One Week

I was thinking this week about the times in my life when people have asked me, "What do you do all day as a stay at home mom?" Recently one lady asked me, "Don't you get SO bored?" Sometimes its hard to remember each and every thing I do all week long but whatever it is that I do, I sure am tired at the end of each day.

This week has been insane. I wanted to document at least a few of the things that have occupied my time "staying at home."

Monday we went apple and plum picking with some families in our ward for family home evening. We were able to go back to the orchard we went to last year. This sweet little elderly couple lets ANYONE come and pick fruit from their 70+ trees. It really was a magical night. The boys were LOVING running around with their friends all over the orchard picking apples, climbing the trees and munching on a few along the way.

We picked two huge boxes full and have already had some delicious APPLE COBBLER 2 times this week! It's healthy right?? It has OATMEAL in it! haha.
I also got a screaming deal on strawberries ($5.00 a flat!!) this week and have been busy at work making jam and dehydrating apples at the same time! We ♥ apple chips!

 I taught preschool this week as well. We were learning all about the letter E. Landon sure loves all of his little friends in preschool.

 Here are our elephant hand prints:

Today was Activity Days with the girls and we learned all about the importance of doing service for others. The girls made a quick tie fleece blanket for a new baby boy in our ward. This couple has been trying for a baby for over 6 years so this baby is a true miracle boy! The couple was SO sweet when the girls handed it to them. The girls were THRILLED to get to meet their tiny baby!

I also bought some cute plates at the dollar store and slapped some vinyl on them. The girls had to think of 2 women in the ward who exemplify the traits of service and faith. We piled the plates with fresh homemade cookies and wrapped them up with a big bow. I had no idea how EMOTIONAL this little act of service was going to be. The recipients of the cookies were very thankful. It was a really special day.

I got my visiting teaching done this week, went to my Zumba class, did mountains of homework with the kids, practiced spelling words over and over, read lots of books, practiced fluency tests, mowed the lawn, deep cleaned the house, packed lunches, made breakfast and dinner, went grocery shopping, attended pack meeting, forced piano practice, tried to spend time with my husband, and started packing for our TRIP next week (yippee!). All while dealing with some pretty intense allergies.

Oh, and the SPORTS don't even start until 2 weeks from now! 3 kids in sports....this should be interesting.

So if you every see me with a blank, glazed over expression....its not that I'm not bored, I'm just exhausted. ☺

SOOOO looking forward to Conference this weekend.

Adventures with EE

Saturday Grandma EE and I left all the boys at home and decided to venture up to the beautiful city of Driggs, Idaho. We met up with my uncle who is living there right now and took him out to lunch. Then we drove up to Targhee and rode the chairlift to the top. The views were absolutely breathtaking.

Just look at these mountains......GORGEOUS!!!

The leaves were just starting to turn up there. We picked a PERFECT day to go and enjoy the beginning of fall.

Check out how CUTE this couple was who was getting married up at the resort:

Then we headed back to Driggs and stopped at the little drug store for some delicious FRESH HUCKLEBERRY SHAKES! YuMMMMMM!!!

Wonderful day.

Dallin's Birthday Party!

Friday night was Dallin's BIRTHDAY PARTY! Dallin decided that he wanted a "DRIVE IN MOVIE PARTY" this year. I was SO excited that he wanted to do this because just a few months ago we did that for the Activity Day girls! I had most of the stuff already on hand!

I re-vamped the invite:

The kids came and were immediately sent downstairs to get to work on their cars. Each kid had a box and could us a variety of papers, felts, stickers, crayons, markers, etc. to decorate their cars!

Then we handed out awards for the cars: fastest looking, funniest, best off road vehicle, etc. The kids were awarded tickets they could use to purchase food from our concession stand!

They parked their cars in the "parking lot" in front of the TV. Then they climbed into their cars to watch the feature presentation: The Sandlot.
***Pretty much forgot that the movie has quite a few swear words. O well, the kids still had a S%&* load of fun!

After the movie we had cake and ice cream. My cake turned out SO CUTE! I even added some little speakers like the old school drive ins used to have! ☺

Dallin had a blast......and so did the adults I have to admit! EASY birthday party...I am all about it!

After the movie we had a few minutes to spare. We let the boys play with the new fyrflyz toys that I bought Dallin for his birthday! AWESOME toy! Need a little Christmas gift idea? I'd recommend a few of these babies!

One very happy birthday boy:

LOVE you Dal!

Dallin is 9!

Happy Birthday to my BIG Dallin! 9 years old.....seriously? This mom (finger pointing at self)  is having a tough time transitioning. We spend years and years as mothers caring completely for our  infants/toddlers, and then we have to learn to let go a little bit at a time as they grow. It’s not easy, but I am grateful that it is a process… line upon line; a little here, a little there. I'm proud of the boy that Dallin has become. Even though I have this crazy person desire to keep him young and innocent forever, I know he has to grow up.

Dallin has made being a mom such a joy. He is SO easy going and thoughtful. I asked him last night what he wanted for his birthday. His response, "Well, I haven't really thought about it too much. I don't really think I need anything." What???? When I was 9 I'm pretty sure I had a list to the floor of all of things I wanted/needed/desired! Finally after MUCH contemplation he finally said, "Well, there is one thing I want. It's called a fyrflyz toy."  I jumped in the car and headed straight for Toys R Us. I asked the customer service lady for whatever the heck this toy is and she told me that she had never heard of it. She then told me that there was nothing by that name in her computer and to go and look elsewhere.

NOPE. I. DON'T. THINK. SO. That wasn't the response I was looking for. I started going up and down EACH isle looking for this toy. After about 15 minutes of searching one of the managers came over and said, "O GOOD! You came back! We found some in the back for you!" My response, "Um, NOPE, I never left! I wasn't leaving without this STUPID toy! This is the ONLY thing my son wants for his birthday. My son, the boy who never asks for ANYTHING was getting this toy if it killed me.

 $8.99. That is how much this toy was. And Dallin is THRILLED. I bought him a few.

Last week I got a phone call from Dallin's new teacher. It was a weeknight at around 6 pm. "Hi Staci, This is Mr. Judy. I just wanted to call and talk to you a little bit about Dallin and how his first few weeks of school are going. Dallin is a pretty amazing kid. I've been VERY impressed with him and I continue to be more impressed the more I get to know him. He is very thoughtful, helpful and kind.He is a social leader, and the most academically advanced student in our class. I am so happy that he is in my class and I want to thank you for all that you have done to prepare him for 3rd grade."

Wow. Now I REFUSE to take the credit for all of the kind things that Mr. Judy said, because Dallin has ALWAYS possessed these qualities. Even when he was a tiny boy. I am so blessed to have Dallin as my son, especially as a FIRST BORN son.

Tonight as a family we went back through some old tapes and watched Dallin as a brand new baby. I tried to conceal my tears. So many precious memories. It really goes by in an instant. My favorite clip was when I was laying in the hospital bed with Dallin right up next to me. You can see in my eyes how in love I was from the moment I saw this sweet guy. Nate was just beaming in the background. Thanks for making us parents Dallin. And thanks for being you and making it so easy on us. We LOVE you!

Birthday Party is tomorrow night so pictures are coming soon!

McCall is for lovers.

This weekend was absolutely and positively PERFECT. Nate had an IADC (Idaho Association Defense Counsel) Conference in McCall. Spouses are invited and hey.....the firm pays for everything! Free trip away with my husband with NO children......YES please!

While Nate has his CLE classes I did some book shopping, wandered through some art stores, read my book on a comfy lounge chair overlooking the lake, ordered room service and I took a nice long nap.

ABSOLUTE. HEAVEN.

When Nate and I had time together we cruised around the lake on these sweet red beach cruisers, ate out at some fun resturants, rented a kayak for an afternoon, and stayed up until LATE every night watching football and then going out to the hot tub to stargaze. I absolutely LOVE having my husband all to myself. I'm downright selfish and I cherish my alone time with him.

View from our room:

My cute attorney:

Shore Lodge:

We had to go to a few fancy dinners and lunches but it was fun to get all dressed up. A live band performed one night and I TRIED to get my Nate to dance but ALAS.....not this year. Maybe next? ☺

It was also so much fun getting to know a couple of the other attorneys who work with Nate. Seriously, he works for such a a great firm with some very high caliber people. They are so genuine and kind. I'm liking these eastern Idaho people more and more...and their wives were JUST as nice!

2 years ago we went to this same conference and had a very DIFFERENT experience to say the least. Once again, it is very obvious to me that he is where is supposed to be. We're SO blessed.

Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa for SPOILING our boys rotten while we were away! Even though they missed "Grandparents day" at school becuase they had to go over to Boise with us, I think they liked the "Grandparents Weekend" they had a whole lot more!

I-phone pics for your viewing pleasure

I was going through my i-phone today and had some pictures that I thought I should share. Sorry about the poor quality......that's what happens when the phone is only a 3G. 

First off we have a couple of STRANGE things that I've seen around Idaho Falls in the past few weeks:

#1: A man on horse back... riding over to grab some lunch from Carino's. Reassurance that yes indeed we live in Idaho Falls.

#2. A woman celebrating her recent divorce. (If you can't read it, it says "JUST DIVORCED!")

Landon and I have been having fun together during the days while the brothers are at school. We went to the mall and did some shopping yesterday:

Nate liked these biking shades a lot!

Sometimes the afternoons can be long though when mom is cleaning the house and there is no one but a cat to play with. Here we have Landon sleeping in his "nest" in the middle of the floor one quiet afternoon.

I decided after a hit and miss summer of Zumba that I needed to get back on the bandwagon. This week I decided to go to a new class. Holy Shmoly. I got my TRASH KICKED. I was laughing when I saw how HORRIBLE I looked after this class. My hair was so sweaty it literally looked like I had jumped into a swimming pool. Get ready to see the WORST picture of me in the WORLD:

First off you better laugh..............



Like OUT LOUD laugh.............



Brace Yourself:






Ready?????





Set?????





Just for you information, Nate said I resemble a meth addict in this photo:






Here is comes:

Voila!!! Impressive huh? Love working out this hard. It feels SO good......even though I look like death.

And to redeem myself from this horrible embarrassment, I did get my hair cut today (4 inches), dark lowlights and a few bangs cut for fun:

Hope you enjoyed the slide show!

LOTOJA 2011

206 miles. 3 states. 1 day. Nate raced in Lotoja on Saturday. From Logan Utah to Jackson Hole in 1 day....it's pretty much crazy! This was the first time he raced the entire length of this race by himself. He had done it as a relay before but never the entire thing. When I woke up Saturday morning I kept thinking to myself that 4 years ago there was no WAY in youknowwhere that my husband could ever even attempt such a feat. He has come SO FAR over the past few years. He trains religiously and keeps trying to improve himself each and every day. He has disappointments but always finds a way to pick himself up if he falls. He is hard on himself and pushes himself to be the best he can. Sometimes I have to remind him of where he has come from. He races against young 20 somethings and biking professionals and I bet none of them have had to lose a good 75 pounds to get to this place. He's healthier then he has ever been and I'm glad becuase I want him around for a long LONG time! ☺

Basically what I am trying to say is I'm so proud of him. It really does take a lot of time to train and EVEN THOUGH the time it takes can irritate me beyond belief I'm so glad he has found a passion in life that keeps him healthy, happy, and very goal oriented.

Dal, Landon and I met up with him over in Alpine, WY to be his support. We dropped him his food and drove by a few times to cheer him on! He got a pinched nerve in his foot after mile 100 and had to push through the pain the rest of the way to finish.

We were so happy when he made it across the finish line! I was exhausted and all I did was DRIVE the car! haha.

Nice work bud! You did awesome!

Jason visit

This weekend my little brother called from Utah State and told me he wanted to come over and hang out for the weekend! Yay! When he got here we immediately headed out to 17 mile cave....a place I'd heard about but hadn't ever been to.
It was SO NEAT! This is the entrance.....obviously I had to edit a nice big word out. Apparently lots of people know about this place as there was TONS of graffiti. The cave just kept going further and further back. When we were way back in there we all turned our lights off. It was completely black and SO FREAKY!

Can't wait to go back and bring Nate with us!

On the way home we stopped at good old Reed's Dairy. Every time we go I have to suppress the memories of the experience we had there last winter. Ick!

That night James and Sierra came over and we watched the scariest movie EVER.....INSIDIOUS! O man, I'm STILL having nightmares! Not a great movie to watch when your husband is out of town for the night. ☺ It was so much fun hanging out with my little brother. I'm so glad he is only 2.5 hours away. Can't wait until the next visit!