Boating, Softball & Summer Play

We are getting summer started on the right foot around here, busy and fun!  We bought a boat a few weeks ago and couldn't be more excited to have a summer filled with tubing, fishing and maybe even some waterskiing (although, admittedly, it has been close to 20 years since either of us has done that!).  We are thankful for our fantastic friends who were willing to take our maiden voyage with us and be patient as we figured everything out.  Some of the kids are a bit hesitant about tubing at this point, but everyone tried it!

We have also had a busy few days taking trips to Brewer to watch my nieces play in the high school softball playoffs. On the way one night we got held up by a caravan transporting windmill blades.  We have seen the bases transferred before, but never the blades. It was so neat!  The team made it all the way to the state championship and all played so well.  It was great for our kids to see and be part of two exciting games that all the girls worked so hard to get to.  Way to go ladies!

The kids seem to be adjusting to summer just fine spending lots of time playing together.  I can't yet tell if it is their age or if it is a fleeting phase, but they are all playing so well together this week with some pretty elaborate pretend play.  In this bottom picture the stuffed animals had a wedding for Zeeza the zebra and Kitty the kitty. There are side plots, minuscule details and rapidly evolving storylines.  It is most heart warming that they get along so well during this time, are so inclusive of one another AND seem to self regulate/problem solve amongst themselves when someone starts to get too crazy or mean towards someone else.  I fully realize this won't last long, but we are reveling in this particular moment of the difficulty of parenting paying off... for now;)

This bottom picture is how I found Audrey last night... she does love her books:)

James Turns 7!

This big man turns 7 today! I am not sure where the time has flown to, but it has been a really cool 7 years.  James is a thinker, he has a mind that is constantly working to solve problems and invent new ways to do things. He is an awesome brother who has lots of patience for his siblings, but also loves to work solo on various lego and recycled item inventions.  Lately, he has been working on drawing/writing a comic book.  He has a memory like a steel trap and never lets us forget things... when he is paying attention to the world around him and not day dreaming;)  He loves skiing, running, digging in the garden and swimming.  He is kind hearted, thoughtful and always willing to help.  Happy 7th Birthday James!

This year, "Finding Dory" opened on his birthday and we were able to go to the first showing here in Farmington.  This trip also marked the first movie I have taken the kids to by myself and it was a great success!  

More Chicks!

We swore we wouldn't get any more chickens until next spring, but when we were down to only 4 layers and getting 1-2 eggs a day, we decided to take on some new chicks.  Maybe next year we will get around to incubating our own eggs. It is easy to forget just how small (and cute!) these chicks are.  We are keeping 6 of these fluff balls, they have been named: Cutie, Miss Pickle, James Jr., Benjamin Franklin, Barack Obama & one unnamed.. so far!

James' 7th Birthday Party:)

James really wanted to have some friends from school at his party this year, so we decided to have it earlier in the month, before school got out.  We were having so much fun that I forgot to take many pictures, but here is what I got:)  He had a Minecraft party with lots of junk food, pin the tail on the pig, balloon popping, bean bag toss and a gem search in the yard. The coolest part of the preparation for this party was that the kids all worked together to make most of the decorations and games.  With a picture to guide him, Noah made the pig. James made a cool drawing to go on the front door and they all helped with the tape for the bean bag toss.  James had a wonderful party and we were all exhausted at the end!  Thank you so much to everyone who was able to come and help us celebrate!

Sandy River

We were running at the gym this morning when James spotted the campus map.  He asked why we hadn't explored the trail down to the river behind the soccer field... I didn't have a good answer, so we went on an adventure.  It was a brief walk down to the Sandy River where we sat, threw rocks, made ferry boats and had an overall relaxing few hours without seeing another person.  The kids wished they had their bathing suits when Noah and Ben tried to wade to the other side... next time:)

The bottom picture... I woke up this morning and heard someone else breathing next to the bed.  I thought for sure it couldn't be one of the kids because when they wake up in the night they scream and DEFINITELY let us know they are there.  When I rolled over this is what I saw.  Audrey sound asleep kneeling over a storage box.  I have no idea how she was asleep like this.  I put her back in her bed and she never work up, so I am guessing she must have walked in her sleep and found a nice place to sleep;) 

Busy Weekend Fun!

It is safe to say we overbooked this weekend and had to miss out on a few things, but overall it was great!   I woke up on Friday morning and heard James rummaging around downstairs before "wake up time" (aka 7am).  I looked down over the railing and saw him bent over the couch with just his underwear on.  When I asked him what he was doing, he looked up at me (with the costume in the picture on his face) and said, "SHHH! I am operating on the patient and I need silence!"   It was really hard not to laugh, but he was dead serious.  He then came up stairs to show me the doctor outfit he made himself:)

This week we have lost 2 chickens in 3 days to some predator in our yard during the day, so the remaining 4 hens and 1 rooster are being confined to their run for a few weeks.  They kids felt badly for them, so when I stepped outside, this is what I found.  All of the kids have been taking turns in the run telling the chickens stories or reading to them, but this time they all got into the coop... I am sure the chickens were appreciative;)

Saturday the kids and I traveled north to celebrate Lily's 3rd birthday party. It was a beautiful day outside and she had an awesome My Little Pony party!  Happy 3rd Birthday Lily!

Sunday was Children's Sunday at church and such a cool service.  It is always so uplifting to see all of the kids participate in traditional "adult" roles throughout the service.  Noah really wanted to read the scripture and did an amazing job reading with impressive inflection and clarity in front of the whole congregation!  The most inspiring theme of this service is always being able to share with the larger church family what the youth have been up to all year.  It is a chance to see not only their spiritual growth, but also how they are reacting to difficult situations with love and compassion.  We were proud parents on this day:)