Organizing, A Breakdown

I decided to hold off on the photos project until January and started tackling the decluttering/cleaning that I've been putting off. It's funny how I think it'll be terrible, but once I get started, I enjoy the process and results. So far, I've done the laundry room shelves, spice racks, misc. technology/cords, girls' bedroom, and bookcases. Today, I'm tackling the TV stand since it's really dusty and has a big pile of DVDs that need to be sorted through. I have a lot more to do, but those things are the ones that have been bugging me for a while. I wish everything could stay clean and organized in the first place, but that's just not how it works.

I had a mini breakdown a few days ago. This time of year is just hard, and I've felt like all the "Christmas magic" has been from my hard work with very little help from any of my family members. Over the years, I've tried to scale back Christmas as much as possible, but it doesn't change the fact that I have a big family, lots of presents to buy and meals to make, family to visit (but never all of them since they live so far apart) and a little bit of seasonal depression to go with it.

On the bright side, there are only 2 days of school before we get a break. I look forward to sleeping in. I've also received a couple of small gifts with thoughtful notes in the past week. Those are my favorite. I keep those little notes forever (in Google Drive) because it's rare to get anything handwritten anymore. I was sick on Thanksgiving and hardly remember the meal due to brain fog, but I made a simple turkey dinner this week so we could have turkey pot pie. Eating that yesterday reminded me of helping my mom make pot pies the day after Thanksgiving for so many years. It was always one of my favorite meals and is still the BEST way to eat turkey leftovers. No one will change my mind on this. We also opened our NC family presents and played one of the new board games, Cascadia. I'm still nervous about travel since we'll be taking the Yukon. It's just not as reliable or comfortable as the van, but it has the snow tires just in case. It will be a good Christmas. I'll still be glad when it's over.

Mom's Visit

Thursday, I picked up Mom from the Vernal airport in the afternoon. We went to the ward party that night, which was fun.

Friday morning, Mom and I went to the temple, then Deseret Book and Distribution. It took a little longer than expected, but we got home in time to spend 3 hours grinding elk meat with the boys. Joseph, Kenny, and I had a good system going. I chopped, Kenny ground, and Joseph wrapped. We completed 45 lbs. of meat. I made some dinner and we watched a show after the kids went to bed. James butchered the last quarter of elk.

Saturday after breakfast, the boys and I finished grinding all the elk. We ended up doing about 60 lbs. for Devin and 25 for us. With all the roasts and steaks we have, we got about 100 lbs. of meat. If we didn't plan on giving any away, that would last almost a year since we still have some deer left as well. It made for a very busy week, but it was good all the same. Saturday afternoon around 4, the missionaries came for dinner. (That's when their mission president wants them to come.) It was a little weird to eat that early, but we had delicious elk steaks cooked sous vide and finished by James, potatoes, and squash.

Sunday, everything went well with the Temple and Priesthood Prep meeting. I'd been stressing about it, of course, but it turned out good even though the music went a few minutes over.

Monday, I went on a walk with Mom. We went to see Wish for FHE. It was a cute movie, definitely a classic Disney plotline and FULL of Easter eggs. I'd watch it again. I delivered several loaves of bread to ministering families after we got back.

Tuesday, Mom and I went on another walk. We helped with the younger girls' activity group. Only 1 showed up, but we had fun doing quilts and chatting with the other ladies.

Wednesday, I took Joseph to the orthodontist while Mom went on a walk and got packed up. I dropped her off at the airport in the afternoon and immediately felt sad for the rest of the day. I made some Chex mix that didn't turn out perfect, so that made me feel annoyed AND sad. She made it home safely, though, we are missing her. It had been over 3 years since she visited last. Why does my family have to live so far away?

Today, I'm volunteering at the school (changed from Tuesday for this week). I'll hopefully finish the newest Sanderson book so the boys can get started on it. I had to cancel our playdate with the Nielsons since Samantha has a bit of a cough and they have tiny twins right now. I hate that we're not 100% healthy yet. Everyone else is fine except for Samantha, and this cough has lingered for quite a while.

As for projects, I'm not sure if I'm going to do some deep cleaning/decluttering that I've been putting off or start on the photos project. Maybe I'll do both at the same time. Haha. This house isn't too bad, but it lacks storage space and has a few problem areas that I need to attend to. I guess I have enough time before Christmas to get that all done if I want. We will see.

Elk

James went hunting on Friday with Joseph but didn't have any luck. Saturday was a different story, though. He shot an elk fairly early in the morning, but it was a ways from the road. That meant leaving the kids at the car for a while, so he drove them back to the house, then went back to Devin and the elk, almost a 2 hour drive each way. They gutted it, quartered it, and got it back to the car. By the time they got back, it was dinner time. I hadn't been feeling amazing thanks to the stupid cold I got over Thanksgiving, but Joseph and Kenny were great at keeping track of all the kids while I got some rest. James and I went out for dinner since I was feeling a little better.

The butchering started on Monday, and James finished one quarter. Tuesday, Devin came over to help butcher more, and they got 2 quarters done. Wednesday, I chopped up the meat for hamburger and made sure it was clean. I ground all the hamburger we have so far, 17 pounds. The plan is to finish butchering the last quarter and grind all of Devin's by Saturday night. I calculated that I can cut, grind, and package 6 pounds of meat in 1 hour when working alone. I'll have help when we do Devin's, but I don't know how much we'll be grinding yet either. I think Saturday night is still reasonable.

Mom is coming to visit today! She gets in this afternoon. It'll be fun to go to the ward party with her.

So far, we have more than enough elk (and still some deer) so that we won't have to buy beef for a year. I'm really grateful, even though it's been a ton of work. We will have spent probably 12 hours each after getting the animal home. That's not counting the stuff we'll process for Devin.

I still can't believe how busy I've been since the kids went back to school. Things were just about to slow down when we got this elk. Hopefully after we're done with it, I can start sorting through my in-laws' old pictures to scan. I'm looking forward to seeing pictures of James from ages 10-18 because I never really have.

Thanksgiving, Sick, Canning, Christmas Season

The Hunger Games movie was good, though sad. It's hard to see a villain become more evil as time goes on.

I can't remember a lot of the past 2 weeks because we've still been sick. One cold turned into another over Thanksgiving break. I know this because the other had lasted about 2 weeks, then I started over with a sore throat and a lot of fatigue. Our entire break was spent trying to get enough rest while we were there. Because of other family events, it was more possible than usual. I didn't go shopping or play any board games either. Even sitting through the Thanksgiving meal was hard because of the fatigue. We still had a good time visiting with family, though, and I'm glad we went.

We returned home on Sunday to 2 inches of snow, our very first of the season. It was too powdery for a snowman, but there's supposed to be more today.

Not too much has happened this week. I got the rock chip fixed on the van and finally finished canning! Ashley is coming over soon to learn how to do spaghetti sauce. I did apple sauce and some meals in jars on Tuesday. My final count for the season is 144 jars! That's more than double of what I normally do.

I feel like I'm ready to start Christmas-y things. We put up our tree and train on Monday. I've started buying some presents on Amazon as well. Hopefully I can have all the shopping done by the end of next week. I'm still trying to keep things as simple as possible. Not shopping in person is one of the ways I save myself some stress. :)

Presentation, Recovery

Everything went well with the presentation, but that didn't stop me from losing sleep over it and being in a cold sweat all of Sunday. I think I got pretty dehydrated because I was extremely thirsty for the next 2 days and even had to resort to Gatorade to start feeling normal again. I've recovered about 90% now, but I had to spend a lot of time resting the past few days, to the point of getting super bored. I still feel a little lightheaded occasionally, but I'm doing so much better. I cancelled everything on Tuesday just to be safe, but I was feeling well enough to go to the Relief Society activity last night. We made thankful trees, and they turned out really cute.

I'm so happy that it's raining today because IT'S NOT SNOW! We still haven't had a single flake of snow and daytime temps are in the low 50s. I couldn't be happier. Well, there could still be more daylight, but I can't change that.

Today I'm going to see the new Hunger Games movie with the boys. I hope it's good!

We had a presidency meeting earlier this week, and it went well. There's nothing we haven't done before since we've been in there for a year now. I'm really happy that I have all the notes and things from last year, so nothing feels like a big deal. Last year at this point, I was SO stressed because I didn't have a lot of resources to use to figure out what the heck I was supposed to be doing. I lost a ton of sleep over it. Not this time! I'm going to keep Christmas as simple as possible for the Primary and for my family. The traditions that take too much time, money, or stress are going to go!

Time Change, November Glimmers

The time change has been just as hard as I thought. I'm still tired, and it's Thursday. I've tried to get enough sleep, but that's easier said than done. Plus, it's the season of being "kinda sick" (meaning, just having a headache and fatigue), so I don't know which thing is more of a factor today. Maybe both are.

I stressed about it a ton, but we had our first practice for the Primary program on Sunday. It was a great success! Yes, there are some things to iron out, but we made it through the entire thing, which is a miracle. It went a lot more smoothly than I thought it would.

I made spaghetti sauce on Monday. 1 more batch of sauce to go before I finish with the tomatoes! I'm still waiting on the rest to ripen. I'm not done with canning yet because apples will be coming my way from my in-laws. Maybe by December?

I met my friend's twin babies on Tuesday. They are the tiniest babies I've ever held! I can't even imagine having 2 newborns at the same time.

I've been struggling with November a little. Suddenly, it's dark and cold. I'm trying to find the "glimmers" in this month, though. I know it's important to stay in "fall/Thanksgiving mode" and not start anything relating to Christmas because it makes me feel rushed and stressed. It's already been so much better than November of last year. We cleaned up the yard on Saturday, and the kids had a wonderful time playing with their friends in the nice weather. It hasn't snowed yet, and no one has died either. Last year, we had a record-breaking amount of snow and lost 4 relatives. We were also constantly sick. This year has already been a lot better in so many ways.

I'm still stressing about the Primary program, but not as much. The main planning is done, and it's going to happen on Sunday no matter what. I feel a lot better about it. I don't regret all the organization I've done for the Primary in the last year. It's one of my greatest strengths, and I've had lots of opportunities to use it. By Sunday, we will have done everything at least once, so I already know what to expect from here on out (theoretically).

One thing I'm glad I started doing a few years ago in the fall: rereading a favorite book series and doing a movie marathon (not necessarily the same series). As I get stressed about the cold, dark, and holidays, it's nice to revisit something comforting and familiar. I read the Hunger Games and have almost finished all the movies with the boys. I'm also starting The Stormlight Archive again, and I love it even more this time. Thank you, Brandon Sanderson, for being the best author ever.

Dad's Visit, Halloween

I spent Friday morning grinding up deer meat. We ended up with about 30 pounds of meat, which is a lot when translated into current beef prices. Dad visited us on Friday and Saturday. We of course had to get some KFC for dinner. We also tried some of the deer, and it was delicious, not very gamey at all. It's probably because James got a young deer, butchered it as quickly as possible, and didn't overcook it. It was especially tasty with butter and some fresh herbs.

Saturday night, we went to the Jensen Pumpkin Festival. It was cold, but fun.

I went to Halloween parties for both Samantha and Lewis. Everything went well with the Trunk or Treat on Tuesday. It got a little chilly, but we had the right amount of pizza and treat bags. The kids are still working on their candy. I hope it's gone by Saturday because they've been grumpier and leaving candy wrappers on the floor. I'm always glad when Halloween's over. I don't hate it, but it's not my favorite either.

James and I went on a date yesterday to see where he shot his deer. It was good, but I got kind of carsick after a while. The view from Little Mountain was especially beautiful at sunset.

Today hasn't been the best so far. I took Joseph to the orthodontist, and while I was at the gas station, the power steering stopped working in the G6. I drove it home after the ortho to switch it out, but the Yukon had a completely flat tire so I couldn't. Ugh. Luckily, the power steering started working again. I got my book at the library and stopped at Smith's for sales. I didn't have much luck there, but I got Katie her pomegranates there were on sale.

I'm not looking forward to the time change this weekend. The stuff I love about fall has come to an end, and now it's just cold and dark.

Katie's 10th Birthday, Deer

It's been another busy week. I have lots of green tomatoes in the living room, and I started a batch of sauce that I'll likely finish on Saturday. Hopefully, the rest will ripen in the next few weeks, or at least before Thanksgiving. I had to buy more jars again, and I bet I'll use most of them.

We celebrated Katie's 10th birthday on Tuesday since she was hunting with James on Monday. She loves her presents, and I made dirt and worms for her dessert. It was a huge hit, and I'm sad it's gone. Putting homemade ice cream and homemade pudding together was a delicious idea. She had also requested tamales for dinner. I wasn't crazy about how they turned out, so I'll use beef next time and not chicken.

James went hunting on Monday with Devin, and on Wednesday, he shot a deer! He field dressed it, skinned it in the yard, and then butchered it with Devin. Friday, we will turn the scraps into burger. So far, we have over 30 pounds of meat! I had to squish things in the deep freeze to make room for it. That's a testament to how bountiful this fall has been. I can't believe it's almost Halloween.

The parts for the Primary Sacrament Meeting Presentation are trickling in. I have a lot more confidence now that it's going to go well. The kids' testimonies are so sweet. Everything for the Trunk or Treat is ready to go as well. The kids and I passed out a bunch of invitations yesterday. The biggest downfall will be that the weather's going to be really cold over the next few days. On Halloween, we're going to freeze with a high of only 40. Sad day. Hopefully it's not the end of the mild weather.

I deep cleaned the girls' room for the first time since summer. It was cathartic. I've gotten behind on deep cleaning things since it's been so busy for the past few months. Now if only I could start and finish a book...

Fall Break, Carmel's Wedding

The boys and I started our Hunger Games marathon last Saturday. The weekend wasn't too bad. We took it easy since we knew the next week would be crazy.

Monday, I canned spaghetti sauce and beets for the Binghams. I ended up doing 2 batches in the pressure canner to get it all done. I was disappointed in the beets' final color, but everything sealed.

Tuesday, I left for NC in the early afternoon. I got there really late and spent the night with Myles and Skyla. Skyla and I hung out the next day and did a little shopping to get things for Carmels' bachelorette party. I went over to Christian and Rachel's first to spend some time with them. The party was so much fun, with lots of delicious snacks, facials, and fun company. I got to know Carmel's new sisters-in-law a little bit, and they are awesome.

Thursday, we got up and headed to the state fair. Wow. I last went almost 20 years ago and forgot how fun it was. I went on kiddie rides with Emma and Kaya, the on some adult ones with Mara. We went upside down and all around. My favorite is still the one where they just drop you. The adrenaline rush is amazing. I had a Flamin' Hot corn dog and fried pecan pie, both of which were delicious. After getting ready at Mara's house, we headed to the Taylor Swift movie along with Mom, Grandma, and Carmel. It exceeded my expectations. I had a comfy recliner and they turned it up loud, so it felt like a more comfortable version of being at a concert. I could've done without the swearing, though, but I knew that was coming. The visuals and costumes were absolutely stunning.

Friday, Mara, the girls, and I went to the Benson Museum. It was a fun little place with an old guy who talked my ear off. :) We saw downtown Benson as well and then went back to chill for a little while. After dinner, I left with Ricky to set up for the reception. I stayed as long as I could, then went back to Apex with Carmel since I hadn't see Dad or my grandparents yet.

Saturday was the wedding. It went well, and it was beautiful. The luncheon afterward was delicious too. We had a little time to kill before getting there for the reception. There was a huge turnout and all the tables were filled almost the whole time. Carmel and Matthew look so happy together.

I got up very early to catch a 6:45 flight to Vernal with a 3-hour layover in Denver. Somehow I survived, and now I'm waiting on the rest of my family to get home from Rexburg. I had a wonderful, very busy trip. Now only Nash remains!

Primary, Canning, Conferences, Surgery

Last Thursday ended up working out fine. I took the day off on Friday, no big projects of any kind, so I could regain some sanity. It worked pretty well. Saturday morning, I buckled down and worked on stuff for Primary while James took the kids out for 2 1/2 hours. It was the perfect amount of time to get it all done. We did a little date afterward and had lunch outside in the perfect fall weather.

Sunday, I was the only presidency member in Primary due to illness and travel. 2 of the ladies from the stake helped out, so I survived a really stressful Sunday.

Monday I made spaghetti sauce with meat. This was after babysitting my secretary's boys since her daughter was in the hospital. I went to parent/teacher conferences for the middle schoolers.

I ran a bunch of errands on Tuesday and then finished canning the sauce with the rest of the tomatoes I needed. That night, James and I went on another date to get food and watch a favorite show.

Wednesday morning, I had to run more errands, but I had time to make pepper jelly afterward. It's my first time making it, and it turned out great, about medium spicy. I included some lemon drop peppers from some ward members. Those are SPICY on their own! I went to parent/teacher conferences for all 3 elementary kids. All 5 kids got glowing reviews from their teachers, which is always nice.

Today, I got up early to drive Joseph to his surgery. It didn't take long, I paid it off, and his mouth didn't hurt too much afterward. We got food and milkshakes at Dairy Keen and got home around 4. I'm so tired, but I'm glad everything went well. Joseph wasn't too weird afterward; he just kept on asking the same questions over and over as he mumbled though the gauze.

I have more Primary stuff to do this weekend, but I should sleep better knowing that the surgery is out of the way. We don't even have to do a follow-up since we live so far away.

I just need to stay awake during the stake Primary leadership meeting tonight.

Rash, Conference, More Canning and Stress

We had a playdate with the Abarcas on Friday. Samantha ended up with a weird rash on her legs, which made me really worried. After consulting Rex, we gave her Benadryl and rubbed on some calamine lotion. It was completely gone after a couple of days. I have no idea what she had a reaction to, maybe something outside?

We had a decent General Conference weekend. I didn't pay attention as well as I should have, but I'm going to make a goal to reread all the talks this time. I've let that habit slip since being called to Primary, but I need to study the Gospel more than ever since I don't get a lesson on Sundays. The kids and I put together the treat bags for the Trunk or Treat.

Monday, I canned spaghetti sauce with Ana. Though she was late, the timing ended up perfect since I pulled the jars out right as I needed to leave. We decided to get our passports, so I had to pick up kids from the elementary school, run over to the county building, get pictures taken, pay all the fees by check (ugh, haha), and then run to the post office to mail off James's and mine while the county finished the ones for Joseph and Kenny. The plan is to go to Ecuador next summer, and I keep hearing horror stories about passports, so I'm feeling happy about getting them done. Honestly, there's never a good time to drag everyone to a 3:30 appointment anywhere, so I'm glad we got that out of the way.

Tuesday, I volunteered at the school and then canned spaghetti sauce and beets. I also finished the hot sauce. I was feeling pretty overwhelmed after dinner, so James and I went out to get some dessert and a fall candle. It helped cheer me up a bit.

Yesterday, we had a playdate with Navy and got flu shots after dinner. 

Today is packed too. I need to return the scooter that James used off and on for the past week. I have a presidency meeting to plan the Primary program, an orthodontist appointment, a ministering appointment, and sealings at the temple after dinner. A lady in my ward and I are related to the same person, though her relationship is by marriage, so we are going to get that sealing done along with some others.

I'm worried about a lot of stuff, but it helped yesterday when I collected all my notes, said a prayer, and typed up an outline for planning the Primary program. It's going to go fine. My biggest stress is thinking about driving Joseph to Orem next week for dental surgery. It'll be a long day, but it'll all work out. I really wish things would slow down a bit so I have a chance to get bored. That hasn't happened yet!

Broken Foot, FanX, Canning, Braces

It's been such a busy week. James found out on our drive to Salt Lake that he had broken his foot and needed to follow up with the orthopedic doctor. That didn't end up happening until Tuesday, but he has a boot now and is getting around more easily. He wheeled around on a scooter during FanX, and it actually worked really well.

We had an awesome time at FanX with Anna and Joseph. Though we walked a lot, we saw amazing costumes and lots of fun, nerdy things. We all ended up buying fun things too. James got Stormbreaker for only 40 bucks! We returned home exhausted, but happy.

Saturday, the kids had to do school. We went to a baptism for Joseph's friend Tyren, and that was really nice. We then attended a party with the Spanish ward, which had amazing food and dancing.

I was really stressed on Sunday since we had teacher council and I needed to orient some new teachers. It all worked out, though.

Monday and Wednesday, I spent the entire day in the kitchen. I canned salsa, candied jalapenos, spaghetti sauce, beets, and pickles. I also cut up peppers, turnips, and squash to freeze for later and prepped the peppers for hot sauce. It's fermenting on the counter and will be ready in a week. Currently, the counter is clear of all veggies except for a few winter squash and a small bowl of unripe tomatoes. I know there are more coming, though! I had to buy more jars and sprung for a food mill so I can make the process a bit easier when it comes to making sauce. I suspect our first freeze will happen in the next few weeks, and that's when I'll really get inundated with tomatoes.

Joseph has adjusted well to having braces. The first few days hurt a bit, but he was able to figure out how to brush and floss his teeth pretty well. It's a learning curve with eating, but I'm doing my best to make sure we have things he can eat without too much trouble. Halloween may be the biggest challenge yet.

Los Boyle, Salsa, Breaker and Sprain

I went to the temple on Friday despite almost talking myself out of it several times. I'm really glad I went.

Saturday, James took the kids to play in the creek while I read my book. We had the Boyles over for dinner since it was Mexican Independence Day. We didn't realized that the grill was out of gas, but with all the prep on the food, getting more slowed us down by only 20 minutes. We didn't end up eating till almost 8, but it was all delicious.

Devin and his kids came over for lunch and dinner on Sunday since Ana was taking her parents to the airport. We successfully ate the rest of the leftovers, something I'm always glad for.

Monday, I made my first double batch of salsa and got 8 pints. I've done so much canning already that I'm running a little low on jars. I went around the house to find ones that were being used for other purposes and washed those, so that gives me 5 more. I also cut up all the carrots, cucumbers, and squash, which have now been eaten. All I have left (fresh) are a few spaghetti squash and some serrano peppers. My freezer is still very full, and I'm so grateful.

Two crummy things this week: a circuit breaker tripped while I was making dinner, so I had to move everything to the other counter while we tried to fix it. After tithing declaration, James was able to reset it even though it had gotten stuck. We've had no further problems, and I moved the toaster so that won't happen again.

Last night, James sprained (probably) his ankle in a hole in the yard. It's now been filled in, but he's got a swollen ankle that he can't walk on. He went to urgent care last night, but they weren't the most helpful. They took an X-ray but didn't have anyone left to read it, so we don't know for sure if it's just a sprain.

We're supposed to go to FanX tomorrow. We still plan to, just with James in a wheelchair or with one of those scooter thingys. It makes things more complicated than it needs to be. We have been successful at saving money for it too. It's been really hard to not eat out or take any random shopping trips for 6 weeks, but we did it!

Today's a busy one. Joseph gets his braces on, then I have a presidency meeting, then we go to a community carnival after school. Hopefully we have some answers for James soon so we know what we're in for.

Kayaking, Pickles, Kindergarten, Peaches

Lewis went to his first birthday party last Thursday, and he had a great time.

The boys did yard work on Friday so we'd be able to have a relaxing Saturday. We're getting to the point where we don't have to mow every week, and I'm completely fine with that.

Saturday, we went to Jensen with the Murrays and hung out on the Green River and had lunch. I tried kayaking some, but the current was too strong for me to go anywhere. It was really fun to hang out with everyone. When we got home, we watched the new Little Mermaid, and it was pretty good. I wish she still had bright red hair, but that's my only real complaint.

Monday, Ana came over to learn how to make pickles. We did 2 batches and got 20 pints of dill pickle spears. The kitchen was absolutely destroyed for a while and my feet hurt, but it was worth it I think. I didn't end the day in the best mood because I also had to take Samantha to the dentist, but it was fine.

Tuesday, I volunteered in Samantha's Kindergarten class for 2 hours. I spent the whole time cutting things out for Mrs. Batty. It was delightful to listen to all those cute voices. About 1/3 of the kids sing in the bathroom. In the afternoon, Samantha and I went over to Navy's house, which was also nice. We went swimming at the rec center after dinner, so no one really went to bed on time, but it was worth it.

Wednesday, Katie stayed home sick but ended up feeling fine. I peeled and cut up 32 cups of peaches from the 2 boxes I got from Sister Hall. The best ones are in the fridge for eating over the next few days. I took dinner to a family that just had a baby, so peach crisp was part of that.

Today has been the first restful morning in a while. I don't feel all lonely and weird either. It helps that things got worked out with Joseph's math class as of last week, so I'm not getting calls from the counselor every day. I don't currently have any produce to process, at least for another few days. I think the days of squash and cucumbers are over but the tomatoes are coming soon. I'm excited to make more salsa and sauce. We have the ward Harvest Dinner tonight, so that should be fun. I'm using the rest of my (not frozen) zucchini to make a casserole.

Labor Day

Both Kenny and Katie went to birthday parties over the weekend, and Lewis has one today. I wish I knew in advance so I could stock up on a few presents, but oh well. A last-minute trip to the store will have to do.

We ended up not doing anything big on Labor Day. I was still so tired from trying to get used to the school schedule that I wanted a day to take it easy. I spend a lot of time in the kitchen making a batch of tomato sauce, bread, and peach jalapeno jam. The produce on the counter is now at a manageable amount since I also canned 7 quarts of green beans and made salsa on Saturday. I wish we had cold storage for all the winter squash we've been given, but since we don't, I've kept a month's worth on the counter.

Tuesday, we did a playdate with Navy. I then took Joseph to the orthodontist, then quickly made dinner so we could eat before the stake service project at Remember the Maine Park. We helped clear branches and logs off of a trail, and it was really fun! The ice cream at the end didn't hurt either.

Yesterday, I took Lewis to the dentist. James and Joseph did the e-sports club, ate dinner with us, then hurried off to another missionary lesson with Joseph's friend Tyren. James and I squeezed in a few errands once they got back.

Joseph's math class did get sorted out. Hurray! He was able to get started on everything yesterday.

I've been approved to volunteer at the elementary school. Hopefully I'll hear back from Samantha's teacher soon so I can get in there once a week. I've also started exercising again. It's really lonely here in the mornings, but I'm starting to figure things out a little better. The cooking and cleaning still take up quite a bit of time, but I'm trying to figure out how to structure my week so I leave the house sometimes and don't get too lonely or bored. It's been nice to work on things without so many questions from Samantha, but I miss her all the same. She really loves school, though, and she always comes home happy.

I still don't feel that getting a job is the right thing for me to do right now, even though I could squeeze something part-time in. Maybe next year. I feel slightly lost as to what that will be, exactly, but I know I'll figure it out when the timing is right.

Dino-Soar, Nash Visit, Samantha's 5th Birthday, Fall

Dino-Soar Days was pretty fun. James and I went to look at the classic cars, and I sent a few to Dad that I thought he'd like.

Nash came to visit for a few days. It was unexpected, but I guess it was homeless week at BYU, so he needed somewhere to stay after visiting Lars and Emily for a few days. It was decent, but I know my regular schedule is boring for just about anyone except another stay-at-home mom. He and James went hunting a few times, and he had fun doing stuff with the singles ward. I'm still tired, though, because I didn't catch up on sleep over the weekend.

Samantha's first day of school went well. She woke up happy, not even a little nervous, and had a great day at school. Today is her 5th birthday. I've made strawberry ice cream, strawberry shortcake, and grits casserole. She's also getting a matching dress for her and her new (to her) 18" doll with a few more gifts.

Tomorrow is September, which means the first unofficial day of fall. The mornings are crisp and beautiful even though the afternoons are still hot. Generous neighbors have shared their harvest with us, things like zucchini, winter squash, cucumbers, green beans, tomatoes, apricots, turnips, and more, which I can't think of now. I feel especially blessed since after going to the temple last Thursday, James and I found chicken on a super sale, so we stocked up on that too. I found some discount rotisserie chickens today while I was getting birthday presents for kids' friends at Walmart. Our freezer is 75% full now. I probably don't need to buy any meat between now and almost Thanksgiving. I had so much banana squash that I got out the pressure canner and processed 7 quarts. I'll use it to make pumpkin muffins since they are everyone's favorite pumpkin dessert.

There have been a few hiccups this week, so I haven't really enjoyed being at home alone yet. Samantha's bus was really late, I've had lots of issues signing up for Joseph's math class, and I've been unsuccessful at getting teachers for the oldest Primary class. Being tired hasn't helped either, but that's starting to improve. These are all minor things that will work themselves out. I'll get into a routine that I enjoy rather than just feel rushed and stressed about various things.

Fair, School

We went to a little bit of the Uintah County Fair last Thursday and Friday. I love that it's small and free. I think my favorite part is looking at the quilts. I can't imagine being that good at quilting and making something that looks like actual art.

Saturday evening, we went to a birthday party for Ana and Benji Boyle. The pozole was good, and so was the company. Lewis played a little too hard and felt sick afterward, but he was fine by the next morning.

Speaking of illness, Katie had a couple of mosquito bites from Idaho get infected. They looked like boils, and she ended up having 4 of them. We were careful to apply warm compresses and keep a bandage over them until they drained. So gross. She complained a lot about the pain and itching, but she's been fine the past few days. Poor Katie always gets the weird skin stuff.

We went to Back to School Night on Monday. It was a little stressful since I took 2 neighbor kids while their mom was at work. We found all the classrooms within 30 minutes, so I'll call that a win.

Tuesday, we went to the rec center to swim after James and Joseph got home from a missionary lesson with Joseph's friend Tyren. It looks like Tyren will be getting baptized pretty soon, which is super exciting. They've gone to 2 lessons this week and have a third on Saturday. Though bedtime ended up a little late, I feel like it was worth it to be in the water. Everyone was happy for the first morning of school.

The first day of school went fine for everyone, but it felt super long at the same time. I took Samantha in for her Kindergarten testing and then had a lot to do at home. I didn't finish it all and kind of crashed (mentally) by 2:30. I felt tired the rest of the day till almost bedtime, and then I couldn't sleep. Hopefully I'll adjust to waking up at 6 soon. I really have been trying, but it's been a tough adjustment from the lazy schedule of summer.

Kenny didn't feel well this morning due to anxiety, but I felt that it was important for him to go to school since it's only the second day and sets a precedent for the rest of the year (so to speak). Last year, his anxiety made my mornings extra stressful because I never knew if he was going to wake up feeling sick or not. He missed about 8 days of school due to just that, but he always felt better by 8:30 or 9:00 A.M. I haven't heard from the school, so the prayers must have worked. I really hope he can work through this soon because I don't feel like I know how to help. One day at a time, I guess.

Last Week of Summer, Saving

We ended up loving The Foreigner. A really nice thing about the Playmill is that they bring food to you, so I got to eat a hot fudge sundae right there in my seat. The van had some brake troubles, but we made it back okay with lots of brake checks.

Friday, we went to Victor to eat lunch with Grandpa and kayak. It was mostly relaxing, but we didn't get back as early as I'd hoped, so dinner wasn't quite ready when Lars and Emily showed up. We had a good time with them.

The drive home on Saturday was a bit stressful. We got delayed by traffic, then 2 trains, then a parade, so we didn't get back till almost 6:30. I felt a lot of stress that day, but I got everything done by bedtime.

I went to a fun Relief Society social on Tuesday night. We had flavored drinks/sodas and hung out.

James started work on Monday and did Monday and Tuesday. Yesterday, he installed the new dishwasher that we got for almost free since Lowe's would rather replace than repair. I'm not complaining. It smells nice and the top rack isn't broken. It's so good to have sanitized dishes again. James and I shot the old dishwasher, then he took it to the dump. The kids made us dinner and we watched Cyrano, which was totally depressing even though it had great music. We had to follow it up with something funny.

We're working hard to save money for FanX (Comicon) in Salt Lake in September. Our goals are to make no more random shopping trips to D.I., Ross, TJ Maxx, or Walmart. Also, no eating out for a month. It hasn't been a week yet, so ask me in another week how it's going. I hope we can save up enough to go for a day. Inflation has hurt us quite a bit since last March, and I'm not a fan. Despite all the questions about it, I don't feel that the timing is right for me to go out and get a job. Samantha will only be gone for 1/2 of the day, so that doesn't leave me enough time to do anything except keep this house from falling apart. I had a feeling earlier this year that we would be able to save again, but it hasn't happened quite yet.

Rexburg Trip

We went on a successful hike to Ely Falls on Thursday. It was longer than expected, 5.4 miles instead of 4, but we made it! It was fun to see the waterfall after 9 years. The kids loved it. We returned home tired and hungry, but mostly happy. The older kids got invited to the O'Crowleys' for a going away party. The younger kids went with the Boyles to a science activity, so James and I had 2 hours alone at home, which was nice.

Friday was busy. Our neighbor needed help watching his kids, so they came over from 11-4. We hosted the O'Crowleys for dinner and had a wonderful time. They said it was a nice break from packing for Germany, so that made me feel happy.

Saturday morning, I went to a baptism, and all went well with that. We lazed around the rest of the day because we were still pretty worn out from the previous 2 days. We then attended a ward party.

Monday, we left for Rexburg with a stop at the Conference Center and Church History Museum. Both were great, but I got hungry and grouchy at the end. We arrived in Rexburg in time for dinner, which was really nice. One of the hardest things about traveling is not having homecooked meals on the way.

Tuesday, Melodie took the kids to Bear World while James, Anna, and I went to the Barbie movie. We loved it! It was funny, heartwarming, and silly. I'm glad I stopped watching people's social media opinions of it and made my own. I laughed and cried during the movie. We went to dinner at the Lees', and that was fun too.

Wednesday, we picked huckleberries in the morning. Among the people there, we got 1 1/4 cups, just enough to make a batch of huckleberry ice cream.  After a delicious lunch at Big Jud's, we went to Rigby Lake in the afternoon. The water was too cold for me to go in all the way, but the kids really enjoyed playing in the sand and water.

Today, the kids are going to Bear World again while I make a double batch of raspberry ice cream. Then, it's off to West Yellowstone to the Playmill to see The Foreigner. I'm so excited.

This trip has been one of many "firsts". 

JWP, Grumpy and Good, Social Media

The John Wesley Powell Festival happened over the weekend. We attempted to help James's friend Jared with the treasure hunt for 10 grand but didn't have much luck. It was still fun to try. We hosted a game night that night, but I only played for a little while because it was too hot in the cabin.

I've been grumpy this week for a couple of reasons.

1. I'm trying to set up a meeting with stake primary, my presidency, and my music leaders. It's a logistical nightmare.

2. I need to come up with more teachers, and I don't know who to pick. Everyone who comes to church already has a calling.

3. The dishwasher isn't working well, and Lowe's still hasn't contacted me about the protection plan we bough with it. It isn't even 2 years old. Someone is supposed to come fix it within a week. It's been a week, and I haven't ever heard from anyone.

4. Good old PMS.

Good things

1. I sorted through all the kids' clothes in their dressers and storage. Thanks to hand-me-downs and some D.I. shopping this summer, I only needed to buy 1 pair of shoes and some training bras. School supplies were also not as expensive as I thought they'd be.

2. We got my plane ticket to NC for Carmel's wedding in October. I'm flying to and from Vernal and only had to pay $325. The times aren't terrible either. The flight started off at $450 and with a couple of page refreshes, it magically dropped prices. It must be a gift from God.

3. The Boyles came over for dinner last night, and though they left late, everything turned out delicious.

4. I had fun redeeming free kids' meals from coupons the kids got from the library.

5. James took the kids out this morning so I can have a break from them. I'm getting caught up (and ahead) since we plan on leaving earlyish tomorrow morning for a hike. I hope it goes well.

I decided to take a break from social media this week. It's been hard because I rely on it for "doom scrolling", but that's a silly reason to keep using it. Two posts on FB made me feel angry recently. One was about a girl who paid off her house in 8 years. She posted about making homemade pizza to help with that. I literally make homemade everything, but I can't pay off my house yet. Really, it came down to this family having 25k more a year than we've ever had. It's not just about the pizza or how much they've sacrificed. Back when our income jumped 14k one year, we saved about 10k of that. I don't know what I'm trying to prove, though. Even when I do pay off my house, I probably won't talk about it on FB. Everyone has a different situation, and not owning your house does not equal laziness.

The other post was comparing the Barbie movie to Sound of Freedom. It made both movies political in a very unnecessary way. I plan on seeing both at some point. Politics ruin everything, though.

Now that it's August, I can't stop thinking about school. I'm not ready for early wakeups at all. I'm also sad that summer is ending. It's been one of my favorite summers ever!

Heads Visit, Belcher Reunion, Pioneer Day

We had a wonderful time with Sam, Jesse, and their girls. They arrived late Wednesday night. Thursday, some of the kids and adults went on a hunt for fossils nearby. After lunch, we went to see the dinosaur bones in Jensen along with some petroglyphs and Josie's cabin. We enjoyed homemade pizza for dinner and then played a game of Pandemic: Fall of Rome after the kids went to bed.

Friday, we hung out in the morning. After lunch, we went to the dinosaur museum and the rec center. We watched the Mario movie and had dinner, then just hung out the rest of the day.

Saturday, we got up early (for summer) and drove to Heber for the Belcher reunion. It was really hot all day, but it was nice to see people. We got home around 4:30 and relaxed the rest of the day.

Sunday night, I attended a baptism for a convert who is Primary age. Her family has been through a lot, and I'm glad everything went well. It was one of the most spiritual baptisms I've been to.

We had a great Pioneer Day. We started with the Scout breakfast in the park, then went to the parade with the Boyles. After a lazy afternoon, the Boyles came over to help cook and eat a feast. We had corn (Mexican style), watermelon, brats and hot dogs, chips and pico de gallo, squash 2 ways, brownies, banana cake, and fun drinks. After cleanup and talking, we did some fireworks.

The past few days have been more relaxed with a couple games of Pandemic Legacy: Season 2, errands, TV-watching, and some chores. James was in charge of a fossil hike for the Activity age boys, and they had a lot of fun. Today's looking like yard work and redeeming some coupons that the kids got from library activities.

Honestly, it's been one of the best summers ever. I think a lot of it has to do with my kids' ages. Everyone's been sleeping in, too, which is amazing. I can't remember another summer where I consistently slept till 8. It probably helps that we've had a lot of cool nights and have tried not to overschedule ourselves. Yes, I've had a few mini breakdowns, but that's inevitable. Summer is better than winter in every way.

Social, Drive In, Meat Fest, Relaxing

The Primary social on Thursday went really well, I think. James and the kids helped out a lot with getting the Halls' yard ready. There were 35 people there, which was great. The food was delicious, and the games were pretty fun too. We didn't get home till about 9:45, and we had tons of leftovers with us. I'm not complaining. I didn't have to cook again till Sunday.

Saturday was pretty busy. The Nielsons moved, so we helped with that. We ended up with a flat tire, but we got a new one at Walmart. We then hurried to a wedding reception for one of James's former students. I felt a little awkward because I didn't know anyone there. We then went home, got the kids, and went to a drive in movie in Roosevelt. I liked it a lot more than I expected. We took our own snacks and relaxed while the kids played on the playground before the move started. We saw the Mario movie once again, and it was just as cute as the first time. Though we got home pretty late, everyone had a really good time. I think we'll do it again, maybe once a summer when the nights are warm (like July or August).

Monday, I took Katie and Lewis to a playdate. It was a super hot day, 101, but we survived because the kids played in the water outside. For dinner, Devin and his family came over with a bunch of meats that had thawed out (but not spoiled) from his freezer getting unplugged. We had a feast. The older kids, James, and Devin went to look for scorpions with black lights. They found a few and got some cool pictures.

Tuesday, we had a lazy day since we were all tired from staying up late the previous few nights. We played our board game, read, and watched TV instead of going on a hike like we'd planned. I was really happy that we made this decision. I still needed a little nap after a good night of sleep, but I felt a lot better by the end of the day.

Today, James took the kids to a library activity while I picked up groceries. Navy is over for the afternoon while we prepare for Sam and Jesse and their girls to visit. It'll be a lot of fun, I'm sure, though we will have a full house for a few days.

Alex's Baptism, Ghost Town, Climate

Saturday, we had a pretty busy day with Alex's baptism. It was sweet and spiritual. During the afternoon, we went to his birthday party, which took up a couple of hours and included several pinatas. I've gotten to know several of the Boyles' family members since I see them every year at the party.

Monday, James took Kenny into the mountains to Big Brush Creek Cave and to find Bullionville, an old ghost town. They were successful this time since James looked up directions and found a dropped pin. They found some old cabins and mining equipment. The younger kids and I painted a chalkboard on the back of the cabin. Unfortunately, it didn't work super well since the wood is really rough. For FHE, we watched Napoleon Dynamite and ate tater tots. The kids' reactions were really funny.

Tuesday, I had a presidency meeting. It went really well, and we finished the official business in record time. We stayed talking about other stuff for another hour, though. Haha.

Yesterday, we went to the rec center. James took the kids to the library to give me some time to read alone. It was awesome. It's so much better to take a break before I have a breakdown.

Today, we have the Primary social at Sis. Hall's house. There are supposed to be over 40 people there. I think it'll be a lot of fun, even though it's been super hot recently.

Climate is one thing that continues to baffle me a bit. My big question is why Rexburg, ID, has a greater difference in their day/night temperatures than we do. Rexburg is more humid (though still not very) on average and at a lower elevation than Vernal. Yet, the difference between night and day for them is often 40 degrees while ours is more like 30. I need an expert to advise me.

Rexburg Trip, Anniversary, 4th of July

We had a pretty uneventful trip to Rexburg on Thursday. Okay, that's mostly true. We stopped to eat lunch in Eden, WY, and then in Farson for some giant ice creams. I found out that our Amazon credit cards got hacked, so that meant we had to use our other card the whole trip. It was fine and only a minor inconvenience, but I still hate that it happened. The drive through WY was absolutely beautiful, and we passed by more campgrounds than towns.

Friday, we went to the Nature Park in Rexburg and met up with Emily and her kids. In the afternoon, we went to D.I. and got some frozen yogurt at Millhollow. We had a movie night at Sam's and watched Willow with all the kids.

Saturday, we hung out with the younger girls while their parents and siblings did rehearsal. I helped Anna sweep and mop all the floors in the evening.

Sunday, Rex, Melodie, and Joseph returned from Ecuador and brought gifts. We had Swedish pancakes with Sam and Jesse's family.

Monday, Melodie, the kids and I went to Bear World in the morning. There was a new dinosaur exhibit, and it was awesome. I went to book group with Melodie, and then James, the Josephs, and Anna went to the new Indiana Jones movie. J.P. and his family came to visit in the afternoon (Jacob's former worker).

The 4th of July was really fun, but busy. We got up early to drive to Firth for the breakfast and concert by Anna and Grandpa Lee. We then returned to Rexburg for the parade and concert in the park by Joseph. The kids played in the splash park for a bit and then we went home to rest. We had dinner with the Lees and then watched the Rexburg fireworks from the yard after setting off a few of our own.

Wednesday, James and I celebrated our 14th anniversary a few days late. We left in the morning for Idaho Falls and went to D.I. and Big Deal with a stop at the mall. After lunch at the Chinese buffet, we went to the aquarium and a couple of other little stores downtown. We had dinner at the Snake Bite Cafe, which was excellent, and then returned to Mountain River Ranch in Ririe for the evening. We stayed in a cute little cabin called the Bear's Den.

After breakfast at Wendy's the next morning, we headed back to our kids in Rexburg. We spent the day relaxing and then went to Sam and Jesse's play, A Midsummer Night's Dream, in the park. It was well done, and the kids even behaved themselves most of the time.

We drove back to Vernal today without incident. We even took a slightly different path and went through some small towns we hadn't seen before. It was beautiful. Now it's time to do all the laundry I didn't do all week and get the grocery shopping done. :)

Projects, A Failed Adventure, Engagement

With some help from Devin, we moved the pirate ship steps into the sandbox. They weren't quite as heavy as we thought. While James was gone helping Devin fix his deck, I mowed around the bare rectangle and had Katie help me pick up all the trash. It would've been nice to plant everything on Friday, but it was super windy outside.

The girls went on a shopping trip with James Saturday morning. It was fun to visit D.I., Neighbors Thrift, and Dollar Tree with a quick snack at Wendy's. I found out that Dollar Tree has cheaper pretzels than Walmart, so I might be back. I've never really thought of the dollar store as a good place to buy food.

James played airsoft for a while, and I don't remember what we did at home. Honestly, I think it got kind of boring since we had to wait on the planting and I finished my stash of books. I was also waiting for a book on hold that wasn't ready yet.

Monday, Ashley and her kids came over. We had to reschedule a couple times because of travel and visitors, but I'm glad we finally got to hang out. James planted a globe willow and grass in the bare spot in the backyard.

Tuesday, we attempted to find a ghost town called Bullionville off of Red Cloud Loop. and it did not go well. First, I made the mistake of taking some anti-nausea medication. The side effects later on weren't worth it. Second, we couldn't find the place and spent a lot of time driving around. Third, we accidentally took a wrong turn as we were heading home (with no cell service, of course), so we didn't get there till 2:30. It was terrible. Everyone was hungry, tired, and grouchy. I threw together a quick lunch, and we did nothing for the rest of the day.

Today did not start off so well either. I got a poor night of sleep and had nightmares. I feel bad that I didn't go to help our friend Samantha move, but I've got a long list of things to do before I'll feel able to relax since we leave for Rexburg tomorrow. James took Joseph and Katie, so hopefully they will be enough help. I've done some cleaning and still have laundry, packing, and cooking to do.

To end on a happy note, Carmel and Matthew got engaged! I have no idea when the wedding is supposed to be. They said the end of the year or early next year. I'm so excited for them.

This will be a good trip. I'll feel more optimistic once I get things done and get some rest.

Upper Stillwater Dam, Projects, Teeth

It's been another busy week. We did an adventure to the Upper Stillwater Dam on Friday. The drive there and back was pretty interesting since we got to travel though a bunch of little communities in Duchesne County. The dam itself was beautiful. It was like a giant, manmade waterfall. We ate some lunch in picnic area and hiked up to the top of the dam. The views were stunning all around, and the I think the kids enjoyed themselves too. It was definitely worth the drive.

Saturday, we went to Paddlefest at Steinaker. We went out on some canoes and kayaks. We mostly had a good time, except for Katie, who was having a grumpy day for some reason.

Father's Day was mostly peaceful. I'd bought James some steak, so we had that with smashed potatoes and corn on the cob.

Monday, I cleaned out and painted the girls' room a purplish blue. It cost me almost nothing since I bought a quart of red to mix with the blue I used for the boy's room. I ended with about a cup of paint. I didn't finish the room till late at night since I had to wait for the carpet to dry, but it was worth it to displace the girls for one night, even though no one got a good night of sleep. In the afternoon, we went to see Elemental, which was adorable, and then got pizza in the park since I was too tired and busy to cook.

We had dental appointments and 1 orthodontist appointment on Tuesday. Joseph has a tooth that's growing in at a 45 degree angle with a cyst around it, so he needs braces and oral surgery. Lewis and Samantha both have some cavities. We're going to get dental insurance since it'll actually be worth it this time and take care of those things starting in September. Joseph will have braces for 18 months total and the oral surgery to expose the adult tooth a few months in. Fun times.

Yesterday, I went out with James for lunch and then spent the afternoon catching up on sewing projects. It was nice to clear out my stash of fabric. I also finished a book, and we finished the last game of Pandemic: Legacy Season 1. We already have Season 2, and I can't wait to play it.

Despite my kids' expensive teeth, it's been a really good week. We hit the right mix of hard work, fun, downtime. I hope we can keep this up for the rest of the summer.

Balance, Summer Days

It's been both busy and kind of boring over the past week. Friday was our first "real" day of summer with all of us home, but I spent the whole day confused because it felt like Saturday. On actual Saturday, I went to a Relief Society salad and service social. It was pretty fun, even though not many people went.

Monday, James left to take pictures all day. For family home evening, we talked about making goals with the kids. So far, I've been having them help with the cooking when I remember. James wants to make sure everyone knows how to swim too.

Tuesday, James and I did a lunch date since it was the best day for one with our schedule this week. Joseph and I went to the dentist, which was mostly fine. Joseph has a tooth growing in weird with a cyst around it, so we're going to the orthodontist next week to see what to do next. It could be nothing, or it could be oral surgery in Salt Lake. I got my temple recommend renewed and then did a presidency meeting in the cabin.

Wednesday, we went to the library activity in the morning. I honestly think we're done with those. Our kids are older and already read on their own. The activities themselves are okay, but I end up bringing home random crafts that just get thrown away later. It's also the worst time to check out books since the library is full of kids and really chaotic. Maybe we will go to 1 or 2, but definitely not all of them. We went to the rec center in the afternoon, and it was mostly fun. I still had to keep a close eye on Samantha and Lewis to make sure they didn't wander off and drown. It's much easier with the older 3. We have a 3-month membership, so I think we'll go about once a week.

Joseph has a well check today, and then it's grocery shopping. This week has felt both too much and not enough. I've been trying to read a couple of books but can't seem to get into any of them. Hopefully, my focus will return. I also need to do more exercise, but I can't seem to find the motivation even though it's not been that hot outside yet. I would love it if this weather stayed forever, actually.

Head Reunion, Triple Bunk

It's been a really busy week.

Thursday, we headed to the Head family reunion in Albion, ID. I think it was our 10th year there. Over the 3 days, we ate together, hung out, swam in the pool/hot tub, dipped chocolates, had an auction, did a candy toss, and probably a few things I forgot. Our main outing was the Minidoka, which used to be Japanese prison camp during WWII. I can't believe that actually happened in the U.S. The visitor's center was really nice, and we watched a heartbreaking video. A couple of older folks remarked that it was necessary because the government ended up finding a few spies, but I disagree. There was absolutely no justification for these camps. And, we believe in innocent until proven guilty during a fair trial.

Since we got home on Sunday, I've done 9 loads of laundry, grocery shopped, and mostly finished the boys' room. We completely cleaned it out on Monday, which took forever. Tuesday, I prepped and painted the accent wall and then cleaned the carpet that night after the paint had dried. Wednesday, we put the bunk bed together and sorted and put everything back. The assembly was easy, even though it took 3 1/2 hours to complete. We spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning since the kitchen and living room had also descended into chaos. James wasn't around because he had to work Monday - Thursday this week, so it was the boys who helped. I was so tired and achy by last night, but I still managed to catch up on all my regular household chores.

We're still waiting on a towel rack, a couple of storage bins, and 2 more mattresses for the bunk bed. The boys have enjoyed sleeping in the cabin for a few days during the process. Today, I plan on doing nothing with the room while I wait for things to arrive. I hope tomorrow feels like the first "real" day of summer where I can be kind of lazy!

Last Days of School, Rexburg, Joseph's 13th Birthday

Hurray! School is over for the year! Lewis had his last day on Thursday and everyone else on Friday. We relaxed on Saturday and did a playdate with some friends. Saturday night, I replaced the pump in my washing machine since it was leaking. It cost me 13 bucks and 1 1/2 hours of my life. I'm glad I did it since I'll have a ton of laundry when we get home from the reunion.

We packed Monday morning, and it worked surprisingly well. We left by 9. The only real problem came when we tried to take a scenic route and the mountain pass was still closed. It was beautiful, but it cost us an hour of time. We made it to the Lees' for dinner about 20 minutes late, so it wasn't the end of the world.

Tuesday morning, James and I did baptisms with Joseph and Joseph. It was really nice and peaceful. We got Millhollow afterward and visited Sam in his office. Grandma took the kids to Bear World while I made 2 buckeye pies for Joseph's birthday. I also made grits casserole for dinner and the Lees came over. Everything turned out delicious, and Joseph loved his presents, especially the phone. I can't believe he's a teenager now.

Wednesday, we divided and conquered. Some went to Victor to work and kayak. The rest of us went to D.I. and got some ice cream after lunch. I made a cake for Charlotte's birthday, and we had pizza, cake, and ice cream once her parents, Sam and Jesse, got back from rehearsal.

It's been a busy Thursday so far. Everyone is running around trying to get ready for the family reunion. I've escaped up here to write since the clutter and dog hair are driving me crazy. They're hoping to leave at 1 (probably 2), and I'll go with Anna when she gets home from school.

Drone, Baptism, Phone

Katie went to a birthday party on Friday, so I ran some errands while she was there. Meanwhile, James had driven to Rangely, CO, to take a test for his commercial drone license. He passed!

Saturday, I took the girls out to breakfast while the boys went to the Priesthood Commemoration at Remember the Maine. A girl in our ward got baptized that afternoon. There were a few hiccups, like the font not being filled, but it worked out with a little bit of rearranging the program. The kids and I went to a cookout at the family's house that afternoon and stayed till 7.

Tuesday, we went shopping for Joseph's main birthday present: a phone (number). We decided to stay with prepaid plans for now. I'm giving him my old phone, so we had to get SIM card for it and set it up with an Apple account. I had a little trouble with the server, but I figured things out. We ordered a fun, new case for it too. I'm particularly proud of the Memoji I created for Joseph. It looks just like him.

Today, it's Lewis's last day of school and Kindergarten program. I can't believe it! That means it's my last time walking to the bus stop for a few months, and the last time I have to convince Samantha to get dressed for the weather to walk down the street. This fall, it's her turn.

Lewis learned how to ride a bike this week! It was one of my summer goals to teach him, but he was pretty motivated to do it himself. He absolutely loves it and wants to ride all the time. This is such a great time of year. The kids are so happy to be outside all the time. They're all tan already too.

Tabernacle, Mother's Day, Rash, Play, Social Media

On Friday night, we went to Roosevelt to see the Tabernacle replica. It was really cool, much bigger than I expected. Joseph was volunteering with other youth from our ward, so he didn't get home till 10.

Saturday, James and I went out for lunch and then James hung out with Devin. I installed a new bulletin board in the kitchen and stuffed animal net for Katie.

Mother's Day was all right. I got books and chocolate, plus delicious meals that I didn't have to cook. I wish there'd been less cleaning at the end of the day, but that's the way it goes.

Both Katie and James finished their antibiotics for strep throat. Katie ended up getting a beautiful amoxicillin rash that hasn't gone away yet. It looks a lot worse than it feels, and it's not contagious, so she's been going to school without complaint.

I went with Joseph and Kenny to a middle school play on Monday night. It was all right, kind of silly, but the boys liked it.

I'm tempted to quit social media. I've had several conversations this year where I remember that social media doesn't tell the whole story about a person, not even close. People often use it to express opinions that I don't agree with, and that's fine, but it has a way of dividing people that just wouldn't happen in real life if they'd just talk to each other. People in small, isolated areas like Vernal are definitely susceptible to thinking of "the others" as evil and terrible since Vernalites don't venture out of the rural bubble too often. When they do, it's to Salt Lake for a weekend. I've seen the division online over and over again, whether it's about politics, religious beliefs, or even sushi. There is an abundance of good news, but there's also a lot of bad news I wouldn't have to know about otherwise. I'm not sure what I'll do yet.

Remember the Maine, Strep Throat, Not My Problems

Friday, we hosted a game night, and that was fun.

We had a really good Saturday afternoon hanging out with the Boyles at Remember the Maine. We roasted some hotdogs and had s'mores. I feel like summer has officially begun once I've eaten a s'more. Another of James's coworkers came with his family (drawing a blank on their last name), so we spoke Spanish most of the time. I only blanked on words once or twice! We also got our yardwork done and sprinklers set up.

James got called to teach Gospel Doctrine, and Sunday was his first lesson. He had a bit of sore throat which started getting worse on Monday. A quick trip to urgent care later, he was diagnosed with strep throat. By some miracle, only Katie got it. Everyone else in the house is completely fine. He and Katie stayed home on Tuesday, which ended up being both fun and productive. James got all the bikes working again since we accidentally let them get buried in snow. We also played Pandemic: Legacy.

I've been struggling a little with things I can't solve. First, I want my parents to move, but the timing isn't quite right yet. I hate that I've had the idea because it makes me impatient for it to happen. Second, coming up with names of people to serve in Primary is a constant challenge. I wish everything could stay the same for 6 months! Heck, I'd even take 3. I've already gotten 9 new people, and it looks like I'll need 6 more by the end of summer. Third, I learned of 2 families who are going through some really hard stuff, and I can't do anything to solve their problems either. It's a good reminder that I'd rather have my own problems than theirs.

Better, Projects, Waterfall, Primary

My shoulder is 100% better and so is my cold! I was feeling well enough to make a princess dress, shirt, and pair of pajamas for Samantha's 18" doll. James got the yard stuff done, and I even set up watering even though we don't need to do it quite yet. I ran some errands today, including getting a solenoid for the sprinkler system. One zone will turn on but not off. Thankfully, a solenoid is an easy fix that I've done twice now.

The weather has been super nice. We went to the park on Saturday and had pizza with the kids. Monday, we hiked up to a waterfall in Dry Fork Canyon. It was steep, and I was definitely unprepared for that, but the view was amazing. I've never seen a waterfall in that canyon. I guess all the melting snow has been good for something. There was another smaller waterfall that we didn't hike too, but it also looked really cool.

Tuesday, I had a presidency meeting. It was great, as always, and I felt motivated the next morning to get my checklist done and reorganize my binder. I underestimated how often things would change, so I had to reprint a bunch of stuff. (I'll never not use paper, even though I love digital.) I don't mind reprinting things once a quarter, which it what I'm going to do from now on so I don't end up with so many scribbles all over everything.

I've been feeling a bit grumpy this week, even though the weather's been nice. May is one of my favorite months. We don't need a lot of heat, AC, or water, which makes the utility bills cheaper. It's the first month with consistently warm weather. I also worry less about school since it's almost over for the year. (It's like the Friday of the school year.) I love being able to pack everyone up and go somewhere outside easily, no coats or boots needed, just sandals. The kids are happier and are starting to get blonder, more freckly, and less pale. This moodiness is temporary, I'm sure, and it will pass.

Yard Work, Feeling Broken

Friday, Samantha and I went over to the Abarcas for a playdate, the first time in about a month. It was awesome to catch up, even though talking made me cough a lot more than I had been. We played DnD that night, which was also fun.

Saturday, we worked in the yard during the morning. It took a couple of hours to clean up trash, rake up dead leaves, and sweep yet another layer of dirt off the walkways. I also put air in all the bike tires. James and Joseph went to the dump to get rid of all the trash we'd accumulated since it was a free day. We took it easy the rest of the day since I definitely overworked myself with the yard stuff. I could feel in on Sunday, too. Thankfully, I wasn't conducting and didn't have to hunt down any teachers since I still didn't have my voice back!

Monday, we took a trip to get a free car wash in Naples and picked up fertilizer for the yard. We haven't applied it yet, but that will happen soon. We're also hoping to aerate in the next week.

Tuesday night, James and I went to see Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat. It was so much fun! I'd never seen the show before, but I was tapping my foot pretty much the whole time because it was so catchy.

I finally got my voice back! I'm pretty much over the cold now, but silly me, I reached for something in an upper cabinet Wednesday morning and strained a muscle right by my left shoulder blade. It hurt a lot the first day, and I tried a combo of ibuprofen, warm rice bag, and massage, but that wasn't quite right. Today, I'm staying away from massage and doing ice instead of heat, and I can already tell a huge difference. I'm also trying really hard to do nothing productive except the bare minimum. That's hard to do because I hate it when my house is messy, and I'm finally over the cold enough to actually want to do things, so it gets boring to just sit around and read (or watch TV). The weather has also been nice for the past few days, but I've been in too much pain to enjoy it. I have confidence that I'll be doing a lot better by tomorrow, and James is going to get the groceries this afternoon. I'm grateful that my family can step in when I'm not feeling well. Only James got the cold, and it wasn't nearly as nasty for him, so I'm glad for that too. Things have to get better from here on out, right?!

The Cold, Car Stuff

My family made it back safely on Saturday, but despite a lot of rest since then, I still haven't gotten my voice back! Well, not entirely. It has made improvements, but there's no way I'll be able to sing in the next week or 2. I remember this being the case in December. I was sad that I didn't have my full vocal range for most of the month and couldn't really sing Christmas songs. I was feeling crummy enough on Saturday and Sunday that I didn't go to Stake Conference. I'm feeling mostly better from the main cold symptoms, but I'm still super tired and a little lightheaded.

It doesn't help that it's been a busy week. Monday, I got a new windshield for the van, which took longer than I expected. Lewis and Samantha did really well with the 2 hour wait and didn't get antsy until the last 30 minutes.

Tuesday, James stayed home since I gave him the cold, so I went by myself to get a key fob programmed for the van. It wasn't too bad of wait, and they had no problems programming it. I was a little worried about only having 1 key. That seemed like tempting fate, so to speak.

Wednesday, I felt worse than I had on Monday and Tuesday, so I lazed around as much as possible. I attempted a new recipe at dinner, but it was an epic fail, so James got Chinese. I honestly broke down and cried at one point. I hate setbacks in getting better, and the whole day definitely felt like I was trying to walk through deep sand. I hate being so tired. Resting is boring because I can only handle so much TV or reading at a time.

Today, I got the summer tires put on the Yukon XL. It wasn't too horrible. I'm still tired, but it's a bit better than yesterday. I think this cold is especially bad because I was so sleep deprived when I got it. I usually need a week of extra rest just to get over a week of travel, and I don't think I've done that yet because I max out at about 8 1/2 hours a day. Maybe in another week I will be completely recovered!

NC and Rexburg Trips

I've had an exhausting week, to say the least, but it's great to be home alone for a day until everyone else comes back.

Thursday, I flew from Vernal to Denver to Raleigh. Christian picked me up, and I stayed at his house for the night since there were guests coming for the wedding. We stayed up way too late, but it was fun. Rachel gave me a whole bunch of clothes for the boys, so that really filled up my suitcase.

I went over to Mara's the following afternoon at 3, but things got cut a bit short since we had to go to Cary to decorate the building for the reception. It was a ton of work, and Mara and I didn't stay for the whole thing since she had to get her girls to bed. The older girls love me, and it was my first time meeting Juliette, who was born in January. We had a busy Saturday morning since the wedding was at 10:45. Oh, and it was pouring down rain all of Friday and Saturday. That make things a little colder and soggier than they needed to be. Lars and Emily's wedding was beautiful, and we had a luncheon at the church afterward which consisted of Danny's BBQ. Yum! Then, it was back to Apex to do some preparations for the reception. Everything looked beautiful and there was a lot of good food (pretzels and dips), but not a lot of people came, which was a bummer. We cleaned up afterward and were all completely exhausted.

Sunday, we went to a beautiful Easter service and then had lunch at Myles and Skyla's house. I felt pretty good up until 2:00, then I got hit with horrible cramps. For the rest of the day, I stayed on the couch with a heating pad. I'm glad I had the chance to rest and that this didn't happen during the wedding.

Monday morning, I made Lars and Myles their scrapbooks from old papers Dad kept in the file cabinet upstairs. Monday night, I went to dinner at Alpaca with Brinson and Ceci and then an escape room also with Carmel and her boyfriend, Matthew. We did the hardest one and only went over 1 minute! It was also a lot of fun. I stayed with Myles and Skyla that night.

Myles, Skyla, Wade and I attended the Richmond temple open house. It was a nice drive since we stopped at some parks, for lunch, and at a peanut store. I got some goodies to bring home. The temple was absolutely beautiful and had a colonial feel to it. After dinner with Myles and Skyla, I went back to Apex.

Wednesday, I started feeling a bit sick with a cold. I went to Mara's house again since we didn't have much time before. Myles and Skyla came for dinner, and Christian and Rachel came for dessert. We had a great time hanging out even though I lost my voice.

I didn't feel any better on Thursday, but I made it back to Apex and took it easy during the day. Rachel and William came to visit, and so did Brinson and Ceci later on. I attempted to go to bed early, but no luck.

I made it home today after dragging myself through the Raleigh and Denver airports. Phew. I felt like I was about to collapse, but it's clean and quiet, so I can rest without actually sleeping and throwing off tonight's sleep. I'm thinking 9:00 sounds pretty good, though! My cold is doing a lot better, and I think I might get my voice back tomorrow. Also, the snow is pretty much gone from our yard. I'm so excited! Spring is finally here! For the rest of today, I'm going to be as lazy as possible so I can catch up on rest/sleep before my family gets back tomorrow. It was a really good trip, but I'm ready to get back to my regular routine now.

Conference, Kenny's 11th Birthday, Trip

We had a nice weekend watching General Conference. I made a point to take some notes so I could actually remember some stuff and pay attention better. It only has to be a sentence per talk, but it makes all the difference.

I went to see a couple of Joseph's teachers for parent/teacher conferences. One joked that I didn't need to be there, but it's still nice to meet the teachers when your student is doing well.

James and I went to the temple on Tuesday night, and it was really nice to be in a peaceful place during such a busy week.

Wednesday was super busy. I returned the pump that James borrowed for pumping out the crawl space, signed Samantha up for Kindergarten, and took the kids to an Easter egg hunt at the church while James took Kenny to a doctor's appointment. We'd actually done Kenny's cake and presents a day early, and I'm glad. I also had to hurry to get Joseph to Mutual.

Kenny seemed to enjoy his presents. We had chocolate pound cake and chocolate ice cream as well. He'd forgotten to ask for more Calvin and Hobbes books until right before his birthday, but I'd already bought him one. I felt pretty good about that because sometimes I'm bad at figuring out presents. Thank goodness for Amazon wish lists.

James and the kids left for Rexburg today, and I leave from the Vernal airport around 2 P.M. So far, I've spent the morning cleaning so I can come back to a clean house for a day. I'm so excited. Even though the snow hasn't finished melting, the kids are done playing in it, so I've been washing all the coats, hats, and gloves. I'm hoping to see a huge difference in the amount of snow when I get back from NC next Friday. Until then, I'll be crossing my fingers for some warm weather!

Eye Appointments, Car, Birthday, NC Plans

In the past week, I went to eye appointments for Kenny, Katie, Lewis, and myself. Kenny's vision got a little worse, I have a little bit worse astigmatism, and Katie and Lewis checked out fine for now. Katie will most likely need glasses for far away by next year, though. She used to be farsighted but is now slightly nearsighted. I ordered new glasses for Kenny and me.

I had a really good, relaxing birthday. I first went to the Women's Conference with Ashley, and it gave me a lot of peace. James and the kids vacuumed out the car (which we'd spend an hour cleaning the day before). We went to Outdoor Expo and had some fried Oreos, which were delicious. Overall, I had a nice, relaxing day. I also made Texas sheet cake and dark chocolate ice cream with toasted almonds.

I'm still waiting on the car's title/lien release, but I have an appointment to get a new windshield after spring break. They are booked until then! I blame all the nasty potholes and loose rocks that are in/on the road right now. James had to pump the crawlspace again due to all the melting.

It's been super busy this week. We found time to watch a movie with the kids on Monday and eat my birthday pizza from Papa Murphy's. The Thai chicken flavor didn't end up being my favorite, but that's okay because it was free.

The kids had a talent show for activities on Tuesday, and I even took a neighbor kid who is investigating the Church.

Today, I need to run a few errands and go to Joseph's Poetry Jam at his school. There's a lot going on before I leave for NC next week, but I think I have all the sleeping arrangements figured out. I'm also excited that I'll get to see the temple open house in Richmond, VA. Phew. I feel like maybe I'll be able to breathe once spring break is over, but I'm not so sure!

Melting, New Car, Stress

Instead of a date last Thursday, James pumped water out of the crawlspace. Despite a couple more inches of snow, the overall level is finally going down! There is a huge puddle at the end of the driveway too. It's annoying to walk around, but it's too deep to walk through, and sweeping it toward the drain doesn't help because more water fills from up the street. It would be nice to have some sunshine again.

I went to a RS birthday party activity on Saturday. We painted with watercolors and had snacks. It was overall really relaxing. I haven't been the most relaxed since then.

We bought a car! It's a 2017 Dodge Grand Caravan, and it's been the source of a lot of stress so far, just like every other time we've bought a car. This is normal for me, though. I've worried since last year when I knew we'd need to look for a new one. I'm happy to say that we paid in cash and it's already registered and insured. The only hiccup so far is getting it to start since it sat in a driveway for 3 months. I think we hooked up the jumper cables slightly wrong (since our car's battery terminals are hard to hook on anyway), but we got it started and James drove it for 30 minutes to recharge the battery. I'm really excited to have something more modern. It's the first car I've ever owned with a backup camera, automatic doors, and an automatic trunk. We ultimately decided on a van because it gets much better gas mileage than the Yukon XL and still has a decent amount of storage space. It's also well-rated for its year. We still need to clean it, get a new windshield, and get a spare key, but none of those things should be too bad. I'm hoping it lasts us at least 10 years. (Oh yeah, and it only has 83,000 miles on it, practically new!)

I've been stressing about some small things that keep coming back to bother me. One is my acid reflux. I had reduced my medication to a lower dose for a few months, but I felt that it was time to wean myself off the medication entirely since my eating habits have improved and I've lost 15 pounds. I haven't taken any since Sunday so I'm dealing with rebound reflux right now. The anxiety of getting a new car hasn't helped.

The heater is being dumb again too, but it's so close to us not needing it that I don't care anymore. It's 9 years old. I will reset it every day if I have to. It's inconsistent in when it needs to be reset, but it seems to be a problem more often in wet/windy weather. I suspect there is condensation buildup somewhere that isn't actually a big deal. It always starts up again, and that's what matters.

Kenny missed a day of school last week and this week for not feeling well. I have no idea why this keeps happening. He had a whole month where he didn't feel sick, so I think eating a snack before getting out of bed has helped, but it hasn't gotten rid of his issues 100%. I really don't want him to miss a bunch of school next year since it's middle school, but that's a few months away. He has an appointment on his birthday, so I'm hoping the doctor can provide some answers. Luckily, missing school so far has had no effect on his grades. I don't want to be too hard on him and make him go when he doesn't feel well, but some days he's fine by midmorning and I haven't pressed the issue.

It's my birthday this Saturday! James installed a trash can drawer for me, and I love it. Today, we're going out to eat. I hope I can relax a bit and enjoy my family.

Funeral, UCET

We had a good time hanging out with James's parents, even though it was for a sad occasion. Friday morning, we went to D.I. and the candy store. After lunch, James and his parents went to the viewing. The kids and I joined for the actual funeral at 3. It went on a little long (and Lewis even fell asleep), but it was really touching and spiritual. We joined the family for dinner afterward.

Later that night, we played DnD. It was a welcome distraction from the somber mood of earlier.

Saturday, James and I went to see Spongebob at the high school. Though I've never been a huge fan of the show, the musical was cute and fun.

I gave a talk on Sunday, and it went well. 

James left for UCET (technology conference) on Monday after school. We had a decent FHE given by Kenny and people eventually went to bed. The time change on Sunday has really thrown things off and made for some grumpy mornings.

The kids had activities on Tuesday. I stopped in briefly, and it looked like everything was going well.

James got back last night! I'll admit I wasn't in the best mood. I had gotten pizza to eat while we watched the Mandalorian, but the little kids got annoying and wouldn't stop boxing and jumping around. They still had some issues with going to bed. I also had a mini breakdown over some stupid stuff that probably wouldn't matter so much if I'd gotten a good night of sleep. It didn't help that I got a call from school from Katie, who was complaining about her eyes again and wanted me to pick her up. I didn't because there was only an hour left of school. It put a damper on my afternoon because I was also in the middle of a project I couldn't finish because I need my brother to send me some pictures.

The weather is still pretty crappy too. We've had lots of clouds and a mix of snow and rain. There are potholes and mud puddles everywhere, and it's not that warm yet either. It's getting there, but it's taking a long time to warm up.

Moody, Blog, Primary

I'm the moody one this week. It's been so hard to get through my daily stuff. Everything is dragging along. When I looked back to last week's problems, most have resolved. We still don't have a car, but we're managing the growing pains, Primary staff, and headaches, which have taken a break for now. I really needed medication for a week straight, but I cut myself off after that since I started getting rebound headaches. Everything is good now, though. That's only the second time that's happened, too.

I finished my blog update! I have about 10 more pictures to retake, and then I can focus on finding new recipes again. I have 199 recipes on there, which is hard to believe. It's been really good to have that project to focus on during this long, crappy winter, which still has yet to come to a close.

I've been really happy with the Stake Primary recently. I think I misunderstood their purpose when I first got called. We had a meeting with them on Friday, and it was incredibly insightful. I had my own presidency meeting on Tuesday, and the Stake Primary President came to that. She provided some really valuable insights that will make our lives easier. There's always more to do in Primary, but I feel like we're doing all right at it.

My in-laws are coming today and tomorrow, but not for a happy reason. Rex's first cousin's husband died from cancer quite suddenly, so his funeral is tomorrow. There's been way too much death this winter.

A Lot of Little Things, Bad and Good

The temple was really good on Thursday. More has changed than I expected, but I think I paid better attention because of it.

A lot of little things are bugging me this week.

1. Primary. I thought we were well-staffed for at least a few months, but I have to replace 2 teachers and 1 activities leader. They were all doing such a good job, but 1 has been in for 3 years, 1 had a baby, and the other is moving. I'm really sad. Coming up with names is my least favorite thing. I'm really glad that my counselors and secretary help with that. Katie also told me that 2 of her 3 leaders didn't show up for activities on Tuesday, and I also had to hunt down 3 subs on Sunday. I get a headache pretty much every Sunday now, and it's no wonder why.

2. The weather. It's March, and it's still too cold. We are now experiencing our February weather which means no more subzero, but it's still pretty wintry.

3. Growing pains. Kenny has been feeling sick in the mornings off and on for a few years, but after a lot of Googling and prayers, we decided to try treating it like pregnancy morning sickness. Despite my rule of no food in bedrooms, I made an exception for him so he can eat a snack before getting out of bed. So far, so good, but I still worry that it won't be enough. Katie is similarly hungry, but her biggest issue is moodiness right now, and it's driving me crazy. Most mornings, she's really grumpy, and it rubs off on everyone else. She's also had a lot of leg pain.

4. Trying to buy a car. We've looked at 2 seriously so far. 1 had a sketchy Carfax report, and the other one just didn't feel right for some reason. It's also going to cost a lot of money, and I don't look forward to that either.

I have to balance out the bad with some good, though.

1. I'm getting closer to finishing my blog update!

2. It's March, which means it's my birthday month.

3. The kids got good grades on their report cards.

4. I'm enjoying the book series I'm reading more than I expected (Ranger's Apprentice).

5. Despite the stress headaches (and the others from hormones, lack of sleep, sickness, or hunger), I have a medicine that works well and helps me feel better.

We're going to make it. I probably need to start baking more bread and muffins so my hungry preteens don't starve.

Salt-Lake-Cation, Dressers

We left Thursday after school, and our drive was uneventful. The Airbnb had plenty of space for everyone even though it wasn't very accessible for Jacob. My family took the downstairs, where we had 3 bedrooms and a bathroom. James's parents and brother arrived about an hour after us, so we just hung out and talked the rest of the evening.

Friday morning, we had pancakes and then went to the Museum of Natural Curiosity in Lehi. The kids had a great time, and we even got there before it got super crowded. It was so much easier than the last time we went. The older kids kept track of the younger ones, so I didn't really have to worry about anyone or feed any babies. We went to the mall in Provo for lunch (shawarma) and then looked around at the stores. After that, we went to the giant D.I., where I found lots of leggings for Katie. She's pretty tall for age, but I've discovered that Lula Roe leggings (the adult size) fit her really well and are very comfy. At D.I., they are only 3 bucks! She also loves the bright, colorful patterns. We had pizza at the Airbnb, and the kids got in the hot tub afterward.

Saturday, we cleaned and packed up after having pancakes again. We went to the Bean Museum on BYU campus, then got ice cream at the Creamery. For lunch, we went to Nazca, a Peruvian restaurant that James's cousin Hillary works at. The food there was absolutely amazing! Afterward, we went to IKEA and got James a new dresser. We then headed home and arrived without incident with enough to unpack stuff.

Monday, we didn't have school. James took the little kids out while I put together his dresser. The kids deep cleaned their rooms. Since James got a new dresser, we gave his old one to Katie, Katie's old one to the boys, and did a lot of cleaning in spaces that are normally covered by furniture. I was completely wiped out by the end of the day, but in a good way.

The rest of the week has been all right so far. We had a few warm days, then a bunch of snow. :( Hopefully this will be the last big storm. I visited my ministering sisters yesterday after spending the whole afternoon making sugar cookies. I was really tired by then, but I felt that it was important for some reason.

James and I are going to the temple today. I'm excited because I heard there are some changes.

Things are going well with the blog. I've done over half of the recipes now. My goal of finishing by my birthday will definitely happen!

Capitol, Playdate, Conferences

James went to the Capitol on Friday, so it was a bit of a long day. The O'Crowleys came over for a playdate (all 4 of them), so it was a busy afternoon.

I had parent/teacher conferences for all of my elementary kids. Everyone is doing well at school. Lewis is the only talkative one, which I find funny. I think he's my most extroverted kid.

The kids had a good Valentine's Day at school. I wasn't feeling well that day, so I didn't get anything for James. He brought me some chocolate. We went out for a milkshake on Wednesday when I was feeling better.

We're leaving for our annual Salt-Lake-Cation today. It's been such a brutal winter that it's really needed. I've had enough of it already. Some of the kids are anxious about the trip since they came back somewhat sick from our last one, and I can't blame them.

I'm supposed to be packing right now, but I don't have any desire to do so. One anxious kid threw up, so he's home from school, and I think he broke our Roku remote. Another anxious kid called me from school saying her arm is completely numb and won't move. (I'm pretty sure she's sore from P.E. yesterday). Ugh. I hope in the next few days I can find some time to relax. Travel will never be my favorite as long as there are kids coming along.

Baptism, Jury Duty, Heavy

Friday night, we went out to dinner and helped a friend who needed a new battery for her car. It was freezing, but I know she was really grateful.

James was gone all day on Saturday since his coworker who normally drives the girls' lacrosse team had a heart attack. I went to a baptism and ended up having a pretty good day.

This week has been a bit stressful. I had jury duty on Wednesday, so I had Joseph stay home from school to watch Samantha. I didn't get chosen for the jury, so I ran a few errands and got home by 11:15. It was supposed to be a relaxing afternoon, but I got a call from Katie saying she felt like she was going to throw up, so I picked her up from school. She then proceeded to bounce off the walls for the rest of the day.

Today, I've got grocery shopping and a well check for Lewis. I hope he's okay too. He said he felt a little sick this morning but seemed to be doing fine by the time he needed to go to school. Kenny is also home not feeling well, but he might improve enough to go late.

My Primary calling feels really heavy this week. I was getting excited about a new family of kids who started coming to church, but their dad took them from their mom. She has a restraining order against him, so she can't get them back since they have no custody arrangement, and the court date is in a few months. I went to see her and give her a loaf of bread, and I could tell she was feeling terrible, but I had no idea of how to help her. My other friend (and one of my teachers) just had a baby and had to bring him home on oxygen. I've been talking with her every day, but I don't feel like I'm all that helpful. I'm going to take her some ice cream later on.

The weather isn't helping. It's been sunny, but it has yet to be above 0 during the night or above freezing during the day. This is the worst winter of my entire life.

On the plus side, things are coming along nicely with my blog. We're also going on a little "Salt-Lake-Cation" next week with James's family. I really hope everyone is healthy by then.