Lake Como.

The majority of days on this vacation went like this--get up in the morning, eat breakfast, drive 3-4 hours to a new destination, lunch and several hours of sight seeing/tours, dinner, more sight seeing, then off to bed so we could start the whole process over the next day in a new spot.  Tiring and busy, but we got to see so much this way--and at the end of the day we were exhausted and slept very well.

The drive to Italy from Switzerland was beautiful--tall mountains, long tunnels, steep roads, old towns.  After a fight with our GPS we ended up taking the "back way" to Lake Como (Wanda, our GPS, took us through about 27 roundabouts through the countryside when we could have just stayed on a major road.  Though it was an adventure, I am pretty sure I was sick of hearing her say "at the next roundabout take the second exit").

Me on our balcony--look at those beautifully manicured gardens in the background.

The view of Lecco from the balcony of our our hotel room.

The view of our hotel from the city of Lecco.

Me standing in Lake Como--cool but refreshing.  Have I mentioned yet how hot and humid all of Europe was?

We stayed in Lecco, on the opposite side of Como on Lake Como.  It was beautiful.  I loved the mountains surrounding the lake and the small towns nestled all along the waters edge.  We walked and walked and played in the lake. I can see why celebrities like it here--it really was picturesque. Unfortunately it did rain, so we did not take the ferry to the other side to drive the scenic route to our next Italian destination.

Lausanne, Montreux, and Yvoire.

Three cities, two countries, mountains, and the lake--all on the first day!  After a long day of travel and a good nights rest, Chris, his parents, and I headed out for our first day of sight seeing around Lake Geneva in Switzerland and France (the lake is smack in between the two countries).

We hopped on a big steam boat and rode across the lake to Yvoire, France.  Yvoire is a charming, little town full of shops, restaurants, and tourists.  We walked around, took lots of pictures, ate yummy ice cream, and relaxed while we took in the view.  The lakes here are all this perfect turquoise color--it is just amazing.

Rocks near the boat docks in Yvoire--loved the water color and how green everything is here.

Hydrangeas were everywhere--so beautiful!

No these are not both mine (but yes, I could have eaten them both).  My favorite ice cream of the whole trip, one scoop coconut and one scoop chocolate.

Loved the windows and shutters on this house--and the greenery growing on it was perfect!

Just one of many cute little shops in Yvoire.  I thought the girls would have loved the umbrellas on the wall.

Next stop was the beautiful town of Montruex, Switzerland--located right on the lake just beneath some very tall mountains.  We took a stroll along the walk-way around the lake (full of vendors and people because it was the 2011 Montruex Jazz Festival, odly enough they also have a huge bronze statue on the walk way of Freddie Mercury) and then rode on a cog railway up to the top of the mountains over looking the city.

The Grand Hotel Suisse in Montuex right on the lake.

The cog rail train we rode all the way up the mountain.

Carl, Chris, and Susan at the top overlooking all the mountains.

Us at the top.

This flower/weed was so unusual--it probably has some crazy Dr. Suess type name.

What a view!  This is a different lake in another direction--Lake Geneva is much bigger.

We were so tired that we barely made it home to Lausanne, Switzerland were Chris's mom and dad are staying in the second story of a home near the lake and university.  The next day Chris and I were off to rent the car and head to Italy.

Euopean Trip

Chris was on his way to Europe again this summer--this time to help out his dad, who is currently coaching the Swiss National Volleyball team.  After a week of volleyball for Chris, I was able to head out for two weeks for a whirlwind tour of 6 countries.

My mom and dad graciously offered to watch the girls (and Roxy, the plants, and the house)--it was so nice to have the girls with their grandparents!

After a long, but direct flight to Paris, I took a couple of trains and met Chris in Geneva.  With only a carry-on back pack and a purse (for 2 weeks!).  From there we drove a bunch, saw lots of the countryside, ate tons of pastries and ice cream, and over all had a fun time.  It was fun to visit Chris's parents and see a few new (and some old) sights!

*If you are planning a trip, I will give you a list of what I fit in my bag, what bag I used, and I will tell you how I thought it worked out*

Faces.

Gregg and Camille invited us to the 4th of July party at one of the communities where they own property--Red Ledges.  There was so much to do at the party--dog "sled" rides, horse rides, food, music, tennis, but the girls used all of their time waiting in line for the face painter . . . and for them it was well worth the wait!

My beautiful pink butterfly.

My lovely rainbow butterfly.

When we got home they could not stop looking in the mirror--it was a sad time when we had to wash their faces for bed.

I am thinking of having the girls birthday parties together next year (after the volleyball season ends) and letting the girls invite friends (a first) and having a face painter come!  Presley and Stella loved the idea of course.

Typical.

So, a typical photo opportunity at our house usually consists of the girls acting goofy (funny faces), individual shots, trying to get one together, then drama/tears/red splotchy faces . . . . . . proof in the following pictures.

Probably no modeling in their futures--but for sure acting, they can both turn on/off real tears at will.

Swim.

I LOVE SUMMER.  And this is why . . .

Presley and Guinevere.

Guinevere and Stella.

Guinevere and Ali during their "mom and tots" swim class.

We had such a fun time swimming at the pool with Guinevere today.  I could do it everyday, seriously!

North Carolina.

After a week in South Carolina we headed back to Mooresville, NC and stayed with my sister for a couple more days before we headed home.

Do your kids like to swing as much as Stella does?  She could care less that she was at a birthday party.

I can't think of anything that goes better with the south--rocking chairs!  Maybe Bruster's ice cream . . . I had it 4 times!

Elliott--never looks at the camera (like Stella).

Jonas playing in his dad's VW truck.  Presley got in there too and was fascinated by how the windows rolled up and down (with a crank!).

As always, it was busy and long but in the end I wish we could have stayed a few more days.  Can you believe how big Krista's twins are getting??? 18 months!

Isle of Palms, South Carolina.

I went in with my sister and her friend Angie (and a total of 7 kids) on a beach house in South Carolina, and we had such a great time!  We were upgraded to a house with 4 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms, a big kitchen, back and front porches--and the best part, 200 yards in one direction to the beach and 200 yards in the other direction to the pools!

I threw Stella in with water-wings and she took to it like a pro.

Presley was too busy in the pool to get any good pictures . . . Stella getting a feel for the wings.

A quick pose before hitting the waves and sand.

Sand and shovels.

My sweetie.

More shovels and sand.

I have a zillion photos of Presley and her Sports Illustrated swimsuit poses--yikes!

I think she is about to tackle me in this photo.

Running (and screaming) from the waves.

Did I mention she loves the beach??

Not afraid of the waves (thank goodness the shoreline was so shallow).

Again with the shovels and sand (pretty soon she is so covered in sand it is ridiculous).

One of the only pictures of the girls together--digging in the sand of course.

I am sure there is still sand in her ears and various other places.

Pink zinc-oxide sunscreen (I thought it would be more HOT pink, instead after a while the pink just looked like a sunburn).

Presley's turn with the shovel.

Lots of heat and humidity mixed with lots of sunscreen and sand!  It was loud and crazy but amazingly everything went very well--I can't wait to do it again!

Cheap.

So, I know Crocs aren't the most fashionable shoes--but for the girls they are practical, easy to get on, and last forever.  Not to mention with the outlet here we can sometimes find them pretty cheap.  Well, a couple of months ago I found the cutest Crocs, but too bad for us they were triple the price I am willing to pay.

After many times checking back to see if they had gone on sale, today I found them in the $10 bin and in both the sizes/color I needed for the girls!  Cheap, cute, right size--we got lucky.

Here's to cute shoes . . . if only I could find the same characteristics in my shoes (cheap, cute, and right size).

The News.

We have news--well, Chris has news.

Chris has just been hired as the head coach for the BYU men's volleyball team!  We are proud of him and know that this will mean even more time away from home--but it should be fun and we are going to make it work.  Presley even told me she was happy about going to more volleyball games, but "we had to take 2 cars so that we could leave and dad can stay to talk".

Let me know if you want seats--the season starts in January.  And please put me in the mommy trading pool--it is going to be a lot harder to get a hair cut, a pedicure, or a minute to do a few things for myself.