Visitors From Afar...Part 1

 Visitors From Afar...Part 1

I always tell Reilly that when she is older she will be surprised at who she will love to see when she comes home to visit. I highly doubt it will be her flashy high school friends. It rarely is. It is usually a few close friends, the kids you went to church with, family friends, and friends from college. It's nearly impossible for her to grasp that she won't care a speck about most of her 1,000 plus Facebook friends. It's really the people we were close to in our formative years that we are overjoyed to see.

Such is the case with my parents' friends. I just love them now. But...wow...were they annoying when I was a teenager. Always in my business, ratting me out to my parents, seeing me places they shouldn't have, lecturing me, and on and on.  This is something that Reilly complains about herself on a regular basis. There are just too many people from my life who are in her business!! I try to tell her that the day will come when those annoying people are EXACTLY the people she will be excited to see and reconnect with one day.

Such is the case with my mom's friend, Kathy. My mom and Kathy met when I was in high school and they were both high power, yuppie, CEOs breaking the glass ceiling in the healthcare world in Kansas City. They instantly became great friends. My dad and Cathy's husband, Mike, got along well and our two families spent large amounts of time together. Countless dinners, BBQs, outings etc. I have many memories of coming home from a date or a night out with friends to find Cathy and Mike at the dinner table with my parents, drinking wine, talking, and laughing until the wee hours of the morning.

Kathy has always called my mom "Earth Mother"... I find that hilarious. She is not remotely what I would think of as an "earth-mother-type"...at all. But on the grand spectrum with Kathy and her one child, in a very structured and immaculately posh home, compared to my mom and her five rowdy kids in a very wild and loud home...I get it. Kind of. Kathy loves to talk about how things were at our house. Five kids flying in five different directions, all talking at the same time, absolute chaos, and my mom following it all. Kathy said that she was in absolute awe.

Kathy's daughter, Katy, would come over and just stare wide-eyed at the constant flurry of activities at our house. I used to babysit Katy and knew how different our house was from the one she lived in. But she used to love to come over and once I caught her and her little friends playing "Kristin, Stacey, and Kelley". Hilarious.

When I was a junior in high school Kathy's youngest sister, Lisa, who had just graduated from high school in Iowa came to live with her and we hit it off right away!! I can't tell you the fabulous time the two of us had as we ran wild together. It was awesome. I was at Kathy and Mike's house more than ever and Kathy became even more involved in my life as a result.

Kathy is not a quiet person. She is smart, loud, funny, gutsy, interesting, a little kooky, and never lacks an opinion on anything. Yes, she had a lot to say about my life and activities. At the time I thought she had TOO MUCH to say. I remember many times sitting on a bar stool in her kitchen as she lectured me and Lisa about MANY things. We've laughed together, cried together, I've been yelled at by her, and she has taught me all kinds of interesting things, and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Kathy and Mike came to visit this summer and I was so excited to see them...and surprisingly so was Reilly even though the last time Reilly saw Kathy and Mike she was just a little girl. She couldn't wait to talk to someone (non-family member) who knew me when I was exactly her age and could give her the dirt on just the "kind of teenager" I REALLY was back then. Kathy was the perfect person...and boy did she do just that!! Image shattered.

Reilly was in hog heaven hearing her stories. Reilly asked her "So was my mom always a little miss perfect?" Kathy just threw her head back and roared with laughter and said "Do you know how many times I would just look at your mom and shake my head and say to her 'Really Kristin? Really?' and to me she said, "Do you remember all the times I would tell you 'You have exactly five minutes to call your mother and tell her what is going on OR I WILL!!"  Reilly ate it up with a spoon.

Now that I am the mother of an obnoxious (I say it with love and as a kindred spirit) teenage girl I am so glad that I had people like Kathy in my life. Raising teenage girls is HARD WORK!! They are mean, they hate you, and they think you are as dumb as a stump. You need cool friends for them to confide in and who will then rat them out to you. That is the only way to survive as a mother...and as an obnoxious teen...who will one day (fingers crossed) turn out to be a pretty great person. So to Kathy...thanks for being my mother's "cool friend"...you still are!! And...to all my "cool friends"...keep up the good work ladies!! It takes a village. :)

School Has Started

Summer ended rather abruptly this year...it was so darn short!! Our summer was 100 % relaxing. No big trips, zero schedules, just pure rest, relaxation, and free time. It was as beautiful thing. It came to an abrupt end due to the fact that I was madly trying to get things ready for the Funky Junk Antique Show in Sandpoint, Idaho which you can read about here, in the midst of all the back-to-school shopping hoopla, and trying to squeeze in some fun before we were back to the regularly scheduled grind. It passed by in a blur and now we are back in the thick of it again.

This year we have:
 

...and Bryn will be in preschool again this year. It doesn't start for a few more weeks but boy is she excited to go back to school and see her teacher and all her friends again.

Bryn walking Ailey in to school. Ailey has been a little nervous about being the only one at the elementary school this year. It has always been a comfort to her knowing that her big brother was there if she needed him.

Here's Ailey feeling nervous but grimacing for the picture. Ha ha. Kameron was so nervous for middle school he kept telling me he was going to throw up...from the night before all the way to school when he was dropped off. He kept telling me he was going to throw up. Luckily he did not. But let's say his first day of school smile is a bit of a grimace too. Ha Ha. Even Reilly was nervous and told Tyler who was dropping her off that morning "Why can't you just homeschool me?!" Aaaahhh what?? That was unexpected...and short lived. Crazy kids!!

Every year when the kids go back to school Tyler and I go out for breakfast with Bryn so that she doesn't feel left out and sad. She loves it and so do we. It was a little bittersweet this year since we realized that with Bryn starting Kindergarten next year it will only be me and Tyler out for breakfast. Weird.

Bryn had a great time scarfing down a cinnamon roll the size of her face...as she kept saying "This cinnamon roll is as big as my FACE!!" and scrambled eggs and hashbrowns. She loved it!!

Yep! Pretty much as big as her face.

The kids all ended up having a GREAT DAY!! They came home excited and full of news. Kameron LOVED middle school (which was a relief.) He kept saying "It is SO MUCH MORE FUN than elementary school AND you can chew gum!! I've got to get me some gum!!" It helped that his best friend, Jonathon, is in nearly every class with Kam and has his same lunch. He also had quite a few of his friends in most all of his classes. Score. He thought that his teachers were really "cool" and he is excited about all the things they get to learn and do this year. He is in advanced classes for most of his subjects and they do get to do some really cool things. Hopefully his middle school experience will be a better than Reilly's. (We are still recovering!!)

Reilly is really happy with her classes too. She was thrilled to get my friend, Hollie's, husband as her math teacher because apparently "He is the only teacher in the whole school that teaches math the way I can understand it!!" Perfect. Reilly is in a bunch of honors classes this year as well and that should keep her very busy. I am secretly thrilled that all the Dance Team drama/demands are over and I think that she is too.

Ailey likes her new teacher and was happy as a little clam with her new class. She is thrilled to be a big 4th grader and to get to learn to play the recorder amongst other things. (Me not so much.) I'm glad that she is excited and loving school. So it was win-win-win!! They celebrated with Taco Bell Happy Hour Drinks and Nachos after school.

Now we are back in schedule city. The break was nice while it lasted. So far Reilly has early morning seminary (which I fully count as an extracurricular) and is taking piano. Kameron is playing the trumpet, hoping to make jazz band, and just started cross-country on his school team. Ailey is taking piano and ballet. Bryn is taking ballet and swimming. The days are full...and I pretty much live in my suburban...but it's nice to see these kids learning, growing, and developing their talents.

Speaking of talents...

These two girls participated in the world's cutest Primary talent show. It.Was.Adorable. I loved seeing all the kids *perform* or display their various talents. Ailey and Bryn displayed their recital pictures and costumes and then performed. Ailey played Ode to Joy on the piano while Bryn danced a GLORIOUS free-style ballet routine. Ha ha!! It was awesome.

We had a celebrity in our midst at the Funky Junk Antique Show. Viggo Mortensen was at the show, in our booth, and chatting it up with my Mom (who recognized him.) Stacey and I sadly did not. CLEARLY he did not look like the above picture in all of his Lord of the Rings glory because I'm pretty sure I would've noticed that hottness coming. My mom also neglected to even tell us this juicy tidbit until...in the words of Duck Dynasty...HE GONE! As in LONG GONE. It was tragic. A betrayal. A cross my mother will have to bear all her days. Don't EVEN get me started on the reaction of her grandchildren (my kids) who are only the biggest Lord of the Rings fans. Ever. Ever. Ever. Her response...she didn't think it was a big deal and we were busy. No.words.

I was told he was accompanying his elderly mother. In the dark recesses of my memory I do recall seeing a man about his age accompanying an elderly woman who may or may not have been Viggo Mortensen. I choose to believe it was him. Did I think for one minute "Hey! That could be Viggo Mortensen." Not remotely. What I do recall thinking when I saw the guy who may or not have been Viggo Mortensen was this..."I hope that when I am a wizened old crone like that lady that Kameron will take me to antique shows like her son is doing!!" True story. I will add to that "And buy me cotton candy...because it is DELICIOUS."

Maybe Viggo came whilest I was snarfing this. It's possible.

You might be asking yourself...How many pictures will Kristin take of herself with cotton candy this year? We are up to about six so far. It's hard to say folks...it's fair season here. There will probably be more. If Santa ever comes through with that cotton candy maker I've been asking for for years along with that hot dog roller it might be infinite.

On a much less fun note... Kameron had his kidney checked. That was QUITE a process. Unfortunately it's still not working quite like it should be. Each kidney should be doing 50% of the work and Kameron's are at 47% and 53%. It "kind of" looks like there "might be" some scarring. (exact words of the pediatric urologist) So unfortunately surgery may still be in his future. He goes back in for another check in 6 months. Damn broken arm. (They are still saying that all this kidney trouble is due to an infection he got while having surgery on his arm!!) So annoying. But...he feels fine and is doing great otherwise. So. Yay.

The kids are back in school... Bryn has yet to start preschool... and we are enjoying every last drop off this beautiful weather by being outside as much as possible!!

 

I love this weather and I love this kid!! If only it could be summer forever. I live in the WRONG STATE!!

Happy September!!

Mindless Drivel?

Mindless drivel?...Yet so entertaining!! During the school year I don't have much time to watch TV. I usually try to squeeze in my usual favorites The Middle, Modern Family, and Downton Abbey and that's about it. This summer and with it's easy free-stylin' no schedules aire has allowed me to expand my television horizons beyond So You Think You Can Dance. I share with you my current obsessions.

#1 Duck Dynasty

For months I saw this odd bunch quoted on Facebook/Pinterest etc. but never has any show had less of an appeal to me. A bunch of redneck, camo wearing, hunters? I think not. But over our family reunion at the lake and MUCH forceful persuasion by my brother Kirk (who shares my sense of humor) he assured me that I would love this show. He forced me to watch clips of it at 1am around the bonfire. He quoted it incessantly. I promised him that I would watch it and watch I did. I LOVED IT!! Who knew I had it in me? This is how far the sickness has progressed. When I watched the season premiere last week where Phil and Miss Kay renewed their vows. I CRIED... I CRIED!! Heaven help me but I love this band of oddballs and the message they put out there. My favorite person...hands down...is Phil. #2 Jase. Love them!! Jump on the Duck Dynasty Bandwagon Jack and that is from a true blue Yuppie Girl!!


#2 The Mindy Project

I watched this whole season in a two day stretch and laughed my guts out!! (The episode where her boyfriend accidentally put her jeans on had me on the floor in full on asthma attack hysteria.) I love this show and can't wait for season 2.

#3 Monarch of the Glen

I love this series so much that I give you two pictures. This was a little gem I found on Netflix. This is exactly my kind of TV show...BBC production and all...set in Scotland (watch it for the scenery alone.) It is funny and romantic and all kinds of good. Unfortunately it is also all over so I am trying to delay gratification by holding off watching the final season for a couple of weeks.

My favorite character on the show (besides Archie and Lexie...obviously) is Kilwillie played by none other than Julian Fellows the creator and writer of Downton Abbey. He is an absolute scream!! Anytime he comes on screen he steals the show. Who knew?

There you go... Do with it what you will. ;)

In Case You Were Wondering...

In case you were wondering...How did Reilly's Mini-Mission go? Fantastically. SHE LOVED IT!! I am not going to lie...I was a little concerned about what state we would find her in when we went to the stake center to attend the special fireside for the returning mini-missionaries. Tyler...returned missionary that he is...assured me that she would love it. He was right!! We found her happy, joyful, and bubbling over with excitement. I hugged her and said "So...how did it go?" She said "It was amazing!! Let's put it this way... I am counting down the days until I can turn in my papers." Wow. Wow. Wow.

Reilly was called to serve in the Post Falls, Idaho area. The mission president had pictures of and information about each of the youth that wanted to go and each individual was prayed about to figure out where would be the best place for them to serve. Reilly loved her area. She adored the sister missionaries that she served with...she loved the people she came in contact with...and her testimony grew by leaps and bounds.

One of the things I love most about Reilly is that no matter what situation she finds herself in...she jumps right in and gives it her all. She likes to say that she can make anything fun and she really can. She is never one of those kids that sits on the sidelines talking about how boring or lame something is. If she is going to participate in something she dives right in and makes it fun. She jumped right in to her mini-mission as well and gave it 100% from day one. The very first day she was talking to peopleand sharing her testimony right along with the sister missionaries. She had so many special experiences that week.

She got to teach a family with a bunch of little girls who are all going to be baptized soon. She got to meet less active families and individuals who are really struggling. She got to provide service for individuals in need. She got to be rejected. She got to be persecuted and then stood up and bore an amazing testimony to a very unhappy man who ended up letting her pray with him, shook her hand, and said how much he admired her faith. This mini-mission really put her in position to truly examine her faith...what she really believes...what she has a personal testimony of...what her faith and relationship to her Father in Heaven really means to her.

She also got to see what life is like for so many in this world. She got a first hand and up close look at poverty. She grew to love and admire individuals who the world would classify as "nobodies"...no one of importance according to the world's standards and see beautiful hearts and beautiful people. Individuals of great worth. Children of our Father in Heaven who have inherent value no matter their social status. Her heart opened wide and she was filled with so much love for all those with whom she came in contact. She was filled with compassion. That is a remarkable experience that all these mini-missionaries came away with...as they shared in their sweet testimonies. They were taken from their sheltered and selfish all-about-me teenageriness and had their hearts broken wide open and filled with love. That alone is worth it's weight in gold. Add that to the spiritual experiences of actually seeing the Holy Ghost in action, learning to pray with true purpose, gaining an even stronger testimony of who they are, and of the gospel...priceless.

Our stake sent out about 20 of these mini-missionaries and every single one of them had an amazing experience, shared incredible testimonies, and said that it had been a life changing experience for them. One of the counselors in our stake presidency who spoke at the end of the fireside said, "I am glad Reilly Johnson is on my team!!" I am glad that she is on my team as well. She is an incredible young woman and I am so blessed to be her mother.

In Case You Missed It

In Case You Missed It...

 
Which, of course you have, since I haven't been posting much. So here's a little...or a long...catch up.

Ailey's best friend, Audrey, moved to Helena, MT. Here they are at Audrey's going-away party. Ailey was sad but I think it will really kick in when school starts in September. On another note, I have been on a playdate ban. It has been wonderful. The school year is so busy with playdates, activities, obligations etc. I just haven't wanted to deal with any of it this summer. My mantra has been "You have siblings...play with them!!" It has been fabuloso. Of course...several mothers (one in particular...one of Kameron's friend's mother) are a tad bit irritated that my darling children have been unable to entertain their darling children all summer. So what. I held out from mid-June all through August 1st and then I caved. It was nice while it lasted.

Reilly tried to kill herself showing off on a scooter. This girl is very athletic and very coordinated but do not put wheels on her feet!! Case in point...major rollerblade cream out in the park (while showing off), broken arm in 6th grade at Roller Valley (while showing off), this damage on a razor scooter (while showing off). I sense a pattern. Hold onto your lunch for the next photos.

 This injury required a trip to Urgent Care to get taken care of and some serious antibiotics...just in case we hadn't already had our share of hospital fun.

Reilly eventually healed and went to Girls Camp this year as a YCL (Youth Camp Leader). She loved it. A friend of mine sent me this picture from a girls camp activity that caused me to have heart palpitations.

Yes, that little speck is her clinging to a cliff. Then she was tagged on FB in my friend Misty's photo from girls camp that let me know that she was still alive and having fun.

I've sat and watched A LOT of swimming lessons this summer. Both Ailey and Bryn are doing well. Only one near drowning of Bryn AT SWIMMING LESSONS. She shook it off pretty quickly and jumped back in. Tyler not so much.

Kameron lost his final baby tooth. Hallelujah. The tooth fairy is not my favorite person. Two more kids to go. On another note...his kidney hasn't been giving him any issues which is great. We go back in right before Labor Day to have his kidney checked out again. Hopefully everything has resolved itself and there isn't something anatomically wrong with his kidney that would require major surgery.

Finally all our years of parenting are giving us a little kick back. All the kids can do all kinds of chores...indoor and out. Pure delight. This particular day the kids washed two cars, mowed and weed whacked the yard, and weeded the garden. Finally these kids are earning their keep!! :)

 Tyler instructing them on how to do things properly. Ha ha.

Kameron slammed the bathroom door into the wall and produced this little beauty. He is definitely a preteen. He is stronger than he used to be (see above), more moody (luckily his is a silent sulk rather than a screaming rant and we are enjoying that) and the eating thing is really kicking in. He pretty much eats two full dinners every night. Wow. But due to the above damage my bathroom is getting a new paint job this weekend. Hurray. Lemonade out of lemons. We also repainted our deck for the umpteenth time. Paint oddly lasts longer than stain and we keep saying that we don't really care because how much longer are we going to be in this house anyway...we have now gone through 3 paint cycles. Oh well. It looks good now.

Bryn and Ailey have been having a great time together this summer. They play and play. Ailey took it upon herself to start up her own "Joy School" with Bryn every morning. She plans all kinds of activities and Bryn loves it. They spend hours in the backyard making "habitats" for rolly polly bugs (aka potato bugs as they were called in my day), pretending they are cheerleaders and making up cheers, and putting on countless "plays" for all of us to watch. Childhood is a beautiful thing.

Here they are reading in one of their many "forts" that they've made this summer.

Bryn playing Mommy

I brought back the playdate to help out a friend and opened the floodgates for all the kids. I guess I am lucky that my kids are highly sought after for playdates rather than the other way around.  :)

Tyler and I have tried hard this summer to plan some one-on-one activities with each of the kids and it has been really fun. Ailey wanted a mother-daughter date to get pedicures and a treat. Done!!

Tyler's company party was a hit!! More pony rides for these two. This may be Ailey's last year on the ponies. She is looking so long-legged on that thing.

All the kids are finally to the age that we can go to things and attend events...movies, ball games...it's great!!

We love going to Indians Games!!

This game was the most exciting one we have seen in 12 years...sadly the Indians lost...as usual.

These kids are getting so darn big. I remember bringing Ailey to her first Indians game at one week old. Look at her now...and check out those two? Not little kids anymore.

Reilly got her name announced during the game and won two free tickets to a future game for having the fastest pitch at the pitching booth in her age group. There was a time not so long ago that she would've wanted to go with her Daddy...now she's bringing a date.

Kameron has basically already started middle school. He goes all day. He is in a three week long Math Camp for the Advanced Math students in the morning, has lunch there, and then has Leadership camp in the afternoon. I drop him off at  8:30 and pick him up at 3pm. Hello carpool. I have not missed you. Kameron is really enjoying it all and I think it has already made a world of difference in his transition from elementary to middle school.

Reilly unbeknownst to us signed herself up to serve a mini-mission. We found out the day before she was to go. We were scrambling to rearrange things and put together some missionary appropriate clothing. She was called to serve a mini-mission in Idaho. She will live and serve with the sister missionaries for one week. She was required to bring a bike. Reilly was really excited to go. I have no idea how this whole thing will play out. She will either 100% love it or 100% hate it. There is really no middle ground with this girl. I am hoping she is loving it as I haven't received a call to come pick her up yet. Five days down and two to go. She was the only girl from our ward who signed up to go. This is the first year that girls have been able to do this. Pretty exciting. Last year was the first year that the boys from our stake did this and it went really well. I think it is a great idea for the youth so they get a real idea of what serving a mission would entail.

With both Kameron and Reilly so busy this summer I have had a bunch of time with these two cute girls!! They are both so much fun and good to take places so it has been great.

 Going out for milkshakes and fries

 Going to the movies

So that's the latest. Now it is crunch time to squeeze in all the fun we can before school starts in September.