It's Twinsanity: Better late than never

We visited my dad back in May and I'm finally getting around to posting pictures of our trip. We also went hiking every weekend this spring, took a mini vacation, celebrated a graduation, and did a lot of other fun things that I never posted.

My parents divorced when I was a kid and I was blessed that they still had a good relationship when I was growing up. I was devastated when my dad moved from Virginia to Denver shortly after I graduated from high school. I absolutely love Colorado and it's always fun to take a trip to visit him, but I've found that I just don't get to see him much because he is so far from the rest of our family. All of Jason's family and the rest of my family live in the same area and we see them whenever we make a trip back "home."

Needless to say, leaving Denver is always the worst part of our trip. There are tears and nobody wants to say good-bye.

Actually, we ended up staying for an extra day during this trip because my kids were so distraught at the thought of leaving. They are all quite fond of Granddad With No Hair.

Joshua was not wanting his picture taken... he preferred to hide behind the tree until I pulled him out.

Just hanging out... stalling so we don't have to leave.

Here are a few random pictures from the 4th of July...

Trying to get seven kids to sit still for a photo is like herding cats. And, yes, my oldest son has black feet.

Jason's graduation was back in May too. I don't know why I never posted about it. We are all so incredibly proud of him. He graduated with honors from the University of Arizona. He has worked his tail off for the last ten years to put himself through college, first taking classes at night to get his associate degree and then completing his bachelor's degree. Between learning to fluently speak a foreign language (Farsi) and raising 6 kids he has somehow managed to get an education and establish a career. He's pretty amazing.

When Jason walked across the stage at graduation, they read the little statement he gave them. "I'd like to thank my family for always giving me time to study." Ha. Always sarcastic, that's my husband. Anyone who has ever been in a house with seven kids knows that it is never quiet and you never have time to study. And in this very tiny house, Jason's desk is in our living room so you know he has not had a moment of peace or quiet in the last two years.

During the week of graduation we also took a family trip to Tucson with my dad. Yes, we go to Tucson almost every week but this was a vacation. My brother even showed up for a couple of days.