First Day of School

We are now into the fourth week of school. Once again, they're the new kids.

On the first day:

Sixth grade--lockers, switching classes, orchestra, science labs, and no recess.

Fourth grade--the youngest kid in her grade, and since the school is K-4, she's in the highest grade in her school.

First grade--missing teeth, higher expectations, real homework every night.

Summer Wrap-Up

We came home from Utah and we spent six days unpacking boxes from dawn to dusk. Brian started his new job, and the kids and I tried to make the most of our last month of summer vacation.

We explored our city's science museum.

The kids particularly loved the exhibit on static electricity.

I spent precisely eighteen minutes one Sunday morning watching Isaac as he buttoned his shirt. He was intent on his task, demanded silence, and refused help. He was so adorable that I wound up taking a video.

As we unpacked, I did a bit of cleaning out. I finally parted with all but one of my remaining pairs of toe shoes, from yonder day.

We headed to another major science museum a few hours north of us. The little kids liked the helicopter. Emma humored me by posing next to it.

Isaac liked digging for dinosaur bones.

Later that afternoon, we headed to the airport, where I bade goodbye to Emma and Clara, who were headed off on a ten-day Virginia adventure.

They boarded the plane, and I watched and waited inside for their plane to take off.

The twins had fun eating fruit snacks and watching shows on the iPad.

While Emma and Clara were away, Madeline discovered my makeup bag. She also discovered blue markers.

The twins got to lick the beaters--a treat normally reserved for their big sisters.
The younger three kids and I made some freezer jam. I went a little overboard on quantities.

We also visited our local zoo. The kids really loved feeding the giraffes.

We also rediscovered Madeline's obsession for dogs. She is in heaven in our new neighborhood, where nearly everyone owns their own canine. She particularly loves this little dog, Cedar. Cedar's "family" is always willing to let Madeline haul him around.

Clara began cello lessons a couple of weeks ago.

And after months of drama, Nathan finally figured out his two-wheeler. He now zooms around the neighborhood--even in the rain!

Amusement Park

We bought season passes to a nearby amusement park and have tried to make the most of them.

My parents spent a few days with us, and one afternoon, we ventured to the park for an afternoon of rides. What we got instead was the park's busiest day of the summer, combined with extreme temperatures. We left after a few hours.

July in Utah

Here is my feeble attempt to catch up on the last few months.

After I arrived at our new home, I stared at this--

and this--

while Brian and the kids were gazing at this:

Actually, it was extremely helpful to have the kids gone when the movers arrived at our house. Many thanks to a husband who is willing to divide and conquer herculean tasks.

While I was dealing with the boxes, the rest of the family was in Utah at an extended family reunion & campout. Brian hadn't attended in seven (or more?) years.

Marconi the Magician made his annual appearance.

Nathan had a moment of glory in the annual bottle rocket competition. His bottle rocket apparently shot 300 feet into the air, with power and grace, several times over. It far outpaced the other rockets.

Here he is with Uncle Scott, getting it ready to launch.

He carried the rocket around with him--even in his bed--for a month afterwards. It still has a place of honor on his bookshelf in his bedroom. I don't know that he will ever get rid of it.

I flew out to meet the family in Utah on the last day of the reunion.

Madeline had lots of playtime with her cousin Erin. These are two feisty little sweethearts, and for the most part, they got along well.

For the first time in seven years, Brian got to do this:

We went to see a show at the Pickleville Playhouse--always a fun tradition. Here's the empty stage, for lack of a better picture!

At Bear Lake, we did some jet skiing. I discovered the hard way that Nathan has a need for speed.

Madeline enjoyed the sand.

Emma and two of her second cousins had a blast at the lake.

We took the kids to see "Cars 2" and Isaac wore his 3D glasses for days afterwards.

The twins did lots of this:

The kids visited Grandpa at his office.

We had some Aggie Blue Mint ice cream--the best stuff ever.

We went to Minnetonka Cave but had to wait a bit for entry. While waiting, we got caught outside in a torrential downpour, complete with hail at one point, and we all crammed into Jill's van.

Inside the cave. While on the tour, I ran into an old college friend that I haven't seen for twelve years. She lives in Seattle, I live far away from there, and we saw each other in an Idaho cave. Who would have guessed?

The double rainbow outside the cabin one evening.

The morning before we left, we went to see Harry Potter 7.2 in the theater. It was so amazing that we went back to see it a second time a couple of weeks later.

We returned to our new town and city after a two-day drive across the Plains. As always, our summer jaunt to Utah was full of family, good times and great memories. And this year, we got to have Brian with us for the entire time, which was absolutely wonderful.