August 2015

It was almost a relief to finish up August.  I was ready for a rest.  We were all ready for some structure that school provides.  We had some great things going on to wrap up our summer.  We had fun play dates with Fisher and Maddie Coleman.  We celebrated a fun birthday party at Renee's house for her daughter.

We played in our fun circle every day.  We are so lucky to have such fun neighbors. Their four wheelers, their trampoline, their fully stocked refrigerator outside filled with drinks and ice-cream all the time, their water slide, their music that Ella and Journey AND Abby love to dance too... we are really lucky.  I couldn't ask for a better place to live with such great neighbors.  We ate a lot of things from our garden this summer but we also had plenty from their garden.

I tried to get a few friends to go Mnt biking with me every week.  We had some fun times.  

I found myself on a ladder one day picking grapes at my friends house.  I asked the kids to hold the ladder so I could reach up high.  I had a good laugh when I looked down and wondered if 7 kids could really hold that ladder for me if I tipped over.  It was a valiant effort.  

Darren went to scout camp for a few days.  Always a good thing for him to do.  I attribute a lot of who he is now to his good scout leaders, which include his Dad.

Then the day finally came for school to start.  Tyler in 4 grade.  Ella in 2nd grade.  Abby setting off down the drive way on her own with the scoter because she wanted to go to school too.

We did have a few warm night left in the summer.  Darren grabbed the kids one night and had them go sleep out on the grass with him.  It was a beautiful full moon.  It made my heart happy to see them all. So I let them sleep and they finally came in around 2 AM.  

The kids got roller blades from Savers.  We got a great deal.  They have ridden around A LOT on those things.  Our fun neighbor Kami and her kids make it all the more fun!  Abby doesn't have blades yet but she has her fashion statements going all the time.  She refuses to wear certain clothes.  In the picture below she assured me her tights would keep warm and her Sophia underwear was just fine!

We did have one girls night at my house.  My girls all brought good food to munch on and we sat out on the back porch for hours talking and discussing life.  We have all had our own trials.  It is good to have friends who can rally when one of needs each other.

Hikes with Julie

We did a few good hikes this year.  Julie and I have been hiking since Tyler was a newborn.  He is 9 now.  9 years of hiking almost every week in the summer means a lot of hikes!  We had to scale back a lot this summer.  Shorter hikes, less elevation ... keep it simple.  The first hike we did to an overlook was tough.  Spencer and Abby are not light anymore.  It was too long and too steep for them.  We loved the rainbow striations in the rocks when we got up high.  We found our friend Ms. LaPriel had died the morning of this hike.  My kids have been going in to read to her for about 5 years.  They loved it.  She always made sure their pockets were full of goodies before they left.  

I have never see the waterfall at the bottom of this trail.  It is Mill B North.  

Another week we hiked to the suspension bridge in Draper.  It was just finished.  A few weeks later we hiked to the suspension bridge from the other way.  We had a big group that day.  

Whistler for Dan's 40th

I dont usually do to many crazy and wild things but this one seemed a bit crazy and wild to me.  Our friend Dan turned 40.  He planned a trip to Whistler Canada and asked us all to come.  He didn't expect anyone but his wife to come.  Then our friend Rob found super cheap tickets to Seattle.  We found a babysitter for our kids. We booked a hotel room for 4 of us to go and then reserved a car and we were off.  

I flew in before Rob, Ang and Darren.  I got to hang out with my friend Angenette (Neti).  We had a lovely hot cocoa and some delicious food.   Then I drove to my sisters house in Seattle and got to go to my nephew Ely's  graduation from preschool.  We went for a bike ride when we got home.  And of course my sister Rach cooked an amazing meal for us.  

I slept for about 3 hours then headed to the airport for a 12:00 AM flight arrival.  We drove across the border into Canada and slept a few hours in Vancouver before heading to Whistler. It was a great group.  Dan and Katie LaRiviere, Rob Hyldahl, Ang Isaccs, and Darren and I.  (or Dalls as all his bike friends call him)  Riding down hill bikes with lots of suspension was great fun.  Lots of jumps and curves.  I thought I was invincible on my bike.  But Ang and I called it a day after one day.  Everyone else biked a second day but the two of us went on an amazing 13 mile hike.  

We started out with small ambitions. but it was so beautiful we just kept going and going until we got to the very top of the mnt.  The rivers and lakes, the forest and bridges.  It was all breathtaking.  

The boys and Katie enjoyed a second day of biking but we were all exhausted by the end.  We ate good food, sat in the hot tub and slept well.

11 or 12 years ago Darren and I went to the same waterfall as newly weds.  We just took a picture of us standing up at the top of the waterfall.  This time we found the crazy trail down to the base.  Maybe we look older and wiser now compared to May 2004.

We did a little rock climbing while there.  Darren opted out of the climbing and ran/hiked up the Chief in Squamish. I did it pregnant last time with him, it was a good steep hike with an incredible view at the top.  We made it home.  It was a great adventure.  A great 40th birthday party getaway for our friend.  Our kids missed us.  They had the flu while we were gone and we got it when we got home from them.  But thanks to Renee and Ben for taking care of them for us.