July Me to Tell You What We've Been Up To?

How cute is this face? It almost makes up for her dropping her cracker and then running it over until it was nothing but crumbs and spread all over the kitchen.

I pulled all the kids car seats into the house the other day to give them and my car a good cleaning. Erica climbed into her seat and sat there for a good thirty minutes. Then she fell asleep. At 11 am.

Here's a little glimpse of her personality.

Justin found a Wolverine costume for Henry at a garage sale. Henry surprised us all by wearing it nearly every day and then for 3 days straight. He even tried to sleep in it over his pajamas but woke up sweaty and distressed. Anyway, he was wearing it one afternoon looking for someone to play with. I heard him singing this song. Combine the zeal of "I Want to be a Missionary Now" with the angst and indignation of "Let It Go."

For the 24th, we did the traditional Mapleton breakfast, parade, fireworks. I think I will do this until I die. 

 Mapleton has a cemetery now! They even had a float to advertise.

 Just kidding, that was for the fire department. Here's the cemetery float.

Yay cousins! (Pink shirt and red shirt--the ones excited to see us)

Then back to the park for fishing game, duck pond game, Plinko and bounce houses.

 Aww, yeah! Mapleton is attracting all sorts of celebs.

Then we checked out the cool cars. Sarah is off pouting somewhere because her punch balloon popped and "cars are boring." Sounds like someone needs to walk across the plains.

 Wooden spokes!

And then the fireworks, baby. I was thinking how much bigger the crowd gets every year, especially compared to the first year they did fireworks. Always fun, always a pain to get home.

Erica loved snitching everyone's candy.

 I couldn't get a decent picture of her because she was always chewing.

I took this gem of a video before it got too dark.

The pioneers really deserve more than just a day of remembrance and celebration. They joined a new, unknown, and far distant church, sight unseen. Then left nearly everything behind and lost even more on the way to Zion. I have a hard time giving up a Saturday morning to go to the temple. I owe them a big thank you for giving their lives to make my life so easy. I live in the best valley of the best state in the best country during the fullness of times and I didn't sacrifice anything to be here. Sheesh. I drive to church a mile from my home in a temperature controlled car to a temperature controlled building. No one has even said an unkind thing to me because of my faith. I've never known hunger or feared for my life. I have my pioneer ancestors to thank for that.

Although being grateful for the church and place these pioneers selflessly established is important, I bet they really just want me to stop complaining about 1 o'clock church. And go to the temple more, dang it!

A Decade of Love: Ferron 2005, A Love Story

Author's Note: This post is the first in a series called "A Decade of Love." Ten years ago this summer Justin and I "met" and began dating. I'm going to be nostalgic over the next 10 months documenting how we came to be.

In the summer of 2005, most of my roommates at BYU went home for the summer or went to Brazil so I was left with two roommates I didn't really know/care for. I told my coworkers at Nu Skin that I was looking for a summertime boyfriend, one with access to fun things. Instead I began hanging out with a group of guys I went to high school with that had recently all returned home from their missions and were living just a few blocks from me in Provo. Also, one of my bestest friends returned home from her mission so it was a high school reunion of sorts that summer. We hung out at each other's apartments, played games, wake boarded nearly every day after work, ate at IHOP late at night, and pretty much just worked to play. Ah, to be 21 again.

The end of July the boys were planning a trip to Ferron, Utah where Dave's grandparents lived. There's a reservoir near their house so the plan was to make Pioneer Day weekend a boating trip to remember. They invited me even though I sucked at wake boarding. Little did I know that Ferron, Utah is a magical place.

Justin drove his dad's truck and boat. Somehow I got stuck in the backseat with Shane and Moss. It got a little weird back there.

 Dave and Shannon in the front.

 Our designated, long-haired driver.

For the next few days, we rose early, hit the lake, retired to the comforts of the hospitality of Nana and Pops, played card games, and hid Moss' copy of the latest Harry Potter book.

And got way, way too comfortable with one another. There was a lot of deck dancing to Celine Dion.

And Moss got the nickname "The Green Goblin"

Here's a rare picture of my beloved. I wasn't the one taking pictures that trip or there would have been many more. Although at this time, he was just one of the boys to me.

 When we weren't boating or cheating at Hand and Foot, we took the truck out digging. Judging by Justin's dress shirt, this was Sunday after church.

 And more boating. I have like 20 video files of the boys wake boarding but I'll spare you.

Justin and Moss doing some synchronized wake boarding.

 Getting a little artistic on the water weenie.

 Our last day there, a rainstorm hit while we were on the reservoir. We took cover under the cover.

It was during this rainstorm that we pulled the boat in. While were waiting our turn at the dock, Justin jumped out of the boat to help a fellow boater get his boat on a trailer. Drenched in rain, working hard to help a stranger, this kind gesture opened my eyes to what a great guy Justin was. No longer just "one of the boys" but began to stand out. What if he's the summertime boyfriend I'd been joking about? What if we dated and things got serious? Would I lose all these guy friends if it didn't work out? Is this a risk I'm willing to take? Stay tuned to the next part of this series to find out.

Bridal Veil Falls and Jolley's Ranch

Erica is pretty much the goofiest kid. She loves her blanket. And grapes. And crackers. She says it ca-cuh with a big pause in between syllables. It's super cute and we make her do it all the time. She's up to like 4 words now!

 Henry, also a goofy kid, loves yogurt and does not care if his face is messy.

 Sarah wanted to build her own trampoline. Apparently burying a big stick is step one.

 Friday morning we drove to Bridal Veil Falls. It was almost chilly in the shade, just how I like it. A bridge is always a big hit with my family.

 Sarah having fun throwing rocks in the river. Why is throwing rocks in water so fun?

 Did you notice Henry wearing snow gloves? They're Sarah's, no less.

 Erica is pretty content anywhere as long as she's in the stroller. She liked the water too.

Sarah and Henry pretty much climbed up any hillside they could find. It was a slow progressing walk to the falls.

 The kids were not disappointed. It's been so long, neither of them remembered coming before.

Look how little she was the last time we were there?

June 2012

June 2012

June 2012

Last time we were there Henry was just barely one with big goofy teeth and didn't talk or walk or run away from me or say mean words or draw with marker on the bathroom door or throw toys at his sisters. (We've had a rough week.)
Henry really wanted to get into the water but did not like how cold it was.

The cold water didn't deter Erica.

 She loved it.

 Aw, such cute kids. If only they were always this sweet.

This is so something I would have done as a child. Nothing like hanging on a gate.

 That evening we went to Jolley's Ranch for my nephew Zack's birthday party.

 There are 6 months between each of these little boys and coincidentally they are sitting in order. Unfortunately they would not all look at the camera. Henry 4, Nathan 3 1/2, Mason 3, Eric 2 1/2. Henry is the oldest but not the tallest.

Erica got super dirty but I didn't care. She's so the third child. She has to eat dirt for me to freak out (and even that's not a guarantee).

Erica loves Henry. Most of the time he is super sweet with her except when she messes up what he's doing. I love how content she is just watching him work.

Do your babies like socks on their hands? Every one of my kids does this and I think it's so funny. Erica brings me any socks she finds for me to put them on her hands. Here she is wearing Sarah's socks and is looking quite glamorous.

Henry's quote of the week:

First thing in the morning, he comes into my room wearing nothing but his underwear.
Henry: Mom, do I look like the Hulk?