La Familia Mata

Thursday, August 26, 2010

There's A Storm A Comin'...

We took off for Iowa on June 17th... late, late at night. The kids knocked out for the first part of the ride and the last couple hours were pretty "intense". We got to Scott County around 5pm on Friday. Then we headed up to my parent's new house in McCausland. We were just finishing up dinner when the tornado warning sirens went off... we went outside... I know wrong direction... and saw this HUGE mushroom cloud rolling in... SCARY! We all headed downstairs and hunkered in the basement until the all clear was given. David, however, stayed outside for a bit and snapped some pictures. Rewind 6 years ago when David first moved to Iowa... the very night we got into town... a tornado warning! Once again... David went outside instead of to the basement. He's fascinated with the crazy weather. Both times tornadoes never touched down near us. But now we joke that every time David comes to Iowa, he brings a tornado with him! About the collage: Mali took the ones of my parents downstairs :) That's the back of my parent's new house. That is also the man I love, looking like a crazy man!

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Friends and Family Visits!

The few days before we left for block leave, we were blessed to be visited by friends and family. First, we were graced with the presence of the recently joined in holy matrimony Flacks! They rolled into town in time for a DELICIOUS carne asada dinner (compliments of my hot husband) and rolled out early the next morning. Even though our visit was short, it was fun to see their wedding pictures and catch up with them. What a cute couple!

The next day we were visited by the Brown Richardson family... also recently married... Love is in the air! Heather and I are "old" high school friends. Over the last few years, it has been fortunate that they have had educational conferences where we are living! While they were here, we enjoyed an afternoon at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo... one of our favorite places! We, of course, fed the giraffes, rode the train, and checked out "My Big Backyard". After we parted ways, the Mata Family enjoyed the Sky Ride up to the top of the mountain. Abram wasn't so impressed, but the view was spectacular!

We LOVED having visitors and would LOVE more!

The CIRCUS was in town...

In June, we went to the Barnum and Bailey Circus in Colorado Springs. We met up with the Jewell Family and enjoyed checking out the animals before the show actually started. We especially loved the elephants. The "elephant guy" was very informative and we learned lots! Also before the show started, we sat down on the floor and enjoyed some of the pre-show stunts. As you can see from Malia's face... we loved it! The show was FANTASTIC! We had great seats and of course, enjoyed some cotton candy... pretty sure that was Abram's favorite part. Lots of crazy stunts. We loved it and will for sure go again!

More Boating...

Some of our best times this summer were out on the boat with the Jewell Family. Well, that one time when the ski rope got caught in the engine and we had to be towed across the ENTIRE lake... that wasn't so fun. But even then the kids were well behaved! It truly amazes me how well four kids under the age of four did on the boat! And when they got tired, they just knocked out! A few weeks ago, the Jewells got a "Caribbean Island"... a huge 'raft' that had a little pool (with a mesh bottom), four chairs, two lounge seats, AND a slide. We would go into a little cove and just hang out for hours. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera these last few times. We went out for probably our last boating trip this past weekend. James is off for training for a few weeks and when he gets back they will be moving to Texas. We are SO sad to be losing our friends (and NOT just because of their boat!). We have had so much fun together this summer. But alas... the Army life... make good friends, and they move away :(

Muddy Buddies

One of David's big tasks when he got home was revamping our backyard. He dug up the whole thing, mostly weeds. Then he laid new seed. As you can see, he had plenty of help in the dirt department. My husband's hot. I love the one of Abram picking weeds between his legs. As a side note, I had JUST finished mopping the kitchen floor and cleaning the bathroom when he called me out to see this spectacular sight. But at least they all had a good time! I was very grateful that David had just buzzed Abram's hair off... The cleaning of Malia's hair... not so easy. But even if it meant more work for mom, it's all about the fun!

Fishing with Papa

One of Malia and David's favorite things to do is take off and go fishing. These pictures were taken early June at Quail Lake in Colorado Springs. Mali LOVES fishing and even baits her own hook! They didn't have much luck here. In fact, they NEVER have luck at Quail Lake. Mali has determined that "all the fish are sleeping". They've also thrown lines out a few times while we've been down at Pueblo Reservoir. Even if they don't have much luck, they love spending the time together.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Spray Ground

More fun with the Jewell family! This time we went off to the Spray Ground at Deerfield Hills Community Center. The guys joined us later because they were being "reintegrated". The kids had a blast.

I'll start with my FAVORITE picture... I sure do love my boys!