Arizona Summer Vacation, Part 2

Near the end of our Arizona Adventure, we took a cruise on the Desert Belle. The kids were super excited to ride on a boat.

Ready to board--Kaiya, Rustin, Ryder, Kassidy, Kaydence and Kyndall

Even though it was well over 100 degrees, the shade and breeze kept us cool

Tiare and Rachelle

Chillin' on the front of the boat: Kaydence, Kassidy, Rustin, Kyndall and Ryder

I love this shot my mom got of Ryder

Of course we all had to go help drive the boat! The captain was super nice!

Kyndall and GG

The boat ride was fun and informative, and the desert scenery was beautiful in its own way.

"Four Peaks"---the mountain depicted on most AZ license plates

Saguaro Cactus

Rocky cliff

Riley

Kaiya

We had only a couple of casualitys during the ride---my mom's lens cover and Kaydence's flip-flop both fell overboard.

Group shot with the boat

Kid-free dinner out! My dad was out of town most of the time we were there, but GG was kind enough to babysit the one night he was in town so that my parents, brother, sister and I could all go out to dinner.

Sunday my Aunt Jeanie invited us over for dinner---she made pasta (the quints favorite) and a chocolate cake that was to die for! (I loved it so much I made it for the quints birthday---hopefully I will be posting those pictures soon!)

The Kid Table

The Adult Table

Sitting on the porch swing: Rustin, Ryder, Kaydence, Kassidy and Kyndall

Our last day in Arizona we at breakfast poolside and enjoyed one last swim!

Kyndall, Kaiya, Kaydence, Ryder, Riley, Kassidy, Rustin

Water slide! Riley, Kaiya, Kyndall, Rustin, Ryder, Kaydence and Kassidy

Kaiya

Rustin

Tiare and Kyndall

Riley

Kaiya

All too soon it was time to say goodbye! We always have to take a "goodbye" picture in front of the office doors.

Farewell, Arizona!

Arizona Summer Vacation, Part 2

Arizona Summer Vacation, Part 1

Kaiya, Ryder, Kassidy, Riley, Kyndall, Kaydence and Rustin

After our fun trip to Arizona for Spring Break, we decided we had to go back---this time when it was warm enough to swim in the big pool! Jayson was busy preparing for a big upcoming conference at work and couldn't take time off to come with us, so we brought GG along instead. My brother, Shane, was doing an internship in AZ and living at home this summer, so we got to see him, and my sister, Tiare, flew down to spend the week with us too. We packed in as much fun and excitement as we could into the short 8-day visit!

Arizona, here we come! Thankfully, my kiddos are really quite good in the car for long car trips--as long as we keep the snacks and movies coming.

The first thing everybody wanted to do when we arrived at Mimi's house was SWIM!

Kassidy, Kaiya, Ryder, Rustin, Riley, Kaydence and Kyndall---ready for the pool!

How many quints can a floating turtle hold??

Girl's night at Cheesecake Factory with my Aunt Jeanie and her girls--YUM!

There was a movie theater near my mom's house that let kids under 4 in FREE, a fact that we definitely took advantage of! (All of the movie theaters here in Austin start charging at age 1) While we were there, we saw three movies!

Kaydence, Kassidy, Kyndall and Mimi

Riley, Kaiya, Ryder, Rustin and Tiare

Outside the movie theater

Wednesday was a big day---we had discount tickets to Jambo, and indoor kiddie amusement part. It was not very crowded and the kids had a blast riding all the rides.

The kids waiting for the roller coaster

Spinning barrel ride

Kaydence on the spaceship

Riley, Dylan (my cousin's little boy), Kassidy, Kyndall and Rustin on the Safari Train

Rhino Ride

Mimi, Riley and Kaiya on the bumper cars

Kaiya and Riley

Hippo Hug

After Jambo, we headed to lunch at McD's

Wednesday night we went to Rainforest Cafe for dinner ($2.99 kid meal night!) My kids absolutely love eating there! It was the highlight of our trip!

The kids with the Rainforest Tree Frog

Waiting for dinner




Our standard pose by the elephant podium



We must have really worn the kiddos out that day, because on the way home, ALL FIVE fell asleep---a VERY rare event!!

The next day, my mom's friend, Janene, came over to give us all a roll-making lesson. I love homemade rolls and Janene makes the best rolls ever. I have been using her recipe for a while now, but I knew if I had the "roll lesson" that I could learn something to help me take my rolls to the next level.

Janene and Rachelle



Everyone was excited to "help"

Just as we were finishing our roll lesson, Candice (aka Dr. Park who delivered the quints) arrived with her baby Lauren. It is always fun to see her!

Kyndall, Kassidy, Rachelle, Rustin, Ryder, Riley, Kaydence, Kaiya, Lauren and Candice


Stay tuned for part 2 of the trip...

Arizona Summer Vacation, Part 1