Keeping Busy

The last few months feel like they've gone by really fast. Having four kids really keeps our days filled with fun and togetherness (and a little bit of stress), and we wouldn't trade it for anything!

Clara and I went to a tea party at the library one day. They had real china and all sorts of treats. Clara is growing into such a cute little lady. Quinton also went with Barry to a boy's activity at the library that day where they flung rubber chickens, shot arrows, and did other fun boy stuff!

Barry's cousin Shane and his wife Ashlee moved to Mountain Home and Barry quickly convinced Shane to get into fly fishing. They went on a trip to Crane Falls and had some luck.

On Labor Day Barry took Quinton on a bike ride to the store to get donuts. The chocolaty evidence is easy to see.

Warren is growing up! We finally moved him out of his crib into a regular bed and he did really well with the transition. He's starting to talk a lot, too. Yesterday I dumped a scoop of protein powder in a smoothie and he goes, "Good job, Mom! Good Job!" Claps a little bit. "You did it!" He did it again this morning when I put a new roll of toilet paper on the holder. I am pretty amazing I guess. 

He also spent 5 minutes last night picking boogers out of his nose, putting them on a tissue to throw away and going, "Bye-bye booger! Bye! All gone booger!" And one day when I sneaked into his room during a nap to grab something he said out loud, "Look! A bus!" Then rolled over and went back to sleep. He gets soo excited every time he sees a train, bus, or anything with wheels.

Here we are at the Air Force Appreciation Day. The kids each filled their grocery bags full with candy!

Playing in shaving cream

Sawyer turned three months old! He's such a cutie and always smiling. And he has a very cute baby giggle.

The kids had a walk-a-thon at school to raise money. They both did great! Barry and I couldn't keep up with them. Here's Clara right after.

Quinton and Clara got creative with some balloons from our neighbor's birthday party.

Barry's Grandma Nona Jenks passed away and we went to the funeral on September 15th. It really was one of the most amazing funerals I've been to because it was filled with such love, faith, and family. Everyone was happy that Grandma Jenks could be reunited with those she loved on the other side and it was wonderful to see all of the family there.

Sawtooth Trip

One of Barry's favorite places is the Sawtooth Wilderness near Stanley, Idaho. Ever since he found out I hadn't been up there, he has desperately wanted to take me. He finally got his wish when we took a family trip up there mid-September. It is gorgeous there. The leaves on the trees were changing colors causing the mountains to almost look like they were on fire. We stayed at Smiley Creek Lodge in a cabin. On Friday we went to the fish hatchery where the kids were able to catch a ton of fish at the pond. On Saturday we went on our first real family hike all together to 4th of July Lake. The kids did great and we really enjoyed our time there together.

Fun at the cabin

Exploring Alturas Lake

We really had to keep asking Quinton to wait for us the whole time on the way up for our hike. He's a go-getter!

Eating lunch at 4th of July Lake

Warren fell asleep on the way down. I didn't realize how heavy he could be until I carried him for so long!

We were all pretty worn out and ready to go home, and then we had one scary moment at the very end of the trip. While Barry was driving, a huge Elk came right in front of our van and he swerved, missing it by just a couple of inches. We both screamed, which caused most of the kids to start crying. It took us a little while to calm down, but we were so grateful that nothing more happened. Our Father in Heaven really does watch over us.

Ogden Temple and Lagoon

We went on a fairly last minute trip at the end of August to Utah and stayed with Sarah's family. We went to the Ogden temple open house with Grandma Packer, Shari, Triston, and Connor. The kids weren't quite as reverent as we would have liked, but it was beautiful. Then we had ice cream at the Farr's factory afterward.

The next day we had an amazingly fun time at Lagoon. I really thought it would end up with kids in tears and fits for most of the day, but they all did great! They kept going and going until 9pm as we tried to cram in as many rides as possible. Sawyer was content most of the day and Warren ended up loving the rides (I wasn't sure he would).  We had fun with Grandma Packer, Shari's, and Jeni's families. We were so glad we could take our kids and make some fun memories.

On Sunday we were able to go to church with Sarah, Nancy, and Amy and have dinner with them afterward. It was great to see them!