Thursday Things

It's been a busy week but I haven't accomplished very much. I guess with kids it will just always feel crazy.

Monday Dad and Denise came up for Denise's blood work and stuff that needed to be done at the hospital for her surgery. They had dinner with us and stayed Monday night then left really early Tuesday morning for her surgery. Her surgery went well and although she had a rough night Tuesday night she is starting to feel better. I guess she should be able to go home Friday some time. Tuesday was a crazy day so we didn't make it to the hospital to visit her. The kids and I took her some flowers and cookies yesterday. Dad over for dinner last night and stayed in the guest room so I'm hoping he got a good nights sleep.

Tuesday I got stuck in that awful traffic jam on I-15. I left work at 2:30pm and it normall takes me 10-15 minutes to get home. I got home at 4:40pm. It was so frustrating to be stuck on the freeway and I was late picking the kids up and we had so many things going that day that I needed to be home. I'm just glad I don't have to deal with traffic like that all the time.

Tuesday night was Pack Meeting and Z was awarded his Wolf. Yay for Z!! I forgot my camera though, bummer. He really enjoys working on his scouts, even last night he asked his dad to help him pass something off. After the awards were passed out the kids enjoyed water activities. They had so much fun slidding down a homemade water slide, playing with their water guns and playing water-ballon volleyball.

Today I have another dentist appointment. Our family went 2-3 weeks ago for our cleaning and checkup and everyone of us has to have other stuff done. We have spent so much time in the dentist's office this month, yuck. I'll be glad we we are done for awhile. I think the kids have other appointments next week and then I'm hoping no more dentist for 6 months.

Sunday Sayings

"Children rise higher when they are treated with respect. Use courteous and respectful language when you talke with your children and others. Bruno Bettelheim, a world-famous psychologist, said, "You can't teach children to be good. The best you can do for your child is to live a good life yourself. What a parent knows and believes, the child will lean on." You don't teach a child not to yell by yelling. We cannot expect to be respected if we treat other in demeaning ways"

~Marjorie Pay Hinckley

I needed to read this quote today. I love Sister Hinckley and she had such wisdom. I know not to yell at my kids but that doesn't always stop me. At times I stop and remember this quote and I am better able to control my temper.

My Girls

S and her cousin

S wanted to show off her cute hair after Tiffi did it for her.

Aunt Tiffi put piggies in A's hair, so cute!

Aren't the girls so cute! My sister has been here for a few days with her family and I love having them here to visit. I love visiting with my sister, it seems like we don't get to visit as much since our families are so busy, but in the last few weeks I've seen her more and it's great! They can come stay with us any time. My kids love having their cousins over to play with and even when they start bugging each other, they love having cousins to play with.

Tiff and I's cousin is coming up for a BBQ this afternoon. I was able to see her in May for the first time in a million years. We've kept in touch a little through email but she lives in Orem so I thought we should get together. Since Tiffi had this day off I invited Valeria and her family over because I thought it would be fun for all of to re-connect. Her family is so darling and I'm so bummed that I didn't get pictures. We had a good visit and I hope we do this more often.

Our Completed Deck

Tonight Allen finished the deck. Isn't it wonderful? Now R will need to sand it and stain it. It's a wonderful additional to our home and I love it! A great big thanks to Tiffi, Allen and R. I'm thanking Tiffi because she gave up her husband while he was working on the deck. Allen deserves a huge thank you for all his time and energy working in the hot sun to help us, thank you so much. Of course R deserves a thanks for working in the hot sun with Allen and he has to find a way to pay for it all. R also bought us a new BBQ which we will try out tomorrow.

Thursday Things

Mid-morning my dad called and they decided to release him from the hospital. His wife was already headed up from down home and my sister and her family in Logan were headed down to see what was going on. Since we weren't sure if Dad's car would start we took the kids to the VA Hospital to make sure the car was okay and R took it and had it checked out. By the time we got home with Dad and Densie my sister's family was pulling up. We've had a nice visiting and just hanging out. Denise went home for work in the morning and R and Allen worked on the deck (well mostly Allen since R was feeling sick). The swam all day long while Tiff and I chased the babies. Dad will go home tomorrow and he and Denise will be back up Monday for Denise's surgery. Tiffany and Allen are staying until Saturday. We had planned a BBQ on Saturday with a long lost cousin who lives in Orem. I'm glad Daddy is okay and I guess they will continue to monitor him.

Happy Pioneer Day

The kids and I made it to our parade and of course he kids loved it. R was working so I took the kids and met up with some friends. We have so much candy and latter today I'll throw it away once they forget about it. A had so much fun chasing candy although we had to run after her many, many times.

Yesterday my dad came up to the VA Hosptial for a doctor's appointment. He called in the late afternoon and said they had decided to admit him so I called his wife and my siblings to let everyone know what was going on. Since his surgery last fall he has been blacking out when he stands up and it has happened enough that he was starting to get concerned. The doctors are concerned so they are keeping him in the hospital for testing.

After the parade A and I went to the store to get him some things he would need until Denise could make it up today. R took the other two kids to the fireworks. After stopping at the store, being rerouted to the hospital due to roads being blocked off and then visiting with Dad I made it home about 11:45pm. I'm glad I had put A in her jammies but of course she still woke up when I brought her in so it took awhile for her to go to sleep.

Dad's car died after he arrived at the hospital yesterday and he has no clue why. I will take R with me today so he can see what is going on with the car and we can get it repaired if needed.

I thought A was feeling better yesterday after my entry, but then hour later she threw up again. Maybe this time she really is feeling better because she hasn't thrown up since and it's been about 24 hours. I just need her eating again and not getting sick.

I have lots to do. I need to get two rooms ready for family to come stay with us for a few days.

Wednesday Wonderings

I think A is finally better. I thought she was all better Monday and then she puked again about 10:00pm Monday night but nothing yesterday. I don't know where this stomach bug came from but I'm glad she is feeling better. I still have lots of laundry to catch up, it's amazing.

Tonight is the Bountiful parade and fireworks for the 24th of July. In the nine years we have lived here we've only made it to the evening parade one time. The parade is at 6:00pm and it's always so hot that I don't go. Every year I have the good intention of going to the parade but as the day wears on I change me mind because it gets so hot. We always go to the fireworks and have fun. S is super excited for the parade today so I'm sure I won't be able to put it off today.

Yesterday S had a dentist appointment and had a tooth removed and a crown put on another one. She has to go back in two weeks to get a spacer. It was quiet the event for her and we weren't sure if she was going to let the dentist do what had to be done. There was some crying and whining and they used laughing gas which I'm sure helped her to relax a little.

The dog is supposed to get his cast removed today. I told R not to tell me how much the vet bill cost, I just can't bear to hear the amount. I'm glad Binks is getting better and as much as it cost he had to get his leg all better.

R bought a new BBQ grill and some new pool patio funiture which as really nice to go with our new deck. It all looks really nice. Monday night he rented a jack hammer to get rid of the some cement in the ground. I think once he cleans up the cement he can fill the hole, and get some sprinklers installed so we can get grass again in the back yard.

Sunny Saturday

My BIL Allen came down yesterday morning to finish up the deck with R. My sister wasn't able to come down due to working so he coordinated with me to since I would need to watch the kids. Their two older kids and my two older kids play and I just need to feed them, it's my youngest and their youngest that is the challenge. A is 20 months and their little chubby Rocky is about 5 months. I had invisioned it to be much worse but it wasn't so bad. Rocky is a good baby and he's so cute plus his oldest sister helped and with the other kids there A likes to play with them. There were a few times I thought how do mothers with kids so close in age do it? Like yesterday I finally got Rocky to sleep while holding him and of course then A wakes up from her nap so I hold both for a while. A wants me to get her something but I don't want to wake the baby so I try to put her off but of course she will have none of this and gets made and starts hitting me and yelling which wakes of Rock. At the time I thought some moms are definatley "super moms".

The deck is pretty much done, except for a few steps that go up to a second level in our yard. The deck looks so nice and I love it. Allen has done a fabulous job and I'm glad R planned with him to build a deck. This past week my kids have eaten almost every meal on the deck and they are really enjoying it as well.

Allen and the kids were going to stay until tomorrow to finish up the stairs but they decided to go home tonight. I think all the kids together weren't listening very well and then A got sick and started pucking all over the place multiple times. It probably better that they went home so the baby doesn't pick up with A has. I have no idea where A "caught" this bug but it has been no fun this evening. I thought I finally had her down for the night but she woke up again puking so she's going to be up for a while. I finally called and switched my YW lesson tomorrow with another teacher so I didn't have to worry about it just in case A is still sick.

I have lots of laundry to do and my house is a mess since the kids have had free reign and I've just been to worn out to clean messes up. I'll post some deck pictures tomorrow.

The Deck

Allen went home yesterday afternoon and R stayed out working on the deck. He finished added the cedar planks. It looks really nice. They need to trim the ends, add a railing and build the steps. My understanding is that the wood will need to set for a few months then we'll need to stain it before winter. I'm really happy with the deck.

Barbeque Beef

3-4 pound beef chuck roast
onion

Cook in crockpot on low for 10-12 hours (I cooked it overnight).

Shred the beef and add the following sauce and cook for another hour.

1 cup ketchup
1/2 cup Hines chili sauce
1/4 cup vinegar
2 tsp salt
4 tbsp lemon juice
4 tsp worshire sauce
1/2 cup brown sugar

July 4th Pictures

I'm bummed that I hardly took any pictures yesterday, just a handful. Every year that we have lived in Bountiful we go the Ward Breakfast and then the parade. It's always fun and the flyby is our favorite. This year S was in Logan at my sisters house so it was weird not having her with us at the parade, we missed her.

Deck is getting there

I wish I had taken pictures when it was just framing planks for a few days. Today they started adding the cedar planks across the top and it's finally looking like a deck. They are hoping to have all the cedar planks on tomorrow before Allen has to go. This is what it looked like last night when they finished.

Family Reunion Pictures

We had our family reunion about two weeks ago. The family went camping up at Grassy Lake above Joe's Valley in Emery County. It was super fun, we took our 4wheelers and had a good time.


Me after a long 4wheeler ride covered in DIRT. My mustache is from chapstick, dirt and licking my lips.


A rolling around in the dirt.


A after rolling around in the dirt covered in dirt.


Z on his 4wheeler

S and her cousins


R after a long 4wheeler ride the guys.


S licking her fingers after eating a roasted marshmallow.


Z up to bat during our stick baseball game.


S tired and trying to take a nap.

Sunday Stuff

My sister and her husband stayed until Friday evening to help with the deck. Tiffi had to get back for work and Allen wasn't feeling good so they went home. They are hoping to come back tomorrow to finish up the deck with R. It's mostly framed so they worst is done and I'm excited to see the finished product. Yay for a deck!!

Z went to a friend's house yesterday afternoon and they made Silly Putty. He has been having so much fun with it making "farting" noises. I know it's juvenile but I think it's funny. He is anxious for us to make it at home. I don't have any liquid starch or we would have made some today after church. The recipe is:

Silly Putty
1 Tbsp Liquid Starch
2 Tbsp Glue
Food Coloring (for color)
Vanilla (smell)

Mix is a bowl or baggy. The more it's mixed the better it is.

The dog went back to the vet this past Wednesday to get his cast removed but they had to recast him. He started chewing on his last cast and rubbed his leg raw so the leg wasn't fully healed. He'll need to wear the cast for another 2 weeks. I told R not to tell me what the vet bill is, I just don't think I could handle knowing. Poor dog, limping around. I'll be glad when he's back to normal.

I know R was hoping to go camping later this week but I'm not sure if we will or not. It depends on work and how busy it will be and how we are staffed. We are really wanting to go to Washington Lake in the Uintas especially since we didn't go there last year.

I hoping this week isn't quite as crazy as last week.

What's Up Wednesday?

My two older kids went back up to Logan on Monday when Allen came to pick up his girls. Allen and Tiffi came down this morning and brought the kids home but the main reason Allen came back down was to help R with our deck. At the end of last summer R ripped our our cement steps from our sliding glass door into the back yard because he was going to install a deck within a few weeks. So after months of using cynderblock steps they have started on the deck. Allen is so kind to help us and I know it will look great when it's completed. Allen started on the deck and R spent the day digging a trench to the pool shed so he could hook up the water and sewer in order to install a shower and toilet inside the pool shed one day. I think hooking up the lines was more complicated than he thought because they just came in for the night and will continue with hooking up the lines tomorrow and I know they were hoping the deck would only take two days.

After a few days with six kids the house was pretty messy so you would think with my older two kids gone for a day and a half I would have tackeled it but it didn't happen. Things are still a mess and laundry still isn't done. I feel like I never catch up and with all the digging in the backyard there is sand everyone.

The kids are having fun with their cousins who will go home tomorrow afternoon.

Series Challenge Season 2

I found a reading challenge I thought I would join even though I'm a little late. It's hosted by Kathrin and it's Season 2 of the Series Challenge! The rules are - no set number of books, but participants have to get up-to-date on one or more of the series they are reading - and it runs June 1 through November 30.

I don't want to over committ myself so I may pick a few and add to it if I can. I'm going to start with:

From The End of Heaven (The Great and Terrible)

Breaking Dawn (Twilight Series)

Rise Of The Evening Star (Fablehaven>

Grip Of The Shadow Plague (Fablehaven)

Cherry Cheesecake Murder (Hannah Swensen Series)

Key Lime Pie Murder (Hannah Swensen Series)

Carrot Cake Murder (Hannah Swensen Series)

Long Saturday

We had a fun 4th of July yesterday. The 4th always starts out early and yesterday I was up at 4:00am trying to get food prepared before I went to the church. We are on the activities committee and I was in charge of decorating and advertising for our July 4th Breakfast. It's our easiest activity to plan and our shortest activity. We meet at 6am to decorate and cut up fruit, the program starts at 7am and is usually over by 8am. R took the kids to Main Street to save us a shady spot for the parade while I cleaned up.

The parade started about 9am and I have to be there our time to see the F16 do their fly-by (this is the best part of the parade). S wasn't with us so it was Z and A chasing after the candy thrown our way. A had so much fun yelling "Hi" to alll the floats passing us and running for the candy. R and Z would drop candy by her just to watch her get excited about the candy and pick it up. It was weird not having S there and when she came home from Logan she was bummed about missing the parade (we had gone very year since we moved here).

Wednesday I met Allen in Brigham City and he took S home to Logan for a two night sleepover. My other sister Katie in Colorado let her daughter Mariah stay with Tiffi in Logan so all the girls were together and Tiffi and Allen thought they could handle one more. S loved it, but Allen and Tiffi were worn out from two extra kiddos helping to make messes at their house.

Patty and Brian came down in the afternoon and the Tiffi and Allen arrived. We just ate and the kids swam while the grownups visited and ate. We have a huge cotton tree in our neighbors back yard and it snows in our yard all through June although this year we are still getting the cotton snow and it was bad yesterday. The kids swam for a few hours and then played while they tried to patiently wait for firewords. The dads also took them out on the 4wheelers for some practice and fun. We just lit fireworks our front along with some neighbors and the kids love it.

I was so tired when we all finally went to bed about 11:30pm, what a long day. I had hoped for a nap but it just didn't happen. We had an early morning this morning and it was so hard to get up.

R made arrangements for Sam and Mariah to take the ATV test in Kamas which was this morning at 9am. They passed with flying colors and will now be legal on the 4wheelers when we go camping. To celebrate we took them to Teddy Bear Stuff'n Factory to pick out animals to outfit. We took six kids and they all picked out animals and an outfit and let me tell you it was an experience. Two of the girls had the hardest time deciding on an outfit and I finally had to tell them you can only try 2 more outfits on your animals and you have 5 minutes. It was funny to see them all leaving the store with the backpack stuffed with an animal.

The kids are swimming again and Tiffi and Allen went back to Logan. We are now the parents of six kids until Monday. I'll let you know how we survive.

Happy July 4th