, long strips of plastic, and Dad's mini fire truck loaded with water and foam?

Yes, folks, it's the world's biggest slip and slide.

And as my brother said, "This is the best white trash activity ever."

This was how we started our 4th of July weekend. Nothing like a little rash on your butt to get to party started, right?

{p.s. I was kinda glad I had the "I'm pregnant" excuse so nobody threw me on the thing!}

bbq at mom's

The next Food Network stars, Cami and Colby.

Mango Shrimp on the Barbie!

My cute sister Cami.

My niece Imogen (15 months).

I know this is not the greatest picture ever, but it makes me laugh because I can just hear Olivia saying, "Baby!" even though she is only 4 months older than Imogen. She thought it was a game, taking Imogen's pacifier and then trying to pop it back into her mouth, just like a baby doll. Imogen mostly tried to stay away from Olivia!

Nina playing in the little tent.

The Bounce-A-Round...always good for a laugh until someone bonks heads and starts screaming!

We had a BBQ basically every night that Cami was in town, and Mom always brought out her iPod and loaded up Bob Marley on Pandora. We all thought that was hilarious. "Wow, I feel just like I'm on a cruise ship! Woo!" Haha! Check out Olivia's moves!

Later this night we roasted s'mores and the kids all slept out under the stars with Grandma and Grandpa and Uncle Colby in the backyard.

nina on her two-wheeler

Yay for Nina! Now she can zip around with the other two dozen kids in our neighborhood. It's like a parade of bikes on our circle every night, so much fun.

zoobilee zoo!

A big "butt."

Dad and Olivia at the "butts."

Imogen sacked out in the heat.

Some of our monkeys...Ben, Bria, Hannah, Nina and Zach.

Giant snow cones to share! I love how Tates' mouth is wide open and Hannah is staring at him.

She now refuses to let anyone feed her. She has to do it herself.

The baby elephant.

Clayton and I were so excited to take Olivia to the zoo to see the real elephants, or "butts" as she calls them. She even wore her pink elephant shirt for the special occasion.

All the little cousins on my side of the family were there, and it was by far the hottest day yet of this summer. So we ended the day with some huge snow cones, yum!

p.s. If you go to the zoo before the end of September, stop by a Jiffy Lube for a Summer Blast Pass. It gives you a free child admission for every adult admission. With all the adults we had in our group, all of my kids got in for FREE. Love that.

{Why is adult admission more than child admission anyway? Do they think we actually enjoy it more than the kids? I don't get that.}

homemade pancake mix

I can't tell you how often this mix has simplified a morning with a houseful of kids begging for pancakes. And let me just say you will never go back to Bisquick! This is SO much better. Mix up a double or triple batch and save yourself a bunch of time.

When you cook the pancakes, add blueberries or bananas if you feel like it, or a teaspoon of vanilla for a little more flavor.

It's one of my favorite things in the pantry.

the beginning of cousins sleepover week

Ah, the lovely bride!

And the little flower girls.

No kissing allowed, only handshakes to seal the deal.

Hooray for cousins!

Here's me and my big belly at 31 weeks. Ben took these last two shots since I'm never in any pictures. He had fun being the photographer for a while!

What a crazy, fun, busy week it's been! We crossed off a bunch of things from our summer "to do" list...starting with a cousins sleepover last Tuesday. Hannah organized yet another "wedding" as soon as the cousins arrived, and managed to talk Ben into being the groom! I wonder if she promised him all her candy too? From there we spent another evening at "the beach," followed by late night root beer floats outside, giggling into the wee hours, and a pancake breakfast.

The next day, more cousins arrived from North Carolina {my sister Cami and her family}...so there's a lot more to come, including 3 more cousin sleepovers.

All I can say is I'm exhausted! This pregnant lady is ready for some rest :)

happy fourth!

{Photo from a trip to D.C. in 2006, at the Jefferson Memorial.}

A little wisdom for you on this special day, written by Thomas Jefferson himself.

1. Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.

2. Never trouble another for what you can do yourself.

3. Never spend your money before you have earned it.

4. Never buy what you do not want because it is cheap.

5. Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom.

6. We never repent of having eaten too little.

7. Nothing is troublesome that we do willingly.

8. Whenever you do a thing, act as if all the world were watching.

9. Always take hold of things by the smooth handle.

10. When angry, count to ten before you speak; if very angry, a hundred.