What happens at home when daddy's at scout camp

We missed Daddy for three days while he was gone at scout camp and his golf tournaments. But, our fun and disasters went on as usual with a few differences though.

Brigham pretended he was the Dad the whole time, except for when he let Silas take over pretending for a little bit. 

Since Daddy wasn't around to wear his boots and gloves, Silas decided he needed to put them on. 

Maybe Silas and Adam think they can get away with being bigger rascals than usual with just mom around. Or maybe I shouldn't leave the room to talk on the phone when the milk and cereal are still on the table. As I finished my phone call I come to see Silas and Adam on the table with Cheerios scattered everywhere and milk running off the table. I think there was about half a gallon of milk flooding the floor! 

I was very very happy to have Daddy come home!!!! 

Evidences of All Boys

I know a lot of women who have all boys. We should start a club! My cousin-in -law called it the MOB ( Mom's of Boys). How many of you moms seen the same thing in your home?

1. I can never find the hose attachments to the vacuum because they are always stealing them to use for swords.

2. My house sounds like a lion's den. They are constantly roaring at each other and trying to do it louder than the other.

3. Potty words are apparently the most hilarious thing in the world. I can't believe how young they pick up on it too. Adam is not even two yet and he knows he gets the best laugh from his brothers if he just says "Pooooop!"

4. If I am on the ground I better have my guard up because it is wrestling time and I will be the next victim. Be prepared to be attacked from any angle!

5. My boys are constantly hungry or thirsty. If I am out and about and don't have some sort of sustanace in my purse I will hear whining and complaining the whole time. They seem to need something in their stomachs every five minutes. 

6. A pack of boys feed off of each other's energy. I am amazed that if one of them is gone, the house is so quiet and still. But for some reason if they are all together it becomes an incredible synergistic effect and the volume and craziness are multiplied by 100! If sugar is part of the equation then it is multiplied by 1000.

I do have to say that boys can be super sweet! When boys are sweet, they are really sweet because you know they are sincere. Silas tells me every night, "I wuv you, mom". Adam gives really good cuddles in the morning. Brigham likes to give hugs and I love it when he is in the mood to be helpful. Here are some recent pics.

In between family reunions fun

In between these two reunions we got to spend time with my parents, little brother and my older brother Carl's family at the Bitter Family cabin in island park. So much fun and a beautiful little hike. Here are pictures!!

Weight (we're having too much fun!) Reunion

I don't get to see my Weight relatives very often. It's been several years since I've seen some of them. But no matter how long it's been when you finally do get together, you feel like family! 

It was so fun to reconnect with cousins and aunts and uncles that I haven't seen for a long time. 

This reunion was at Georgetown Lake in Montana. What a beautiful lake! What a fun reunion! We were able to go to Philliosburg and check out their awesome candy shop and ice cream parlor. We played disc golf, sand volleyball, went canoeing, had awesome campfire programs, watched a 4th of July parade, and on our way home we got to try a really fun 140 ft slide!   The kids got to play an ancestor game where they matched names and pictures of their ancestors and if they did it, they got a fun pillowcase! There was also a scavenger hunt for the kids too. It was a blast.

The only down side of the whole trip was not sleeping. Soaks and Adam had a hard time sleeping so they ended up sleeping with Doug or I which was hard to sleep with squirmy little boys. But it was fun and they slept a good portion of the way home.!

What's so special about family reunions?

Its a question many may wonder. Why is it worth the effort to go to or plan a family reunion? Well, it's the ultimate frisbee of course!!! Ok, well that might have been my favorite part, but the truth is it feels so fulfilling to be with family.

I really enjoyed strengthening relationships with my aunts, uncles, and cousins. It's fun to discover the amazing talents that are in your family. Some talents are running, jewelry making (didn't know my brother would be good at this one!), music, shooting nerf guns, writing books, and cooking yummy food. 

I loved watching the men turn into boys when they came up with their own nerf gun game. I loved being a part of an awesome game of ultimate frisbee (thanks mom and Melissa for taking turns with me being with the kids). Making jewelry out of African beads was awesome. Going on a run with my aunt and uncle was hard yet rejuvenating! The Olympic events were great for the "midgets" as aunt Jennifer likes to call them. A celebration of 80 years of an amazing woman's life was very touching and special. My grandma sure deserved it! What a fun family reunion! 

Who ever won the ping pong tournament? To be continued?

Silas turned 3!

Yesterday was not only Father's Day, but it was my cute and funny Silas's 3rd birthday! 

He was so excited and grateful for all his gifts. He got a full firefighter outfit and a ninja turtle outfit which he immediately wanted to put on and start playing with. It has been so fun to watch him transform into a fire chief and saving people from fire and yelling "wee-o wee-o wee-o!" He sounds like he little minions from despicable me. 

A little spotlight on Silas. Silas makes me laugh every day. He just has this natural funniness about him which is eccentuated by his cuteness. He also gets his buttons pushed easily and can become upset over little things. But he enjoys pushing other peoples buttons too; he is a tease. He is also very loving and will give the sweetest hugs and kisses. Lately when I put him to bed, he'll say, "goodnight. I wuv you." Then I will say , " I love you too! Goodnight." Then he will say again a little stronger , "no! Goodnight, I wuv you!" Then he keeps repeating it until he is almost screaming at me that he loves me and he is also crying. I don't understand it, but I have a feeling I may not understand a lot of what he does throughout his life. 

We love Silas and we are so grateful to have him in our family! He adds spunk and entertainment to our lives. Happy birthday to my awesome three year old!

Riding a Bicycle: a Father's Day tribute

Yesterday Doug went to the east Idaho garage sale and he came home with a sweet treasure for Brigham, something he has wanted for a long time, a bicycle. 

This bike had no training wheels so it was either buy training wheels to put on or spend the time to teach him to ride without them. Doug took Brigham out for about 30 minutes and worked with him to get going. Brigham did get going too! But, his muscles weren't used to it so he would tire out and not be able to go as well. They came back in and an hour or two later Doug said, "Brigham, do you want to go out again?" Brigham was so excited to go out again. They went out at least five different times throughout the day, working on different things like starting and pushing off, turning tighter circles, and balancing. I was blown away with the time and energy and patience he had with Brigham, working with him to learn a skill that he will enjoy using the rest of his life. 

I hope Brigham will remember the time and care he spent teaching Brigham how to ride a bike. It got me reflecting about when I learned to ride and you can bet who was there with me, teaching me....it was my dad. He also was the one to teach me how to ski, until a paralytic wanted to teach me, but my dad stayed with me the whole time and that was a great comfort to me that he was there. I loved going on daddy daughter dates and when we would go to the mall and dad would act just like a kid and go hide our purchases. My dad planned vacations for our family to take which are times I have some of the strongest memories. Dad always got excited to try new food and made me excited about trying cool and different foods too. 

I am so grateful for the man I married and how wonderful of a father he is to our children. I am so grateful for my daddy; I love and adore him. I am grateful for my father-in-law and how he raised a most wonderful son and taught him how to work. Happy Father's Day to these wonderful men! We live and appreciate you all!