Summer in July

 I'm smiling so big right now to be welcoming August! I'm trying my best to soak up these last weeks of summer and our family of 4 but also simultaneously really looking forward to what is ahead. Like back to school, cooler temperatures, the start of fall, and a brand new baby joining our family! 

I'm doing my best to make our mornings productive and fun but then I completely crash by lunch time. haha Very little energy to nest during this third trimester. I'm trying not to be too hard on myself that this last month of summer will likely not be filled with constant trips to the park/splash pad, crossing off things on our summer bucket list, and play dates. My body is telling me to slow down and my feet are a little too swollen for that. Speaking of our summer bucket list, I'll share it here soon but a friend of mine made me feel pretty good about how much we've done together as a family this summer after I showed her what we've crossed off so far ... staying at a hotel, trips to Washington and Pocatello, floating the Boise River, Roaring Springs, and the Whale Beach to name a few. July was no exception and I'm grateful to be surrounded by family who have made it fun too!

Other fun summery things that happened in July ....

Grams and Pa took Liam on his very own date to get a snow cone! He felt so special and loved every minute of getting to talk their ears off about all of his favorite subjects. haha

Liam has been working hard this summer to read his first chapter book (a third grade level one no less!) and is down to the last couple chapters. I'm so proud of him and how far her has come in the last year!

Lyla is loving being surrounded by baby things! Every time it is her turn to pray, she says "Dear Heavenly Father, I can't wait for my baby to come soon!" Man, it feels like just yesterday she was the teeny one in this crib ...

Summer = Ice cream! It has become a daily question from these two whether we can go get ice cream, they love it just like their parents do. ;) Big smiles the times we say "yes" ...

My sweet neighbor invited the kids over for a play date the other morning and Liam was concerned his beloved dinosaur would miss him while he was gone so he put together this set up by the front window just to make sure they could "still see each other from across the street" ... how adorable is that?! <3

My Aunt Wendy and cousin Amanda came to visit for a long weekend too! It was the best getting to see them twice in one summer! We got to have a girl's day with pedicures, shopping, and lunch. 

Then we got the whole troop together to spend some time in the sun ... Lyla loved the floaties they brought with them!

A childhood tradition ... covering yourself in sand.

Liam is getting so good at balancing on the paddle board!

It was a great weekend!

Lots of fun this summer and it's not even over quite yet! We still have swimming lessons, a baby shower, friends visiting, family pictures, back to school haircuts, and everything in-between ... all within the next 3 weeks! haha I better go take a nap to keep up. ;)

Saying Goodbye to our friends

 Shortly after we moved to Meridian, we met the Cardon family and they quickly became our best friends! It's not often that you meet a whole family where the kids get along and the husband and wife both enjoy the other couple's company too. Lauren and I would get together once a week for a playdate with our non-school aged kids during the week and twice a week in the summer. We'd have playdates at each other's houses, visit every park in the city, go to the river, play at the library, etc. We've gone to the zoo, the birds of prey center, and Sandy Point as families on the weekends. We created annual traditions of Halloween and Christmas parties, as well as a double date to the pumpkin patch/corn maze every fall. Our kids have grown together and so have we. 

As many people are experiencing, including Nic, the work environment changed during Covid and some businesses closed their doors and made the transition to working from home a permanent one. This is what happened with Spencer's job which opened the opportunity for them to live anywhere they wanted. Their dream has been to have land and fruit trees so they bought a home in Shelly and we helped them move on Friday. Not before one last Saturday spent together at Sandy Point the weekend before though ...

Our two Liam's together! 

They chased the geese with squirt guns all morning! haha

And even found some tadpoles in the shallow water ...

Liam was determined to unearth this root until he realized it was connected to a whole bunch more and went a lot deeper than that tiny shovel would allow him to dig to very quickly ...

No falling off the turtle today which is cause for that big grin on her face! She doesn't like getting wet unless it is on her own terms. haha Boy will she have an experience at her first swimming lessons this next week!

Lauren and Griff on a kayak ride together ... our kids are begging us to get one of these!

All I want for Christmas are my two front teeth!

Lyla did fall off the kayak while riding with Ephriam ... she didn't understand that she needed to keep her body weight in the center and kept leaning to the right. She was NOT happy!

Super dad to the rescue! He pulled her around while she laid on the back of the kayak like this instead ...

Like a big kid on that tube with a paddle! haha

Nic also made this cute fish with a moat around it for the kids!

Man I'll miss this girl! It's friendships like these ones that are the worth every bit of the extra effort when you live long distance. Time to make new traditions together. <3

Floating the Boise River

 We were probably crazy with the number of people who thought to do the same thing as us but we decided to float the Boise River on 4th of July weekend ... something we've had on our summer bucket list! We invited my mom to join us for the kid's first time and we all had a blast! I'm so glad we got there when we did (20 minutes before they opened for the day because the line was already a 45 minute wait to rent a raft). My mom and I did the car dance of dropping one off at the end so we had transportation back to the beginning while Nic waited in line with the kids. Once we were on the water it was smooth sailing. ;) 

If there is any real evidence to prove how much these two have grown in the last year it is their life jackets. haha I think Liam's was above his belly button. We definitely need to invest in new ones next year. 

Nic played the captain and steered us along most of the way. I was in charge of the important part, keeping Lyla and our bag of food from going overboard. ;) My mom and Liam manned the front together and got the best view and splashes during the rapids. 

This girl was completely obsessed with the paddles. She had a difficult time taking turns whether it was with her brother or when my mom and I needed to lend Nic a helping hand. She certainly hung on to it until we made her give it up. haha

She's pretty cute though!!

The water was freezing but the kids still wanted to swim really badly. Nic tossed them overboard a few times (holding on to their life jackets of course) and they would burst into a fit of giggles and screams from how cold it was! I'm sure the boats around us didn't appreciate the screaming but it was sure entertaining for us to witness. haha

We spotted a momma duck and her babies. Lyla even tried feeding them some of her veggie straws! We also saw quite a few adorable hummingbirds flitting above the water.

Feeling pretty proud of himself that he got to be in front! ;)

Most of the beaches were packed but we found a rocky spot to stop along the way. We got out to stretch our legs (it was good for me because this baby belly sure felt scrunched under that life jacket), ate lunch, and watched the kids make rock towers ... 

The whole float took about 2 hours and by the time we made it to the end, we were reminded how grateful we were to rent a raft instead of having to go through the hassle of deflating our own like many people were doing in the 100 degree heat. We were also so thankful to have a car at the end too and not have to ride on the hot smelly bus back to the beginning. It was such a fun summer adventure!

Our Washington Trip | Family Reunions

As I mentioned before, the reason for this trip was a hard one but the family it brought together was so special. We ended up having family reunions on both sides of my family and I saw so many people I hadn't seen in a really long time. It was fun to be able to introduce my growing family to many who haven't met Nic or our kids yet and for others, to see how much our kids have changed since the last time we visited. 

Best of all, spending time with my grandmas that I love. I made sure to take a picture with all three of them! Even as I sit here writing this, Lyla is peeking over my shoulder and saying, "Momma, I miss Great Grandma Sue and her puppy, Sadie." How sweet is that?! So grandma, if you're reading this, know you are so loved! 

(The trip was really rough on my body, so much swelling!)

All the cousins on my dad's side of the family together for the first time since we were all kids. We didn't realize that there were only two of us girls and someone piped up and said, "No wonder I had all boys!" haha 

It was so dang hot while we were there ... over a hundred degrees every single day and no one had air conditioners. We ended up needing to leave the family reunion on my dad's side a little early one evening because Lyla started showing signs of dehydration. We retreated back to our hotel and I've never seen my kids drink SO much water without needing to go to the bathroom. 

The next day we had a family reunion on my mom's side. They are held annually at my Aunt Wendy and Uncle Keith's farm surrounded by the most beautiful scenery! Like I said, it was HOT, so the little kids weren't the only ones using the pool, sprinkler, and squirt guns ... haha!

Always a kid at heart. ;)

My Uncle Keith is the best host and slaved away making all the food. The baby and I are so grateful to him for the handful of oysters we got to eat! ;)

The best part about their property is all the space they have to play and the many toys they have around for all of their grandkids. Lyla and Liam definitely took advantage of the ride on toys!  

This picture makes me smile so much. My Grandpa Dell was a collector of many things, especially belt buckles and hats. Our kids carted around a bucket full of belt buckles all weekend long and each got to choose a hat to keep of grandpa's. Lyla never took hers off the whole time we were there. She looked so cute in it!

Lots more visiting with extended family and trying to find any shade we could muster ...

Uncle Keith also hooks a bunch of wagons to his riding lawn mower and lets the kids go for rides. This was our kids' favorite part of the whole day!!! Never enough rides ...

Cousin pictures with my Grandma Jan ...

GG's great grands ...

My mom and most of her sisters, just missing my Aunt Jo ...

The most beautiful scenery to be surrounded by! My uncle had traded farm fields with another farmer who planted a spinach crop this year. 

Oh and this sweet Pooh airplane ... Liam learned to walk 6 years ago pushing this thing around their farm. Look at how grown up he is now! 

A boy's heaven!

Take me back! Well, maybe when it's a little less hot and I'm a little less pregnant. haha