Summer Adventures Continue...

Lake Blaine in the evening

Camp on the Tramp

Hanging by the Pool at Cottonwood Heights

Ah, summer!!!

First of all, we had great news this morning, as my brother, Jerry, was released from the hospital after several heart tests, including a heart cath. The heart structure and arteries are fine. After a tilt-table test, he was officially diagnosed with neurogenic cardiac syncope, which can be treated with medication. Thanks to all who have been sending their prayers and good wishes.
We have had a great start to our summer. After our trip to Oakland, we came back to some rainy days in Utah. It has been more humid here this year than ever! My flip-flop wearing feet aren't even cracking yet. We had record rainfall in June. My flowers are happy!
It warmed up enough for us to spend some fun days at the pool at Cottonwood Heights. It has a couple waterslides, diving boards, and 3 diving platforms. We have been having a blast there!
The kids have been spending almost every night sleeping out back in the tent on the trampoline. It is pretty funny because we can hear them talking and listening to music before they drift off to sleep under the stars. I love that they are sleeping until 8AM and that the mornings move pretty slowly.
We are excited for our trip to Montana. The kids and I are leaving on Monday to head to Bigfork and Lake Blaine. They look forward to this trip more than Christmas. It is magical for all of us.

The Best Daddy Ever!

Cutting Christmas trees in 2004

On our way to get the tree 2003

Doing the tango with Morgan 2009

Leaping Leaners & Low Tops Event with Cole 2009

Our Daddy is remarkable! He claims that he had no idea about being a "daddy", even when I was pregnant with the kids, but once they were born, it all made sense. From the time they were babies and he loved having them rest on his chest, to teaching them things as they grew, to being silly with them around the house, to taking care of us by working so hard at his job, and taking us on vacations so we can see this big world... he has been amazing.

I interviewed Cole and Morgan to get their thoughts on Rich. Morgan said, "Dad is like a superhero, because he helps me a lot and I love him". Cole said, "I can always count on Dad to be there for me, to help me, and to take me to a lot of fun places to do fun things. He is the best!"

We can all agree, Dad deserves the very best Father's Day!

Food Fight!

Cleaning your house while your kids are still growing up is like shoveling the walk before it stops snowing. ~Phyllis Diller

This is one of the hardest things for me to cope with as a Mom. I always want my house to be clean and tidy, but children certainly make this situation complicated. Today, we went through Morgan's room. She was happy to get rid of some of her "too small" clothes and give them to a friend of ours, but the little "treasures" were very hard to part with. I swear, the girl saves EVERYTHING, from McDonald's toys to a little tiny scrap of paper. Her paper fetish leads Rich to believe that trees will one day haunt her. Anyway, we managed to get through most of her room before it was time to go to the dentist this afternoon.

Both kids had great checkups- no cavities!!! I love sealants!!! Cole got his last baby tooth pulled, as it was refusing to come out... soon he will need braces. The last baby tooth... awwww.

We came home and agreed that we would have a planned "food fight" during dinner this evening. We set up the old patio set in the part of the yard that isn't finished. Spaghetti and FUN were on the menu. We ate most of our dinner before the noodles were flinging across the table. It was so much fun to just be silly and not worry about the mess! The kids had a blast, and so did Rich and I. The dogs were more than happy to clean up after us! How fun it is to just be a kid and play... even now!

A trip to see Uncle Greg & Uncle David

Rice-a-Roni- the San Francisco Treat!

Morgan and the "Dangerous Dog"

Aboard the "Duck" with Uncle Greg

In the buff on Baker Beach

Uncle David & Duncan with the kids

The kids and I went to see Greg, David, & Duncan in Oakland at the beginning of this week. We had an awesome time... a good combination of relaxing, sight-seeing, and a little drama. We started off the trip with some long walks around the neighborhood, and a walk to the theater to see "UP"... an amazing movie. The kids made lemonade with lemons from the lemon tree in the beautiful backyard-- how cool is that?

On Tuesday, we ventured to the city for a Duck Tour aboard a WWII amphibious landing craft that took us all over SF and then into the Bay. It was a very cool way to see the sights-- the kids even got to drive the duck when it was in the Bay! We had a bite to eat at In n' Out, then went to the beach. We thought the kids would think it was too cold to swim-- outside temp was in the low 60's. This didn't seem to deter them... and they rode home with no clothes on except the grown ups' sweatshirts! Our evening meal had a splash of excitement when Morgan fell over backwards on her chair and nearly impaled herself with the tail of a dog statue shown above. You can barely see her band-aid in the picture. After consulting with the neighborhood gynecologist, we decided she did not need stitches. She is healing up nicely. I think it was the ice cream from Fenton's that Uncle David treated us to that helped the healing.

Our last day, the kids and I walked to a park about a mile from Greg & David's called "Fairyland". It was pretty fun, even though it was a little "young" for my kiddos. The kids loved walking wherever we went and spent plenty of time critiquing the neighbors' lawns and homes as we walked by. It was pretty humorous. We had so much fun playing with Duncan and laughing with the boys. My cheeks hurt when it was time to come home. Thank you Greg & David for a wonderful time!

Hill AFB Air Show

Whew, summer break is here! The kids were thrilled to finish up school on June 5. They both had amazing report cards- we are so proud of them. So, summer has begun, except Mother Nature did not get the memo. We went to the air show on June 6, and it has been raining here since then...like Seattle, or something. The lightning and thunder has been amazing and the mountains are so green!

The air show was fun and I think we all loved the F16's the most. It gave me goose bumps to watch it fly over. We watched several stunt planes, too, along with many other military aircraft. The people-watching was spectacular as well, as I wondered, "why would anyone wear a tube top to an air show?".

A patriotic moment...

A KC-135 Tanker and four F-16 fighter jets buzzed around the Salt Lake Valley at low altitude in formation as part of the Air Force Week festivities. These are pictures Rich took from our front porch. They must have made 10 or more passes by our house-- it is hard not to feel patriotic when you witness those planes flying!

School Year is almost over!!!

I am soon going to have a 3rd and 6th grader in my presence! It's hard to believe that the school year is almost over-- they are out on Friday. I think we can all agree that we're ready to have a fun and relaxing summer with no "schedule". I love summer--the late evenings playing in the yard or in the park, and sleeping just a little later. Rich's (& Morgan's) soccer team, the Pink Panthers, played their last game last night. They got to play "under the lights", which was fun for them. Luckily, the thunder and lightning held off until the game was through. Rich has decided he would love to coach again next year... I am proud of him and Morgan. They had a great season!

Our highlights of this week were a horseback ride for Morgan, visiting with friends, winding down the school work, watching jets fly over our house for Air Force week, finishing soccer, and getting a new driveway and back patio. Now, we can finally finish the landscaping in the backyard... and the snowblower won't be throwing rocks this winter! Enjoy the photos!!! Next week: Cole, Morgan, and I are flying to Oakland to see Greg, David, and Duncan!!!