Last week, our Monday craft was up in the air. I wanted to paint the mailbox, but when I mentioned this to Tyler, he wasn't so sure about the idea. After much debate, I decided to scrap the project. I think there will still be a painted mailbox in the future...just not this summer.
Instead, I told the kids that we were going to have a catch up day. It came out more like 'ketchup.' June chimed in that we would have a 'mustard' day. That didn't sound savory. Pearl finally chirped in that we would have a 'fry sauce' day and that seemed just right. So that is what we did. We had a Fry Sauce day. A day to get things done and relax a bit. We still were busy as usual, but it is nice to know that you can pick and choose what you would like to do.
Tuesday took us to the library as usual. There was a Capoeira group that came in a did demonstrations for the kids. If you have never seen Capoeira, it is Brazilian martial arts, made up of dancing and acrobatics. It looks like people are fighting in slow motion. And by fighting, it looks like beautiful, intricate martial arts. I know about Capoeira from Tyler since he has been to Brazil, but I had no idea there was a group here in town. I didn't watch the performance or take pictures (I was reading) but Ivory said it was very cool, and naturally, she is sure she would be fantastic at it.
Robyn and I read together on a couch and oddly enough, United Way came to take pictures of us. I guess it was 'Read Out Loud' day, so they asked if we would pose for them. That was easy enough. I had actually taken a picture of Robyn reading just moments before.
Also, at the library, I saw Ivory's art on display. I guess they are rotating through the pictures because I haven't seen Robyn's Frozen picture yet.
The library was made a little more exciting because we lost June. I got confused about where we were meeting and I looked everywhere for her. It is good to know that the panic you feel for a lost child doesn't diminish as they get older. Although it was a little odd to tell the circulation desk that I lost my teenager. In good time (read: too much time) I found her. She was right where she was supposed to be apparently. (I'll remember this for next time.)
Wednesday, we had so much fun swimming. Maybe a bit too much fun. Everyone came home with a slight sunburn. But they were very mild. By the next day, you couldn't even tell on the kids. Only I had to wait a few extra days for mine to heal up. And even then, it was only my scalp that hurt.
Our treat on Thursday was a healthy one. We made
Chocolate Zucchini Muffins. I have always loved zucchini bread and it is great to think that I'm eating a vegetable at the same time. The kids were dubious as to whether they would like it. I guessing that watching the main ingredient go in is different than mom showing up with yummy bread. A big pile of grated zucchini isn't their thing, I suppose.
We managed to make our muffins less healthy than directed. I simply don't have all those fancy, healthy ingredients on hand. We substituted regular milk for almond milk, regular flour for whole wheat flour, and regular oil for coconut oil. We did use applesauce and honey in place of sugar. Click
HERE for the healthy version. In no time we were pouring out our moofin mix. (Make sure you spray those cupcake liners. These babies like to stick.)
Yummy yum yum. They look good enough to eat.
Now that the kids knew all the ingredients, I had them give me a thumbs up or a thumbs down. The voting was almost unanimous. I think only Pearl was on the fence, but she asked for a second one anyway.
Friday, I had big plans to take the kids on a hike to see Adam's waterfall. But Thursday night it dawned on me that with an upcoming vacation, I needed to take the dog to Idaho. I wasn't sure when that would happen. The next week was going to be busy, and 8 hours is not an easy time window to open up on short notice. So, we took a field trip to Idaho instead. The kids travel pretty well now. I'm still training them to tell me they need a potty break
before it is an emergency, but that comes with time. Here we are trucking up to spud country.
This girl is never happy to be dropping off the dog.
Moxy is a good part of the family. I'm still amazed at how much she sheds. If you get her in a shaft of sunlight and stroke her back, you can see the waves of hair coming off her. (Must get non-shedding next time.)
Moxy is also getting old. I remember when her nose used to be mostly black. All the white on her muzzle shows she is an old lady.
We reached Idaho to learn that we had lost a friend there. Gizmo had finally reached his time. If Moxy is old, Gizmo was ancient, and with his seizures getting much worse, it was time to say goodbye. The kids noticed right away that he was missing. Except Pearl. It wasn't until later in the day that I heard her say, "Mom, where's Gizmo?" I said, "He went to live with Grandpa."
"He DIED?!" she exclaimed. Well, at least I know she gets it. Rest in peace, Gizzy.
The field trip was a huge success in my opinion, and more fun than a hike. I took Robyn's pictures as you know, but we did much more. We hung out with Henlee, who gets bigger and more expressive every time we see her.
Ivory learned how to run the riding lawn mower. Jack wanted to teach her, but I insisted she get instruction from Grandma.
We did a lot of relaxing.
And some nail painting.
I brought some ingredients to try something I had seen online. Check out
this video and tell me you don't want to make these right away. We had our puff pastry. Check.
We had delicious berries. Check.
We had good helpers with cute nails. Check.
Goodness these are easy to make and look so decadent and profesh. (Profesh means professional, although I'm thinking true professionals would not use that word.)
And the finished product did not disappoint. I may have burned my mouth a little since I couldn't wait for them to cool down.
It was great to see cousins. Ivory and Jack were as thick and thieves and were together all weekend. These older girls had a blast too.
They made up a game in the car. (Actually, they probably made it up earlier.) They collect adjectives from people and then create a monster using those adjectives. They come up with some fun creatures.
Dinner brought in even more family. Sadly, Kathryn, KJ, and Hinckley were in Utah, so we didn't see them this trip.
It was a great time. And so serendipitous. We were supposed to Skype with the grandmas this weekend for book group, but instead we were with one Grandma already and only had to Skype one direction. (Our family book group is going well, although I always forget to take pictures. We have lost a couple people. Ivory couldn't handle people picking her literature choices, so she opted out. She might come back next year -- probably for the refreshments. Tim has been so busy with school and church assignments that he doesn't have a lot of luxury reading time. He opted out as well. The rest of us seem to be enjoying reading together.) I got pictures this time though. Ha ha.
Don't forget the Washington crew. Here is Miranda on the phone. I like Vicki's nifty contraption. It is supposed to hold a tablet, but it worked well for our purposes.
And then it was time to go home. Best field trip so far this summer.
Tyler spoke at Stake Conference on Saturday evening, so I had to be home for that. (He did fabulous, of course.) Sunday was a great treat because Kathryn and Hinckley came to church with us and stayed for lunch after. (We got to see them this weekend after all.) I'm sad I didn't get a picture with them. It was so nice to chat with them for awhile. Hinckley is working hard at therapy. I hope his body is taking some good notes, so he can be back to walking soon. We sure love him.
Four weeks of summer under our belts. We still have many weeks to go, but I'm sad that June (the month) is almost over. I really enjoy having all my kids home. Even with dreaded "changing rooms" week coming up. (That week is my most and least favorite all rolled into one. Here's hoping I survive.)
