Great to be Eight

Marisa and I had a blast taking her baptism pictures for her big day coming up. Tim and I were married in the Newport Beach Temple and it was completely surreal to take my oldest daughter in the exact locations Tim and I stood for our wedding pictures. It made my heart skip a beat as I could see us through my lens almost 9 years ago...

Jog-a-thon

One of Marisa's favorite school events happened to fall on her actual birthday this year. She could not wait to tell me when she found out! And this year Natalie was happy to be able to join her big sister in a school wide event. And I love being their mom and showing up to support them. ;)

{Marisa with her best friend Sadie}

2nd Grade: Red team!

Happy Birthday Marisa!

{Natalie with her best friend Kaitlyn}

Kindergarten: Green team!

Spring break: {Scottsdale, AZ} Flashback: Day 2, 3, 4

Pools, water slides, lazy river, trampoline park, and mini golf occupied the next few days. The water slides and the lazy river were all our favorites! Natalie thought it was pretty gnarly when she accidentally went in head first. Ha!

Oh, I'm mistaken, someone was grumpy about the last river...

We also included shopping for the women (fantastic shopping in the area) and an adult only dinner at Mastro's Ocean Club where I had my first taste of oysters. It was... alright. Oysters are definitely an acquired taste. 

It was an A+ trip all together and I actually hope to come back real soon! Now off to spend some quality time with my side of the family in Phoenix.

Spring break: {Scottsdale, AZ} Flashback: Day 1

We learned from last year that after every busy season a vacation as a family of some sort is in order. This year Easter happened during our week long desert trip to Arizona! 

The kids woke up to their Easter baskets filled with candy and toys. Darren's loud roaring, glowing Dinosaur bubble machine was a big hit! And Tim and I may or may not have eaten most of their Cadbury mini eggs...

In typical Hart style, we immediately afterwards quickly got dressed in our Easter best to head out for a day with cousins filled with fun activities.

First on the agenda, an Easter egg hunt. But this is no ordinary Easter egg hunt. Oh no. The Westin Kierland Resort and Spa hosted on a section of their golf course a 24,000 Easter egg hunt for older children. Not only that, but before the hunt began the Easter Bunny flew over the eggs in a helicopter waving to the children below. Once it landed, it rode on a golf cart across the course waving to the children some more. It was something else!

The girls are standing in front of the egg hunt designated for little ones who were, I believe, under 3 or 4 years old. SO many eggs. I thought it was genius to have a separate area for the little ones because they would have been trampled by the older kids.

We all had the best time standing behind the sideline prepping the littles ones to collect as many eggs as possible! haha Our kids come from competitive families. ;)

Darren watched out for his cousin Davis and threw in eggs for him in his bag.

And for whatever funny reason Darren stood with his hand on his hip for a long time. Pausing for who knows what. Contemplating his next move?

{Now for the best part: Sorting through his loot!}

Afterwards we had an Easter lunch with all the festive trimmings; ham, rolls, carrots, funeral potatoes, and my girls' favorite, deviled eggs. (Here is my favorite recipe from Whole Foods I use year after year.)

Our stunning view of the golf course during lunch...

We continued with our day with walks around the resort, playing games by the pool, and sitting on the grass listening to bagpipes before dark. Our constant surroundings are absolutely beautiful at the resort and filled with so many family activities. Happy for all!

Life would not be the same without family. I love my family. I love spending time with them and I love that my girls have a lot of cousins. That's what it is all about folks!

And this guy is pretty golden too. ;)