Family Reunion

The Friday before last our family drove down to Manti with my parents to watch the Manti Temple Pageant.  We had homemade pizza at the house, and in Manti, we ate some yummy ice cream.  The girls liked the Superman ice cream they ordered.  The pageant was nice, too, but unfortunately, Matt and I came down with colds while we were in Manti, which made it more difficult for us to enjoy the experience.  On Saturday we were both beat from being sick and staying up so late in Manti.

Kirsten and Reagan with some Lamanites and pioneers

 The following Friday we left we went to Idaho for our family reunion.  The drive went smoothly, and we got to stay at a nice hotel thanks to Matt's dad and all his travel points.  I love staying at the Hilton Garden Inn when we go to Idaho.  Everything is so comfortable, especially the temperature.  I love that I can set the thermostat to 69 degrees, and it doesn't cost anymore for me to stay there than if it were set to 76 degrees.  It's not great for the environment, I suppose, but man, I feel comfortable.

Aside from the comfort of the hotel, we had a great time with Matt's family.  On Friday night we went swimming in Uncle Steve's and Aunt Heidi's pool and ate Papa Murphy's pizza.

Kirsten found this wig upstairs, and the girls got a really big kick out of it.

 The next morning we woke up and walked along the river trail next to our hotel for a bit.  The weather was surprisingly beautiful.  It was in the 70s for the first two days we were there!  Kirsten and Reagan held hands to "make it fair," meaning no one got to hold Mommy's hand except Daddy.  I thought they were adorable.

Holding hands

 After lunch we met up with Uncle Drew and Uncle Jake at the MK Nature Center in downtown Boise.  The Nature Center was really neat.  There were taxidermied animals inside, and outside we got to walk along the river.  We saw a sturgeon that was 7 feet long and weighed 2,000 pounds.

Reagan, Kirsten, Drew and Jake with a bear

Matt, Kirsten, and Reagan as owls

Reagan and Kirsten watching the fish through a panel of glass that looked into the river

That afternoon we went over to Steve and Heidi's place again.  The whole family, including aunts, uncles, cousins, second cousins, etc, was there.  I realized later that I didn't take any pictures, which makes sense because I spent most of my time swimming and playing holy board.  We had a great time seeing everyone, despite the lack of photographic evidence.

On Sunday evening we said our goodbyes to most of the extended family, but we stayed around another day, so that we could spend time with just Marc, Beth, and Matt's brothers.  On Monday morning we went to the Discovery Center and really enjoyed all of the STEM-focused exhibits.  I was able to turn on three lights using a circuit board, which was a victory for me!

Reagan and Kirsten were fascinated by centrifugal force.

Kirsten and Papa did the weather report

Reagan and Benjamin walking through a tunnel made of packing tape

Kirsten making a bubble wall

Daddy and Kirsten sending scarves through a suction tube

 Monday afternoon we went back to Steve and Heidi's place and went swimming with our smaller group.  The girls played with Benjamin and Daniel a ton.  I'm excited for them to get to play together again at Hilton Head in September.

Benjamin, Kirsten, and Reagan

 Tuesday morning we slept in and took our time getting out of the hotel.  Then we went for another walk along the river trail before we met up with Drew, Marc, Beth, Grandma Shirley, Kade, and the little boys for lunch at The Schnitzelgarten.  Kade, Matt's cousin, works at the restaurant as a cook, and yes, it is a German restaurant.  The food was very authentic and delicious.  I ate a Zigeunerschnitzel with Spaeztle, and for dessert we all shared an Apfelstrudel.  Yum!

Uncle Drew with Reagan, Daniel, and Kirsten.  He was a kid magnet.

 After lunch, we were all full.  We said our goodbyes and got in the car to drive home.

On Wednesday morning we went to Melanie's house for a brief visit.  Melanie's family is moving to Texas on Saturday, which is really sad.  It's just starting to hit Kirsten that her best friend is moving away.  We played for an hour, and Melanie gave us some pork ribs and London broil steaks from their deep freeze that wouldn't survive the trip.  If I had my choice, I'd forgo the meat and keep my friend close by, but since I don't have my choice, I'll enjoy the meat.  Fortunately, we'll see them again tomorrow.

Kirsten, Reagan, Amielee, and Sadie doing origami together

Today we went for lunch at my parents' house.  I love living close to my mom and dad.  They are such great company.  They went garage saling on Saturday and found lots of ponies, which the girls enjoyed a lot this afternoon.

Kirsten playing with ponies

Reagan playing with ponies

Well, Quiet Time is over.  So, I'm going to go wake up Reagan!  Tata for now!

Trip to Zion

I missed a week of blogging, but I guess that's because I've really been living.  The past two weeks have been full of fun and excitement.  I'm glad I take pictures and write this blog because they help me remember my life.  Otherwise it would all be a blur--a good blur, but a blur nonetheless.

Last Monday we went to the first library program of the summer.  The Springville library is so fantastic.  Every summer they do weekly programs with puppet shows and other fun presentations.  Afterward, they have crafts and snacks outside in the lawn.  The girls rode their scooters to the library, which is really impressive, especially for little Reagan.  We watched the puppet show, checked out lots of books, and decorated crowns and fire-breathing dragons.  We also checked out Oliver and Company, which I hadn't seen since I was five, and the girls enjoyed watching it last week.  The library is such a great resource for us to have in our lives.

Here are the girls wearing their princess crowns.

 On Tuesday we drove up to Holladay to visit my friend Jennie in her new home.  They just moved from West Jordan where they were living with Jennie's parents for a time.  So, it is really exciting that they will have their own place.  We played out on their patio for quite awhile.  They have a trampoline, a kiddie pool, and a slide, which kept the kiddos entertained.  After lunch we played inside, and there was hardly any fighting.  I love it when we have play dates, and the kids get along easily.  That makes it so that I can talk to my friend!

Kirsten, Reagan, and Brett playing on the trampoline.

 After going to the Rec Center on Wednesday for our usual work out, we went to the Springville Art City Days Carnival with my parents.  We ate some Carnival food for dinner and enjoyed riding the Ferris Wheel.  Reagan was so excited that she was tall enough to ride the Ferris Wheel with a "responsible adult."  We all doubted whether or not there actually was a responsible adult present, but she got to ride the ride anyway.  Kirsten was so excited to do it, too!

Waiting in line for the Ferris Wheel

Matt and Kirsten getting on the Ferris Wheel

Me and Reagan

Riding the Merry-Go-Round

Nana and Grampa enjoying the Carnival

 On Thursday morning I went with the girls to the Fire Station breakfast.  Their favorite part was finding a roly poly in the driveway.  They played with it for more than fifteen minutes before I said it was time to start getting ready for our trip to Zion that afternoon.

Intently playing with a roly poly

 When Matt got home from work around noon, we ate lunch and drove down to Zion National Park.  It's about a three hour drive.  We stayed in a cabin at Zion Lodge, which turned out to be even nicer than we were expecting.  There were two double beds, a bathroom, and air-conditioning.  What more could you ask for?

Thursday evening we hiked up to the Lower, Middle, and Upper Emerald Pools, which was about three miles round trip.  Reagan and Kirsten did a fantastic job hiking.  Matt was very good at encouraging Reagan to keep going.  I was impressed by how happy she seemed to be when she was hiking with Matt.  When she hiked with me, she dragged her feet and kept saying I was going too fast.  Obviously, we tried to have her hike with Matt as much as possible.  I guess Matt and I just have different relationships with our children.  I'm the nurturer, and she thinks I should carry her if things get tough.  Oh, how I love my little stinkers!

Matt and the girls at the Lower Emerald Pool

Me and the girls hiking up some rocks

Me and the girls at the Upper Emerald Pool

 It took the girls a long time to fall asleep that night because they were so excited to sleep in the "cabinet," which is what they kept calling the cabin.  Fortunately, they weren't too grumpy in the morning because we had a lot more exploring to do.  We hiked the Riverside Trail, which took us to the beginning of the Narrows.  No, we did not hike the Narrows (or Angel's Landing) with our children, but the trail along the Virgin River was beautiful.  We saw a bachelor herd of mule deer, another roly poly, and lots of rock squirrels.

Sitting on a huge log that had been deposited by a flash flood

Taking a rest along the trail

The girls and I put our feet in at the mouth of the Narrows.  It was cold.

After our morning hike, we ate lunch and had the girls take a nap in the cabin.  They were both pretty exhausted.  When they woke up, we all put our swim suits on and went swimming in the Virgin River next to our cabin.  This was the highlight of the trip.  The water was a pretty comfortable temperature, and there was lots of sand to play in.  I skipped rocks for awhile, and Matt and I rode the current a short way down the river.  It was a lot of fun.

The girls and Matt

The whole family

Reagan playing in the sand.

That evening we hiked Archaeology Trail, which was very short.  At the top there was the foundation of an old Pueblo.

Friday night the girls fell asleep right away, and then we woke up to do some more short hikes.  First we hiked to Weeping Rock.  It's so neat that the water comes right out of the rock instead of a river.  At the top, Reagan splashed some muddy water on Kirsten, and Kirsten had a complete meltdown.  Matt and I couldn't help but laugh when Kirsten screamed, "My beautiful pants are all muddy."  Granted, they were new-ish pants, but it was pretty funny to hear her lament the soiled beauty of her pants.  Poor girl!  It's tough when your parents can't help but laugh at your pain.

A cactus flower.  The girls loved the cacti, which was one way we motivated them to keep hiking.  We always knew there would be more.

The girls and I standing under Weeping Rock

 Then we walked up to the Court of the Patriarchs, and at the lookout point, a man was playing his recorder.  The music was very fitting.  My favorite song he played was "Simple Gifts."  The girls danced around to his music and were quite possibly his biggest fans.

The Court of the Patriarchs:  Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

 After we got back to the Lodge, it was one o'clock.  So, we decided to drive through the Zion tunnel to see what it was like, and then we went to Springdale for lunch.  We ate at Blondie's Diner, which was the same restaurant we ate at the night before my half marathon.  Matt and I had Buffalo Burgers, and the girls ate Mac and Cheese.  After lunch, our server asked us if we would like dessert.  Matt and I declined, but Reagan said, "I would like dessert, please."  Our server responded, "Tell you what, if you girls eat all of your Mac and Cheese, I'll give you some ice cream, if it's okay with your parents."  They each had one bite left, which they promptly finished.  Then she brought us all some ice cream on the house.  How nice!

As we were driving home, I noticed a sign for Historic Cove Fort, which is a Church History site that I had never heard of before.  We decided to go check it out, and boy, am I glad we did!  It was so neat.  Apparently, President Gordon B. Hinckley's grandfather Ira Hinckley was called by President Brigham Young to build a fort in the middle of Southern Utah to provide protection for travelers and facilitate communication via telegraph.  The whole family spent about twenty years there.  I was impressed by their faith and obedience.  I hope that I can express my faith in the Gospel of Christ with similar fortitude, if not in similar circumstances.
  

The girls got to sit in a covered wagon

We all played this pioneer game, but I got a picture of Matt doing it.

The girls in front of the Blacksmith's 

The inside of Cove Fort

 When we got home, the kids went straight to bed, and we woke up to a busy Sunday morning.  We all managed to get showered and off to Church on time, which was impressive.  I led the music in Primary.  Matt taught Elders' Quorum.  After Church I went Visiting Teaching and conducted choir.  Then our Home Teachers came over, and we went to dinner at my parents'.    When we got back to the house, we found Goldie, one of our chickens, walking our fence.  What a sight!  Today I have been cleaning and doing lots of laundry.  It was nice to take a break to write this blog post.

Goldie walking the fence

End of Preschool

Last Wednesday we had our friends Amielee and Sadie over to play.  The kids played in the sandbox, jumped on the trampoline, and played fetch with Porter.  It was such a beautiful morning.  Then we had a picnic in the backyard and played some more.  By the end the kids were pretty wired up.  It's good to have friends to be silly with.

Eating a picnic

On Thursday Kirsten had her last day of preschool.  They had a water party and ate pizza.  Kirsten had a great time.  I know she loved preschool, and I can tell she is a little nervous about starting kindergarten in the fall.  She has asked me a couple of times if she will like kindergarten.  Of course, I tell her that she will like it, but in my head, I think about how much I'll miss her.

I actually woke up sick on Thursday, which was a bummer because the night before I had purchased tickets to take the girls to see a play of Charlotte's Web at BYU.  So, instead of taking the girls to the play, Matt and I watch Last Man Standing on Netflix while my parents got the pleasure of taking the girls to see Charlotte's Web.  I was kind of jealous, but I was really happy that the girls got to see the play with their grandparents.  How neat that my parents live so close!  When the girls got home, I could tell that they had really enjoyed it.  They couldn't stop talking about Charlotte!

Kirsten with Teacher Lynda

Reagan wanted a picture, too.

 Friday morning I woke up feeling better, and Friday evening we walked over to my parents' house to tell them goodbye before they left for Fargo.  Then on our way home our neighbor stopped us to ask if we wanted to come to their house for a weenie roast.  We decided it would be fun and spent the evening at the Cope's house.  I pushed the girls on their tire swing and roasted them a couple of hot dogs.  They gorged themselves on chips and sugary drinks, and then they ran around playing with "those boys."  Kirsten and Reagan were by far the youngest kids there, and they were the only girls.  "Those boys" were so nice though and included them in all their games.  It was such a nice evening and everyone had such a good time that it was hard to pull ourselves away.  They girls didn't end up going to bed until ten o'clock!

On Saturday we went to the Rec Center for our usual exercise classes, and afterward we ate a picnic lunch at the park next to the Rec Center.  Then we went swimming for a couple of hours.  The pool felt great, and the kids loved the water slides.  It was fun taking them down on our laps.  They wanted to do it over and over again, which Matt and I didn't mind doing at all.

Memorial Day was pretty quiet.  Initially I wrote "relaxed," but I had to edit that because Memorial Day was not relaxed.  I used the day to get a lot done.  I properly cleaned both of our bathrooms, including mopping the floors, and I painted the trim on the back door.  I felt very accomplished.  In the evening we went to have dinner with Norma, William, and Sierra.  Apparently, Norma forgot to mention that Brian was out of town, which was kind of funny, but we were just fine without him.  The adults had a nice evening chatting while the kids played with make-believe Elves outside.

Unfortunately, this morning I woke up to a horrible surprise.  This is what Reagan's face looked like:

Her left eye was terribly swollen, droopy, and starting to bruise, and her cheeks were bright red like they'd been slapped.

I was horrified to see her face.  It looked like someone had hit her, but I knew that hadn't happened.

Fortunately, she was really happy and said it didn't hurt at all.  When I showed her her face in a mirror, she laughed really hard.  I'm glad she wasn't old enough to be concerned, though she did ask me when her face would look normal again.  She didn't have a fever or any other symptoms, but I set up a doctor's appointment the minute it turned 8:00 because I was horrified.  I mean horrified.

The doctor told us it looked like Fifth Disease, which I had never heard of before, but it is apparently quite "common."  It's also known as Slapped Cheek Disease for obvious reasons.  In the beginning it seems like a regular cold, and then a few days after a child seems better from the cold, they develop a rash, which may get worse for the next couple of days.  Apparently, the rash can last between one and three weeks, but on the bright side, by the time a child develops the rash, they are no longer contagious.

Honestly, I can't wait until my Reagan looks normal again.  I'm grateful that she's not uncomfortable, but it looks so uncomfortable I can't seem to get over it.

Kirsten's Birthday

We had such a fun time celebrating Kirsten's birthday.  On Thursday morning, Kirsten and I baked and frosted cupcakes for her to take with her to preschool that day.  She told me that everyone at preschool said the cupcakes were really yummy.  They were strawberry cupcakes with pink frosting per her request.

A few days before her birthday Kirsten got my old Babs Bunny.  She was obsessed, but now that she has all her new toys, Babs is at the bottom of the stuffed animal bin again.

The girls are looking at the fish at the Rec Center.  They love Nemo and Dory even though they've never even seen Finding Nemo.

On Saturday we had a birthday party for Kirsten at our house.  She invited a lot of her friends over.  They played, had blue cupcakes with white frosting, and opened presents.  Everyone had a great time--even Reagan who struggled a bit with watching Kirsten open a million zillion presents.  Kirsten got a Cinderella Barbie, a stuffed puppy, a Little Mermaid set, an Ariel magnetic doll, a bubble pond, Zootopia figurines, bath toys, a My Little Pony play-dough set, two more Barbies, and a Little Mermaid dress/nightgown.  She was in heaven!
 

Our friends Jennie and Sean came and brought their three kids--one of whom is the new baby on Sean's lap.

Kirsten blew out her candles with her eyes shut after she made her wish.  So, it took her a couple of tries.

Here are some of her friends, Reagan, and her cousin Sierra

Kirsten with her friend Kynslie

Kirsten with Reagan

Kirsten with Elayna

Kirsten with Brett and Amielee

Opening a present

More present opening

After the party, I cleaned up for awhile.  Reagan took a big long nap, and Kirsten and Sierra played together.  Sierra stayed with us for the weekend while my brother and sister-in-law were out of town for their anniversary.  It was fun to have her, but I think she felt a bit out of place at five-year-old's birthday party.  Later in the afternoon I went outside with them, and we played with the bubble pond that Elayna had given Kirsten.  It was a lot of fun.

Playing with the bubble pond

Saturday evening my parents watched the three girls while Matt and I went on a date.  We went to eat at a Thai restaurant here in Springville, and we each enjoyed a yummy curry.  We had intended to go shooting, but it turns out that the shooting range is closed Saturday evenings.  So, we decided to go bowling instead.  I did a pretty bad job bowling that evening, but Matt was great.  Of course, it was fun anyway.

The girls were so wound up it took them until after 10:30 to actually fall asleep Saturday night.  So, on Sunday, which was Kirsten's actual birthday, they were little monsters.  They both took really long naps Sunday afternoon, and after they woke up we went over to Nana and Grampa's house for another birthday celebration.  My mom made strawberry cake with strawberry frosting, and Kirsten said it was "disgusting."  Fortunately, my mom had five kids so she understands that they don't have manners.  Mostly, I think Kirsten had a case of "too much birthday."
 

My mom bringing out the cake

She kept blowing above the candles.

 Then we opened presents from family.  Mimzy gave her a set of princess figurines and a princess matching game.  Papa and Beth gave her a loom.  My parents gave her an Ariel nightgown and a book of princess stories.  Matt and I gave her The Peanuts Movies, the Little Mermaid dress she is wearing in most of the pictures, and the magnetic Ariel doll.  I think she made out like a bandit this birthday.

This gifts is definitely a favorite of Kirsten's, and you can tell from Sierra and Reagan's faces that it sparked some interest in them too.

Happy birthday, Kirsten!

Daddy reading Princess stories to his girls.

 Yesterday I dumped twelve 50 pound bags of sand into our sandbox, and the girls and I played for quite some time.  It's super fun, and I'm really excited to have it.