takin' a break.

I've noticed it's been a little quiet on the blog front this week, so that must mean it's time for a break.  with the arrival of summer, I'm sure you guys are fervently making vacation plans, or heading outdoors to celebrate the fact that the snow has finally disappeared.  surely, reading blogs is not on the top of your to-do list these days.

well, talk about perfect timing then, because this momma plans to do some serious relaxing for the next few days.  the second the kids get home from school today (around noon), I'm heading down to The Valley to sneak in a little shopping.  and then early tomorrow morning, like crack of dawn early, I'm hopping on a plane to Denver for a four-day rendezvous with a few girlfriends, where we'll do some more shopping, unwinding, dining out, hiking, scenic drives-- the options are endless.  whatever we decide to do, it'll be a rip-roarin' good time, guaranteed.  I'm also assuming everyone is potty-trained, so bonus!  no diapers for FOUR WHOLE DAYS!  can you imagine?  I've been looking forward to this mental health break trip for like, forever.  seriously can't wait!

so anyway, it'll be kinda quiet on this website for a few days, or a week.  as soon as I get back we'll be diving into swimming lessons and summer camp and babysitting classes and sending kids off to Minnesota and... well, more on that later.

as promised, here are the rest of the pictures from our camping trip.  aside from Hannah's accident and all (which btw, every time I see her smiling face around here, I breathe a silent prayer of thanks), we had an absolute blast.  I'm pretty sure I'll be going again.  and soon.

ready to head out!  the van is packed to the gills.  time to invest in a trailer, I think.

Joe caught a brown trout at Fisherman's Point.

just chillin'.  btw, Scarlett is now OFFICIALLY off the bottle.  phew.

setting up the tent.  Ella's diggin' it.

the nice thing about camping in AZ is that you can just pull up a stump wherever you feel like.  no dealing with crowded campgrounds or having to hassle with reservations.

the "Pee-Pee Tepee," as it was officially dubbed.  obviously, you can't go camping without a comfortable spot to do your, ahem, job. (don't worry, photos taken pre-use.)  

cooling off in the creek.

little Maisy's adorable pacifier clip from Petunia Garden, where you'll find darling, handmade items for kids and babies. 

like our ghetto table?  another thing to add to the list: portable folding table.

in the last month, Jake has turned into Jughead.  he polished off 10 french toast, and then told us he was still hungry.

Rowan survived on chips, soda, and cookies WHY ARE YOU NOT SURPRISED?

Scarlett loved being outside just toddling around.

these boys spent hours building... stuff.

back to the creek to catch crawdads. 

the end.

it was an absolute gorgeous spot to camp!

you guys behave while I'm away, you hear?  I promise I will ;-)

I better run and pack!

-jessica