Mermaid Sisters Always Have Your Back

Helluuu!  Well, I would say we've recovered from all of our car riding of last week, though I'd also say recovering took a toll on doing things... or at least on taking pictures.  But don't think that means nothing happened!  There definitely was a mermaid party!  I totally missed this, but it looks like the girls had a great time.

While on vacation with my family, Jerusha handed us our Christmas present a little early.  The plan was to use it there with everyone, however the fridge didn't have an ice maker, and so there were no snow cones until we got home!  Now it's snow cone party every day!!  Ok, not every day, just 3 times in the past week.  But let's not rule out tonight yet!  It is pretty loud to run, but it produces great ice shavings.  It feels just like snow.  In fact, if you come to visit, you'll never be safe from a snowball!  I think at some point we'll have to try shaved ice style deserts with fruit, evaporated milk, and maybe a little ice cream.

The girls were super excited!  I think they've only had snow cones once before, and that was last year.  It doesn't matter if they remember them though, they knew it was a treat, and so they were excited!

All of the flavors included are great!  There are even 6 more flavor concentrates for once these first ones are gone.  It's been a great gift!  Merry Christmas everyone!

Two weeks ago when the Checketts stayed with us for an evening, we put a blanket up in the window in the office to keep the sun out in the morning since we put the pack'n'play in that room.  That blanket was still down there, so I folded it up and left it on a box of secrets on my desk.  Jelly came to help guard the secrets, and slept there all day long while I was working!  She's a pretty great coworker.

On Wednesday night, Brooke somehow ended up staying up late.  Monica needed to make muffins for breakfast the next morning, so Brooke helped.  Monica helped with getting ingredients and mixing, but Brooke filled the whole muffin pan all by herself!  The muffins were terrific!

On Saturday night, I opened the box of secrets and pulled one out for date night.  It was Escape Room in a Box!  Since we can't go to an escape room right now (and even if one is open, I don't know that the best place to go is a small, confined room designed for everyone to touch EVERYTHING) I brought one to us.  So first things first we had to open the box!

And then unpack it!!  When we were done it was a total transformation of our dining/living room!  Now we were ready to try to escape!  We had a lot of fun.  I'd say the only downside is that it's pretty much a one time use item.  There is a pdf you can get online to reprint papers you wrote on, etc. and instructions to repack the box, but we're gonna have to leave that in our game closet for YEARS before we/I forget the puzzles.  Also, my understanding when I ordered this one is that it had 3 in it, but it doesn't really.  It has 3 "paths" to get to the end, and you have to do all of them.  So if you do separate paths then you could replay it and only do the paths you haven't seen before.  However, we did enjoy it enough that we'll probably get another box. Though I think next time I'll get one that does have multiple "rooms" in one box.

Look at all those great adventures we had this week!  Monica and I even evaded being eaten by a werewolf (escape room)!  I hope everyone is safe and has a wonderful week ahead!

Idaho or Bust

What a great week!  We spent this past week split between Utah and Idaho (and a little Wyoming) with my family for vacation this year.  To commemorate COVID (cause why not?...) our commemorative item for the year was a face mask (buff) that my mom embroidered with a cool bear pattern.  Here's the whole family together staying safe!

We spent Monday and Tuesday at my parents house in North Salt Lake.  I went out for my run on Monday and it was raining on me, so I decided to grab a picture.  Yup, that was the rainy weather.  It started raining again a little later in the morning, though this time there was at least a rain cloud above us in the sky.  The rain was pretty minimal both times, but it was still pretty bizarre due to the mostly blue skies and sunlight. 

My sister went to the store to get some groceries, and also grabbed a watermelon for everyone to enjoy.  She grabbed the biggest one she could find, and the lady at the register had to get a special scale to weigh it because it was so heavy.  It was ~41 pounds, or 1 Brooke.  There was a LOT of watermelon to eat.

One day I was looking for Brooke and Winry in the basement.  They had gone down to play with their cousins, but I couldn't see them.  Amelia told me they were in William's house, and led me there.  She was out getting flashlights for everyone.  William's house was under the stairs, behind where my parents hang their sleeping bags!  What a silly place to play!!

Tyson and Tina's family all came out Tuesday, and the girls were so happy to see Megan on Wednesday morning.  She read them stories all morning!  Also, Maren shared a room with Winry while we were at my parents house.  Winry really loved having a roommate, and when Winry would wake up in the morning she'd lay in her pack'n'play and wait until Maren got up, and then she'd stand up and come down with Maren!  Winry would just lay there silent, not waking Maren, waiting until she got up for the day!  What an amazing roommate!  Tuesday night, Maren stayed with the rest of her family, and Wednesday morning I went to check on Winry and she was awake waiting in her pack'n'play to hear a noise to know she could get up.  She was disappointed, to say the least, when she saw I was there to get her up!  She LOVED sharing her room with Maren.

On Wednesday we headed to Driggs, Idaho to the place we were staying.  We helped unload all the food, and the girls even helped carry things in!  Winry would set things over the door way, and then step in the house and pick things back up to carry to the kitchen.  Here she is with a great big chip box!

At night we'd all do an activity together.  The first night we all played Bingo.  Our girls were already asleep, but we played it with them on subsequent days.

Niki was our bingo master, with a tombola and all!

Here are the girls asleep in our room.  Winry's pack'n'play was in the closet, and Brooke's bed was on the couch.  I decided to put pillows on the floor in case she fell off, and she fell off more nights than not.  I think there was only one night she didn't fall off.  Also, this was the girls first time sharing a room, and they did great!

On Thursday we took a short ~25 minute drive to a ski resort for lunch and a hike.  The girls were iffy on the hiking part, but in the end we all had a great time.  Here are the girls at the turn around.

That night, we played pictionary for our group activity.  Brooke got to stay up for the first couple turns before heading to bed.  She even got a turn and drew both Blue Jelly, and a flamingo!

On Friday we headed with everyone to Teton National Park and headed for String Lake.  We met up with everyone as they finished the hike to Taggart Lake.We got a few pictures at the trail head, and Monica snapped a picture of my dad and me walking Winry back over to the lunch table.  We had lunch at the trail head, and then all headed for String lake, but ended up at Jenny lake.  

While trying to get to String lake, we ended up parking at an over look.  There wasn't good water access, but it was a good picture spot.  Here we all are together!

And here's Winry looking over my shoulder!  I sure got to carry her a lot!

We were able to find parking in the Jenny Lake parking lot, and headed to the water.  Here's a picture of the whole lake!  Hopefully if you click on it it'll stop looking so small...  no promises though.

The girls got their swimsuits on and headed in the water.  Here's Brooke up on a rock a little ways out in the water.

And here's Winry getting her toes wet.  Don't worry, Winry doesn't need to head in deep to get very wet.  Before she was in her swimsuit she was just chilling in the shallows, but she'd squat down to get rocks, etc. and dipped her bum/regular diaper in the lake.  It got VERY full, and so it was definitely time to change her.  While there I joined the company of people who were skipping rocks.  I got 7 skips in the video!  I think that was the most I got, so it was a good time for Monica to film!

Someone (Oriah or Niki I believe) went to the gift store and came back with popsicles for everyone.  They were the push up kind, and while very yummy, they made us quite sticky.  We rinsed off in the lake, so... hopefully the fish appreciate that.

The girls enjoyed playing with cousins basically all the time!  I will say, I do think this took it's toll on Winry, as she spent about 6 hours today in her crib.  She woke up at 7, and then at 9 asked to go take a nap.  She played for about an hour and a half and then eventually did take around a 3 hour nap, but then woke up and wanted to keep playing in her crib by herself!  Introverted?  Seems like it :).  I'm glad she got a chance to recharge, and I'm also glad she was good player and sharer with her cousins over the past week.

On the way home, we ran into some crazy traffic.  I pulled up google maps (we had directions on Monica's phone, but it was having sim card issues and couldn't use cell data) and got a new route around the traffic that would save us a half hour.  Why wasn't everyone going this way?  Well, because it went over a one lane bridge to a dirt road!...  It was a good adventure, and I'm glad we saved the half hour!  We stopped at Rock Springs for gas and lunch, and of course did some somersaults.  We continued on to Fort Collins where we stopped at Chick-fil-a for dinner, and I moved into the back to help the kids eat their dinners.  It was a little cramped, but at least I was able to see the screen and we watched Phineas and Ferb the rest of the way home.

We made it home safely, but very tired, and Jelly was VERY excited to see us.  She has been very snugly and climbs into a lap much more often than she used to.  She definitely missed us while we were gone, and we missed her too!  We had a wonderful trip, and it was great to get to see everyone!  Have a wonderful week ahead!

Traveling to Utah

Howdy party people!  It's been a pretty good week, though I'm writing this late, and much of the current week is in my memory as the recent past.  To be honest, I don't think much about the work week when I think about what's been happening over the last week, so I guess I need to stretch my recollection back a little farther...  Anyway, Last Tuesday, Monica's sister, Michelle, and her family drove through and spent the night with us on their way to Utah.  I had to work the next morning, but I believe the kids all had a good time together, and I didn't hear crying or screaming form the basement, so it seems like all was well!  They stayed for a bit in the morning before heading out to finish the trek to Utah.

I spent time with the girls in the backyard playing on the trampoline.  They've been avoiding the pool for the last little bit because there's a bunch of leaves that fell into it.  Anyway, the tramp it's been, and to be honest, I often wish we had a bigger one so I could jump too!!  Winry was trying to do all kinds of "moves" or something while she was out there, and I just thought it looked so cute and funny!  Hopefully you do too!

The girls got Frozen ice pops this past week.  Monica's had them on our grocery list for several weeks, and they were finally not sold out this time!  The girls were really excited about them, and Brooke even ran downstairs to tell me all about who had what while I was working.

Jelly has started to become a bug catching master!  She got two in the past week, both flies I believe.  This picture really had nothing to do with her catching bugs, but we've been on vacation in Utah for several days at this point and I miss Jelly, so of course this incidental picture I took is making it in the blog!  Also, I did get a video of her eating a fly, and I do like a picture with my videos, so I guess this is a natural fit there as well.

On Saturday we drove out to Utah for some vacation.  We stopped and picked up two of my nieces, Maren and Emilee, on the way.  They live on the north side of Denver, and their mom even brought them over to the freeway, so it really wasn't out of our way.  It did mean packing the car a little more efficiently so we could have the back row up and have room for their stuff too, but it was totally worth it because Brooke and Winry had such a great time!  Winry only cried once because she bit her finger, so attitudes were much improved for the car ride!

At lunch we stopped in Rawlins for gas and went to Bolten park again.  We even ate our lunch under the same tree. however, no deer came by this time.  While we were there somersaults somehow came up and Brooke decided to try one.  As I watched, I gave her a few pointers and Brooke did her very first somersault all by herself!  Winry thought it looked like great fun and after a little coaching was doing them as well!  Brooke and Winry have been very excited and have been doing somersaults all over the place ever since.  They of course showed everyone as soon as we got to my parents house, and on Sunday we went to Gram and Pop's to pick up some boy clothes and they showed everyone there as well!  I am very proud of them both, especially Brooke for not giving up and trying so hard for so long.

Also, when we arrived, Brooke's dance class was mentioned, and everyone wanted to see her recital dance she's currently learning in hip hop.  In fact, her cousins practiced it with her, and then everyone followed her lead to perform the dance together!  Winry is learning it too and will do it by herself.  When I finished work Friday afternoon, I came upstairs to Winry doing the dance by herself.  It's too bad I didn't take a video!

Well, with that we're caught up on last week.  As mentioned, Sunday we went to Gram and Pop's house, but I'll talk more about that in next week's post.  Currently I'm sitting in Driggs, ID in the middle of my family's vacation.  We've been having a great time all week, and I can't wait to share it with you all!  Have a wonderful week!

The 4th of July

Howdy y'all!  We had a fantastic 4th of July!  In fact, a storm kind of half blew in, which cooled things off in the afternoon/evening, but there were only a few small sprinklings of rain throughout.  Enough to cool things off for a great evening outside, but not enough to deter any fireworks.  We ended up going on a walk after dinner and saw some of the early fireworks that people were doing before it got dark.  When we got home, we watched a live stream of the fireworks in New York, and then looked at pictures and videos of fireworks that Monica and I have taken through the years, before bed time.  The girls enjoyed the fireworks, but they enjoyed eating root beer floats even more.

Going all the way back to last Sunday afternoon we had some family play time with the Switch and all played Mario Party together!  The girls loved it!  Here's Winry trying to catch a fish!

Afterwards, we went for a family walk around the neighborhood.  Brooke brought her camera in case we saw any animals, and got a picture of a bird and this bunny.

Winry has continued to adjust to life without her pacifier.  She has been doing great the last few days, and never cries for her pacifier any more.  However, at the start of the week things were still going rough, and she even had a bit of a meltdown one day.  I don't think it helps that pacifier weening aligned with her stopping taking naps.  Anyway, she can have her pacifier in her room, so she still gets it when she sleeps.  We also allowed her to have paci play time (aka quiet time, but she doesn't like it being called that), where she plays in her room and can have it.  This has turned into naps on the floor several times.  One time I asked her if she'd want to be done with a crib and have a bed on the floor she could climb into, and she said "NO!"

The weather warmed up this past week, so we got the pool back out.  Here's Winry helping to fill the pool.  On Friday we went out and did a bunch of cleaning in the backyard, and now we have a more permanent space for the pool up on the patio, instead of moving it around on the grass every few days.

The girls have been getting back into the trampoline, and Winry is big enough/used to it enough that they can jump together now.  I believe it was this last week that they started to play "Eleanor and Clara" together on the tramp.  Their friends had been over that morning, so that afternoon they borrowed their names.

On another paci play time I caught Winry in the corner snuggling with her giant Minnie Mouse!  I asked her if she wanted it in her crib so she could sleep on it, and she told me no.  This little girl!  If she can fit there, she'll sleep there.  And apparently, this past week that's become her quest.

Eleanor and Clara came over to go swimming on Wednesday.  Whoa... Wednesday... just feel that odd word as it passes your tongue...  I'm not sure what happened recently, but suddenly the week is starting to reform!  Weekday and weekend no more!  I don't know if it's just because we've been mostly chilling at home for so long that it's become normal and days have redefined, or if we're actually doing more than before, but this past week definitely had a Wednesday!  Back to the swimming, everyone came together for a grand time, all in their flamingo swim suits!

They even all spent time together on the tramp.  I believe this is pushing the trampoline's limits, but it didn't break, and they all had fun, so I guess that's technically enough space...

This past week Jelly laid on Brooke's lap for the first time!  She even let Brooke pet her a whole bunch before she got down.

That night was bath night.  Brooke wanted to get out ASAP, but Winry was having a good time.  Winry was getting all of the dinosaurs to surf on the letters!  It's a very popular game around these parts.

Thursday is Brooke's dance class, and she had a wonderful time again.  She really loves to dance, and over the summer she is learning hip-hop.  She even gets to do a mini-recital at the end of the summer, and is doing great learning her dance!  I love her dancing, and I really like getting to take her each week!

On Friday, we yet again found Winry sleeping on her floor.  This time while holding her flashlight, naturally.  I guess I should also mention that she always refuses a nap, and won't let Monica or I put her down.  She just has to go do play time, and then we find her like this.

I had Friday off, and it basically was a Saturday.  It was pretty weird to have a second Saturday to wake up and do chores all over again!  I spent much of the weekend sanding wood.  I'm currently working on a new mantle, as well as bunk beds for the girls.

On Saturday Winry didn't quite end up going to sleep, but she did put her dog down for a nap next to her.  Maybe she just had to stay there with him till he fell asleep.

With Saturday being the 4th, we just had to celebrate, so we set up our smaller tent inside for the girls to play in.  I don't think they loved it quite as much as they used to, but they still played in it for a while.  Jelly was also really excited to have the tent back and went CRAZY per usual.  She get's really attacky in there, and fortunately, I don't believe she's ripped a hole in the tent anywhere.

We also procured a grill over the weekend to help celebrate Independence Day.  We grilled corn on the cob and burgers, and the burgers were SOOOO GOOOD!  We'll definitely have to head back out there again soon!  It worked great and it'll be a lot of fun to have.

That's all I've got for this week.  Stay independent, and stay free!