sunday best

olive cracks me up with her constant posing

plus she's so cute in the dress i made for hazel a year or two ago

 and she rocks my boots way better than i do

 henry is so cute in noah's old tie onesie 

 look at that little face! 

 eleanor finally fits this sailor dress that i picked up at our ward in utah's relief society swap last year

 michael was cute and stressed about his talk 

which went marvelously, of course

cutie hazie

matchie ties

eleanor accessorized herself

hazel wasn't into noah trying to force his binoculars on her

me and henny benny through a dirty mirror

you get what you get, right?

everyone i was in charge of dressing was a little patriotic

we're excited for the 4th of july this week!!

a good, busy saturday

i got up early this morning to get ready for the day and admired how long my hair is getting

it's so weird for me to have long hair

but i still like it so it's not going anywhere too soon

michael took the kids to get breakfast while i went to a 9am appointment to give blood

it went well and i'm always glad to be able to give

(you know, in between pregnancies every other year)

afterward we tried to go to a park by the river

and it was closed off for a triathalon AGAIN

this happened a few weeks ago, too

come on! 

so instead we went to the old penitentiary

it's a prison nearby that was in operation from 1873 to 1972

it's way old and kind of creepy but it was super interesting 

hazel refused to dress up or get her picture taken with these two adorable inmates :)

 just a little underground punishment cell

 exploring some of the bunk cells

 this one had four floors

 the conditions were not great

and it seemed pretty crazy that inmates were there as recently as the 70's

 death row

 it was a little hard to explain to the kids what "death row" and "death penalty" were

but noah swears he's going to be super good from now on :)

this is a picture of the trap door they used for hangings until the 1950's

(sorry about the reflection)

 there was a super interesting weapons museum there, too

olive was way in to these pole arms

 a sweet watch tower

 solitary confinement 

it said they didn't really cool it in the summer or heat it in the winter

and there would be ice on the walls

some people were in there for days and some up to a year

given 1-2 meals a day and a weekly shower

 the women's ward was finally opened after female prisoners were getting pregnant...

it was pretty funny and lax 

there was a sewing machine inside, and other things for them to develop hobbies

most of them weren't sentenced very long

 afterward we stopped for treats and lunch

because we were all hot and hungry

this italian ice was way good

 we drove to a state park that had a little man made lake to eat our lunch

and the kids got in wearing their normal clothes since we hadn't planned on going there

so we didn't pack swimsuits or towels

it was pretty awesome though

 and to top it off henry is three months today!

he's such a doll!

 and michael mowed the state of idaho into our backyard tonight

so there's that

now he's pretending he's dying while avoiding writing a talk for church tomorrow..

better him than me!

brianne

 brianne is my super awesome friend

that 6-7 years ago i used to do multiple things a week with

back when we each only had one babe

if memory serves me right we were both in the church bathroom one week

and brianne suggested we do something that week

with her little ryan and my little noah

and just like that we started going to playgroups, 

story times at the library and indoor park through the city

it was super fun

brianne is hilarious

super down to earth 

totally awesome and way in to hair

what's not to love?

 brianne now has three kids and we haven't lived near each other for years

but she was in town today and i was so glad i got to see her and her kids

(plus her friend tracy and her kids, it was a party!)

brianne's husband scott passed away very suddenly this past january 

brianne writes a blog about her current circumstance, her struggles and things that make her happy

you know, whatever's on her mind

i love her writing

it feels like we're sitting having a chat every time i read it 

you should read along, here's the link 

it was amazing to see her today

thanks to the internet (blogs and facebook) we'd hardly missed a beat

i feel so refreshed after talking with her

i know she has great things ahead of her

she is awesome

and i'm super lucky to have her as a friends

love you, brianne! 

raspberry pie

this morning the kids and i went outside  and picked a colander full of raspberries

we decided to make pie but there are still a lot left so i think jam is next

 look at all those ripe berries

noah totally said, "this is a berry good day" while picking #nailedit

everyone needed an apron, obviously

 hazel didn't think i was including her enough and she said,

"i didn't come here to watch, i came here to cook" #dramaqueen

i told them they could mash the graham crackers for the crust

so naturally they used magic wands...

 it would've covered the pie plate a little more if olive hadn't kept snacking while mashing

 eleanor looked pretty cute wearing my apron

 the pie all chilled and ready to eat

 with whipped cream, of course

 it was delicious

and really fun to make with the kids

especially picking the berries

it felt very summer-y

then, the kids watched a bunch of tv

and i got fed up so i unplugged it

for now....we'll see how long it lasts

i love having a tv free summer but i wasn't doing it because we just moved,

we have a new baby, there are five kids, i need all the help i can get, etc.

 but we'll try it

off the bat it was awesome

we went out front to ride bikes and i offered to take hazel's training wheels off

and she got it immediately

we're so proud of her

and she's so proud of herself

such a big girl!!

preschool woes

i am really frustrated trying to find olive a preschool

hazel went to the most amazing preschool in utah three days a week

for under a hundred a month

she had a certified teacher and she learned so much

she was reading by the end of preschool

we really lucked out

and would love to send olive there, too

but can't since we moved

hopefully olive will get in to the free preschool through the school district

based on her need for speech but if not, they will at least provide her with speech therapy again

we won't know if olive is accepted to preschool though the school 

until it's too late to find another option

so we have to find a back up now

my requirements in a preschool aren't crazy

i'd prefer it to not be in someone's house 

mostly because it seems less safe and less professional

i don't want it to also be a daycare

because it seems like it will be treated like daycare

i don't want to pay a crazy amount

and i'd love it if there was some real curriculum rather than just playing and free time

is that too much to ask?

so far the "best" option we've found is close to our house which is good

but it's also over twice as much as hazel's and a daycare too..

so.....there's not much point in me writing about this

but i'm frustrated and it's on my mind..

also, the pictures are of olive's fit leaving the park tonight

and michael having to drag her home

isn't being a parent the best?

cub scout day camp and a day at home with the little ones

noah had his first cub scout day camp ever today!

he got up bright and early for michael to take him to the church

he was gone all day and i was surprised how much easier 4 kids felt

and also how much i missed him all day long

 we had a nice low key day at home

while i was vacuuming olive held hands with henry on her bed

 henry was all smiles all day

he was having a hard time eating or sleeping because he was so smiley and social

 eleanor has become really jealous of henry lately

it's terrible

she won't let me hold him without holding her, too

it's an exact repeat of olive and eleanor two years ago

i was really hoping to avoid it this time around...

anyway, i have to try to distract her so i can take care of henry

today she enjoyed looking out the window while we hung out on our bed

she loves to point everything out to me

it's pretty cute

"airplane mommy!" "bird!" 

isn't her hair wild lately?!

 i guess this is what happens when your older brother is away for the day

and you're stuck home with your three big sisters...

olive said he needed to wear it to so he could show me he loves me

i don't think henry was thrilled to have something constricting his head for the first time..

 the girls all helped me make pizzas for dinner

olive was a big help eating lots of cheese

 hazel and olive stayed in their jammies all day 

 noah came home from day camp so happy

he got to shoot a bb gun, do archery, make a leather bracelet, buy binoculars and a snow cone

it was pretty much heaven for an 8 year old boy 

 he also made a spy glass that really works!

 the pizzas were delicious

thanks to my three cute helpers

 eleanor thought she was pretty cool wearing noah's sneakers and holding his lunch box

it was a good day

added bonus that michael got home a little big earlier from work than anticipated

and saw that i'm tired and sick (sore throat) so he sent me to lay down

while he put all the kids to bed

such a darling!

ps. here's noah's group picture from the day