Busy Again

The beginning of this week was mostly spent getting ready for Dan going out of town and the rest of us heading up to the cabin.  We tried to get some house cleaning done, we tried to get some fun in, and I spent a lot of time trying to get all the food ready.  Monday was laundry and grocery shopping.   We got the kids their school supplies, and they are now all packed and ready for school to start.  

Tuesday, I got some freezer meals cooked up to take with us up to the cabin, and the kids and I tried to get the house presentable.  

Wednesday, we tried to get everyone packed up - did a bit more laundry and then I had choir in the evening.  We have concerts coming up and had our big dress rehearsal with the full orchestra.  

Thursday morning, Dan headed to the airport to go to Chicago and the kids and I packed up the car and headed towards the mountains.  We stopped at Tiny Town, but we couldn't take Koopa in with us, so I got tickets for the kids, and sent them in with their lunches and put Eileen in charge.  They did good and had fun, then rode the train.  The place is small enough that I could keep an eye on them from the parking lot across the street and could even snap a few pictures of them on the train from just outside the fence.  Eileen took pictures of the kids for me with her phone.  Then we all got some ice cream and packed up and finished our trip to the cabin.  It's funny, I remember as a kid feeling like that was a LONG trip.  Now as an adult it seems to go so fast!  In the evening, the girls and I did a puzzle and watched Hello Dolly.  

When we got to the cabin, Grandpa was already there and the kids were eager to start going up to the mine and checking all their favorite spots out.  Friday, we heard about a used book sale near the Fairplay Library.  So we stopped in and looked around.  The kids found some fun stuff and I found a couple books that I had really been wanting - and could now get them cheap!  Friday night Doug and Julia arrived in time for some fun and chat before heading to bed.

Saturday we headed down to Fairplay again to check out the Burro Days fun.  We walked around checking out the artists stalls and such.  The kids had fun for about 20 minutes then they decided that they were hot and annoyed that everything cost money.... :)  So we snacked and headed back to the cabin for more hiking and dinner.  In the evening, we started Fiddler on the Roof with Eileen and Anna - but paused at the Intermission to go to bed!

Sunday the kids and I headed to church in Frisco (not TX - Frisco, CO) Church was awesome.  During 3rd hour, there was a special 5th Sunday presentation by a man who had worked and served all over the world.  He had some amazing stories to tell about the church and it's history in other parts of the world over the last 30+ years.  It was really a neat presentation!  After we headed back to the cabin and stopped at the Continental Divide for a minute or two - I think Eileen and I were really the only ones who found it cool - but at least the other kids enjoyed getting out and stretching their legs.  We spent most of the drive home looking for license plates from other states.  We saw over half the states!  In the evening, Eileen and Anna and Aaron played Killer Bunnies with Frankie and James and Evie watched The Music Man with the rest of us.

More Family Fun!

This week has been rather hot here - no not Texas hot - but we've been in the upper 90's and low 100's so the kids complain about playing outside after 10 in the morning unless the sprinklers are on so they can get wet.  We spent most of Monday doing laundry and such - we were too tired to get a dinner planned so our amazing friends the Guinn's saved the day - They had cooked up some extra ribs trying a new recipe and brought over the extras.  I added a salad and we were good to go.  

The kids decided that they wanted to go to the park one morning, but about 5 minutes after we got there, they started complaining about the heat and wanted to go to the splash park instead, so we went home, got swimsuits and lunches and headed to the splash park/playground.  We stayed until the lightning started, then we headed home.  :)  

Choir on Wednesday was awesome as usual!

Thursday, Dan and I went to the temple.  We left Eileen in charge and things seemed to go smoothly enough.  This was the first time leaving her in charge when she wouldn't be able to get a hold of us.  She had Sister Smith to contact if necessary, but things seemed to go well - I'm not sure they would go as well if Anna weren't also here helping her.  :)  We did sealings then grabbed a quick dessert on the way home.  

Friday, we headed for the Children's Museum.  We got there a little late - but the kids had a blast while we were there, and we can go back any time now!  They had a new area where the kids had a ton of fun climbing all over the place.  They kids always love the fire station area - I was amazed to watch Aaron climb up to the top of the fire pole easily and quickly - over and over again.  

They had a fun Vet Clinic area and of course, the bubbles are always fun.  They loved the bubble chamber - the fun thing is that I have pictures of Sandi and I in this same bubble chamber when we were kids!

Saturday was our big stay at home and get stuff done day.  Dan and the kids worked on cleaning out the garage, I worked in the house and in the afternoon, Sandi and the kids came over for a few hours and dinner while Jon met with employees.

Church today was fun - We had members of the temple presidency visit our ward today.  Their talks in Sacrament meeting were wonderful.  Unfortunately, I didn't get to be there for the 2nd hour question and answer session - I was subbing in James' primary class.  Plus I got to hear him give his talk during primary!  He was so cute!  It was funny - once I told him I was going to be his teacher today, he got excited and wouldn't leave my lap (except for the choir number) The choir's musical number went great!  It's so fun to hear all the talent in our ward!

Fun at Home

We had a fun and busy week!  Dan headed up with the young men for High Adventure.  He was gone with them until Friday - at which point he came home tanned, tired and needing to take his belt in another notch.  We went to the park on Wednesday morning with the Smith's and enjoyed playing outside while it was still cool enough to enjoy being outside.  

Wednesday night I had choir and Sister Cottrell watched the kids so I could go to Choir.  After Eileen, Anna and Aaron got back, I started getting emergency texts from Eileen that the kids were still awake - and by the time I got home after 10, they were all still up and running around.  Poor Eileen - but the kids sure had fun :)  

On Friday, we went to the Butterfly Pavilion and got ourselves a joint membership for the Butterfly Pavilion and the Children's Museum.  The kids are very excited about it.  They had a great time there as always. While we were there, we saw the posted for "Rosie's Birthday Party" which was the next day, so on Saturday, we didn't give Daddy any time to recover, we just dragged him along with us back to the Butterfly Pavilion.  They had tons of fun stuff going on - plus there was a special "Member's Only" area - and the kids were SO excited that they got to go in because they are now members.  :)  We came home with tons of free stuff - lots of junk toys, sunglasses, water bottles, bags, etc.  They all had a great time though!  

They even got to get their faces painted and Anna had her Caricature done.  We headed home at closing time, exhausted, but we had a great time!  Plus it was so great to have Daddy back!  

Sunday morning, our friends the Tolbert's got into town, they arrived just in time to come to church with us and then they stayed the night with us!  It was so good to get to see them again!!  We had a great afternoon playing games and chatting and singing and talking crafts!  There are times I think that I would like to move back to Texas, just to be near them and the Tilton's again...

Family Reunion

Well we started this week off with a 4th of July Pancake Breakfast that our ward puts on every year.  It's put on by the cub scouts and this year Aaron got to help out - early on, he took over making the scrambled eggs - can I just say that his eggs were the BEST scrambled eggs that I've EVER had at a church function (or really any large dining place) In other words - for the first time - they weren't way over cooked and burnt.  He was still getting complements on them at church today!  After, we spent most of the day getting ready to leave the next morning.  

Bright and early on Tuesday, we loaded up and got into the car to head to Bear Lake.  We stopped for lunch at Little America, and made it to the rental cabin by mid-afternoon.  We unpacked - picked rooms, and had dinner before a family home evening lesson and play with cousins.  Bedtimes went out the window this week....

Wednesday we all packed into our cars and headed for the lake.  We rented a Jet Ski, a lake trampoline and a couple paddle boards.  Everyone had a ball - and most of us got a bit sunburned.  It's been so long since I've gotten to ride a jet ski - but I LOVE them!  Someday, maybe I'll have one of my own...  We did lunch at the beach and stayed there for most of the day - only heading back for dinner in the evening.  We had another wonderful family home evening lots of game playing and hanging out.  

Thursday we played games around the cabin.  I brought the left over girls camp crafts and Dan brought paint balls and grandma and grandpa brought candy covered shirts for playing human pinata.  The paint balls were a little rough - some of the kid ended up with some pretty good welts - but we had set an age limit of over 12 to keep littles from getting hurt.  After the older kids had fun, we let the younger kids take over and aim at targets.

This was Evie chasing one of the human pinatas - her cousin Jacob.  It was so funny to watch the older boys run away and eventually get tackled and brought to the ground and mauled by little kids eager for candy.  :)

In the afternoon, some of us stayed at the cabin and rested and played games (including me - i had hurt my toe on Tuesday and I was still hobbling) While the rest got to go hike up and down in some caves.  I wish I'd been able to go - but I don't think I could have handled the stairs...   Thursday night, we had our final FHE/Devotional.  We sang songs, bore testimony and shared the love.  I'm so grateful to be part of this family!  I'm so grateful that my kids get to be part of this family too. Then we played a game of sardines for a bit before sending the kids to bed, while we stayed up playing a few more games and talking for a bit longer.

The next morning, exhausted and happy, we packed up, cleaned up and headed home.  We stopped at Steve and Claire's along the way for a bathroom break and to let the kids see all the animals.  Then we arrived at home and unloaded the car.  Then Dan began his mad dash to get everything ready for High Adventure next week.  Saturday was spent with Dan getting stuff ready and packed for next week, while the kids and I spent the day trying to recover from the past week.  We were all glad to get to pick up Koopa Friday night and spent a lot of time playing with him.

Sunday was church - wonderful speakers and great lessons.  Choir after church, yummy dinner, and playing games with Eileen and Anna in the evening.  Now I'm facing a week here alone with the kids.  :(

Camp

Well - I now have 2 kids in double digits.  Anna turned 10 on Monday!  She was so excited about being a double digit girl.  Unfortunately for her, It was kinda an insane day.  I spent a lot of the day getting things ready for camp - I had to run some errands, get everything packed and get laundry done.  Plus I had to meet the girls at the church to get everything packed into the trailer and sent up to camp.  After, we had Anna's birthday dinner of Burritos and then she opened her presents, then we took the kids down to drop them off with Aunt Tina for the week.  Eileen apparently forgot to bring anything to do and was bored all week (if her text messages to me and grandpa and Sister Smith are any indication....)  We took her ice cream cake to Frank and Tina's and she blew out her candles and we all had cake there before Dan and I headed home.  

Tuesday morning, bright and early we met at the church to head up for camp.  The weather this year was perfect - enough sun to be warm and enough cloud cover and sprinkles to not get too hot.  The girls seemed to have a good time and seemed to all feel welcomed and loved.  Our first day up there, we unpacked and set up camp, then in the afternoon, we headed for the lake and had fun in the canoes.  It was fun getting to see some of the girls trying something they had never done before and loving it!  

Wednesday morning after breakfast was the hike.  I chose to go on the 2nd year hike which is the longest - still not really a hike, but it was a nice walk through gorgeous scenery and even better - I got to see a beaver swimming around his pond!  It was really nice walking around and chatting with amazing people.  We spent the afternoon playing games and doing crafts.  Then tons of fun at the lake getting our skit ready and having fun at the lake.  Finally the evening program was a blast!  

One of the crafts offered was wood carving.  One of the cooks/bishops/awesome guy who reminds me of my dad - brought wood and knives for carving and taught the basics.  I had fun carving myself a "Harry Potter Wand" It took me the better part of all three days we were there to finish it, but I finally got it done and sanded and I love how it came out!  Now the plan is to stain the wood and display it - but first I'm going to have to convince the kids that it's not their toy!  :)

This is me at camp - Eileen was texting me and amazingly I had enough signal to get them and even to be able to chat with her on the phone a bit - so I sent her a selfie of me at camp - it's hard to tell from this photo - but one of the girls from the ward had done my hair for me into braids.

Thursday was more fun time and a service project and finally finishing my wand.  In the evening, we had our testimony meeting and we got some real rain for the first time.  It was such a sweet experience listening to the girls bear testimony!

Friday morning we packed up and headed out.  We were one of the first wards done packing up, but one of the last to leave since the girls were busy serving others and helping get everything done!  They are such amazing girls!  Finally we got home - got stuff divided up and sent home with people and I headed back home where Dan was busy with Newell and Jacob building us a new fence!  They were getting posts in -  I took a shower and a nap before heading to the baptism of one of my girls from camp.  I was playing the piano.  It was beautiful!  After I headed home to an early bed time and slept for nearly 12 hours.  I woke up late the next morning and Dan and Newell and Jacob were hard at work on the fence.  Becky and the girls came over for a bit too - they hung out and had dinner with us.  Hopefully Dan will be able to get most of the fence done tomorrow since we leave Tuesday for the Jones Family Reunion!

Church today was great!  Eileen fasted with us - and while she was a bit grumpy, she did great!  Relief Society was wonderful as always and I think my lesson went well in Sunday School.  After church, we had a nice walk home, then had dinner once Dan got home.  We spent our evening, having fun together and enjoying the beautiful weather.  Eileen wanted to play Killer Bunnies during her hour up, Anna didn't want to play - she said she wanted to scrapbook, but then spent most of the time chatting with us and looking over our shoulders.  Now that we have 2 who get to stay up, the dynamic is changing, we will have to figure it out!

Home Sweet Home

We started home bright and early Monday morning, we made pretty good time and got home around 11 PM.  The kids were great as usual and we had a nice drive back.

We spent most of Tuesday recovering and unpacking and cleaning out the car.

Wednesday after Eileen got home from school, we packed lunches and headed to the water park.  The kids had fun - but they spent more time on the play ground than at the splash park part.  There was a large summer camp group, so the kids had plenty of kids to play with and they all had a great time.

Wednesday evening, we headed to the church building for activities.  The girls had Activity Days, Aaron had cub scouts, I had Young Women's and Dan had Young Men's and Evie and James ran around and had fun.  The kids and I rode bikes and then rode home again.  

Thursday we went for Piano lessons after Eileen was done with school and we had eaten lunch.  This will be the last lessons until August - travel schedules and vacation schedules aren't lining up.  

Friday, I picked up Eileen and Mallory from school so Mallory could babysit while Dan and I went to the temple.  We had a really nice time - though I'm still recovering from this silly cold and still a bit under the weather.  Then in the evening, we let Eileen babysit so Dan and I could go play D&D with Becca, Jeremiah and their friend Chris.  It was fun, but we got home late and poor Eileen was really tired... :(  

Saturday was crazy,  Dan left early to go hiking at Garden of the Gods with the Young Men and I got busy prepping for the baby shower.  Becca and Natasha came early to help set up and Eileen and Anna were big helps too.  The baby shower went well - we did the whole "decorating onesies" thing and it seemed to go really well and was a big hit.  They came out really cute and Eileen and Anna each did one too.  

After, I was so tired, that once Dan got home, I took a long nap.... And was still ready to call it a night pretty early.  

Today was great!  Church was wonderful, I got to substitute on the piano in primary during 3rd hour, which I love doing!  After was ward choir and then camp stuff.  Tomorrow is going to be long and exhausting!

Burnt Texas Toast

We kept ourselves pretty busy this week!  We went with Sandi and the cousins to the Dallas Zoo.   The kids had a blast riding the merry-go-round, 

Climbing and playing on every available surface, 

Feeding the birds - and holding them - and having them land on Aaron's head, 

And of course, playing in the water, seeing the animals, petting the goats and whining about the heat (well maybe not that last one...)

We had our friends the Tolberts come over to play and we walked over to the turtle pond to feed the turtles.  It was so good to see them again!  They were out of town last year and we weren't able to get to see them.  Weather wasn't really good for swimming, but it was perfect for a walk and chatting!

Wednesday night, we finally got to pick up Anna and Grandpa from the Airport.  Eileen came with me and practically jumped on Anna - it's so cute to see that she missed her sister!  Anna is still recovering from Jet Lag - she's been exhausted most nights and getting up early.

Thursday was our only real day for going to the lake.  Weekends are too busy and crazy and awful - so even though Anna was a bit tired and cranky, we headed out to the lake around 10 and stayed until 5 PM.  By the end of 7 hours in the sun - despite numerous applications of sunscreen, we were all burnt.  I got to do some wake boarding, the kids had a blast in the tube and Anna and Aaron even tried wake boarding.  Anna was able to get up and get going, but struggled with balance once she got there, Aaron was almost able to get up - but everyone else was exhausted and we didn't really have the time to give him a full lesson - we tried some more the next day in the pool.  After we got home from the lake, the kids all promptly jumped in the pool again....

Friday, the Tiltons came over to swim and play. We all had a blast (except for the sunburns - though that didn't stop them from wanting to get in the pool.  It was great to get to see and hang out with them again!  I don't miss the Texas heat, but I do miss out friends.  It's fun to watch friendships pick right up where they left off - I just wish we didn't have to leave off...  Evie has finally been wanting to take swim lessons from Grandpa and has made huge leaps forward in her swimming this year!  It was so exciting to watch her finally really start to get comfortable in the water!  

Saturday was nice and crazy busy.  The kids did some swimming and swim lessons in the morning, I did some errands to get ready for the trip home, and then we met up at a nail place to get pedicures.  The girls were really looking forward to this and had a blast (at least until they found that they had to wait for the adults to finish... :)  They still did a good job and had fun.  Kai was deemed old enough to come this year and she LOVED it - she was so cute sitting there pampered and adorable!  

After, Evie went with Sandi to have a sleep over along with James and Aaron and Sandi's kids, while Grandma, Grandpa, Eileen, Anna and I went to Medieval Times.  The girls really seemed to love it.  Eileen's favorite part was probably the Falconer - but she didn't remember to bring her glasses to Texas, so she borrowed mine and I wore my sunglasses.  It was a lot of fun though!  We all had a great time cheering - though Eileen and Anna both got scared during some of the fighting scenes.  

Sunday we went to my Dad's ward which was at 1PM - so before church, we had a bit brunch and a little birthday party for Kai and Anna/Father's Day for Grandpa.  Anna got a scooter and Kai got a cabbage patch doll with accessories.  We all had fun eating yummy cupcakes right after filling up on waffles, eggs, potatoes, and bacon... :)  Church was wonderful, though James didn't want to go to Primary.  The girls went up to sing with the primary and sang beautifully.  Then the kids went to primary, and James came with me, he actually did pretty good at being reverent and snuggly, though by the end he was getting a little more rambunctious and flirty with the ladies in Relief Society.  The lessons were wonderful and the kids made cute little things for Daddy.  We had fun, but I can't wait to get back home to Dan.  

Texas Toast

Monday we packed a lunch and headed to Dinosaur Ridge.  Most of the kids were complaining about the heat before long, so Claire took the kids and headed for the visitor's center and Elise and I did the whole walk.  I've wanted to do the whole thing for a while and was eager for the excuse.  We all had a good time and headed home tired, but happy.  After dinner, we had an evening of packing and playing games and then Evie said she was hurting, and it seemed bad enough that Dan took her in to the ER who ended up having to check for everything from kidney stones to appendicitis, only to find that it was nothing and sent them home around 3 AM.  

Tuesday morning, bright and early, we packed up the car, loaded up the kids and headed for Texas.  The trip was long, but the kids were good and Koopa did a great job travelling.  We arrived around 1 AM then unpacked the necessities and went to bed.  

Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were mostly spent in the pool. Some of Saturday was also spent in the pool.  Sandi came over with Taz and Kai to play in the pool with us.  The kids have been having so much fun.  We've been lathering up with sunscreen, but we are still growing more tan every day.  

Today we went to our old Frisco ward for church.  It's always so fun seeing old friends.  It was nice getting to go to Gospel Doctrine this week - I love getting to study and learn about the scriptures - as awesome as teaching youth Sunday school class, it was a nice little break.  We spent the afternoon playing games and having fun together.

Summer!

The beginning of this week was mostly not too crazy.  We've gotten enough rain that I had to mow the lawn twice this week.  Monday was the usual laundry and grocery shopping, The kids played at home and we took it pretty easy.  In the evening, I took Eileen with me to go pick out stuff for the car trip at the dollar store.  She had fun helping to pick stuff and then filling the car carriers.  Evie spent the rest of the week telling me how she couldn't wait to go to to Texas, and James kept telling me that he wanted his "surprise"

Tuesday was the usual summer crazies.  The kids practicing piano, playing outside and having fun together.  Dan and I also spent some time getting stuff ready for the Youth Activity.

Wednesday Eileen started Summer Math class.  It's really strange not having her around during the mornings - and I just think it's awesome that she is choosing to do this. After, we got the house cleaned up and kids got their piano practicing done and such.  In the evening, we had the Youth Activity at our house, we played games, practiced building fires and built a real fire to roast marshmallows and made s'mores.  I think the activity went well.

Thursday was piano lessons,  we headed over after Eileen's math class, then after lessons, we hung out and played so Rose and Evie could have a play date together.  They still weren't happy because all the other kids were there too, but oh well - you can't have everything.  :)  The kids had a ton of fun playing together, then we headed home for dinner and fun, then I headed out for institute.  Class went really well - I was teaching for Sarah and got to talk about some really awesome parts of the OT.

Friday morning after Eileen's class, we headed to the used book sale.  We all had fun combing the stacks and finding treasures.  Now we just need to figure out where we will put another book shelf...

Saturday was mostly spent doing house work and getting things ready for our trip to Texas.  We did laundry, packed up the kids clothes and cleaned out the car.

Sunday we had a great day at church, then after church, Claire and the kids arrived from Wyoming to spend a day with us.  We had fun eating dinner and playing games and hanging out together.  I had fun getting my hair done :)

School's End

It's been an insanely busy week.  We started out Monday still needing to recover from last weekend, and of course doing laundry, grocery shopping and school and piano practicing and such for the kids.  In the evening for Family Home Evening, we went to a park and took some ice and went ice blocking.  The kids mostly had a great time.  We spent some time after the ice broke into pieces that were too small to use any more, playing on the nearby play ground, and they had a great time, but when it was time to go home, James was not happy and when Evie realized that our friends the Crockett's weren't meeting us there after all, she bawled the whole way home.  

Tuesday was another rather busy day.  James had preschool, I had stuff to get done around the house, the kids had school, after school was piano practicing and then we had the Elders over for dinner, and after that the Crockett kids came over to play while Dan went over to their house to help them load up the truck for their move.  The kids all had a ton of fun playing together outside and were so sad to have to separate at the end of the evening.  I made pudding for them and they had a blast. They loved playing with the chickens, so Eileen took a bunch of pictures with the kids with the chickens on their heads and shoulders and other silly places (I'm just glad that none of them got pooped on!)

Wednesday was field day for the big kids.  They were all so excited - they love field day.  I'm glad we had something fun planned for James or he would have been very upset when i told him he couldn't go on the big inflatable water slide that was visible when I dropped the kids off at school.  After dropping them off, we picked up Tayanna and Nicole and headed to the zoo.  We all had a great time, we even got to see some baby goslings and had a lot of fun seeing things that we don't always get to see when the older kids are here.  In the evening, Dan had a service project with the young men and Aaron had cub scouts and Eileen and Anna had Activity Days.  We let the kids ride their bikes to the church and home after since it is still light out at night when they are coming home.  It was a good thing too since Evie and James were really tired and cranky and Dan didn't get home until after 9.  

Thursday we had James' end of preschool party.  The kids had a ton of fun playing, the adults had fun chatting and we all enjoyed yummy food.  After, we cleaned up a bit, but didn't worry about it too much - James and I were both tired, so we snuggled up together and took a little nap.  When we got up to get the kids from school, it was pouring and hailing (and I'd left the picnic blanket and chairs outside getting wet....)  

Here's James' preschool class!

We got the kids from school - the hail had mostly stopped, but it was still pouring, so no after school party and no pictures with teachers (who were all inside - kids were being shuttled out to cars by school employees with umbrellas.) So here they all on their last day of school, with out their teachers with the (once again) crazy Colorado May weather on the last day of school.

Friday was long and stressful.  The kids had to get some things done before we could go have fun - but instead of doing them and then going, they spent the whole morning fighting over stuff and arguing with me, despite that, they managed to pull it together enough to still be able to go to the museum for a couple hours.  Then we headed home and dropped the kids off with their babysitter so Dan and I could go to the temple.  Dan and I had a wonderful time, and the kids did too.  Apparently James flirted with all the girls there...

Saturday included cleaning the house, running a ton of errands, getting Anna packed and ready for Scotland, picking my dad up from the air port, Eileen's flute lessons, cleaning the kids rooms, doing laundry for Anna and having fun with Grandpa.

Sunday, we walked to church and had a wonderful sacrament meeting - it's nice that the kids are finally getting old enough to mostly be reverent during the sacrament and that we can usually listen to most of the talks now.  :)  After church, we walked home, had a quick late lunch/early dinner with Grandpa and Anna before taking them to the airport.  Their flight was delayed so they got in to Texas late - but Anna will have tomorrow to recover before the long flight to Scotland.  She is so excited about her trip!  (Grandpa might be a bit excited too)

After dropping them off, Eileen said she would miss Anna - and I know I will too.  We played some games and played outside, then put the littles to bed and Eileen and Dan and I stayed up playing games together.  This is such a fun age with Eileen, and it's so fun to have this one on one time with her.

The Penultimate Week of School

I can't believe that the school year is almost over.  The kids have been busy with all the end of year fun and James and I have just been busy with our normal stuff.  

Monday was the usual, we had a fun family home evening lesson and a got the usual shopping and laundry done, and Payton came and played as usual.  I took Eileen out with me for a quick trip to Goodwill and Walmart to get her some new pants and PJ's - all her's are getting too short.  It's crazy how big she is getting so fast - she is starting to look more like a young woman and less like a girl.  

Tuesday, James had preschool during the day and then we had Payton over after.  While James was at preschool, I picked up a food order for a friend from the Bishop's Storehouse.  It was a neat experience to see how it's done and I was so grateful that she let me help her in this little way.  After school, Anna had her dentist check up, Evie was being beastly, so I let Eileen stay at the house and get her piano and flute done instead of having to come along and listening to Evie's tanturm.  

Wednesday was late start for the kids school, after dropping them off, I picked up Nicole and Tayanna and we headed for the Museum.  Nicole agrees with my philosophy of not telling the kids where we are going until we get there so they don't throw a tantrum, so she had only told Tayanna that they were going on an adventure, so Tayanna decided that McDonalds would be a good adventure, but was understanding when we told her today was a different adventure, and she could go to McD's another time. The kids both had a blast at the Museum.  James loves that place - no matter how many times we go.  After school, Eileen had her dentist appointment, and then in the evening, Dan and Aaron headed to the church for their stuff.  

Thursday was Dan's birthday.  He took the morning off, but James had preschool, I had some errands to run and he was getting some work done around the house, so I didn't get to see much more of him than usual.  After preschool, we picked up Payton and had lunch at the park.  Dan joined us and we met up with our friends the Reese's.  The boys all had so much fun playing together, and they did not want to leave.  After school was piano lessons, I made Dan's cake and after, Dwayne and Nicole came over bringing Dan's birthday dinner - Dwayne's YUMMY chicken curry.  The kids first was reaction was that it looked gross - but then they tasted it and realized how good it was!  

Thursday and Friday were immersion for the kids at school.  Friday, I went in with James to help out for Anna and Aaron's Hogwarts End of Year Feast.  The parents really outdid them selves and we all had a lot of fun.  Then I got to watch them play "Quidditch" which was really fun to watch, then we got to see the house cup awarded to Anna and Aaron's Slytherin house.  They all had a blast!  After school

Friday, evening, the boys headed up to the Father/Son camp out.  They had a great time getting wet and playing around - so much so that Aaron got to stay up way past his bed time!  Then Saturday morning, they headed home.  The girls and I had some favorite food, cleaned up a bit then watched movies until bedtime.  Eileen got her house up and watched Star Trek then I hustled her and Anna (who wasn't asleep yet) to bed.

Saturday started out with getting up around 8 so we could get Eileen to her flute lesson - this was apparently too much for Anna to handle because she spent the better part of the day thinking that I was the worst mommy in the whole world.  Then she managed to get a little nap in and felt better.  I let Eileen watch the girls while I went to my camp meeting and then after that we had lunch and started getting everything ready for Dan's surprise party.  The party went great - we had a great turn out and the food was great.  The kids had lots of fun playing with their friends.  Then Dan and I did a minimalist clean up after getting the kids to bed - we both were tired with sore feet, and headed to bed.

Sunday morning came a bit too soon, but it was still a wonderful day.  Church was awesome.  The talks were wonderful - my lesson would have been a lot better if I hadn't been so scatter brained as to leave half of my lesson at home...  Oh well - maybe we will start next week out with that... Relief Society was great and after church, choir was wonderful.  Weather has been amazing, so we walked to and from church.  Then Dan gave the kids motor cycle rides and we had dinner and sent the kids to bed - they (especially James) were tired and cranky and needed sleep and getting back to a routine.  Oh wait - school is ending and it's time to throw routines out the window... oh well!

Busy at Home

This has been an insanely busy week!  Dan had Monday and Tuesday off, and he spent them building our new chicken coop for the chickens who are big enough and well and ready to be in more spacious living quarters.  He got most of it done Monday and Tuesday, then finished it up on Saturday and in the evenings.  The chickens are now happily settled in.

Monday was the usual laundry, babysitting Payton, grocery shopping, school for the kids and practicing and homework and such after school.  We had a fun little family home evening together and had s'mores around the campfire.

Tuesday was Preschool here - James loves his preschool friends and we all had a fun time learning and playing.  Then after, Payton was over again in the afternoon, finally an afternoon of homework, piano practicing, and helping daddy outside.

Wednesday was late start for the school kids, then James and I picked up Tayanna and Nicole and headed to the library.  After a fun morning where James played on the computer at the library the whole time we were there.... we headed home for lunch.  In the evening, I had a girls camp activity, Dan had Young Men's Eileen and Anna had Activity Days, Aaron had cub scounts and James and Evie came and played pretend victims while I taught girls camp first aid certification stuff.  They both had fun showing off and being center of attention.  :)  James of course loved flirting with the girls...

Thursday was another fun day of preschool and Payton coming over to play.  We made a quick trip to give our friends daughter a quick ride to a dentist appointment then dropped her off with time to go pick up the kids from school.  The kids had piano lessons, I mowed the lawn and then after getting the kids to bed Dan got me some weed and feed which I put on the lawn to hopefully get rid of the dandelions.

Friday we had Adeline over to play and we went to get my allergy shot, then went home for lunch and play until we picked the kids up from school.  The afternoon was the usual homework and piano practicing, then we did a quick dinner of hot dogs around the campfire.  Dan went to go play D&D with friends and i made cupcakes for the kids while they cleaned up and watched a movie.

Saturday was full of yard work.  Finishing the chicken coop - Tina came and picked up her chickens and so we are now down to our own 6 chickens.  And we planted a peach tree in our yard.  After a long day, we had dinner and headed to bed.

Today was church which was awesome as usual - we have a really great ward.  Ward choir was great - after, we played games and played outside and rested.

I was awful about taking pictures this week.... I will do better next week... probably....

Half a World Away

We had a crazy busy week.  Getting ready for Dan to be gone takes some prep work!  Monday was laundry and grocery shopping as usual.  Eileen and Anna had needle arts club after school and Payton came to play with us.  James and I also made a Costco trip after taking Payton to preschool in the morning.  

Tuesday James and I had his preschool field trip in the morning, then in the afternoon, we went to the park with some friends.  Eileen and Anna had choir after school - they are getting excited for their big concert next week!  

Wednesday the kids had late start, then James and I went to the Teddy Bear Picnic special story time at the library - it was a little chilly - but not too bad and James had a blast.  After school Eileen and Anna had orthodontist appointments.  Anna got her retainer and is slowly getting used to how it feels and talking with it.  They mostly just looked at Eileen's mouth and said "yep - your teeth got pulled - now we gotta wait and see if your other teeth move into place."which was kinda what we expected.  In the evening, Eileen and Anna had Activity Days, Aaron had Cub Scouts, Dan had Young Men's and I had choir.  

Thursday was again, crazy busy.  Preschool for James, then picking up Payton, then piano lessons, then Evie had her 1st grade music night, followed by getting the basement cleaned up and the kids to bed before I headed to Institute.  

Friday morning, really really early, Dan headed out of town to Korea.  I went and got my allergy shot, then after lunch, James and I headed to the school for Eileen's "Author's Tea" where we got to eat cookies and drink water - and best of all, we got to see Eileen's awesome book that she wrote and got published through her class.  We had lots of fun, then headed home after to wait for Grandma to arrive.  My mom drove up from Texas to help out while Dan is gone, she had hoped to be on time for Eileen's thing, but she hit some really bad weather on the way up.  It snowed Friday, Saturday and some of today.  It barely stuck at all up here, but it was falling constantly.  

Saturday mornng, Eileen had flute lessons, and we spent some time getting the house cleaned up and nice.  My mom brought their new puppy up with her and the kids have been loving having another puppy around - and Koopa had been loving having him around too.  They play together all day and then get exhausted and collapse to rest before the next bout of play.  Evie and James were having fun being silly - so they wanted pictures taken.  My silly kiddos!  

Church today was awesome!  Fast and Testimony meeting was wonderful.  Sunday school was great - I hope the students got as much out of my lesson as I did.  And Relief Society was wonderful too!  After, was choir which was great and then when Eileen and I got home from choir, Grandma and the younger kids already had dinner started for us!  We spent the afternoon resting and playing and then cleaning.  We got to talk to Dan for a bit and he showed us a bit about where he is (we Face Timed) and it was fun to talk to him and see the diversity that is Korea!
Now I'm kinda ready for the next week...