Wasatch Wildflower Festival

Last Saturday we went up to Alta to see the wildflowers. They had street music, kids crafts, and guided walks to see the flowers. It was a beautiful day...so nice to get out of this basement! We all had a great time & also had a fun picnic.

I think my favorite is still the "Indian Paintbrush"

although I really liked Penstamen too

Another week down...

Another one bites the dust...anything memorable happen this week? Here are a few random things we've kept busy with:

I had to (I mean I was blessed to) sing a solo in Relief Society yesterday. For once I actually did it without getting nervous! I think it went well...I really liked the song (from EFY 1999) called "I Will Not Be Still." I really love Kenneth Cope's music in general - I'm putting a sampling of his music on here for a while to brighten your day...

We do a monthly dinner with Mark's family on the second Sundays and I really enjoy getting together with everyone...not to mention who doesn't love a potluck meal? I made a fruit salad that tastes like a creamsicle...so yummy! Here is the recipe:

ORANGE CREAM FRUIT SALAD

1 (3.5 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
1 1/2 cups milk
1/3 cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
3/4 cup sour cream
1 (20 ounce) can pineapple tidbits, drained
1 (11 ounce) can mandarin orange segments
1 apple - cored and sliced
1 pear - cored and diced
1 peach - peeled and diced

In a medium mixing bowl, combine pudding mix, milk, and orange juice concentrate. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes. Mix in sour cream. Gently mix in fruits. Cover, and refrigerate for 2 hours.

I've spent a few days at the dentist in the last week...once with all my kids for cleanings, and once just Holly and me for some follow-up. Can I just say that mothers deserve medals for taking their kids places like that? My dentist is great (he's my uncle, so of course we love him) but it's just hard to sit in the chair and hope your kids behave while your teeth are being cleaned and you can't say anything! I hoped my seven-year-old would step up to the plate and be a good helper. No such luck. I don't want to go into detail about this one, I'm just glad it's over!!!

We've been going to the library each week for the kids' summer reading clubs. They each have a 45 minute class where they read stories, sing songs, and do a craft. It's a nice mid-week distraction and helps us meet our reading goals for the summer. Josh's latest favorites for reading are the Magic School Bus chapter books and I'm excited he's learning something worthwhile and enjoying it!

Oh! We also sold our tent trailer last week. We are sad to see it go - we had some awesome trips in it - but it needed a little work and we needed a little more space so hopefully not too far down the road we can upgrade. Poor Holly started crying when we told her we were selling it. At least we have lots of fun memories!

We finished off the summer baseball season - Whew! Josh had coach-pitch games on Mondays and Wednesdays and Holly had T-ball games on Tuesdays and Thursdays so we were kept hoppin' for the past month trying to get to all of them. Why do we do this to ourselves? The kids enjoyed their teams and did a great job!

Friday we had cousin Becca come play for the day and we ended up heading to the pool...finally a few hours of rest and relaxation! Well, not exactly, but we had fun and enjoyed the sun!

As far as the house goes...they finally backfilled the yard, Mark and Lance got a good start on the deck, they are preparing for concrete, tile is partway done, light fixtures start today, and cabinets should be installed in a day or two. It's moving right along...wahoo! Now if we can just get the interest rates to cooperate when we have to close; they've been all over the place lately.

Tonight for family night we are going swimming at Grandma Stum's pool and to pick raspberries at my dad's. Yum!

House Pics

I have not been nearly as diligent at posting pictures as I should have been...but here is the progress on the house. The outside is nearly all the way done...they just have to stain the front door, add some dirt to the yard & pour front steps and driveway and Mark is still working on the deck in the back. In case you can't tell the color is "coastal sage" and we really like how it turned out.
Mark & Bryant spent ALL DAY putting in the wood floor in the dining area & entry Saturday...lots of hard work but I really love it!

July so far

The other night we helped cut down a tree in Bryant's backyard...

then had our scripture study & popsicles

I wasn't very camera savvy on the fourth of July, but we had a fun day! We slept over at Grandpa Horton's the night before, went to the parade in Provo the next morning (as always), then headed up Provo canyon for a BBQ, fishing, and bike ride at Vivian Park. This might become our new tradition since it was so much fun. Later on we watched the fireworks done by PG city. A great Independence Day!

Toes?

Ammon is five months old now and has really discovered his toes...this is one of my favorite things that babies do...plus don't you just love his big blue eyes?!

Family Reunions!

We had two family reunions this week...lots of fun in the sun! Wed - Fri we were down in Moab for the Stum reunion. It was HOT and we got eaten alive by mosquitos, but it was fun to see everyone. Mark had fun mountain biking on his new bike and taking Josh and Holly river rafting, we all had fun hiking in Arches, and enjoyed lots of time in the pool. This was Ammon's first time swimming and he really loved it - he even fell asleep twice while swimming! Personally I would have preferred a different location (lots of heat and sun aren't that baby friendly) but I did really enjoy visiting with all the cousins we haven't seen in a few years.

We got home Friday night around 11:00, then Mark flew out to Chicago for a work conference, and the kids and I headed to the Black family reunion Saturday. We skated at Classic Skating for the morning then spent the rest of the day at the Scera park eating, playing games, having water fights, launching rockets, visiting, etc. It was lots of fun but we are so worn out! I'd love to say thank goodness today is Sunday (a day of rest) but with Mark out of town and four kids to manage, that's not really what I'm experiencing!

First Cabin Trip of the Year

We finally made it up to Grandma Stum's cabin! This is always a much anticipated trip and really lets us know that summer has arrived. We were glad the snow finally melted and the roads were clear - we were starting to wonder if we'd ever get to go the way this Spring has gone. We saw lots of deer - even one that came up to eat within 15 feet of the cabin while we were watching out the window which mesmerized all of us. There was also a cottontail bunny living under that cabin that we saw several times, and hummingbirds that didn't seem phased that we were near. The kids enjoyed playing with Grandma and Grandpa Bishop, building things with popsicle sticks, lounging in the hammock, and sailing boats down the stream. Even without running water we still had a great time...

"Mom where is my...?"

So I have to say that I hear those words at least twenty times a day (minimum!) Oh, let me add that I also hear it another twenty times from Mark: Honey do you know where my ____ is? So this entry is in honor of all those moms/wives who spent at least 50% of their memory keeping track of where everyone else's belongings are! Whoever said that a photographic memory was a requirement for marriage and a family?

Oh, another favorite..."I'm Hungry!" I won't even start on how tired I get of this phrase. I have no hesitation in giving a kid a snack if they've eaten at meal time, but it really just drives me nuts when they won't finish their plate at meals because they're "full" and then within a half hour I hear the dreaded words. Anyone else get annoyed by this?

Well the whole thing that started this entry was a funny thing Holly said a few minutes ago that really made me laugh:

"Mom do you know where my crap book is?"
"You're crap book?"
"Yeah, my crap book...you know the one I got at preschool?"
"Oooh, your scrapbook!! It's on the counter!" (I could barely get it out through my giggles)

I guess the reward for keeping track of everyone's things is that you get to hear gems like that!

My Happy Boy

So we've captured a bunch of cute pics of Ammon lately - he seems to really like sitting in the bumbo and watch me cooking. Don't mind the purple bumbo...it's borrowed (thanks Jessica!) and don't mind the spit-up on Ammon's shirt...no excuses there! He's sure growing up fast; he was 15 lbs at his 4-month checkup - no wonder my shoulders & back ache when I lug him around in his heavy carseat all day!

Ella loves her little brother! So much that Mommy has to keep a close watch to make sure she doesn't "smother" him with affection - literally! He really likes having her play with him when she remembers to be gentle...

Got teeth?

I'm a week or so late on the four-month picture of Ammon - but I love these. I'm 99% sure he's working on teeth now since he looks like this all the time. The other day he had his whole fist in his mouth and he wasn't even gagging!