Summer Time!

This summer certainly wasn't as busy as past, but that was actually okay. I enjoyed every minute of it. I loved having my kids home, I love that if things were too stressful, we just stayed home. I loved that there were plenty of kids around for my children to play with and I loved that I actually LIVED in the moment rather than take pictures. Of course, now I look back and think, "That's all I documented?"

Sure, there were lots I didn't, but the events I did capture make me smile. It really was a great summer. We also spent a good chunk of it working on the never-ending-yard. Someday it will be done, and I'll dedicate a post just to that monster.

Meanwhile, here's some of what we did: (and if there is something interesting about the photo, I documented it.)

Baseball Season!
We discovered that the city we now live in is very passionate about baseball. I got into a heated email discussion (of course email - I am too chicken to do it in person!) with his coach regarding equal playing time. I think that if a kid WANTS to play a position, he should at least get a shot at it. Coach thinks child should EARN his right to play. (This, of course, was all mentioned after he laid his credentials out for me, including mentioning the FOUR letters he earned in high school. I have the email to prove it.) We finally agreed to disagree and I already contacted the recreation department to be requesting a new coach for next year. "Uncle Rico" was a little too much for me to handle this season!

I'd say forget it, but look at this excited face! He just made it to home base.
Sunday Dinners with family.
Birthday Celebration!
I turned another year older..and hopefully wiser, but don't count on it. Nephew Kade managed to "ruin" the party by sticking beads up his nose. His family had to leave early to dislodge the foreign objects...all five of them. I felt bad for them, but he did provide lots of entertainment while his parents tried to suck it out with a straw. He thought it was hysterical and kept asking them to do it again. Boy, he is a very strange little guy, but makes me laugh!
Summer Reading.
Love this photo. Notice Jake is holding Alyssa's hand. She is smitten with this awesome big brother! No one can make her laugh like he can.
Father's Day breakfast in bed. Lucky Dad. He's the best!
Discovered we have a thumb sucker!
Adorable now - hope it is still adorable when she is 10!


Wright Family Reunion in St. George.
It was a blast hanging out in the pool and at Sand Hollow. Jeff and I even went to the Little Mermaid at our favorite theater, Tuachan. It was magical. Truly a needed vacation.






Annual Lehi Rodeo with the Wrights!
Same ol' jokes, same ol' seats, but FUN had by all! Adalyn was ADAMENT we take pictures with the princesses. She could care less about the horses, the food or the fun. She wouldn't stop until this photo was taken. Then her night was complete.


Fireworks!
Due to the new Utah laws, Jeff spent WAY too much on fireworks. How do I know? I bought these fabulous glow sticks for $3. And they really were the hit of the party! Kids spent more time playing with these than sitting down watching the hundreds of dollars explode.
Payson Lakes.
Went there three times. Loved it three times!
Started piano lessons.
Much better the second time around!
Played in some of Utah's famous summer rain storms.
Mountain biking with my bro.
If you think you are in shape, you should bike with Craig. This gazelle-like man will kick your trash. Every time. But the best part is he always waits for you with a smile. :) Just like that one below!
Jolly's Ranch
Went camping twice to one of my favorite spots in Utah Valley. Of course, while the children were playing with my camera, they accidentally formatted my card. No pics. But great, great memories! (Yeah, I know, pics are better. Dang it.)

We also went swimming, played at splash parks, discovered our new favorite watering hole (and no, I won't tell you where it is. We want to keep it undiscovered for awhile!) We hate to see this glorious season end, that's for sure.

First Week of Summer

Poor Juliana. Summer was kind of anticlimactic for this sweet girl! Silly Mom scheduled her adenoids out the Monday after school got out. Boy, she was nervous. We got to the surgical center where they gave her a darling "dress", some socks, a lion and a hat. And she hated the hat. She kept telling me that it "doesn't look good with this dress." Always a fashion statement, this girl!

After prepping us, they made me leave. Oh, that was hard! I knew they would take good care of my baby, but nothing can compare with the sick feeling in your stomach when you know you have to let the nurse take her away and you don't get to be there when she goes under.

During surgery, the doctor came to the waiting room and said we should remove her tonsils too! (I was totally unprepared for THAT! Luckily Karalee ran out to buy me some Popsicle's and Jello!)

I FINALLY got to see my sweet baby as we waited for her to wake up.


It didn't take long, and she certainly didn't make a peep. You could tell she didn't like the feeling she felt, but she didn't complain. In fact, let's just say I am so very, very grateful that it was THIS little girl who had surgery, not the OTHER little girl (if you know what I am saying!) Some people have a higher pain tolerance than others. Some people don't complain very much and some people are just generally easier to care for when sick than others. That being said, she was a stellar patient. Not a peep out of this girl. Even when she threw up. (Oh, that broke my heart!)

WARNING! You might not like this photo. But I don't care. I found it interesting. These were her tonsils. I personally didn't think they were that big, but what do I know. Well, I DO know that I paid a hefty sum for this surgery and I apparently needed to pay more after today!

We fed her some ice chips and jello and tried to make her comfortable.


It wasn't long before they let us go. I thought she would be excited to ride the wheelchair. I should have known she would be embarrassed!
When we got home, I made her rest. She wasn't happy with me. Come to find out, she wasn't a good patient at all! I had to keep dragging her off her bike and into the house every hour. I kept reminding her that she had surgery. Didn't stop her! She was awesome. So brave and happy, even in pain (and I could tell because she got a sad look in her eye. We stuck on that medicine so she wouldn't hurt.) After a week, she was better then new. No more snoring. No more tilled head at night and no more runny nose. In fact, about 6 days after the surgery, she came into the kitchen and said, "what is that discussing taste in my mouth? It tastes like boogers." I started laughing. Because her adenoids were at a 4, they blocked her nasal passage, thus the loud breathing and tilted head at night. Now removed, they opened up a whole new passage in her nose. I realized this was the first time she had ever experienced post-nasal drip! She's not a fan. Can't blame her.

So incredibly glad we did this. I don't know if she is, but she'll thank me someday. Meanwhile, I will just pray that she's my only girl who needs surgery. I don't think my wallet or my patience can handle the OTHER patient! If you know what I mean ;)

Last Day of School

If you can call it that! It's all of two hours! Barely enough time to get ready for the day, right Addy?

I love this day! Look at how much they have grown from this day back in August...


To this day!

The kids dashed off to school to gather their last minute items. They spent a few minutes (or so it seemed to me!) with their class. Jake was so blessed to have Mr. C for a teacher this year. He was amazing for Jake. And totally loved him. Which is nice to know that someone else thinks your child is amazing. The best thing about Mr. C is that he treated every student as his favorite. I have heard more than one child (including mine) say that THEY were Mr. C's favorite. What a great teacher. We will miss him. Then it was time to say goodbye to their teachers and their friends.

And HELLO TO SUMMER! WAHOO!!

Being in a new neighborhood and all, I decided, with some friends, to have an end of school party. We pooled our money and rented a bounce house and slide. It was set up at 10 am. Once the kids got off the school bus, they ran over to the party and played. All. Day. Long! Seriously, there wasn't a moments rest. They ate popcorn, treats, and snowcones throughout the day too! Lucky, lucky children!




We ended the party with a neighborhood BBQ. It was fantastic! We love living in this neighborhood. It's full of fun people with great friends for my children. We are so blessed!

Moab!

I've said it before; I'll say it again. I. Love. Moab. Probably one of my favorite places to be. Unfortunately, this wasn't one of my favorite trips. Due to the wind. Boy, it was windy. I've never been there when it was windy! So Jen, have you been there when it is cold? Yes. Rainy? Yes. But not windy.

The sad part was I coninced all my PG friends that it is amazing. We actually caught some great days! Right before they all headed down! Then they arrived. And so did the wind. They ended up staying only one night. The wind storm broke three families tents, including ours.

But BEFORE that wretched wind storm, we talked, we we rode our machines and we played in the dirt. Can't beat that! Nor can you beat the windstorm, so we called it good and headed home one day early!

We managed to ride some great trails for a couple of days. We had a blast. We always do!

This beauty is still running after 28 YEARS! Papa's motto is spot on: "Take good care of your appliances and they will take good care of you!" I try to remind my kids that it is an old machine. Luckily it has a good engine because they run that thing ragged!
Cousin Eric brought his brand new dirt bike. Thanks Eric. Now Jeff wants one! I'd love to buy him one too, but it just isn't in the budget.
Crew before a ride:
Group of our friends on a ride
Papa is always so awesome to lend us his machines. Without him, we would be walking...

Gets Me Everytime...

Someone gave this "adorable" doll (total sarcasm) to one of my daughters for their birthday. She is affectionately named "big baby" for obvious reasons. She's big and she's a baby. Lately, I've been walking into a room and seeing this baby on the floor. At first glance, I usually gasp. WAIT! I don't remember leaving Alyssa in this room. Takes a second, but I finally figure out that it isn't MY baby on the floor, it is BIG baby. Phew. Big difference.
Oh wait! I DID leave Alyssa on the floor. See what I mean? Sometimes, it is hard to tell the difference!I actually ended up taking Big Baby to the mall with me. Adalyn insisted we take her in with us. To avoid a almost-over-the-edge breakdown, I agreed. Alyssa was in the stroller and Big Baby was riding face down on the top. I actually had not one, not two but THREE people rush up to me to inform me my "baby" was sitting on top of the stroller. And every single one of them realized it was just a doll just seconds after yelling, "YOUR BABY IS ON TOP OF THE STROLLER!" I finally shoved her under the stroller into the basket. Solved everything until Adalyn decided to walk with her. Then she started to toss the baby by her legs. At one point, she dropped the baby. An elderly gentleman got up from his bench, ran to my side and stopped once he realized it wasn't real. He looked at me, I looked at him and said, "Yeah, gets me every time!"

This was also the same shopping trip that I paraded around the mall with a My Little Pony sticker attached to my behind. I'm a mom. That is pretty obvious...