Idaho in the house!

It wasn't too long ago that we used to be the furthest ones out from the rest of the family, but now it's James' family. I can't say that I mind giving that title up much. :)

James and Brooke had some stuff going on in Utah at the tail end of May, so it was great to have some time with them while they were here visiting, and it was an extra treat to meet their new family member, Preston. What a chill baby he is! It was super cute to watch his big sisters love on him.

A bunch of the family got together to celebrate their daughter, Madison's, 2nd birthday with a little cake and ice cream.

I love any excuse to make a fun cake!

 

We hadn't planned on it, but threw together a little impromptu bbq a day later, and we were joined by my parents and James' family after their visit to the zoo earlier in the day. The kids had lots of fun together, and we got to enjoy an extra helping of their company before their trip was over. It's always fun to get together...especially with how much the kids change in between our visits.

Mishmash

The past few weeks have been a good mix of some fun stuff. Now I know why my dear friend will publish "This week in pictures" posts every so often. Time has a way of sneaking off, and this past month has gone by pretty quick...so I guess instead of a week's worth of photos, I'll cover most of May instead. :)

Darius, Ben, Zach and I joined Clair's family for a swim party to celebrate Makenna's recent birthday. I had lots of fun making cute little fondant owls to top her cupcakes, and we got to watch Makenna jump off the diving board for the first time!

I made several cakes this month...this one was for my cousin, Anthony's, lovely wife for Mother's Day. They enjoyed Grandma's birthday cake so much that they had to have another, so Anthony got in touch with me and surprised his wife.

I love that Clair and I love the same baseball team! Most of the family was able to get together for a BBQ at Carrie & Bobby's place to celebrate Clair's birthday. We feasted on some good eats...Sanpete Turkey, homemade rolls, yummy salads, and pudding cake. There were some really happy tummies. :)

My lovely and extremely talented niece, Karissa, graduated from high school. I put together this cake as a nod to her talents as an artist. We joined her family for some lunch and cake and enjoyed a good visit with them.

This sweet little soul just turned 1! The boys and I drove up to James and Brooke's home in Idaho to celebrate Madison's birthday. I brought some pizza dough and sauce and we cooked up some pizza the night before, and enjoyed a little family BBQ the following day. The weather was perfect and we enjoyed a great party!



 

We've been wanting to get a dog, but it's just not in the cards for us right now. Lucky for us, we can get our puppy fix from Joy's sweet new friend, Ulli. The boys and I got to dog sit for him while Joy was at work. The boys love him (so long as he not chewing on them).

It's been a good month! I love my family, and it feels really good to live close to everyone again. There's a bunch of us, and there's always something going on, and I love that I'm not missing out on so much of it anymore. 





Craters, Cousin, Balanced Rock

After leaving the cabin, we drove across ID to visit my brother James' family in the Twin Falls area. Our drive took us by the Craters of the Moon National Monument. Now I know I've vacationed in Idaho growing up, but I don't think I gave the proper respect to the rest of the state. After this trip I must say that I've had Idaho pegged all wrong. There is a lot of diversity throughout the state.

I'm not even sure how to describe Craters of the Moon, but it was really cool! You almost feel like you're on another planet. A loop through the area takes you on a drive through fields of lava rocks. I don't even think I had heard of the monument before. There was an area just inside the monument open for camping, and if you're ever in the area and want a totally different camping experience...this is your kind of place!

The boys' word of the day along the entire drive was "Jaydaka." They were psyched to be going to her house to play with her and all her toys, which Zach somehow believed would include robots and Transformers. I would say it's safe to say that we must of heard, "We're going to Jaydaka's house" dozens and dozens of times. The boys were very happy when we arrived and promptly invaded her pool and played while Brooke and I packed up a picnic for dinner.

Once again I was impressed by Idaho and what their neck of the state had to offer. Not only do you drive over the awesome Snake River crossing on the way to their house, but you can see a crazy rock balancing act in the Salmon Falls Creek Canyon. Balanced Rock is 48 feet high, 40 feet wide, and the base which it balances on is only 3 feet by 17.5 inches wide. There's also a great park nearby, which is where we enjoyed our picnic dinner.

Yup, I thoroughly enjoyed our time in Idaho. James and his family live in a really nice little town which in some ways reminds me of the area in Sanpete where we grew up. They even have this great antique shop across the street. Mom and Dad found a little something there and so did I. It was a fun trip, just what summer is all about.

Green Thumb

Dad is in the final stretch! His last day of work is this coming Thursday, and I'm so happy for him! Tonight we put together a little surprise retirement party for him. I made a garden themed cake for him which I absolutely loved doing!

Growing up we always had a garden, and since he's been in Cordova it's been one of the things I think Dad has missed the most. Since we all couldn't be together at the party, I asked my siblings to take a few minutes and write something to Dad about his retirement or past memories about Dad and gardening. Here are some of the things they wrote:

Michel: I remember hauling the little red wagon around the neighborhood to sell the extra fruits and vegetables from the garden. We would pile it high with corn, tomatoes, cucumbers and I can't remember what else. I was always so mortified to knock on the neighbors doors, although I loved the money that we earned. Years later I had someone from the old neighborhood tell me how much they had loved it when we brought the little wagon around to their house!

Eric: We had rows upon rows of corn growing in the neighbor’s backyard. One day he sent me over to fertilize the corn. He gave me a bucket of granular nitrogen and told me to go to it. I was clueless as to how this was to be done, so I just started tossing it up onto the tall corn leaves. The next thing I can recall was that Dad was scrambling and to water all the corn so the nitrogen didn’t burn the leaves. From this valuable lesson I learned that plants get their nutrients from the ground.

Clair: One job that was never done was picking up the constant supply of the many rocks found in the soil. This was one of the least favorite of the gardening chores so Dad would use it as a punishment for when we got out of line or started fighting with one another. Fortunately for him he had a small army of naughty kids that were constantly getting in trouble. I in particular created a rock pile at least as tall as I was and 50 times my own weight over the years.

Connie: I remember getting up on Saturday morning and wanting to spend the day reading and playing but you would insist on two rows of weeding before we could do anything else. I may not of appreciated it at the time but through your example I have learned the value of work.

Carrie: What I really loved about Dad and his love of gardening was that twinkle he would get in his eye when it was harvest time. He would grab a salt shaker from the kitchen and head outside towards that garden. I would always follow because I knew something good was about to happen.

What an unbelievably hard working man my father is! He has worked so hard all his life. He taught us all what a good work ethic truly is. He has made sacrifices all his life for the good of his family.

The gardens we had year in and year out are the perfect metaphor for our family. There was always such a diversity of vegetables in our garden, just like the personalities in our family. And just like all the plants needed different things to grow to their full potential, so did we. We were all responsible for helping in the garden, but it was always Dad that worked the hardest. All that time he worked in the garden over the years he was helping us to lay the groundwork in our lives to be good, hardworking people. People with qualities like Dad.

Dad, we all love and appreciate you so much! We're grateful for how hard you worked all these years to provide us with a comfortable and loving home. Happy retirement and happy gardening Dad!

Friday's child is loving and giving...

A longing fulfilled is sweet to the soul... - Proverbs 13:19

After a very long day, Brooke and James welcomed their first baby into the world. Jaydaka Mae (hope my spelling is right!) arrived early Friday morning around 12:15. She weighed in at 8lbs 5oz and is 20" long. Welcome baby!

I have no doubt that James and Brooke will be awesome parents. The way they interact with my boys is so sweet, and I can't wait to see them in action with their baby.

Congratulations Brooke & James! I'm so happy for the both of you and can't wait to meet your little girl!

James & Brooke

My brother James and his lovely wife Brooke, came to stay for about a month. Sadly, yesterday evening they left us to go back to Idaho. We enjoyed having them here, especially Ben & Zach. From what I understand from Brooke, twins run in her family too. I can just see her and James having twins....someday.

James was able to work for the Alaska Department of Fish & Game while he was here. He had a pretty sweet job. A good deal of the time he was taking samples of Salmon scales from streams around Prince William Sound. He'd either get flown out, or he'd go out on the F&G's vessel, The Solstice.

In his spare time, James kept himself busy with fishing, berry picking, beating Mom & Dad at Pinochle (with the help of me of course!), visiting with friends, and hunting for deer. The day before they left, James finally lucked up and got his first deer across from Cordova on Hawkins Island. It was quite an ordeal for him to get it down the mountain and back to the boat. Unfortunately he wasn't able to get the deer meat ready in time to take back with him to Idaho.

Brooke took a well deserved summer vacation. She just recently graduated from BYU-ID in July...congratulations again Brooke! She enjoyed her time here by fishing, berry picking, and lots of reading! She was able to start and finish the entire Harry Potter series. She was also very helpful with the boys...thanks Brooke!

(Dad actually picked these berries, but Brooke & James picked some just as pretty!)

Nini & Papaw

Darius' mom (Margaret/Nini) and step dad (Alfred/Papaw) have been here visiting from Louisiana just over a week. We've all enjoyed having them here, and I think it's safe to say they've enjoyed their time here as well. I wondered how Ben & Zach would warm up to them when they first got here. For those of you that know Ben, you know he's very shy around people he doesn't know and has been known to cry if you move in on him too fast. I was so surprised when on the first day of Margaret & Alfred's visit, Ben let his Papaw hold him and carry him around. It was as if Ben & Zach had known them all along.

During their stay I had to fly over to Anchorage to pick up Darius' truck that had been shipped there from Florida. I'm glad that the trip fell when it did, and that Margaret and Alfred were here to help watch the boys. I knew my little men were in good hands, but it was hard to be away from them! I was relieved to hear that the boys did very well while I was gone.

Aside from relaxing at the house and watching the Ben & Zach Show, here are some of the things Margaret & Alfred enjoyed during their stay:

• Margaret went out on the Sound on a gill netter boat with Mom, James, Brooke, and visiting guests (Jenkins). A long line was dropped and they brought back one Halibut, which everyone enjoyed the following day.

• Alfred enjoyed reading, and easily cruised through three good sized books.


• They both enjoyed berry picking around the house, out by the airport, and off Power Creek Road. Margaret used some of Salmon Berries she picked to make several jars of jelly.

• Over the weekend Mom, Brooke, Alfred, Margaret, and I drove out the road to Child's Glacier. We enjoyed the beautiful weather and watched some good calving activity, while we roasted hot dogs. We roasted some marshmallows afterwards for smores. They were delicious and extra gooey!

• They also enjoyed some good eating during their stay. We celebrated James & Brooke's 1st wedding anniversary on Aug 3 and Mom's birthday on Aug 7. We had some good meals on those days and probably a few on the days in between! Margaret has several good recipes to take home with her.

Airline travel for those not accustomed to flying, isn't much fun. Especially when it involves standby travel. I'm so happy that Margaret and Alfred made the trip here and had this time with us. Ben & Zach are changing so fast everyday, and it was great their Nini & Papaw where here to see some of those changes. I've never liked the term of calling a spouse's family "in-laws". I just like to think of Margaret and Alfred as family.

Thanks for making the long trip to see us, Margaret & Alfred. We love you!

Over the river and through....

...Yakutat, Juneau, Seattle, Portland, Boise, Idaho Falls, a drive south to Brigham City, and to Grandmother's house we went!

Are we there yet?

...not really, Zach's a very good traveler!

My parents had planned a two week trip to Utah, and I'd been debating for months whether to go with them. When my mom was talking with my grandma before their trip, Grandma asked whether I was coming. I had decided I wasn't, but immediately felt guilty knowing I had the opportunity to see her and was passing it up. So, like most of our recent trips, this one was kind of last minute.

Why so many stops along the way to Grandma's? Well, despite the awesome flight perks we enjoy (courtesy of Darius...thanks love!), we're still limited to standby travel. Our "milk run" flight leaving Cordova always has 2 stops before reaching Seattle. From Seattle we were hoping to get to Boise and connect to Idaho Falls, but after checking flight loads I knew chances were slim to none. Portland was our way to get to Boise. From Portland we barely made it on the flight we needed to, enabling us to make our connection from Boise to Idaho Falls. As usual, Connie is good enough to make the drive up to Idaho from Salt Lake to pick us up. James and Brooke were also at the airport to meet us, and we had lunch with them before heading down to Brigham.

Zach with his Great Grandma. This alone was worth the trip!

I opted for just one week in Utah instead of two. Unfortunately I think the process of actually getting to Utah sucked up most of my energy and patience, so I think I got things started on the wrong foot. I did enjoy seeing Grandma and the rest of my family, but I'm so glad to be home now! Darius wasn't able to come with us, and it was hard to be away from him.

Ben and his cousin Hope, hanging out at Strate's abode.

On Sunday most of the family congregated at Grandma's house in Brigham City, and Dad barbequed some halibut and salmon that we brought with us from home. I was busy being a helicopter mom, so unfortunately I wasn't able to visit with everyone as much as I would have liked. Ben & Zach unknowingly enjoyed wearing out me, their cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents. I counted in my head and I think there were at least a dozen of us that pushed the boys around in a play car.

Zach loved this car! He must have been it for an hour or more.

The rest of our time in Utah we spent at Carrie & Bobby's home in West Valley. Ahhh....if I must go slightly nuts on "vacation", there's no other place I'd prefer to do it! Thanks for putting up with us Sis!

Carrie & Bobby got a puppy just a couple of days before we got there. His name is Skoog (Carrie, correct my spelling if I'm wrong) and he's a handful, but so adorable! Of course, puppies like to lick, nibble, and jump (sometimes tackle) so Ben & Zach mostly enjoyed his company. They also had fun in the sprinkler, and the mud it made in the garden. Hopefully the chives they trampled made a full recovery.

I was lucky enough to have help on the return trip home. I was expecting to fly solo with the boys, but Joy was able to come back with me. We got off to a good start, but things got pretty hairy at the end. Fortunately we did make it home in a day...and managed to skip Idaho Falls, Boise, Portland, Juneau and Yakutat.

Love you Grandma!