Summer has begun. The sun is shining and the grass is green (quickly turning yellow because it is hot). Now we can play outside. Lucky for us we have a giant pool (attractive nuisance, I believe Trent called it) in our backyard to splash around in when the weather is right. 3800 gallons of water is going to take a while to warm up but it'll get there eventually. The kids began playing in the water at 11:30 and it is now 5:30. Someone has been in there every minute for 6 hours. I hope our sunscreen is working.

Fun in the Sun! Yay for summer!! 

 

 

 

Life is really good!

Camping With the Girls

One of the things I loved growing up was Girls Camp. Some of my favorite memories come from the yearly activity. We were spoiled. We camped at Rock Creek Girls Camp in the Targhee/Caribou Forest just outside the western boundary of Yellowstone National Park. It is beautiful ... and posh (for camping). There are A-frame cabins with electricity and refrigerators for sleeping. There is a bathroom with showers, flushing toilets, and hot water. There's an unheated swimming pool. There's a stage with a sound system and benches surrounding a fire pit. It is the ideal place for girls to spend a week. I loved it then and I love it even more now.

Our stake just returned from a week at Rock Creek. Early June is not the ideal time to go. But, you take what you can get. There's a pretty high demand for its poshness. We experienced wind, rain, wind, rain, thunder, lightning, rain, SNOW!!, and 20 degree temperatures. But, many prayers were answered and when we needed the weather to cooperate it did.

My favorite thing about girls camp this year was being with my three girls. I loved popping into their ward's cabin to check on them, give them hugs and kisses at night, and watch them participate in different activities. They didn't need me and that was ok. But, if they had, I would have been there. I had the most children at camp. Weird. I suppose I will for several more years to come. And hopefully we'll be there together for all those years.

Life is Good. Really, really good.

Walking the Green Way

This week we finally got out and took a little walk along the St. Anthony Green Way. It is a cute little trail that goes between the river and the highway. The Henry's Fork of the Snake River has been over its flood stage and we wanted to see how much water was down there. We got our answer - A LOT!!! But it has since gone down and all is well. We were able to bring cousin Tanner along. It was good to have him there. Its always good to be with the cousins. The wildflowers are just beginning to bloom and so the colors are lovely. With the high water came a high number of floating logs that seemed to all gather in one spot. The beavers will be happy. I wish I could produce the sound. SPECTACULAR!!! I love that river roar.

Bountiful Baskets

Back in February, a friend of mine posted a blog entry about Bountiful Baskets. I'd never heard of them before but was quite interested in the concept. I looked up the website and thought that our family could save some money and enjoy the food. So, after much research, and figuring out the website, we signed up for our first basket. We had to pick it up in Rigby because there were weren't any baskets available at closer locations. Our basket was full of fresh vegetables and fruits. I didn't have any idea what to expect but I was completely surprised at how much was included.

We've pretty much ordered a basket every week since. It has been so fun. Each basket is different and gives us the opportunity to experience new foods. The rule at our house is that we can't throw it away just because we've never had it before. So, we've had artichokes, brussel sprouts, papayas, mangoes, bok choy, and mexican squash. It has been fun. Some things we like and some things we don't need again. Every Saturday is like Christmas - full of a new surprise and adventure.

We now have a delivery spot right here in St. Anthony. Tomorrow will be another pick up day. Can't wait for the surprise that awaits us. Yummy!

P.S. The pictures shows just some of what was included in the basket one Saturday. I'd already put most of the vegetables away - two heads of romaine lettuce, a bag of potatoes, and a couple cucumbers.

Bountiful Blessings

Wow am I lucky. I have totally been blessed with many bounteous blessings. Today I spent time taking pictures of four of the greatest blessings in my life. As I looked at them I realized that life is going by so fast and they are growing up even faster.


McKenna is now 14 and about to finish her 8th grade year. She has been on the 8th grade volleyball and basketball teams where she is greatly skilled and so evenly tempered is amazes all. She is so smart and manages to maintain her grades while balancing a schedule that I can't even keep track of. She is currently playing shortstop on her softball team and is looking forward to Student Council at the high school where she will be the secretary.






Kathrynn is now 12 and has entered the world of Young Womens. She is such a good friend and she has tons. Sixth grade has opened a whole new world to her social life. She seems to have a party or a get-together to go to each weekend. She loves to spend time with her little cousins that live a couple blocks away. She has decided she doesn't like competive sports but does like to play her saxaphone. She is looking forward to summer band. If she isn't jumping on the trampoline , look for her in the kitchen cooking up something yummy.











Collin will turn 17 in a couple weeks! Seventeen. Can you believe that? He has totally enjoyed his Junior year. He played football and he wrestled. He participated as an escort in the Jr. Miss pageant. He was selected for the Honor Society and to be in the TATU (Teens Against Tobacco Use) group. He won an award for his solo at a national jazz band competition and the "Best Actor" award at the Honor's English Academy Award ceremony. (Small groups in the two Honor's English classes made movies about something. We haven't seen it yet.) He stays way too busy to do his chores.










Adrienne is also 12 and excited to be out of Primary. She is fun and adventuresome. She too has a social calendar that amazes me. She played on a community basketball team and tried volleyball for the first time. She loved it and did really well. She is also playing softball again. She plays the flute and loves it. She loves to be on the skooter and the rip stick. She has begun doing her own hair and can make it look so cute. She hates to wake up and hates to go to bed. She also has an infectious smile and laugh. She is a talker and keeps us quite informed on the happenings at school.

We sure do love these kids. We are also so proud of them and the choices they make.

The South Fremont Jazz band recently took a trip to Denver and then Greely, Colorado to participate in a Jazz Band Festival. It was a much bigger festival than anyone expected and the band, who are considered to be a fairly big fish in our little pond, found themselves to be a little fish in a much bigger lake. Despite the freezing, cold, rainy, winter-like weather, the trip was a blast. They did respectfully well and came back better musicians. That's all that counts really.

The best part was that Collin, who hates to solo, was forced to do a MAJOR solo because he is the only baritone sax player and that's what the music called for. So, though he didn't want to, he did - and he was fantastic. He never practices. I mean never. I don't know if I can emphasize that enough. NEVER!!!! I listened to him and wondered what would be if.... He received a special award at the festival for excellent soloing. We haven't seen the award yet. I'm sure it is somewhere between here and there, along with his brand new and expensive dress shoes. But, unlike the shoes, we do know that the award exists.

Last week, the band performed a concert. I couldn't wait to hear the solo. Trent's parents drove all the way up from Utah to watch and weren't disappointed. The band is really good. I could listen to them all day. But, Collin's solo (click on the red words for solo) was definitely award winning. I was impressed. It was worth blogging about. You'll enjoy it too. The trumpet soloist is our good friend Connar Moore. He was great too. But, I'm partial to the bari sax - nicknamed Big Bertha.

Just Another of His Many Talents

Collin has been working on a new skill lately - one he didn't want us to know about until it was perfect, apparently. His sisters knew. His friends knew. His friends' parents knew. Did we know? NO!!! And why? BECAUSE ITS DANGEROUS!!!!

Fire blowing is "one of his talents," he announced to me and then he said, "Bring the camera." I did and this is what I got. I didn't know that three lit matches and a mouthful of powdered sugar could be so "freakin' awesome." He tried to convince his band teacher to let him perform his little act at the band concert as part of the big finale of a song. Amazingly the band teacher said, "No." Can you imagine that?

When I found spots of blown powdered sugar all over my kayaks and on the floor of the garage I became a little worried. I approached Collin and he said, "Mom, relax. I'm very responsible with my fire blowing." Of course he is.