Our Happy July

We tend to party hard during the month of July, and the summer of 2015 proved to be no different.  From Island Park to San Antonio to Bear Lake (and a little time at home in between) we played and laughed and ate and had way too much fun with the people we love.

We kicked off the month and celebrated our nation's birthday in Island Park with the Hansen clan.  Some of our favorite moments included a boat ride on Henry's Lake, playing with cousins, glow stick dance parties, swinging in the hammocks, talent show routines, and winning first place in the horseshoe tournament.  That last accomplishment belongs to Ryan, and it was yet another moment that left me so proud to be married to such a wonderful man.  After making it through the first round of play, Ryan's partner had to leave so he need to choose a new teammate.  I tried to convince him to pick me, but instead he quietly recognized how much my cousin's ten-year-old little boy wanted to play and asked him to be on his team.  The two of them ended up going all the way and winning the cash prize.  The smile on Tayson's face was priceless, and my love and admiration for my husband was stronger than ever.  He's a good one, that JRP.

Stella took most of these photos herself.

A few days and loads of laundry later, and the babe and I hopped on a plane to Texas.  Along the way we met up with Aunt Shag and Nana Joni, and then we spent the next five days playing and exploring San Antonio, Texas with Kyrsten and her family.  We had too much fun staying up late chatting, eating treats, checking out the River Walk and Alamo, and shopping until we dropped.  Of course we also had to dress the babies alike and take 100 pictures in the process.

All the while the big girls had fun at home with dad watching parades, going to movies, and catching fish.  Not to mention completing all the little projects I can't seem to do myself when I am home every day.  What can I say?  He's a better stay-at-home mom than me.

Our time spent in Twin Falls was full of ordinary things like pink superheroes, watching movies in forts made of blankets, and trips to the bookmobile (the mobile library that shows up at the park next door that the girls are obsessed with).  But when you spend most of the month running around like a crazy person, those ordinary moments really do become extraordinary.  

Somewhere in the middle of the month Ryan left us for a week to climb mountains with the scouts.  That mostly went well, besides the 24 hours the big girls and I spent passing around the puke bucket.  Thanks to good friends and television we made it through, and just in time because our favorite Baker family came to play!  It was so fun having friends visiting and keep us entertained while dad was away.  The day dad arrived home (after the Bishop's truck breaking down in Pocatello and adding four more hours to their trip) just happened to be the five year anniversary of my dad's death.  Five years just feels so final.  Like I should be over it by now or something.  But of course I'm not, nor would anyone really expect me to be.  In an effort to smile more than cry, our family decided to take dad's legacy of kindness to heart and perform five acts of service in his honor throughout the day.  It ended up being a pretty special evening spent doing our best to spread the important message that nice really does matter.

We put the final touches on July by kissing our daddy goodbye and driving 3.5 hours to the beaches of Bear Lake.  Sometimes traveling by myself with the kids is stressful and crazy (especially when the babe screams for half of that 3.5 hour drive), but we have the best family and they are always so great at stepping in and helping the girls and I enjoy our time away.  But we really do like it better when dad gets to come.

Stella's favorite parts of the trip were turning into a mermaid in the sand and shopping at Grandma's Store.  Eliza loved making bracelets with grandma and riding on the kayak with whoever was willing to take her.  Ivy was just happy to be there, and mom loved talking and laughing with some of her favorite people in the world.

July was wonderful and exhausting, but we wouldn't want it any other way.  These moments and the memories that come from them are what this life is really all about.