Adventure is Out There....

For Labor Day we decided we wanted to get away- but where to? We tossed around going to Omaha, NE or to the Black Hills to see Mt. Rushmore. Then jokingly, Kevin said lets go to Arizona. So, just for fun I looked up flights- $44/person!?! LETS GO! We hurried up to pack us all, got a steel on a hotel and rental car- it was meant to be! We decided to go on Thursday at 10:30 am and our flight left at 8:55 pm. I let my sister in law, Danielle we were on our way and not to tell the rest of Kevin's family so we could surprise them. It was a great surprise!
We had a great weekend filled with family, heat, yummy food, and hitting up our favorite spots we used to go to when we dated and were newly married. Labor Day weekend was also the anniversary of our engagement, so we went to lunch at JW Marriott Scottsdale Camelback Inn Resort and Spa- where we had our wedding reception. We try to go back overtime we're in town, but this was the first time we've taken the kids.
We've always said we wanted to be more adventurous and spontaneous and it was perfect that we were blessed to make it work!

Luke First Day of Preschool

I can't believe my little man is in preschool! He loved his fist day, I believe he was the only kid that cried when it was time to go home! His teacher is amazed at how he knows the names of car brands and can name them correctly from the window that looks out to the parking lot, he makes his Dad and Grandma proud ; )
As of day one of preschool Luke wants to be a Policeman.

Best Be Watchin' Out...

Kevin and I made a trip down to Ft. Collins with my parents and stopped at a shooting range.  It was a lot of fun for the four of us to go shooting, something Kevin and I haven't done together since we had the kiddos. Don't mess with us!

Camping in Yellowstone

Though we had a lot of fun this summer, the frosting on the cake by far was our trip to Yellowstone. We planned this trip for 6 months and we're sober excited about this adventure. We were originally making this a combo-family camping trip but sadly a month prior to the trip the other family wasn't able to make it, so it ended up just being our family- couldn't ask for it to be any better! We decided to rent a 5th Wheel trailer in Jackson Hole- little kids in bear infested territory, just seemed like the best idea. (which ended up being a wise choice as there was a bear attack not far from where we were camping.)

The trip like most memorable family trips started out to be a flop slightly- cold, rainy, and no animals out! However, the weather turned in our favor and the animals came out to play! IT WAS GREAT! We were able to see most of the park, lots of animals and all the famous hot springs- Mammoth and Old Faithful. Luke called Old Faithful the "rocket ship geyser," love his 4 yr old mind!
Kevin and Luke tested their luck last fishing in Yellowstone- sadly they didn't catch anything, but got good practice. We got out of the car and explored some of nature on little "hikes". It was a great fun filled weekend full of memories , GORGEOUS scenery, and great family time before the summer came to a close!

 

Baby Boo is ONE!

On July 25th our little Eliza Hope turned ONE! I can't believe how fast that went, I swear it goes by fast with each kid! Eliza has been such a joy to our family. She has Kevin wrapped around her finger. She LOVES Luke. She likes to cuddle. She loves being the center of attention. She's a super good eater. She loves bath time. She enjoys being tickled. She says three words- momma, dada, and oops.

To celebrate Eliza's Birthday we had a flamingo themed party. This little girl wasn't shy about eating her smash cake thats for sure! She had a blast and was full of smiles!

 

"Daddy of Them All"

They call it the "Daddy of Them All!" Cheyenne days is just that defiantly hold up its reputation, we've been able to go for a couple of the CFD celebrations while living here and every time its more fun as the last! Our first CFD event this year was going the Thunderbirds Air Show. This show features the best 6 piolets from the US Airforce doing all the tricks in these sober fast, and LOUD planes. My parents always join us for CFD, which is always great. I love seeing my kids with their "Nana and Grandpa," they have a special bond-especially Luke and Grandpa.
We then left Eliza with a babysitter for couple nights and hit up two of the CFD concerts- Alabama and Toby Keith. Luke had fun dancing and sing all the pyro affects! As well as I must say my little man makes the CUTEST cowboy!

More visitors...More fun!

Sadly I didn't capture too many pictures of our second set of visitors : (  We were blessed to have more of Kevin's family from Arizona to stop by! Sherri (Kevin's older sister) and her family came to spend a few days with us! Once again it was a great for my kiddos to spend time with cousins that they aren't too close with because of the massive distance between them. I of course planned tons of fun outdoorsy activities so that our Arizona family could see what it was like to enjoy summer outside without melting ;) Well, of course it decided to rain most of the time they were here...boo! So we had to go with Plan B...enjoying the Laramie Tourist Destinations, yup you heard it!
Our first stop was to the Wyoming Territorial Prison. This prison is famous for a lot things, the most of which is it was the site where Butch Cassidy spent some time. I was honestly very skeptical of housing the prison, but it was very interesting and the kiddos had a fun, especially when we were able to "lock" them up!

 Our next stop was the Univisty of Wyoming Dinosaur Musem and then we were off the Ivinson Mansion. It was a great time exploring the towns "pride and joys." We were able to go out on a picnic in the mountains, but it was short lived as the rain came. You'll just have to come back again Castle Family!

Small Town...Big Fun!

For the 4th of July we made the trip to good 'ol Dubois, Wyoming where my parents live. We were surprised to see that my brother and his family also made the trip from California. It was a blast, especially for the kiddos to spend time with their cousin that they don't get to see very often. My parents ALWAYS make spending time at their home relaxing and enjoyable! My mom took the kiddos on a little ride on one of their newest horses- Tonto! Luke was for sure loving every minute of being a cowboy, Eliza was a little more hesitant.
Grandpa got all the older kids together: Eva, Johnny and Luke and took them in the Rapter for a little ride behind their property-I LOVE the beauty the town of Dubois offers- it may be a tiny,  "don't blink" town, but it is BEAUTIFUL!
We decided to take the kiddos fishing for the first time. Luke caught not one but TWO fishes! We did "catch and release" so once Luke caught the second fish he said (referring to the first fish) "It came back!"  The kiddos had a blast seeing the fish, play the worms, and just get dirty!
We had a fun time ending our time in Dubois by making s'mores and going the 4th of July Dubois parade.  I'm so glad our kiddos got to spend quality time with my brothers family who they don't get to see as often as I'd like.

Beginning of Summer 2015

This summer was a BLAST!! It was the first summer in the 6 years that Kevin and I have been together that one of us wasn't taking summer school or working (outside of our job that we can work from anywhere with internet), thus it needed to be celebrated and lived to the fullest!
We started the summer out with picnics in the park- Laramie in the summer is the BEST!

Kevin started his summer break with a BIG "honey-do" project- building a picnic table and benches for our patio to be used with all of our summer visitors!
Our first set of vistors were Nana and Dano (Kevin's mom and sister, Danielle). They were able to escape the Arizona summer for a week and enjoy summer at 7220 ft. We had a fabulous week full of hiking in Medicine Bow,  girls spa day, pool day at the Laramie Rec Center, and exploring the Denver Zoo! It was a fun filled week thats for sure!

 

Soccer Star

Luke has been on his first team sport. He participated in a 6 week rec soccer team. It was a blast watching all those little 3-4 yr old play attempt soccer! Of course Luke had a blast just being part of something- and we as a family had even more fun supporting him at all his games/practices. The best part for Luke by far- getting his first EVER metal!Not sure if we have a future US Soccer player on our hands, but we try it again next season!

Monthly Menu Planning 101

I've gotten a lot of questions on how I do my monthly menus. It all began when we lived in Arizona and we would easily spend OVER $500/mnth on groceries for a family of three (and Luke was just a baby-so really just for a family of two). As I started watching where our grocery money was going I soon realize we were making weekly visits to Costco- which for us is dangerous- too many fun things, way too easy to leave there spending $100 more than expected.  I also remember that when it came to dinner time I would stand in from of the fridge with a blank look on my face trying to figure out what I would make for dinner. Dinners are hard for our family- because of our work schedules we have to have dinner at a specific time EVERY night. I would waste too much time with that blank stare and then by then we had to eat something, which sadly resulted in a lot of money spent on fast food. So not only were we spending a lot on groceries we also spent a lot on fast food which resulted in a lot of unhealthy choices.
I was talking to my sister-in-law about our dilemma-she had a family of 5 at the time and introduced me to monthly meal planning, couponing (not crazy like the people on tv), and doing ONE BIG shopping trip/month. This concept blew my mind- ONE BIG SHOPPING TRIP-how do you do that right? Well get ready to have your mind blown ;)

The first step that I've done is make a Master Grocery List- this list has most items that we buy at the grocery store- Ive left blank spaces under each category so that if I'm making something new that has ingredients not listed on my master sheet I can add them. I've put most things on this list from what we usually get at Sams Club (no Costco near us anymore) to personal items.

I then print out a calendar for the month that I need to work on. Then I get to work. I can honestly say this isn't my favorite task by far as a wife/mother but it has PAYED OFF! I usually do this on a day where I have a good amount of spare time- usually on a Sunday, but today I was sick so I had some free time on my hands. I get all the things I need: my Master Grocery List, my calendar, favorite cook books, and my computer open to Pinterest- they always have good ideas. 

After I gather everything together, its time to fill up my calendar. I go through and write down the dinner item on the calendar while highlighting the needed ingredient on my Mater Grocery List. If Im using a recipe from a cookbook or from Pinterest- I always note the pg. number, what cook book, or recipe on Pinterest- that way I'm not scrambling to find that recipe again.

Pretty soon you'll have a whole months worth a dinner and your grocery list ready to go!

Doing this system we've easily cut at least $200/month off of groceries and fast food, hubby can start dinner preparations if needed with everything being planned out, I'm not waisting hours and hours and the grocery store on a weekly basis- which anyone with a toddler can appreciate! To answer some of the odds and ends:
-Do you really only go shopping once a month? No. I still usually have to go and get milk and produce throughout the month. But I do everything else all at once.
-What if you don't feel like what you've planned for that night? That's happen many of times, the great thing is- you have several days planned out that you can switch a meal out for AND you'll have all the items needed for whatever you've switch for since you did one big shopping trip.
Coupons have also helped us save too. It was easier to get coupons in Arizona than Wyoming, but there are coupon clipping services online that you can go through, the one I've used is ww.klip2save.com 
Like I said I dont go crazy with this-my basement isn't full of a stockpile. I usually only get the ones I need, 
with having a master grocery list done that helps you know what coupons you need. 
I hope this idea will help another family out as much as it has helped mine! Ive found we just get what we need
type of a thing instead of wondering the store trying to think of meals and saying "oh this looks good."

Reunited and It Feels So Good!

After a week in California away from Kevin and Luke- I couldn't wait to see them! We decided I would fly with Eliza to Utah and Kevin and Luke would make the 6 hr drive from Laramie to meet me there and we'd enjoy a weekend together as a family in Salt Lake. I  was greeted at the airport with Luke giving me the biggest hug- Kevin gave me one too. I missed those two!
We started our weekend off by visiting with our Mission President, his wife and some of the missionaries we served with over 5 years ago! Crazy how time flys! It was great playing catch up and introducing our family to everyone.
On Saturday we had lunch with one of my good friends from when I lived out there and then headed to Temple Square for the evening. We went to The Rooftop Restaurant where we had an amazing dinner buffet and an even more amazing view of Temple Square and of Downtown Salt Lake City. it was Kevin and the kiddos first trip to Temple Square- it was a beautiful night to walk around the grounds, spend time together after a week apart, and see all the beautiful flowers.
It was a great weekend spent together- we hope to have more weekend get aways soon!