Summer so far.....

Everyone, myself included, was excited to be out of school, and the weather has been fantastic!!  Anaya started right in with baseball games.  This year they were the Blue Dragons.  Between camp, camp meetings, and just a busy month, I didn't make it to many games (Kayden and Malia helped with running for me.)  But she had a lot of fun, and is a good little hitter!

At the end of the school year Taisha decided to tryout for her school's dance team, and she made it!!  She also tried for an officer position and was nominated to be the historian.  She has been dancing through my house ever since!  They had dance camp, and are planning some fun activities for the group.  Dance is no longer a school sponsored activity, so she has been busy trying to find sponsors and donations to help cover the $750 to participate.  

Malia wrote and submitted an essay, and was selected to go to the HOBY (Hugh O'Brian Youth) leadership conference in Caldwell, Idaho for a week.  It was a great experience for her!  

  

After HOBY, Malia, Taisha and I packed up and headed out to girls camp.  Back in January, I was asked to be the stake assistant camp director.  For all of you who know me... STOP LAUGHING.  It was not funny!  *sigh*  All in all, camp went just fine.  Everything we planned went perfectly, and the girls had a lot of fun.  This is still not a calling I love (not like my nice, comfy primary chorister calling), but I am in awe of the women who plan and prepare for camp.  I could not believe the time, thought and talents that went into pulling it off!

While we were working on camp stuff, Rik, my dad, and Chad got the big garden all planted.  It looks BEAUTIFUL this year!  We were just barely planted by this time last year, and the weeds took over quickly, but this year, we were planted so much earlier, and everything is thriving.  We are going to have tons and tons of yummy garden food!

We went to Lagoon again on July 4th, and once again, it was a perfect day.  Everyone had a lot of fun, and we watched fireworks the whole way home.  This was the first year we didn't even go into the kiddie land!

All the kids have enjoyed the change in pace from the school year.  Kayden is still mowing lawns, deep cleaning a couple offices (perfect fit for his personality), and started a job painting the stripes on parking lots, and roads (great job with LOTS of hours!)  He has been gathering and getting ready to head out to school, and is doing everything in his power to have time move faster!  (Kristen started summer school at BYU, and he has REALLY been missing his best friend.)  He's been playing disc golf with whoever will play with him (McKay loves to go with him!), and has been playing tennis almost every night.  Last Saturday was his last free Saturday until he goes to school, so we decided to do a float trip.

Taisha and Anaya on a tube looking silly!

Malia is working at the same snow shack she worked at last year, and they asked her to train Taisha as well.  Taisha is working her first shift by herself today (Malia was asked on a date to go huckleberry picking today... so Taisha is on her own til Malia gets back!)  Malia was also offered a volunteer position at the new hospital.  She will be working/volunteering/job shadowing in the surgical department. I drop her off Monday morning in Logan for a week of EFY, when she gets home, we are doing a girls weekend shopping in Utah (the boys are camping at Downata Hot Springs), and then she heads out for a week of writing camp. Phew! She has also been doing the summer cross country program, and loves the early morning runs!

With Malia and Kayden gone so much, Taisha has been my right hand man...er girl.  She helps me so much around the house.  We finally got around to finishing sewing the skirt we started at Christmas.  For me, sewing is a constant reminder that somewhere deep down inside I might have anger issues (that's what McKay calls it!)  Taisha loves it though.

Anaya and McKay have been just happy being in the water.  We ran up to the Rexburg water park yesterday, and they are outside right now in the water (my grass is covered in mushrooms....)

The school I work at is going to have well over 600 kids next year, so I get to go full time (they are building a new elementary school though, which will drop our numbers a lot, so after this year I won't have a job, as my job is based on enrollment numbers.  Sooooo I'm hoping for a librarian position after this year!)   I go back to work full time the first part of August... bummer!  The summer is going WAY faster than I want it to!