JULY 2008 - A Wyoming Adventure...part 1

After visiting Idaho, we met up with Brian and his parents and headed to Jackson, WY. We stayed in a condo at Teton Village which is near Jackson. Brian's brother Mike was there with his family, and his brother Adam came, too. We loved the crisp morning air and the feel of the mountains around us. Every morning we went for a walk which was a nice start to our day. We did a variety of activities which included:

A Picnic and swim (not me) in the icy waters of String Lake

I just love this picture because it is so typical of motherhood! Here's Liz with twins (tanner and reid) in the stroller loaded with innertubes, floaties, and everything else!

The kids took turns stacking the innertubes and standing inside. It was so fun for them, especially when Emma lost her balance!

Right: The kids with their cousin Andrew

Left: The boys minus Will who was feeling camera shy. Spencer, Brian, Adam, Andrew, Mike, and Zach

The next day we went on the Alpine Slide and mini-golfing.

Brian

Cami

Teresa

Ralph

Liz and Andrew

Adam

July 2008 - Idaho, the great getaway

We arrived in Idaho on a Monday and there was non-stop action during our week there. Brian had gone back to Texas, but my brother Paul came to Idaho with us. We really enjoyed spending more time with him. We don't get to see him enough, so it was great for the kids to get to know him better. Here are some things we never miss out on when we go to Idaho:

Swimming in the little poolJumping on the trampoline with the sprinklerVisiting Jenson's Grove LakeVisiting Great-Grandma & Grandpa Jacobson's Farm

A visit to the local pool

And a trip to the Tautphaus Park Zoo in Idaho Falls

Wow! What a week. Thanks mom and dad for showing us a fun time. We were also able to visit my Grandma and Grandpa Herbst which is always a treat. I must have forgotten to take my camera because I don't have any pictures of the visit. It was great catching up with them and it always makes me a little sad that we live so far away from our families. I wish we could see you more. And a BIG thanks to Paul who helped get Zach to bed every night because Zach discovered how to climb out of the crib on this trip! It made bedtime rather difficult, and Paul rocked him for hours! Thanks for everything. We'll be back next year.

JULY 2008 - A "Bang" in Utah

Boys and Dads playing football

Zach and Morgan enjoying their icecream



Emma, Nina, and Lily

I'm going to have to divide July. This was our month of travel. We went to Utah, then Idaho, then Wyoming for our summer vacation. It was a lot of fun, and you'll see why. We arrived in Utah on the 4th of July (we stopped in Evanston, WY to pick up some awesome fireworks) and headed to our friends' the Pettits. The LeeMasters were there, too and it was a great time for all of us to be together again. It sure brought back old memories while we created new ones.

After Fireworks, we headed back to Bountiful to stay in the Brian's parent empty house, and met up with my brother Paul, and my sister Merri and her family in Lehi and spent our Sunday with them before Brian had to head back to Texas.

up- Playing in the park at Bountiful

below-Ryne, Ethan, Spencer and Emma

Paul and Zach take a snooze on the couch

Will fell asleep with the popcorn bowl, but he was manipulated by cousins as they put his hand in the bowl, and popcorn in his mouth!

Paul plays whack-a-mole with Will and Zach

Playing Rock Band!!

JUNE 2008 - a visit, some fun, and a new TV

June begins with a visit from my brother Mark and his wife Kyra! The recently moved to Houston, so it's nice to have family close again. We had a great time with them. Thanks for coming!

Spencer played baseball, Will took swimming lessons, the girls played and watched TV, and Zach just copied what everyone else was doing.

Brian took the young men on a high adventure trip to south Texas and they played on the beach for a few days. He had a great time body surfing, crabbing, feeding the gulls, kite flying, and cooking out.

June was also Father's Day. We usually don't get big gifts for father's day, but Brian has wanted a bigger TV for a long time, so we spent some time looking and finally found what we like. We also found a nice cabinet for it to go in and it totally changed the look in our family room. Here's a rough version (picture taken by kids).

May 2008 - A weekend to remember

How could I have forgotten this?! In the middle of May, my good friend Carol flew in from Utah, my good friend Camden, and I all got together for a girls weekend!!! It was wonderful! This is something that I have NEVER done. That's right. I have NEVER left Brian in charge of ALL our children for any length of time (overnight or otherwise). I'm not sure how this has happened. Brian and I have taken trips together away from the kids, and he's been away from home his own share of the time, but for some reason, I have never gotten away. This was a much needed, much deserved break for me. I was so ready to go, that I'm afraid I was not empathetic to Brian's situation. I didn't prepare any meals, play dates, schedules, or movies, and I was even gone Sunday morning. I was so excited for Brian to experience it all! (He did take them to IHop for breakfast and had the entire restaurant looking in their direction as Zach did his shrill squeal as Will took his coloring page or something like that.) I could only laugh and smile and I was so glad he was having this experience. Anyway, I'm getting away from myself. I had a wonderful weekend talking with my friends, getting pedicures, shopping, eating, and just chatting. Just thinking about it makes me want to do it again! Thanks girls, and Thanks Brian. I really needed that!

May 2008 - a trip, an outing, and a race at home...

May took us to sunny California to a Stanford GSB reunion. We had a great time visiting with old friends and driving by our old apartment. We attended most of the activities and even walked the "dish".

While we were gone, Liz and Calvin came to take care of the kids. I'm sure it was over-whelming, but Liz did a great job and they managed to have some fun. Before Liz left, Brian had to buy her a Sheridans for winning the family March Madness tournament. Hey- better late than never (which it usually is)!

I had to inlude this picture. This is so typial of Will's handiwork whether the counter is clean or not. But because it was especially clean, I think he was inspired to go overboard! It turned out hat he had help from Emma, but they cleaned out his entire box of cars and lined them up. If you look closely, you can see some cars that have drivers (little pet shop animals), or cars that are giving piggy-back rides for smaller cars. It was too funny to come down in the morning and see this.

Here's a glimpse of Zach and Will playing Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games on the Wii. It is Will's favorite thing to play. He has played so much this summer that he can now win almost every event he plays! Well, I can't get the video to upload. anyone have any tips? Anyway, basically Will loves to do the running events and it's hilarious watching his little legs pumping and his arms swinging as he races. We give Zach a remote without the battery and he thinks he's going too and he runs as fast as he can in place trying to win, too! It's great. We may have some future olympians in the family!

APRIL 2008 -

April started out with a terrible storm. The sky was greenish black and very eerie. I remember wondering if I should wake the kids (and Brian) and crouch under the stairs or something! I didn't know how they could sleep through this! The tornado sirens in Plano weren't sounding, so I figured we were safe enough. Lightening was close and would shake the house when it struck and the wind was rattling the windows. At one point, I was looking out the window and saw and felt the lightening so close, I thought it struck our back yard. Eventually it passed, and the damage the next morning was widespread. You couldn't drive a block without dodging trees in streets, fences down and roof shingles in your path. We were somewhat lucky. We lost half a tree in the back yard and our shed blew over with all the bikes inside. A few days later, the news reported that they think there was a series of small tornadoes that blew through.

Here's a little before and after. Will's always had the longer shaggy hair that is so cute, but we decided he needed it cut. Now he looks so much older and less like a ragamuffin. It is now easier to comb and bedhead isn't nearly as bad either.

April ended as Cami turned 9. We had a fun family party and celebrated with her. Brian and I gave her some extra money instead of throwing a party and she bought an iPod shuffle which has been attached to her ever since!

Swimming if fun no matter how cold it is! We warmed up the spa, but the kids got in the pool anyway. Here they are with some of their best friends.

Will also learned to ride a bike! We fixed up Spencer's old bike and added a new horn and put on training wheels and Will was set to go. He did great going with the wind...he likes to go fast!