July 2016

We started off July with a trip to Washington. Daddy wanted to climb Mt. Rainier with Papa. We had a few days between the reunion and Washington to do laundry and pack up all over again.

Annie was sick with a high fever the day we left. We were hoping it was just a 24 hour bug and she would be over it after a day of resting in the car. That wasn't the case. After another day of fever hovering at 102-103, we took her to the urgent care clinic. She had a very advanced UTI - probably from holding her potty so much during the Yellowstone trip. The doctors were concerned that the infection had spread to her kidneys. We were given strong antibiotics and told to force fluids down her and make her go potty frequently, plus watch her very carefully and take her to the hopsital immediately if she didn't improve.

While we waited for Annie's prescription to be filled, we took the kids to the park. Joey slept with Annie in the car. Tommy and Lily were happy to get outside after being stuck in the clinic all morning. It took all day to get in to a doctor and finally get the prescription filled, but we're so glad we did. Things could have been really bad for Annie if we had waited another day or two.

 Daddy and Papa did some training exercises that Friday while we were taking care of Annie. The guys were getting so excited about their Rainier climb. But after looking at the weather forecast and thinking long and hard about it, they decided it would be better to climb Mt. Adams instead. Jeremy was really bummed, but he was happy for the opportunity to summit something, rather than attempt Rainier and have to turn back due to weather.

On Saturday we took the kids out for a day of adventure. We drove to Skykomish to visit the railroad museum - it has scale model trains that can be ridden. We stopped at Sultan Bakery on the way.

Four kids is the perfect amount to have when you're with grandparents - there's an adult for each child. It made the day a breeze. Poor Annie was only on day two of antibiotics. She was worn out, but she was a trooper. Breakfast was fun. That little bakery is always crowded and you have to exit the building to access the restrooms. The kids loved it.

 Tommy was in train heaven in Skykomish. The models are so fun to watch and ride. All the people there are volunteers and train enthusiasts. They love talking about the trains and the history of the railroads in the area.

 After going on a couple of rides, we went inside the little museum. We learned about how churches would send out missionaries and pastors in train cars which were used as temporary churches until enough members could be found in an area to build a real church.

 The big kids liked ringing the big bell.

 The kids also got to see an old typewriter and telegraph. Lily liked the morse code chart and tried making some words on the telegraph.

After all the train fun we made the drive to Carnation to visit Remlinger Farms. It is famous for the berries and products they put out. We had a wonderful day there.

Job number one was to get some lunch. Next time, we will pack a lunch. The food was overpriced, the eating area was crowded and not very clean, we waited a long time for our food too. It would have been easier and more relaxing to just eat a picnic lunch outside - we'll do that next time.

Tommy didn't mind waiting for lunch. He got to play with the train tables.

Annie wanted to stop at every photo spot and take a picture. She's such a ham.

The girls wanted to ride horses. So we waited for almost an hour in line to ride one. Lily's horse was named Strawberry. She had a great ride and said it was worth the wait.

Annie got to ride a little pony named Pumpkin. She giggled nervously the entire ride, and was sad to get off when it was over.

Tommy got tired of waiting for the horses so we tried some kiddie rides. The train and little airplanes were a hit.

The girls even got a chance to ride before we left to see the rest of the park.

The favorite of the day was these little canoes. There was no line and they were mostly in the shade. The kids got to ride them over and over again.

Tommy wouldn't keep his hands in the boat. We're glad he didn't get his fingers smashed.

Eventually we got the kids to try out the big train ride. It was a pretty ride through the trees. Tommy liked the train whistle.

Annie was pretty tired by this point in the day. She was only on day two of her antibiotics and was still worn down from her infection. While Daddy, Papa, Lily and Tommy rode a roller coaster, Annie and I tried a gentler pumpkin ride.

Before we knew it, the park was closing! We didn't get a chance to see everything. Next time we will come earlier in the day and pack our own food. We bought a flat of raspberries on our way out and the kids had them half eaten by the time we got back to Puna's house.

We had a relaxing Sunday. After church we had an early birthday celebration for Daddy and played outside.

Annie was still not feeling great. We probably wore her out the day before. Joey loved watching Tommy and Lily blow bubbles.

Can't believe Daddy is 39 already. The years are on fast forward now that we have children. We bought a yummy blueberry pie at Remlinger Farms. Easiest birthday "cake" I've ever made for him.

Lily decided she was ready to get her loose tooth pulled because it was hurting. Good thing we know a good dentist! With a headlamp and a few improvised tools, Papa got the tooth out. Lily couldn't wait to get home and tell her friends that her grandpa pulled out her tooth!

Papa saved the day! Lily sat up and fell out of bed when the Tooth Fairy came to collect her tooth. The Fairy helped Lily back into bed, took, the tooth, and left a dollar. The next morning Lily didn't remember anything about falling out of bed. Whew!

Tommy enjoyed a lazy morning at Puna and Papa's, covering himself with stickers.

I'll let Jeremy fill in the story of climbing the mountain......

It was strange to be apart on the 4th of July. We've been together for every 4th of July since we were engaged. In the morning Puna and Mommy took the kids to the stake center for a patriotic program and pancake breakfast. It was chilly. We hadn't packed jackets and we all got cold sitting on the dewy grass in our sandals and shorts.  After breakfast we went to see Finding Dory.

I'm sure it was a cute movie. I only saw about 20 minutes of it. The rest of the time I was wandering the lobby or sitting in the car with Joey.

I guess he just needed some Mommy one-on-one time because he was happy as could be to just sit in the car with me.

After the movie, we made our way to Buckley and spent the afternoon with Sue and Dusty. Danielle and her family were up visiting - funny that we live in the same state now, but usually see each other when we're both in Washington.

I remember so many 4th of July holidays that involved rain as a child. This year, the weather was perfect, warm and beautiful. We loved playing in Sue and Dusty's yard.

Eden and Joey

All of us in our red, white, and blue!

Lighting fireworks

The kids always have so much fun together. I wish we lived closer to our family!

After a fun afternoon of playing, plus seeing a movie earlier in the day, we were tired. The kids didn't even miss doing fireworks that night - we all just went to bed early. 

The guys were a little late getting back from the mountain so we took the kids to Red Robin to help us pass the time. Joey was finally old enough to try the french fries. He loved them! Puna let each of the kids have a computer console. They loved it, it was one of the quietest dinners I've ever had with them. Good thing we don't have computers like this at home, they would never speak to us.

He needs to grow some more teeth so he can expand his food options!

A big favorite reason to stay at Puna and Papa's house is the giant bath tub. We let everyone get in together for a little while. So much splashing, singing, and playing! Lily is getting old enough to need her own bath time so this was probably the last time the kids will all have a bath together.

What a relief to see Annie doing better by the time we left for home!

The drive is so long! Lily tried out a sidewinder dance move at one of the rest stops.

Joey loved getting out to walk and crawl every chance he got.

In between stops, we bribed him with Cheetos to keep him happy.

Unfortunately, Cheetos don't work on Tommy anymore. He was a sourpuss most of the day.

He was so happy to be home with his friends again.

Daddy and Joey had some fun using selfie mode on the phone during church. Joey is at that difficult age of being too young for nursery, but too loud and mobile for Sunday School. Daddy is a trooper and keeps Joey entertained every week so Mommy can serve in Primary.

Our little bakers made snickerdoodles for the family after church. Tommy is really good at rolling the dough in sugar and placing the cookies on the pan.

They were a good team. Great job guys!

Puna surprised us with a visit and took the kids school shopping. Mommy hates shopping so it was a welcome treat to have Puna do it for me.

We tried to take the kids for a night at the waterpark while Puna was here, but it was rented out for a private party. Bummer! To ease the disappointment we visited the carousel at Porter Park and bought cotton candy.

Then Puna really brightened everyone's spirits with a trip to Kiwi Loco for some frozen yogurt. See how much Joey loved it?

I often find movies and photos of the kids LEGO projects. Here are some of my favorites from July.

Look at those cuties playing in bed together. I love Tommy's raspberry jam face. It's his go-to look right now.

Joey is old enough for popsicles and he loves them. They make teething a little easier.

Annie figured out how to blow bubbles with gum. Whooeee was that an exciting day! She made me text a picture to her grandparents to show them and got congratulatory phone calls back from Grammy and Puna. That totally made her day.

Soccer has been so fun this summer. The weather has been milder than last year's season which helps a lot. Annie still twirls up and down the field and doesn't quite know what to do with the ball once she gets possession. But she says she loves it.

She got a turn to play goalie and did very well. Lots of blocks and saves, and a little bit of coaching form Daddy.

Great job Annie!

Not to be outdone by her sister who learned to blow bubbles, Lily learned to tie her shoes! She has been practicing and getting tips from friends for a while. But it finally clicked this month. She loves to tie and untie and retie her shoes every chance she gets.

I heard the boys giggling one morning and caught Tommy drawing on Joey with a marker. At least it was washable and came right off. Joey actually liked it. Maybe it tickles.

Our picky eater still loves fresh raspberries. Thank goodness. They are so nutritious and we grow a lot of them. Tommy is a big helper at picking time. And he loves to be the first to eat the daily harvest.

The kids have been wanting to go camping all summer, but it is hard to get away and pack up four kids for just a night or two. We compromised and told them we would camp by the lake in the backyard. We filled up the kiddie pool and called it our lake. We built a fire and slept in the tent. Actually, Joey slept in the house, but we let him play with us for a while.

I think we'll camp like this every summer.

You know it has been a fun filled day when you're too tired to finish chewing your chicken nuggets. He fell asleep with cheeks full of food. That's true exhaustion - can't even finish chewing and swallowing.

The girls got some new warm up suits for dance and gymnastics days. They wanted to wear them and put on a show for me. We turned on their favorite songs and they danced and sang for me. The boys got in on it too. Great way to spend the morning.

Tommy had his first dental check up. We thought he might have a hard time so we only scheduled a play in the chair, count teeth, and meet the dentist visit. But he fell in love with the ceiling mounted television and totally let the hygienist get a quick cleaning done too. Good job Bubba!

Our neighborhood got together for Family Home Evening at the water park. We were so busy keeping track of all four kids that I couldn't take many pictures. We got a cheap pizza and met Daddy at the park after work. It was one of our best Family Nights.

We lost power for a few hours one night. The kids were bored. We started a family berry picking contest. The winner would receive one dollar. Thank goodness they're young enough to be motivated by a buck. We got enough berries for three batches of jam, plus extra for eating. Lily won. Annie was sure Lily cheated somehow.

We saw a cute idea on Pinterest to build ice palaces. Lily colored some water blue with food coloring and filled up a bunch of different cups and containers and we froze them overnight. The next day we invited friends over to build. It was fun. The blocks of ice didn't stack well because the ice wasn't perfectly flat, but we had fun trying.

Tommy and his buddy Kamden splashing away.

This summer the kids have to do activities and jobs to earn screen time. One requirement is 30 minutes of exercise. Annie's favorite exercise is to wear my headphones and dance. She's got moves.

We got hit with a heat wave and decided to escape to the lake to cool off. I love that Joey is doing a pouty face super model pose in his picture.

The girls got brave swimming with their friend Claire.

Daddy helped the boys build a lagoon and some sand castles.

Lily and Claire covered Annie in sand and tried to make a mermaid tail and seashells. Annie said it was relaxing but she got hot under all the sand.

It was a perfect day at the lake. No sunburns, lots of swimming, and Daddy got to come with us! Couldn't ask for more.

We did another lazy parents camping "trip" with the kids. We went to the neighbors' house to roast marshmallows and then went back to our yard for a night in the tent.

I am not a fan of summer, but I do love the beautiful golden nights.

Joey didn't want marshmallows but he did love the graham crackers. Tommy wanted to toast the marshmallows, but he was only interested in eating the chocolate.

Another successful night camping in the tent. Joey slept inside the house and the rest of us camped out. Next year we'll let Joey try it too.

Before we knew it, July was almost over and it was time to celebrate Pioneer Day. Our stake puts on a huge fun run, breakfast, and Primary parade every year. It's a lot of work, but our kids love it. this year we skipped the running part and just showed up for the parade and breakfast.

I turned our stroller into a covered wagon with a box, some shipping cushions, and white contact paper. Joey loved his wagon - for about 5 minutes. Then he wanted out.

Hardly any kids from our ward showed up this year. We usually have 20-30 and this year we had less than 10. So Lily and Annie got to hold the banner for the parade.

Tommy didn't want to be photographed. Joey was practicing saying "This is the place!"

This was the first year we could attend as a family. Daddy wasn't stuck with coordinating grills and cooking duty. He was released from his calling as High Priest group leader-after three years of doing this huge breakfast-and the year he got released, they finally gave the cooking job to another ward.

One of our favorite dinners in the summer is quesadillas with agua fresca de melon. We put lots of fresh lime juice in the drink. We let Joey try a lime because he was interested in them. He was not a fan!

All the moms on our street coordinated a day at the splash park and it was a blast. All the kids had fun playing together and were so well behaved.

Tommy got brave enough to try a few of the fountains and he was hooked. Hopefully next summer, he'll be brave enough to jump right in.

The water is very cold so the girls had to lay on the concrete to warm up every few minutes.

Tommy was brave and even tried the splashy water slides - peer pressure was a big motivator. Maybe we should have a friend move in to help him get potty trained! Joey was tough to keep track of. He loved wandering the water features and getting close to everything, but not actually getting wet.

I let the girls buy some cotton candy. We discovered that the candy sticks to our wet skin. Annie got a really good mustache! Lily gave herself cotton mouth.

While taking a break from the cold water, Lily discovered she could climb the umbrella poles. Annie tried to follow but couldn't master the technique. It's hard to be a little sister sometimes.

All in all it was a fantastic way to spend the afternoon with a lot of friends from our street.

Tommy tends to follow Mommy around during the day and be my buddy. He loves to help in the kitchen and do silly things to make me laugh. When he is in the mood to be joyful - it it very contagious.

For their exercise minutes the girls tried stuffed animal races up and down the hallway. I think we laughed for almost an hour. And of course the boys had to try too.

Annie is getting really good at writing her name, we just need to encourage her to use paper. Doors and walls are marked with her tag. At least we know exactly who did it. She's not creative enough to try and write another name so someone else gets the blame....or the clean up job.

These boys just make life more fun!

Since the Rainier trip was derailed, the guys started making plans for another climb in August. To keep his training up, Jeremy hiked Table Rock again. This time he brought Brady. Brady didn't bring enough water or food for such a long and strenuous hike.

Luckily Jeremy had extra fluids because he was using water bottles as weight for his pack. Even with the water Jeremy had, Brady still cramped up and had some muscle and stomach discomfort. But overall they both said it was a good hike. Crazy guys!

Tommy has been in a goggle wearing mood too. It is a little surprising to turn around and see two large purple eyes staring at me.

We had a fun recipe exchange in our ward. It was supposed to be for the entire Relief Society, and only five of us showed up. At least the few who came are my friends. It was great to visit and relax on a gorgeous summer night. That sums up July. Only one month left of our summer vacation - I'm still not sure if that's a good thing or a sad thing.