A Few Days in Idaho

Back in January after I knew that Morgan was having a baby, I asked for some time off from work to be in Idaho around the time the baby would be born and also to have some quality Olympic viewing time.  It has come and gone and I had such a great time.   

I got to have lots of baby Russell time.  He is such a sweet, good baby and so fun to hold and snuggle. 

Stacy and I pretty much took turns holding him when he wasn't being nursed. 

There are 2 kitties on the farm that were being held and I should say mauled most of the time we were there.  It is hard when there are only 2 kittens but 4 little girls.

There was some tractor time for Jonas and Hannah.  Alan, Zack and Andrew were good sports about taking Jonas around with them to have some farming experiences. 

When  Leah and Maren get together it is all about the dress-ups.  Maren and Leah posing on a rock.  At first they were just sitting on the rock and then I thought they looked so cute so I started snapping pictures.  They were pretending to be mermaids.

Hannah was very good at helping with the little girls.  Lily is particularly fond of hanging out with Hannah.

Lily enjoyed her chocolate cupcake.

On Wednesday morning we decided to drive up to Mesa Falls and no trip to Ashton is complete without stopping to feed the fish.  I remember doing that years ago.  It is still fun to see the fish chomp on the bread.

Looking over the edge of the Falls.

Essie enjoyed the Falls.  Lots of walking and climbing to keep her busy.

Morgan was a real trooper and came along on all of the adventures.  Of course she would, this is Morgan we are talking about.  So the baby was a  barely a week old and was taken to Mesa Falls and to the Sand Dunes at Egin Lake. 

On Thursday evening we went to the Sand Dunes near St. Anthony.  There is a small lake right next to the dunes.  It was perfect for these kids.  Lots of sand to dig in and swimming to do. 

The water is very shallow and so the kids could just walk around in the water on their own.  It was so fun.  I was surprised to find it so entertaining. 

Alan had a kayak that he took.  So a Zack tried it out.

A few minutes later the kayak was empty and Esme jumped in and took it for a spin herself.

We dug in the sand, looked for little shells and played in the water.  It was like being at the ocean except the smell was better.

Morgan and Andrew having a moment.

Look at that cute little face. 

We set an awning up just at the edge of the beach so we could be in the shade and also sitting in the water.  So fun.

Jonas, Zack, Hannah and Morgan heading up to the dunes on the 4 wheeler.

You can count on this girl to do crazy things.  She wedged herself into one of the sand buckets and got stuck.

As the sun started going down I started getting some interesting colors for these pictures.

The kids getting some more play time in while waiting for dinner to be done.  

The kids could not get enough of the water.

We got to see a great sunset.

Leah with plate in hand waiting for dinner to be done.

 

Little Russ holding his plate.  He looks like he already had his dinner and is having his snooze.

We had yummy tin foil dinners, s'mores and banana boats.  Then it was time to pack up and head home.  There were some mosquitoes biting us but we did not realize how bad it was until the next day.  Morgan, Stacy, Hannah and myself got the worst of it.  I have to carry Benadryl cream with me wherever I go.  I am hoping to sleep through the night without having to apply the cream throughout the night.  Mosquitoes aside, I had an amazing time in Idaho.  We had lots of relaxation, among a few fun adventures and I did get some quality Olympic viewing in.  Way to go USA!.  Not looking forward to having to go back to work tomorrow.  Thanks Shelley and Alan for having us all.  It was so nice to get away for a few days. 

 

Introducing Mr. and Mrs. Gutierrez

So we decided at the wedding since there were so many of us taking pictures besides the main photographer that we would have a contest for the best and worst pictures of the day.   Actually Noah and I may have been the only ones that decided on this contest but all of you feel free.  I am just going to get down to it.

This was one of my favorites so of course it makes my best list.

Jonas and Gabe begged me to take them to the big hill to roll down.  It reminded me of when Ben and Noah did the same thing at A. A and Maurie's wedding.  Except there were no issues with pants falling down like Noah's did that day.  This was my best action shot of the day.

The weather was so beautiful.  Look at that blue sky.  For the colors this makes my best list.

I like this one because I acutally was able to catch both of the girlies faces.  I seem to have taken a lot of pictures of the kids.  They all looked so sweet.

There is nothing like some Apple Jacks for a little pre-wedding snack.

This one makes the list because she is such a cute sister of the bride.

This one made the best list but I do see a hint of Oreo residue in her teeth. 

I have decided I will not have a worst category but just not my best category.  Looks like she was having some veil issues.  Not my best picture of the day.  I left it up to Morgan to get the professional shots.

Note to self,  don't take pictures of little girls eating Oreos.

My timing was all off on this one.  Actually I was trying to get a picture of her funny hair. 

I think Hannah actually took this picture so I can't take credit for this one.

Lily is making a scary face.  Essie looks like she's eating something disgusting.  Of course it is the Oreos again. 

It was such a fun day and went so smoothly at least I thought so.  I am so happy for Miranda and Aldo.  They are both amazing people and I am so glad they found each other and that I got to see them married in the temple today with family all around. 

what a cute couple. 

Getting There

I am sitting here on my couch completely exhausted from putting in 7 hours of manual labor,  but I am going to gird up my loins and do a posting because there has been progress on the kitchen.  On Thurs. Whit and I went to Home Depot (my home away from home these past few days) and got some paint swatches.  I decided on Aqua Pura because I was going for a robin egg blue to compliment the white cabinets. On Friday we went back and got the blue and white paint.  The cashier recognized us from the previous night.  Good Memory.  On Thursday we had puttied and sanded and were all set to go on Friday when we got home with the paint.  Whitney has been so good to help me and I really appreciate all that she has done.  Josh, Hannah and Jonas have also been part of the painting crew.  Becky and Noah even came by on Friday night to see and Noah helped out with some difficult high and hard to reach places.  Anyway I am definitely getting near the end of the big projects.

This is the new stainless steel sink.  I went with just single sink because I rarely do dishes by hand because I have an amazing dishwasher.  

 I had to scrub all of the appliances because they were covered with dust and grime.  I am considering a back splash of sorts.  I am not sure yet if I will.  I guess it depends upon how greasy it gets behind the stove when I am occasionally  fryin up chow.  

I had the dishwasher switched so it is more ergonomic and easier to put away dishes.  

Now I just have to get my  lighting done and switch out my outlets to white.  Then it will be time to have the blinds measured and put in.   Oh there is still some painting to do in the dining area.  I am going to switch things up with a light brown beige sort of color.

 The blue of the paint is reflecting on the peninsula cupboard and makes it look blue but it is still really white.  I am learning lessons in patience with this project but in the end it will be very worth it.  Heck! it's worth it now.  I have a functioning kitchen and can actually start cooking again.  YEAH!!!!!!   And I love the choices that I made.  Oh and I am going to do some decorating in the kitchen to tie in a few other colors to warm it up a bit.  

Just a Reminder of The Before
And

After
Such a difference.