Cascadia

Before school started we wanted to do a couple more little day trips. Some ward friends were going to Cascadia so we tagged along. The perfect day trip to a state park with water and friends.

Mackayla sat and ate a pear while we got ready. She eats Everything except the stem:)

 We took a short walk down to the river. 

It's shallow enough to sit a baby in and deep enough to jump in. Speaking of - this is me:

 Maybe only my family can appreciate what that took for me to do. This is river water; COLD river water. I barely even get in Lake Powell water. I didn't know my picture was being taken right then so I laughed because I'm talking myself into it here:

 They even blew up a raft. Macey was actually terrified of it though:)

 I love the moss covered rocks.

 The kids made something...but too much time has passed and I forgot what. They wanted me to take their picture by it. There you go kids. I think it was an airport?

  Fun day! Our walk back to the car:

Even with three kids, it was pretty relaxing and perfect weather. This might have to be one we do again with Ben!

The Ironies of Babysitting and Living

We were going to go a on REAL date tonight.

 Mackayla has only been babysat a couple times by her grandmas and a couple times by Ben:) We've never paid a teenager to babysit our kids. So this was big! I feel unfairly judged about this even though I shouldn't care- but moving around, being (past) students and having a busy husband makes it difficult. Who would I even go on a date with if I got a babysitter:)? Actually the irony is that Ben put Mackayla to sleep for the first time the other night (like a pro I should add) when this happened:

I went to a girls' craft night. Grabbed some diapers on the way home and threw my wallet in the front seat. Clumsily carried my stuff in. Not my wallet. At 5 am our car alarm went off. I grabbed the keys and went to turn it off. Ben's keyless entry battery is dead so I would have to go unlock it. Just as I reached the front door it turned off. I went back to bed. Ben went to go to work and came back in our house at 7:30 saying his window had been smashed in. Like smashed to smitherenes. Later we realized my wallet was in there with our gift certificate to the restaurant we were going on a date to. I spent the afternoon cleaning up little glass shards off our driveway so Macey could stop getting them stuck in her feet.
Mackayla had been sick. She got a fever, it's getting worse. Still debating the doctor. Cody has a cold. Actually, I was going to run a 5k race this morning (I was going to push her and let the kids play at the playground because they had babysitting) but I couldn't justify getting Mackayla up and running in the cold with her.
But let's look at the bright side. I didn't go outside and get mortally wounded by someone who really wanted my olive green wallet with my library card and cancelled credit cards.
But they got our date money and science museum pass! Arggg!
Well, the other irony is that we lived in a dangerous neighborhood for a year, next to a drug addict and the only interaction we had with them was when they helped me with my car and saved us from imminent death by fire in our house. Yes he smashed up his car, but it was HIS. We were perfectly safe. Then we moved to a picture perfect neighborhood with beautiful houses and manicured lawns in a cute little town and it turns out to be more dangerous. I guess looks can be deceiving. Good to know.

Kindergarten - One of the Firsts

First Smile.

First Steps.

First Words.

First Day of School.

All big events in a little life.

Cody was ready early and relaxed for a minute,

before we took him to school. 

I asked him to pose with his back pack.

Then he wanted one with how he would actually wear his back pack.

I went grocery shopping. It was easier:) if only because we didn't have the huge bus cart. (but seriously, grocery shopping is never fun.) We had just enough time to get there and back before we picked him up. Kindergarten for Cody is half day. It seems like that is almost rare anymore. I'm so glad. I really feel like that is because this is my first child going to school and I don't want to let him grow up so fast, but I also think he IS still little. Half day is perfect for him and me.

We picked him up and got a short report of how it was. Pretty fun. But he was a little irritable. I was getting frustrated with his rudeness at lunch and almost got after him then reminded myself that this was a big day for him. So I asked him to come sit in my lap. I hugged him for a while and reminded him all new things are fun and kind of scary too.

He was so happy after that. He told me some cool things he did that day. Then that night he gave Ben the full report. I don't know if that hug was for him or me, but it made us both feel better.

So excited for this year! I kinda think Cody's excited to learn to READ about all the million things he's so interested in...space, animals, science experiments, bugs, reptiles, what's the biggest and fastest, planes, machines, ships, cars, inventions...

32 Reasons

Happy Birthday Ben! When he woke up Cody told him he looked a little taller. We really are getting quite old according to Cody, since a month or so ago when we were talking about getting older he said, "Whoa, I hope I turn 32 before I die."

Ben has finally reached that milestone and I'm relieved to say he is not dead.:)

I searched through our pictures to find some of Ben. He doesn't hate his picture being taken, but he does not jump to have it taken either.

We got family pictures taken yesterday and he obliged:)

Some of these are old, but good memories.

Here's 32 of the Reasons we Love Ben

32. He does the dishes.

Now he knows that dish soap and dishwasher soap are different...

31. He loves to wrestle. ~Cody

30. He fixes hurt and sick horses. ~Macey

29. He throws all the stuff that we want away. (Disclaimer: He just likes things clean. Cody loves making "projects" out of garbage.) ~Cody

28. He cleans up whenever the house is a mess. He is cleaner than me...my standards lower with each child.

27. He fights swords with us. ~Cody

26. He rides bikes with us. ~Cody and Macey

25. We love when he comes home from work. ~Cody

24. He loves me. ~Cody

23. He loves me. ~Macey

22. He loves Mackayla.

 

 21. He's a hard worker. 

20. He's a cowboy at heart.

19. ...even though we don't live on a ranch in the west.

 18. Animals love him.

 17. He loves movies. 

Like father, like son.

(This is Cody posing like Ben:))

16. He's a very patient dad. Seriously. He never loses his patience with them. Such a great example.

15. He loves to play with his kids.

 14. He sacrifices for his family. 

When we were moving up to vet school he sold his childhood horse Blaze.

Not a pony...this picture just reminded me of that...

 

 13. He loves fishing.

 12. He shares:) The blanket pictured below was his favorite blanket as a child. Now it's Cody's favorite blanket. He cannot sleep without it at night. Ben occasionally borrows it:)

11. He is a morning person. He would get up at 4 am to study rather than stay up late. Now he prefers to go to bed relatively early and get up early.

10. He exercises each morning, even if it's just push ups and sit ups.

9. Speaking of the mornings, he has a set morning routine that cannot be rushed and is never different - exercise, shower, get ready, breakfast, brush his teeth.

8. He's dedicated.

7. He loves music. country.

6. He loves me. 

(Even when I'm big and pregnant like below, thankgoodness I'm currently not):

5. He's good lookin

4. He will not like this blog post. Not his style. Love you honey.:)

3. "If you're going to do something, do your best." Definitely how he operates.

2. In all the years I've known him, he has never said anything negative about anyone important to him.

1. He loves doing things with our family.

A Little of This and That

Wouldn't it be cool to have all your family-everyone-with you at the same time? Someone mentioned that in their testimony at church. Then she said that's one of the reasons we will love heaven - we will all be together. 

I was going to drive to Utah this week. For swiss days. But then I realized my mom and Ben's parents would be gone. 

And that's actually the reason I would drive 14 hours-to see family. 

So I didn't go.

But I've been missing friends and family.

So that was a nice thought.

Instead, while Ben was at work we went to a couple garage sales. The kids actually like it (we've been once before and they got a little toy for a nickel.)

On our way out of one I saw this enormous pad of paper in recycling and I decided we would recycle it in our own home. 

 It was a good idea.

 We went to a children's museum in Salem the other day. It's actually three large houses made into a museum with a large play area outside. 

The kids did the shopping for once.

 They had a cute cashier.

 Macey is not actually posing by clinging to the chair side. She is actually clinging to it from sheer terror. And smiling. This picture just explains her so well. I love you macey.

 

 Standing!

 This cute boy helped the kids play the giant game of chess. he explained all the moves to them.

 I really don't know why I took this picture. But I would go back to this place simply for their bathrooms. All children's places should invest in a child size toilet. I loved the ease not having to hold Mackayla off the gross floor while simultaneously pulling down Macey's pants who is inevitably dancing. Then trying to hold her and wipe with one hand and not kick Macey's head with Mackayla's legs. Yes I could let Macey wipe but then she would grab the toilet to balance and it grosses me out. Not to mention the size of a stall is not large enough to hold my purse and baby at the same time.

They even had a kid size sink. once again, loved it.

 Mackayla loved this:

 Not this:

 The kids loved the bubbles:

 We went for a little historical/culture at our state's capital:

 with the huge vaulted ceiling:

 I tried to recreate the bubbles with a giant bubble recipe off pinterest and it worked pretty well.