utah for a weekend

A couple of weeks after we welcomed JJ, Cori and Grace took a trip to Utah. Cori ran the Spartan Beast in Soldier Hollow with some of his family, and Grace got to spend a couple of days in the luxurious company of others of our family there. She and her cousins built hammocks in the bunk bed (with the permission and help of her Aunt Brittany). They actually slept in them! The weekend they were there, Elk Ridge had its Independence Day celebration. They started bright and early with a 1 mile fun run.

Gorgeous Elk Ridge sunrise... Aunt Brittany was sweet and studly enough to run with the kids. Grace loved every minute of her weekend there. She hung out with Grandma Sandy and Papa Ray at the fair that followed while Cori and the crew ran their race up north.

breakfast at the firehouse

games, and more games

(Thanks, Grandma Sandy for the pictures!)

Meanwhile at Soldier Hollow, these guys were getting signed in. This particular Spartan Beast was a 13 mile course with some 20+ obstacles. Here is the posse. Cory, Brett, Tiffany, Randy, and Cory. All shiny and clean. They did a great job. They stuck together and finished up in about 4.5 hours. Randy finished 3rd in his age group- way to go Dad!

Afterwords, they were not so shiny and clean, but I think their smiles were a little bigger. Once they had crossed the finish line, they went back and took a few pictures of some of the obstacles.

They are already talking about which Spartan race(s) they want to do next year. Something to look forward to...

yesterday...

We are taking things a day at a time around here. I think the change is finally catching up with Eden. Poor girl is a bit sensitive lately. We had a contest to see who could make the saddest faces. Grant could only muster a bunch of smiles and one angry face. Grace had to use her hands for help. JJ was too busy looking out the window. Eden won, which made her happy.

baby jj

We have had him home for nearly a month. And for nearly a month, with many thanks to completely generous and thoughtful friends and family, I have done little but rest and take care of him. It almost makes me feel like we could do this again... almost.

Jeffery Jack was born on a balmy Phoenix day in the middle of June. He was 8 pounds, 1 once and 21 inches long. Everything went perfectly well at the hospital, so well that we came home a day earlier than usual. JJ is a super easy baby. He nurses well - when I can get him to stay awake - and sleeps well during the day and even better at night. We are spoiling him with attention and loving it. There are always arms at the ready to hold and rock him.

My sweet mom stayed with us for two weeks. This sacrifice on her part was further heightened by the fact that she then drove with me and the three youngest kids to Tahoe for a 4th of July getaway making a total of three consecutive weeks of keeping children busy and taken care of. We've been struggling through Grammy detox this week... It was wonderful having her here with us and made it possible for us to keep up with everything while I was recovering. I got to go to Grace's last swim meet, and watch Grant at his last swim lesson. And everyone had lots to do during the day. Grammy brought sewing projects, hand bells, and other things to do. She took them to their summer movies and they went shopping at the book store. And she did puzzles over and over again with Eden every day.

Meanwhile, this guy has been busy doing all the things newborns do. We are so grateful JJ was born in June. Having him in the middle of our summer break has proven to be impeccable timing. We finished up with all our summer business just as he came into the world. And it is a blessing now not having much to rush around and do.

outside

For all my fretting after the big chill this winter, our yards have come back just fine. Cori had just about decided against planting a garden this year, but we are so glad he did. May was also unseasonably cool (relatively speaking - we only had one or two triple-digit days) which gave the garden and the chopped back yard foliage a great chance to fill in.

The lemon tree actually set fruit this year. I can't wait!

Our produce count has already exceeded that of last years. We have quite a few tomatoes these days- lots of salsa, bruschetta, and BLTs. Ah, summer!

the quick holiday weekend

My dad got to go to Texas to be a part of the recent vote made by the Boy Scouts organization. My mother will never miss an opportunity to visit her motherland and accompanied him. They built a little 48 hour layover in Phoenix into their trip home. We had looked around for some activities or outings to divert us and, in the end, stayed at home. We swam, played games, watched movies, and took it easy. Dad took us out to dinner one night. And it was great having them around on Sunday to help with the busy schedule that usually ensues. Dad also sang in our ward choir for our ward conference. Grammie Marla will be back with us in a week. Baby time!