Oma and Papa Came For A Visit

This blog seems to be getting neglected lately and I haven't even had the twins yet. Oh boy! Life around here is mainly full of construction, kids, church and work. Even when Oma and Papa came that is a lot of what happened around here. Although, we are managing to try to keep playing, so we can enjoy life not just work all the time.

Oma and Papa came just over a week ago on the 22nd. They arrived around 4pm on Saturday afternoon. We were so excited for them to get here and thought that they were taking forever to get here, but they finally made. The girls started the ball rolling by showing them all of their 'tricks.' They showed them how they can dance to the fox song, attempt to do handstands and cartwheels and a slew of other things. Then they took them outside and showed them how they can ride bikes, scooters, trikes, and even got Papa to pull them in the wagon. The good thing about Papa being stuck in a car all day is that once he is out he game for going just about anywhere especially if he can walk. He doesn't like being cramped in the car. So, he pulled the girls in the wagon to the park and Oma joined them. I didn't go because I was kind of having a rough bit. I was just tired and to be honest Saturdays are a little hard. I mean they are super great it just seems like they are very demanding and this particular Saturday I had the girls all day because Gaupo was at work, we were assigned to clean the church, there was a baby shower (which was a much need social outlet, but I still had to take the kids), and then getting ready for my parents to come. It was all good things and probably normally I would feel like a super mom, but right now isn't normal, so I was just kind of tired of being asked to do things, I just wanted to sit and talk. So, anyway Oma and Papa and the girls went to the park and they had a great time. Oma got some great videos of the girls riding the wagon down the the slanted driveway at the school. They were really funny to watch because they really couldn't stay in the wagon, because they were always wanting to try something new or different, but it was cute. After sitting for a bit and kind of unloading on Gaupo when he came home (Poor guy, but he is a great listener) I started getting dinner all cut up. We had Teriyaki chicken, roasted zucchini and squash, and rice. I thought it tasted great, so it was a good start to the evening. We actually had dinner pretty late, but I think we still let the girls play for a bit, but then we did baths and got them in bed. The girls slept in the blue room, so that Oma and Papa could have their beds. After the girls went to bed, Gaupo and my dad went to work on the basement and my mom and I just talked. I think that is what I miss about living at home most is just being able to talk to my mom face-to-face. I know I can call her and I do and we talk a lot, but its so nice to be together. We visited until the boys called it a night and got cleaned up and then we all called it a night and went to bed.

Oma and Papa getting shown the basement.

Sundays are becoming my favorite day of the week, because we don't do anything by church and our callings. It is nice to let the basement, homework, and housework just sit. Also my girls are getting better at sleeping on Sunday morning and since it is the one morning a week I get up at 6:00AM still I get quite a bit of piece and quiet and it makes a great time to put the final touches on my primary lessons. I read and prepare almost all week, but I don't actually sit down and get things ready till Sunday morning usually. I think it might be because that is when I feel the least rushed, most awake, and have the most energy. Plus, no kids can mess up my bag before church. Anyway, I got up and got ready and helped my girls get ready. We had breakfast and then we all walked to church together. Another thing I love about where I live, walking to church. It such a great way to start the morning. Anyway, we went to church and my co-teacher actually couldn't come, so my mom subbed with me in primary and that was really fun. I kind of missed showing her off in RS, but having her with me in Primary was fun and Kylee thought it was AWESOME! As part of my lesson everyone got to show us one of their talents, and Oma took a turn and showed us how she can take off her thumb. Those kids thought it was the most amazing thing ever. I have to admit she is really good at it. I know the trick and it still looks legit. It is definitely a talent she has. After church we came home and had a lunch of leftovers and then took naps. Then we visited and enjoyed the rest of the afternoon. We introduced Oma and Papa to scrambled pancakes and they both thought they were good. We also served sausage and smoothies. It was so good. Soon after dinner it was time for the girls to go to bed and then we just talked and visited some more.

Monday was a work day. My dad mowed our lawn, weeded our garden (which was super bad), and the worked on cleaning out the basement. He also helped my mom and I with our project. Our project was canning applesauce. Our family loves applesauce and we eat a lot of it. So, my mom graciously offered to help me. Really she ended up doing quite a lot of it. I helped while Tia was at school, but once Tia was home like a thousand things happened. My mom says she lost her momentum a bit and I can totally see why. Tia came back and needed attention, our contractor adviser came over and so Gaupo came home and we both talked with them. Then we need to get lunch and just a lot of stuff, but luckily my mom was here because I would have had to stop and I would have had a giant mess, then I would have had to start back up again and it would have taken forever and I would have been in no condition was so ever to be any kind of mother. We canned 5 quarts and about 38 pints of applesauce and it is so good. After all that work and working with the kids on their homework we got dinner all packed up and we went and had FHE at the temple. Luckily the grounds crew had the gates open and we could walk around for a minute. Then we sat outside and we talked about being together forever and about Derek (it was his 3rd birthday). I brought out my 'Derek' box and let the girls touch and see everything in there and then we went and had dinner and the Twin Silo park. The girls love that park and I thought at 3 Derek probably would have too, so we would celebrate. We played until it was dark and the teenagers were coming out. It was a great way to end the day. Play hard, work hard, and be with those that matter most. I was exhausted because I didn't really get a nap and so I went to bed really early like 8:30. I felt lame, but sometimes it just is the way it is. I am so glad my parents were able to help us and enjoy with us a little bit.

Oma, Kylee, Tia, and Papa

All of us together.

Tuesday morning Oma and Papa went with me to take Kylee to school. Then we came home and played for a bit. Then it was time for Tia and I to go to O.T. and for Oma and Papa to leave. It was way to short of a visit, but I am glad they came anyway. It was great to be with them and have them in our home. They left the girls notes and a couple of fruit snacks each as a thank you for letting them use their beds and the girls thought it was the best thing ever! We loved having them visit. It was so fun to have family around.

*Apparently I need to get more pictures from Oma about this visit.

Some Days

The past couple of weeks have been amazing. I mean we have started so many thing and felt so good about thing. Plus things have fallen into place and I have felt great and everything. However, days like today happen. It isn't that anything feel apart. It isn't that things aren't right anymore it was just a day that I felt overwhelmed, off, and wanted to cry about 3 times. I didn't actually cry, but inside me I really wanted to. 

I honestly don't know why today I felt like it. It could be because even though we made amazing demo progress on Saturday there is still a lot to be done and we have to be more careful with parts of it. Plus, we are still have to build it all back and I wonder sometimes how long that will take and if there is enough time. It could be that we are going to sign for our loan tomorrow (at least probably). I hate loans they really freak me out. I mean I think we got a decent rate, and that we can afford it, but I still don't like that I will have this payment that is taking up money I could really use somewhere else. It could be that because we have drywall dust all over our basement I don't want to turn on the A/C and it has been quite warm here and so every night my feet and ankles swell and I feel a little crummy because I have had heat all day. Like tonight we went to the grocery store and it so cool I almost felt cold. It wasn't cold, but compared to my house it was really cool. Also because its hot I am not sure how well everyone is sleeping including me and that could definitely contribute to feeling overwhelmed and like I want to cry. So, nothing is awful or really different than it was before it just is what it is and sometimes it gets to you. 

However, those feeling were mostly this morning and this afternoon I felt a little better. Probably for a few reasons. One I took a bit of a nap. Seriously, sleep is good for people. I honestly have no idea how Gaupo lives on so little sleep. I also got all caught up on our finances and got things square away there and that really does always help me to feel better. I also prayed over my finances and everything that was worrying me. I didn't have peace spoken to me right away, but I was helped to be able to enjoy the night with my kids. To help Kylee with her homework, to not feel so anxious, to enjoy getting donuts for a treat, and have a little me time. So, I feel better. Nothing has changed since this morning, but Heavenly Father is watching over me. I will be okay, but I really do hate days were I don't feel on top of it. I love feeling like I have it all under control and am the master of it all, but I am not. Heavenly Father is. He remembers all, like kids that need to go to vision and so He reminds there mom right when they need to be going and they get there right on time, by nothing short of a miracle. He helps you keep plodding along even if he doesn't take away the obstacles or sail you through. I just know Heavenly Father is watching over me and I want to do my best to follow him and try to be like him.

Twins, Construction, and Life

When I sit down to actually write about our life, I sometimes think to myself that we just did the same stuff we did the week before. While this is true, our life currently has a couple of things that are ever changing.

Thing one is the twins. Luckily, they keep right on growing. This past week I had my twenty week ultrasound. Which means, we got to gaze at all their cool parts and find out gender. I am pleased to announce we are having one boy and one girl. Honestly I was hoping for 2 boys, but I  kind of knew it would be one of each and it just feels right. I am excited to have a little boy and a little girl. We told the girls by getting them a balloon and some sour patch kids. It was a good treat for all and kind of fun to think of how to tell them, so they might understand. I think these twins will be just what our family needs. They both are looking healthy and well, so that was good to hear. Ever since I have ultrasounds with no heartbeats it is always a welcome time to go and listen to those tiny hearts just beat and beat and beat. I love watching them wiggle and it pretty fun with twins to see them be so close to one another. These babies are both pretty wiggly, so our house should continue to have a great amount of energy in it. I am just really excited that everything is looking well, that I have a due date (Jan. 14), and that we are having a boy and a girl. I am still hoping these babies hangout inside until after December 25, but still looking forward to meeting them.

The girls with their balloons and candy.

Me at 21 weeks.

Baby boy.

Baby girl. I have no idea why the blog flips her pic like this.

This one is as best we can get of both. One is below the think white line and one is above. The thick white line is the membrane that separates the two babies.

Me around 20 weeks with all my kids. Its kind of fun to see.

Thing two that seems to be constantly changing now is our basement. This past weekend Jason dug the window well for the new egress window that we are going to be adding. It will be in the bedroom. We also got our asbestos test back clean, so we submitted our paperwork for the permit. Which means we can officially start demo, and Gaupo started that today. It is going to be quite a project tearing out everything. To be honest, it seems a little daunting, but I think we will get there. Gaupo is working hard and hasn't lost his enthusiasm yet, so hopefully it will still carry on. We also finished emptying the basement all  except for the swing. We hauled up all the toys and everything today and I can promise you I did not miss all these toys being upstairs. It is actually really hard for me to want to keep all of them and give my kids a change to play with them, because it means I have wall to wall stuff. There is no wall or corner that doesn't have something on it. However, I remind myself it is temporary. It is all going back down there, and it has a home other than right in my line of sight. It will be interesting to see how this project progresses and turns out. We still have a lot of questions and things to figure out but it will be awesome when its done. 

Jason at the beginning of the whole.

Kylee and Tia in the hole.

Other than those two things that keep us ever changing we mostly work, go to school, and play. Tia and I are getting use to and actually rather enjoying our time together. Tia keeps asking for people to come play and really I need to get better about inviting people over especially anyone that is her age. However, I love having my home to myself and actually I love having Tia to myself. Kylee is still loving school. She had a late start this past Wednesday, so I got some one-on-one time with her and that was a real treat. We did a couple of crafts. She made a bracelet and a mason jar ghost. They were both very cute. I love watching her grow and enjoy the times we get with her. I will be honest I enjoy her more on the weekends because when she gets home from school she is pretty tired. You can't super tell because she is really talkative, but man when it comes to doing homework or helping with chores or something watch out because the cute, nice girl from seconds before goes hiding very quickly. However, it is getting better and we sure love our weekend time. 

Gaupo is enjoying his new role at the library. He is a bit overwhelmed at times, but I think he is figuring things out and it is kind of growing on him. It will definitely be easier when he gets his replacement hired, but until then he just keeps going. I am kind of afraid we are going to wear him down too much with work and construction, but hopefully not. As for me, I am being a mom. I can't lie, I am enjoying my MWF mornings that I have to myself. Sometimes they are a little long or lonely, but it is kind of nice to have sometime to get things done that I need. I feel very blessed to be a mom and am loving reveling in the fact that this is what I get to do all the time. Although, sometimes it is overwhelming. Like today trying to get homework, baths, and dinner done all by myself before 6 was overwhelming and I kind of lost it at the end, but sometimes I totally get it right. So, I just keep working on it.

Prayer Answers

Wow, time is flying. I say that, but August felt like it was forever long. However, I feel like things are moving right along. We had gotten into the rhythm of school and I wasn't dreading full-day school as much, but then with us just finishing up a long weekend I truly long for summer once again. I love having my kids play and just doing life on our own. Its true that summer doesn't involve Gaupo being home like this last weekend did and so that would be a bummer, but I miss having Kylee around and we definitely missed her today when it was just Tia and I.

I told Kylee and my brother Jack this last week that you have to be careful what you pray for. Jack knew exactly what I was talking about but Kylee asked, "why?" I told her because Heavenly Father will answer your prayers and you need to be ready for the answers. Heavenly Father is richly blessing our family but if you had asked me 6 months ago what I would be doing and planning right now I can guarantee you it wouldn't be what I am doing. I would have hoped to be pregnant. I have wanted to be pregnant for a long time, but I would have never expected it to be with twins. But I love being a mom, so I am really excited for this adventure even though being pregnant with twins is getting uncomfortable already and I am possibly not even halfway yet. However, after I got over the initial panic of having to buy two carseats and that we were going to have to feed and diaper two babies I began to feel that this is what our family needed. I believed that this is what Gaupo and I needed to grow closer as a couple, but also what my family needed to grow.

As we continued to pray, I asked to know what to do to prepare for these twins. Well, at first there was just nothing. Then I got to thinking about our home and the space we have here and different things. I began to realize that what I thought would be my forever home, might not be able to work forever. So, Gaupo and I talked and prayed. Our first answer came in that we should take the self-reliance finance class offered by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. We both thought that we needed to do this so maybe we could move to a new home. However, we shortly discovered that probably wasn't right for us, but that fixing our current home was. After asking our friend Greg Gabler about add-ons and basement finishes we talked about doing a lot of things and have finally decided to just redo the basement. Right now. You know four-ish months before these twins are suppose to arrive. But Gaupo and I are learning a ton about each other, miracles, loans, home building, and all sorts of things. I don't know if it will be done when the twins come. Gaupo says it will, I just hope the storage area is done, so that we can empty out the blue room. But, I do know this is what we are suppose to be doing and Heavenly Father is watching out for us.

Between twins, redoing the basement, taking a self-reliance class together, and having the kids in school we are plenty busy. It is totally crazier than I planned. To be honest, when I found out I was having twins I figured we would just wait till they got here and then they would turn our lives upside down and you know what they probably still will. However, I think our family has somethings to learn before they come. Somethings we have learned already is we can work and play. My kids are kids, but they are very helpful and are willing to help. This last Saturday they helped move a lot of stuff from the basement. They were a really big help. Tia was a huge help earlier in the week helping me clean off the shelves. I seriously probably have the best kids and they lovingly reassure me that these babies inside are good babies. I sure hope so. Gaupo and I have learned to work together. I have learned to let Gaupo lead, but also be an active partner. I can't do the basement project on my own, but neither can he. Together we get things done a lot faster. We are still learning a lot especially about communication, but I love it. I love working on this together. We will see how it goes and it goes. Then with the self-reliance class, I am really excited about it. We have had one class and I really enjoyed it. Gaupo couldn't come because Tia wasn't feeling well, but he did Skype in. Which is super impressive most times he would just say I will take the kids and then let me fill him in, but not this time. He even participated it was awesome. Plus we have had some good talks and discussions and we are working at it. We are pretty good with finances, but I think this will help us a lot and if nothing else feel prepared and like we can be wise stewards.

We are learning and growing and doing new things. Its crazy, but I love it and I love what it is doing for my family. Heavenly Father answers prayers. We have to be patient, and sometimes we just need to be ready to receive the answers. I know God loves me and my family and is trying to help us be successful here on earth. I am so glad he is watching over our little family.

Tia helping siphon out the water barrels.

Tia demonstrating how to use a beach umbrella.

Me and my belly.

Gaupo, Tia, and Kylee ripping up the carpet.

The Blue room as the temporary storage room.

Riding the wagon down the hill. 

Playiing after a good day's work.

End of Summer and Start of School and Other Happenings

This past week we officially ended our summer and started up school. We did a couple fun things to end out the summer. I took the girls to the Boulder County Fair. They are always bummed I don't let them ride any rides, but I also don't feel too bad because we take them to Lakeside which is like the same thing and they ride a ton of rides. So, we pretty much go see all the animals and hit up the vendor booths. This year we did however go and 'catch' butterflies. We got paint brushes that have sugar water on them and then go into a room full of plants and butterflies and convince (it isn't very hard) them to come onto our paintbrush. The girls loved it. If they have it again next year I would totally pay the $1.00 a piece again because it was pretty cool. They were actually quite a few really cool hands on things this year. They had a STEM area were kids could mess around with different science stuff, they had a place where they could 'milk' a cow, they had a petting zoo of sorts, and then the butterfly thing. The girls also really enjoy the 4-H animals. Tia's favorite I think was chickens and Kylee's was the pigs. After we went to the fair, we went to Chic-Fil-A. The girls had some kids meal coupons there and so we decided to go. Neither of them really like the food there, but they enjoyed the ice cream, applesauce, lemonade, and the giant play place. I let them play for about an hour, but then I was so bored and tired I made them go home. I felt a little bad, because I should have brought a book or a word search or something to do, so they could play longer. Oh well, I am learning as the tables are turning that sometimes I need stuff to entertain me instead of stuff for my kids. Its a weird concept.

Cleaning off'dinosaur bones.

Tia 'milking' the cow.

Kylee's turn.

Kylee and Tia with the butterflies. (I don't know why Tia made this face)

Another fun adventure we had was going to Golden Ponds. Golden Ponds is a great little spot that makes you feel like you are not really in the city. It is right next to the St. Vrain River. Anyway, we rode our bikes on the path to the river and had some lunch. Then we played in the river. Kylee and Tia are so funny. They will jump of the medium diving board, go down watersides, ride small roller coasters, ride super fast down hill on a bike and not blink and eye, but I put them in about 4-6 inches of moving water with rocks at the bottom and they suddenly need my help. It cracked me up. They got used to it and learned out how to get where they wanted to go, but honestly it never occurred to me this could be a strange thing. Anyway, they ended up really liking it and I am glad we went. We did end up cutting it a bit short because Gaupo had a job interview I wanted to hear about and our friends invited us to go swimming. So, we hurried home and talked to Gaupo for a bit. Then we all crashed out for about 30-45 minutes and then headed to the pool so we could play with our friends. It  was a busy but good day.

Playing in the River.

Another one.

Kylee and Tia started school on August 15th. Tia technically only had an orientation, but we still took first day of school pictures and let her wear all her new school stuff. Kylee is loving first grade. It totally wears her out and by last Friday she was quite the grouch, but she still loves it. She seems to be finding people to play with and enjoying the things she does at school, so I am pleased. Tia has had two days of preschool now and is really enjoying it. This year will be kind of interesting because her original teacher moved to Wisconsin, so they are trying to find a new teacher and currently have a long term sub. However, I think Tia like hanging with her friends and being away from home, so it is working out great. When it is just the two of us we usually drop Kylee off at school and then play at the park for awhile. Then take a long ride home. If I have a bike lock, then we will go get a free cookie (or whatever they have) at the grocery store and eat it and hangout and go home. If I don't have a lock then we just go home. The first day we were alone we didn't quite know what to do, but so far we have managed just fine all the other days. I think Tia really likes having some extra attention from me.

Tia's First Day of School.

Kylee's First Day of School.

These two sisters.

In other news, Gaupo got a new position at the library. He is now a supervisor with the job title of Head of Technical Services. He technically starts Monday, but has already moved into his office and started some of the new responsibilities. He and I are both excited for this opportunity. I think he will love the added growth and range of this new position.

This is Gaupo because we never have enough pictures of him.

Gaupo and I have also attended the Self-Reliance Fireside put on by the church and are going to take the personal finance class. I am really excited for this opportunity. Because all that plus twins (who at the 16 week appt were doing great) is not enough new stuff in our life, we are also thinking about improving our home. We have thought about adding on, finishing the basement, doing little projects etc. It has been quite a process trying to figure out what we can do within the laws of the city. Then what we can do based on our budget. Then finally what will be the best value and what do we actually NEED to accomplish from these projects. My favorite part of this whole thing is having something to talk about with Gaupo that isn't work or kids. It is something we can dream about and work on together. There are times we disagree, but we are learning all the time how to deal with that and to give each other time. That even though we want things, it doesn't have to be decided right then or even overnight, we can think about it and give the other person time and space too. We think we finally know what we want to do--finish our basement and fix our bathroom. However, now we have to figure out how to make the rubber hit the road. It will be quite the experience I am sure.

One last thing we did was make our annual family temple trip. This is where Guapo and I take the girls to the temple. We trade doing inititories and taking care of the girls. The girls and Gaupo played at the temple while I went in first. Then I took the girls to a really cool nearby park while Gaupo was in the temple. It was such a fun day.

Me, Kylee, Gaupo, and Tia at the temple.

Letting the girls touch the temple.

The girls climbing up to go down a huge slide. Kylee is the body and Tia is the little head you see.

More Summer Vacation Ramblings

I love summer. I know I probably say this on every post, but I really do and I feel like almost every time I write, I love summer for a different reason. This week I have loved summer because I sleep till 6:40ish. Stay in my jammies and read my scriptures and pray. Then I pray with Gaupo and head downstairs where I read my kids books until Gaupo is ready for work. Then we send him off and the kids play for a bit and I make breakfast and/or get ready. We have breakfast between 8:00 and 8:30. Then the kids play while I clean up and finish getting ready. Then we play some more. Sometimes we go on adventures, but lately the magic time for my kids to play is right after breakfast and as much as I want to go adventure and enjoy the cool of the day, I just can't bring myself to kill the magic, just so I can have fun, so I try to find things to do. I could try harder, but I like to be close-ish so I can hear them because its fun and funny. Then when they are kind of getting done playing we either play together, change up the game they are play or something and get to lunch time. Then we have lunch, books, naps, sometimes there is some play before naps. Then we wake up, have a snack, play until dad gets home. Sometimes we run an errand or something, but our dad gets home we enjoy his company, maybe work on 'homework' or just make dinner. Then we have dinner and do whatever is left 'homework' and/or family time. We just enjoy. Often times the kids will play outside because our evenings are cool and Gaupo and I will watch them. Sometimes we play games. Summer is just bare bones of a schedule and I am not sick of it.

FYI our 'homework' consists of getting Kylee to read a book to us. She is not a huge fan, but she can do it and she needs to. Really, we came up with this for Kylee, because we really have to do Tia's vision therapy exercises and we couldn't just let Kylee get all the rewards without doing any work. So, usually Gaupo will take Kylee because he is way more patient with her and she is better at doing it with him. I take Tia because she just works better with me most times. So far it works, and everybody gets what they need to done, but sometimes it is super painful, while other times it goes just fine. It totally depends on the mood and the day.

So, yeah we haven't done a whole lot. We just kind of pick what we want to do and do it. The girls wish we would go swimming more often, but the weather hasn't been warm enough for me to want to go outside very often and swimming inside seems like a waste since it is still summer. Also, my girls want to ride the waterslides and do the diving boards and while I can do the waterslides I have to be careful so it isn't very fun because I do a lot of watching. Partly I watch because I am worried that no one else is watching out for my kid and they might not make it out of the splash area and I also watch because my kids think they need me to watch their every move. Oh well. I wish we would go bike riding and or hiking more, but I such a pansy when its warm and like I said above, the girls play the best in the morning that it just kind of doesn't happen. I tell myself that's okay we will do it when its cooler in the fall, but guess what we have school ALL DAY! and that totally messes everything up because school usually means homework and it doesn't get out till late and it means we have a schedule. So, I just try to console myself with the fact that my girls are playing and being friends and that isn't going to have as much time either once school starts and as much as I love bikes and the outdoors their friendship and play is probably just as important if not more. So, we roll with. it.

That is probably enough rambling, but I do love summer and I am loving just being around my kids and enjoying them. They are special little spirits that I have been given. Although, we have our moments where things don't go quite well, I am so glad I have them and am so grateful for how they bless my life everyday.

Kylee, Tia, and I. I got a new phone so we were trying out the camera.

Kylee wanted a picture by herself.

Tia of course wanted one too.

Random bumps that Tia got. It never itched, but sure made her pores all stick out. Weird.

We had "Mormon Enchiladas for dinner."

The family enjoying free rootbeer floats on national rootbeer float day.

Kylee's lunch bag. I made it. Its not perfect, but it is cute and will do the job. Plus, Kylee is excited.

Oh What Do You Do In The Summer Time

Well, what we do in the summer besides travel is not a whole lot. We do somethings, but the thing I love most about summer is that you just kind of run your own schedule, so even when you do things it doesn't feel like your doing a ton of things. Most of what we do when we are home is play, swim, read, clean, eat, sleep, visit the library, and play.

So, this last week that is pretty much what we did. I got the house all cleaned up. It takes a lot more energy when you are pregnant. I think I might be teaching my two girls how to scrub the lower parts of the bathroom a little sooner than I expected too. However, Gaupo talked about working together as a family and wanted the girls to try helping the first time we asked instead of complaining. If they could do it than he would get them a treat. Well it worked for many days in a row. I wish it would become permanent because it was so nice to just have them say, "Okay, Mom." Anyway, we dusted, vacuumed, swept, mopped, scrubbed bathrooms, and got a few other miscellaneous things taken care of. Normally, I try to do all the cleaning in one day, but for one I needed naps, and for 2 I intended to give my kids attention in the afternoon. What actually happened with idea two is that I ended up reading two really great books. I really do love reading, but I also really do feel bad for my family when I get into a good one. Anyway, I would clean until close to 11:30 then we would go to free lunch, then come home play and take naps. Then the girls would play when they woke up and I would read. It worked great for a couple days, but by day four they were kind of ready for some actual Mom attention not just Mom presence.

Also this last week was Gaupo's Friday/Saturday switch, so after much debate we decided to go to Lakeside Amusement park on Thrusday night. I know that doesn't really make sense, but it does a little because we could stay out late and Gaupo could take a nap the next day. Last year was our first time at Lakeside and the girls loved this year too. We paid for Gaupo and I to do the train with the kids, but other than that, we took them to kiddie land and let them ride all the rides. The girls sum it up by saying they went on a roller coaster and in lots of circles. These are true statements. I don't think next year kiddie land is going to cut it as well, so we will have to see how it goes. However, this year it was still fun. The roller coaster was a blast and the girls enjoyed staying up late and riding rides. On our way home, we got nudged by someone who didn't have their lights on, and they didn't pull over to exchange info or make sure we were okay. We reported it to the police, but since the car and everybody is alright they aren't really going to do anything about it. Still it was crazy and kind of but a damper on the night.

Kylee in her car.

Tia in her car.

Ti and Kylee on the roller coaster.

Me and Kylee on the train.

Tia on the carousel.

Kylee on the carousel.

Tia and Gaupo on the train.

Getting of the roller coaster one of the many times they went on it.

Friday was probably the craziest day of the weekend. It started early by us all getting up to help with Food Truck. This is where the bishop's storehouse drops off the orders for the stake and we set it up kind of like the store and those who order go through and pick up their orders. So, we did that. Normally there are a lot of orders and not too many people, but this time it was just the opposite, so it was not quite as fun as normal, but still good and I like taking my kids to do service. On the way home, Gaupo took us to the store and we bought donuts and I bought some whipped cream cheese to go on bagels we already had. Then we home and had breakfast. After breakfast, Gaupo took a nap while I worked on a couple things and the girls played. Then I took them to the park till I and they couldn't handle it any more. Normally they can play at the park forever, but they were just so tired they couldn't figure out how to get along. They wanted to play together, but couldn't quite get it figured out. Anyway, we came home and had a 'snacky' lunch and then read books and tried to go down for naps. I think everyone got a small one, I know I did. They had to sleep fast because our friends Jensen and Calvin Blaine were coming over to play while their parents finished packing up because they moved to Atlanta. It is a pretty big bummer we love the Blaines, but I am excited for them and this new adventure. They played here for almost 3 hours. It was fun, but it kind of showed what I have been worrying about which is that my living room may not be big enough for my family to all play together in. It was fun and eveyone managed, but boy was there toys all over the floor. While they were here I got ready for the temple. Then Gaupo got ready, and once the boys left we took our kids over to the Jacobson's house, so we could go to the temple. We made it to the 5:30 session. It was so great to be in the temple. Then we stopped for dinner at Wendy's. It might start becoming a temple tradition. Anyway, we ate dinner together and then got the kids came home and went to bed.

Needless to say, it was pretty hard to get up and get Gaupo to work on Saturday, but we did it. Once he was off though, we kind of eased into the day. That is until I could tell Tia was going to explode if she stayed in the house. So, we biked to the bank and the grocery store. We made it home to have lunch with Dad and enjoy naps. After naps we went to the library for a short bit and then hit another grocery store before coming home and having dinner and getting ready for bed. I made the mistake of checking out the next book in my series and Gaupo made the mistake of telling me I could start it. Three hours later we decided to go to bed, his new phone fully setup and my book about another hour away from being done. Probably not the best use of a Saturday night, but not terrible.

Sunday was pretty normal with church and naps. I also finished my book. We had granola and smoothies for dinner. Sunday's right now are pretty chill and its awesome. Sometimes its a little long because I go to primary, so I don't get a chance to chat with adults, but my team teacher is an adult and it is nice to be with her and luckily I have great kids and husband, so it nice to just be.

Monday, I decided that my kids needed to get out. We needed to be dirty. Seriously, Tia's bath on Saturday wasn't hardly dirty at all. I totally felt like a failure. I know dirtiness doesn't mean happiness, but it usually means you at least went and did something. Anyway, I decided that with the 'cool' weather we would go hiking. Well, my kids started out good, but before the first half mile was over Tia was ready to go home. By the time we made it 3/4 of a mile Kylee was ready to go home. I then thought we made it to the start of the loop, but apparently we didn't take the right place, so we made it to part of the actual loop we were trying to hike and sadly the girls chose to take the direction to go home instead of to keep hiking. We did hike for about and hour and half maybe a little longer, but our average hiking speed is literally probably 1 mile per hour. I think my kids could go faster and longer if they didn't find huge rocks at the beginning that they wanted to carry the entire hike. Seriously, Tia had at least one rock in her hands the entire hike. Luckily the big rocks didn't get found till we had about 3/4 of a mile left, but I still don't understand carrying rocks.

Kylee and Tia on the trail.

Kylee and Tia trading around rocks so they carried the ones they wanted.

Carrying them.

A group shot to prove I was on this hike.

Anyway, we came home and had lunch. Then got ready for naps and apparently the kids were tired because they took good ones. I made rolls which we had for dinner and also delivered to a few families for FHE. It was a good day, but I think that because we spend so much time riding bikes my kids have kind of forgotten how to walk. Oh well, at least they don't hate both.

I love the laziness of summer. I love the time it gives me with my kids and them with each other. I love the warm days and cool nights. I just love summer and it is speeding past so fast. But, oh what a wonderful season it is.