4th of July

Happy 4th of July!!!

We had a great time with family for the fourth. Kyle took the day after the 4th of July off so we were able to stay for a long weekend. Over the few days we were there, we went to the Moses Lake Aquatic park, saw Despcable Me 2, went to a graveside service and luncheon for Susan Walton (my Dad's cousin), Kyle spent lots of time raking, baling and stacking hay which he loved and overall it was a fun time. I'm thankful for this country and our freedoms!

My aunt and uncle, Monty and Sonia (my Dad's brother) and their 3 kids came over for the 4th. My Dad's sister, Jacque, also was there. She was out visiting from North Carolina. My Dad's cousin, Darla, also came over.

L-R: Jeni, Sara, Aunt Sonia, me, Marci and Aunt Jacque

Yes, Marci and I have matching hats. I bought mine first and she loved it so she got one too. haha! We looked awesome all matching. We got some good laughs out of it. 

The kids helped decorate my Dad's trailer to make it all festive for their own parade. They went down the lane to neighbors. They sang "You're a Grand Old Flag" and threw out candy. 

Marci and I thought it would be funny to be the "ultimate fans" and so we met them halfway down the lane on the four wheeler screaming and cheering. Then while they were visiting other neighbors we went down to the end of the lane so we'd see them again when they got down there. The kids thought it was pretty funny and we were laughing pretty hard ourselves. This picture shows how desolate the road my parent's live on looks. It used to be a cow trail when my parent's moved here 30+ years ago! And Kyle's grandma used to live behind those mailboxes. Kyle would come up during the summers and stay with them so we knew each other growing up. 

Chelsea was so festive for the 4th. I planned it that way though. :)

My Dad was barbecuing the hamburgers when Kyle runs in asking where the fire extinguisher was. We thought he was kidding because he didn't seem too rushed or worried. Well, apparently he was serious because the BBQ was on fire! They had to extinguish the fire and the sad hamburgers were toast. We had to make new one's inside. Amazingly, my Mom cleaned the BBQ and it works fine now. Who knows how the fire started. 

We played Bingo with everyone. My Mom had a bunch of prizes for everyone to choose from. It was fun and the kids loved it. My Grandma Helen Gene started this tradition, but she couldn't come this year so it was fun to still do it.

My Mom even had a craft for us girl's to make during the day. We painted these and Jeni is super crafty so she helped us add more embellishments with the triple twine and star in the middle.

And I don't have any pictures of the fireworks! It was pretty windy at night, but we still let them off and they were beautiful. Lindsey was scared of them and Preston jumped every time a big one would go off. 

She's on the Move

We have another walker!!! She started taking steps at the end of June (she turned 1 on June 9th) and really took off the first part of July. She walks with her arms close to her body/chest area and stomps her feet a little when she first started walking. It was pretty funny. It's nice for when we are outside because before she'd want to get down and crawl, but then she'd get so dirty and wreck the knees on her pants. She's already climbing the step ladder on the playground and going down slides. It's fun to watch her explore. 

One Sunday we dressed all the girls in yellow. They are still fine matching so for now we can get away with it. :)

Family Time

Kate got to go over to my parent's house for a week at the end of June. She was looking forward to being there by herself without us, her mom or dad, there. :) My Mom and Dad spoiled her in fine fashion. She got to pick the meals she wanted every day. It was all about Kate. 

She went to Chuck E Cheese with Jeni's kids in Tri-Cities. 

There's this place in the Tri-Cities mall called Cooper's Corner, dedicated to a kid who died (I think) from getting hit by a car, so it teaches road safety. The ladies that volunteer are serious about their job too so they'll correct the kids when they are zooming around on the carts. :) It's not a fancy place, but the kids sure love it. Kate was spoiled the week at Grandma's house. She didn't want us to come get her!

We came over to pick Kate up and to go to Kyle's Uncle Gene and Aunt Marcella's 50th Wedding Anniversary celebration in Moses Lake. We visited with his cousins we haven't seen in over 5 years. His side of the family doesn't get together much!

A couple of Melanie's kids rode with us over to Chico's pizza after the reception. This is what having 6 kids would be like. Quite a full car!!!

Kyle with his Uncle Gene. Kyle would work with Gene on his dairy during summer while in High School. He also laid tile with Gene the first summer we were married. Gene is very good at laying tile so Kyle learned from the best. It's a good skill for Kyle to have...he can use it for our house!

We had fun visiting at Chico's. And eating. Yummy pizza piled high with toppings! L-R: Craig Fuller (married to Jill), Michelle and Jeff Lublin (Jeff is Kyle's half brother), Lynn (Kyle's Dad) and Jill (Kyle's half sister)

After Chico's, we went to a park to let the kids play and so the adults could visit longer. It was fun to visit and laugh with one another. His family is funny so we should get together more often!

Melanie, Dee Ann and Kyle

Summer Favorites

Our Stake does a 3-day camp for the Activity Day Girls ages 8-11. It's from 9am-3pm. On the last day they performed their dance and songs for all the parents. They have different workshops like hip hop, singing, sewing (Kate made a pillow case), cooking, art and spiritual. Kate told me she wishes it was like school and was every day. :) I'm sure all the leaders that planned this don't think that! I'm so glad they put this on for these girls though. Kate loved it and can't wait for next year. This picture shows her getting ready to perform the hip hop dance they learned. She's in a teal shirt with jeans and her friend Alyssa is next to her. 

We had some friends over one afternoon and Lucy and Kate had matching swim suits! So cute! 

Preston's people he drew. I didn't even know he could draw people like that so I was impressed. They made me laugh.

Preston was writing his alphabet and the neighbor boy, Dan, was copying him...even the backwards "G". haha!

I check on the kids every night before going to bed. They all look so peaceful and cute sleeping. I noticed one night that Lindsey had set up all the hair and makeup stuff on her dresser. It made me laugh because it was so precisely laid out. 

I have had "hanging flower basket" envy. My neighbor, Darbi, would always have the biggest and nicest hanging baskets. I would try to buy them from Costco so they were higher quality, but still hers was better. She would get hers from Fred Meyer's since her husband worked there and they got a big discount. So then I'd get mine from Fred Meyers and hers would still be better. Well, this year with Darbi not around I am finally happy with my hanging basket. It's been so big and beautiful. Lately, it's having a rougher time but this picture shows it at it's peak. I got it from Fred Meyer and it didn't look all that amazing so I figured it would die soon, but it's done really well. I'm sure if Darbi was still living here hers would still be nicer. hahaha! I do have to say that I put some plant food in it. Darbi's husband, Mat, was the one that takes care of their plants and he loves this stuff. I bought some and like it too. It's Miracle Grow Shake 'n Feed pellets. I've put it in all my plants. It feeds over 3 months. Love it. 

We haven't taken our kids to the movies for over 2 years. This last month we have taken them twice in two weeks! They are spoiled! We saw Monster's University and Despicable Me 2. Super cute movies and the kids loved them both. The minions are hilarious. The part where the monsters blow up during one of the challenges is hilarious too. 

My parents gave all of us kids this Stir Crazy Popcorn Popper as part of our Christmas gift and we just gave one to Dee Ann for her birthday. We have used it a lot lately because my sister, Jeni, shared this amazing kettle corn recipe with us. I love kettle corn so it's probably dangerous I have it. It's 1/2 c. vegetable oil, 1/2 c. sugar and 2/3 c. popcorn. You put the lid on and watch it pop away. It has a metal handle in it that stirs the popcorn around while popping. We use mushroom popcorn (the gourmet kind- It's better than the butterfly kind you find in stores. My Mom bought a ginormous bag of mushroom popcorn from Cash n' Carry and we all took some.). It's pretty addicting!

Summer Activities

Darbi, my old neighbor and friend, was here visiting for a couple weeks. Their family moved to Fairbanks, Alaska last August and so it was fun to see them again. We had them over for dinner a couple times then hung out several other times. It was fun to catch up and chat outside while the kids played, just like old times. 

The girls playing barbies on the front lawn.

L-R: Aleeya (neighbor), Kate, Logan (Darbi's oldest), Jocelyn (neighbor) and Dallas (Darbi's 2nd kid).

This is Koda, Darbi's dog. Kate misses him. He's a ginormous dog! Lindsey was SO scared of him. She ran away crying, but last year she was fine with him. 

Chelsea went to Chuck E Cheese for the first time. We went with Darbi and her kids one morning. Then we got Little Caesars pizza and went to a park to eat lunch. That was a fun day even if it was crazy at Chuck E Cheese and the entrance stunk like urine. 

I bought these from Target. They are my new favorite find. My friend, Stephanie, that I worked with in YW had these at an activity and I liked them. I love mini spatulas from Williams Sonoma, but these are better because they don't have the wood handle. The silicone/rubber part on the end started to twist on my spatula, sad day. So with these that can't happen. 

We went to a carnival that the Arc of Snohomish puts on for families with kids that have disabilities/special needs. It's an awesome event. We've gone before. They have free sno cones, cotton candy, cake, popcorn and a bunch of carnival games for the kids. It's a fun environment for the kids with special needs. It's the least stressful place to take Preston to because they expect kids to be "different". It's awesome! At the end, they have this motorcycle show where these guys do stunts and tricks on their bikes. We played at a fun castle park nearby afterwards and the kids had so much fun. It was a fun outing.

I put Chelsea on this little ride on toy and she loved it. It makes music and all sorts of noise. She now gets mad when someone else takes her toy away. Which they often do. 

Last day of school was June 13th this year. We got out early this year because we didn't have any snow days to make up. We drove our neighbor, Anshu, to school every morning. Anshu used to ride with Darbi, but since they moved we took her. Kate walks home with another neighbor girl, Jocelyn, and her grandma every day. It's nice because then I don't have to wake up sleeping babies to go pick her up. 

Madeleine (another neighbor, yes I know a lot of my neighbors, haha!), Darbi and I walked to the school on the last day of school to pick up the kids. Madeleine brought popsicles for everyone. Before we left, I noticed all the teachers lined up along the sidewalk and waving to the kids as the buses drove away. The teachers were waving, the kids were waving and the buses were honking. It was a pretty cool sight. Love Odyssey elementary school! 

What a mess!!! Chelsea and Owen made a lovely mess of pirate's booty while Tawnya and I were going over stuff at the Church. The pirate booty dust was stuck to Chelsea's pants like glue. It was pretty funny. It even took the vacuum a while to suck everything up. Tawnya was training me on my new calling. I am now the visiting teaching coordinator. I got released as Young Women's 1st counselor last month. I'm sad to leave the young women's program. It was a fun almost 3 years. The girls were asking me if I would still use them as babysitters...um heck yes I am! haha! The YW president I worked with, Christina Miller, is getting married so we are very excited for her. 

I've been experimenting at making Thai food. I love chicken pad thai and thai red curry. I found some red curry sauce at Winco and some pad thai sauce there too so I went for it. It tastes pretty good, but still not as good as in a restaurant. But at least I kind of get my fix at home, plus it's cheaper. 

Kate with Dallas. She misses her in the neighborhood. They had fun playing together while they were here visiting. 

I had posted this picture on Instagram because this is how our front yard looks on a nice day. The pool and slide are out, the chalk is being played with, Preston is laying on the driveway like a lizard trying to warm up, kids are running around in the road and moving when a car comes, kids are riding bikes and playing with toys and I'm feeding them snacks or popsicles and maybe reading a magazine or checking facebook. Yep, sounds like a summer day for us.