Baskin Robbin's $.31 scoop day

I'm such a cheap skate! But at least there was no line! I love taking pictures of kids eating ice cream cones. Except, where's Hayden's ice cream?

Hayden's Pirate Ship

Hayden has been working hard and saving up his money to buy a pirate ship. The Playmobil ones at Toys-R-Us retail for about $90, so we chose e-bay which was a much better choice. We found a lot with the ship, another shark boat, an island, and all kinds of Peter Pan characters. I stayed up the night it closed and won it for him, keeping within his budget. About 5 days later it came in the mail. If you look out the door you can see one of Hayden's friends that lives down the street. She asked Hayden if she could play and he didn't hesitate to say "no, not now." He was too excited to get out his prize. Connor was excited too, so Hayden let him play with the island. Needless to say there have been plenty of fights since then!

Camping at Wizard Ranch

We went camping Friday night with Dave, Josie, Grace and Will at Wizard Ranch. We had a lot of fun and made some great memories. Mike and the boys set up the tent while Dave and Josie made dinner. We enjoyed eating by the fire and having some adult conversation while the kids ran around. Josie brought coconut marshmallows to roast and pinwheels for s'mores, they were SOOO GOOD! They tasted like the Girl Scout Samoa cookies.

It started storming about 10 o'clock, but for a while we thought it would pass us. A few minutes later we were scurrying to get everything into the cabin. Serena, Connor and I slept in the cabin, while Mike and Hayden ruffed it in the tent. Turned out that was the only storm all night. And it stayed fairly warm through the night. The Christensen's slept in their hippie bus. There was a pond near our campsite which the kids just loved. Hayden caught 77 tadpoles. Dave got a hold of a frog to show the kids-he was trying to get Hayden to kiss it. Hayden and Grace play well together but Connor and Will have a love-hate relationship right now. They were our entertainment. They would get in each other's faces and throw stuff at each other, and then they would make each other laugh. I love this picture I love this picture too. It reminds me of an Impressionist oil painting of a woman in a meadow deep in thought. But wait, is she on her cell phone?! The past meets the 21st century! Hayden was playing in the pond and fell in. He wasn't very happy about it. He lost his flip flops in the mud, but after a few minutes they floated to the surface. Look down and to the right of Hayden. This is Will. He will get his first haircut next month when he turns 2. He will look so different! I was bummed I didn't get a good colse-up picture of Grace. But she's a cutie with those blonde curly locks! Saturday we went for a walk and followed a stream. At one point the bridge went over the stream, Dave thought it would be fun to strip Will down to his birthday suit and splash him in the water. He loved it so much hisa sister wanted in on the action. Needless to say I am not providing any pictures of that as I would probably get kicked off my blog (right Amber!).

After we left camp we went for a drive and near Sam Lewis state park. Nearby is a straw bail house that also has a green roof on it. It was beautiful! Dave and Josi want to build a straw bail house and I want a green roof!

Yard Sale

Despite being sick these last 5 days, we managed to get everything together for a yard sale on Sat. The weather was perfect and we weren't sure when we would get a chance to do it again, so we bit the bullet. It felt so good to sell stuff that we don't use, and we even sold some junk! We didn't get rid of everything like I had hoped, but we have more space and more money for other things we need.

Connor had fun! He was playing hide and seek in the cabinet. Unfortunetely we couldn't get rid of the cabinet.

Hayden stayed with me throughout the whole sale and helped me. Even when there was noone around and his friends were playing, he wanted to stay and help. So we gave him $5 for being so responsible. He is going to use that money along with other money he has been saving up for a pirate ship-probably Peter Pan. We have a bid on EBay right now that ends tomorrow night. I hope he gets it. He's been waiting so long! I'll keep you posted on that!

The Training is finished

I should have updated my blog when it first happened, but I guess I wanted to make sure that it was working first. Connor has been fully potty trained for over three weeks now, including nap and bedtime. No more Pull-Ups! Shortly after Serena was born I realized I didn't like two kids in diapers, but I had no idea that Connor was going to be so good to me! I can't believe how easy it was! I thought potty training was the worst thing in the world before Connor! Especially because he can be so stubborn and independent sometimes. But he surprised us all. Way to go my boy!

Great Friends

We have so many sweet and thoughtful friends, sometimes I wonder if I deserve them! Yesterday my Mike mentioned to Mike Ashton that our mower wasn't working and that our grass was getting taller than Connor. After work, Mike Ashton shows up on our doorstep and says, "Ashton Lawn Care at your service." He insisted on mowing our grass! Thanks Mike, we owe you a lot more than ice cream!

So last night I mentioned our mower problem to Josi. Tonight after I put the two younger kids to bed, they show up to see if they can fix it! Well, by the time he was done, Dave said, "You can buy a used one for about $35." I guess if Dave says that, it's not worth trying to fix!

Both of these families are threatening to move out of state on us, but we really don't want them to go. I'm not so good with change. My Mike and Mike Ashton have been running together since they moved here about 5 years ago. That's a tradition we just don't want to break!

At least I still have my Jamie! (and family!) I feel bad for Jamie because I know how much she would love to live near her family, but thinking only of myself, I'm glad she is here! She had me and the kids over this past weekend to stay over Fri. night and all day Sat. while our husbands were up in NY at a race. Not only was she a great hostess for us, but kept a smile on her face the whole time with little sleep and being 18 weeks pregnant!

Forever Dishes

Sometimes I feel like my life revolves around dishes...and kids of course! But tonight is the first night this week I can go to bed with a sense of accomplishment, simply because the dishes are done! And when I don't get them done, I have failed for the day! I've been frustrated about being behind in housework, but because the weather has been so nice this week, the kids andI have spent lots of time outside. So I have to keep reminding myself that it's okay, as long as I am spending quality time with my kids, it will all work out.

Last night was book club and we talked about a book that was a compilation of letters written by Marjorie Hinckley, wife of the prophet. The letters displayed her everyday life, which at times are the same things that I go through. The book made me realize that it's okay to record everyday life, because one day I will be looking back on these days and wondering where they went. And I will be grateful for the little details that I recorded. I can only hope that they will be interesting for my kids and grandkids as well.