End of Summer Fun

Summer ended in a bit of a flurry for us. We had the pleasure of having lots of fun guests in our home. Barry's cousin Carmen and her daughter Etni stopped by as they were moving to New Mexico. The next night my sister Jeni and her family stayed while they were on vacation. The next week Grandma and Grandpa Jenks came and helped us out while Barry had minor surgery to remove a cyst in his throat (he's all better now!) After they left Grandma Packer and my sister Shari came with her kids to help me keep my sanity while Barry was bed-ridden. Quinton and Clara loved having family to play with and we always welcome fun visits from those we love!

We went and fed ducks at the park with Grandma, Shari, Triston, and Connor. They always have a ton of fun together.

It was really windy and the ducks were a bit aggressive, but the kids loved it!

Clara was a little nervous and sat on the bench until the very end (see above picture.) But then she got brave and threw her bread with style.

Barry hasn't had much luck with the fishing here in Mountain Home yet, so on labor day we went and checked out a reservoir together. No fish, but lots of rocks to throw!

Barry has been working hard and doing great at his job. It's nice to know at the end of the day he's still a kid at heart.

Barry and I were also lucky enough to go to Lagoon on Labor Day weekend and have a ton of fun. It was the first time we've been able to go together since I've been pregnant or nursing every other summer we've been together. It was nice to be kid-free (thanks to his parents and niece Emily) and not have to worry about diapers and sippy cups for a day. We met my sister Jeni and her family there. The lines were short all day and the weather was beautiful. 

Last weekend here in Mountain Home was Air Force Appreciation Days. We went to the parade and I have never in my life seen so much candy thrown in a parade before. We left half-way through and still got a huge bag full. Quinton and Clara really got into it and were taking on the big kids for the best pieces of candy. Clara refused to let hers go, though, so her hands were always stuffed to capacity as she tried to pick up more. Then they had a free barbecue and lots of activities in the park. The kids were exhausted by the time we got home that day.

Camping

We decided to be brave and took the kids camping twice this summer. It turned out really nice. The first time we went by Anderson Reservoir at Ice Springs Campground and the second time we just found a spot by Smith Creek. We kept it short and just stayed Friday night and left early Saturday. The kids loved being able to run around and play in the dirt. They even slept okay. We were all pretty exhausted by the time we went home, though.

Nothin' beats chowing on Doritos by the campfire.

Quinton and Clara loved the tent. Sleeping next to two kicking toddlers in the cold, dirty mountains isn't my idea of a vacation, but at least we made some memories.

One of those days

Today is such a lovely day, lovely enough to write about.
We have had some hard days on the home-front lately.
But today is one of those blissful, I-remember-why-I'm-a-mom kind of days.
I slept until 7:00 without any interruption, which makes a person feel new inside.
The kids ate the healthy waffles I made for them this morning - and they didn't yell at each other through all of breakfast.
They didn't fight me when I put their clothes on and they played nicely together for about 2 hours. TWO HOURS!!! (Sure, they sneaked into the yucky gutter water out front, but by that point I hardly minded.)
Then they let me cook lunch in peace. Ahh. They ate their vegetables and the made-from-scratch-to-eat-better meatballs along with yesterday's whole wheat zucchini bread I dared to try. And they asked for MORE. If that doesn't make a mom feel successful, I don't know what does.
Then they went down for naps and I didn't have to lock my rambunctious boy in the laundry room while I scrubbed his poop out of the carpet when he should have been sleeping- a bonus on any day of life.
Now they are peacefully dreaming and my house is mostly clean and I am ecstatic. I can hardly remember why last week I was pulling my hair out and in tears and wondering what in the world I thought I was doing becoming a mother. I have no idea what this afternoon will be like when my little cave people awaken, but at least I feel like I can face it.

As a side note - a conversation between Quinton and his parents a few days ago:

Daddy: "Quinton, you're a handsome boy."

Quinton: "No, I not handsome. I a monkey."

Daddy: "Oh, a monkey?"

Quinton: "And Clara a princess."

So far, everything fits pretty darn well.

Mommy: "So what is Daddy?"

Quinton: "Um, Daddy a sunfish."

Well, okay, that's fair considering we went fishing that day and the reservoir was supposed to have that type of fish.

Daddy: "And what is Mommy?"

Quinton: "Umm... (thinking really hard)... Mommy a shark."

A shark!?! Really? Really?! I didn't think he even knew what a shark was, but I guess I fit the description, at least on some days.

Clarapunzel

She is getting hair. And I have proof...

See.

I told you.

(And aren't those the most gorgeous, mesmerizing eyes you've ever seen on a 20 month old? They melt my heart.)

Summer Fun

We got to go to Oakley for Pioneer Days this year and see a lot of Barry's family. Quinton and Clara had a lot of fun playing with their cousins and it was good to get away. Barry and Heather ran the Goose Creek Runoff this year, a 10K. It was actually a lot of fun. I think we both decided we need to get in better shape for next year, though.

Oakley comes alive this time of year with festivities in the park, the race, a parade (see below), and fireworks, along with the family reunions. If you haven't been, you should go!

That Sunday night my sister Shari came and picked us up and took us to stay with her in Shelley for a week while Barry came back home to work. We stayed plenty busy with all of our little ones. We went to the zoo, the park, barbecued, picked raspberries, visited Aunt Jeni at Krupp Scout Hollow, played with Grandma and Grandpa Packer, jumped on the sprinklerized trampoline, and probably more stuff that I can't remember because I was busy changing diapers and my mothering brain can only log so much information. 

  

Oh, and Great Grandma and Grandpa Gardner came all the way down from BC, Canada along with their kids to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary. It was really great to see them, I just wish they lived closer so we could visit all the time! Sorry, no pics.

We Finally Made It

Our summer kicked off with a big move for us from our apartment in Shelley...

...to our house in Mountain Home...

...and boy are we exhausted.

It has been a long road through school, but Barry officially graduated and is no longer working his tail off for free. We're in the middle of his second week of officially bringing home the bacon as a post-grad. It has been a different kind of routine for us, but we are definitely liking it. We actually get to eat dinner together and there aren't any papers to be written or tests to be studied for. Barry is doing great at his new career and getting settled in to being treated like a professional. Heather is adjusting to being alone with the kids all day and is missing the family she used to see all the time. Quinton and Clara seem to like our new house, especially the back yard!

We moved the last weekend of June but turned right back around and stayed with my mom for a week in Rigby while Barry finished up his internships. It was nice to spend time with them before we really had to go. We were there for Independence Day and had fun at the Rexburg parade and celebrating with food and fireworks. We were all over the place and didn't take very many pictures. Then we came back Saturday night and Barry started work Tuesday morning. Our ward is really nice and so is everybody we meet in Mountain Home. 

Clara and Connor at the parade.

Playing in the water with John and Mackayla at Aunt Jeni's house.

We also had one last hoorah with all of our friends and family before we moved on June 19th. We ate Cafe Rio and enjoyed everyone's company.

Heather, Erin, Cachea, Megan, Mistri - High school friends.

And all of our families!

Tonya, Heather, Brittney, Hailey - friends from Princeton Ward.

Eating some ice cream in Idaho Falls.

Visit to Rexburg

We made it up to Rexburg to visit Aunt Jeni one day and had fun playing at the park and riding in her awesome bike.

Sunday Best