Florida!

I don't know how many of you have tried to live out of small hotel with three kids but it kind of stinks! We quickly started finding places on base to take the kids and keep them occupied. This little pond is just down the road from where we've been staying and is full of turtles! There's a small dock that goes out into the pond and when the turtles see you they start swarming in. I think at one point there had to have been at least 70 turtles. They range from small (like you'd find in a pet store) to some as big as large dinner platters! The first time we went we didn't take any food but the couple of times after that we've made sure to take bread. It's way better then feeding ducks because I don't have to worry about my fingers getting chomped on! 

 Before we moved here Derek kept telling us about the white sand beaches and the green water of the gulf coast. He's actually lived in this are of Florida before, his tech school for the bomb squad was at Eglin so he's pretty familiar with the area. Anyways, we discovered that that base borders a small bay that the gulf empties into. We found a small beach, also close to where we've been staying and took the kids down one evening. I thought that the kids would have fun, which they did, until they noticed all the bugs and hermit crabs that inhabit the beach. Needless to say they now scour the ground and freak out every time they see something crawling. But the weather was absolutely perfect! I was commenting to my mom that I wish the weather would be like that all the time.

 Now one of the coolest things about living in Florida is sitting on the beach and watching the dolphins play! That little speck in the water? Yup, it's a dolphin. I wished I could have zoomed in more. Maybe I'll hint to Derek about that new Canon camera. ;)

Becka Gets Glasses

Right before the girls were pulled out of school there was a group that came in and screened the kids's eyes. Last year they recommended that we take Keyleigh in and that's when we found out she has what's called Lazy Eye Blindness. Basically one of the eyes gets stronger then the other and pretty soon the brain doesn't even register what the weaker eye is seeing. Keyleigh's case was not the worst but she did have to wear an eye patch when she was doing fine detailed work. 

This year we got a referral for Becka. We took her in and she has the same thing but not as bad as Keyleigh did. She picked out her own frames and looks adorable! I think it makes her look pretty smart! It's really funny when they slide down her face and then she looks like a little old lady!

Big Changes

By now you all know that we've moved to Florida! Derek's job transferred us to Eglin AFB, it's located in northwestern Florida, or the panhandle. We left the 5th of May and spent four days driving. Yes, I said driving. Derek had the moving van and the dogs and I had the kids in the van. Thankfully my mom, Aubrey, was able to come with me because I would have gone INSANE if I'd had to do it on my own.

The first day we drove to Cheyenne, Wyoming. The day was pretty uneventful, the kids watched a couple of movies, colored some pictures, and actually took a nap. The only bad part was that Becka ended up throwing up but can't say that I blame her. If you've even driven from Ogden to Cheyenne, you'll know about this twisty, swirly canyon. Needless to say, she didn't like it very well but luckily she got it in the bag. After that it was pretty much smooth driving. Although I am glad that I packed some sanitizing wipes in my purse. We had to stop and some pretty nasty gas stations to use the bathroom. It still makes me shudder...

The second day we drove to Kansas City, Missouri. This day was quite an adventure. Nebraska was pretty, which surprised me actually! We went over the Missouri River, which is pretty big! Funny story actually. We were in Nebraska and were getting close to the state line which I thought was at Missouri, so we cross the state line and my mom and I are like "We're in Missouri!" The kids knew we were stopping there for the night so they got excited. Then a mile or so down the road there's a sign that says "The People of Iowa Welcome You!" Mom and I just looked at each other and busted out laughing. Apparently we had to drive through a small tip of Iowa before we got to Missouri. It was a nice drive until we got to Missouri. The midwest decided to welcome us with a fabulous storm. I'm talking black clouds, thunder, lighting. The works. Not to mention that the majority of the time I was driving I was afraid a tornado was going to come out of no where! Ashlyn was terrified the last 45 minutes of the drive and had a death grip on my mom's hand. After 12 hours of being in the car (Nebraska had way to many construction zones) we finally arrived and my mom took the girls to pool to wear them out.  It was nice to have a bit of peace and quiet.

The third day we drove from Missouri to Memphis, Tennessee. This had to have been the worst day of the drive. It was another 12 hour day but the worst part was that most of it was country back roads in Arkansas. Let me tell you, we crossed the state line and could hear banjos playing. Let's just say that Mapquest's shortest drive mileage wise is not necessarily the shortest time. It was very pretty drive through the Ozark mountains but man, there were some shanty little towns along the way. Next time we are sticking to major high ways even if it's a longer distance! Right before we drove into Memphis we drove over the Mississippi River. I haven't ever seen it before and I wish I could have taken a picture, it was huge! I also wished we'd had a little bit more time because my mom and I wanted to go to Graceland so bad. Oh well, maybe the next trip.

The fourth day we finally made it to Florida! The kids were so excited when we finally crossed the state line. We drove through Mississippi and across the southern part of Alabama. It was good thing we only took four days for the drive because I don't think we were going to last another day in the car. I had tried to keep the kids to 2 movies a day but the last day I think they watched movies most of the time! We arrived in Pensacola and stayed at the naval base. We decided to stay there instead of the air force base because there was no limit on the amount of pets we could have in a room. At the air force base we were limited to two.

So after a long day I check in and we go to our room. We were told it had a kitchen, two queen beds, and a pull out couch. A bit tight for a few days but it was okay because we wouldn't have to kennel the dogs. Yeah, not so much. The room had two queen beds, no couch, and two burners. No oven, microwave, dish washer, or anything else like that. We were more then a bit frustrated because there was no way that was going to work for the next three weeks while we found a house. So we ended up putting the dogs in a kennel and moving to temporary housing at Eglin. That night on Navy was really long. My mom slept in one bed with Keyleigh and then I shared with Ashlyn and Becka. Poor Derek took the floor for a little while before he couldn't take it any longer. It's been really hard being separated from the dogs, both for us and them but it really has worked out for the best. The temporary lodging is like apartments so we've been able to cook and do laundry. Thankfully we close on our new house on Friday and can get the dogs back!

Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures of the drive. I had wanted to take one of the girls at each state line but pulling all three out would have been a nightmare and then them being on the side of the interstate just didn't seem safe to me!

We're here and close to settling in. I'll post pictures of the house and the story with that once we get in!

Utah's Hogle Zoo

I know it's been a while since I last posted but give me a break. I just moved my family to Florida! Don't worry, there will be a separate post on that particular adventure... 

The day after graduation we decided it would be a perfect time to take the kids to the zoo one last time before we left. For the last 4 years we've had year passes and the girls have loved it! We would literally go 6-8 times a year. We were hoping that the new Rocky Shores exhibits would be open since we'd been watching the construction for the last year but dag nab it, it wasn't ready yet. Oh well. We still had tons of fun. Derek's mom, Charie, his sister Andrea and her family came down (they drove down two days in a row), my parents, and then my brother and his wife all tagged along. The girls had so much fun with their cousins! I had to admit I loved it, too. Usually my nieces are pretty shy and won't come near me unless they're telling me bye and giving loves but the whole time they wanted to hold Aunt Mary's hand! Totally made my heart melt!

 Here's the girls right before we went in. They were so excited it was hard getting all of them to look at the camera! From left to right is Kenideigh, Ashlyn, Mackynlee, Rebecka, and Keyleigh.

 Becka on the snake slide. Every time we go to the zoo the girls have to go on this AT LEAST 5 times each. We usually have to bribe them away with the merry go round. 

 Mackynlee was braver then her older sister and went down the slide by herself.

 My brother James and his cute wife Becky!

 Miss Keyleigh

 Our brother in law Blake and Kenideigh.

 Derek and his mom Charie. Every time our moms thought or talked about us leaving they got all teary eyed. ;)

 Kenideigh enjoying her juice.

 James and Becky

 You have no idea how much my girls adore Uncle James and Aunt Becky! Sunday dinners were always so much fun when they came up. The girls concocted this crazy game where they were picking the king's (James) raspberries and he would catch them. Becky would then have to come and save them. It was pretty adorable to watch!

 Keyleigh and Mackynlee were so fascinated by the lemurs. I have to admit, they were pretty cool. For some reason we never made it to this monkey house very often over the years but it's pretty neat!

 See, aren't they cute?!

 Ashlyn putting something in her mouth. I'm afraid to know what she picked up from the zoo!

 Derek's sister Andrea, her husband Blake, Kenideigh, and Mackynlee.

By the end of the day this is how we all felt!