4th of July

July 4th 2008 was a very memorable event at the Zarbock's...unlike any we have had in a long time. All were invited for an evening of yard and water games, followed by kabob's on the grill and a spectacular fireworks show presented by the boyz. Jake and Ann Despain, as well as Grandma and Grandpa Zarbock were on had for the fun as well. It was a thrill to have them join us.


All of the men turned into boys and the littlest boys held their own in an epic water battle. The giant water slide served as home base where water guns and blasters were loaded and reloaded as they fought, every man for himself, sometimes ganging up on an unarmed onlooker.

Carson and Dawson opted for a little towel time to dry off and watch their crazy dads, uncles and cousins.

The water games seemed to be winding down, the hot July sun had taken it's toll on the warriors...then, he joined the fun...yes, that would be father, grandfather and to some, great-grand father. Grandpa without being noticed, turned on the hose on the east side of the house and joined the fight with an unending supply of water ammunition. He was a worthy opponent, and his "Are we having fun yet" tank top really said it all.

Nothing like a little father son bonding :)

Dinner featuring "make your own" kabobs was spectacular.

And, the amazing patriotic trifle made by the beautiful Tiffany was to die for. I also absolutely loved the burnt almond fudge home-made ice cream that Katie added to the dessert options.

All the fun in the sun and water lead to sleepwalking boys eating their chocolate popsicles in dreamland.

And then, on to the home made fireworks show. Dawson, very sure to run from the lit fireworks as quickly as possible.

Katie and Amy were less than thrilled by the show that the box of Costco fireworks could muster...but the boyz did their best and had a blast.

The Finale!

All in all it was a fantastic day and will hopefully be repeated in years to come, as the number of Zarbock and Long boys continues to increase. I don't even know if we would know what to do with a baby girl :)

Zarbock Family Reunion

On Monday night, all of the Zarbock's and Hood's got together for an the annual BBQ at the park. Of course, the party turned into a waterfight with Zak as public enemy #1 for all of the cousins.

I guess you can't really call it a BBQ, it was actually more like a pot luck with dishes ranging from Pizza, chili-queso dip, veggies and of course "macaroni salad". Ann's shrimp pasta salad was especially delicious.

I enjoyed taking pictures, mostly because no one dared to throw water at the girl with the Rebel XT so i stayed quite dry.

Here's a slideshow of pics from the event...I'm still trying to learn how to work this blog thing...so here goes!

Boston's Blessing

Sunday was Boston's blessing. after church, we all went to Mom and Dad's for a special dinner in his honor. Dinner was fantastic as always and, due to some excellent lighting, i was able to snap a few photos of the boyz.

Boston's special day

Seriously, does it get any better than this?

Darth Vader visits the Zarbock's

Today, I met Darth Vader, I think it was the real Darth Vader, but you can judge for yourself.

Braxton had his Star Wars birthday party today, and I got to attend and take some pictures.

Little brother Dawson prepared for the arrival of Mr. Vader by fitting himself with an Optimus Prime helmet and sword. He said "Aunt Molly, when Darth Vader comes, we are going to fight him and his light saber". Who can argue with a 2 1/2 year old dressed as Optimus Prime?

All of the kids made light sabers. Yeah I know they are just water noodles with duct tape, but when you are 6, they are light sabers.

After a game of Vader tag, all of the kids had moved to the "dark side".

Little did they know that just around the corner...

Dallin decided to fight him with his green light saber.

Braxton finally warmed up enough to get his pictures taken with Darth Vader.

Darth sure was nice to take so many pictures with Braxton's friends :)

Happy Birthday Braxton!!!