Awesome August

It seems that in this small space, clutter is inevitable.  There is just no where to put things.  So you stack some papers on the table, then you have to eat on that table so you put it on the couch, and once it's time to sit down it gets placed on the bench, and so on and so forth until you have a hard time finding anything with every surface of this cabin being covered with papers, toys, shoes, etc.  If you walk by our quaint little chalet you may hear curses as we trip over a football helmet or step on a lego; and for that, I apologize.

The cabin on a good day:

To recompense, I have found myself going over to the new house quite frequently, particularly in the evening.  I like the quiet of the place.  I love the clean walls, free of wooden-carved ducks, giant fish, or antlers. I enjoy the sound of silence, and watch the colors change on the walls as the sun sets. 

No lie, I actually dreamed of a dishwasher last night.  Dreamt that I put the dirty silverware in this magical machine that washed and dried them for me!   They came out all shiny and new and it only took minutes.  Hands down, I am most looking forward to more kitchen space.  I made lasagna yesterday for dinner.  I am down to one mixing bowl (as Josh melted the other on the stove top) and that mixing bowl already had the salad in it.  So I made the meat sauce in a wok, wisked the ricotta and egg in a tupperware and boiled the noodles in a small sauce pan.  With the remaining 2 saucepans, I mixed pie crust in one, and made the peach pie filling in the other.  Rolled the dough out on the kitchen table, bada-bing, bada-bam, dinner was served.  It was quite a sight. Which once again made me ponder:

Pioneer women, how the heck did you do it??

I have running water and a stove that doesn't require me lighting a fire in it.  Those women are amazing.  Oh, and they crossed the plains too.  Oh, and had babies in wagons without the comfort of epideral (or even IBUProfen for that matter.) Wow.

A monthly highlight, mylittle sister Kelli married her dream boy on August 2nd.  Now she is Mrs. Kendall Tingey.  They are a great couple and we are so excited to have him in the family (and I'm not just saying that because he may read this, I genuinely love the guy.) With months of family planning and involvement, it turned out to be such a wonderful day.  Our family worked together to pull off quite an amazing reception.  Sis in law Meghan did all the food (from steak to creme brule), Scotty wooed the crowds with his amazing song and guitar, Shera and I did all the flowers, and mom and dad foot the bill.  Ha ha.  It was wonderful. 

Had to add this one, it's from on of Kendall's buddies.  He seriously crostiched this:

 

And here are some pictures to try and convince you to move here:

Across the street from the cabin

View from our cul-de-sac

Somewhere over the rainbow, there is our house made of wood........

Joshua

Hiking at Dutch Hollow Trail head

Josh saved up last summer so he could buy his own ticket to Wicked when it came to Salt Lake.  He said it was worth every penny.

Junior stud helping me prep for tile

Soccer season is once again in session, but junior stud muffin opted for a different sport this Fall: Football.  Complete with pads, helmet, cleats, and a jersey reading EGGERTZ, he's gearing up for his first big game.  I figured this boy would either LOVE it or HATE it.  He's already been tackled on multiple occasions, and he is still eating it up and loving every minute of it.  His favorite position thus far is inside linebacker.  I had to ask him what this position does.  He says he tries to sack the quarterback or tackle the person with the ball.  Hmmm.  Sounds fun.  Josh practices M-Th for 2 hours each evening. On his off days, he's asked to run a mile and do 50 sit ups and push ups.  Here he is, cranking them out with kid sister Ella at his side.

Josh also started the 5th grade this month.  He is at Timpanogos Intermediate.  Only 5 and 6 graders here.  He has his own locker and opted to do orchestra, playing the violin.  He gets to ride the bus, and get this, each kid gets their own lap-top. He is loving his teacher, Mrs. Van Houten, and has made some good friends already.

   

First day of school.  Doesn't he look excited?! Actually, that expression reminds me a lot of his dad.

Josh quote of the month:

I was telling Josh about the only time my grandma ever did something with me and my siblings when we were young.  She took us to a park, then to see the movie "Benji," to which Josh asks,

"Oh, was that in black and white?"

Daxton

We have to get on Josh's case to do his push ups and sit ups, and while Josh is whining, Dax is over on his own.............76, 78, 79...............he seriously did 110 sit ups. 

Love that cheese ball.

His new shirt and shades from the outlets.  Apparently that's his "I'm cool and know it" pose.

We get all kinds of critters here, including little snakes.  They caught this one in the backyard.

No, you can't keep it.

Dax earned a dollar and more than anything wanted to spend it at this machine at Walmart.  And guess what!  He didn't win anything!   Lesson learned?  No.  He wants to try again once he earns enough.

This box of styrofoam kept them entertained for an hour and a half while I grouted.  Gotta love free and cheap entertainment!

My little Dax man also opted out of soccer this Fall and instead chose to do gymnastics.  Pretty sure it was the first time this boy ever tried a cartwheel, and though he landed on his head 90% of the time, he never gave up and was determined to get it right.  However, he did impress us all with his gnarly back bend: 

That's my boy! Why are you laughing?

Dax also started full day school this year, in 1st grade.  His teacher loves all things MICKEY, and her room is almost completely wall to wall Mickey Mouse.  Mrs. Kerr is great, and Dax has made some good friends as well.  He says he spends most of his time protecting his buddy Cole at recess because the girls always chase him. 

Dax quote of the month:

"Hey mom, look at the syrup pattern on my crepe.  It looks like death."

Ella

Kelli and Kendall only live 25 minutes from us, so we have had them over for Sunday dinner a few times. Last Sunday they brought along a game.

One, two, three, four, I declare a thumb war.

Ella wanted to go on an "adventure," which entailed crossing the street so she could sketch the horses.

Do you want to move here yet? You could be our neighbors!  Okay, maybe that's not good advertising...

Her finished product.

 

We got a little (lot) of rain, and it came through the basement.  The girls splashed while Cam and I bailed water.  No worries, once we get the back retained, graded, and put in a pipe, we should be golden.

Falling asleep on the boat.

Ella won a cake at our ward's party.  Lucky number 5 on the cake walk!

Ella also is in gymnastics, she and Dax take together.  Why isn't it as funny when she does it?

Kendall and Kelli went for a walk with us, and they caught yet another snake.  Kelli was about 20 feet away (out of fright), so she's no in the picture.

After she finally put the snake down, she chased Kelli around waving her arms and yelling..."Snake Hands!"

Ella FINALLY started school.  Poor girl had to wait a week and a half longer than her brothers, but she started today and is loving it.  Her teacher is Mrs.Kohler, and she seems great.  There are 3 Ella's in her class, so Ella chose to be called by her first and middle name, Ella Marie.  I'm excited to get this girl reading.  I have a feeling she will be a book worm. 

Ella has hit the "I hate church" phase.  I remember Dax going through the same thing about this time last year.  Every time you tell them it's Sunday, their heart sinks and the mutter under their breath, "I hate church.  It's so boring and it lasts forever."  Hopefully her opinion will soon change and we won't find her hiding under tables in different classrooms, as we did with Daxton.

Ella quote of the month:

"Ummm, mom?  I'm going to miss you when you die."
"Ella, I'm not going to die for a really long time."
"I know, it's just that you have those lines on your elbows, so I know you're getting older.  And don't tell dad I said this, but he's old too."

And another,

"Mom, I have something I need to tell you.  I have a pretend friend, and he's a boy.  His name is John."
"A pretend friend that's a boy?  He's not your boyfriend is he?"
Ella covers her mouth and giggles.
"Yeah, he is.  (giggle) He asked me and I said 'Sure, but don't tell my  mom.'"

Amelie

Yep, she climbs too.

Don't ask. 

Ella and Amelie asleep at Nana's house the night before the wedding.

Warming up on the boat.  Do you like the newly apholstered seat behind her?  Did that myself....just don't look too closely.

Precious girl

We asked Amelie to go get her jammie on, and this is what she came down the stairs wearing.

Dimples!

I hear her yelling, "Mom, I stuck!" and turned the corner to find this. It's Josh's football helmet on backwards.

We are so close to having this pottty-training thing down, except for numero dos.  She will sneak off to be by herself, then drop a deuce.  Not sure what to do about this one.  I've tried a sticker chart, and "poop" suckers (dum dums people, come on.  She poops on the potty seat,she gets a "Poop sucker.")  So, any helpful suggestions would be greatly appreciated. 

Amelie has become such a little fish in the water.  Today she was actually treading water.  Funniest thing I have ever seen.  Goggles on, little arms and legs working to keep her head above the water.  She's a hoot. 

Amelie swimming in the lake with Kelli and Kendall.

Cameron

Had to add this one, cute kids having pizza on the lake.

Going for a hike.

Cam's big LOTOJA race is Saturday.  I'm attributing his sleepless nights to pre-race anxiety.  He will rock it, I have no doubt. 

Cam and I have been lucky enough to work together on a few occasions on the house.  Cam helped Justin with the wood floors and trim-work.  And together we have grouted a few bathrooms.  We'll give it a T for Teamwork!

Cam quote of the month:

To set the stage, it was the end of the day and I was whining because my body hurt and I had an odd new pain running from my shoulder down my arm, to which Cam replies:

"Cindy, there is something new that's wrong with you everyday.   I don't know what to do for you anymore.  If you were a horse, I would put you down."

Prince charming, right?

Cindy

Me and the kids on a hike.

Working together to bail water.

In Shera's new convertible.  In this shot I was going for Afghani refugee.

In this one, Mother Goose.

I cried at intermission this time too.  Love it!!

Nana joined us for the fun event!

I'm not sure why I'm anxious all the time.  I wake up and about 2 minutes into my "rise and shine" my tummy starts to hurt.  I truly believe that my anxiety is killing me.  Not only is it pulling my shoulders, neck, and hips out of alignment, but it's also producing a lot of these:

Sexy, right?  No joke, it made my lip swell so I looked like the Joker.

I am near the point of asking for medical help (i.e. a pill)  But Cam is convinced that will only make me worse with whatever side-effects are involved.  And if he's already about to put me down, imagine what would happen with side affects!

Also, I'm pretty sure my little body wasn't built for manual labor.  No doubt, I love to work.  I love to see projects get completed and know that despite how bad the work sucks or how monotonous the work is, you do it just the same and get it done. It's just that my body is severely sore and even more crooked than usual.  (Cue the physical therapist) Justin and I worked together to tile a floor and shower (pretty sure I just slowed him down, but he's good company).  It was fun to learn the "tricks of the trade" as I watched him do different tile cuts and mortar tricks.  Lots of comments on my end of, "Oh, so that's how you do it."

The house is near completion, and we are hoping to get in by end of September.  The paint is nearly done, electrical near completion as well.  Just need rain-gutters, countertops, carpet, and finish plumbing.  The other night Cam and I went over and screwed in some light bulbs.  Turning on our "first light" in the house was honestly one of the most exciting things! (I know, I don't get out much.  Want to babysit my kids so I can? )

We feel so incredibly blessed to be living in such an amazing city, among such amazing people.  I participated in Swiss days this past weekend.  I woke up bright and early one morning to help make "Swiss bread," and was also able to serve in the "fruit booth" during the event.  Swiss days is amazing, with every imaginable detail planned out, and executed perfectly.  It was so fun to talk with people from all over the U.S., all coming to Midway to be a part of the extraordinary event.  If you came this year, or didn't quite make it up, come next year!  I would love to see you!

The kids and I attending Swiss days.