September adventures

Labor Day weekend - trip to Reno for the Rib Cook-off and to visit family of course.
As is tradition, we took the kids to feed the ducks and geese and play at the park at Virginia Lake.

I had a wonderful girls night out to see The Lion King broadway show with my mom, sister, and sisters-in-law.  Not my most favorite broadway musical I've seen, but very entertaining, it helps to know nearly all the songs and lines by heart thanks to watching the movie more times than I can count.

  

This is what I came home to after the General Women's Conference.  I gave Trevor a hard time for doing such a good job babysitting (not), though to be honest it could have just as easily happened when I was home.  Since this is the third time Kylie has cut her own hair, and this was by far the worst, I finally gathered up all scissors in the house and put them up very high.  I'm grateful that she didn't cut the front where most kids usually do, at least this was somewhat repairable.  For a week I pulled what hair she had left in back into a ponytail to cover up the really short part.  The following Saturday I took her to my hair stylist and she was able to fix it into a cute little a-line cut.  I don't know if this girl is ever going to have long hair!

back to school

It always amazes me how fast the summer break flies by.  Here it is back to school time again. 

Trevor in 7th grade

Logan in 2nd grade

Kylie in preschool

I'm enjoying the quieter house during the day, it makes it much easier to get my work done.  So far they all seem to be liking their teachers/classes.  Love being back in a routine!

last hoorah of summer

Since we hadn't been camping since early June, we decided we better get out and go the weekend before school started.  We headed up to Angel Lake near Wells, NV, a quick one hour drive away.  We set up the trailer at our campsite, then went up to the lake where the kids enjoyed throwing rocks in the water. 

It was getting dark and we were getting hungry so we went back to camp and started a fire to roast hot dogs for dinner and marshmallows for dessert.  After dinner it was pretty much bedtime (that is how late we eat dinner around here). 

The next day we woke up and ate breakfast.  The kids played a bit then Kylie and I went on a walk through the campground and we saw a deer quite close up.  We had seen some wild turkeys in the campground the evening before. 

We then headed back up to the lake and tried our hand at fishing.  Kylie and Logan were excited at the idea, but not so much in its application.  They lost interest fast, though it would probably have helped if we had caught anything.  Luckily there were a bunch of chipmunks nearby that were not shy and kept us entertained.  We were able to feed them out of our hands, I found one in our bag trying to find more food, and one even climbed up into my lap, until I noticed and and freaked out scaring it away. 

About lunch time we headed back to meet some friends, went to our campsite and cooked some yummy burgers for lunch.  After a little relaxing we packed up and headed back into Wells where we stopped for ice cream cones at McDonalds, then headed for home - tired, dirty, and happy.  We kept saying we need to do it more often, maybe we will next summer.

one crazy week

The week of August 8-14 was a crazy one that involved two trips into Bountiful and a lot of activities.

It started on Sunday the 8th, my grandpa's 92nd birthday.  We drove into Bountiful (in 2 vehicles as Pete had to turn around and return home that night then drive to Elko early Monday morning for a week of training for work) Sunday late afternoon, enjoyed Sunday dinner at Mom & Dad's, then went to Poppy's for his birthday celebration.  A lot of the family was there, we were only missing a handful of the grandkids and great-grandkids.  We had relay races for the kids, hence the headbands, visiting for the adults, and lots of food for everyone.  We have been so blessed to have Poppy with us this long and in such good health, he still helps my parents out on the farm! 

On Monday, I worked from my parents' house, then Ally and I took my kids and two of my nephews to Lagoon.  It was a bit more crowded than I anticipated for a Monday and significantly more so than the last time we went, but with season passes we just hit the rides we want with short enough lines and skip those with lines too long.

On Tuesday, I worked again from my parents' house until 5:30pm or so (my long day) then went and got a massage (much needed) then packed up and drove home to Wendover.

On Thursday, I took Trevor to register for 7th grade.  Yes, 7th grade, Jr. High.  How did he get old enough?  Seriously, where does the time go?  Later that night we packed up and the kids and I drove back into Bountiful.

On Friday, I worked a half day then made a trip to Walmart to buy a few school supplies and some new sandals for Logan since he had broken his, where I ran into an old friend and spent some time catching up.  We then met my two sisters-in-law and their boys at Lagoon-a-Beach.  After spending some time there, we decided to go hit a few rides.  It was hot and crowded, but the kids seemed to enjoy themselves anyway.  The lines weren't too long for the kiddy rides and a few others, but we did make the mistake of standing in line for way too long for the Log Flume (forget how slow it moves and isn't really worth the wait).  The kids really enjoy riding the rides with the cousins.  Before we left the park I let the kids play in the water fountain since they were still in their swim suits, they had a blast.  Kylie was hesitant at first but then realized it was fun to get soaked.

On Saturday, I went and got my haircut (much needed too) in the morning then ran some errands.  That night Trevor and I went with my sisters-in-law to New City Skyline's concert.  The lead singer, Paul, is my sister Ally's boyfriend.  I have loved their music for awhile now, but had yet to make it to a concert.  Wow, they are really good live and put on a great show!   Can't wait to go to another one.  Trevor seemed to enjoy his first concert experience, even if it was with his mom. They have a few songs/videos on Youtube, check them out. http://www.youtube.com/user/newcityskyline

On Sunday, we went to church with my parents, then packed up and headed back home.  It was a long and crazy busy week, but super fun!

July happenings (so far)

We stayed in Wendover this year for the 4th of July, Pete's dad Walt came to visit for a few days and he and Pete patched the hole (more like crater) in our bedroom wall and got a couple of the walls and ceiling painted.  Yay! The city held some of the festivities on Saturday the 3rd, including the Boy Scouts pancake breakfast which Pete & Trevor were involved with, the rest of us went and enjoyed breakfast in the cold wind (very un-July-like). The majority of festivities were being held on Sunday the 4th so we didn't participate in much else, except for watching the fireworks from our yard that night.  It was hard for the kids to hear the sirens from the parade while sitting in Primary and knowing they were missing the parade.  I had to teach in Relief Society (not my favorite thing, but not as scary as the first time).  After church I made the kids put on their Old Navy flag t-shirts so I could take a few pics (the only ones from the holiday).  Trevor left for Scout camp that afternoon.  I had Monday the 5th off work so I enjoyed a relaxing day doing what I wanted.  It was a very low-key holiday weekend but much appreciated after our crazy June.

Logan & Kylie started swim lessons Tuesday the 6th which continued through Friday the 16th (Tuesdays - Fridays).  Their sessions were back-to-back, but we had scheduled them at the same time as our friends so they drove Logan and I only had to go for Kylie's.  This being Kylie's first time she was a bit nervous (the big guy teaching the class didn't help - even though he is the nicest guy with 3 daughters of his own, it was Trevor's 6th grade teacher last year), she did very little the first day and even less the second.  On day 3 and 4 Pete was off work so he took her and went prepared to get in the water with her, this seemed to help greatly.  The next week I got in with her on Tuesday, but by Wednesday she was ready to do it herself and really enjoyed the last 3 days.  Logan seemed to enjoy his lessons (I didn't see any of them so I don't know for sure), he had friends in the class and loved it best on "life jacket day" when they got to jump off the diving board with life jackets on.  It was quite the interruption to my work day but worth it to have confident swimmers.

On July 14, Trevor turned 12 years old.  Seriously, where did the time go?  I don't feel old enough to have a 12 year old.  He slept over at a friend's house the night before, and we had cake that night.  He had to wait a few days for presents (something he is getting use to, but I'm starting to wonder if his patience is wearing thin) until the family party on the 17th. To ease the blow we let him bring his friend Jaxon with us to Bountiful for the family party.

We had the boys' family birthday party on Saturday the 17th, but things were a little different than they have been in the past, and a bit different than I had planned.  We had originally arranged to use Chuck & Kerianne's old pool from the new owner, but due to unfortunate and totally understandable circumstances the pool was not in condition for us to use it.  Luckily Darci's parents have a pool and offered to let us have the party there.  However the decision wasn't made until just before the party was to start.  It was a bit of drive to their home in South Weber, but well worth it.  Their pool and yard are awesome!  We still ordered pizza for dinner, swam until many of us (all the kids) were water-logged, let the boys open their presents, and had cake and ice cream.  Everyone had a good time, even Papa Alan was able to get away from the farm for a few hours and join us.  Ally was the only one who had to miss it due to work.  All the kids kept getting back in the pool even after eating and presents and it took a lot of threats or bribery to get most of them out.  It went later than planned and meant for a late night arrival home, where Pete's parents were waiting for us.

Sunday the 18th was a big day.  Logan turned 7, again crazy how fast time flies!  (We've been watching some home videos the past few days and seeing how cute and funny Logan was at age 2-3, it's hard to believe how old he has gotten, though he is still cute and funny!)  The other big event was that Trevor was ordained a Deacon, the reason Pete's parents were visiting and my parents also came out that morning.  Trevor looked so handsome in his new suit, white shirt, and tie.  I'm so proud of him, he is really a good boy (always has been)!  He and Jaxon were both ordained (it was Jaxon's birthday too).  It is kind of neat - they were blessed, baptized/confirmed, and now ordained Deacons on the same days.  We had lunch back at the house, then my parents headed back home.  The rest of us relaxed the rest of the day.  The boys enjoyed their new stuff (mostly Legos, some Wii and DS games, etc.).

Monday the 19th we had a friend party for Logan at the park.  Grandma Niki was a big help making the cupcakes and frosting.  We had the kids play most of the time, then let Logan open his presents and ate cupcakes.  The kids were hot and wore out pretty good by the end.  Logan and Kylie really had a good time.

Too much cake in the house this past week (3 total), good thing I started a water aerobics class on the 14th.

end of June fun

Jill went with the girls (sister, sisters-in-law, some of their sisters & moms, friends, etc.) to an advanced screening of Eclipse on the afternoon of June 29.  It was awesome!  We got goodie bags with coupons, etc. that also included a charm bracelet like Bella's - a wolf charm and a crystal heart.  Our passes included popcorn and a drink, and they also had a raffle for a bunch of cool prizes, some of us came away with free stuff from local merchants.  The movie was much better than the previous two, still no comparison to the books, but entertaining.  And at least we didn't have to go at midnight to see it!

We got season passes for Lagoon this year for Jill and the kids, and we spent the afternoon and evening of June 30th there with some cousins. The kids were really good and it helped that it wasn't crowded at all and lines were short.  Logan is the perfect age being big enough to go on most big rides and yet still small enough to ride many of the kiddy rides with Kylie.  Trevor was patient in kiddyland and I feel we got a good mix of big and kiddy rides in.  They had a power outage just before we left, so our timing was good.  It was a hot day but we came prepared with a cooler of drinks and a sack full of goodies (I love that Lagoon lets you bring in your own food and drinks).

That ends our crazy month of June in which we were in "town" (Bountiful) 5 times!  Love to see family, but sometimes I just want to stay home.

Yellowstone

(finally getting around to updating the blog...)

After our attempt to visit Yellowstone 3 years ago didn't go well (ended with my ambulance ride to Jackson Hole), we decided it was time to try again. This time we didn't have any major incidents or illnesses, whew! We stayed in a campground at Henry's Lake State Park in Idaho, about 15 minutes outside of West Yellowstone. It was pretty and there was a nice trail to walk or run. The only problem was once the rain stopped, the bugs were horrendous. The temperatures were on the cool side as has been the case all Spring, but we did have some nice days without any rain, and the rain was never horrible - at least when were out and about.

We spent three days exploring the Park, seeing all the usual sights and some wildlife too. Our evenings were spent in the 5th wheel watching movies (Harry Potter 1-4 and Indiana Jones 1-4 mostly). Our last day we spent time in West Yellowstone at the Grizzly Bear & Wolf Discovery Center, shopping, and eating lunch before we packed up and headed back to Bountiful. We had a great time (though Pete is still kicking himself for not remembering to bring his spotting scope or binoculars)!

Dinosaurs!

On Memorial Day Logan, Kylie & I went with some family to the Dinosaur Park in Ogden. We hadn't been there since 2004 when Logan was a baby, so it was a new experience for Logan & Kylie, and both had a blast. They have both been watching the PBS show "Dinosaur Train" so Logan went around telling all of us what type of dinosaurs they were, what they ate, their features, etc. He was practically a walking encyclopedia! It was a nice day spent outside and with family, what could be better.