July 2014 Update

MADDY

Maddy was excited to lose her first tooth.

She couldn't wait for a visit from the Tooth Fairy.

READING

The girls love to read.  I'll often find them like this both cuddled up in their beds reading books.


UTAH TRIP

Since all these girls have the same fairy Grandmother who likes to buy them clothes, they all happened to be wearing the same dress on the same day.  So fun.

Nathan had fun with his cousins Christian and Simeon.

Sarah was super nice about hosting most of the gatherings in order to make things easier on my mom who just had a double knee replacement.  Here are the girls all gathered together for a Princess Tea Party.

INDEPENDENCE DAY

My grandfather usually has a big breakfast at his house on the morning of the 4th.  Even though he passed away on the 2nd, we decided he would still like us to have it.  It was nice to have that time together while so many family members were in town.

The kids all dressed up, played musical instruments, and marched around the backyard for a children's parade.  I was happy my kids could join in this tradition since I remember doing the same thing when I was a child.

Our 4th of July traditions would not be complete without watching fireworks in the church parking lot behind my grandpa's house.

GRANDPA DONALDSON

On the 5th we had a beautiful funeral for my grandfather.  I think I was most touched when I went up to sing with the grandchildren and I saw so many of my grandfather's posterity (over 100), friends, and loved ones gathered together to honor this great man.  It made me ponder on the enormous impact for good he had in so many people's lives.  He was truly a great patriarch to our family and he will be sorely missed. That said, I'm glad he is no longer suffering, and that he is now with my sweet grandmother again.  I think it is fitting that he died so near the 4th when we celebrate our Independence.  As a decorated WWII veteran he was given a gun salute at his funeral (which scared several of the kids who started crying).   It made me think of the horrors of war that my grandpa faced in fighting for his country.  If he were still around I think he would be joking about how by dying he gained his independence from his broken down body.

A year ago when Thomas died my grandfather graciously gave us a plot next to my grandmother.  It is comforting to think that my grandpa is now in the Spirit world with him.

AQUARIUM

My kids had a super fun time at the aquarium with Grandpa D. and their cousins.  They especially had a fun time watching the otters swim and play around.

There were no large whales, but the kids had fun climbing on the statue of one.

Crossing a bridge in the rain forest section of the aquarium.

The kids loved watching the cute penguins as they were fed.

THE CURIOSITY MUSEUM

The kids had fun at the new Curiosity Museum at Thanksgiving Point.  Here is Nathan building with his cousin Christian.

He also loved the stage where they got to dress up.

The girls with their cousins.

The kids had a blast playing in the water.

The also loved the rain forest section where they got to climb around like monkeys.

Maddy and Emily had fun being buddies in the museum together.

Abby having fun in the magic area.  

The kids enjoyed playing in the water at Noah's Ark.

A NIGHT OUT

We got babysitters one night and had a nice nice adult-only evening out with delicious Indian food.

THE CABIN

Even though my parent's cabin will be torn down soon, my kids really wanted to visit the cabin so we had a nice dinner there one night.  The kids had fun playing softball and going to the nearby park.

TEMPLE SQUARE

On Sunday we took the kids up to Salt Lake to see temple square.

They had fun learning about their pioneer heritage at the Church History Museum.

MARY POPPINS

On our last day in Utah we took the kids to see Mary Poppins at Hale Center Theater before heading back to Boise.  This was the kids first real experience with live theater and they loved it.  I think Audrey liked it too since she started kicking when the actors started singing Step n' Time.

We had a wonderful time down in Utah, but after all that fun we were all pretty worn out.

BOISE

We got back to Boise in time to go to the Kent Family Reunion.  The kids enjoyed having homemade root beer and cotton candy.  They also enjoyed the water games which felt really nice in the 100 degree weather.

That night one of JoyAnn's friends let us use her pool.  It was great to have a place to cool off after being outside in the heat all day. 

THE REST OF JULY

After coming back from our vacation we spent the rest of the month doing work projects to try to get our house ready to sell.