August and September Happenings

As soon as we returned from our trip to Glacier, we got to work on our big family project.  Right before the trip, we made the purchase at the auction of a home down the street from us.   This was not something we were looking for at all.  In fact, when we found out about the deal, we were hesitant because we know how much work goes into something like this.  But, after running the numbers, we decided it was too good of a deal to pass up and so we went ahead.   

Our goal was to get the major things done before school started so we had just under a month to do repaint, put in new tile in the kitchen, and re-carpet.  Before we painted, we also put in all new base moldings everywhere there was carpet because they just had the carpet coving.  The 2 weeks we spent painting were pretty intense for us.  We put in long hours masking, caulking, speckling, etc.   The kids were very patient through this whole thing, coming with us to the house and playing or watching movies while we worked.  It was a good opportunity for Erika and Kyle to do some work, too.  

After school started, the work continued, but at a much slower pace.   Aaron was back to work and only had a few hours in the evening on some days.  I went over almost every day for at least a few hours, doing touch-up painting, refinishing the cabinets, blinds, cleaning, etc.  At that point, it was starting to get old because it felt like we should be done and we were so close, and yet there were still so many little things to finish up.  We finally got the home finished and were able to move back to projects at our own home in getting things ready for a new baby.    We have taken on several projects like this in the past, although it has been awhile, and we don't plan on doing another one anytime soon!  Remodeling the house was hard work, but we know it will pay off eventually.

On August 26th, the kids went back to school.  It was an exciting day for everyone!!  There were mixed emotions, of course.  I was a little sad because we had been working so hard the last month of summer, I felt a little jipped, like we didn't get to do some of the things we had been hoping to do to finish off the summer.  But, it's okay.  We really did play hard with what we did do.  Also, it is always a little sad to have them go back and be gone for much of the day, but a little more quiet is nice, too.   Also, as a mom I always worry.  I hope they will make good choices and do well in their classes.  Part of me is with them all day, wanting to hold their hand or whisper in their ear to help them along.   But, I know they need to experience a level of independence, too, and I don't want to hold them back.  I am grateful for good schools and teachers that I can put full confidence in.  I don't have to worry about them too much because we live in such a great community.  

Erika started her first year at Alice C. Harris Intermediate this year (Junior High).   She will be here for 6th and 7th grade.   It was a big change for her as things are quite a bit different, with different classes and teachers, and even a locker!  We had fun getting her locker ready and going to her class before the first day of school.   She rides the bus to school, which is such a blessing for me.  She has to leave at 7 am, though, which is so early!!   She made it into the advanced orchestra class this year and we are so excited for her to have that experience!  

Kyle and Heidi started their classes at Garland Elementary- Kyle in 3rd grade and Heidi in 2nd.  It was also a very exciting day for them!  

We walked to school and found their seat in their new classrooms.  

Jared started preschool this year and he is SO ready!!  He goes to Mrs. Francom, the same preschool teacher that Erika and Kyle went to.  She is getting older and this may be her last year teaching.  She does a great job, though, and I am excited for him to have this opportunity.   We had an orientation day where the kids met their teacher and their class.  Jared was most excited about the balloon and treat he got to take home at the end.

He also had fun doing the parachute outside with his class.  

We took and evening and went to the county fair here in town on Aug 20th.  The kids had fun going on some rides.  Unfortunately, the weather was not the best and we got poured on and had to end up leaving early.  But, it was fun while it lasted!  

Our family on a nice Sunday evening walk by the Strawberry dam

Over Labor Day weekend, we got to spend a few days with Aaron's family in Orem and also up at the cabin at Strawberry.   We spent a few hours at the park where the kids played together.  We also went to Provo Beach where they had some indoor games and fun for the kids with the rainy weather.  

Erika, Kaidynce, and Kyle doing the ropes course at Provo Beach

The sad thing was that several people came down with something and were in bed throwing up for over 24 hours.  So, I feel bad I don't have a lot of pictures from the reunion.  We didn't get to see everyone as much as we would like, but we are grateful for the time we did have together.   Thayne came up from California with his girls and my kids are always so excited to see their cousins!!

What could be more fun than cousins?  

On September 6, our family had the opportunity of going to the Ogden temple open house.  I can't believe it has been closed for over 3 years now, being remodeled.  It looks so incredible- they pretty much redid the whole building.   You can't even tell it is the same building!  There was a really special feeling there and I am so glad we had the opportunity to walk through it with the kids.  

Glacier National Park

Okay, I don't think I've ever done a post this long, but there were so many great pictures, I had to use a lot of them.  Our big trip this summer was up to Glacier National Park up in Montana, close to Canada.   It was a 9-day trip, from July 18-27th.  I spent close to a whole week getting ready to go on the trip and then quite a bit after recovering, too!  But, it was a great experience with a lot of good memories.  

The drive was long- at least 10 hours from our house, so we decided to split it into two days of driving.  The first day, Friday, we ended up not leaving home until about 6 pm so we only drove about 4 hours and it was a pretty late night after stopping to eat, too.  We ended up pulling over around 11 pm off the freeway somewhere near Dillon, MT. 

The next morning, we headed out again and arrived at our campsite around 3 pm.   I posted these pictures in of the kids in the truck on the way there because they were hilarious.  For the last 2 hours or so of our drive, when they were all getting so restless,  I was grateful for the iPad!!  What would we do without modern technology?  They were using the Photo Booth app, where you can take all kinds of pictures and do crazy things with them, such as stretching yourself in different ways or the kaleidoscope example below:

The kids called this one "diaper man".  They got such laughs out of taking crazy pictures of each other!!

Our campsite was a beautiful spot near Lake McDonald in the Fish Creek area.  We could walk to the lake from our site and were able to go on a few bike rides.  The scenery was so beautiful- I loved all the trees!  We had the opportunity of going on several beautiful hikes up there and some of those lakes were just breathtaking!   There were a few places that couldn't be done justice with a camera, comparable to something you would really see in a magazine or hanging on someone's wall.  

 Bowman Lake

On Sunday evening after church, we took a drive up to Bowman lake on the West edge of the park.  It was a dirt road for most of the drive, with huckleberry bushes all along the road.  I had to stop several times and pick them.  They were really good wild!  They have a bunch of shops up in the towns nearby Glacier that sell huckleberry pie and other foods made with them.  That was a lot of fun for me.  We had heard that Bowman lake had pretty good fishing and Aaron was hoping to try it out.  It turned out that on the day he went up with my dad and brother later that week, it was so rainy that they really didn't get much of a chance.  

We stopped at a lookout point on our drive over "Going-to-the-Sun" Road
and saw these mountain goats right off the path.  

On Tuesday, we did the hike to "Many Glacier", which was incredible!!  You have to drive clear to the East side of the park to get there, going over "Going-to-the-Sun" Road, which is simply beautiful. Some of those views were just breathtaking!  

Yee-haw, daddy!  Get movin'!  

 I had a lot of fun watching my boys go!  Whenever we go somewhere as a family, they are usually way ahead of Aaron and I, so it wasn't really a big surprise.  The challenge is mostly keeping them back with us and not running ahead too far.  The other challenge is that we are not all that fast, so staying together on the trail can be difficult!   Kyle went with my dad to scout camp this summer and hiked at least half of a 50-miler (the other half riding a horse), so for him this hike was a breeze.  What I was pretty surprised about, though, was how well Jordan did on the trail!  For only being 2 years old, he kept up pretty well with the rest of them!  On the hike to Many Glacier, he did at least half of it on his own, which was over 4 miles!  He was actually doing really awesome until he realized he could be carried.  After that, it was harder to get him to walk, but he still did over half of each hike, which was amazing!   I was also so impressed with Jared.  He did both hikes right up there with Kyle and I didn't hear him complain once.  What a trooper!

Heidi was such a trooper, too- always with a smile
on her face.  She takes her time to enjoy the view!

On this hike, we were also able to see a bear by the lake.   It was far enough away that we had to use binoculars to get a good enough view of him, but you could still see him up in the trees if you looked closely enough.  This was the highlight for Aaron and Kyle for sure!  I'm so glad we saw him before we left!   The scary thing is that he was right next to the trail we had hiked in on earlier that day.  It made us wonder if he had been pretty close to us at some point.   There was also a lot of other wildlife.  We saw a moose eating right by the trail, too.  

Beautiful Lake Grinell at Many Glacier

After our exhausting day hiking to Many Glacier, we spent one day hanging out at closer to camp.  We had a fun evening down at Lake McDonald playing in the water.   We rented a kayak and everyone got a turn to paddle around.  

There was a junior ranger program at the camp where we were able to go and learn from the rangers. Erika took the initiative to complete the junior ranger booklet and then she was sworn in by a ranger as an official "junior ranger".  That was pretty exciting for her.  She even got to do it on her birthday! 

In case  you can't tell, this is Kyle on the trail,
trying to camouflage himself as the "tree man". 

On Thursday, we celebrated Erika's eleventh birthday.  After a great breakfast, she got to open her presents.  Later that day we also had cake and ice cream.  

That day we also went on our hike to Avalanche lake, which was a shorter, 2 mile each way hike, but more steep up-hill than the Many Glacier.  The lake was so beautiful, but quite cold and windy that day.

I felt like I was walking through a movie scene from "First Knight" or
even "Lord of the Rings" in this forest.  It seemed almost medieval.  

Standing next to a giant uprooted tree! 

Oh yeah, I'm cool!  (Saggy diaper and all)

Big brother to the rescue at the end of the hike.

Erika with her usual beautiful smile and love for the outdoors

Overall, it was a wonderful experience and I am grateful for the opportunity to spend the time exploring a new place with my family and also the Michel family, too!

Jared and Heidi by Lake McDonald