Kent definitely knows the way to my heart! I only need a few things to make me really happy- and great food, cool weather, being outside, and NO KIDS are all on the list! Monday afternoon he planned a surprise trip away from the kids for a night. The kiddos stayed with his parents and didn't miss us AT ALL.

We went shopping and out to dinner- and then head up Provo canyon to Midway-  a quaint little "swiss" town near Park City.  We stayed in the most wonderful bed and breakfast called- "The Blue Boar Inn".

I made kent take a picture next to the Blue Boar.

And I got one next to the deer.

This was the view from the Inn!  We stayed in the "Charles Dickens" room where they had chocolates on our pillow and a little cheese and fruit tray to enjoy!  We went swimming at the Homestead mineral pools and hiked up the crater.  The next morning we ran up the canyon part way along the golf course.  It was beautiful and chilly!  I really really do love crisp cold air.

I can't even believe the breakfast we had.  It was the BEST french toast I have EVER had in my life. Homemade cinnamon swirl brioche french toast, whipped hot chocolate, and homemade fresh granola. Kent had some crazy nice steak, eggs, and potatoes.  I'm salivating just thinking about it.  The Inn is part four star restaurant so I told him we MUST go back for breakfast sometime.

Later in the afternoon we met the kiddos and kent's parents in Heber for lunch at the "dairy keen" where they've got running trains running along the top of the restaurant and toy trains to play with.  The boys were in heaven.

Ike just kept saying "woooow! woooow!".

It was soooo nice to have a break from everything! Thanks, kent!

home again, home again, jiggity jig.

Things I must do now that we are back in holy toledo:

1. despoil my kidlets afters eight days of lavish attention from oodles of family and friends. is this possible? any suggestions?!

2. re sleep train the family. The rugrats went to bed at 11 last night- and that was AFTER a long travel filled day. At least we all slept in until 9:45!

3.  somehow try and adjust to this hellish humidity. Just when I was all acclimatized and not so terribly miserable- we go to the lovely land of dry crisp mountain air-  and then return to temps in the 90s with the heat index above 100.

4. unpack, unpack, unpack.  There's nothing worse.

5. Re-regulate to not having Kent with me every second of every day!

6. and lose the fifteen pounds I gained because of constant eating!!  I already miss the good food- but at least now I won't be tempted so much!

It's going to be a rough week- but the trip was worth all of the hassle of coming home!  It was one of the nicest vacations we've had to Utah in awhile.  The time went by so fast and we loved every second.

Our first few days were full of food and family.  

 I'm not sure where mum is in this picture- but it's a good one of the fam.  We got a new little point and shoot camera while we were there- and I think that I like it.  Most importantly it's drop proof, dust proof, and totally waterproof (up to ten feet). I'm not very kind to little cameras so I thought I'd try for an indestructible one this time!

Bottom row- my little sisters Metta and Daysa- and standing up is dad.  Everytime we went out to do something I kept looking for Laney and Tayor.  We all missed them a lot- especially since she went and had her baby while we were there!

Ike found a ball within minutes of our arrival to Nannie Annie's house!

 And Zeb found the trampoline. He had been talking about it for weeks before we left.

I can't wait for a nice backyard to relax in and let the kids run wild in!  I also can't wait for my very own lawn to mow!!  My dad got a riding lawn mower and I was a little disappointed.  I love mowing the lawn but I don't do the riding thing. Zeb was not disappointed at ALL, though.

Our first night in town we went to the Lehi Roundup Rodeo.  It's been awhile since I've been to the rodeo and I loved it.  Especially since Lehi is full of real cowboys. It was quite the fashion show!

Zeb was EXHAUSTED and tried to fall asleep a few times- but he must have enjoyed it because it's the one thing he keeps bringing up day after day.   There were some motorcycle stunt riders that performed and had him wide eyed (and ear covered).

 Here's a really nice picture of auntie daysa! She watched our kiddos a gazillion times- thanks days!  I think Zeb must get his quasimodo eye from her.

And here's my little monster.  He got quite spoiled by attention while we were there and he's already had multiple meltdowns when I'm slow to respond to his requests here. It's going to be rough.

we're home!

We are finally home and EXHAUSTED!!  and while we were away- Laney had her baby!  She wasn't due until the 11th of this month - but she had a baby GIRL on June 30th.

Welcome baby Milly!!

 My favorite part of the birth story is that when the doctor had Taylor tell Laney the gender of the baby (they didn't know beforehand) he said, "Henry has a little brother!" and the doctor said- "maybe you should check that one more time". 

reasons I've missed some blogging days.

1. Zeb NEVER naps (he hasn't for almost a year) but today was out cold on the couch.  We have been going NON-stop the last three days and it finally caught up to him.  We went into extra innings last night at our softball game and didn't get home until ten-thirty. The kids were pooped, but we won :)  Plus- today we went to a fabulous pool party and played our hearts out!

Oh, and on a sidenote- do you see the new gash on the side of his head (not the old one under his eye)? It has a matching cut on his opposite eyelid.  He tried to cut his face with a pair of scissors?!?!  We were working on Kent's father's day present last week and while I was washing paint of of Ike's hands- Zeb grabbed the scissors and went nutso on me.  I have no idea what he was attempting.

 2. I've been taking care of this little creature and he's a lot of work :).  We had a relief society activity about gardening and I won this tomato plant to take home. I am NOT a gardener but I've been assured that tomato plants are very hearty.  I have a feeling that if anyone can kill one, it's me.  Although this plant has survived some pretty crazy storms already and I'm hoping for a tomato plant miracle.

 

 3. this weather. It's a beast. It kills me. Totally knocks me out.  Today it actually got to ninety and was wicked humid- so really it felt faaaaar worse.  When it's 90 with crazy rain and lightning storms- you know it's muggy. Tonight there are more crazy storms coming in so we may be in for a long one.  Two nights ago the lightning was setting off the car alarms in the parking lots!   I just hope we don't have to spend the night in the bath tub.

Wed

                                                                         88°F | 72°F

What a splendid day with a splendid family.

Happy Father's day, kent. You are amazing. 

The boys had ghiradelli's double chocolate muffins for breakfast (they are one of the only chocolate things on earth that I DON'T like!) and we all enjoyed wonderful roast beef with mashed potatoes and gravy for dinner. I don't think we've had red meat in the house for at least a year but Father's Day was a definite reason for a pot roast!  Kent also got SPOILED with presents. Zeb kept asking if it was his birthday!

 After naps we went to the 577 foundation to enjoy some outdoor time in the semi pleasant weather.

I LOVE Ike's feet in these shoes.

 

We hiked a little trail down to the river for an "adventure"- and when we finally got back to the car Zeb aptly called it "our mosquito adventure".  It was a mosquito nightmare.  Those devilish dipterans feasted on our blood.

cutest MONSTER kid ever.

 What a wonderful weekend so far. Yesterday we spent the afternoon with friends and at the best yard sale ever.  Check out this amazing costume I got for two dollars. yep, two bucks.  I'm obsessed.  Isn't he the most adorable little monster in the world? 

I asked Kent to forbid me from any more sales and he replied: "but you get such great deals!".  He better not complain when in a few years he has to call TLC and put me on the show "hoarders".  Actually- I'm very good to only get kids clothes and shoes.  I rarely get toys and don't ever buy housewares.

Yesterday we also enjoyed a fab workout and free delicious smoothies with friends. In honor of national flip flop day, Tropical Smoothie Cafe was giving away FREE smoothies to flip flop wearers. We missed it last year and I was super bummed.  This year we loved every sip of our smoothies.

This morning continued to be wonderful. I LOVE saturday mornings when Kent is home and we can all go to the gym together. He took the kiddos and I ran there to meet them.  Lately running with my double jogger has been causing some ridiculous pain problems for me- so getting in some long runs by myself is wonderful.  And it certainly doesn't hurt that this is the view from the bridge I run! I absolutely love toledo and the green and the views.

 Plus- when I ran past Fort Meigs- some sort of crazy event called "Muster on the Maumee" was going on. I did not take this picture- but I did see this man and I am very lucky to have found this picture online from the event's website.  What a costume, huh?

Thank heavens the weather has been calmer this week. It's still muggy- but I must have acclimatized somewhat in the past three years- because it isn't intolerable.

We've been spending less time at the pool and more time the park- which I much prefer.  I think the kids do to.  Zeb went under the water last week at the pool and won't stop talking about how he "can't talk under water".  I think it made him pretty nervous!

Although by the looks on their faces today at the park you'd think they don't like being there much, either!

Lately at the park Zeb has been making lots of little piles and playing "cemertery".  There are lots of cemeteries around here and we pass them frequently so we talk about them a lot.  I guess he's just translating that into his playing, but it's kind of creepy when he tells his friends that he's making spots for them to die.

I'm not sure why but I've ALWAYS wanted one of these shirts.  Yesterday we finally got the opportunity to do service and get one (too bad they only came in humongous sizes!)

Church only lasted an hour and then we got to go home and get ready to help out. We went to Delta- a neighboring community- to help with tornado clean up. Thank you a zillion times over, beth, for watching our kiddos! 
 We mostly moved and hauled debris and trees from yards and fields- but we got to talk to a lot of really amazing and grateful people in the area.

We started out here and helped these people clear their property.  This dirt plot is where their mobile home USED to be. It was ripped to pieces and dumped on top of their car (below). They had gotten out- but a dog, three ducks, and two chickens were found inside part of the trailer after everything settled. All were still alive and fine.

 The lady that lived by these trees said that the thunder woke her up (the sirens must be spread out because she said they didn't wake her up) and she got up to go to the bathroom.  While she was in there she said she heard a loud sound and then she said that "God told her to get in the bath tub"- even though she had a safer crawl space on the other side of the house.  She said just a few seconds later the big missing piece of this tree landed on the back and side of the house where the crawl space was.

 We also got to drive around and just see some of the damage. This picture just creeps me out.  The ragged half trees and half house are so scary.  You'll have to enlarge it to get a better look.

here's the house closer up. There is still stuff hanging on the walls!

And this picture feels like it's from a movie.  The great little walkway lined with flowers and nicely trimmed hedges- that lead to NOTHING.  The house is GONE. Totally obliterated.

 The upper right window just looks out to sky now. Half of the back of the house was ripped off.

 Besides helping clean up- it was also just really nice to spend some time without kids. They fed us all lunch and the weather wasn't nearly as bad as anticipated.

I vote for a do over week!   while it wasn't that bad- it's been incredibly long and full of grumpiness.  Luckily I've got this little munchkin to cheer me up. It's the other monkey that's been at my nerves.  I am very excited for our mini vacation to Utah in a few weeks. 

 things are already on the up for the weekend, though.  My ankle is almost back to normal size even though you still can't see my lateral malleolus (bony prominence on the outside of my ankle) and I worked out on it just fine this morning. I know you all don't really care to see my bruises and strange body parts- but I like to document things.  A day of ice and ibuprofen did it wonders.

 

 I think the week felt so long partially because I've felt like this since Tuesday- only without the smiling faces. 

There are piles of dirty laundry in every room of our apartment! I'm shocked how much laundry we piled up in just three short days!! we are swimming in it. I usually only do one or two loads a day- but apparently we are dirty dirty people.  Summer days at the park mean dirt covered clothes, though.  Luckily the part we ordered arrived and Kent got our washer back up and running late last night.  Now at least our piles are clean piles.  And it seems that we are good at fixing both washers and dryers!  Just give Kent a call if you're in need and we'll only charge half the usual service fee.

when it rains, it pours.

It's been one of those weeks when I feel like EVERY thing has run amuck!

1.  car repairs.  I don't even know how much it cost because I refused to pick up the car from the shop and I ask Kent to NOT tell me anything. Car worries gives me such anxiety. 

2. electronic woes.  Cell phone in the pool.  Point and shoot TOTALLY dies and won't even turn on.

3. lost dental insurance without realizing it- and, of course, now I have a toothache.

4. washing machine stops working (with all of my workout clothes in it mid cycle).

5.  my two favorite shirts are no more. One is lost. The other is irreparably stained.

6. I struck out twice last night in our softball game

7. and check THIS out.  One of these things is not like the other (and I'm NOT talking about my mismatched socks). 

I'm a klutz and rolled my ankle during my workout this morning.  It popped. It kills. and it's swollen.  Looks like I'm going to have to sit on the couch with my feet up all day.  Too bad the house can't get clean :)  I had better be fine within a few days, though! 

And really- life isn't that bad.  I think (after two 24 hour periods drying in rice) my cell phone may have returned to full functioning status! AND the handy hubby is pretty sure he can fix the washing machine!  I did some online research- and he did some washing machine disassembly and we came up with the most likely scenario for the stopped machine. We ordered the $8.49 cent part from our favorite appliancezone.com and we should be back to washing in a few days :) Plus- I found a dentist office that does FREE x-rays and exam and it turns out I just have a small cavity that I'm going to get fixed in Utah.  I can handle the price of a small cavity.

And check out this monkey in his toledo zoo penguin pjs.  I got them for FIVE cents at a yard sale.  The lady told me I could get baby boy clothes for ONE dollar a bag.  I stuffed two bags FULL.  yard sales always make my day.

the craziness of living on the outer edges of tornado alley.

"An estimated 7-mile path of destruction about 100 yards wide struck early Sunday morning and fell over an area of farm fields and light industry, narrowly missing the heavily populated suburbs on the southern edge of Toledo.  Tornadoes and thunderstorms swept through the Midwest overnight, destroying dozens of homes and upending school buses and police cars in one miles-long trail of destruction in Ohio. At least seven people died in Ohio, including a child, authorities said". AP

 WE are the southern edge of Toledo! I do love adventure and chaos -and tornado sirens for that matter- but last night got a little crazy. And I feel terrible for those that lost their lives.  Here's a picture of the worst hit area- lake township- about 12 miles from our house.

Kent dragged the kiddos and me into the bathroom at around 12:00 and then again at 3:00 this morning after the sirens started going off and the news stated that the lives of those living "in South Toledo and Maumee near 1-80" were in danger.  At first I thought Kent was being paranoid- but it turns out he wasn't.  I-80 is the freeway that we can hear AND see from our deck and that's where the radar was showing the highest potential of tornadoes touching down. Unfortunately it was pitch black and the weather people had NO way of knowing exactly what was happening.

I haven't felt thunder and lightning like that ever! the little rascals slept through the entire thing.  We didn't place them in the tub on top of each other- but somehow this is how they ended up. Initially they were on opposite ends facing opposite directions.

 We stayed up and watched the weather coverage for a bit longer after the storm passed and today we are exhasuted- but happy to be safe.

summer has officially arrived.

This week was one of those weeks that FLEW by. I canNOT believe that it's Friday already.  All of our events have been very 'summery'.
 
We went to our first summer parade! Don't these kids just look hot and muggy?! They've all got rosy little cheeks and sweaty heads.  It was pretty darn humid. I ran to the parade from our house and I was DRIPPING in sweat by the time I arrived.  It (I) was disgusting.

and I already blogged all about it - but Zeb turned three! His birthday will always signify summer to me. I was due with him two days before school got out the last year I was teaching high school.  Luckily I kept him inside long enough to finish off the last day of school and start summer break. I went into labor that night. 

Half of our friends moved out (so, I'm being dramatic- but a lot of great people are leaving and we're devastated)! Every year at the beginning of summer- there's a bit of an exodus from toledo. People finish residencies, graduate school, or just pick up and move! and it's terrible.

Here's a pic of Zeb with Sam and Matthew being "very scary". I watched a bunch of the kiddos while everybody helped move out our across the hall neighbors.  Zeb is going to miss Sam like crazy- and we'll miss having the best neighbors ever!!  We'll also miss the other great people exiting toledo. I hate saying goodbye to friends!!

and tonight we saw our FIRST fireflies!!! Kent and I walked down to lock up the pool at our complex- and suddenly they were EVERY where.  I don't know how we went from zero to hundreds in one night- but I love them. Fireflies still amaze me every time that I see them. 

Oh and in other exciting news -Ike threw my phone in the pool.  He may look all sweet and innocent sleeping, but this kid is as sly as they come. He climbed up on the bench- got the phone out of my bag- and then chucked it into the pool. The worst was that I saw him with the phone in hand. I tried to remain calm and distract him but he just looked at me with this little smirk and let it loose.  It was so deliberate. The little rascal.