Melissa's Early Birthday

Melissa's birthday isn't until June 22, but we wanted to celebrate with her while she was here.  We also wanted Austin to be here to share in the birthday party.  After we got home from Chatfield and while Melissa was in the shower, we hung up some streamers and a Happy Birthday sign.  She was so suprised when she came downstairs!  She asked, "Who is having a birthday?" and we said, "YOU!"

Austin had told us Melissa wanted a pool pass so she could go swimming every day (or almost every day), so that is what we gave her for a gift.  We had Austin buy it in Texas and then we wrapped it up when he got here.  She was so happy, she started doing a little dance.

She also got these flip flops and some headbands.  Happy Birthday Melissa!  We love you!

Jet Ski

Everyone was very excited to Jet Ski!  The Palmers love the water and we can't ever get enough swimming and playing in the water. We didn't even get them out last year because we didn't have enough drivers.
 

The girls are ready for some fun!  Hang on tight--Denya's driving!

 

Britta is ready for a wild and crazy ride with Denya at the wheel.

 

The happy Palmer family enjoy being at the lake.

 

Austin is looking a little nervous...as he should be after getting dumped 6 times!  Melissa also sacrified a pair of sun glasses to the Sea Gods.  Does that give you any hints about what kind of a driver she is?

Sooo cute!
 

Claire says, "I want a turn! I even have my life jacket on!"

Claire is reaching for the water--"Let me in!" she says,

Blake goes for a swim.

Claire is a water baby!! She loved wading in the water and smiled and laughed.

Grandpa and Claire enjoy sitting on the beach and watching all the action.

Blake and Ryan are making their own lake. What a fun filled day--we love Chatfield!

At the Pool

We all love to swim!  We went to the Castle Pines pool, one of our favorite places.  It is a neighborhood pool that only residents can use.  My good friend, Rhonda Smith, lets us swim here, and we have been using this pool for years.  The kids love it because it has deep water--10 feet.  Most of the newer pools in Castle Rock only go 5 feet deep.

 

Claire loves to swim as well, she is a true Palmer! But what else could you expect from a girl whose parents met on the swim team at BYU-I.

 

She kicked and splashed and smiled the entire time.  We had a baby float, but she didn't like it all--she preferred to just swim on her own, with a little help from Mom.

 

Taking a break with Uncle Blake.

 

"This is the life," says Claire.  A warm, sunny day, a chair by the pool, and a container of Cheerios.  What more could a girl want?

 

Claire and her Dad having lots of fun!

 

Denya and Melissa could almost pass for sisters.  They have a lot in common, their looks as well as their interests.  They enjoyed swimming together.
 

Ryan got this new snorkeling set and was so excited to try it out.  We had a perfect day with lots of sun and enjoyed our time together.

Spring Hail Storm

The night after Austin and Melissa got here, we had a huge hail storm!  This is more in character with Texas weather than Colorado weather.

The hail was about as big as marbles--Wow!

This is the low roof by the front porch.  There was so much slush and hail, it looked almost like snow.  This weather can stay in Texas--a little intense and scary for us!

A Visit to the Denver Aquarium

Austin, Melissa, and Claire are here for a visit--Yay!  Austin will be here for a week, then it's back to Texas for him.  Melissa and Claire will be staying for another week.  We have a lot fun planned while they are here.  We decided to go to the Denver Aquarium.  The last time we went, Ryan was in a stroller and it was called Ocean Journey. It's definitely time to see all the fish again.

   

Of course, Austin had to try out the Big Squirt. It felt good to get a little wet on such a hot day.

Denya is petrified of snakes, and this sign gave her plenty to worry about.  Blake, on the other hand, got a chuckle out of how worried Denya was.

This is one of the snakes the sign was warning us about.  He was slithering all around his cage and gave us a good show.  When we see snakes at the zoo, they are usually sleeping or just coiled up and taking it easy, so it was fun to see such an active one.  Except for Denya.  She passed by the exhibit with her back towards the snakes.

Lots of different kinds of fish!

The cute Palmer girls enjoying their time at the Aquarium!

I loved this colorful display of sea life.  The spiky things reminded us of koosh balls.

We really enjoyed the Mermaid Show--it was was amazing! The mermaids could do all kinds of tricks and flips. It was incredible how long they could hold their breath. They mouthed the words to a little show about keeping the ocean clean.

The Mermaid Show was probably our favorite part of the visit.

Claire was fascinated by this fish. It was so cute how she put her hands up on the tank. Maybe she thought she could touch it!

This sign offered the experience to dive with the sharks! Yikes!

No takers on swimming with the sharks--he might want us for lunch!  Although watching them was Ryan's favorite part of the Aquarium.

Of course, Blake had to take a picture with all the pirate booty. We had a very enjoyable afternoon.