Father's Day 2014

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to the BEST dad ever!! Seriously...he is amazing. Our kids are so lucky to have a dad who loves them, works so hard for them, plays hard with them, and is an absolute sure foundation in their lives. The man is ROCK!! His shoulders are broad and he packs a load. (See above picture.) Tyler is a huge blessing in our lives. He is pure gold.

Father's Day started out with gifts and cards and then it was onto church. Ailey and Bryn (along with the other primary kids) sang to the dads. So cute! Ailey gave a talk in Primary, and Tyler and I substituted in Bryn's Primary class which was fun.

After church we packed up our picnic dinner...all Tyler's requests: His favorite Italian pasta salad, various kinds of chips, Tapioca pudding (of course), CountryTime lemonade, and Oreos and headed to our favorite park as is our Father's Day tradition. We picked our spot and set out our spread.

The day was overcast and cool...but it worked out perfectly. We set up our croquet course and the tournament began. We, once again, began our quest to take the old man down. Did we succeed? That would be...once again...no. Ty slaughtered us. He had no mercy. He has some sweet croquet skills.

I am THRILLED to say that I moved up from last place last year (not counting Bryn) to THIRD! Quite a victory!! I was hot on Tyler's heels until at the very very end when that darn Ailey knocked me out and took second place!! The girl did quite a victory dance, I must say!! Bryn held her own this year and placed 5th which was awesome. I was quite happy to take out Kameron who takes after his dad.

The sun came out here and there and warmed us up. It was so nice to just kick back and RELAX!! That was my main activity. It was wonderful.

The kids leaped on Tyler who proved that he still can hold onto all four of them at once... the attempts were pretty hilarious though but he did it!!

We talked and laughed and took dorky photos. The one below is of Reilly with Tyler and I yelling "Hey Cipher!!" at her and Reilly having no idea what we were talking about. (How has she lived 17 years and not seen the classic "Cipher in the Snow" a tragically sad LDS movie? When Tyler and I were growing up, kids of our generation, used that term to refer to anyone sitting alone or being alone and weird...see below...classic ciph.

17 is precious

One of Tyler's gifts was an official Kickball ball!! Good times were had and are yet to be had with that baby!! We take great joy in reliving the glory days of elementary school kickball and pounding or attempting to pound our young offspring. Simple pleasures I tell you... ha ha.

A good time was had by all...especially by El Papa himself. (El Papa is the nickname that Bryn gave Tyler that has stuck like no other!! Turns out it means "the pope"...interesting.)

Like I said before...the man is gold!! We are so lucky that he is ours!! Happy Father's Day El Papa!! We love you.

The Last Day of School

The Last Day of School 2014

It finally arrived!! This very anticipated day of joy!! There was much celebrating to be had around here. Unfortunately it isn't exactly hot, sunny, and particularly summer-like. Today I saw that it was 59 degrees at one point and cloudy. Oh well. The sun and heat will come eventually.

This video makes me laugh and pretty much sums up the feelings around here:




Bryn and I dropped all the kids off at school and had a little moment together. It was the last day of Bryn and Mommy being home all by ourselves. It has been pretty great! Bryn is such an EASY child. She loves to just do her own thing next to me, hang out with me, and run errands with me. Such a cutie!! The one thing that she said that she was REALLY going to miss next year when she goes to all day Kindergarten was...VISITING TEACHING!! Hilarious. She really likes going. The second thing she said that she was going to miss was going out to lunch with mommy and her friends. Bryn really is a first class lunch date. She is really polite and patient. She loves to get her little purse and go to lunch. The third thing she said that she was going to miss was reading stories together.

 She gave me a little sweet hug and said that she was going to miss being home with me but that she was REALLY EXCITED FOR KINDERGARTEN!! As it should be... these little milestones are bittersweet for this mama. Don't even get me started on the fact that Reilly is now officially a SENIOR!! 

Me and my little buddy!!

After school we got out, we met up with Tyler, and headed straight to the ice cream shop!! Shortly after, Reilly and Kameron took off with their friends. Tyler and I took Ailey and Bryn to the craft store so that they could pick out some craft projects and then we went to Zips to get some fries. They were pretty thrilled.

First craft projects of the summer...done! Luckily they are pretty stocked up.

Today, the first official day of summer break, is "organization day". All the kids are deep cleaning their bedrooms. They are getting rid of all the junk, clutter, and outgrown clothes. They have been working pretty hard so I think a treat will be in order soon.

Then it's outside to weed, trim, touch up the deck, set out all our deck furniture, and get things ready for Grandma and Grandpa who will be coming next weekend. They are bringing with them some of Tyler's relatives visiting from Scandinavia. Pretty exciting!!

Yay!! SUMMER!!

I'm Back

I'm Back!

School is out! Farm Chicks is over! All 50 million recitals, concerts, performances, sports events, jury duty and big time intensive calling hoopla is over and I am breathing a sigh of relief. I have been running on empty for about 2 1/2 months. Now it is time to slow down and regroup. I am looking forward to it. It is also a time to return to this blog.

I am a journaler (I had to look that up and see if it was actually a word. It is.)  I am a record keeper. I like putting my thoughts and feelings into words. It clears my head. It creates order. It slows down time. I feel like my life doesn't fly by quite so quickly if I can write about it and create a record. I have truly missed doing that. Writing, exercise, prayer, and family. They are what keep me sane and provide me with clarity and perspective. So this blog is truly for me. I have no time to sit with pen and paper. I have no time to scrapbook (or interest) but blogging really fills this niche in my life. I can type way faster than I can write and I can insert pictures!! It gives me a voice and hopefully it will be a voice that can be heard not only by my children but by my grandchildren and my great-grandchildren.

I wish I had more journal records of my predecessors. I have a partial journal (a half filled notebook) from one grandma. It is full of sorrow at the demise of my parents marriage and her subsequent sadness at our moving away. It makes me sad but I appreciate it. Life isn't always happy happy joy joy. But I know that it was her truth at that time and I know that she was happy again and joy returned. I felt her humanity reading that half-filled notebook.

I've read snippets of the various journals of my other grandma. She has always been a great journaler...unfortunately not of things that are that helpful to the next generation. In the stolen glances I have had of her journal it was a shopping list of facts, things done, errands run, people who came to visit but completely void of emotion...and totally dull. What good is that? Did she ever use it to recall happy times? To remember what life was like? Trials she over came? Strengths she discovered? Spiritual experiences? I doubt it. She heard the prophet say to keep a journal and so she did. In the rare instances that any emotions were written about, it concerned people in the family who were not living the way she felt they should, or grandchildren who were being "little pills." Again, what is the value? I don't know.

This blog used to be about connecting to others out in the blogosphere. Now it is really about me connecting with myself. What are my thoughts and feelings? What is life like for me at 42? Where am I at spiritually? What are my struggles, strengths, triumphs, joys? There will be a run down of things that we have done of course...but hopefully it won't be a laundry list of errands and void of emotion.

My oldest child is officially a senior in high school today. Time is going by way too fast. This is my attempt to slow it down.

Long time, No see!

I am still here. It's just that it's May. The school year is winding down and all of the activities are a little overwhelming. Couple that with a calling at church that is a fairly intense month long temple calling and gearing up for the biggest vintage show of the year and not much blogging is happening. I seem to have a little  tiny bit of time to Instagram...but that is about it. Another two weeks and things will have hopefully leveled out and blogging will resume. Until then...see ya on Instagram.

Happy May!!

Mother's Day and an Anniversary Too!

Mother's Day and an Anniversary

Boy, I love May!! So many fun things going on...including the two above. Both were FABULOUS!! Tyler and I celebrated 19 years of marriage. We had a great day. Good food and a fun date. We already had a little weekend getaway when we went to Omak, so we counted that, and hope to do a another little trip somewhere this summer. Oh the glory of having a 17 1/2 year old!! Sweet freedom!!

Doesn't seem that long ago...

Tyler and I had a great day together. It's hard to believe that it's already been 19 years. 19 years of marriage and 21 years of togetherness and I am happy to say that I love that man of mine even more! We work hard on our marriage and it has definitely paid off. Tyler is such an amazing person and I am so glad that he is mine!!

Mother's Day was equally wonderful. A great day at church being sung to by Ailey and Bryn (and the rest of the Primary.) A musical program for the Relief Society for the last 2 hours of church with a luncheon, flowers, and chocolate. Nice! I came home and got spoiled by my family. They really are a festive group and I adore that about them. I got roses, a gift card, flowers for my garden, a lilac bush and a snowball bush, perfume, beautiful handmade treasures, sweet cards, and loving posts on Instagram and a gorgeous hanging basket from my mom. I also got some sweet gifts, texts, and phonecalls from my sisters and a really loving post on FB from my brother. So kind and it all meant the world to me.

We even went on a Sunday drive...which I LOVE...and saw some local historical sites out on the Palouse.

Very interesting.

We came home and I took a Sunday nap while my family fixed dinner for me. Ailey and Bryn set a beautiful table. Tyler had asked me what I would like to eat for dinner and I said king crab legs or steak with strawberry shortcake. Tyler decided on steak (since we only eat it like once or twice a year,  it truly is a treat.) He had steaks marinating for 24 hours and grilled them to perfection. The kids ate about 3 boca burgers a piece. It was so nice to grill again. Dinner was delicious! The weather was amazing. I love my family!!

I did demand a photo with my kids before church and the results were pretty hilarious. Let's just say it took about 20 pictures to get one with everyone looking fairly normal. Here were a few of the outtakes...or shall I say the more reality based.

Cackling mother, loving little girls, and bored teens. (This one truly is my reality.)

More thrilled teenagers...mother still laughing. Kameron has clearly had enough.

A little better

Let's just say by the end of my little photo session I was laughing until I was crying. Ailey was crying. Bryn was whining. Reilly and Kameron were irritated....as was Daddy the photographer...but guess what? I still loved it and I love all of them. I am so lucky to be the mother of these crazy kids.

Some of my gorgeous plants:

Now my garden is half planted. I am still waiting on my tomatoes, zucchini, and cucumbers for another two weeks to ensure they survive. My deck is slowly but surely getting put back together. My flower beds almost all cleaned out. My flower pots are getting planted. Lilacs are blooming. My peonies are budding. My new bushes are getting planted. Yay!! Summertime is here!!

Happy Mother's Day to All...

But most especially to my Mom. She's pretty awesome. Love you Mom.

April

April Happenings


The months just fly by and it seems like I always find myself playing catch up at the end of the month. Oh well. What can you do?

Bryn got her Kindergarten immunizations. Three shots and a finger prick. These have been looming over her head and worrying her for months. She ended up doing great and got tons of stickers and tattoos from the doctor's office for being so brave and was rewarded with Baskin-Robbins ice cream. Here she is enjoying their Spiderman 2 flavor and rocking the blue teeth.

Next up was a trip to the dentist for all four kids. Turns out Bryn needs an appliance put in for her cross bite, Ailey got a referral to an orthodontist for braces, and Reilly had two cavities. Yehaw. Not my favorite trip to the dentist.

Kameron, Ailey, and Bryn were all in the "No Cavity Club" but Kameron refused to pose with the bear. Party pooper.

Kameron had another 6 month check and ultrasound on his kidney and things looked good. The scarring that was visible last time wasn't visible this time. Hallelujah. His kidneys seem to be doing fine. He will have another check in another 6 months. All this hell for breaking his arm at the Father/Sons campout last year!! Good grief. I have banned it this year!!

Ailey got her costume for the ballet recital. They are doing The Nutcracker. She is one of the Polichinelles...the girls that come out from under Mother Ginger's skirt. She's excited. Both Ailey and Bryn have little solo parts this year. They are thrilled.

This is my new favorite snack...Salt and Pepper Pistachios. Delicious and addictive.

This was a sight for sore eyes and becoming a rather elusive animal these days. Reilly doing homework. Had.To.Document.

Daddy/Daugher Quesadilla Night

A lot of cooking is being done around here, and very little of it is being done by me, which is delightful. Some how cooking has taken a big tumble down my list of "things I feel like doing"...hopefully someday my cooking mojo  will return.

Bryn tried out a recipe she saw on Tiger's Neighborhood (her favorite show) called Banana Swirl. She made both regular and a raspberry banana one. I thought they were both gruesome but she snarfed them down.

Ailey grating cheese. She is cheerfully exclaiming in this picture... "I didn't grate my finger once!!" We are all thrilled about that. Don't you love her school outfit? Pearls and all. This kid takes after her mother!!

Here is a meal that I actually did make and boy was it good. I will call it my "meal of the month". Asian Bowtie Spinach Pasta Salad. Holy Moly. Everyone liked it. You can find this recipe on my pinterest board called"Things I have actually made and liked"... catchy huh? It was delicious.

Kameron got his first job. He was hired by our across the street neighbor to mow, weed wack, and pooper scoop their yard once a week through the end of summer. He earns $20 a week. That is like a million dollars to him. He has already paid for his share of scout camp! Pretty cool.

Bryn saw this beauty on Facebook and said...very seriously... "Mom, please never let that happen to us." Ha ha! Apparently she didn't have that much faith in me because she also made me pinkie promise.

Another cute picture of Ailey...just because.

Sisters Creed had a vintage show in Omak, WA. You can read about it HERE. On our way there, we got to see the Grand Coulee Dam. Interesting...especially for Tyler...as he does dam inspections as part of his job these days. Tyler came along for the weekend while Reilly babysat the kids at home. It felt like a fun little getaway...nice hotel, good restaurants, a fun show, and money in the bank. Nice!

Everything is more fun when Tyler comes along!!

Track season has started for the boy. So fun and, at times, nerve wracking to watch...especially for moms. Kameron does HURDLES this year!! Luckily I had my friend, Valynn, for emotional support. Ha ha. On a side note, Kameron was only one of two 7th graders from his school running hurdles...the rest were 8th graders.

Kam loves track and now that the nerves of the first meet are out of the way I am looking forward to seeing what he can do this year. He really impressed me with his cross-country season and so I am sure that track will be the same. Uncle Ramon was giving him pointers over the phone after his first meet. Can't wait for Uncle Ramon to be here in the same town... and Jordi too. Kam is growing and maturing so fast. It is crazy. He also started marching band so that has been a fun and interesting experience for him. He marches in his first parade this weekend!!

More track pics:

Next time I will try to get him hurdling or in mid hurdle... I had my head down and eyes closed for part of the event. But the kid cleared them all!! Some kids fell and others knocked over hurdles so I consider his performance quite a success!!

I've been doing more yard work than you can imagine. Good grief. I'm exhausted and there is still more to do. I thought I was on top of things this fall. Clearly not. This is me laying/lying down on my front yard...yes...front yard. Sure cars were whizzing by, neighbors were gawking, my kids were mortified and mocking. Whatev.  I took a selfie.

Until next time...