Nate

We love Nate. He is such a great kid. He is so fun to be around and it is like having a piece of Gary here when he is around. He is great with the kids and they love to play with him. He has had some challenges in his life that most of us have not had to face but he is handling them with courage and setting a great example for his sisters.

Kids

We went to Sam's club and the kids ended up pulling out the socks and putting them on their face! They are so silly and make us laugh. I think I am way over the embarassment factor as a parent and I just think everything my kids do is hilarious...at least that is what I tell myself when they do things that are not so funny. I always tell Jerry it's laugh or cry and most of the time I try and choose laugh. Grandma and Grandpa have been really good sports and have helped so much with the kids. We are busily preparing for the family reunion this weekend. It should be fun.

Weekend

We have had quite the crazy time with five kids under 4 at Grandma's. Church was a circus today! All we could do was laugh because we sat in the back and the kids were out of control. Grandpa actually had to go home and get his books so he took Lauren for a while but it was still crazy! Britton is so active and such a cute boy. He is busy like Lauren was and has tons of energy. Brooklyn is a sweetheart and her and Lauren and best friends. Landon gets left out a bit and there was some drama when he was told he was not Brooklyn's friend anymore. He said, "Brooklyn, you better say I am your friend or I will cry!" I think when Britton gets older they will have a great time as a foursome. We are all just trying to get rest and Lindsay and I are staying up late trying to plan a suprise open house for my parents. Life is busy and crazy!

Max and Ozzy

We have been reunited with Max and Ozzy and everyone is very happy about the union. We went to their house earlier in the week. Nat and I had fun catching up and Landon loves Max's video games. Lauren, Landon and Max are all really close in age so they did have some power struggles but Avery loved Ozzy's bed. We met at the splash park and we did get to ride the carousel. Lauren affectionately calls it the "carous-wheel." We also met Camille and her cute little girl so it was fun to connect with her again. There were tons of people at the splash park but the kids got to ride the carousel and eat cotton candy. What more can you ask for! Kevin and Lindsay got here last night and we are excited to spend time with them.

Progress

Here is picture of Avery sitting up! She is so grown up now. Kenzi worked with her and finally got her to sit up on her own. She is doing so well with eating solids. Everyone loves to see her smile and wants to hold her constantly. She is having fun at Grandma and Grandpa's. Tonight we went to Blackfoot and met Mike, Karen and Paetan to watch a skeleton game of Brenn's. He is such an athlete. It was fun to watch him. He got in a car wreck on Sunday and is very lucky to be alive. He was driving home from work and lost control of his car on a curve on the Twin Falls exit. He ping ponged off the guard rails and ended up totaling his car. We are so grateful he is alive and well. We went to his game and then went to Rupp's for dinner with Mike and Karen.

Porter Park

Yesterday we went to the Porter Park spray park while Grandpa went golfing. I thought it was perfectly reasonable to be dropped off at 9:30am not realizing it didn't open until 10am. I also did not realize that the reason we were the only ones there was because of how cold it was. Lauren and Landon were good sports though and played really hard for about 45 minutes before we went in the bathroom and used the hand heaters to get warm. Kenzi came with us and was a good sport. Sadie and Ellie came and met us as well. The sad part of the day came when the carousel just did not open when it was supposed to. Many tears were shed.

Uncle Dave's

We had a great time going to Uncle Dave's for Sunday dinner to celebrate Ryan's birthday. Some of the highlights were Landon's trip to the chicken coop to gather eggs, Lauren's new found love for her cousin Abby. She said, "Abby, I am not going to be mean to you anymore!" We are all so happy about this relationship. Abby even made her a book with a bedtime story about the time Abby ran into a barbed wire fence with her face. She was so sweet to do this for Lauren. We also enjoyed watching Ryan eat an entire pie plate full of asphalt pie. He is the birthday boy so he can do whatever he wants! When we were loading up the car Landon told Lauren, "Sissy, we just went to a real, live FARM!" Dave had a new litter of dogs and kittens and also has sheep, pigs and I think a llama. They were both so happy. Lauren had a stomach ache in the car which ended with her throwing up everywhere. Grandpa tried to pull over but it didn't work too well. We stopped at Rod's to clean up and the first thing she asked for when she got inside was something to eat. It is amazing how fast kids recover. Mike was there working for Rod so it was nice to visit with him. He has been building a hot tub room for Rod. Thanks for the hose and cleaning supplies to make the rest of our ride home bearable.

Idaho

We have had a really fun week at Grandma and Grandpa's. The kids love having so much space to run and play. We have had Gary's older three kids here as well because their Mom is out of town. We have thrown lots of parties and attended some as well. We had Shelby stay with us and she and Kenzi watched the kids while we went and shopped for the week. Matt, Katherine and Jennifer came out for FHE but we forgot to have a lesson! We had a good dinner though and enjoyed each other's company. The kids and I went to Rod's one day and they played in his yard and we had hot dogs for lunch. He has a beautiful yard. Nate brought a Monarch butterfly in the house one night and you can see the kids were a little scared. My parents have some horses in their pasture and the kids have loved feeding them carrots and watering them each day. They love to work outside with their grandparents spreading sand, watering flowers, weeding and helping with everything they are doing. A big highlight of the week was that I found my baby book which my Mom thought I had lost when I moved from California. I also found boxes with dolls of mine my Mom had saved and I can now have my girls play with them. It has been so much fun. We had a girls night where we did face masques and pedicures. Lauren sure had fun when she found Grandma's lipstick in the drawer. Lauren and Landon also had a water party on the trampoline and with the sprinklers. My Mom and I went shopping to get food for Kenzi's party, Jessie's party and a party at Rod's. These all took place on Friday and it was fun. Dave's family came to Rod's because he flooded his yard and we all ate, watched a movie and spent time together. Grandpa stayed home to supervise Jessie's party. I think it was a successful day. Karen and Paetan came to visit on Saturday. We had a good time with them. Matt, Katherine and Marianne came for dinner which was fun. Katherine and I looked for baby stuff online for most of the night. It is so fun to spend time with family. We are really missing Jerry and wish he was here.

Wedding

Teresa and Doug were married this weekend in Salt Lake. We went up on Saturday. We were able to see Rozalynn and Richard, Kevin and Lindsay, Brent and Jill and we stayed with Clyde and Jeannette. The wedding was a difficult time being reminded of not having Gary but it was nice and his kids did really well. On Sunday morning we had a breakfast for Father's day at Lindsay's. They have an amazing yard and a swingset the kids love although Lauren seems to get knocked down a lot. Lindsay prepared a really good breakfast. We had Shelby with us on the ride back which was really fun. She is so good with the kids and so pleasant to be around. It was sad to part ways with Jerry. We will miss him!

Neighbors

We have the best neighbors but they have their home as a second home so we don't see them often enough. They are great people. Their son Luke and Landon get along really well. We had a play date with them and they had an awesome time. We wish they could play more often!

Six Months Old

Avery is six months old. She is such a delight. She is a very happy baby. She has started to roll over. She loves to stand up and put weight on her legs. She loves her brother and sister to play with her. She is eating rice cereal and just started squash and bananas. She has started to find her voice and coos and babbles. We love to hear her voice.

Fever

Avery has had a fever for the past few days. I am not sure if it is just teething or something else. We have been attempting to spend as much time at home as we can so she can get her rest but it is difficult with the two toddlers. I wish I just had a big enclosed play land with a trampoline so they could expel some of the energy they have each day. Landon's newest self appointed task is carrying around the fly "snapper" and "snapping" flies. He is doing really well. Lauren continues to focus on the potty, her baby and making messes. We will be glad when Avery feels a little better so we can become a little more active and leave the house.

Landon

Landon is a true leader in our home. He is such a good helper. He cries when he doesn't get to vacuum. He loves to clean up and helps his sisters all the time. He is missing preschool but continues to have a need to learn everything! He is a sponge and is constantly asking questions. So many questions I can't even answer them all. He loves space right now and has memorized the order of the planets from the sun. When Lauren gets up in the morning he tells her she can choose to watch a movie about space or volcanoes (documentaries from the library). Of course, she wants to watch Dora. He draws the planets constantly and is always asking us about how God created the earth and other questions we don't quite know how to explain. He is also obsessed with Yellowstone National Park (thanks to another library documentary.) He cried and cried when we had to take it back because another patron had reserved it. He asks if we can go wait by the book drop to watch and see when it is returned! WOW. We are hoping to take him to the park when we go up to Idaho so he can see it all first hand. He has an amazing mind. His other past time is to study my college human anatomy book. I tried to check out a book that was more "age appropriate" but he insists the book we have is better. We are constantly looking for ways to help him continue to learn. He is writing his letters really well and doing great with letter recognition. He wants me to go to the outlet mall and park so he can read all the letters for me. He is very good at directions and always makes sure we are driving the right way. He loves his Dad and kind of had fun playing catch with him. Jerry had to discuss with him "coaching" because Landon just said Dad was being mad at him. I know how he feels because I had a similar experience with Jerry when we attempted to play catch. We don't do sports together anymore. Landon is doing great at swimming and will be playing soccer this fall. He does really well in Primary and has given a few talks we didn't even know about. He loves his teachers and they say he is very reverent and a good listener. He has a lot of energy and is very perceptive. We love him.

Lauren

Lauren is amazing! She finally decided she was going to be potty trained and guess what...she is. Now that it is her idea instead of ours she is having success. She has one issue which she seems to have a solution for. She thinks the bathroom stinks so she has to spray Lysol each time before she goes in or she gags. Silly girl. She has doubled her my little pony collection because of her efforts and seems to be very happy about it. Her swim teacher says she can definitely move up a level if she does any more session of swim lessons. She has such a hard time staying out of the water...restraining herself from jumping in because the other kids in the class our just getting used to the water. She has done well though and is liking it. She does almost everything herself. She gets dressed on her own, combs her hair, makes her bed and brushes her teeth. She is a great helper and loves to clean. She likes to vacuum the stairs and of course use pledge or Windex.....she loves to spray chemicals. When she wakes up in the morning she throws her baby over the upstairs rail just so we know she is on her way down. Yes, she still has baby and we are wondering how long she will last. She is not looking like she used to over two years ago when she got her from Mimi and Poppy. Lauren loves to dance. Her favorite song right now is "Our Song" by Taylor Swift. She loves to dress up in princess dresses and loves lip gloss. She puts on her "make ups" she got from Aunt Lindsay every morning. Aunt Lindsay actually saw her using the lip gloss she had and then quickly gave it to her as a gift. Aunt Lindsay just has this thing about germs. She is very loving and fun to be around. She has lots of energy and is very smart. She is learning so much from Landon. She is slow to warm up to people but wins them over with her amazing smile and her dimple. She is a shining star in our home. We love her so much!

Avery

She is almost six months old! We can't believe how fast time is flying by. She is a beautiful baby and it is so fun to see her personality emerging. She is LOVED (almost to death) by her big brother and sister. Whenever I bring her down from her bed they run as fast as they can and grab her feet and immediately start telling her how much they miss her and love her. She did roll over last week and has discovered her toes. She is having some teething issues (incessant drooling, gnawing on everything she can get in her mouth and a fever) but seems to be managing ok. She loves to smile and stand on her legs as much as she can. She plays in her exersaucer which she can stay in for quite a while. She is eating rice and oatmeal cereal and also drinking water from her sippy. We are planning to start solids this weekend. She is sleeping in her crib...we finally rid ourselves of the swing and seems to be adjusting well. She goes to sleep with her pottery barn blanket and her little pink piggie and of course her binky. She really is a good baby and has those awesome chubby legs we all love to squeeze. She also has a little bald spot on the back of her strawberry blonde hair and beautiful big blue eyes. We love her!

Grandma Faye

Today is my Mom's birthday. She is turning 71. She and my Dad went on a trip to West Yellowstone and Jackson Hole to celebrate. We have always loved going to the Playmill as a family. As I have had my own children I have realized so much more all the sacrifices my Mom made for her family. She has been my closest friend and greatest supporter throughout my life. We are so grateful for her and all she does for her family. She is a rock and gives all of us encouragement and love continually. My kids absolutely LOVE her and we are so glad she is part of our lives. We love you Mom!

Swim Lessons

I took this picture of Avery who has become my little poser. She is so fun and smiley. She has been a good sport waiting patiently while Landon and Lauren have their swim lessons. Jerry came with us on the first day to watch the kids. Lauren's teacher said she is "daring." I think she is a bit advanced for her class but she is using lots of restraint and seems to actually be listening to her teacher quite well. Landon is doing great. It is fun to see him actually swimming. We go everyday for the next few weeks and may do another session at the end of summer. We have a new community center close to us which we are so excited about. When I went to drive the kids to swimming today Landon said, "Well Mom is looks like you don't know the way!" He had been giving me a bad time all morning about only Dad knowing how to get there. We had to drop something off to Jerry so we were going a different way and he had to be sure and point it out. Isn't it great to be a Mom? We met some friends at the library splash park yesterday and Lauren actually used the potty! Things are looking up.....

Weekend

We had a really good weekend. We were treated to an amazing dinner on the golf course at Entrada thanks to Jacobsen on Friday night. We had a babysitter stay with the older two kids and took Avery to our friend, Sue. The event was a fundraiser to allow the hospital to purchase a life flight helicopter which would be based here. We actually saw some friends from the ward and also other work colleagues of Jerry's. On Saturday we got up and went to breakfast as a family. They we hit a park, Costco and other errands. I went to do the rest of my grocery shopping in the afternoon with a friend. Jerry and I have been loving the Redbox lately so we watched a few movies as well. On Sunday we had the Rogers over for dinner. We had such a good time visiting and hearing about their trip to Germany and Austria. We would love to do that someday.