John came home with a bump on his head. He often comes home with a bandaid or other interesting story of his adventures. I can only imagine the energy he brings to his class.
We took a final hurrah beach trip and it was gorgeous.
Sand snowmen
Michael joined a club of people with this type of kite. He passes off tricks to advance levels. This kite can be maneuvered to go all directions, stop anywhere, and can do most anything. It's unreal and trickier than it might seem. Michael can do this for a long time! He told us it was the best birthday present he ever got.
Never seen a live starfish!
Nicole just chillin with her stuffed animals before gifting a lot of them to her little siblings.
Diana went on an "adventure" with Jim looking at lands nearby open to the public for hunting. She was in charge of the snacks and the gps. Jim was in charge of the spider stick.
Ice. It's been over a year waiting for a new freezer door. We missed ice!
John substituted for Jake in drum lessons while Jake has middle school soccer team and John prettymuch couldn't be happier.
Caterpillars totally ate up this butterfly milkweed in one day! Sure hope it didn't kill the plant, there were five big fat caterpillars eating every last bit of green!
Nicole and some of her friends
At a friends volleyball game
Nicole sprained her ankle and a friend carted her in a wheeled chair all the way to get ice. They had way too much fun zooming through the halls!
Big and swollen ankle poor girl. But no break.
John feeling very good about his spelling words for the week: "I" and "can"
Jim took the boys camping at the beach and they loved everything from cooking oatmeal in the tent to waking up to find their best friends had come in the night to spend the day with them!
This is Jake freezing but willing to go kayaking anyways!
Michael's omlet dream come true
Me convincing the youngest three that missing camping with dad is okay if you get a milkshake :)
Epic fishing!!
Diana's team played her cousins team and it was so fun to see them play each other!
Michael and Jacob each caught a redfish!
For Nicole's birthday, she had a bunch of friends over! Snowcones, s'mores, swimming, spikeball, corn hole and lots of fun talking. Teenagers are so much fun!
Nicole didn't want a cake- she just wanted paint your own cookie party favors!
We made her a mini marshmallow chocolate cake for our family celebration anyways :) She's 15 now!
Diana gave me a very detailed list that cracks me up!
Jim went on a hunting trip but the deer smelled him because they came down an unexpected path. So he saw them, but also saw them leave. And that was it for the day. Maybe next time!
Nicole FINALLY recovered enough to run again in XC. She wore a brace but said it didn't hurt! This was her first 5k, the first few races were all 2 milers.
Mike has gotten so much better as a goalie! Being on the middle school team and rec league gave him lots of practice with different situations. I love watching him, but also feel a lot more anxious knowing that all the best players are going to be kicking the ball as hard as they can at him!
John was playing in the sand during one of the boys school games. When he came back I asked if he enjoyed himself. He just fell down in joy, with sand spilling out of his pocket. That would be a yes.
End of the boys' last soccer game for school! Until next year!
Nicole with her XC team. The nicest group of people.
Jim and I helped Nicole tailgate a football game with some friends and then we stayed to watch. Great fun and a cheap date while getting to keep an eye on the social scene of high school. Overall really like the vibe and friends she has, such a blessing!
General Conference
Nicole got invited to do a ropes course and they had the funnest time! I love all these new friends she's making.
Diana fell and completely broke her arm in the backyard. It was awful. She was in so much pain for a very long time. X-rays and splinting were bad. Then waiting for an ambulance until after midnight because she was on heavy painkillers. Then surgery 7:30am. And excruciating pain when they took x-rays after. Adults get a nerve block, but the side effects are risky for kids. So she just had to tough it out, tears rolling down her face, until the pain lowered enough that the oxycodone and many other painkillers could touch the pain. I can't tell you the joy I felt when she finally felt like she could talk again and I heard her raspy voice.
I got her clothes she could easily put on one-handed, some flowers and a bunch of presents she could open one at a time over the next few days of recovery. It helped keep her mind off things and have something to look forward to.
When she finally got to eat lunch she was so happy and couldn't wait to get home. I love how Nicole sent her favorite blanket to help comfort her, Jacob picked out some stuffed animals and Michael picked out a book Jim could read to her. So much love and many prayers from family all over made such a difference. She never resisted treatment and they inserted three metal rods to hold the completely broken bone in place.
Michael went kayaking with his Deacon quorum.
Diana couldn't get back to school for a few days while she still needed strong pain meds, and sweet friends came over to give her fun little toys and love.
On Halloween Eve we had a concert at a local amphitheater. While we didn't have a huge crowd or something, we had a bunch of friends, neighbors and classmates come party with us. We did raffles and a contest party, it was the funnest concert yet!
Diana loved seeing friends there!
One year after installing a pool with a chip in it, the repair guy showed up! (Yes, a year) He drained the pool completely and fixed it. We had the pleasure of paying to refill with 1.5 tanker trucks of water and redo the chemicals at our expense. And now, we pray that is the last of our dealings with that company!
Nicole was a dog for the ward trick-or-treat
Pushing it in a XC race
Katy had her long-awaited date with dad going camping! They went to a lake 15 minutes away and she had the time of her life!
So proud of starting her own fire!
Michael's last team pic with his rec league soccer team!
Katy went scouting in the hunting areas near the campsite. She loved her daddy time and "lookin' for deer!"
The moon was super bright at night!
Nicole's last race was a great personal record for her. She shaved off 4 minutes over the season. I can see on her face the improved mental game going from "I wonder if I can finish" to "push it hard to the end."
Priceless school pictures. John looks almost scared. Katy told me she WAS scared. I can only imagine.
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