Well, after taking a year off, I have felt pulled to start blogging again. There will be hiccups, but I have the inclination to post again on a regular basis. Last year, I gave myself permission to take the summer off to just live in the moment with the boys. So many times, I found myself watching family outings and adventures through the lens of my camera instead of truly being a part of the action, and I wanted the summer to just *be*. And then, as it always does, life got busy and I just ran out of time for my faithful little blog. I doubt many people still read this, but I am happy to be back. I have missed the opportunity to relive the various things we've done and record them.
While I will NEVER be able to completely catch up, here is a bit of what has happened to us over the past year.
Jed finished kindergarten in June 2015. He and I were both sad to say goodbye to his amazing teacher, Mrs. Smith.
The boys and I were pretty goofy!
My good friend Jen invited the boys and I to her family's lake cottage in southern Michigan while Dave was on a fire. We had such a fun week playing in the water, roasting marshmallows, chasing fireflies, watching shooting stars, and being lazy.
Emma, Alex, Hank, and Jed LOVE the pontoon boat and were big fans of watching the water pass under the boat.
Much to Jed's sorrow, he started first grade in September 2015. He has two amazing teachers, Mrs. Revord and Mrs. MacGregor.
Jed was a bat for Halloween! He made an adorable little squeaky noise the whole night and was thrilled to have an excuse to flap his wings. Dave's grandfather passed away right before Halloween, so he and Hank went out to Wyoming for the funeral while Jed and I stayed home. It was really sad to be apart on Halloween! Hank made an adorable octopus but I don't have any pictures of him :(
In December Jed turned SEVEN! Holy cow, time is going by so quickly! For his party, he wanted to decorate gingerbread houses with his friends, and he requested a pink Harry Potter cake. All the kids had a great time decorating their houses and sneaking candy, and then getting hopped up on sugar from the cake and ice cream. We only had one broken house by the time the party ended, so I would say the party was a success!
Auntie Hanna, Uncle Roro, and SJ came to visit us in July. We had such a good time at the beach every day! The weather cooperated and we had a lovely week eating ice cream, playing cards and in the sand, and relaxing together before they moved into their new house and Baby D was born.
Hank turned THREE in August! We had a fun little party in our yard with friends. Hank requested that everything be orange and yellow, and I tried really hard to comply. We borrowed a friend's bouncy-house and the kids bounced to their hearts content while the mommies chatted and possibly ate a lot of spinach dip. Possibly.
Hank is my sweetheart. He will often come up to me randomly and give me a hug and say "mom, I love you!" He is my little companion here at home and he is a good helper. He can put away the silverware out of the dishwasher, pick up toys, and help me carry things up and down to the basement.
Also in August, we decided to do something I've always wanted to, and watch some caterpillars change into butterflies. We have some friends who have a large patch of milkweed next to their house, so we collected some milkweed and three caterpillars. We stuck them in a large jar (above, left) and let them eat and eat and eat. Each caterpillar turned into a chrysalis in its own time (above, right), and after about two weeks, we could see the chrysalis turn dark and the butterfly's wings appear (below, left). Later that same day, the butterfly "plopped" (Jed's term) and broke free of the chrysalis. They were content to stay in the jar letting their wings dry out (bottom right), and then when they were ready, we released them. It was SO cool to do this! We always managed to miss the exact moment the caterpillar turned into a chrysalis (even though we took them to the cottage and everything!), and the exact moment they "plopped," but there is always next year!
In the fall, we decided we needed to think about buying a house here in Oscoda. We met with a realtor who showed us a few houses. Some were disgusting and some were tiny. Some had really unusual plants in the yard!
I decided that I needed to take my sewing and crocheting on the road, so in the fall I put some of my stuff on consignment in a local bakery. I also started selling at local craft fairs. I had a lot of positive feedback and decent sales. I was nervous about putting myself out there, but I am so glad I did!
I also had a good amount of special orders. Here Jed is modeling a skirt I made for a friend's granddaughter. He cracks me up with his faces!
In September 2015, Dave ran a race on Mackinac Island. Scott and Elsa came to visit and went with us to the race, and it was such a fun day! Dave did really well, especially since he had recently come home from a fire and hadn't been conditioning very much. He came in 5th in his age group and 32nd over all.
What a stud muffin!
Jed decided to play soccer this fall! He wasn't a big fan of practice, but he had a really great coach who helped him learn a lot about the game and how to try hard. Jed really liked wearing his uniform and cheering for his teammates when he was on the bench, and talking to them when he was on the field. We had several cold games at the end of the season to make it even more enjoyable, but thanks to his bat costume, he had plenty of warm black layers!
I turned 32 before Christmas. The boys and Dave took me to a fun museum in Alpena that had some science activities going on in the basement, as well as wildlife mounts. Upstairs, we walked all through the art gallery, their historical displays, and their Christmas Around the World displays. We went to a planetarium show about the Christmas star, and then walked through their loval business Christmas tree display. Dave and I were thrilled to find a tree from the local taxidermist that reminded us of the Christmas tree that brought us together back at BYUI, when we worked on the tree for the Wildlife Society that was topped by a stuffed squirrel dressed to look like an angel. It was amazing. The boys were totally enthralled.
Our Christmas card photo. Sorry if you didn't get one! Oops.
For Christmas this year, we decided that instead of a lot of presents, we wanted to go somewhere for a little vacation. So the day after Christmas, we went to the Great Wolf Lodge in Traverse City. It was SO much fun! Our room had a special spot for the boys to sleep called the "wolf den," and they had a great time there. We spent most of our time in the water park but also enjoyed story time at the clock tower (where it snowed INSIDE!) and watching all the people with their wands in the halls. Jed wanted a wand so he could do some of the adventures in the halls, but I am my mother's daughter and wasn't about to pay $50 for a lump of plastic. At any rate, it was a great trip and a much needed little break for our family to just be together.
Well, that brings us up to January, any way. We have had a busy, happy spring so far, but there are way too many pictures, so that will have to wait for another day. Before I close, though, I have to give you an important update: We are MOVING. We'll be loading up the truck and heading to Butte, Montana in just under two weeks. This is a hard move for me to make. Every move is hard for me to make. Coming here was especially emotional because I was pregnant and leaving dear friends. The past four years have been really rough and really good at the same time. Hank was born and has brought sunshine to our family that we didn't know we were missing. Jed has become an amazing person here! Dave and I have grown and struggled and (hopefully) come out of those struggles stronger and better. I have made life-changing friendships here.
Even though Oscoda is so far away from our families and Dave's job environment is not that great, I will miss it here. I can't pretend to be ecstatic about moving to Butte. We have nowhere to live when we get there. As of today, we have a 5th wheel that the Forest Service is loaning us for two weeks. We have a house that we think we may buy, but that is contingent on it passing inspection and being okay to remodel, and on the seller being willing to let us live in it for the summer and close in September. Rentals are prohibitively expensive and most require a one-year lease, which we don't want to sign. We can't get a PO box because we have to go there in person, so I am having our mail forwarded to general delivery. We have a storage unit for our stuff. We know a few people in the ward. I am trying hard to trust Heavenly Father that this is the right thing for us, but I don't have a total confirmation from Him that it is, and that makes this doubly hard. It is painful to have to reassure Jed and Hank that we will be okay there when I honestly don't know if we will be. The best that I can tell the boys is that "our home sweet home is wherever our family is. We will be fine because we will all be together." I am so grateful for the family that Heavenly Father has given me to care for. I am grateful for a hard-working husband who is willing to go out on a limb for us. I am grateful for parents on both sides who encourage us and offer their help and support. And I am grateful for the past four years. I hope the next four and beyond will be just as good for us!
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