The Summer of the Bike

I'm so glad Mark "made" me buy a bike. Even if I do look a little ridiculous when I'm riding it, the seat is very wide and squishy, which I feel is necessary if you are going to ride for longer than a couple minutes.

This summer we have bonded as a family while riding our bikes all over town.


But our favorite spot is still "Shining Rock River"...known to all others as Ward Nail Park.

The commute.

Hitting the BMX track.



Enjoying the sidelines...digging in the dirt hills.


As usual, we mosey on over to the pond and engage in a little throwing of rocks.

Meg and Laney use Megan's bike helmet to aid in hauling a big load over to the banks.


A peaceful moment. I enjoy sitting a ways back and watching all four of my kids cooperate and have fun together. I feel the sun on my face and peace in my heart.


I wish every day could be like this.

Against all inclinations....

I am going to attempt to resume the blogging.

I just took a huge step by clicking on the "sign in" button rather than just lurking in the blogs of friends, family and those I have never met but whose lives make me feel better about my own. (I know you know what I'm talking about). And, no, I'm not referring to YOUR blog. It's that other lady.

So, things are going just swimmingly around here. We are down to less than two weeks of summer...but who's counting? As I type, Laney is screaming at me because she wants a drink of my orange juice. When I offer it to her, she promptly screams again and says "NO!", simultaneously trying to grab and throw the cup on the laptop. So I put the cup back down and we repeat the whole process. Its superfun!

Despite my current predicament, I feel comfortable stating that this has officially been our most relaxed and fun summer to date. We have mastered the art of sleeping in (something that has eluded us for 9 years). I have come to accept that along with the trips to the pool, fun times in Kansas City, outings to the library, going to the movies, bike rides, bbqs, dance-offs, neighborhood baseball games, and an excessive amount of rice krispie treats....there are bound to be fights, time-outs, boredom, sunburns, mosquito bites, an alarming lack of baths, WAY to much tv and an unhealthy number of trips to Walmart.

It's the way it is.

I'm okay with it.

And all in all, I'm sad to see it all coming to and end. I will have 3 of my 4 kids in school full-time and I'm not really sure what Laney and I are going to do with all that free time. But as always, we are loving the "back to school" process. New clothes and backpacks....crisp, clean school supplies. Wonderful! I'm mulling over holding a family back to school fashion show for our activity next FHE. The boys will HATE IT and Megan will bask in the glory of it all.

In other news, despite all efforts, we haven't had much luck in selling the house. We are staying here until we do, and it looks like that won't be any time soon. I'm grateful that for the time being we are in a place we love and I feel like that's all we can ask for. So our Kansas City plans are on hold until further notice. Mark is dividing his time between his responsibilities here and in Kansas City. 2 weeks in Arky - 2 weeks in KC. A total bummer. If you happen to be a blog-reading burglar/murderer, may I remind you that I am the half of this couple that grew up in Payson, Utah? I went on dates in which we shot skeet, for crying out loud. Don't even try it. I'll shoot you. Or I'll claw your eyes out...whichever.

On a lighter note, the blackberries did eventually ripen. This led to the discovery that I have ALOT to learn about growing blackberries. The rest of the garden was also bordering on pathetic this year. It seems I am periodically "blessed" to learn about the various blights, pest and diseases that can occur when trying to grow one's own fruits and veggies. Grey mold in the raspberries, scrawny cherry tomatoes, bean-less bean plants, and spinach/lettuce/cilantro bolting before I could eat it. But we ROCKED the beets, onions and peppers. Whoopedy doo!

There's always next year.

Until we meet again, little blog.

Sunny days

Few things are more satisfying that living in your swimsuit and splashing with the neighbors.

That slide used to belong to the Harlens next door. They thought they could get rid of it at a yard sale, but we didn't want to lose the best water slide in the cul de sac, so we grabbed it before anyone else could buy it.

Our awesome alligator pool we scored at Aldi. It provides a safe place for the small and docile of the group. Anyone who needs a break from the crazy. Also, it tends to have a lower concentration of floating grass, for those who like that sort of thing.

Long live summer!

4th of July

Unfortunately, this year the only photographic record I have of our Independence Day celebrations is this one Mark took with his iphone.

Fortunately we did have a wonderful time at the Allreds. It was a Hufford/Allred/Fields/Malquist/Timmins extravaganza!

The food was spectacular...in fact, I set up camp by the guacamole and was happy as a clam the entire evening.

The fireworks did not disappoint. They never do.

But my favorite part of the day was earlier when Mark and I took the kids for a bike ride and we went down to the firework tent at on Bloomington to pick out our little pile of roman candles and bottle rockets. While we were making our selections, the wind started to pick up and before you know it, it was raining. We ran for the bikes and started back. It was fun! The kids were so excited and couldn't believe we had gone all that way in the rain. I love the way kids look at life.

Happy Fourth!

Do you mind?

I know I've been slowly working my way through the past couple months, posting photos of the kids and their milestones and accomplishments. But I need a little break...just for a sec.

Truth?

Life is a little hard. We are moving. From here (Arkansas) to there (Kansas City). I am the first to admit that Arkansas was DEAD LAST in my list of states I'd ever consider living in. The very word brings to mind backwardness, bare feet and married cousins. However, it was exactly where were supposed to be and because of that I have loved (LOVED!) it here. I really want to stay and I really want to eat my blackberries and mow my lawn and hang with my neighbors. I love knowing every back road and having the numbers of my favorite restaurants in my cell phone so I can get really great take-out. That takes commitment, people! That takes time and a methodical investment in trying out a wide variety of items on the menu... things that should not be taken for granted. And if that isn't enough, I just got the number of a guy who will mow, weed eat, and edge your lawn for 25 bucks. You can't tell me I'll find somebody like that in KC. I won't believe you.

So for know I go out and push my kids in the swings and get teary eyed and say to my self, "I don't want to move." sniff sniff. Then I have a handful of raspberries and test the plumpness of the blackest of my blackberries and will them to ripen before someone else decides they might like to live here and push their kids in the swings.

I'm trying to remind myself of the day we drove out of Utah Valley and I bawled as I saw Mt. Timpanogos fading in my rear view mirror. I most decidedly did not want to leave my life there and my family and especially my parents that had only 6 months before moved back from Texas to be close to all of us. Most decidedly.

And look how that turned out?

It'll be fine. We're going to be just fine.

Excuse me...I think I'll go test the plumpness of the blackest of my berries.

sniff sniff.