Ward Camp Out

SO MUCH FUN! We had a wonderful time up in the mountains. I tried to be so organized, prepared, and teach my children the do-s and do not-s of camping. For example:

Don't play in the fire!

Don't come into the tent without taking your shoes off!

Make sure you play where you can still see us! etc. etc.

One major parent fail: I forgot to say... "Don't mistake the air freshener in the port-a-potty for hand soap! IT IS NOT HAND SOAP! It's so that when men pee on it, it freshens the air." Needless to say, after the girls complained about sticky hands and the handsoap in the bathroom, we made them wash a bizillion times and use omega amounts of hand sanitizer. [gag] YUCK!!!

School Days!

We left for school extra early and took some pictures by the lake.

Janae's first day of KINDERGARTEN!!!

Jacey's first day of 2nd GRADE!!!

WE LOVE THESE LITTLE PEOPLE!!! SUCH SWEET CHILDREN!!!

This is Eric's new FAVORITE activity: riding his scooter!!!

Pack It Up and Move It Out!

We were so blessed to have movers come and pack us up. The ladies that packed were surprised at how much we had stored in our little 2 bedroom condo! Hey, when you're a family of 5 living in less than 1000 square feet, you get good at storing things in every nook and cranny of the house! :) Here's before...

And after...

WOW!

The kids slept surprisingly well on the bedroom floor! And the next morning they were treated to a McDonald's breakfast - compliments of our wonder friend, Maria. Thanks Sister Altendorf!

Then, the road trip...

We drove, and drove, and drove. And saw some pretty amazing scenery!

This was one of the kids' favorite stops in Texas - "The Big Texan" - it's a restaurant.

Janae and Eric bought a few cowboy items. And then went to admire the huge stuffed brown bear.

They were a little spooked with all the taxidermy that decorated the walls!

Yeehaw!

Gideeup lil' cowpolks!

We were able to stop by and see our friends, the Hatches, in New Mexico. We met them at the zoo and had a great time catching up!

These two were best buddies back when they were 3 years old!

Then we finally reached our destination: ARIZONA!

Notice the awesome saguaro cacti.

This was our amazing make-shift table-top thanks to Dad's brilliance. (Our stuff arrived in 2 different shipments. The first one only brought the dining room table legs, not the table-top.) Good thing those moving boxes were pretty sturdy!

Getting settled...

The kids rooms always get done first. The girls' room turned out so cute. Thank you Michelle for the beautiful furniture pieces that fit just perfect!!

Saying Good Bye!

By far, this is the hardest part of moving: it's always so hard to say good bye to such sweet friends! We're so grateful for all our dear friends in Maryland. I wish I had pictures of all of you. We love you and miss you!!!

Having the last name of "Lemon" can be very fun! :)

Look at the AMAZING variety of lemonades. So tasty!

The amazing ladies who threw the party! Thanks Megan, Andi, and Sam! Love you ladies!

Thank you Juanita for the cute photos and to Michelle for hosting the event! We had so much fun!

Thank you all for the wonderful memories!!!