Camping in the Umatilla Forest

The girls were really disappointed when our plans for Bear Lake fell through, so we promised them a camping trip. Since we just had the weekend, and because it was late in the season, we looked for a campground close to home that had a low elevation so it wouldn't get too cold at night. So we ended up in the Tucannon campground (about 2 1/2 hrs away) in the northern part of the Umatilla forest. It was beautiful, and we really enjoyed getting out in nature and seeing so many tall pine trees.
Here we are setting up camp. Maddy is screaming because she fell for probably the 10th time. She was so excited she kept running around everywhere. Unfortunately she isn't used to running on uneven ground, so she ended up tripping and falling a lot. Abby is pointing and telling everyone what to do as if she is a camping expert.
Cooking dinner. We warned the kids about attracting animals if they threw food on the ground, so that night when Abby said our family prayer she asked that no bears would come into our camp and that mommy wouldn't see any mice (she knows all about my mouse phobia).
The girls wore themselves out and slept really well, unfortunately Nathan screamed a lot. After a long night we woke up to a cold morning. Here is Maddy drinking hot chocolate trying to warm up.
Even with the hot chocolate we were still cold, so I went in the car with the kids and turned on the heater to help us all warm up. Here is Jared taking a picture of his wimpy wife and kids.

Our campsite was really pretty. The girls and I had fun going on bear hunts (like in the book), dropping pine cones off the bridge and watching them float, throwing rocks in the river, and exploring (like in Dora). We saw deer, skeeter bugs, a snake, and even a skunk. Since Nathan can't walk yet and the roads were all gravel, we were forced to carry him everywhere on our walks. He got frustrated not being able to crawl around, but he still had fun looking at all the new sights.
Happy camping kids.
Maddy's silly smile.
Jared built a huge bonfire for our last night there, and we had fun making SMORES and singing camp songs. We drove back late that night with new found gratitude for our showers, flushing toilets, and the luxury of our own beds. We also have a greater appreciation for our parents who took us camping (which must have been really hard with so many young kids), but which also created a lot of wonderful experiences and memories.

Family Update Aug/Sept 2010

NATHAN
Nathan had is one year check up. His measurements are: height 30 in. (57%), weight 22 lbs 5 oz. (42%), and head 47 1/2 in. (80%). Nathan is a busy little man. Now that he is mobile there is no stopping him. He climbs stairs, into the dishwasher, into cupboards, etc. If there is anything dangerous for him, he will find it. My life is infinitely busier now that I'm trying to keep him away from paper, choking hazards, eletrical things, etc. He says "woof"(for a dog), "dad," "yes," "Abby," "ba," (for book, banana, and blanket)," "all done," "hi," "babapoo" (for peek a boo), and "ma ma ma" (his favorite). He also does a few signs for all done, more, binky, and sleep. His favorite game is peak a boo, which he likes to play with eye masks and hats. He loves his sisters and playing with them. He doesn't like to be left out and wants to do whatever they are doing. He loves to go in their room, climb in their beds, tries to dive in the bathtub when they are taking a bath, and has to sit with them when I read books. He continues to have a huge appetite. He insists on feeding himself and eating whatever we are eating. The worst part is he loves to wipe his messy hands into his hair--almost as if he is trying to use his hair as a napkin. Finally it was getting so bad we decided to cut it. Jared did a great job despite Nathan screaming and moving his head around the whole time.

I miss my shaggy haired baby, but I sure love my handsome little man. Now that he is a year old I decided to wean him. Unfortunately he was not on the same page so I kept nursing him longer. Finally after he had bitten me 3 times I decided I had had enough. The doctor said I'd have to go cold turkey and not give him anything to drink but cows milk. For several days Nathan crawled after me saying ''ma ma ma," and then he was up all night refusing to sleep. He was so mad that he would claw at my shirt, throw any offered binkys or sippy cups on the floor, and would scream for hours in our arms or his crib refusing to sleep. Finally after a very hard few weeks we had him weaned and he is our happy little boy again.

MADDY Maddy loves to do whatever Abby is doing. Abby decided it was her unicorn's birthday so Maddy decided it was purple bear's too. Here they are with their wrapped presents and playdough birthday cakes in honor of the animals' birthdays. Maddy has started getting potty trained and so far is doing really well, which is a relief! I'm sure it helps that she wants to be a big girl and follow the example of her older sister.

Maddy loves to play outside and swing. She is starting to become much more imaganative. She loves playing princess dress up with Abby and acting out stories. In addition to being a princess, her other favorite roles are Captain Hook and a grumpy troll (she hides under the slide pretending it is a bridge and Abby is a goat). She continues to love books, music, and anything purple. Her favorite article of faith is number 4, which she likes to sing every night before bed. She is full of energy and loves to run everywhere. She also loves to tease her siblings and parents which gets her into trouble sometimes, but she doesn't seem to be able to resist. We love our sweet little Maddy bear.

ABBY

Abby wants to be grown up. When I had a baby shower at our house, Abby was very upset that she wasn't invited. So we decided to throw our own baby shower for Abby and Maddy's baby dolls. They had fun wrapping up their dolls' bottles, clothes, diapers, etc. We then had a baby shower complete with games, decorations, food, and cupcakes. In addition to wanting to do and be a part of everything grown up, she likes to tell me about how wonderful her life and her husband will be when she is grown up. For example, after Jared was unable to fix the propane valve on our BBQ grill she informed me, "When I grow up my husband will be able to fix BBQ grills." When we went camping she told me, "When I grow up my husband will go camping ALL the time." Just for the record, when she grows up she is going to be a missionary. She is also going to a visiting teacher. She is also going to be a mommy, ballerina, and dentist. She will have 2 boys and 2 girl that are twins. The boys will be named Moroni and Nephi and the girls will be Audrey and Courtney. She is also going to cook "delicious baked oatmeal" for her babies everyday. She will also have a big house and a big fancy pink car.

When Abby isn't busy planning her future, she enjoys being 4. Here she is playing hide and seek in our back yard. I thought she looked like a little pumpkin hiding in the pumpkin patch.

Here is Abby in braids. She checked out an animated version of Anne of Green Gables from the library and now allows me to do her hair this way. Very cute. In addition to using her imagination, she uses her mind a lot and loves to learn about new things and is doing really well with her reading. It's fun to see her learn so much, but I miss my little toddler that has now turned into a sweet little girl.

JARED

Jared is busy working hard at his job and is happy that they are starting to show appreciation for his work by giving him a raise and giving him more independence by allowing him to see his own patients. Jared has also been busy helping out at home. He built us shelves for our garage and finished putting shelves in Nathan's closet, which will be really nice to help us get more organized. He loves being a daddy and his kids love him too. When Nathan sees him he says, "hi dad!" When Maddy hears him come home she says, "I want to see daddy's face." Abby just exclaims at the top of her lungs, "Daddy's home! My daddy's home!" In addition to being a great dad, Jared is a great husband. He took me out on a nice date for our anniversary. Afterwards we took the babysitter home and took the kids out for ice cream.

MARY

Every since we got back from vacation I have felt like I've been in survial mode. I think it is just me getting used to Nathan being so mobile which seems to have tripled my work load. I was feeling depressed about our house always being a mess and never being able to keep up with it, so I've been working hard dejunking, getting organized, and putting more things under lock and key, or at least out of reach of the kids. Jared's new shelves have definitely helped with that, and hosting book group and a baby shower at my house this month have helped with motivating me to get things clean. We also got a great deal on having someone clean our carpets so I'm starting to feel a little better about things (for some reason my emotions are very strongly connected to the cleanliness of my house). The plus side to all this dejunking is I was able to make some money selling books and other items online or on Craigslist.

In addition to my cleaning frenzy, I've enjoyed reading some good books. I am also very excited to have my body back to myself. It was weird to actually fast on Fast Sunday since I've been either nursing or pregnant for the last 5 years. I'm excited to start exercising more now that Jared got me this amazing double jogging stroller/bike trailer which will allow me to go out with the kids, rather than wait for him to have enough time to watch them for me.