Fall Break

Man I really wanted to go somewhere for Fall Break this year.  By somewhere I meant Mexico or Hawaii, not St. George or Park City.  Wonder why we stayed home?  Despite my poor planning and unrealistic expectations, we managed to have a great and restful break from the daily grind.  Sam, for one, couldn't have been happier to have his big brothers home for a few days.

My mom hosted a fun day of caramel apple making.

The kids really got into decorating this year and really impressed me with their creativity.

Max was a fan of the cinnamon sugar mixture and boy was it delicious.

Hank placed each piece of candy with such impressive precision.

And Izzy's boob apple, I mean Owl apple, won the prize for most original.

Thanks mom for the fun activity and for cleaning up a humongous mess made by our children.  I think I managed to eat 5 of the 6 apples we brought home.

We spent Saturday morning up in Salt Lake to show our love and support to Jeri.  Team Walkers for Knockers had a strong showing this year.  Last year was very hard for Jeri and she endured it with such grace and strength.  I'm so grateful that she is a survivor this year!  She is such an inspiration to all of us.

My boys were excited to show their support in the form of pink hair.  We made it nearly 2 miles with all three kids.  Max only took out a few dozen innocent bystanders with his scooter!

It was a really great morning.  In fact we had so much fun we weren't quite ready to go home after the walk.  We figured since we were already in Salt Lake, we would pay a visit to our animal friends at the zoo.  It was a beautiful fall day and the animals put on quite a show for us.

Outside the gorilla exhibit, the boys had to see how they measured up.

I didn't even tell Sam to stand there.  He just happily stepped up after everyone else. This was his first trip to the zoo and he absolutely LOVED it!  He is an animal boy for sure.

The sea lions gave us quite a performance. 

We watched them play for at least 30 minutes and then made our way to the polar bear who was also taking a swim.  Something must have been in the air that day...

Because the tiger also was in the water.  I've never seen the tiger at the zoo this close.  Such a magnificent creature.  I think I need to get a part-time job at the zoo.  I really enjoyed myself if you can't tell.  My kids were like, "easy mom, it's not that cool".

Max was cracking me up trying to talk to the giraffe's.  He told them they needed to shave their beards.

A trip to the zoo is not complete without a carousel ride. 

Sam was so pumped to ride on the bald eagle but the second I put him up there he changed his mind.

A seat on the bench next to mom was a way better idea.

Sam was such a little trooper during the walk and at the zoo but man did he crash on the way home.  

The rest of our break was spent with cousins and friends.  It wasn't Cabo, but it was a much needed break.  We always manage to have fun no matter where we are.