Quick Update

The past few weeks have been pretty busy.  I've canned peaches and tomatoes, started new sewing projects, we replaced windows so I painted the new sashings, I'm working on restoring a wooden chest and getting ready to paint our family room.  In addition to that, Hannah started 2nd grade, Jonathan had a birthday and I took some of my class from church to see the historical sites in Kirtland, Ohio.  Hyrum went to California for work and took a couple of extra days to hike the highest point in Nevada with his brother.  The past month has been busy and full of good things as we tried to take in the last few days of summer.  Here are a few pictures to illustrate. 

My primary class outside the John Johnson Home in Hiram, Ohio.  This is one of my favorite Church History Sites in the Kirtland area. 

I'm peeling peaches for canning.  Hyrum was in-charge of the syrup and the pressure cooker. 

Hyrum in Yosemite. 

Hyrum at the top of Boundary Peak. 

Hannah's first day of school.

Happy Birthday, Jonathan.

Birthday, Brownie Ice Cream Sundaes.

Opening 5 presents for his magical birthday.

8 Years

Hyrum and I have been married for 8 years.  I think I can safely say that we love each other more now than we we did when we first got married.  We aren't perfect but we are learning how to work together and each day I think we get a little closer to that goal.  I am grateful for Hyrum and his patience with me and my faults.  He's a good man and I'm glad we get to walk this journey together and hopefully continue into eternity.

We're not real big on celebrations but we do try and go out occasionally.  This year I decided I really wanted to go out on a "real" date for our anniversary.   I had a church meeting on our actual anniversary so we decided to go out a few nights earlier.  I made dinner reservations and made plans.

We ended up riding the Duquene Incline.  It was fun.  The ride up and down is really short but we walked through the engine room which Hyrum really enjoyed.  He like seeing how things like that work.  One the neat things is that because of the way it's built it is quite automated even though there is no digital circuitry.  I often forget just how people use to do things.  I think our ancestors were smarter than we give them credit for.  Mechanics can do an awful lot even without a computer attached to it.

After our ride up we had dinner at the top of the hill at the Coal Hill Steakhouse.  We weren't very impressed by the food though the view of the city was nice from the balcony.  It was nice to have dinner together without begging someone to sit down or hurry and just eat.

It was a nice way to commemorate the beginning of our family, 8 years ago.  I'm looking forward to the future as we watch the kids grow and as Hyrum and I learn to work together even more and follow some of our dreams.  One of our family mottoes is "Adventure is Out There."  It truly is and I'm excited to find it with Hyrum by my side.

Science

If you know Hyrum, you know he's a nerd, in the best sense.  If you don't know him, well, take my word for it, he's a nerd.  He loves to share this nerdiness with our children and they just eat it up.  They love science and anything that make a loud noise as long as someone can explain it to them.  

The crew, watching and waiting.

A while back Hyrum bought a book called, "Snip, Burn, Solder and Shred: Seriously Geeky stuff to Make with your Kids".  They had pop bottle rockets as one of the projects and he decided this was a project to do.  We drank the soda, empty an oatmeal canister, begged a few wine corks, thanked the bike, who's tire recently went flat so we could salvage the valve and with a couple other purchases we had our pop bottle rocket parts.

Filling it with fuel (water).

 After Hyrum's week in Ireland and a 70 hour work week, he took the day off Monday and spent a couple hours assembling the rocket piece with the kids and then setting them off.  The kids next door joined the fun and for about an hour they tested different ways of filling the bottle to see just how much water was optimal for the highest farthest flight.  It was a fun sight.  They kids have used it everyday since and totally love it.

I love Jonathan's look of anticipation here.

Birthday Season is Upon Us

Hannah gets to kick off birthday season at our house.  This year she enjoyed her day.  It was her magical birthday so she got the same number of presents as the date of her birth.  She opened a few in the morning and then finished up in the evening. One of her presents was a denim skirt, recycled from a pair of Hyrum's old jeans.  It was so easy and I am so proud of it.  She's worn it everyday since her birthday and loves it.  She made my day.

 

We had friends over for a waffle lunch and then had tacos for her birthday dinner and cookie dough ice cream cake for dessert.  It was a low key day with just enough fun for her to enjoy it but for me not to be overwhelmed. 

We are so glad to have Hannah in our family.  She is a great big sister and a wonderful helper.  She is a great reader and learn quickly once she gets going.  Hannah is sweet and sensitive but tougher in more ways than I give her credit for.  I look forward with great anticipation of the woman she will become.  I am glad I have been blessed with an opportunity to raise this little angel. 

Northward ho . . .

After Hyrum's family left, he decided to leave and head to Ireland for work.  Since school's out we headed to my parents' house.  It was kind of nice to be there for more than two or three nights.  We got 8 whole days. 

Soon after we got there Jonathan tackled Spencer with pillows.  Whenever one fell on the floor Spencer flopped right on top of it.  He thought they were pretty comfy.

We worked in the gardening.  Everyday we picked blueberries and raspberries.  The blueberries were going crazy.  We would fill 1-2 2 quart bowls everyday.  It was crazy.  I almost wish I liked blueberries because there were so many.  We picked beans twice so my mom let me can those and bring them home.  We also picked up some local cucumbers and made pickles.  They are so good.  I canned apricot syrup as well.  I love the summer time here.  Fresh produce and a few crazy months of trying to get everything canned before the season is over. 

We canned 26 jars of pickles one day.  We smelled like garlic and vinegar the next.

We also got to play a little bit.  I visited a couple friends from my high school days.  One of them had just had twins, so precious.  Another was one of my best friends and a roommate in college.  It was fun to talk to her and spend a little more time getting to know her husband. 

Just a comfy spot to read a book.  Like I said, a true vacation.

We went to the beach and though it was a little cool for swimming, it was a beautiful day and the kids enjoyed the "sandbox" as Charlotte called it.  We go up to Grandma's house without getting ice cream cones and sweet corn.  It was wonderful.  The kids also made a new friend while we were there.  One of my mom's friends had a granddaughter visiting.  She and my kids enjoyed playing together.  They made quite the bunch. 

Charlotte loves the sand.

We relaxed, played, worked and just generally enjoyed taking a break and being with family.  It was a good vacation, a real vacation. 

The kids and their new friend.  They were covered with chalk.  I hope her parents still like me!

The kids make chalk paint.  They think it's hilarious.  I hate trying to get all the blue tint off their faces. 

Digging a tench.

Spencer just wandered.  He'd find a shovel and just sit right down and dig for a while.  He was happy just to be outside in the sand.

Filling buckets and splashing in the lake.

The view across the lake from the beach.  It was a really nice day.

The kids enjoyed their corn out by the fire pit.  They followed it down with some s'mores.

We had to have our girl's night.  Polka dots ruled this time.  Next time I want to try chevron stripes.