American Idol

One of the things that we really enjoyed this Spring was watching American Idol as a family. When I got online to look at the tour dates I realized that we would be in Utah for the reunion. We took the older boys to the concert and Angie and Eliot came along. A big shout-out to my other sister Natalie and her husband Brian, for watching the other youngsters at home.

Getting ready for the show.

The stage is ready.

Here is Lauren...

and Scotty.

By the end of the concert I was beat. We had the toughest time getting out of the parking lot. It seemed to be moving soooo slow. Once we came around this little bend in the back of the stadium we realized why. The masked scary guy in this picture came right up to our van and gave Eliot a high five. I was a little freaked out until I realized that it was James Durbin. He then headed over to sign some autographs for his adoring fans.

The other man in the mask? Stephano Langone. He was one of my favorites, as he is a Seattle Native. We all had a great time dancing and laughing and singing with our favorite performers from Season 10.

Growing

We had so much fun hanging out with our immediate cousins. Every night we got to come back to Angie's and hang out together. I snapped this picture of Lydia with her new cousin Lanie. The pajamas Lanie is wearing are ones that Lydia used to wear when she was small. It is crazy how time just keeps on ticking and these little ones just keep growing.

Fireworks

We all headed to a nearby church to set off fireworks that we got at the store.

Lydia and Sydney were less than thrilled with the loud noises and commotion. Grandma Swensen kept them safe and they all watched the show from the comfort of the car.

Ryan looks a bit intimidated here, but was actually quite excited about all of the fireworks. He and Mitchell and Wesley made up a song about "Fireworks being so cool." The trio sung it at the top of their lungs.

Mike was close by, along with others of my uncles to make sure the younger generation could handle their role as "Firework Lighters."

It is definitely a right of passage to move from Firework Watcher, to Firework Lighter. I love how Nathan is giving a salute in this picture.

All of the firework lighters running with their sparklers.

Thanks for a great show Nathan and Danny!

Happy Fourth of July!

Fourth Festivities

The morning of the Fourth all of the cousins had some downtime watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. It was really fun that we all got to stay together at Aunt Angie's House. Baby Lanie and Madison are the two cousins missing in this picture.

We continued the celebrations at my Aunt Julie's, who like I had mentioned before, did a wonderful job planning the Reunion. Here Sydney and Lydia are enjoying one of the fabulous meals.

The Bounce House was a big part of the day. It had a water slide and entertained the kids for hours. I kept telling myself I would get out and take pictures, but only felt the urgency once the company came to take it down. :)

Lydia decided to take a break from the heat and enjoy a movie. Julie had prepared endless treats and snacks for the family. Goldfish...always a favorite!

After dinner, all of the kids all got a chance to take a swing at the Piñata. They are all sitting on the trampoline together, waiting with their plastic bags, ready for the piñata to burst open.

Lydia

Ryan

Nathan

The hitting order was youngest to oldest. Even with the hard hitting older cousins, we were able to go through the order twice. I think it was my Aunt Pam that finally broke the piñata open. Danny was actually off golfing with my uncle and cousins, but we remembered to grab him some of the spoils.

It is so fun to be together as family.