Roaring Springs

The local water park has a great reading program for school age kids.  If they read 600 minutes during the last semester, they get a free pass to Roaring Springs.  It gave us a great opportunity to go because we never would have been able to pay for all of us to go!

Our friend Olivia earned a ticket too so we headed to the park a few days before we both moved.  We had a blast!

 Gracen is fearless and fiercely independent.  She insisted on going up and down the kid slides by herself and I did my best to keep an eye on her.

 This slide below was actually pretty scary.  I wish this picture showed you how high it was.  It made my stomach flip-flop!  All of the slides had warning signs saying that people with certain medical conditions (including pregnancy) shouldn't go on them.  I was about 13 weeks along when we were here and this was the only slide I went on that I wondered if maybe the warning signs should have kept me off. :)

 Yeah, I smoked the kids when I raced them.  Having 100 lbs on the heaviest of them didn't hurt. ;)

 Eli was just big enough to make the 48 inches height cut off.  I was surprised at how brave he was.  He even wanted to go on the crazy "Avalanche" one that is basically a big "U" shape and you go on a tube that goes up and down until it settles in the middle.  Looked terrible to me.  Alden kept his eyes shut tightly when they went, Eli loved it. :)

 After 5 hours on the slides, we were one of the last to leave the park at closing, very unready to go.

Kindergarten Graduation

So on the school calendar at the end of May it said that there was a kindergarten assembly that parents were invited to attend.

When I got there, it turned out to be a kindergarten graduation celebration.  I had no idea.  Had I known, I would have at least chosen Eli's outfit for him that day.  Not that this cute kid doesn't look great in a long sleeved green and grey shirt and blue basketball shorts. ;)

My second "mother fail" was that I didn't bring anything.  Most other parents there were stocked with balloons, flowers, and gifts for their graduating kindergartener.  Geesh. 

The kids sang some songs and the principal gave a little schpeel and then they handed out little certificates to the kids.  They called them up one at a time but so fast that I didn't even hear Eli's name get called and didn't see him walk to get his.  Ha.   

We were allowed to go back to the classroom to take pictures.  Unfortunately, Eli's teacher had gotten food poisoning the night before and wasn't there.  Eli absolutely loved Mrs. Beaudry and since I got to volunteer in the classroom some, I got to know her too.  She was the quintessential kindergarten teacher - kind, bubbly, fun, and neverendingly patient and upbeat.

I asked Eli if he wanted to take pictures with any friends and he said no.  He did look around at all his friends receiving gifts from their parents and asked me what I brought for him.  Uh...I told him we were going to go out to dinner to celebrate the end of school. :)

Eli is looking forward to grade 1 in the fall!

Neighborhood Friends

We set out to say goodbye to the neighborhood one Sunday afternoon.  Unfortunately, I talk a lot so we didn't make it all the way around.  We did manage to get a few snapshots of some of the people we want to remember, though.

The Ortons: Taivan, Noah, and Jack.

 Alden's best bud Megan.  She started crying after we took this picture and it broke my heart.

 Alden and William

 Eli and Lincoln

 Lincoln would NOT smile but we did our best to crack him.

 Oh yeah, Gracen and Lincoln are betrothed.  I've read the research - arranged marriages generally work out well. ;)

 The boys and Lincoln's big brother, Ethan.

 We had dinner at the Green's our last night in Boise.

 Allie and Eli were school buddies.  It was SO nice to be able to carpool with Marilyn throughout the school year!

 Cute little Katelyn couldn't pull herself off the swing for a picture.

 The Taylors stopped by with a going away treat for us.  When I went to take this picture, Gracen said, "Stick your lips out like this because we're sad that I'm moving."  Haha. Cute girls!

Preschool and Gracen's Bestie

My friend Vicki was super nice to snap some pictures for me during our last few weeks.  She taught preschool the last week we held it, which was three weeks before we moved.  She made it a fun week and took the kids on some field trips to the fire station and to the grocery store.

Eli participated in preschool so that poor Benjamin wasn't the only boy.

 Baeli, Hailey, Benjamin, Lacey, Eli, Gracen, Chloe

The firemen got a call while they were there.  What could be more exciting than that?!

The second field trip was to our local grocery store, Paul's.  We loved Paul's because it was only two blocks from our house and they gave out free cookies to kids.  

They were nice enough to let the kids tour the perimeter of the grocery store and sent them home with chocolate milk and cookies.

Reed and his bestie, Sam.  The preschool kids pointing out their favorite fruit.

Vicki and I would often get together for dinner when both of our husbands were working late.  We tried to do a fire and roast s'mores on this night.  Let me tell ya, it's a good thing we married boy scouts because if Vicki and I needed to light a fire to save our lives, we'd both be goners.

 I thought Reed would be naturally repelled by the heat of the fire but 'twas not so.  It was SO hard to keep him away from it!

The very last week we were in Boise, Vicki watched the kids for me while I packed and cleaned.  She absolutely pampered Gracen by having a "princess morning."  They got all dolled up and had a tea party.  So cute!!

 This picture makes me so happy and yet so sad!  Gracen and Chloe were truly GREAT friends!  We miss Vicki and Chloe lots.

Good-bye Lunch

It has been fo-eva since I wrote on the good ole blog here.  In the past month we have moved, been terribly sick, and taken a trip to Canada, none of which I have sufficient photos of and the photos are scattered on the cameras, phones, and ipod.  It's a daunting task for this ole' girl but hopefully I'll be able to catch up in the coming weeks.

Before we left Boise, my sweet friend Marilyn offered to do a going away party for us.  We made plans and an email list and then...Jaron flat out refused to participate.  Yes, he is just that antisocial.  So we quickly cancelled it all and changed it to a laid back lunch at the park for the mommas and kids.  One of my BIGGEST regrets is not getting pictures from my going away party in Kansas but Marilyn was great to snap some with me and the lovely ladies before we left.

I cannot believe how truly blessed I am with friendships everywhere we move to.  Each of these women have taught me something along the way!  Love them!

Note to self: remove sunglasses for pictures.  Oi.

Alyssa, April, Amber, Moi, Dana, Leslie

Marilyn, Nikki, Vicki 

Somehow I missed getting individual pictures of everybody but here's who I did get:

Nikki, who I could and would talk for HOURS with.

Summer, my sweet neighbor and running motivation! 

 Holly,  a sweet and helpful friend!

 Marie, who is truly one of the best people I've ever known.  Her son, Lincoln, and Gracen are betrothed.  We'll be in contact 18 years or so down the road.

 Marilyn, whom I visit taught but who definitely served me more!

Vicki, who is the kind of friend that she bought and shipped me Canadian chocolate bars during a tough time.  Her daughter, Chloe, and Gracen were besties so we would swap babysitting one day a week to give each other a day "off."

This picture was taken in the midst of the ginormous job that is cleaning a house when you're moving.  No makeup, probably no shower.  But my great friend Sara sure looks great!

So grateful for each of these ladies in my life!!