substantial #1

This is a very substantial catch up, probably the longest I haven't blogged since I was pregnant or with newborns.

So beginning with April!  I feel like we have gotten to see Nathan and Amanda a lot this year, it has been great!  We celebrated Nathan's 40th birthday.  We decorated Mom and Dad's house with lots of written memories of Nathan growing up - it was a lot of fun to remember all of the ways he has influenced my life.

Family meeting...not so fun talking about when Mom and Dad are gone but I guess those conversations have to take place at some point.  I feel very blessed to be so close to each other, and hope the feelings continue as we age.

We also celebrated Mom's birthday, 72!  Sometimes I feel like I still live there, and it's still hard to believe how lucky I am that I can talk with her and ask her advice all the day long.  She never tires of hearing of my problems and activities and kids.  She is an amazing support to me and I love her so much.

Jared was trying to straighten out the boys for a picture.  Such a crazy group.

Gymnastics came and went.  We had Lily try out for team.  In this basement they don't really work on beam or bar, and so she scored pretty low.  When I was watching her fall off the beam at the try out I wondered if Lily would still be interested - I know I wouldn't be!  She got in the car and started sniffling and crying a bit that she wanted to be on team more than anything, but they probably wouldn't let her.  Two weeks later they called to say she hadn't made it but when they found out she was at Amy's previously, changed their minds since she didn't have any experience but was quite good with floor.

Isaac loves to do gymnastics at home, it is fun to see him flip around and do hand stands against walls and couches.

 End of soccer!  He loved it.  I'm wondering if he will choose soccer over gymnastics some day.  Jackson is still in gymnastics and loves it - I offer other sports but he just says no.

Shopping at the DI.  Always some crazy high heels to try on.

Isaac finished his first year of preschool!  I don't know how he lucked out to have a teacher that went nuts for a Star Wars graduation but it was awesome and he loved it.  I still can't believe how lucky I was to find her, it is such a perfect option for the first of two years of preschool.

May weather was fantastic.  We spent a lot of time in the pool or in the river.  This is Lily and Kaitlyn forging across the Virgin River.  I'm sure Jackson would have loved it as well but I never returned because you had to climb down a LOT of rocks to get to the water, and that didn't sound too awesome with Isaac and Ada.

And we did spend pretty much every day in the pool.  Lots of friends to have join us, it was wonderful!  Isaac would stay in the hot tub so I could sit in the shade and be close, but not have to watch constantly.

 We also tried out Cottonwood Cove park in Green Valley, which was pretty neat.  The water from the Santa Clara River was clear and the older kids spent a LONG time exploring, finding tadpoles and cattails and moss islands.  There was a little path that Isaac and I would bike around, and Ada loved the big play sets.

 We visited Pine Valley one day with Grandma and Grandpa while Lily was with Adam on a trip to Idaho with Papa and all of the older grandkids.  It was a bit chillier than expected so Dad humored all of us by letting Mom put this sweater on him.  I almost peed my pants, it was so funny.

Jackson whittled his first stick into a beautiful bow that we strung that would actually shoot arrows!  For about an hour until it broke.  He got a blister he was so determined, it was pretty cool and he was pretty proud of himself.