Temple and Yellowstone

Thurday night after the soccer game we were all planning to load up and head to Pocatello for the temple open house.  Unfortunately, Kate came home from school sick that afternoon.  She fell right to sleep and slept for several hours.  I didn't know if we should risk taking her with us.  So I stayed home with Kate and sent the others out the door around 9:30 for a late night drive.

I wasn't on the trip so can't offer much commentary- I know that true to history they enjoyed the luxury of a hotel stay and continental breakfast.  They had an early morning start to get to the temple by 8:00.

Sounds like it was beautiful with the chandelier being the highlight for Lily.

Then off to Yellowstone where the boys managed to get enough service on their hike to watch a soccer game.

The animal sightings weren't amazing but the views and company never let you down.

Is that a little moose girl?

They stayed in our usual spot- plenty of extra space without Kate and I.

Good buddies and the good ol' petrified tree.

When Lily got bored she got creative, like using the binoculars through the headrest gap - she probably got an upclose view of Andrew's neck most of the time.

Kate and I were sad to miss the fun and I hope that isn't Mack's last Yellowstone trip with us - so crazy to see our family shrinking.  Yellowstone will always be a place of fond memories.

Super Mega Wowie Birthday Party

Better late than never!  We have been trying to have this party since school got out but plans just never seemed to work out.  We had everything ready two weeks earlier only to have some of the kids get sick - Covid worry cancled the party and kept us home.  So when I got sick two days before this rescheduled date the girls were in tears.  This would be the last chance to swim and that was supposed to be a big part of the party.  I talked to Val and Mom and we decided to go forward while I tried to get a rapid Covid test (a task that proved cery difficult).  The day of the party I found a place in Ontario that would test me.  I drove over and sat in the car for two hours but finally got my negative test.  There were many tears of joy - that the party begin.

As the kids arrived the wind picked up.  The pool had to be closed; a huge disapointment.  But they jumped right into presents and soon forgot about the pool.  This enormous squishemallow brought lots of smiles (she chose to wear a mask just in case she had some germs - she didn't want to share them with Grandma).

Val had requested some Barbie pillows for Sammie's present.  My girls took that idea and ran.  They spent hours sewing - beds, blankets, pillows, stuffed animals and even some clothes.  Sammie got more pillows than any Barbie could ever need.

Then they decorated their cakes.  My sweet Emmy baked all of the cakes the day before with her fingers crossed that we would be having the party.  I was too sick to do it but she tackled all 10 cakes like a pro!

The kids played, the boys watched football, we had a delicious dinner and then the much awaited piñata.  It was way too windy outside so we moved it into the shop.  Which worked perfect except we had to make sure they didn't get too close to the boat.  

Val created a blindfold out of some of grandpa's rags and they worked great.

Because the party was so late in the year we celebrated every kids birthday- not just the spring ones.  They all loved opening their gifts and just being together.  We are so blessed to have family close by.  

He's a Senior!

Mack and I spent the evening with Heather and she got some great photos.  I sure love that boy and his kind striking eyes with their glint of humor.  I think he had the most fun trying to do all his soccer tricks.  Our walls bare the ware of his years of perfecting new tricks but I'm sure going to miss the sound of the ball being knocked around the house and being nutmeged while I cook dinner.  I don't know where he'll go next but I'll sure miss this kid.

 

Crawfishing for Science

Emily's science class had an extra credit opportunity available - crawfishing for a science experiment with the Boise River Enhancement Group.  It sounded like fun and I didn't want to send her alone so Andrew and I joined.

We waded in the water, flipping over rocks hoping to find the little guys hanging out.  It started out slow and we weren't too optimistic but then I started finding them.  I was the best fisher in our group of 5, I caught 6, then Andrew or Emily would wade them back to shore.  In total our group of around 20 caught over 40 and they only needed 12 males and 12 females.  So we got to sex them and select the best specimen.  

They were testing the crawfish for mercury to evaluate the polutants in the water.  It was cool to be a part of a real science experiment.  Emily's teacher also got to take a few critters back for her school fishtank (a few crawfish and the little catfish Andrew caught). It was a bit chilly but we had a lot of fun and we even got snacks at the end so it was all worth it.