Ten Down, ONE to go

This is the LAST week of summer. Well, not the official last week of summer. (That happens some time in September.) But it is the last week before school starts. (Around here.)

It has been such a great summer. I feel we got a lot done and I learned some new stuff, and I'm happy that I spent a LOT of time with my kids. It is rare that I feel that I didn't waste my time, but this summer, I was focused and I feel that every day we spent good time together. (Yes there was fighting, and this last week NO ONE got their checklists done, but I never claimed it was perfect.)

Let's finish up last week before this 'last' week is gone.

WEDNESDAY:

Our field trip was to the City Creek Center. I really just wanted to check it out in person, but I figured the girls could walk around and see the sights as well. There were a lot of water features. Fountains galore!

I didn't even notice the temple in that earlier shot, but when I saw it, I decided to take another picture. Temples are so beautiful to me.

We found the creek not too long after. Yes, the rocks say 'no climbing'. Let's just pretend that my children are not on them. And definitely not posing on them.

Let's be realistic—three children had climbed onto the rocks before I even got through the door with the stroller. We did a mostly good job of keeping everyone in order after that. (Mostly.)

Even with children fake sleeping on the rocks, no one reprimanded us. (Thank you City Creek People who have obviously seen a lot of children 'playing.' You are much nicer than the butcher at Walmart who plucked Daisy off the middle aisle as she climbed on it. She was totally shocked that someone would touch her. Actually...I was too.)

We stopped for a photo on the sky bridge.

On the other side of the Mall, by the food court, we found the play area. I should have brought a book...it was glorious. The kids played forever on the dinosaurs. I gave them the challenge of getting from one side to the other without touching the ground. They jumped from one dino to the next and had a great time. There was something for everyone. I didn't bother taking too many pictures, because they were moving too fast.

After, we got smoothies. The rule in our family is: Everyone Shares. (Mainly because I am not willing to buy six individual anything. Okay, every once in a while, we splurge, but not often.) So the girls know the drill. They paired up and chose flavors together.

Pearl is usually my partner. And she never complains about what flavor I get. (At least for now.)

The City Creek Center obviously has a lot of shopping choices, but most are a bit pricey for our taste. But Claire's was right up our alley. Pearl was in heaven.

We had a bit of fun dressing up.

And June even made a purchase of her own. (I love it when my children use their OWN money to buy stuff. And it is even better when it is something darling that isn't candy.)

After that, we headed home. I should mention that the kids loved the escalators. We had to go up and down multiple times.

Pearl spent most of the time in the stroller. (The stars must have aligned in just the right way for me.)

We had a very fun time. Looks like we have another location that we will have to take Dad to eventually.

THURSDAY:

We saw The Adventure of TinTin. It was fun, if a little intense at parts. Unfortunately, it was so active, my movement sickness was triggered. (You may not know this about me, but I have problems playing video games that show a lot of movement, because it makes me sick eventually...or very quickly—depends on the game.) I had to leave the theater to calm my stomach and Ivory decided to join me since she was a bit scared. We came back in for the ending, but I was bummed that I missed a big chunk in the middle. It might have been from sitting too close. But I get to chose where we sit next time. :)

FRIDAY SUNDAY:

Ahem...Friday was busy and we went to the Library instead. I kept thinking that I would get to the craft later, but I didn't. In fact, I didn't get to it ever. I finally gave Tyler the stuff on Sunday and told him to keep the kids busy that morning while I went to meetings. He is such a good Dad. He even took pictures.

It was more of an experiment than a craft. All you do is microwave Ivory soap, and it turns into soap clouds. It doesn't take long to do, and then you can let the kids play with it outside or in the tub. We broke off a few chunks and let kids take baths with cloud soap.

Kids ready to go: Check

Soap in: Check

Reminder to clean microwave: Check

Soap Cloud: Check

Another one: Check

Reminder to not cook them too long: Check

Apparently soap clouds (when overdone) come with a black lining, not a silver one.

Daddy daughter activity accomplished: Check

Tyler even took video, but you can't see into the microwave well enough to see them expand.

I will say this though, the house smelled nice and clean when I came back home.

My Nephew is coming to visit tonight. He stays for a week. I am hoping that he will enjoy all our random activities. Especially since this our last week to play. In fact, I should probably stop blogging and go pick him up. (Just kidding Tim, I won't forget you. I promise to be there early.)

Run for Life

Let's go down memory lane for a moment.

Remember when I started runnning a mile in the mornings a year ago?

And then I stopped.

I only ran 13 times before my allergies kicked in and spoiled the show.

Then I ran that 5k for Beth and finished in 34: 38.

And so ended my exercising, yet again.

I made that goal intention to 'find some exercise plan I like,' at the beginning of the year.

Not so much.

Although I did run another 5k in the spring (with a stroller) finishing at 41:45.

Slow going since then. Or more accurately, NO going.

Summer seems to be my time to make running resolutions. The other day, the 9th of July to be exact, I decided that I needed to stop slacking. I knew I needed to do something drastic to make myself accountable. So I put out there on Facebook (in my neighborhood) that I was going jogging the next morning and someone should join me.

And so began a beautiful relationship. An amazing gal, McKenzie said she could use a running buddy. In fact, she was in the midst of taking a running class at BYU. (No pressure.) We decided to get up early and run M, W, F. And we have been doing it. Diligently.

We even ran a 5 miler the other day, so she could catch up on some miles for her class. I don't think I have EVER run 5 miles at a time. I felt so great. And that particular week we ran a total of 12 miles. I KNOW!! This is pretty stellar for me.

Tyler noticed I was more serious this time around and let me get some new kicks for the road. I love these babies.

And I really needed them. They (the ambiguous 'they') suggest that you wear running shoes one size larger than your normal shoe size, so your toes don't slam into the front of your shoe as much. Since I was wearing a half-size too small, it was time to upgrade. Look at the difference.

Much roomier, and they feel great.

Today is our one month running anniversary. (Much better than 13 days if you ask me.) (Wait, I don't want to exaggerate. Last year, the 13 days were over the course of a month. So, I checked and McKenzie and I have gone running 16 times over the course of a month. So, not a lot more. But the difference in miles is huge. Before, I did 13 miles in 13 days. This time it is closer to 40 miles in 16 days. Cool huh?)

I run slower now, and that is great. That is what I need right now. Previously, I was trying to catch a time. I wanted to run a mile in less than 10 minutes. I did it. My last time recorded (last year) was 9:41. But I was still wheezing and hurting by the end.

McKenzie and I run slower, but farther. I feel I am training my body to run. Not for a time, but for life. She finished her class this week and logged her 70 miles. (Go McKenzie!) And this morning, she wanted to test her mile to see how she had improved. We pushed hard and ran it in 9:32.

That was my best time yet, and I wasn't wheezing at the end. We were stoked.

I know school is starting soon. And I know it is getting darker in the mornings. And I know there will be a million excuses why I can't run. But I hope I can get past that. I realize that a running buddy is just what I need. It is the ONLY thing getting me up some mornings. Thanks McKenzie.

I do have a small goal for the future. I would still like to run a 5k in under 30 minutes. But that means running a  9:42 mile for THREE miles. (Well, 3.1 miles to be more precise.) That seems beyond me right now, but it is certainly not out of reach. And it is good to work for something.

And it is GREAT to feel healthy; to feel energized. Here's to running...for life.

Homemade Butterfingers

On Monday, we were supposed to deep clean the front porch, but it looked okay, and we had errands to run, so we just skipped it. It is also possible that I am running out of steam. School feels so close, and I have been so diligent. But that makes me want to stick with it to the very end.

So Tuesday, I made sure that we were set to go. We made Homemade Butterfingers. They were easy, as in they only took three ingredients, but they were tricky, because you have to do extra things like dip them in chocolate. (But most of the time, if you take a moment to dip something in chocolate, you won't be disappointed.)

This is how they looked pre-dip.

They are just melted candy-corn, and peanut butter. Who knew, right? I did not have exact measurements, so ours turned out a bit more peanut buttery than candy corny, but they were still tasty. Then we dipped them in chocolate.

Then we had leftover chocolate, so we dipped some more stuff. (See? Still not disappointed.)

The best part was eating them, of course. It was fun to find the orange center inside the chocolate.

I took the rest to Tyler's work, because I have a soft spot for Butterfingers, and I knew I didn't need a whole batch. Plus, I had leftover cheesecake to finish off. (Yes, in a competition, cheesecake always wins.)

Dive Ives!!

It is possible that I have watched too much Olympics. I told Ivory tonight that she should be a diver, because then we could cheer her on by yelling, "Dive IVES!!" (Definitely too much Olympics...but it is awesome.)

Last week ended two sessions of swimming lessons. I wasn't thrilled about the cost, but in the end, I feel we are much closer to three actual swimmers.

The girls had a new teacher, Catie. (Pronounced Katie.) She was so good with the kids. (Actually I have to trust that she is good with them, because it is not like I am out there in the water. I just know that they always seem pretty happy when they get back to shore.)

This is what I usually see.

Okay, let's amend that statement. THIS is what I usually see.

And a little of this.

They have been so patient to come EIGHT times without getting in the water. Love those two chickadees.

The last day I got over to the edge to take some photos. Look ma! They swim.

They also got to go over to the diving board for the first time on that last day. Catie was only an arms length away, but I am still proud for them trying new stuff.

June had no worries. She went again and again.

Ivory was hilarious to watch. No form; she just threw herself off with zest.

Robyn was a little more hesitant. I sat there with my camera up to my eye saying 'Come on Robyn," for about a minute. But she finally jumped.

 And this is really great for them, because they sure didn't get any swimming genes from their mother. I didn't get my swim on until I was twenty and in college. So my girls are doing fabulous.

I promised them that on the last day of swimming, we would go get shaved ice. And my word is good. (Plus, every once in a while, you need a good shaved ice.)

I had the wide angle lens, so I made the photos too.

It was such a gorgeous day. The clouds were splendid and we sat in the shade and chilled.

 Gotta love summer, right?

Nine Down, Two to Go

Flying, people! We are flying through the end of summer here. June already has homework (through the mail) for the first day of school. And not just one assignment...I think there were four?

This last week was busy, as you will see...

MONDAY

We deep cleaned the pantry. I only gave one shelf/area to each child. I like the progress we made on each one. Now I just need five more children to finish off all the shelves in there.

I think I will keep the deep cleaning chores going for myself once school starts. It is very satisfactory to clean a space, and apparently, we are kind of messy around here. (I think it comes with the territory of having five children.)

TUESDAY

That was a busy day. So busy, in fact, that we didn't get our treat made until almost ten in the evening. We watched Olympics, and then we made Snickerdoodles.

They were yummy, but nothing to write home about. I feel I am always missing some key ingredient to cookies. It may be a stand mixer that is missing, but that won't be remedied any time soon.

WEDNESDAY

Tricia invited us to come play at a park in her neck of the woods. It was great. There were new exciting toys for the girls to try, and then a splash pad for cooling down. We started on the park side. Everyone found something entertaining.

Tricia's girls are such dolls. I want to squeeze them both.

When it got hot and the water beckoned, we went to splash pad. It was the perfect way to cool off.

We had lunch and snacks with us. Pearl was digging the Cheetos. And since she wasn't too interested in the water, they kept her company.

Robyn is ever the serious one.

June was bonding with Annalise.

This is the last picture I got, right before June came up with a chunk out of her knee. (There are NO RUNNING signs for a reason, kids.) That abruptly ended the fun and we went home to find a butterfly bandage. We'll have to go back to play again sometime. Thanks, Tricia.

THURSDAY

We got to go see a movie again. (Kung Fu Panda 2—fun.) What with our trips to Lagoon, it has been a while. In fact, Ivory asked what we did on Thursdays, because she had forgotten.

Me: We go to the movies.

Ivory: That's right. Thursday is movie day...or Lagoon day.

(Nice try Ives.)

FRIDAY

(Today) Sheesh...it is still Friday?

We had a really fun craft today. We made rainbow jars. The supplies are pretty easy to find and not too pricey. You need lots of salt, some colored chalk, paper, and a glass jar. Here is everything all ready for the chaos.

You pour out the amount of salt you need to fill a layer of your jar. (We had small jars.) Then you rub your chalk in your salt until it takes on the color.

Then you pour your salt into your jar.

Start over with another paper and color and make another layer. We saved the extra salt in bowls so other people could use them.

The layers don't have to be perfect. In fact they are more fun if they are at angles and different sizes. Careful not to shake your jar, or your sand will turn brown and not be so pretty.

The girls eventually wanted to just play with the sand and chalk. I was already planning on a mess, so that was fine.

But I did make them take it outside eventually. This was probably wise, since they used up a whole container of salt out there. Experiments are good though.

And I love the finished products. They all did a fabulous job.

This was definitely one of the better crafts.


And so we reach the end of the week. I like to look back at a fulfilling week. Granted, there have been highs and lows. Pearl is becoming more stubborn if that is even possible. It is forever one step forward and two steps back with her. She screams more, but she goes down for naps easier. (Meaning, she doesn't cry every time I close the door, but she also doesn't nap.) I would say there is plenty of rough mixed with smooth each week. But you take the good with the bad. And I wouldn't give it up. (And the extra feisty this week might have something to do with all the late night Olympics. We have had our fill of gymnastics and swimming and have loved it all, but we will need to fix some bedtimes around here before school starts.)