Our Weekend Retreat

We've learned something in the year and a half that Danny has served as bishop. We need time as a family...breaks from the every day grind. More than we used to. And sometimes, we just have to leave town for a while and get away from it all! :) We were feeling like life was getting a bit overwhelming, so Danny decided we were heading to the cabin for the weekend. We kept the kids out of school on Friday, and left our (finally!) beautiful spring weather at home and traded it for the piles and piles of snow in Island Park. I couldn't believe how deep it was! Danny had to literally dig us a path to the door!

Snow in Island Park is different from snow at home. It's way more fun and magical! So as soon as we got the stairs dug out and the car unloaded, the kids wanted to get in their snow clothes and don the snowshoes we rented for them from BYU-I. 

Joey hung out with me inside, and ate cheerios while I got us unpacked and settled in. Once everyone else was done in the snow, they joined us in what is my favorite part of being at the cabin. Relaxing! The kids introduced Joey to the fun of Great Grandma's giant bear and Joey quickly discovered all the shelved and drawers he could empty out. :)

Before bed, we had our very special FHE treat. We had officially reached the next benchmark in our goal of doing FHE for 20 weeks (we've done 10 weeks now!), and we celebrated with frozen custard from Nielsen's! It was awesome. Joey especially thought so. :) And we're feeling really good about establishing a good FHE habit. 

The next morning it was time for our much anticipated snowshoeing adventure!! We got all bundled up and started out into the woods. Danny was hoping we could make it to the river, which would be about three miles round trip. Nothing compared to the hikes we've done with the kids, so we started out into the woods with confidence in our snowshoed steps. :) It was so gorgeous, and being out in the woods was so neat! The snowshoes took a little getting used to, but eventually we were weaving in and out of trees like pros. What we didn't consider was how much more energy was required than when we hike in the summer...so it didn't take long until we abandoned our dreams of making it to the river and headed back to the cabin. Joey was a happy kids and very patient with all the tree branches slapping him in the face for most of the trip, and then screamed for a bit before giving up and just going to sleep. I think Maese especially loved the trip! We ended up with about a mile and a half of snowshoeing, and I think I love it! Danny actually ended up going back out that afternoon and logging another 2.4 miles on his own. Definitely something we want to do more of!

That afternoon Mark and Megan came to spend the night with us, and brought their new puppy Ash. The dogs had a ball playing in the snow, and we enjoyed board games, freshly baked chocolate chip cookies, and some delicious chicken soup. It was Joey's first time eating one of his Mama's delicious cookies, and he was definitely a fan!

On Sunday we attended the local ward bright and early at 9:00 am. After church we enjoyed a nice day of reading and visiting and such. Danny and Johnny worked on the snow fort Johnny was building for a bit. There was so much snow it was perfect for snow forts! We even tried a new dinner in our Instant Pot...Kalua Pork...and it was amazing!! 

Before it got too late, Mark and Megan and Ash had to make their way back to Rexburg and the demands of student life. We were so glad they came to hang out with us for a while!

Our original plan was to get everything ready to go on Sunday night, so we could get up and clean first thing on Monday and get on the road. The kids had SEPs starting at 2:00, and their first night of soccer practice starting at 5:00. But Danny and I just couldn't get ourselves moving. We weren't ready to head back to the craziness. So we didn't! :) We let the kids play longer, and even busted out the pots and pans for Joey. We ate the rest of the cookies, ice cream, and hot chocolate and watched "Ephraim's Rescue" before going to bed.

The next morning, we got up and packed and cleaned. The whole time feeling like we just didn't get enough time. We never do! We're never ready to leave this happy place! We're so grateful for Grandma Lovell, and her willingness to let us stay and find a moment of peace amidst the storm. Danny and I started our married life in the cabin, and we love bringing our children there. 

Life is crazy right now. There is so much going on all the time! Danny is busy with work and being Bishop, and adding school to the mix is just going to make him busier. The kids have so much going on with school, and I feel so much pressure to teach them all they need to know. Life just moves so terribly fast. These weekends when we can stop the crazy and just be "us" are the memories we will treasure the most. I love these people so much, and am so grateful for the happiness and joy they bring to my life! We miss Luke so much, and as time and memories are moving forward I miss him in these pictures more and more. But I know he is aware of us, and we'll share these memories in a way I can't fathom now. How grateful I am for that knowledge!

We made the drive home in good time (remember to cancel those SEPs somewhere along the way), and made it home just in time to grab some dinner at Jimmy John's, unload the car, and head to soccer...and right back into the fray. :)

Eleven Months

 

Do you remember the story "The Monster at the End of this Book"? Grover is convinced that he won't have to face the Monster at the End of this Book if he can keep the pages from being turned. Well, I'll admit that I have given some serious consideration to the possibility that maybe...just maybe...if I don't post this eleven month post, Joey won't be able to turn one! But I guess I'm just rational enough still to know that probably won't work. Sigh...

Oh, where to start? Our Poseph is just the cutest, funnest, most hilarious kid ever! He is into absolutely everything, all the time. And he seems to know what he's not supposed to get into, and that's definitely where he wants to be! And when he gets caught, he just gives you his sweetest, most impish smile. Yeah, it's hard to get too upset after that! He loves playing with Maese, and Maese is pretty tolerant of all of Joey's toddler-love. :) Joey loves to play with the kids, and often gets rather frustrated when he can't go with them to play outside. So he'll stand at the back door and watch them, all the while yelling at them. If only we knew what he was saying! This kid babbles constantly. Danny says he's like a cartoon baby; he just crawls around the house destroying what he can, all the while sweetly babbling to whomever might be listening. This kid is too much!

Joey continues to be about the easiest baby ever. He eats on a great schedule, and now he's tackling 8 oz bottles like they're nothing. He eats anything and everything we'll give him! He still prefers his naps in the crib, and has even taken to crawling to my room and pulling his blanket between the slats of his crib until I notice he's ready to go to bed. Seriously, he asks for naps! But even the times that his naps are interrupted by my schedule, he'll catch the sleep in his carseat he can and then be patient and pleasant until he can get to his crib. I love this kid! He sleeps solid through the night, and always wakes up happy. The one thing we have definitely learned about Joey is that he gets ultra-silly when he's tired. It's hilarious! And he thinks he's the most hilarious thing ever. It's awesome!

Here's more about our silly boy at 11 months:

*Still wearing size 3 diapers, but we're starting to think it's time to move up (hello, blowouts)

*Wearing 12 month clothes

*Now has FOUR teeth! The two on the bottom, and his fangs on top :)

*Really starting to prefer his Daddy

*Waves "hello" and "goodbye"

*Has discovered his reflection and finds it hilarious

*Cruises along the furniture like a boss

*Does NOT like the feeling of grass

*His favorite toy is a ball...any ball, and he's got quite the arm!

Well, that's it. Next month is the last post! :( I'm going to miss my sweet baby boy!!

Isabelle's Birthday Cake

Back in February, we were supposed to have a big birthday get-together for Grandma Candy, me, and for Isabelle. But Grandma Candy got sick, so it was postponed. But the cool part was I got to try that salted caramel chocolate cake again!! And with my new decorating tools, it turned out even prettier!

Isabelle was so excited to blow out her sparkler candles! And by "excited", I mean a little scared. :) But it was worth it to get to the cutting-the-cake part!

The cake wasn't quite as pretty on the inside as the last time I made it, but it was every bit as delicious. Happy Birthday, Isabelle! We can hardly believe she's 11 already!

Mama's Birthday

Well, I turn 34 this year! It's crazy how I went from being 28 to being 34 without really realizing what was happening. I suppose I'll probably be saying the same thing at 47! 

So, Danny was asked to smoke the meat for our Relief Society Birthday activity, which was the evening of my birthday. He gladly accepted, and had planned on just taking the day off to spend with me and to smoke the meat. Well...what he didn't realize was that he was in a training all week that week that he couldn't get out of. So that left me to smoke the meat!! I was a little nervous, but it turned out awesome. Danny went with me to the activity, so that was nice. I got many phone calls, texts, and Facebook posts...and even a couple of visitors with cute deliveries! It was a good day.

But we really celebrated my birthday the next day, on Friday. That's when we got to do my birthday dinner! The boys and I went to Sweet Tooth Fairy first thing to pick out our cupcakes. Since I was making the cake for Isabelle's birthday celebration on Sunday, I decided against another cake. Believe it or not, I try not to be gluttonous. :)

For dinner we were finally, after YEARS of waiting for the right opportunity, trying Tyler's Ultimate Fried Chicken!! I can hardly describe how happy the sight of beautiful fresh herbs in a vat of oil looked, or how satisfying our double-dredged chicken legs were. It's the little things, people. :) Danny even busted out his special Beecher's cheese all the way from Seattle for my special dinner, and we had "Seattle Mac and Cheese" on the side. The chicken was delicious, though a little darker than we wanted. We haven't quite figured that part out yet. But it was a superb dinner for this birthday girl!

Then it was time for cupcakes. :) Danny and the kids gave me their gifts on the morning on my birthday, and I love them! A turn table for my cakes, as well as an offset spatula for frosting and a side-scraping-decorating thing. Also, Danny got me some weighted gloves for my workouts...I've been wanting those for years. And my Mom hit it out of the park this year by getting me an Instant Pot! Danny and I are both seriously excited to use that!

Oh, and photo cred to Johnny for this cute picture of Po Po and me. :) It was a great birthday this year, just like all the rest. I feel so blessed to have so many people in my life that love me, and I'm overwhelmed by the blessings the Lord has given me this last year. I look forward to the adventure ahead of me this next year!