Northwest Trek

We spent the next day trying out something new... Northwest Trek. It was fun! It's like a huge zoo/animal preserve where most of the animals roam freely. We took a tram through and saw enormous antelope, elk, moose, mountain goats, mountain sheep, and bison. Pretty cool!  We also saw smaller enclosures of bear and wild cats and a myriad of other animals that live in the Northwest.

That's a huge bear between Amy and I in the background!

Matt and Amy for a visit!!

It was so fun having my big brother here for a visit!  I just love being with Matt and Amy and it was wonderful having all that one on one time with their cute family.  Gabe and Nyah had a great time with Wes and Logan.. and it was fun to see the little guys, Ian and Gage, together too!

Look at these two butter-balls! I can't stop smiling every time I look at this picture.

  Our first day we spent down on the waterfront enjoying the sunshine, water, and some Pike's Place clam chowder.  We swung by the aquarium too and let the kids touch anenomes and starfish and watch the sea otters get fed shrimp. It was a fun day!

First day of school

Look at our handsome kindergartener!!  Today is Gabe's first day of school and our whole family has been so excited!  Eric gave him a Father's blessing this morning and then he was off!  It felt really weird but really cool walking him into school this morning.  It's been a looooooong time since I walked the halls of elementary school but it felt just the same.  I love that smell of sharpened pencils and the organized chaos of it all. :)  I am so excited for our little man. This year is going to be a big adventure for him!

bye bye baby teeth!

 

Gabe lost his first tooth!  A few weeks ago I was shocked to notice two teeth sprouting up behind his bottom front baby teeth.  For some reason I just thought he was way too little... kids didn't lose teeth until they were bigger. Well, not Gabe. After all, he got his first tooth at 2 months old!  So now he has lost both of his bottom front teeth - one he literally lost.  It just disappeared one day! But luckily the tooth fairy is an understanding sort and still left him some money. :)

This is what happens when I take too many pictures:

no air conditioning....blah

Usually our summers here in Seattle stay around a pleasant (if un-summer-like) 70 degrees.  But we do have our few days of heat.  On one of those scorching hot days, I walked into the living room and found this:

both boys were literally melted into the couch watching the Olympics in complete lethargy.  Ian was totally limp and relaxed, just draped across Daddy - it was pretty darn funny!

smooth sailing

 Eric arranged for us to go on a sail for our 7th anniversary... it was fantastic weather and a really fun adventure! When I told him happily that I could now cross it off our bucket list, he reminded me that it had never been on his bucket list! He is not a fan of large bodies of water at all and was a super sweet hubby to brave the open sea for me. (I won't mention how he rummaged around the cabin underneath trying to get on a lifejacket before we set sail... or how he sat white knuckled, gripping the boat when the wind caught the sails and we were tipped probably 60 degrees - haha! What a good sport!)  Later that evening we got sushi and sat on the restaurant's veranda, enjoying our meal and reminiscing about how good our life is. What a fun date!

4 months old... seriously?!

Where has the time gone?! I can't believe our new baby is already 4 months! How can I explain our Ian... he is such a precious addition to our home that it's hard to imagine life without him now.  He is so very mellow and sweet, and yet lights up like a light when you give him attention! He wiggles and squirms with happiness and has the brightest smile you have ever seen! His body is getting chubby and round and I am loving watching the fat rolls deepen on his wrists, forearms, and legs! He has a round little face like his big sister Nyah but his coloring is definitely more like Gabe. I think he is a perfect mixture of them both.   I wonder what his personality will be like though? So far he has been a mild, easy baby like Gabe but I've definitely seen some silliness and spunk too!  He loves to experiment yelling and squealing and I can tell he really has fun with it! He just barely started rolling over and that can keep him entertained for awhile. He also just discovered his thumb (uh oh) and will suck and gnaw on it happily. Usually when I nurse him it's a quiet pause in the day and I am just overwhelmed with the strongest feelings of love and gratitude for this sweet baby.  He is truly a delight and a treasure. I am just loving every second with him!

 

 And my favorites....

odds and ends

A visit to Grammy and Papa wouldn't be complete without lots and lots of story time...

 

The wild fires were crazy this summer... this one raged in Alpine, right next door.  This picture was taken from Matt's front yard!

Eric spent a lot of time on his bike in the mountains - he was loving it!!

Nyah brushing Aunt Crystal's pretty hair!

 The rest of these pictures were taken at the new City Creek Center downtown SLC.  We had fun exploring!

Yankee Doodle Dandy

For Independence Day week we went up the canyon for a bbq on Monday. Mom prepared the best FHE lesson. We talked about our wonderful country, sang patriotic songs, waved flags, and the kids even memorized the Pledge of Allegiance with Grammy to perform for the rest of us! At the end we talked about how to be a good citizen and the kids all picked up 10 pieces of trash. It was such a fun evening!  Mom and Dad always made each holiday special for us growing up and they are still doing it with the grandkids.  The 4th of July has always been a special one too.  We all love our country so much and feel so blessed to live here in freedom.

Nyah's headband slipped down during the prayer but she still kept her arms folded - what a reverent, good girl! (Unlike her mama who was snapping pictures!!)

Fireworks!

 We had our very own fireworks show this year and it was fantastic... until the cops broke it up! :) We didn't know that fireworks were banned in my parent's neighborhood but luckily we had most of it done by the time we found out.  The boys LOVED the fireworks!!  My cute big brother Matt was the funnest fireworks leader. He had the boys helping him out and everyone was having a blast.  Gabe had the rest of his cousins joining him running through the smoke bombs. And every time they lit up a strobe light firework, we got the kids to dance like they were in a club! haha! It was so fun!

Mindy and Griff

Mom, Dad (with Ian) and Brittany

Matt and Amy

It was just the 3 of us siblings this trip. Looking at this picture makes me so homesick... I miss those guys so much!