Summer Vacation

Oh what a wonderful three week break it was. The kids pretended to be pioneers in the wilderness, swam in the river, and basically needed minimal input from ME! In other words, I told them to go have fun and leave me alone. {smiley face}. I played with them some, too. Elaine was at EFY for the first week, Jeremy was at the National Scout Jamboree for the first two weeks, and Dave was working for the first two weeks. Then he hiked/trail ran 27 miles along the Teton Crest Trail in 10 hours with some other crazy people before joining us. Since Jeremy was gone, we had his cousin Bryce with us for those two weeks which was the greatest plan ever! Chelsea and her kids joined us for a week also, and Grandma and Grandpa were with us the first two weeks.

We saw bald eagles galore (4, to be exact), moose, fish, osprey, cormorants, pelicans, squirrels, chipmunks, dragonflies of myriad hues, Canadian Geese, swans, muskrats, and several other birds for which I need the handy yellow sheet from Yellowstone to remember their names.

We took several day trips to various locations including Targhee Creek, Ice Lake, Quake Lake, and Lava Hot Springs (I'll have to get pictures from grandpa). Of course we couldn't omit ice cream at the Old Faithful Inn. We didn't take the 3 hour float trip, but we took the 20 minute one several afternoons in the kayaks. Fun, fun.

We also got to spend time with Nana in Alpine where Jill got to play with her step-cousins. Mariah spoke in church for her farewell to JAPAN, which we attended and then hung out at their house for an afternoon.

One of the most fun things we did was watch the daily slideshows set to music that Grandpa put together!

I'm actually still feeling refreshed after being home for several days. There is something about the mountain air and Snake River and memories of childhood!

Prom 2013! So Fun! And she just got asked to Mormon Prom as well, so more phun photos in a phew weeks!

Paleo Lifestyle. Ugh. Elaine and I are participating in a Paleo Challenge, which basically means no dairy, grains, legumes (not even peas), sweets (not even honey), or processed foods of any kind for 6 weeks. I'm going crazy. I get full pretty quick when I eat, but then I'm starving an hour later.

Anyway, we'll see if it gets easier. I have been working out at Psychosomatic Fitness. Great name, huh? I'd like to go everyday, but it gets awkward asking my friends to babysit Jill so I can go work out. So I'm back to getting up at 4:30 to get it done. Ugh again.

So I took some pictures of the kids in their St. Patrick's Day getup. Not that we do this every year, but it worked out this year. I recently bought suits for all the boys (except Alex who is wearing a hand me down from Jeremy) and decided to commemorate it. Elaine is wearing one of Grandma Beth's sweaters. Jill didn't want to be in the picture, but finally looked up.

The following are a few pictures from our cruise on Royal Caribbean's largest vessel, the Oasis of the Seas. It was a fun ship.

And here are two photos from William's Super Bowl Game. Saints vs. Colts. He was a great little player. Two touchdowns. Alex and Ben played also, but their teams didn't make it to the Super Bowl, and I wasn't able to get any good pictures of them playing.

Ready to Run?

I'm not sure I'm ready to run on Saturday! This past Saturday I ran ten miles in a downpour (see photo) and my calves got so sore! I don't understand why the week before I ran 9 miles with no soreness afterward at all! Anyway, hopefully the soreness will abate in time. The other issue is that our household are coming down with colds. Oh well. The jacuzzi will feel good at least!

Peace on Earth

I think this is the first Christmas Eve that I won't have to stay up late into the night wrapping presents! Instead I'll stay up late into the night packing for our vacation. And finishing the laundry. And cleaning out the fridge.

Today the boys and Jill are out riding the quads with Petersons and Reeds on Reed's dirt bike trail. Much less labor intensive than driving up into the mountains to ski or something, although it has taken 2 full days to get the quads up and running. Jill is wearing a frilly tutu skirt and sandals . . . the benefits of living in Arizona at Christmastime.

Elaine is working on her Winter Break Assignments (can you believe it?!?). I finished a 4.5 run and now I'm relaxing/laundering/blogging.

I forced a Christmas Photo Session out of the kids yesterday which turned out pretty cute considering nobody wanted anything to do with it, so I'll post those pictures at the end here in case you haven't seen them yet on Facebook.

We have also done some caroling and cookie deliveries with more to do tonight. Jeremy has become an expert Ginger Crinkle baker through 5 batches of trial and error. The first batch taste great, but they weren't mixed enough so they baked in the shape of a rock, and have that texture as well. Benjamin liked the burnt ones, but I just couldn't give them out. Now he understands the fine points of "beating well", adding ingredients in the right order, and staying in the kitchen while they bake so you don't forget about them.

I think you will all agree it has been a very emotionally trying Christmas season for our nation. I have found myself tearing up frequently without really knowing the specific trigger, but I have come to a deeper understanding of "hope". Ether 12:4, "Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with a surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, ..." Also Jacob 4:4-6.

Anyway, Merry Christmas to all.

Winter Formal Princess 2012

Last Saturday was the High School's Winter Formal. Elaine went with a fun group. They ate dinner at one of the boys' houses, then danced the night away. I had run into the mother of one of her friends while picking up the boutonniere who let it slip that Elaine had won Winter Formal Princess 2012. They choose a queen and king from the senior class, then a prince and princess from each of the underclasses. So I had to keep it a secret for way too long! It was an exciting night for all of us. And no, I did not style her hair. A friend in the ward did it!