4th of July!

We had a lot of fun this year celebrating the 4th of July. We went to Marsing the night of the 3rd. It was Riggin's birthday, so we celebrated with cake/ice-cream. After we all went to the firework show in town, it was great as always. The kids were amazed and enjoyed the entire show. Once we were back at the house the kids went to bed and the adults sat around the fire and talked for awhile. 

The next morning we enjoyed a yummy breakfast, and some relaxation time. Later we went to Jump Creek. We went swimming in the cold water, we all had fun.

Once we got back to the house we packed our things up and headed to Middleton to spend time with Bryce's side of the family. We had a BBQ with lots of yummy food. After we lounged around waiting for it to get dark. Once it was dark Bryce and his brothers enjoyed setting off lots of fireworks. We had a great time and got back to Boise late. Overall we had a great 4th of July.  

Going to Rexburg...

Instead of staying home this year while Bryce went on his yearly manventure with his brothers, the kids and I tagged along and stayed with Kirsten in Rexburg. Kimmy came from Pocatello with her kids too. One day Erin came from Idaho Falls with her kids. The kids had a blast playing with their cousins. We spent a lot of time outside enjoying the HOT weather. Thursday we set up a slip-n-slide and filled the pool, the kids played for hours. That night we had a girls night. We went to dinner at Wingers, and went to the movie Man of Steel in 3D. We had a fun time together without the kids. Friday we stayed around the house all day chillaxin. That night we played games and chit chatted. Saturday in the morning we took the kids to feed the ducks and play at the park. During nap time everyone watched The Great Oz. Later that night the boys came home. After dinner the girls went out to get treats at Walmart. While shopping around I ran into my cousin Megan, we chatted for a good 30 minutes. It was fun running into her and catching up. Later we got home and played games. The next morning we went to sacrament and headed back home to Boise. The kids and I had a great weekend in Rexburg. Bryce had lots of fun on his manventure and will blog about that on a different post.

My kids loved the tire swing...

Girls night...

Feeding the ducks/nature walk...

Swim lessons...

Kyra started swim lessons today. She has lessons Monday through Thursday for two weeks. She was super excited to get in the pool and learn how to swim. Kyra LOVES the water, she is our little fish. Her first lesson went great.  

A few more pictures during the two week period...

Father's Day!

We had a great day celebrating Father's Day. For breakfast we had Overnight Sausage & Egg Casserole, toast, and fruit. It was delicious, and the kids liked it too [woohoo]. Bryce and I this year kept gifts simple because we recently laid a new brick patio in our backyard. The kids were excited to give Bryce their present, a new tie to wear to church. Bryce loved his new tie. After church we got together at Lexie's house for a family potluck BBQ. We had a great time eating yummy food. The cousins had fun playing hard while the adults enjoyed chit chatting. I'm so thankful for Bryce and the awesome dad he is, I can't think of a better dad for our kids. I'm thankful for my dad too. He has always been a great dad and continues to each day. Happy Father's Day!   

My friend LoraAnn...

A few months after moving into my new ward I met LoraAnn. She soon became a good friend, an even better friend once we started training for a half marathon together. You definitely get to know someone on a different level while running/talking together a few times a week. Around Christmas time LoraAnn told me her family was going to be moving to Utah because her hubby was changing careers. Justin moved in January, and LoraAnn stayed behind with the kids to finish out the school year, and hopefully sell the house. I am sure going to miss LoraAnn when she moves. I'm especially going to miss having a running buddy. We decided we will still train for races and meet up on race day to run together.

Recently some girls from our ward got together at Chili's to say goodbye to LoraAnn. We had a great time chit chatting, laughing, and enjoying yummy dessert together. Another day I treated LoraAnn to breakfast at Kneaders, we both got their famous french toast platter. We had a fun time catching up, just the two of us.