Little Hip Hugger

Tonight while making dinner, (chicken spaghetti, yum yum! Thanks Adrienne:) I was not with out my little kitchen companion, my hip hugger, my Ava. Where ever I am, there she is. Whatever I'm doing, she's also trying to do. It made me remember a day in May when she was so all over what I was doing, and it just hit me that someday, I am gonna miss her feet stepping on mine as I try to move about the kitchen. I am gonna miss how she is most content while in my arms so she can see for her little self exactly what I'm doing.

I am gonna miss how excited she is to "help", even when her help needs to be undone.

(that is my silverware drawer)

I am glad I grabbed my camera and tried to capture a little of my joy on that Sunday afternoon on the last day of May.

With my hip hugger at my side.

Giving me big open mouth kisses!

Keeping me company.

And making me laugh!

This is what we made together in the kitchen that day. My chocolate chip banana muffins. She helped a little.... and taste tested them for me. I think she liked them!

Escape to the Lake

Grandma Jane, Grandpa Roger, and Morgan came last month for a visit, and we couldn't have had a funner time! We crammed so much fun into that week, I feel tired just thinking back on it all! They flew in on Saturday night, and by Sunday afternoon, we were headed up north for a few days at the lake. Roger has a sister named Patti, and her husband Dave is from Brainard Minnesota. They have a cabin near there in a little town called Nisswa, and every summer they come up from their home in Florida to stay for a few weeks. It just so happened that they were going to be at their cabin the same time that Jane and Roger were in town, and Patti and Dave invited us ALL to come and stay for a few days! We were a little bit unsure about it, we had never met Dave or Patti, and we were a big group, and didn't want to over impose. Patti insisted, and Roger really wanted to see his sister, so we went, not quite knowing what to expect.

After we dropped Ava off at my good friend Mia's house (we decided it would be a bit more relaxing to NOT chase a busy baby all over a lake front cabin), we made the 2 1/2 hour drive and arrived at Dave and Patti's cabin! We realized very quickly that we had NOTHING to worry about. Their family could not have been any sweeter or more welcoming! After about an hour, we felt like we had know them our whole lives!

We took advantage of all the fun activities up there, and we didn't waste any time getting started! The kids tested the lake right off the bat, and pretty much lived down at the dock for the few days we were there. Callie was our brave one! No matter how chilly it was (in the 60's one day) she had a suit on, and was jumping in and out of that lake! The first night we all had a blast fishing off the dock for sunfish and bass.

You and me go fishin' in the dark...

Dave & Patti's oldest daughter Albany & their dog Gigi!

My half naked child & his sunfish!

Jane & Dave enjoying the evening. (Dave also bated ALL the hooks!)


It doesn't get much better then fishing in your PJ's!

The kids had a ball tubing behind the boat, and taking the paddle boat out, although it had to be tethered to the dock after the wind took them half way across the lake, which called for a rescue! (Mind you this was with in an hour or so of being there:) They also played on the water trampoline, and just plain old swam!

Hadley (the youngest daughter) & Callie tubing.

Dallin & Morgan on a successful paddle boat ride!

Dallin & Grant hangin' on the trampoline!

Callie, doing what she did best that week, & LOVING every second of it!!

Dave was kind enough to take Chuck, myself, Grant and Morgan fishing one afternoon, and we had so much fun catching fish every few minutes! Morgan and I caught big fat sunfish, and apparently the one I caught was pretty impressive (of course it was!!!). That night we had a huge fish fry, and enjoyed every bite! Yummm!

Grant & I & my MONSTER of a sunfish!

Here were the keepers! Chuck cleaned every single one. Took over an hour!

Taylor (friend), Patti, Morgan, Kenzie, & Callie relaxing by the boat house.


Morgan pointing out her prize catch!

It was such a joy to have a few days to just relax and play together. No schedules, no demands, no phone calls (okay, so maybe a few), no errands, just fun!

Dallin & Grandpa Rog. (Can you even see him behind the HAIR!)

The boys wishing that they could take the 4 wheeler out for a spin!

S'mores! Need I say more? I think there was an unnatural amount of marshmallows consumed in those few days!


Chuck getting his bad mitton on! He's got some serious skills (that's why I married him:)!

Chuck took Callie out for a ride (no helmets will make a mom very nervous) and when they came riding back down the road, her hair was absolutely plaster against his black jacket! It was so cute, but my picture of that didn't turn out:( I love her look of total excitement, and you gotta love the death grip she has on his arms!

Here is a picture we took with the whole crew right before we left back for home. Front row: Dallin, Hadley, Kenzie (holding Gigi), Callie, Albany, and Grant. Back row: Me, Chuck, Jane, Roger, Patti, Morgan, and Dave.

It was such a treat to have this little get away at the lake with Rogers family. We made many priceless memories with our children and family, and after all, isn't that was a vacation is all about? Thanks again Dave and Patti for your kindness! We LOVED every minute of it!

When you ask a 7 year old to kill a bee....

This is what happens...


Okay, so funny story, now that is. I came home from my early morning Sunday meetings, and everyone was downstairs visiting with Grandma Jane, Grandpa Roger, and Morgan, who had just arrived the night before. Grant went upstairs, and then came back down again, announcing that we had a real live bee in our house. Chuck, with all his fatherly wisdom, told our seven year old, to just hit it with a magazine. Feeling quite confident in his abilities, Grant ran up stairs to kill his first bee. We heard a few thuds, followed the very loud, unmistakable sound of shattering glass. Chuck and I looked at each other, and ran up stairs to discover the above scene. Grant was standing back away from the window with a look of total fear, like he had just given himself a for sure death sentence.

Rather than grab a magazine, Grant grabbed this board book of Ava's. Not wanting to get too close to the bee, he stood at the other end of the living room, and launched the book at the bee. Can you guess where the bee was? And the bee won, just in case you weren't clear on that. Oh yeah, and Grant is still alive, and learned a very valuable lesson on how NOT to kill a bee.

I Can't Believe I Did This!

Okay, so I got a wild hair last week, and decided to try my hand at sewing a piece of clothing for myself! I do enjoy sewing, but I have only ever done things for my home, or crafty things, never clothes! I saw this skirt tutorial on a blog for an A line skirt, and it looked incredibly simple, so I thought I'd give it a try (and most likely fail miserably, especially because it had a zipper!!!). But to my complete surprise, it was easy, and fun, and it actually fit me! I wore it to church on Sunday, and got lots of compliments! I will definitely make another skirt, and I totally rocked at the zipper! Yea me!!!

Not the greatest picture, but you get the idea!

Preschool Party

Callie had a very fun preschool year! I participated in a co-op with several other moms from our ward, and the ward next to ours, just like I've done for the boys. I have been doing a co-op, for 5 out of the last 6 years! For an end of the year party, we went to a park with the 2 preschool groups for some games, crafts and cup cakes! It was a great excuse to get all the kids together, let us moms visit, and say good bye to some that are moving, and some that are graduating to kindergarten.

Working on the craft project.

The whole crew together!

Our little group had 5 kids, 2 girls, Callie and Eryn, and 3 boys, Clark, Spencer, and Joshua. This year, all of the little boys at some point or another had a little thing for Callie, the "M" word (marry) was even tossed around a bit!! One morning I went to pick up Spencer, and Callie was in the back of the van waiting for him. I had done her hair in pig tails (or puppy tails as she calls them), and Spencer looked at her and said, "Oooo, Callie I like your hair today!" Not something you hear a 4 year old boy say everyday! I told his mom what he had said, and she later asked Spencer about it, and he said that he hoped she would wear her hair like that when they got married! The kids are great, and we can't wait to get started next year!

Eryn, Spencer, Clark, Joshua, and Callie

Ava playing peek a boo with her stroller.

Callie enjoying her cupcake!

They are boys.....

And they are constantly on the go! We do love the fact that they are anything but sedentary, and have loved, from a very early age, bikes, scooters, roller blades, and skateboards. A few years back, the boys pooled some of their birthday money, and bought these bike jumps. They have provided countless hours of entertainment, not only for our kids, but all of their friends too! There have been a few injuries, but nothing too serious! I don't know what all of their moves and tricks are called, all I know is that they asked me to take a few "action" shots of this and that something or another the other day. They think their pictures turned out so cool, that they asked me to put them on the blog, which is what I was planning to do any way!

Dallin and his friend Alex

Grant

Dallin again! (He thinks he looks like he's crying!)

Chuck is talking about building the boys a quarter pipe this summer. Apparently he must think we don't frequent urgent care often enough! And yes, I know they don't have their helmets on, they are both broken, and we need to pick up new ones this week.

Memorial Day

We had a very relaxing Memorial Day this year. We decided to pack up the kids and head to Como Zoo, which has been around, well since the beginning of time I think! Thankfully they have made vast improvements to it over the years, and it isn't quite the PETA nightmare it once was! It is now a great destination for families, and still has the most amazing gardens and arboretums around! The kids enjoy it all, and because it isn't all that big, it helps keep the crabbiness and whining in check!

Ava was thrilled to be stroller free for a few min and explore the arboretum with her siblings!


She really wanted nothing to do with posing for a picture, she just wanted down!

I love this building, it smells like heaven! (Sorry about the naked statue!)

I just laughed at he sight of all the kids hanging over the edge of this pond trying to touch the coy fish. (and yes, they did get yelled at by a volunteer, but it was fun while it lasted!)

I surprised the kids with a bag of cotton candy to share, as if they didn't have enough junk and sugar coursing through their veins!

We had a great time, and Chuck and I have vowed to go back soon, just the two of us on a date, so we can really enjoy all of the gardens and exhibits, oooh, and maybe have a picinic too!