Week 29, July 16-22

Sunday, July 16th-

Good Sunday. Not the best morning but we were on time to church at least and early enough for Cleod to pass the sacrament.

After church the kids were so great. They colored and played with Legos while I had a nap. Even after that they just played together. After dinner Silas fell asleep and I finally let the kids watch a Sunday movie. I had my self-reliance group tonight too.

Monday, July 17th-

Love days like today. I actually got to the gym and exercised for a few minutes, chatted with friends, got some grocery shopping done, almost finished washing, drying and putting away all the dirty laundry (it's almost midnight and there is a load in the dryer), cleaned the bathrooms, washed all the dishes, cleaned the main level for guitar lessons and for company later, and got to do family history for a couple hours after the kids were in bed. I didn't even need a nap. I didn't have to choose between exercising and chores, like I have so much of this pregnancy. So nice to feel kind of normal.

Cleod went to Young Men's camp early this morning so it's been weird having him gone but a little more calm honestly. I hope he's warm and dry tonight.

Jana and Jeff and their kids came through Cedar today for a couple hours this evening. We had frozen pizza for dinner and visited. It was really nice. We like them so much. :)

Tuesday, July 18th-

On our way home from piano lessons this afternoon Silas was home getting ready to go up the mountain for the Dad’s night at YM Camp with Cleod when he threw his back out...tying his shoes. Seriously?!

We took him right to Josh’s office to get adjusted but he is in lots of pain and can’t move normally. We ended up taking him up to camp ourselves so he could at least say hi. On the way, Cora threw up in the van (gross, gross, gross) so we must have a stomach bug at our house. Late last night Grant came upstairs complaining about his tummy and ended up throwing up once but then slept all night and was fine this morning so I thought it was just what he ate or something. Apparently not. Lovely.

It was good to see Cleod and it was actually good for Silas to walk around for a while. We made the kids stay in the van so we hopefully don’t infect anyone who is staying up at camp.

Lots of reserved ordinances!!

Wednesday, July 19th-

• Silas’s mobility improved throughout the day but he still is in pain

• 

  Rolling papers and watching Mary Poppins

  Cora threw up all over the living room and entry way this morning. I was not a happy mother. She didn’t throw up again but wasn’t herself all day.
• Avoided the gym and playgroup due to the tummy bug stuff.

• 

  Smores in the oven (too bad I'm the only one who will eat them)

  After lunch we went out to do the Rushton’s paper route. At first Ryan was a little whiny but he got into it and it was fine. Grant was a paper route champ once again. He just gets it done quickly and poor Ryan is afraid that dogs or bees are going to chase him.
• Although Cora was tired the whole time, we escaped anyone throwing up while we were doing papers, which was a relief.
• Went to Tiki Shack for a treat for the hot boys after doing papers.
• Grabbed Panda Express for the missionaries that we were supposed to feed tonight but canceled due to the sick kids.
• New KING-SIZED mattress came in the mail today so we got the old bed out of the way and set it up. We realized that we can’t use our current frame even though it can be king-sized so we will have to wait until a frame comes sometime next week. Until them it will be on the floor.
• Molly slept in the box that the mattress came in. She was SOOO excited when we said she could.

Molly, all ready for bed...in a box

Thursday, July 20th-

Today we stayed home all day which is super rare. In fact, Ryan was supposed to have play practice but I totally forgot. The schedule has just been off the last few days with kids being sick. Today everyone seems good though.

Playing Tiki Shack with the big box

This morning Silas left for his boy’s weekend with the Warby boys and friends. His back wasn’t great this morning and he said that the car ride to Heber wasn’t good but it improved again through the day. Hopefully it will keep improving.

The kids found ways to entertain themselves and we got the house cleaned.

Friday, July 21st-

• Babysat at gym
• Cora and the boys stayed home because she was acting weird again and looked a little pale.
• Fed the kids and then went with Amber to lunch at Brenda Orton’s house with a few ladies from the ward. It was so nice getting to know each of them.

• 

  DQ dinner

  Cleod got home from YM camp and we went to pick him up at the church. He is super tan and very happy.
• At camp he got 3rd place in archery...something he has only done a few times at day camps. He even won some fancy arrows. Apparently he has a talent we didn't know about.
• Ryan to play practice
• Groceries
• Pick up Ryan and went to DQ for dinner.
• Had a little girl's night with some neighbors and friends to say good bye to Megan. Super fun

Cleod at YM camp

Some of the boys at YM camp

Saturday, July 22nd-

Attempt at a good photo

Random day. Silas is still in Salt Lake but the kids and I got ready this morning to go,to Frank Heiser’s wedding. We got to the church a few minutes late and found that there was a funeral there so they had changed locations. We started going home we saw a wedding in someones front yard but it had already started so we kept driving. Silas had mentioned to him that we might come but I realized that I had not officially RSVP'd so they weren't expecting us or they would have contacted us about the location change. Anyway, the kids were a little bummed so when we got home we had brownies and ice cream...our own wedding reception. Hahaha.

My cute kids

"Wedding Reception"

The kids spent the next few hours in and out of the house, doing chores and reading. I worked on the blog for a while (I was a month behind on getting pictures onto it).

Ryan went over to the Stonelys for a few hours and Gabe came over to play with Grant.

In the evening, the kids and I went to see Cars 3 at the movie theater which was fun. We stopped for smoothies and then went to play at the library park. Molly has been asking to go there all summer, poor girl, but it is usually packed and that stresses me out. When we were driving by today it wasn't too busy so we stopped. She was a happy girl!

Once home from the park we did showers, for church clothes ready and the other bedtime stuff. I got the kids in bed by 9:30pm, which is pretty good compared to the norm lately.

Silas got home around 11pm and I am happy to have him back. Molly woke up for a minute when he got home and was cute with him.

Week 28, July 9-15

Sunday, July 9th-

• 

  Molly selfies

  Church
• Rest
• Dinner
• Cleod meeting about scouts
• My Self-Reliance class

Monday, July 10th-

• Babysat at gym
• Swimming lessons
• Lunch
• Laundry, cleaning, making laundry soap
• Braxton over to play with Cleod
• Guitar lessons- Lori and kids came over too
• Appointment with Laurie- love hearing baby’s heartbeat
• Dinner
• Home evening = talent show
• Little emotional and stressful but overall it was fun
• Reading time before bed. Love when that happens. (Probably happens about 50% of the time.)

Cora's dance for Home Evening

Tuesday, July 11th-

• Swimming lessons
• Piano lessons
• Relief Society- self-defense

Wednesday, July 12th-

• Playgroup
• Swimming lessons
• Swimming after for 2.5 hours (had packed lunch)
• Kids played outside with neighbors, even when it rained
• Ryan and Grant to cub scouts
• Cleod to YM for pack check. Ryan stayed too to pass off a cub requirement.

Playgroup

Thursday, July 13th-

• Dug through couches for scout trailer keys and started freaking out on the kids.
• Wal-Mart with all the kids and “lost” Cleod for 15 or 20 minutes. Really he just didn't listen and waited for me in the wrong place. Kind of freaked out again.
• Last day of swimming lessons. Ryan passed level 3 but the other kids technically need to redo their classes, which is fine because they are all happy in the water just need work on certain things.
• Home for showers and lunch
• Silas came home and found the keys hanging on the wall. Haha
• Ryan and I went to chat with the mayor for a cub scout requirement. He loved it and asked great questions. I even learned some new things about how the city runs.
• Watched the Shirley kids for a couple hours so their parents could finish moving stuff out of their house.
• Dinner at Duck Creek with Grandma and Grandpa Rowley.

Happy campers

Friday, July 14th-

Cora lost her other front tooth!

Tonight we had a dinner for the Butterworths and the Huffs who are leaving soon. It was nice to get together with friends and neighbors and eat and visit. I am relieved it is done but it was really nice and I had a lot of help.

Saturday, July 15th-

Silas and I “met” 20 years ago today. We actually met the first Sunday I was in Cameron but he doesn't remember meeting me until the dance on the first night of Youth Conference when I asked Selissa’s shy brother to dance.

Good friends

Today we had some time with two of our favorite couples. We went to the temple with Jay and Ina and then to dinner and had a great time talking. One thing we talked about was having Cleod take care of their house while they are on their mission. We are going to miss the Butterworths.

Brett and Deruchette watched the kids tonight and we stayed for a few minutes to chat with them when we picked up the kids. We haven't seen each other in weeks but it is always just comfortable to chat about whatever. The kids enjoyed being with their kids so much tonight too.

Time of sorrow

When we were in the temple this evening I noticed a phrase that had more significance to me today than it has in the past. It was about sorrow and how times of sorrow help us through opposition. The last few months, especially April, May and June, were a time of sorrow for me in some ways and as I am coming out of the time that felt so hard for me I am feeling grateful for the experience and hope I can take something from it that will help me as I inevitably have more hard times. For what has seemed like a long time I have felt alone and sometimes abandoned by the Lord. I know that wasn't really the case and I even knew it then but I still felt that way. I think the Lord might have wanted to see how well I would do….and honestly, I'm not super happy with my performance. BUT, I also recognize that I may have done the best I could have in those circumstances.

What I learned:

• Enduring poorly isn't helpful but at least I didn't give up.
• Complaining just makes it worse.
• I need to work on finding gratitude, even during tough times.
• I'm grateful for the solid foundation I had because I could have drifted during this time.
• Service heals...and I need to recognize that that includes serving my family (which also includes being more positive about my husband's calling).

Week 27, July 2-8

Sunday, July 2nd-

Sunday nap

Today was a good day. Sundays aren't the easiest days for me and Silas comes home so tired. Today was a better Sunday though which was really nice. The boys and Cora all fasted breakfast and the biggest boys almost made it to dinner. This is something we haven't been consistent with so the older boys should totally be fine with missing two meals but we'll work on it. Either way, they got something out of the fast and we talked a lot about prayers that go with fasting. They all thought of different things to fast for, on their own, so that was a good experience for them, I think.

Monday, July 3rd-

Swimming lessons!!!

First day of swimming lessons for the kiddos (minus Cleod) went really well today. Molly was bummed at first that I wasn't getting in the pool with her because last year we did a mommy and me class. Once she was with her teacher and the other kids she was so happy and couldn't stop wiggling. She was ecstatic. She's in a preschool class with 3 or 4 other boys and she is so happy about it. Cora is in Level 2 and Ryan and Grant are doing Level 3 together. Ryan isn't the most comfortable swimmer so he wanted to do Level 3 again.

While they have lessons Cleod and I sit on the lounge chairs and read or rest. It is kind of lovely.

Molly quote of the day:

“Mom, remember?! People died!” Molly says enthusiastically as she points to the cemetery.

Silly Molly

Tuesday, July 4th-

Happy Independence Day!

Playing the original Mario Brothers on the computer

Today was a long, but good day. The kids and I tried to escape to the parade without waking up Silas, who had a headache and hates parades, but he ended up hunting us down before the parade started. It honestly wasn't they best parade and it was hot, but the kids had a good time.

We picked up some lunch and headed home. The kids spent a good chunk of the afternoon out in the neighborhood and Silas and I even went out for a few hours before dinner. I started getting sick from being in the heat and not having enough water but luckily I felt better before dinner. Silas made burgers and we hung out with some of the neighbors until it was dark. Then we went down to the high school and watched fireworks and lit some of our own. Silas actually bought some this year, which was silly and funny. One of the big ones (big packages anyway) was a disappointment but overall it was fun to watch.

Afternoon fun with neighbors

We are going to miss the Huffs who are leaving for Missouri in a few weeks and the Rushtons who are building a house in Enoch soon. It was nice to spend the evening with both families as well as the Redhouses, Armours, Hudsons and Mary Saylor.

Molly quotes of the day:

"Put your hand on yourself" -when the flag came by during the parade.

"I have polka dot colds!" -after she noticed her goosebumps.

Molly banging on a bucket with Gideon

Starting fireworks

One of the fireworks we bought

Cora and Lexi

Wednesday, July 5th-

• Playgroup at the Lake on the Hill
• Swimming Lessons
• Lunch at Pizza Cart (This turned out to be the most pleasant dining experience we have ever had. The kids were nice, ate food without complaining and we were all happy. Yea!)
• Piano lessons
• Ryan to play practice
• Dinner
• No cubs or mutual

Swimming at the Lake on the Hill for playgroup

Cute kids at Pizza Cart for lunch

Fun at Pizza Cart

Ryan guy

Molly slowly crawling out of the pool

Thursday, July 6th-

This evening Grandma Rowley came into town to watch the kids so I could join Silas for Youth Conference. Tonight I just drove up with Amber tonight for dinner. We went to a cute pizza place in Duck Creek and had a good time with the youth. Amber and I were going to stay for Smores but Kade got hurt so we had to take him home for his parents to take a better look at his wound. Then the power went out everywhere but luckily it only lasted 15 minutes or so.

Molly being dramatic

Friday, July 7th-

• Drove up to Youth Conference at Duck Creek again (with Kade).
• Cascade Falls hike
• Rained for a while this afternoon so we didn't go to Navajo Lake like planned. The youth played cards and some other games and I had a nap.
• Went to Mammoth Caves in the evening before dinner. It was the plan for tomorrow but they are hoping to go to the Lake in the morning instead.
• Devotional, dinner and Smores by the fire.
• Silas and I stayed up til the fire died out.

Pancakes fried in bacon grease

Youth Conference Fun!

Cascade Falls and Mammoth Caves

Saturday, July 8th-

• Breakfast and take down of camp
• Silas and I stayed until Clint came to get the trailer and the other leaders took the kids to Navajo Lake.
• Fun time at the lake. The kids swam, canoed, skipped rocks and relaxed. The adults sat and watched and enjoyed the nice weather.
• Short devotional and headed back to Cedar City just as it started raining again.
• Once at the church, helped unload the trailer.
• Took until about 2:30 or 3pm to get settled at home. Silas napped (actually he never really woke up except to crawl into bed) and the kids watched a movie (they were really happy to have us home and also super hyper.)