Summer Rain

Like mother like daughter! Emmy inherited my LOVE for SUMMER RAIN!! For as long as I can remember, I have loved the rain. The sound is so soothing and I love to watch the lightning. I wish I had a porch to sit on, but at least we have big windows! There is nothing like cuddling up in a warm blanket while the cold breeze dances across your face and you listen to the pitter patter of the rain outside.....ahhhhhhhhh......

But sometimes just listening isn't enough and you have to go DANCE in it! There is such a happy emotion that happens as the rain drops soak through your clothes and drips off your face. It's so much FUN!!

Just as the weatherman promised, the cold front arrived today and when Emmy discovered that the rain had begun to fall, she promptly went out to play. I sat and watched her through the kitchen window with such fond memories of my childhood. She had no idea she had an audience until she saw the flash of my camera go off. I wish so bad that my camcorder was working......dang it....I just have to get a new one really soon.

It didn't take long for her to get soaked and then she got cold. She came inside and took a steaming hot bath - ahhhhh, so cozy! But before she got in the bathtub, she just had to give daddy a really WET hug! And daddy is like a kitty cat and HATES getting wet...ESPECIALLY when the air is wet and humid!! Finally, she has something she can do to torment him, just like he torments her - in a loving way, of course!

Raging Waters

This past June, we got Raging Waters tickets from Rina, for only $10 per person through Jet Blue. It was so dang cold that day (a high of 65), that as we entered the park (open only to Jet Blue employees and their family members) they gave each of us another ticket to come back at any time during the season. We put it off and put it off, trying to find a time that all of us could all go back together, but our schedules never worked out. Pretty soon, we realized that we had run out of weekends to use them, so this being the last weekend open, we finally used them! It was perfect weather too. It was forcasted to be a high of 100 degrees - perfect for swimming, but tomorrow a cold front is coming in and the temp will drop to 83, with rain. The next day, which just happens to be Labor Day, the high is only 63, with the first snow fall in the higher elevations!! Is that crazy or what??!?!?! A temperature drop of 37 degrees in just 2 days! Typical Utah weather!

Last time we went, the kids spent most of their time in the wave pool. They literally spent hours riding the waves and had a great time! It is so fun when those waves roll you up and down the water. My poor kids paid the price after we got home......they all got motion sick and were throwing up. Same thing happens when we go boating! They're fine during the activity, but once they get on solid ground, the sickness sets in. We have learned to give them dramamine before hand, but it isn't always effective. At least it lessens the severity.

There was a fun kiddie area that the little ones could play in without us having to worry about their safety in the water. It was so nice to just let them play. Even the big kids had fun in the kiddie area! Here are a few of the pictures I took.....and just in case you didn't already know, you can double click on the pictures to see them enlarged.

The kids seemed to enjoy the lazy river, but quickly go bored with it, so with a little convincing, me and Heather finally got them to try the water slides. Initially, we took Emmy and Michael. The whole way up Em kept talking about the butterflies in her stomach and how scared she was to go down the slide, but half of her fear was climbing so high on the stairs and looking down at the ground! I was really worried that she'd get to the top and chicken out, so I told her once she was up, there was no turning back. I helped her sit in her tube and kept saying, "this is scary, this is scary, this is..........." and then I pushed her down the slide! She screamed at the top of her lungs!!! Then it was my turn....oh boy....I wasn't scared, but as I rounded one of the corners, I tipped too far and fell out of my tube. I got a face full of water and quickly realized that my shirt was over the top of my head! Talk about HUMILIATING!!!! I don't wear a regular swimming suit. I wear men's swim trunks with a tank top....and I just leave my bra on. So.....although I didn't completely flash everyone watching, it was bad enough! The first thing Emmy said to me at the bottom was, "Let's go again! That was sooooooo FUN!!!" I wasn't about to do it again, but Emmy and Michael went up and me and Heather went to find Austin and Todd to get them to go. They had so much fun, but unfortunately, by the time they discovered how much fun the slides were, it was time to go.

We had a GREAT time splashing and playing in the water all day long. The kids LOVE spending time with their cousins and look forward to anything they can do together. We missed those who couldn't go today, but hope that we can all get together again really soon! Actually, we're hoping to go crawdad fishing tomorrow for Labor Day, but it's supposed to be cold and rainy. If weather is indeed bad enough that we can't go, we'll just do a barbecue instead.

Our New Floors

This project was such a big deal to us that I want to back track and do this blog entry about it. Besides, it will give all of you who live far away and can't come see it, a chance to see it!!

HALLELUJAH!! We have needed new floors for soooooo long. The crap they built our house with had been worn so ragged and was completely beyond repair and cleaning. There was a teeny tiny tear in the linoleum that one of my daycare kids found and made into a BIG tear. It never stopped from there. Every time you'd walk over it, it would snag on your foot and tear some more. So, in January, we decided that we would replace the flooring this September. We knew exactly what we wanted, but it would take that long to save the money since financing is OUT OF THE QUESTION!! We don't like debt!!!! Anyway, in April, RC Willey had a huge flooring sale. We went in to check it out - just to see how good of a sale it was - and they had our flooring on sale for 50% off!!!!!! We could not pass that up. Never ever did I think we'd get the flooring I wanted for HALF of what we expected. And we didn't have to wait because we had the money we needed to buy it!!! So the project happened in April instead of September.

It was a HUGE undertaking! The first feat was to tear up the linoleum and sub floor in the kitchen and the carpet in the family room. It wasn't as hard to tear up as we thought it would be. The fact that we were so anxious to get rid of it was probably a big factor in that. It felt sooooo good to rip that crap out. I thought it was kinda funny because he wanted to just test a piece to see how hard it was going to be.....and he just kept going and going! I hadn't even cleared the place out yet. I had scrapbooking crap all piled up next to the dishwasher and none of the furniture had been moved. It was like 9 p.m. and I was in no mood to start it then. I wanted to wait until the next day! But since he was on such a roll, I hurried and moved everything for him. I didn't want to hinder his progress.

We finished tearing up the sub floor in the kitchen the next day. It took longer than expected. Cutting around the cabinets was a PAIN and then we had to tear that gross, disgusting 10 year old carpet out! But again, we couldn't have been happier to get rid of it. We didn't want to go to bed without laying some of the flooring that night, so Chris did the bay window! Little did he know how much trouble those stupid angles were going to give him. Once he figured out how to use the angle finder, it went pretty fast.

Amidst all of this, Chris was asked to go out of town for the week. Thank heaven he told them he couldn't leave me in the mess that we were in. There was no flooring in the family room and kitchen and that just wouldn't jive with crawling babies at my house. So they put his business trip off for a week. Luckily, Chris had time to take off so he could stay home and get things done. I'm so grateful his boss was so understanding.

The second day of laying floor went well. It was quick and easy until he came to cabinets that he had to make special cuts for, but still, I think he did pretty good - especially considering that he is a PERFECTIONIST and had to think in great length about the best way to do it. Any seasoned installer would've ripped right through it, but this being Chris' first attempt at laying flooring, he had to make sure he didn't make any bad cuts. I was just happy that the hammer didn't fly through one of the walls in frustration! (hehehehehe...you know I love you, Hon!)

Voila!! He finally finished at midnight on the 3rd day!! It's done - YAY - and we were so EXHAUSTED!! Well, the kitchen and the family room were done. We still had to do the living room and all the way down the hall, but that had to wait until Chris came home from his business trip.

He was in Baltimore that whole week. He got home late Friday night and had to leave again early Sunday, so he didn't get a whole lot done. He only did right in front of the stairs and then sat and figured out how he was going to make the flooring all line up the way it needed to in order to go down the hallway.

He continued to travel from Sunday - Friday for the next 4 weeks, so progress was sooooooo slow. I was getting tired of the mess and everything in disarray. But he finally finished on May 16th. This picture is of him laying the very last piece in the living room! HIP HIP HOORAY!!

Now here it is, August 27th, and we still haven't put the base boards back up! I knew that would happen, but I haven't complained about it. By the time Chris finally finished the floor, there were things that needed attention out in the yard. It was summer time and our weekends have been spent boating and camping, so we decided to put the baseboards on the back burner until things slowed down a little bit. Hopefully we can get that done in the next little while. I don't know when, but I don't expect it to happen until the end of September and that's OK. Just look at how warm and cozy my little house is now!! I LOVE it. I have had so many people ask if we got new furniture too, but we didn't. It's all the same. My vision has finally all come together!! And most everyone that has seen it loves it so much that they want to copy it.....red paint and all!

My next goal is to do our bedroom. We have NEVER had a bedroom set. But I have a vision of what I want in there too and I have a feeling it's going to take a looooong time to save for it. I want to feel like I am in a rustic log cabin when I'm in my room. I have wanted log furniture for as long as I can remember, so until I find what I have visioned, I refuse to buy anything. And I do not want to settle for something that is just OK. Anyway....maybe that will come in the near future, maybe not....There always seems to be something else we need instead.

Angie's Baby Shower

Baby showers are so much fun! I think I really enjoy the memories of my own pregnancies and it's fun to see others going through such a happy time in their lives. The miracle of life is so amazing and I get choked up every time I think about it. I'm such a cry baby!

I just have to post a few pictures of my cute little cousin, Angie, who is due September 18th. She's such a cute pregnant woman. Her shower was fun and I think she got enough clothes to clothe septuplets!! And that doesn't include what already fills her baby's closet!

She's having a baby girl and is going to name her Bailey Rae. Isn't that just so adorable?!!? I always said that if Landon had been a girl that his name would've been Bailey Christine. (Christine because it's feminine for Chris.) That name I had chosen also happens to be Aunt Christy's name transposed! I don't think anyone was shocked when they found out Angie was having a girl. The Bailey clan always has girls! I believe they have 10 grandkids and only 1 is a boy!! But they are the cutest lot of girls you'll ever meet though! And you know what's weird? The one grandson they have just happens to be named Dillon Robert!! I thought that was funny when I heard our 2 Dylan's have the very same name, just spelled different.

It's so much fun to spend time up in Ogden. I LOVE that part of my family sooooo much. They have always been so supportive of us and all the events and occassions in my life. We don't see them a ton, but when we do, it's always a good time.

Uncle Kevin starts working at L-3 today! He'll probably never see Chris unless he makes it a point to go find him, but I can probably count on him giving Chris a hard time every now and again!!

Landon's First Day of Preschool

Well, I made it through Landon's first day of preschool yesterday. I was emotional all morning long and could not quit tearing up. I knew that was going to happen - DANG IT! After all the kids were gone to school and Chris to work, I was doing his hair and getting him ready to go by 9. He looked up at me in the mirror and said, "mommy, why do you keep crying?" I tried to explain to him that I was having a hard time because I was getting ready to send my baby to school. He crinkled his nose and smiled and said, "If I were a baby, I wouldn't be going to school, silly." I had to chuckle. He made me smile, but little did he realize that that's exactly why I was crying....because he's so grown up. It's so hard to believe that he'll be 5 in November.

Landon has always been so different than the other three. He's always had a sense of independence that the others didn't have at that early age. It was so hard to get the first three to go to kindergarten. They'd hide behind me and hold on to my leg for dear life. Not Landon. He stood still for a picture or two, turned around and ran into class without looking back. He has been so excited to start. Especially because 3 of his best friends are in his class. The picture of the four of them, from left to right are Dylan, Jake, Landon and Max. He had a grin from ear to ear when he came home and was so eager to tell me all about his day. Then he started talking about what they were going to do tomorrow. He was really mad when I told him that he didn't get to go everyday. Only Tuesdays and Thursdays. So all I've heard today - which is Wednesday - is, "Is it Thursday yet? Is it Thursday yet?? When is it going to be Thursday?"

I know this is going to be a GREAT experience for him. I think it will be good for him to have some organized structure to his day away from all of the daycare at home. Now if I can just cut an apron string - or at least lengthen it - so that I don't bawl every Tuesday and Thursday.........

A New School Year

Another school year has started. It's so hard to believe. I say this so much, but I just can't get a grasp on how fast time is passing. Todd is in 6th grade, Emmy in 4th, Dylan in 2nd and Landon starts preschool tomorrow. OH MY GOSH....I just can't believe how fast they're growing. Almost as fast as the weeds in my flower gardens.

Today was Emily's first day of school. She was so nervous. Poor thing. She inherited the shy gene from both me and Chris. I don't think it was so much that she was headed to class with a bunch of new faces, but rather that she was self conscious about her outfit. (I added a picture of Miley Cyrus so all of you can see where Em got her outfit inspiration from.) SHE loves her outfit, but she was so worried about what other people would think....about the socks, mostly. It's so hard to teach a 9 year old that it doesn't matter what others think as long as she likes it. Luckily, she had her friend, Brooke there to support her! Brooke loved Emmy's outfit so much that she copied her. I thought it was so cute that they planned to wear their outfits together. Actually, I was more grateful than anything that Brooke wore the same thing so that Em didn't have to feel like she was standing out like a sore thumb.

Todd and Dylan are on a different track this year than Emily, as per my request, so they've been in school since July 28th. Emily has had a girl in her class the last two years that has been a spoiled rotten brat/bully to her. I DID NOT want her in the same class with her again, so I found out which track she was going to be on and requested something different for Em. I didn't want 4th grade to be a bad experience for her just because of one girl who can't behave herself. I'm not sure how much I'm going to like them being on different tracks, but we're giving it a whirl.

Todd is so excited about 6th grade. He is part of the Safety Patrol for the school and gets to help make sure students stay safe by crossing in cross walks where there is a stop sign. He also applied and was accepted to be a part of the Spirit Club this year. I'm not sure what the Spirit Club does, but he sure was excited when he received his acceptance letter in the mail.

Landon is excited to start preschool, but I'm not sharing his enthusiasm so much. I'm sending my baby to school!! I just know I'm going to cry tomorrow morning when I drop him off. Luckily it's only two days a week. Maybe I can learn to enjoy that time. Hmmmmm.....who am I kidding?? I still have daycare!!!!! UGH. That's a whole other story.