Pioneer Day

We went to Logan this past week to celebrate Pioneer Day with my family.
Thursday morning we took the kids up by my Aunt Bonnie's house to see the North Logan parade. I grew up going to this parade every year and participated off and on throughout the years in my ward or a school group. The kids enjoyed the parade, they had a plethora of candy flung their way, and had fun chatting with the family we were surrounded by. I made Kendal a pioneer bonnet for fun this year. She helped me pick out the fabric and loved wearing it. After the parade we went to my Aunt Bonnie's house and spent some time catching up. The kids played on her trampoline and enjoyed picking raspberries with Sue. Following Bonnie's we went to the community carnival down the road at the park. David took Kendal and ran around in the water that the local fire department was shooting out across the field. There were long lines to all of the activities so she picked one thing to do and then she and Peter rode a kiddie train. It was hot and nearing lunch time so we headed back to my parents. My Nana joined us for lunch.We had our traditional and super delicious baked beans and potato salad (Can't have a Loosle gathering in the summer without those two foods.) along with some yummy fruit and hot dogs. That afternoon the kids blew bubbles and played out back with my Nana. Later we went to the pool at David and Anica's apartments. Kendal was clingy in an open pool but still loved being in the water. Peter enjoyed himself, but was shivering before too long. Luckily they had a small heated pool. We ate dinner at a family favorite Fredrico's. After we put the kids to bed we enjoyed playing some games to end the evening.
Friday morning we hung out at my parents house. The kids rode bikes and we played outside. My parents and sister took Kendal to walk around the Temple and while Casey and I ran a couple of errands with Peter. We met up at the castle playground just a few blocks from the Temple for a picnic lunch and some play time. I have to say this park is one of my favorites to go to in Logan with the kids. It's amazing and so much fun. The kids had a wonderful time sliding and going around to the train, boat, climbing wall, etc. David and Anica joined us later and we enjoyed some tin foil dinners and more family time. It was a good couple of days and we had a great time (just missed seeing my brother Andy and his family though.).
Saturday morning we left Logan and headed to Raft River to the Brown reunion at the water slide. We haven't been to this reunion in years so we didn't know many people but we had fun. Kendal and Peter were so happy going up the hill and down the slide for a few hours. We ate lunch and continued on a bit till it got to hot and we were done being wet. We headed back to Casey's parents house, played, and ate dinner together.
It was another busy week filled with family and fun! Still more reunion fun next weekend before we end our summer adventures!
- As usual I forgot my Camera. Most of these are from Casey's phone with a few I emailed to myself from my Mom's camera. I didn't take any photo's at the water slide, but wish I had.

Yellowstone

 Every summer we do a weekend trip with the Darrington family. This year we chose Yellowstone. At first we were excited because we haven't been in six years and none of the kids have been. It hit us while we were planning this that we have nine kids, infant to age four going on this trip. We decided to go and enjoy chaos and all.

On Friday we left Casey's parents in our caravan of vehicles. We all met up with Nicole and her family at the West Yellowstone entrance for a picnic lunch before we all headed in. Our goal Friday was to hit everything between the West entrance and our campsite at Grant Village which is located at the bottom of Yellowstone. We stopped and went to the Fountain Paint Pots, Grand Prismatic Spring, Biscuit Basin, the Upper geyser basin, and Old Faithful. We went back and forth between using the stroller and letting Peter walk. He did great staying on the trail with us, but sometimes he would climb things or want to stay put as we walked on. Kendal liked to wander along with us, however she fell off the boardwalk a couple of times when she wasn't paying attention. Old Faithful was our last stop for the day. We got some ice cream and went to the boardwalk to wait for the eruption. The kids devoured the ice cream and were enjoying playing up and down the boardwalk. Kendal made friends with two teenagers from Kentucky. She took pictures on their phone and chatted with them while we were there. Their mother was in awe of our gaggle of kids. I'm sure we were quite the site sometimes going along trying to keep 8 toddlers in line. The kids enjoyed the sites of the day. Kendal enjoyed everything minus the smell of the stink pots. We made it to our campground in Grant Village fairly late. Luckily we were all together in a family campsite and near bathrooms (THANK'S VANESSA!). We had a yummy tin foil dinner that had been prepped the night before and Casey and I made scones to celebrate our Anniversary. Cody arrived that night with his girlfriend Aimee. To quote Kendal “She is cute and wonderful, and smaller than Cody”. I knew sleeping wouldn't be ideal on this trip. Peter went into our trip with a small cold. So he had a cough and a stuffy nose which unfortunately made his night miserable. He would wake up screaming and crying because he couldn't breath and didn't know where he was. At one point in the night he was up and screaming we heard some howling from a pack of wolves or coyotes in the distance. Peter was quiet while they were howling, but after they stopped he went back to crying. I had a freak out moment thinking crap, my son is calling to these things and they're going to come and get us. (Nothing happened though, just me and my paranoid thoughts running wild.)

Saturday we went out in our caravan of vehicles once again to explore the eastern portion of Yellowstone. We drove along the lake and stopped at the fishing bridge. We spotted a swarm of tiny fish along the banks of the lake. Kendal and Peter along with the other kids quickly took to Aimee. She became their boon companion and they loved holding her hand and going along with her throughout the day. (Thank you Aimee!) After the bridge we stopped at the Mud Volcano and then went to the Upper and Lower falls. We used the stroller less on Saturday. Peter stayed with us as long as he was holding someones hand (and it couldn't be me or Casey). After lunch we headed up to Tower falls. Saturday was the day we saw the most animals. We spotted over half a dozen Bison, quite a few elk, some jack rabbits, geese, cranes, ducks, and a few small furry animals along the mountain side. Casey spotted a bear as we rode along, but the kids were asleep so they missed it. The kids were happy when we got back to camp; they were no longer confined to car seats and they could wander around and get super dirty. We enjoyed another delicious dinner and dessert then called it a night when dusk hit. I opted to sleep in the back of our car to save everyone else from waking up multiple times thanks to Peter. Peter had a rough time getting to sleep but once he was down he was out for the whole night. Sunday morning we ate some yummy breakfast and took our time packing while the kids played and continued to cake on the dirt all around us. We visited the West Thumb Geyser Basin as our last stop in Yellowstone and then all headed out. It was day three of being stuck in a car and the kids got crabby during the car ride home.

As we're all growing in families and life it's harder to get Casey's whole family together. This was great trip and we enjoyed spending some quality time with our family!

It's great to be 8!

This week marks eight years of marriage for Casey and I. I know I've written about when we were dating, however I've never shared our wedding day.
Casey and I got engaged in March of 2006. We set our wedding date for July 18th. to accommodate two of our siblings coming home from missions and the temple being closed for summer cleaning. We were married on a Tuesday; a perfect day for us : ) The night before our wedding we spent our time at Brett and Vanessa's prepping our wedding luncheon and celebrating Casey's mom's birthday. (Happy Birthday today Cheryl! We love you!!!)
We took family and couple pictures before the ceremony on the morning of our wedding. I found a simple but beautiful dress that suited me, and Casey kindly wore a suit (I say kindly because Casey is not a suit wearing guy and it was a hot day). We were married at 11:00 a.m. in the Logan Temple by Brother Allred (my parents Stake Patriarch). Since we got ready and took pictures before the wedding we went in and waited a bit. They put Casey and I in a room together while they brought our family up. We were cute and looked into the (eternity) mirrors for about a minute, then we decided to thumb wrestle to pass the rest of our time. The ceremony was simple and sweet, and we were surrounded by our wonderful and loving family. After the ceremony we took a few more shots around the temple. One of which involved us running down the temple hill and me tripping on my sash then falling head over heels, landing in a laughing heap on the bottom. (Sadly though we don't have a picture of it because our photographer took it out : /
After the Temple we went to a luncheon at the park. Vanessa and Brett were our hero's that day. They along with some friends organized, cooked, decorated, and served us an amazing dutch oven meal. Casey and I still have fond memories of that delicious food and wonderful people we were surrounded by.
We opted out of a reception in Logan so a couple hours after the luncheon we headed to the airport on our way to a Disney Land honeymoon. I can't say our wedding day went without a hiccup. Half way to the airport I realized my wallet has been left at our new apartment. I broke down and we had to pull over and call family (Casey was probably thinking o' boy let the marriage fun begin). Luckily my brother and his wife came through and rushed my wallet down to us before our flight left.
Thanks to our fantastic families we had a great wedding day, and a wonderful reception in Raft river a couple of weeks later.
So many fond memories to look back on and ones I never want to forget.

Some thoughts / quotes I like:

- Happiness is being married to your best friend!

- A perfect marriage is just two imperfect people who refuse to give up on each other. 

- Happily ever after is not a fairy tale, it is a choice. (Fawn Weaver)

I love you Casey! Thank you for marrying me on that hot and sticky day in July eight years ago. Thank you for the life and love you give. Happy eight years, and here's to an eternity more!

This week. . .

We're taking advantage of having Casey home with us and filling our summer days up with fun and family.

We want to keep up on the things Kendal learned at her swim lessons so we went to Dirkies Lake this past Monday for Family Home Evening. Kendal showed off her skills and enjoyed crawling around on the shallow water by the beach. Peter divided his time between the water and sand play. We found a tiny fish that I scooped up in my hands so the kids could see it and touch it. (Gross, but worth it for the kids.) Towards the end of our stay Peter was shivering quite a bit, but refused to get out of the water because he was having fun. We practiced swim skills with Kendal and were trying to teach Peter to float, but he wouldn't relax. After we swam we went to Shoshone falls. The falls are at their high point for the year so it was cool. 

We have a summer fun list that we've filled our days with. Each week we make a homemade popsicle's. Our favorites so far are pineapple dole whip pops and strawberry banana pops. We also make it a point to hit the library every week for their toddler story time. Kendal loves going and Peter is starting to sit through books better (especially animal and truck / tractor books). Kendal likes to do “experiments” so I usually pull out something to make, explode, create, or discover. We try and hit the park a few times a week. It gets some much needed energy out and our local park has free school lunches for kids in the area. Casey went fishing last weekend with his brothers and this week he took Kendal along with his brother Brett and his kids David and Becca. Kendal was very happy that her pole caught a fish, and Casey got some fish on both trips.

It's “Good Neighbor Day's” in Kimberly this week. Today we went to a parade and the park for some play. The parade was decent. We were along the beginning of the parade rout so people were ready and willing to toss loads of candy our way. This was our shortest parade of the year so far and we got the most candy and at least a dozen otter pops we ended up giving to others marching along in the parade.

After the parade we went to the park in Kimberly. We saw some animals from the Heritage Center (CSI), Kendal did a coloring contest, we walked around the booths, and we enjoyed some pulled pork sandwiches for lunch. After lunch we went over and checked out the police car. The kids enjoyed climbing in and sounding the siren. We spent the rest of the time at the park watching the kids on the bouncy slide and houses. It's been a fun summer so far and our adventures aren't over yet. 

Life's moments

Casey's phone is often used as our backup camera. I don't often upload the pictures from his phone, but when I do it's fun to find some gems. Here's some of our "life's moments" captured over the past few months.

July 4th and more

On Wednesday we headed to Burly to see our friends Rhett and Aria and their girls. Rhett and Aria still live -in Washington and are visiting for a few weeks. We went over to Aria's parents home that has a pond on their property. It was wonderful to see our friends and catch up with each other. Kendal and Jenae had a blast swimming and going around in boats. They were two peas in a pod. Peter stuck by my side a lot but loved climbing into the canoes and paddle boats to play. They enjoyed being pulled around by Rhett and Casey, and even got themselves stuck a time or two in a drifted canoe. Hopefully these guys find a job closer when their done with school in a few months and we can play more often!

We were headed to Raft River for the fourth this year so instead of heading back home Wednesday night we decided to prep our kids for our upcoming Yellowstone trip by going on a camp out. We went up Heglar Canyon which is just to the east of Casey's parents home. Because we stayed longer with Rhett and Aria's then visited with Casey's parents for a few minutes we got to the campsite at 10 when it was dark. Casey and I pitched the tent by the light of our headlights, while the kids hung out in the car. Because it was so late the kids went to bed quickly. Casey had Kendal by him and I had Peter so both of us had interruptions throughout the night because both kids move a lot in their sleep. The kids slept in till 8 then we ate breakfast and packed up the tent. We were happy about how well the kids did sleeping in the tent, then we decided to go for a hike and they both had objections. Peter wanted to stay by the car for some reason and Kendal thought nature would be too scary and we had promised to go to grandma's house. We hiked anyway. We distracted Kendal by finding rocks and butterflies, and Peter did well until he saw a fellow campers dog. Peter enjoyed following butterflies but was stubborn at times when we wanted him to follow us. After our hike we got back in the car and drove through Heglar canyon to Sublette reservoir. Peter fell asleep quickly and Kendal was a chatterbox the whole time (mostly wondering why it was taking so long to get to Grandma's house).

We made it to Casey's parents and hung out for the afternoon. Casey's brother's and their families joined us Thursday night; and we ate a nice meal and roasted marshmallows after. Friday morning Brett and Sarah ran the 5k. Most of the family went over and did the one mile kids race. Casey and I had a lazy start so we stayed back and enjoyed the quiet with Peter. We headed to Rupert for the parade later that morning. The kids enjoyed the Candy, floats, tractors, and music. The adults wrangled kids, wished for some cloud cover, and enjoyed a free otter pop to cool off.

 We ate lunch back at Casey's parents and had some quite time. The weather was windy and iffy at times so we ditched going to the water slide and let the kids swim at Grandma's. They enjoyed themselves, but mostly they just ran around the house.

Later we went to the Steadman's for the fourth of July party. There was a smaller crowd this year but still a fair number of people. The community pitches in for entertainment, fireworks, and the food. To my surprise my Orchestra teacher Mr. Shaub from middle school was part of the entertainment this year. I said hello to him and we enjoyed the music he and the band played all night. The kids had a blast on the trampoline and getting Candy from pinatas and the candy cannon. While on the trampoline Peter found a "girlfriend". There was a little girl that sat next to him and wanted to hug him. He was ok with it for a minute until she got grabby then he wanted out : ) Kendal joined the pie eating contest with her cousins. They announced a toilet toss competition and David and Kendal went right up to participate. After the adults went including Casey and Brett; Casey helped David and Kendal toss a tank for the 12 and under competition. We pulled out glow sticks and attempted sparklers (too much wind to keep a match lit ), then enjoyed the fireworks. Peter was tired and grumpy but sat contently and watched the fireworks. Kendal was over the moon to be full of sweets, surrounded by cousins, and having a party. It was a happy July 4th!