REALLY the BEST vacation EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just wanted everyone to know that I just got back from the BEST FREAKING VACATION EVER. Let's just say this:

-There was nothing "stinky" about it.
-There weren't 5 couples in a house.
-There were clowns.
-No Ned.
-It involved a lot of laughing and doing new things.
-I got to blow something up.
-I was given money to go....lots of it.
-Let's just say that even if birth control is 99.9% effective, we have good odds of expecting soon.

Steve

It's more than just a birthday-

Last night we tried to run showers for the kids. Even they were excited to be clean again - we'd been berry picking all morning and playing outside all day. They were SOOOO dirty! The combination of berry field dust and grime, berry juice, grass stains, sunscreen and otter pops was not pleasant. Anyway, I let the water run and run and run and it would not get hot. About the time I gave up on the girls Steve gave up on Kaden since I met him in the hallway looking just as confused as I was. We found that the water heater in the garage had been adjusted to the "Vacation" setting. (And THAT is why I don't allow all the kids on the street to play hide and seek in our garage!) Problem solved - after a few hours of heating that is. So the kids got icy rub downs. Kaden had his hair washed even and seemed, as usual, to be so thrilled with having some water to play in the he didn't give a second thought to the fact that it was of an arctic nature! Emily bore it with silent misery. Then it was Bailey's turn. Still being upset that she wasn't getting her shower and now she was cold, she was ranting and raving the whole time. I tried to reason with her that she wasn't even IN the water - a cold wash cloth is NOT that bad, that Kaden even had his hair washed and he hadn't fussed and that Emily was definitely still surviving. Her reply: "YEAH? Well, they were born later! I was born in the Spring so I need it WARM!!!!!!" Who can argue with that?

Curious boy + busy mom + 2 minutes =

dismantled stroller. I was finishing up the last post and had set Kaden down to go play with the girls while I closed everything up. It got very quiet very fast and I went to investigate. Kaden was NOT playing dress up with the girls but had opted for something more manly instead. In under 3 minutes he had managed to take apart a whole stroller - and without any damage to the parts!

"Well" - child check?

Bailey and Kaden had their annual check ups today. Apparently it was a good thing we went! In addition to all the immunizations we were planning on and, with no symptoms other than one runny nose, we ended up coming home with infections in 3 ears and one set of sinuses and wheezy breathing in 2 out of 4 lungs! (not to mention a really nice bill from the pharmacy!) Apparently we spent a bit too much time in the backyard pool on Saturday!

Kaden's perch and the one good picture at the zoo

Just some random pictures...

Kaden really loves to sit in the corner on this box. It's a cute picture so I thought I'd share.


Last week Matt, my brother, called and invited us to the zoo with his family. Unfortunately, everyone else within driving distance had the same idea that day. With the high heat, excited cousins and tons of people around us these are the only two pictures I managed to get to remember what was, in spite of the craziness, a really fun day.

Happy 4th of July - late

We hope you all had a great Fourth of July. We did! In the morning we went to the annual Pancake Feed that some friends put on for the ward and then we came home and spent the day playing with all the neighbors. We have a really fun street and once everyone threw in their food and respective hoards of explosives, there was quite a party! Unlike our previous places of residence, Washington is NOT on a constant fire alert and almost nothing is illegal. Makes for a really great show on the Fourth!

We thought for sure Kaden would freak out but he was absolutely thrilled! Even when they set off 6 cannons at once for the "finale" he jumped up and down and clapped his hands.

Newell House trip

One of the home school groups we're in took a trip to the Newell House down in Oregon. It was really cool. The first hour the kids spent in the old governor's mansion learning about life back in the 1800's, making candles and doing a history scavenger hunt.


The second hour was spent in the one room school house. They actually had some lessons and used slate pencils, stood up and said "yes maam" to answer questions and did practiced reading out of 100+ year old school books. They also got to write in journals with quill pens and made some pioneer toys to bring home.

Finally, we went to the pioneer mother's cabin. Here they got to make bread, comb wool into yarn and wash laundry with a wash board and bucket.

I couldn't really tell, but I think Kaden especially enjoyed this wishing well and the walk down to the river.

"In the beginning..."

The girls had their big annual ballet recital a couple of weeks ago. The lower school did the Creation Story. Bailey was an angel and Emily was, obviously, a bumble-bee. They both did a really great job!

Muskrats don't like cheerios

One of the kids favorite places to go is over to the duck pond in the neighborhood. The evening is the best time to go since that's when all the little critters come out. This last time we went we found a new muskrat (oddly, you can tell some of them apart!) and a family of baby ducks to go along with all the regulars.

American Girls

Bailey finished up her first semester of American Girls in June. They studied the Colonial/American Revolution period by reading the Felicity books, baking period foods, playing period games, stitching their own samplers, making soap and loads of other cool things. They also had a trip to visit a baby foal. It was loads of fun and she's really excited to start Kirsten (pioneer era) in the fall.