The Larsen Family

Halloween 2010

2010-11-17T21:41:00.000-08:00

I know this is long over due and I have a lot of catching up to do~ I will start with Halloween because it is my favorite! I love carving pumpkins and this year we got together with our friends the Bennetts....which was great, because besides the great company....I got everyones pumpkin seeds!! ( It's all about the seeds)!

The finished pumpkins!

HALLOWEEN!

Berkley and her friends Eli and Brian

Berk and Joce

I just love this picture of Berk. I love her eyes!

The flapper and the Banana!

Yep....she IS taller than me!

My fun, fun neighbors and friends!

I love this picture taken by my friend Melissa.

Easter

2010-04-16T23:20:00.001-07:00

I love Easter in my neighborhood! Once again, my friend and neighbor puts on the BEST egg hunt ever!!! The kids look forward to it all year long! This year was even better, because the kids had their good friends( and our old neighbors) the Hinsons back from Seattle! Good friends!

Getting ready for the hunt

Britton won an "Army" basket this year.......how perfect was that!

Berkley was a Big winner this year! She won this BIG bunny!

and she won a PEEPS basket!

My great neighbors Angie and Kraig! Berkley loves them.....so do we!

Thanks for a great Easter!

My great neighbors! I am so lucky to also have them as friends!

Our 'North Pole Experience"

2009-12-30T18:11:00.001-08:00

This year we took a weekend get-a-way to Greer, Arizona for the "North Pole Experience". This package included 2 nights in our own private cabin, dinner, a trip to the North Pole to Santas work shop and breakfast one morning! We had such a great time and Jeff and I loved it as much as the kids!

Berk loved the ice sculpture at the dessert table!

The Candy Cane Express that will take us to the North Pole!

Berk and I on the trolley

The "Toy Hall of Fame"

The head elf " Alabaster snowflake" telling all the kids what to expect in santas workshop!

Making toys with the elves

Britton and kids in a sleigh with the elves

Britton and Jeff in the trolley for the ride back to the lodge for story time with Mrs. Clause

Breakfast the next morning with Santa! All the kids gathered in front of a big fireplace talking to Santa.

Our cabin! It was really a nice cabin.....but it was a little cold!

We were lucky that there was snow.....not a ton, but enough to make the kids so happy!

There was a sled at the cabin and the kids made jeff pull them around for hours! It was so funny to watch....Jeff was beat!

WIPE OUT!!!!!!

After hours playing in the snow....the kids warm up in the hot tub! We were lucky to get a cabin with a hot tub.....but I would have traded it for a cabin with a heater....not just a gas fireplace! It was 6 degrees when we woke up in the morning....and the fireplace had gone out in the night! BRRRRR!

A great stream at the Greer lodge~ they had great cabins and really good food~ that is where we will stay when we make it back to Greer~

Halloween

2009-11-09T07:11:00.001-08:00

As most of you know, Halloween is one of my favorite times of the year! I love carving pumpkins and making pumpkin seeds....I love the costumes and the CANDY!!!!! Jeff was really into the pumpkin carving this year~

Britton actually put his hand in the pumpkin......last year he wouldn't touch it!

OUR PUMPKINS!

The kids getting ready to Trick or Treat

Britton as a clone trooper! Britton is not such a big fan of Halloween! He went down the street and that was enough for him...off came the costume and he took over handing out the candy and loved evey min. of it! We had a lot more kids than usual this year and and started to run out of candy....britton ran and got his small bag of candy and started to pass it out! He gave it all away... is that sweet or what!

Berk was a White ghost this year and I thought she looked awesome!

We were luck to have our old neighbors here for Halloween. The kids were so happy to have the Hinson's here!

Our fun neighborhood party!

So lucky to have such great neighbors and friends!

2009-10-28T11:45:00.000-07:00

We had a great time in Salt Lake this summer. I got to spend time with my family and friends, then had a great reunion with the Larsen Family. It has been almost 7 years since we left SLC, but it still feels like home. Thanks for the great time everyone!

My family

The Larsen Family reunion. It was so great to see everyone and to see the kids together.

Grandmas Garden is the place to be!

Fun in the Mountains

A day at Cowabunga bay.

Britton loved the water slides....he would get off and start running to do it again!

Berkley and Austin had so much fun together Grandma took the girls to get their toes done...they were so cute!

Britton loves Presley!

our vacation and this is how Jeff spent most of his time......

Picture day with the cousins....everyone looked so cute!

A fun day at Snowbird...I was so excited to ride the Alpine slide....the kids loved it too!

We had to see the Jonas Brothers concert again this year....this time it was just the girls! They were so exci

After the concert all the girls got the same shirt!

We went to Newport beach for my cousins wedding ( Thank you Vickie for watching the kids) It was such a fun get a way and so fun that all my family was there! Jeff really cleans up well!

So glad to see my Brother and to meet his cute girlfriend ( no pictures because she got really sick and had to miss all the fun.....later to find out it was her apendix)

Me and my sis on the beach

lunch on the pier

Britton wants to take golf lessons so we decided to start out with mini golf .....we had such a good time and it was perfect October weather!

2009-06-28T09:03:00.001-07:00

We have been busy since my last post...family visits....Britton's 7th Birthday....more family....end of the school year...Berkley's 10th Birthday...and a few get-a ways too! Here is a look at the Larsen family spring/summer....i know it is a lot to look at!

We took a trip to San Diego over Father's Day....we had such a great time, even though the weather wasn't so great.

These were in our hotel room when we checked in....they were so cute!

We went to the sealife aquarium

on Father's Day we went on a tour of the Midway. It was amazing!

We took the kids to Legoland.....the lego displays were amazing...the rides were just ok.

the kids were the most happy at the beach....it was only in the mid 60's but they didn't care!

I was on the beach in long pants, a jacket and wrapped in a towel....they were playing in the water!

Sunset in Del Mar

We took a little day trip up to Sedona....

Nice, comfortable ROCK chairs.

So great to spend time with my family!

Watch out Berk!

We were so lucky to have so many people to help us celebrate Berkley's Birthday....

Fun to celebrate with the cousin's....and glad to have baby Easton here!

fun with the family.....

I love my Grand Parent's so much and was so glad they came out for a visit!

Our trip to the Grand Canyon....a little stressful with britton...the boy doesn't walk anywhere....just runs and jumps....not a great idea at a place like this!!! We had a little rain...but a great family get-a way!

here is the sad loss of Berkle's bird.....as much as I didn't want a bird.....I became quite fond of that little thing....and Berk was so crushed.

such a heart breaker to see those sad eyes!

We were so lucky to have Jackie and Joce come for a visit...we had such a great time and were so happy to meet presley.....Britton just loved her!

A fun visit with my family...my Dad and Sister oth came down for a visit! It was nice to have everyone (just missing my Brother) together!

Our trip to the Bahamas

2009-03-25T11:31:00.000-07:00

The Big Day!

2008-12-14T15:59:00.000-08:00

Berkley and Britton won a contest to meet Mitchell Musso ( from Hanna Montana ). They were so excited to actually meet a star from a show they watch often. On the way to the meet and greet, Berkley said to me " Mom... is it normal for my heart to be beating in my throat" It was a fun day, even for me!

Carving pumpkins and Halloween

2008-11-14T15:56:00.000-08:00

This year it was so fun to carve pumkins with the family. The kids had such a great time.

I love to do pumkins... especially when we can carve outside.

Berk was so into carving and pulling out the insides... that's my girl.

Jeff and Britton getting ready to carve.... Britton wouldn't touch the insides... so jeff had to do it.

Justin digging in!

here is Berk....again!

Gabe was so funny with the pumkins....i love his little face in this picture.

It was fun for the kids to have both grandmas' here to carve pumkins

Grandma hard at work.

The brothers hard at work....It should come as no surprise....justin's pumpkin was the best.

The kids painted mini pumkins while the adults did the carving.

The finished pumkins.

This is Berkley's transformation from a sweet little girl to a wicked witch!

My friend Angie passed on the witch costume to Berkley and did her amazing make up....the fake nose and chin were the best.

Turning green!

What happened to my beautiful girl?

It was fun to have grandma Larsen here for halloween.

Grandma Molly was an ugly witch too!

Fun to have the cousins together for trick or treating! It was a warm night so it made it much so fun!

Better Late Than Never!

2008-11-08T14:48:00.000-08:00

Ok! I am not so good at blogging! Here is a look at what we have been up too. This is a journey backwards.... starting with the first weeks of Oct. ending with the first weeks of Aug.

We took the kids to Las Vegas over a long weekend in Oct. It was really fun! The kids thought the hotels were really cool. Of all the weekends to go, this wekkend was FREEZING! It was in the high 50's and our Arizona blood just couldn't take it!

Having lunch at the Harley Davidson cafe. The kids loved all the motorcycles.

This was everybody's favorite. The water show at the Belagio is always great to see.

It looks like we are just posing for these pictures, but we are really just trying to stay warm as we wait for the pirate show to start. ( which they cancelled due to the wind!)

We went to the aquarium at the Mandalay Bay and it was really cool. We stayed at the circus circus and after walking through mandalay bay, I didn't want to leave.

Berkley touching a sting ray.

Berk and Britton playing in the game room at circus circus. We spent a lot of time here....and a lot of money!

Berkley went on a field trip to Chase Field and they gave everyone tickets to the Diamondbacks game that night. This was their first professional baseball game and they were so excited! All Berkley's classmates were sitting in the same section ( the nose bleed section) which made it really fun for everyone ,because we all knew each other.

Our camping trip with Justin and Amber.... the kids had so much

The next generation of Utah fans!

The kids had so much fun getting dirty.... Berkley was covered from head to toe!

SUCH A CLEAN GIRL!

Berkley and Britton on the first day of school

Our summer fun!!

2008-09-02T13:31:00.000-07:00

well, I know it has been forever since my last Blog...... things have been crazy with the new buisness and well, just life in general... so here is a look at the larsen's summer!

Berkley is really into the Jonas Brothers... so when we found out they were comming to Phoenix...we had no choice but to get tickets! ( sorry for the double picture.)

This was Berkley and Brittons first concert.....they were so excited.

ROCK ON!!!!!
How cute is that.... she was loving this....Britton said" MOM...I CAN'T TAKE THE SCREAMING GIRLS! " believe me there were thousands of screaming girls!
Of course britton couldn't help but dance!
Berkley didn't know they had an opening band and when she found out the singer was Demi Lavato, she went crazy! She is a big fan of the show Camp Rock..( thats Demi on the keyboard)

The Jonas Brothers
Looks like the kids aren't the only ones having a good time....jeff's a fan too!

We didn't get out much this summer due to the fact that jeff is always working.....so the kids and my mom and I took a drive up to Flagstaff to see my sister and escape the HEAT. We went to lake Mary and the kids couldn't stay out of the water.

We spent a lot of time in the pool this summer....it's the only way to survive the heat.

over Memorial day we were lucky to have lots of family visit. Justin and Amber, My grand parents, my dad and my sister and bob all came , it made it super fun to have so many people here to help berkley celebrate her 9th birthday.

Cass and berk with their pink goggles.

I had to take pictures of Jeff and Justin putting the stickers on the company truck..
only jeff would get out his tape measure....

There it is the company logo.....and it only took about 40 min. to put on the sticker, Amber and I were laughing so hard.... it must be a Larsen thing.....

THE BIG EGG HUNT!!!!!

2008-04-07T15:33:00.000-07:00

This is the BIG egg hunt we have told you about. Our neighbors put this together every year and the kids (ok, the adults too!) look forward to it months in advance. It is always crazy and we didn't get many pictures of the kids( imagine taking photos in the middle of the running of the bulls.)

There were almost 2,000 filled eggs spread out around the yard, some with candy, some with small toys, about 1,000 were filled with "grab bag" tickets you turn in at the end of the hunt for bigger prizes like stuffed animals, large filled Easter baskets ,movies and even webkins (which had Berkley going crazy)

THE PEZ WALL.

The event started at 10:00 with champagne and munchies, 11:00 is the egg hunt and after that is the potluck brunch. I had to guess there were about 150 people at the egg hunt and most stayed the whole day.

Berk and Britton getting ready to start.

THE LINE UP.....BY AGE OF COURSE

AND THEIR OFF...........

We had a great time and the weather was just beautiful (in the 80's).

We hope everyone had a wonderful Easter.

Coloring Easter Eggs.

2008-04-07T15:18:00.000-07:00

For all of you NOT in Arizona, this is the way to color eggs! Outside in the great March weather!

Britton went through his eggs really fast so he got to hang out while Berkley took her time coloring hers. Eventually he went back and re-colored his eggs.

SNOW DAY!

2008-01-22T20:15:00.000-08:00

Living in Arizona, the only element we have to endure is heat. So, we decided to head for the snow. We packed up what snow gear we could find (which wasn't much) and set out for my sister's house in Flagstaff.

BERKLEY THE SNOW BUNNY!!!

Britton has been in Az since he was 6months old.. the last time we were in Utah for Christmas, he was too young to remember the snow. The pictures can't show the true excitement that he had, it almost made me cry! SNOW was something that I couldn't wait to get away from and yet it could bring so much joy to Britton.

Berk & Britton couldn't wait to get out and play in the snow....couldn't wait the few seconds it would take to put on their coats. The temp. was 30 degrees.....BRR.

Britton's first snowman ever! Berk's first that she can remember!

They just couldn't get enough of the snow!

Just taking a little rest.

Britton and his aunt"sissy".

Since it was a few days after my B-day, we had a little party.Went out to dinner, had ice cream cake (my favorite) and even this giant balloon. After dinner the walk to the car was a "KILLER" I was sooo cold!! It became clear to me that night....I can never leave Phoenix!!!!

Britton getting a ride on uncle Bob's shoulders...Poor Bob, is that a monkey on your back?

Nothing like a little HOT CHOCOLATE to end the day!

more Belize

2008-01-07T07:47:00.000-08:00

I had to add more pictures from our trip to Belize. I loved the country and all the people we met. the locals were so friendly and made us feel welcome. The only negative thing I can say was the bugs loved me!!! I was covered with sand fly bites that are like mosquitoes only ten times worse. Britton said you could play connect the dots with all the bug bites on my body.( I even wore bug spray every day.) This was an unforgettable vacation....

A bite to eat on barefoot beach ... as you can see the dress code is very casual..
THATS BRITTON, NEED I SAY MORE....

Waiting for a bite to eat, the kids were not to happy we made them get out of the water.

A stroll along the beach was a daily event.

Waiting for lunch on our patio. We needed a break from the sun..

Looling out from the pier... our favorite spot..

CHEERS!!!!!!

The pier again.....

My little fish...in for a swim.

The view from our room at sunset.. It was really hard to see this everyday....

Again my little show off doing a dance on the dock....is anyone surprised?

Our trip to Belize

2008-01-06T09:50:00.000-08:00

Here is a look at our trip to Belize. We thought about all our friends and family back in the cold weather and were glad we were in the sun. Hope everyone had a great Christmas and Happy New Year.

Out to lunch at a resturant on the beach, the kids found a log to play on while we waited for our food.

This iguana was sunning on the steps below our room. It was there every day and not at all afraid of us. Berkley named him Leo.

The kids fishing with their new friends off the pier. There were tons of kids at the resort, that made it nice for jeff and I.

We loved this pier and spent a lot of time out here. We would watch the fish and jellyfish float by, watch the waves or fishing. We even had a candlelight dinner out here!!

Looking out at the beautiful ocean.

You would think Berk & Britton would be tired of swimming... but no...I swear they are part fish!!!

This is a pictue of the villas, they were so incredible. They would put fresh flowers in our room every day and serve us food and drinks anywhere on the grounds. I really miss that!

Our family in front of the resort. Sorry for the sideways picture.

ISN'T THIS THE LIFE!!!!!! A HAMMOCK ON THE BEACH!!!

This is not a trick, jeff is really in the ocean!! He was trying to be brave for the kids!!

It only took us five days to get the kids in the ocean, it was so warm! Britton got stung on the foot by something, I hope he will ever get in again!!!

This is the small plane we took from belize city to Placencia, the kids thought it was so cool.

IT'S FINALLY HERE!!!!!!

2008-01-05T16:48:00.000-08:00

Well, we finally did it! I know you thought you would never see a Larsen family blog, but here it is. I had hoped to put in past pictures from camping, halloween, etc. but as you may know, we are not really computer smart and in fixing a problem with Jeff's computer we lost all of our downloaded pictures! So here is what we have......

Berkley and Britton making a gingerbread house with grandma!
And the kids opening pj's on christmas eve.