2014
Thursday, July 07, 2016
Our Summery June . . .
Wednesday, July 06, 2016
Camp Wait
So we name our camps and I'm not sure if this ever became its official name, but I'll use it for now. We did do a lot of waiting for food to cook and for the cousins to come (not because they were late, just because our kids were too excited!).
We went close to the same spot where we camped last July 4th holiday. It's in the Buffalo Creek wilderness and is really beautiful. Our family headed out Thursday morning after Jonas' last tennis lesson. We got to the area only to find Ben's hopefully camping spot taken (Ben did his pioneer treks here and so he is pretty familiar with the area). But we found another spot and I think it was awesome. We set up camp, the boys tried some fishing, and dinner took forever. Since the kids were super hungry they all declared it "The Best Meal Ever!" (It was turkey kielbasa, red potatoes, and green beans, just in case you want to have the best meal ever. But you should wait at least 1 1/2 hours past when you thought you were going to eat to make it the best meal ever. :) )
It rained on and off - luckily not a downpour, but definitely enough to get everything wet and our tent filthy with mud from the kids. Kids. Ben had put up a tarp and so we enjoyed eating under that and not getting too wet. We had s'mores, played some UNO, read our books (well Ben, Miles and myself did), and went to bed. We had a pretty good night and all woke up around 6am.
Friday we went on a hike - it was beautiful. I just wanted to keep going and going, but the kids were anxious to get back to camp so they could wait around all day for their cousins to come . . . Ben got a nice 1 1/2 hour nap in; the kids and I just hung out around camp.
Around 3 we headed out the road/trail to start walking to meet up with Grandpa Max and Joe and Britt and kids (cousins). Right where we were going to just stay and play and wait, they were there! It was awesome timing. Most everyone got a ride back - but Britt, Miles, Nicolas, and myself walked back. It was super.
Friday we still had on and off rain. Luckily we had dinner sans rain that night. The kids just played and ran around and ate and all that good camping stuff. We all went to bed around 10pm and, again, had a good night and again woke up close to 6am.
The kids just played a lot at the beaver dams on Saturday. Our plan was to pack up and then after lunch drive to another trail head and do a hike. Unfortunately the rain come down and the thunder and lightening were intense! It was spooky. It was literally lightening and then within a second THUNDER. On our way out we did stop and let some of the kids shoot grandpa's 22-rifle. The rest of us walked along the dirt road. The roads were incredibly muddy getting out - it was crazy! Brittany drove the Honda like a off-roading champ. :) The clouds were dark and so hiking was out at this point - so we just drove back to Littleton (in lots of rain!).
We had a good camping trip and loved having family come with us! We might just do it again next year . . . :)
And here are the gazillion pictures:
A fishing Miles. We didn't catch anything - although we saw lots of fish jumping!
Oh both dogs came and both dogs were in heaven. Wilson just wandered around and strolled here and there and loved his freedom. He dug little pits for him to sleep in. :) Brigham ran around with whoever was out playing and had an amazing time as well. He spent 2 hours on Friday morning in the beaver ponds trying to catch those darn birds! :)
UNO!
Two cute girls on Friday morning. And one dirty Boo.
Brigham not giving up on those birds. :)
Yay for fires!
Walking up the trail . . .
Hiking in the beautiful forest.
Taking a break on a log of course.
The kids downed 3 clementines each. :)
This picture is to show that I was there and I just love everyone else's expressions. :)
A cute dad and his baby.
The hammock is always fun.
The kids helped scoop out the oranges and we baked blueberry muffins in the peel (wrapped in foil and placed in the fire for 10 minutes - constantly rolling them around!). They were pretty yummy!
On Friday night the three young boys slept in a tent together. They did great.
This shows our main/upper camping area. The green small tent was the boys', the big one was our family, and the one next to it was where Emma and Grace slept. Down the little hill is the other tent with Joe, Britt, Sam, and Grandpa Max.
Cute cousins hanging out around the fire.
We made some wood necklaces for our "nature craft" time. :)
Everything got wet - either from the rain or from the ponds. So we did lots of shoe-roasting over the fire.
Lucy's hair all natured-up. :)
Everyone under the tarp waiting out the final downpour and hearing and feeling the THUNDER boom.
The kids (minus Nicholas) getting ready for some shooting.
And of course this would happen on the drive out. :)
Happy camping!
We went close to the same spot where we camped last July 4th holiday. It's in the Buffalo Creek wilderness and is really beautiful. Our family headed out Thursday morning after Jonas' last tennis lesson. We got to the area only to find Ben's hopefully camping spot taken (Ben did his pioneer treks here and so he is pretty familiar with the area). But we found another spot and I think it was awesome. We set up camp, the boys tried some fishing, and dinner took forever. Since the kids were super hungry they all declared it "The Best Meal Ever!" (It was turkey kielbasa, red potatoes, and green beans, just in case you want to have the best meal ever. But you should wait at least 1 1/2 hours past when you thought you were going to eat to make it the best meal ever. :) )
It rained on and off - luckily not a downpour, but definitely enough to get everything wet and our tent filthy with mud from the kids. Kids. Ben had put up a tarp and so we enjoyed eating under that and not getting too wet. We had s'mores, played some UNO, read our books (well Ben, Miles and myself did), and went to bed. We had a pretty good night and all woke up around 6am.
Friday we went on a hike - it was beautiful. I just wanted to keep going and going, but the kids were anxious to get back to camp so they could wait around all day for their cousins to come . . . Ben got a nice 1 1/2 hour nap in; the kids and I just hung out around camp.
Around 3 we headed out the road/trail to start walking to meet up with Grandpa Max and Joe and Britt and kids (cousins). Right where we were going to just stay and play and wait, they were there! It was awesome timing. Most everyone got a ride back - but Britt, Miles, Nicolas, and myself walked back. It was super.
Friday we still had on and off rain. Luckily we had dinner sans rain that night. The kids just played and ran around and ate and all that good camping stuff. We all went to bed around 10pm and, again, had a good night and again woke up close to 6am.
The kids just played a lot at the beaver dams on Saturday. Our plan was to pack up and then after lunch drive to another trail head and do a hike. Unfortunately the rain come down and the thunder and lightening were intense! It was spooky. It was literally lightening and then within a second THUNDER. On our way out we did stop and let some of the kids shoot grandpa's 22-rifle. The rest of us walked along the dirt road. The roads were incredibly muddy getting out - it was crazy! Brittany drove the Honda like a off-roading champ. :) The clouds were dark and so hiking was out at this point - so we just drove back to Littleton (in lots of rain!).
We had a good camping trip and loved having family come with us! We might just do it again next year . . . :)
And here are the gazillion pictures:
Happy camping!
Wednesday, June 29, 2016
Miles' pictures from Scout Camp
So Miles got back around 3pm on Saturday. He was happy and said he had a great time. We asked him lots of questions and he answered them pretty well. :) He ended up finishing 5 merit badges - plus 1 more that needs 1 more thing to finish it up. So 6 isn't too bad. Especially since I asked him to do 2 required badges - Environmental Science (I was given a tip to have him do that one since it is a hard one to do "at home." This one took the longest - most badges you get in 2-3 hours. This one you had to spend about 2 hours at for three days.) and First Aid. He did both of those. His electives were basketry (yes, the classic "basket-weaving"!), wood-carving, art, and leather-working.
Here are the pictures he took (well, not all of them. I will not post the picture of the shower. Especially b/c it reminds me of how Miles told us that some scouts pooped in them. Disgusting!)
The waterfront area. Miles did not even attempt to pass the swim test - and I'm not sure he could have. I think he said you had to swim to the dock and back two times and then back float on the 5th leg. He really wasn't interested in the waterfront, so it all worked out. But he still took a picture, I guess!
Miles and his buddy and tent-buddy, Ethan. Miles and Ethan lucked out and got a 4-person tent all to themselves. They are the youngest. The other youngest, Jeremiah, decided to stay in the 8-person tent - with 8 kids. I think Miles and Ethan got a little more sleep than the other boys. :) Miles went with the other ward since there were no other boys from our ward going. He was sure glad to hear that Ethan was going as well. This was probably the 2nd day and look how filthy Miles is - that's my boy!
Some of Miles' work: the 2 baskets he made, his leather pouch, plus some of his merit-badge cards. Cool!
His camp area.
He hiking stick he whittled away at and the leather handle. I love it.
Some rope-course thingy. Not really a rope, but whatever it is. :)
Miles!
Jeremiah on their way back home.
His camp was near Blanding, Utah - Blue Mountain Scout Camp. Those are the blue mountains in the background.
When I asked if he missed us, Miles replied, "No." That kid. But he did say he wanted to call and talk to us. :)
Here are the pictures he took (well, not all of them. I will not post the picture of the shower. Especially b/c it reminds me of how Miles told us that some scouts pooped in them. Disgusting!)
When I asked if he missed us, Miles replied, "No." That kid. But he did say he wanted to call and talk to us. :)
Father's Day Questionnaires
I copied Ben's Mother's Day Questionnaire and had the kids fill them out for Ben. Here are their responses:
1. My Dad is (40, 40, 40, 40) years old.
2. My Dad was (nice, cool, asommm!!, nice) when he was a child.
3. My Dad is good at (a lot of stuff, boating, playin with me, football).
4. My Dad likes (my mom, when we are good, his family, his children).
5. My Dad often tells me ("Miles . . .," I love you, I love you, be nice).
6. My Dad really wants (to have kids that don't fight, to go boating in the ocean, to have nice kids, nice children).
7. My Dad's favorite books is (I don't know what it is, Red Badge of Courage, I have nice kids, The Hobbit).
8. My Dad's favorite movie is (same as #7, Fiddler on the Roof, October Sky, The Other Side of Heaven).
9. My Dad looks (like my brother and sister, like an awesome person, like he is so hot P.S. That's probably why mom married him, for nice children)
10. I would like to give my Dad (farm land, ________, love, a kiss).
11. My Dad is special because (he is my dad, he is a nurse, he plays with me, he is a nice dad).
12. I hope I can (be loving, boat, be nice, be like my dad) like my dad.
13. Mom married Dad because (she loves him, he was good, he is nice, he is cute).
14. My Dad wants me to be (kind always, good to my family, nice, like him).
15. I love my Dad because (he does nice stuff for us, he is really helpful and nice, he is handsome and nice, he is good).
Saturday, June 25, 2016
Perm
Wednesday, June 22, 2016
Summer Happenings . . .
Clark called and said Miles is doing awesome! He's loving being filthy!! Here is a pic of him cleaning the meat off of a pig!! . . .Clark said he was running around with the pigs head having a blast
That totally sounds like my Miles.
Yes, the house has been way quieter without Miles. But, yes, we all miss him, too!
We've had a busy week full of library activities (a Harry Potter party and a Pond Critter activity), daily tennis lessons for Jonas (the coach loves Jonas' racket - he calls it a "classic." An AMF Head that cost me $1 at Habitat for Humanity.), a good bike ride to Ridgway Town park today where I got to not only pull Wren but also Lucy in the trailer on the up-hill way out (long-ish story), going to a "reception" for Jonas as he won one of the 10 drawings for Alpine Bank's "Pays for A's" program (Jonas ended up getting $45 from them - for his last report card! Lucky!), a late bike ride on this trail with friends for FHE on Monday night (it was a great way to celebrate the Summer Solstice as well as a full moon - by the time we were driving home, it was dark . . . it was a late ride, but awesome), babysitting Wren, etc., etc. The week slows down from here thank goodness. :)
And that's that.
Sunday, June 19, 2016
Thursday, June 16, 2016
Summer Update
Get ready for a nap or something . . . :)
So it officially feels like summer now. We've just finished up 2-week swim lessons for all the kids. And that's just so summery. :) There were many points why swim lessons were awesome this year:
1. I knew 4 other moms that were there at the same time watching their kids.
2. My kids improved in their swimming.
3. My kids loved it and had great swim teachers.
4. No one drowned. (Jonas drowned years back while in a swim class . . .)
5. And FREE lunch afterwards since I was so smart to sign them up for 11am swim lessons!
The free lunch thing was pretty great and I'm going to miss it. In fact, I should finally be making bread right now instead of typing away on my blog . . . The school district offers free lunch at 2 spots during June and July: one at the pool and at one of the middle schools. There were pretty decent lunches - and always came with a treat and so that was better than lunch from home! :)
All of my kids except Miles leveled up in their swim levels. Poor Miles. But the kid is just so uncoordinated in the water! I mean, he can swim-play just fine - dive for things, paddle around, etc. But swim real strokes? Nope. Not to be too rude, but it was rather comical to watch him. He did try and I do think some of it (just a little) was due to not being able to wear goggles. Jonas, Emmy, and Miles were all in the same class/level. Emmy was borderline, her teacher said, but she did pass Emmy. I think Emmy would actually do best to stay in the same level again. But I guess she can try the next level and we'll see. Their teacher also told us that Jonas should look in to the swim team. She (I guess I could call her Ms. Nancy) called swimming Jonas' "thing." We'd love to find his "thing"! :) What - my child a swimmer?! I would have never thought. Jonas isn't great, but he definitely shows some ability and talent.
The boys participated in an archery event through the library. They had a good time there and Miles, Jonas, and their friend Ivan all made it in the papers. I didn't see it, but I got a copy of it:
The boys have played with their neighbors and friends a bunch and have eaten popsicles and have bought treats from the ice-cream man. So that sounds like a pretty good summer so far. :)
I finally got my kids to the dentist. It had been 2 years, I guess. I'm the worst and should be fired . . . Everyone was great except Jonas; he had one little cavity. So we went back and Miles and Emmy got sealants on their new molars and Jonas got his first filling - fun, fun.
The girls did dance camp this week - Monday through Thursday. So they were busy: dentist, swim lessons, lunch, dance camp, then gymnastics on Tues. for both girls and on Thurs. for Emmy! Plus Emmy got sick and hasn't been feeling great, but has been hanging in there thanks to ibuprofen. They wanted to do the "Jedi training" dance camp and have had a good time so far. I asked the girls if they wanted to dress up as "Rey" for their last day (from the new Star Wars) and they did - and so I put together a costume in 15 minutes. I think they looked cute:
Ben and I went together to pick up Emmy from gymnastics on Tuesday and she showed us her new and improved round-off back-handspring. It was sooo good! I mean, a lot of improvement since I took those last videos a few weeks ago. It was really fun to see her do that.
It's hot. But we did have 3 days of awesome hail/pelting-rain storms. That was fun!
What else to bore you with . . . Miles goes to Scout camp next week - as in all week long. It will be interesting to see how he does! He won't be homesick, I'm sure, but we'll see how much merit-badging he can accomplish. :) I just reviewed the badges they offer at the camp and we made a list of which ones he wants to do. (I am making him do 2 - which are required badges and are a little difficult to earn. All the other badges are "just for fun" really.) His top three choices: 1. fishing, 2. basketry, and 3. art. Awesome.
Jonas starts tennis lessons next week. I found a racket - that looks great - for $1. Awesome.
Tons of people kept asking me about the "Into the Wild Wednesday" group we did last year (I was one of the starters/organizers.) I sort of didn't want to do it again this year, but I caved in and will hopefully just organize a couple of the outings and let others do the rest! :)
Ben slowed down a bit at work for a few weeks. A couple of doctors were gone and such. But the last couple of weeks it has picked up and he has worked some long days. The fort is nearing completion!
I finally talked Ben in to coming road-biking with me on Saturday mornings. I'll do my long run on Friday and then we can go together on Saturday. We did it last week and it was grand. It's nice having kids a bit older that can be left for a little while!
Okay, that's enough for now!
So it officially feels like summer now. We've just finished up 2-week swim lessons for all the kids. And that's just so summery. :) There were many points why swim lessons were awesome this year:
1. I knew 4 other moms that were there at the same time watching their kids.
2. My kids improved in their swimming.
3. My kids loved it and had great swim teachers.
4. No one drowned. (Jonas drowned years back while in a swim class . . .)
5. And FREE lunch afterwards since I was so smart to sign them up for 11am swim lessons!
The free lunch thing was pretty great and I'm going to miss it. In fact, I should finally be making bread right now instead of typing away on my blog . . . The school district offers free lunch at 2 spots during June and July: one at the pool and at one of the middle schools. There were pretty decent lunches - and always came with a treat and so that was better than lunch from home! :)
All of my kids except Miles leveled up in their swim levels. Poor Miles. But the kid is just so uncoordinated in the water! I mean, he can swim-play just fine - dive for things, paddle around, etc. But swim real strokes? Nope. Not to be too rude, but it was rather comical to watch him. He did try and I do think some of it (just a little) was due to not being able to wear goggles. Jonas, Emmy, and Miles were all in the same class/level. Emmy was borderline, her teacher said, but she did pass Emmy. I think Emmy would actually do best to stay in the same level again. But I guess she can try the next level and we'll see. Their teacher also told us that Jonas should look in to the swim team. She (I guess I could call her Ms. Nancy) called swimming Jonas' "thing." We'd love to find his "thing"! :) What - my child a swimmer?! I would have never thought. Jonas isn't great, but he definitely shows some ability and talent.
The boys participated in an archery event through the library. They had a good time there and Miles, Jonas, and their friend Ivan all made it in the papers. I didn't see it, but I got a copy of it:
The boys have played with their neighbors and friends a bunch and have eaten popsicles and have bought treats from the ice-cream man. So that sounds like a pretty good summer so far. :)
I finally got my kids to the dentist. It had been 2 years, I guess. I'm the worst and should be fired . . . Everyone was great except Jonas; he had one little cavity. So we went back and Miles and Emmy got sealants on their new molars and Jonas got his first filling - fun, fun.
The girls did dance camp this week - Monday through Thursday. So they were busy: dentist, swim lessons, lunch, dance camp, then gymnastics on Tues. for both girls and on Thurs. for Emmy! Plus Emmy got sick and hasn't been feeling great, but has been hanging in there thanks to ibuprofen. They wanted to do the "Jedi training" dance camp and have had a good time so far. I asked the girls if they wanted to dress up as "Rey" for their last day (from the new Star Wars) and they did - and so I put together a costume in 15 minutes. I think they looked cute:
Ben and I went together to pick up Emmy from gymnastics on Tuesday and she showed us her new and improved round-off back-handspring. It was sooo good! I mean, a lot of improvement since I took those last videos a few weeks ago. It was really fun to see her do that.
It's hot. But we did have 3 days of awesome hail/pelting-rain storms. That was fun!
What else to bore you with . . . Miles goes to Scout camp next week - as in all week long. It will be interesting to see how he does! He won't be homesick, I'm sure, but we'll see how much merit-badging he can accomplish. :) I just reviewed the badges they offer at the camp and we made a list of which ones he wants to do. (I am making him do 2 - which are required badges and are a little difficult to earn. All the other badges are "just for fun" really.) His top three choices: 1. fishing, 2. basketry, and 3. art. Awesome.
Jonas starts tennis lessons next week. I found a racket - that looks great - for $1. Awesome.
Tons of people kept asking me about the "Into the Wild Wednesday" group we did last year (I was one of the starters/organizers.) I sort of didn't want to do it again this year, but I caved in and will hopefully just organize a couple of the outings and let others do the rest! :)
Ben slowed down a bit at work for a few weeks. A couple of doctors were gone and such. But the last couple of weeks it has picked up and he has worked some long days. The fort is nearing completion!
I finally talked Ben in to coming road-biking with me on Saturday mornings. I'll do my long run on Friday and then we can go together on Saturday. We did it last week and it was grand. It's nice having kids a bit older that can be left for a little while!
Okay, that's enough for now!
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