Father Time

Sunday was Father's Day. We had a feast. Steve and Shawna came. We played outside.

 We went for lots of rides. On the skateboard.

 On the scooter. Rocks skipped on the pond. Rocks thrown into the pond. There was a lot of water thrown. Several kids and one uncle got really wet.

Some basketball. Lovely day.
We all agree that Travis is pretty amazing. That is why we celebrate him 3 times in June. The kids gave Travis the questions they answered about Dad. I may post that later.

Salad days

We had a lovely four day weekend, where we kept busy and had a lot of fun. Hopefully a preview of a busy and fun summer.
On Memorial Day we headed down to the Greenbelt to go for a family walk. Seems like the rest of town had the same idea on the delightful day. There were lots of people riding bikes, walking dogs, and walking along the path.

Stopped to throw and skip rocks (or put them in pockets).

While everyone did really well (partially thanks to the backpack of snacks I brought). There was some carrying at the end, but for the several hours we were gone, we did great.

When we got home we spent the rest of the evening enjoying the wonderful weather outside.

Top ten favorites from our trip: #6 The race!

Many of us had planned on running the Liberty 5K, which is traditionally held on the morning of the 4th. We found out, that it had taken place on the 2nd. We were disappointed at first until my brother-in-law,Will, decided he would make one for us. He got prizes, he marked out the route, he got time keepers, a water station, and most importantly, he got everyone excited about it.
You were awarded a prize for every mile you completed. I was so amazed. Almost everyone ran it. From my 3 year old nephew to my brother who had never really run before. Liam had been asking to run the Liberty, but I told him I would sign him up for a race when he could run a mile straight (which he had never done). Not only did he finish all 3 miles but he beat me and Zoe! Lydia ran two miles! It was such a fun thing to do as a family. I think it made everyone feel so great!

Outdoor frolicking

It has been SO cold that we haven't had a lot of outdoor time so far this spring. The other day Felix was getting a bit stir crazy so we went outside. We went behind our house where there is a little pond and bridge and played for awhile.

Felix Rocks! (forgive me)

throwing rocks onto a frozen lake trying to break through the ice: super fun

trying to get all the clay/mud and gravel off of shoes: not so fun

Family Reunion #6-hike

Our visit with Sams

My children call my parents, Grandma and Grandpa Sam (Samuelson). So plural, they are Sams. We were so pleased to have a visit from Sams this past weekend. They hadn't come to Boise since we moved here, so we got to show them our new house, neighborhood, etc. They were really happy for us.
Our family has gotten so big that even with the three families that live here, it is an ordeal to feed everyone and have everyone together. Also, we all really love spending time together.

Laura made a wonderful lunch for those of us who were around on Friday. You see Stephen enjoying himself :)

Whenever Sams come to visit, my mom brings bags (at least 4) of toys, books, games, and goodies. She sometimes forgets to pack clothes because she is worried about bringing all the fun things. Not only does she bring them, but then actively participates in the enjoying of them. Here she is playing pick up stix with the kiddos.

Another classic picture. My Dad reading to the kids. My parents have lots of amazing childrens books. Some from when they were little, new books, classic books, pop-up books, etc. And they are always willing to read them to the grandkids.

They got bedtime books Friday and Saturday nights. Richard and Laura and Steve and Shauna were over both nights. Friday we played some games and watched some Olympics.

Saturday morning we went shoe shopping. My parents hate shoe shopping so bad. Well, they hate any clothes shopping (they would rather be buying books, toys, games, and goodies!) Dad had mentioned that he didn't have any shoes, and Mom has told me several times that she needs a new pair. So the only thing to do was to take them by force and go buy them some shoes. Since Travis is a professional shoe shopper, and loves few things better, I thought it would work out. Well, Travis found Dad 4 pairs! We got Mom one pair. Success! Also, the kids got prizes.

Saturday afternoon we needed to get out of the house for a little walk. So we took our visitors on our nature walk.

I tried to make things easy by making a big pot of chili for dinner. However I had to make a lemon cream pie also, and ended up in the kitchen all night.

Thanks Laura for helping with dishes. Thanks Steve and Shawna for making the cornbread. Thanks Mom and Dad for distracting the kids. Thanks Travis for helping with cranky sick Felix. Thanks Kristie for the awesome chili recipe. I like it more everytime I eat it. Thanks Hayley for the pie recipe-holy cow it is good! The family said "best ever!" Wow! Sounds like I am accepting a Grammy-or whatever.

Nature walk

The kids have a five day weekend. We decided to go on a walk. Down the street from our house, there is some undeveloped land. We went to explore. It was a beautiful day!

We could smell a skunk, which the kids weren't happy about. They don't like yucky smells. We practically have to force them to go to the zoo.

My happy little girl.

Felix was so super happy being carried in the backpack. He was talking and playing with my hair. We were out for almost two hours and he was content the entire time!

Liam, striking his standard pose.

As we were walking around the neighborhood, all the kids were out playing. We decided to stop and say hi to some friends. Felix and Ally playing piano. Felix's new thing is reaching. He always is going for things out of reach.

We finished up our walk by going by the pond and throwing rocks in for awhile. That is always a kid-pleasing activity.

We love our neighborhood and our house so much! Now that the weather is warming up and it is light longer, we will really enjoy it!