Last 8 Months...finally updated!

SEPTEMBER:

I started watching my niece and nephew, Lexie and Levi. Lexie is 2 years old and Levi is 4 years old. Parker loves having them around. I watch them 4 days a week and sometimes overnight. I love having the opportunity to spend so much time with them. Parker and Levi love to wrestle, box, play super heroes, and make a little mischief. They are 2 peas in a pod. Lexie loves to get her hair done, nails done, take care of her baby doll and talk to "Nikkis"(this is what she calls me, it is so darn cute!) all day. They all love to do yoga with me. They even make up some of their own poses, as you can see down below. Kids are the greatest little creatures on earth...man, I love them!

Brayden played soccer for the first time. He loves it! Tricia Midgely was his coach. She did a great job. Brayden had so much fun. He is in the recreation league which does not keep score. But, Brayden, along with all the other boys keep track in their head. It's so great to see him play, work hard, and have fun doing it. He even got a goal at the 2nd to last game. Way to go , Brayden!

My friend, Kelly, and I started training for a 1/2 marathon at the end of August. This is how it all went down; Tol came home from a run one Saturday and said, "Hey, I saw Kelly and Alec on my run. I told Kelly you would run the Prison Break 1/2 Marathon with her." I laughed and said, "What?" I had never ran more than 4 miles before in my life, how was I going to run 13.1 miles in a month and a half? Honestly, though, in the back of my mind I was excited for the challenge and had kind of wanted to set a high goal like this for myself and accomplish it. So, I was happy Tol gave me a little push. For part of our training we ran in the St. Luke's Womens Fitness Celebration. It is a 5K race with thousands of women. We had fun and Alec (Kelly's husband), Tol, and my boys were at the finish line cheering us on.

The Last 8 Months!!..... Continued :o)

AUGUST:

August, too, was a busy month. We needed to cram all that we had left on our list of summer fun! It started out with me going to Young Women's Girls Camp. It was everything I thought it would be and more! I loved it! I had never gone to Girls Camp before (not even when I was a young women myself). I really missed out! I am glad I have the opportunity now. I had the best time getting to know the awesome women I get to work with and the funny, energetic, sweet, and wonderful girls! I love my girls!

Next, and I mean next, the very next day I got back from Girls Camp, Tol competed in the Emmet Sprint Triathlon. He disciplined himself for 4 weeks prior to the race in his workout regimen and nutrition. It payed off! He got 1st place in his age group. We were so proud of him! His friends; Paul, Nathan, and Alec also participated. Alec got 2nd in his age group and Nathan got 3rd. It was sweet to see all three of them on the stand. You the man, Tol!

On to our hike along the Oregon Trail. I got tired of hearing, "I'm bored. Can I watch TV? Can I play the Wii? Can I play the DS?" So, I took the boys along with the two girls I babysit, Nicole and Julia, and the dog, Zoey, on a hike near our house. We packed up a lunch and Taylor (since he had been before) guided us down the Oregon Trail. It was a lot of fun and we felt pretty tired when we got home.

We had to have one last family BBQ. So, we joined up with my family and enjoyed hamburgers, hotdogs, and all the other goodies that come with a BBQ at my mom's house. It's so nice to have family close by, I love it!

Tol's dad surprised Tol with an airplane ride in his 2-seater airplane. They flew to Warm Springs and Elk Creek. Tol had a smile on his face the whole time flying with his dad. It was a special time for him to share with his dad. Les loves flying and really loves sharing it with those he loves. Who knows maybe I'll get a chance (I say that with a little hesitation in my voice, it scares the begeebees out of me). It would be a chance of a lifetime. We'll see. :o)

Tol had to take the boys on an all boys camp-out before the summer ended. His main goal was to find a spot where they could get in a hot springs. So, Bonneville was the destination. The boys had a great time spending quality time with Dad. I had a nice time having a little alone time. But, I did lock myself out of my house when I went running in the morning. I had to run down to Lisa's to get her to check all her extra keys. Then, Hannah had to run me to my Mom's to get her extra key. 2 hours later I was finally in my house. At least I didn't have to break any windows. :o)

At the end of August the boys and I, along with Nicole, took Papa (my dad) hiking up to the top of Table Rock. He loved it and was very impressed that Parker did it all by himself. I was, too! It was a hot hike, but really fun! The Boise Zoo was also on our list of things to do in the summer. We hadn't been for awhile and, wow, how it changed. We got to see lions, giraffes, and the bear was actually out this time. The kids loved getting in the Safari jeep and pretending to be explorers. They also liked dressing up in different animal costumes. It was a fun day at the zoo! The fair was a must for this summer. But, because we went

to Silverwood and rode every ride there, we didn't ride the rides at the fair. We went to the petting farm, ate homemade donuts, yummy ice cream cones, french fries, watched Brayden do pull-ups at the Marine booth, and looked at all the exhibits. Brayden wore his Army shirt that he got from Uncle Ted. So, the Marines informed him that it stood for Aren't Real Men Yet. Parker was really funny at the petting farm. He hugged all the animals and talked to them like they were his buddies. "Hey guys, here you go." He would then stretch out his shirt and let the goats nibble on it.

Mt. Borah was something Tol really wanted to do with his friends this summer. Tol, Nathan, Paul, and Alec left on a Friday night. They slept in the cab of Nathan's truck, the back of Nathan's truck, and the ground outside Nathan's truck. They didn't have the best night's sleep. But they were excited and ready to climb the massive mountain early Saturday morning. The climb was difficult as they "panted" all the way up. They ran into a number of people heading down, who hit chicken out ridge and chickened out. The boys were determined to make it all the way. They made the top in just over 5 1/2 Hours. At the top, they could see forever in all directions. It was gorgeous! Tol found himself literally running down the mountain in about 1 hour 45 minutes! It was a big calorie burn. So, they rewarded themselves with a steak dinner on their way home. CHECK!

Last, but not least...The First Day of School

August 31 sent Taylor and Brayden back to school. Taylor is now a 5th grader in Mr. Dinter's class, while Brayden enters 3rd grade with Ms. Hoover. They were both so excited for that first day of school. Everything is so new and fresh and exciting. Mom was excited too!

The Last 8 Months!

I knew it had been a while since I last posted, but 8 months! I just read an article about a family that blogs together in my Family Fun magazine. It inspired me to update and maybe repent and do better. This is the only journaling I really like to do. So, I better do it more often. Here is the run down of our last 8 months.

MARCH:

Spring Break was a blast! We stayed home and had a "Stay-cation". We turned our house into the "R & R Bed and Breakfast". After we checked into our "hotel rooms" we headed out for a hike up to Table Rock, where we ate sack lunches at the top, explored the top and caves surrounding, and picked up litter. Then we were off for a treat at Powell's Candy Store. From there we went back to our hotel, ordered pizza, and played the Wii in the hotel lobby. The next morning we woke early to grab a quick breakfast at Tully's and visited some historical places in Boise. We ate a great lunch at Elmer's and headed for our next activity, miniature golf at Boondocks. I believe Dad ended up winning, but the rest of us were not too far behind! We ended our evening with a private movie at Timberline with pizza (of course) and snacks from the concession stand. The next morning the boys woke with their favorite complimentary breakfasts delivered to their rooms. It was so much fun! We can't wait for our next stay-cation!

APRIL:

We celebrated Parker's 4th birthday on April 6th. Parker woke up to some of his favorite things on his Birthday Couch (a Cars blanket, playdoh, m&ms, fruit snacks, sidewalk chalk, balloons, capri sun, goldfish crackers, and a new birthday outfit). We went to his choice of restaurants for dinner. His choice was the wonderful McDonald's. For his cake I made him a big, yellow smiley face. this was a perfect cake for him because he is always smiling, even when he's being naughty. He is such a wonderful part of our family. Full of energy - I love it (most of the time :o)). Also, I was called as the Young Women's president in my ward.

MAY:

We had 2 birthdays to celebrate in May. First was Taylor's 10th. He decided to celebrate his with an overnight camp-out in the backyard with a few of his friends. We roasted hot dogs, had a Dutch oven dessert making contest, had Wii competitions, watched a movie on the trampoline with a projector (it was really cool), Tol and the boys slept in the tent while I got the cozy bed to myself. Taylor's Birthday Couch consisted of Cheetos, Jerky, cotton candy, fiddle faddle, twizzlers, Sunny D, Webelos book and neckerchief, bubblegum, The Candy Shop War book, Butterfinger bites, and a new outfit.

Brayden's birthday pictures are lost, I can not find them or his baptism pictures anywhere! But I can recall what we did. His theme was a sports theme. We had a HUGE birthday party down at Timberline with about 20 kids. We had each kid check-in and make up a nickname for themselves, which they were called by for the whole party. The Timberline mascot, The Boss, came by and kicked off the party and played Red Rover with the kids. We played soccer, had scooter races, an obstacle course, Blimpie sandwiches and cake. His cake was a huge soccer ball, with cupcakes decorated like basketballs, baseballs, footballs, and soccer balls. It was chaotic but a lot of fun! Brayden's Birthday Couch consisted of BBQ chips, Cracker Jacks, bubblegum, Holes book, Wolves book and neckerchief, Crunch bar, Bolt the movie, powdered candy man, Sunny D, and a new outfit.

Also, in May, Tol received his Masters from U of I in Administration. We are so proud of him!

JUNE:

June was a busy month. It started out with Brayden's baptism. We had lots of friends and family that came to celebrate with us. Unfortunately, I have no pictures! Brayden is such a joy in our family. He is so smart and easy going. This day was a great day for him. He was asked to speak about his big day in the Primary program in September. He did an awesome job. We are so proud of him!

We visited Tol's grandpa in Sandpoint. We love Sandpoint. It is so beautiful and relaxing there. While we were there we went to Silverwood Amusement Park. We started our day with the whole family going on the Timbers of Terror roller coaster. After that, Taylor and Parker were not too keen on the big roller coaster rides. But, Tol, Brayden and I rode them all. It was a lot of fun!

We had a family camp-out in McCall with Tol' mom and dad, Joe and Janice's family, and us. We spent most of our days down on the beach and our nights around the campfire. Only one injury...the first night we were there, Parker grabbed the top of the lantern and scorched his hand. It was awful, but he was tough. The next morning he was checking out his wounds and said, "Look, Mom, this is a cool owey!"

We also celebrated Tol's birthday. I think we lost those pictures, too! To celebrate his birthday I planned a whole day of outings for him. He was served breakfast in bed with a breakfast made by Taylor. He and Taylor ate breakfast together. Tol had class to go to. When he got home, he was met at the door by Brayden. Brayden and I had packed a lunch for the two of them. Brayden had Tol drive them to a park for a picnic and some one on one time. Next, Parker was waiting for him when they got home with 2 movie tickets. He took Dad to the movie "Up". I honestly, can't remember if I took him out for dinner or I made him dinner. Either way I am sure it was fabulous! :o) I know I made him his favorite pie, blueberry cream. YUM! I just remembered! We had to set up for our yard sale that night. So, I bought some Sushi and we worked all night. So, maybe it wasn't so fabulous. But we did make $250 that night while we were setting up.

JULY:

Fourth of July we started our day with a Pancake Breakfast at our church. The boys participated in a Bike Parade while were there. They decorated their bikes with red, white, and blue and joined other kids in a parade around the church. We went swimming at the pool and headed to Lisa and Brian's for a BBQ and fireworks! The kids loved the sparklers and Brian purchased big fireworks, too, that the the kids and adults were mesmerized by. My favorite part was when the next door neighbor's dog came out and tried to attack the fireworks. It was a fun 4th and no injuries. :o)

Tol and I, along with my parents, went down to California to watch my brother, Craig, compete in the 2009 Crossfit Games. What an amazing competition! I was so impressed, not only with Craig, but all the elite athletes that competed. It inspired me to do better. While we were there, Tol and I took an afternoon and went to the beach. I love the ocean.

At the end of the month we went to my family reunion with relatives from my mom's side. Island Park is where the reunion took place. So, we went a day early and went to Yellowstone. It was so amazing. We only scratched the surface, but what we saw was breathtaking and beautiful. I was a little disappointed we didn't see any bears, wolves, or moose. I kinda had this picture in my head that we would see all these wild animals all over the roads. Like, we would have to stop for herd crossing. But, that wasn't the case. We saw deer, elk, and finally buffalo. We actually got pretty close to a buffalo (not dangerously close, but close enough). It was pretty cool. I got a little scared. :o)

The family reunion was really great. My great aunts fell in love with Tol. They thought he was the best (and they're right). We rode motorcycles, 4 wheelers, went boating, swam, sang by the campfire, reminisced, ate way too much, and had friendly competitions. One morning I went running with my mom and dad, which was fun. At the end we sprinted to the top of the hill where the cabin was. My dad and I were neck and neck, man he's fast, I just couldn't shake him. It was so fun to see people I hadn't seen for a very long time and introduce them to my little family. I can't wait until our next!

This is my sweet, sweet grandma (on the right) with her sisters, Wilma and Alice. They were a HOOT!

To Be Continued (just a couple months to go:o))......