Bear Creek

We went camping at Bear Creek by Palisades Reservoir with my parents this weekend. It sure makes it nice to camp with them because they have such a nice trailer for the kids (oh, and my parents are fun too!) We were en route to camp thursday night........but our neon broke down. Not sure what's wrong. Left us stranded and my parents had to call their old bishop, got ahold of his recently RM son, picked me and the kids up to take us to my parents' place while Curt waited at the car for my parents to drive the truck down from the camp to tow him. WHAT an ORDEAL! and a major bummer. We've been saving really hard so that hopefully we'll have enough to make a good down payment on a house when we get where we're going (wherever that is) when Curt graduates, but it looks like we'll have to dip into that to get a good car. :( So we "camped" at my parents' thursday night and didn't head up to bear creek until friday morning in our toyota. I think we had plenty of fun anyway, and even helped us forget about our loser of a car.

Miss Hailey all smiles.

and fat

First thing Friday morning we went fishing, but I didn't take my camera for that because I had Matthew with me with his pole.

But then we came back to the camp and had some fun swimming while Matthew napped and Hailey played with Grandma (she was SUPPOSED to nap to).

Then that evening while my parents were having some rafting fun and graciously cooking us dinner Curt and I took the kids on a little hike up Bear Creek trail. It is the nicest and best maintained trail I have ever been on. Of course we only went maybe a little more than a mile up it before the mosquitoes got too crazy, we got too hot and too hungry and had to turn back.

Matthew hiked the best when he was in the lead. He'd turn around and say "Follow me! Catch up!"

Early early saturday morning my dad and curt got up while the rest of us snoozed and they went fishing again, but once they got back and got some descent breakfast in them (and Hailey took a little snooze with daddy) we took my parents and the kids back up the trail and fished the creek for a while.

Matthew had fun reeling in a few fish of his own.

Some of you might not know it but I'm actually a flyfisherwoman. Yup. I have been since I was 13 but I haven't really had time to fish much the last 3 years! Thanks to the moby wrap, my mom playing with matthew, and Curt relinquishing MY fly pole to me long enough to get a couple of bites; I was able to fish a LITTLE this trip.

And then Matthew took an unpleasant and unwanted dive in the creek.

But only after he got some fishing done.

Hailey is getting so big, and she is such a good camper! my dad said "We're going to make an outdoors woman out of you Hailey!" I don't think that will be hard as she appears to already be just that. I mean, she never really complains, and she's always happy, but she's even HAPPIER when we're camping- if you can imagine that. :)

Thanks for letting us camp with you Mom and Dad, and thanks for putting up with Matthew's LOUD snoring!

Lawn games

Curt "beat the toaster" on 105.5 fm the other day and won us a set of lawn games (also some tickets to the airplane show in IF but we won't be able to go to that so we gave those tickets away). Matthew had absolutely no clue how to play horseshoes or lawn darts and he definitely wouldn't listen to our explanation but he had a blast anyway!

You would think he knew what he was doing with this shot.

who needs rules anyway?

Christmas in July!!

Before Hailey was born I was determined that I did not need a double stroller. "Why would I need a double stroller? Matthew will be big enough to walk and there's no way I'm tough enough to run all the time with BOTH kids!" Well I was very very mistaken. We realized that back on our trip to Las Vegas. Ever since then I have been SEARCHING for a good used double jogger for a descent price. I finally chanced upon one today! Oh I was so lucky! My parents happened to invite me and the kids with them on a grocery trip to Idaho Falls. While we were there I asked if we could just stop by Once Upon a Child (it's a good secondhand children's store). Right out front was this stroller(InStep) so I just had to look and it was only $70!! The cheapest for the nicest that I have found so I bought it. I feel like it's Christmas! I bought it this afternoon and I have already gone on a walk (as a family) and taken the kids running right before bedtime! I KNOW I'm going to use it a ton!

This was my sad but hilarious attempt to take some pictures of the kids. They would not cooperate. Surprised? no.

Matthew is such a wonderful big brother! On our trip to IF today we were loading groceries in the truck and I looked in and caught this moment. Matthew said "Hailey was smiling at me so I holded her hand. She loves me!" and he continued to hold her hand for some time.

Curt was giving the neighbor kids some amusement while getting some major exercise! No one is quite sure who's sled this is...it just kind of showed up in our backyard a few days ago but it has not been neglected since!

These two (Tanner and Leia) are Matthew's "guys." He is always begging to play with them and he likes to look out the window and say "where did my guys go?"

Today was the perfect day for a day of outside fun! We even ate lunch outside. It was warm, but not too hot-a breeze but not windy. We've had lots of free time because poor Hailey has a little case of Bronchitis and has been sleeping much of the day! She's been taking it well, and even seems to enjoy hearing herself talk in her raspy voice. The doctor asked me if she's been fussy and I said "if as in fussy you mean almost cries as much as normal babies, then yes. She's just a very content child!"

Yesterday there was a brush fire out by INL. I guess in just a short time it burned over 30 thousand acres! It made the sky look CRAZY!

Not Quite what I had in Mind...

Although I should not have been surprised...after all, he is a 3 yr old BOY.

Last night it was my turn for lesson for family home evening. We've been trying really hard to do a better job. It's not easy when you only have 2-3 minutes to present a lesson with some spiritual meaning. Matthew's getting better at it too.

So I decided to go off of the Friend and use the picture of the Whole Armor of God they had last month. I got out the Doctrine and Covenants and BRIEFLY read over what each piece of armor resembles. Matthew thought that was interesting. And then we gave him a sword of his own.

"oooh! Look at this!"

"Let's FIGHT dad! 3-2-1 START!" and then he proceeded to hack daddy's sword to pieces. When that was done he raised his arms in the air "I'm the High Cord (score)!!!"

Too much Wii

I hope he got something MEANINGFUL out of that lesson.

Just because she's so pleasant

Hailey is one of those people that makes everyone feel good. I hope she stays that way all of her life. Everyone that spends a minute or more with her is convinced that she is the sweetest and happiest baby they have ever seen! Curt said the other night that he's nervous that she's too good to be true. I have noticed that she looks fake, like a doll, in most of her pictures. I don't do any special editing for them. no more than I do to any other pictures. She's just my little China doll!

That's it

My soccer season is done. We won the championship game tonight 5-0. We were undefeated and we only ever even got scored on just a couple of times!!!! It was fun, and I will miss getting a chance to go play soccer and workout and have fun, but I am glad that it is done.

Hailey ate her first baby foods today: Sweet Potatoes!!! yum! (gag)

She actually did gag after most every bite, but then she'd smile and open her mouth for more! Crazy girly!

We're going to have to get another chair so Matthew can sit with us and turn over the highchair to Hailey! And you know what that means- I can recover it PINK! It's due a recovering...

Can't get enough!

Can't get enough sun that is! We got home from our Bear Lake vacation Sunday night but Curt had Monday off from work, so we decided we wanted more of thems outdoorsies! So we took the kiddos on a hike up the Menan Buttes. It was incredibly fun and the kids were AMAZING especially for how windy it was!!! Matthew hiked like a man and Hailey thoroughly enjoyed the scenery until she fell asleep :) It was a MUCH longer hike than we expected, but still fun!

Curt did have to put Matthew on his shoulders a few times, but mostly because we were nervous about snakes as we cut across the middle of the volcano to meet up with the trail.

We had to take a little juice and granola bar break :)

Afterwards Curt drove us around the backside to see this elk ranch. The bulls were huge.

Hailey's hair is officially thick enough to hold clippies and even big flowers without a headband!!!

Today we had a "picnic" with Grandma and Grandpa. It was loads of fun! I made grilled cheese sandwiches and Grandma got out the kiddie pool and filled it with warm water! :) that's about the only way we can get Matthew to swim! sensitive little tyke.

Flexing his muscles for us. Show off.

This picture looks incriminating, but Matthew wasn't really squirting Hailey. He wanted to.....but he didn't.

Hailey thought it was just grand in that pool. I bet grandma had to really hold her down to keep her from floating right up and away with all of that buoyant fat!!!

Bear Lake 4th of July 2010

Every year for the 4th of July we go to Bear Lake and camp for a few days. I think this year was the most fun I've ever had there! even with a 5 month old!

We also always go fishing at Bloomington Lake just above Bear Lake.

Here's our first day at the lake. It was kind of pitiful weather! Friday was really windy and Saturday was pretty cold! I got more sun sitting around the trailer on Sunday after church than I did either of the days at the beach!!!

Aunt Vicky introduced SAND to Hailey.

The boys got to do some fishing by themselves too, so we girls took the kids shopping in Montpellier and then to the park. That was definitely the craziest and funniest part of the trip for me! Those little cousins, all in a store together = MADNESS!

The oldest and the youngest of my parents' grandchildren. Such gorgeous girls, and I can tell they're going to be great friends! :)

we always go to the Paris, Idaho parade while we're there

Matthew waved so seriously to Smokey the Bear as long as he could see him! It was so funny!!!

And he "whistled" at the princesses

Hailey just chilled with daddy and she was all smiles as usual.

Sunday we spent most of the day relaxing at the trailer, but we also took a drive to the East beach and gathered rocks

Matthew was tired from the whole trip!

Hailey was such a trooper the whole time!!

We had so much fun!!!!!