Ha ha! Need a laugh?

That Wedding We Went To.

First, a disclaimer: Yes, we went to Utah. No, we didn't pass through Logan.

Zach and Grandma Tueller

The happy new couple (well...they were a week 'old' here).

Stephen's sisters call this Payge's "Supermodel pose"

Zach & Chayce with Great-grandma Tueller

Zach & Chayce with Mandi

Cake SMASH!

Zach and Chayce, there are other great ones of them dancing together, but on another camera--

Mr. & Mrs. Stephen Tueller. Happily married almost 8 years here! Come August, it'll be 8.

Payge & Mommy

Chayce with the bouquet. It's too soon, babe.

Spring's Bounty

Today was farm day. Piles of greens (baby beet greens, spinach, romaine lettuce, bok choy, butter crunch lettuce), about 50 radishes, a handful of green onions, and some asparagus. But, notice, looking at this photo that the asparagus is gone...ahhh, that would be because of my naughty little daughter who ate it!! Below, she is grinning about it. She also already eaten many beet greens and radishes, and Stephen stole a whole head of lettuce to take with his lunch before I finally got to take my camera out and document my harvest.

Aerial view.

The Veggie Thief!!

The best part of all of this is that it will be happening all over again next week! Now that harvest has begun, my piles will just get bigger and bigger. I'm thinking spinach pizza and a side salad for dinner tonight. Mmmmm.

Crafty Crow Giveaway!

A book of days, so fun to use to plan activities and remember them far into the future. There is a giveaway for June's Book of Days at Crafty Crow. Head on over & check it out!

A Few of My Favorite Things

Sigh. It's a beautiful day. I woke up a little too early after a little less sleep than I'd have liked (cute babies do have drawbacks...once in awhile). But, my amazing husband told me to go back to bed and take a nap--I lay there for a minute, til I remembered I had to sing in sacrament meeting this morning, so I jumped out of bed and get dressed to hurry to be there to practice a couple of times. Sigh again.

While lying in bed, I watched my white curtains fluttering in the breeze, gently touching the edge of my white pillow cases. From the angle I was laying at, all I could see was the white sheets, white pillow case, fluttering curtain, green leaves on the branches outside and bright blue sky. Ahhhh. It's one of my favorite things.

As I lie there resting, I started thinking of all the great things I've enjoyed just this weekend.

My awesome husband built me a new clothes drying rack so that I don't have to use the dryer. I had one that I'd purchased, that stood in the bathroom, but the kids thought it was a jungle gym and it snapped. He brainstormed a way to have a rack that was out of the way, that wouldn't cost us an arm and a leg (or $60). We bought some lumber at the Old-to-Gold sale, other supplies at Home Depot and he set off to work. Here's what he came up with:

It hides behind the shower curtain! That's my shower! Awesome, no? Thanks, Honey!

Oh, then there's the garden that I've been slowly planting for the past three years. Finally, I can see the fruits of my labor.

Hanging fushia on the porch. So bright, it almost looks fake, but it's not. It requires a lot of water to stay this bright and happy. I love it!

My peach colored irises. Remind me that peaches and cream desserts are just around the corner!

My bright, white irises. I love how they are the purest white in my garden, and they really stand out among all the colored things.

The bright white irises next to the black ones. Perfect for my eyes.

Not sure what to call this color...I think the purple ones mixed with the peach ones, but I really like it.

Impromptu fun

We left early to get to the eye doctor before Stephen had to be at work (because who really wants to take three kids into an eyeglass store?), so we could get Zac's new prescription. I'd decided we would hit Battell park afterward. It's not exactly on the way, but it's shaded and nice, and we hadn't been there in awhile. Much to my surprise, about halfway through our park adventure, the fountains were turned on! If you haven't been to a splashpad in the summer, I highly recommend it. Of course, I also recommend wearing something other than slacks or jeans in the water, but this was impromptu, and we loved it anyway.

From the archives: sleep edition

Here's some random cuteness for the day.

Mid-year's resolutions

While looking at pictures in my baby book, Jillian made some comments implying had some improving to do. It went something like this:

"ahhh....look! You used to like cats...and people...and have a sense of humor."

Too many years in the office with reference books and technical computing software has taken its toll ;).

A Wonderful Speech on Education

I can't say it better, so I'll just post it:

Sleepy Baby

The girls were very tired tonight. We wore them out, spending the day at the duck pond after church. The ducklings and goslings have hatched, and we watched them explore their world and we laughed at their cuteness. We watched a momma mallard sit on a nest of eggs, and a goose hiss at us for getting too close to hers. Sadly we saw a duckling drown, and the momma brought it to shore. It didn't make it. I didn't know ducks could drown, I suppose you DO learn something every day.
When we got home, the kids claimed to be famished, so I let them help me throw a ShooFly pie in the oven. It takes 30 minutes to make, start to finish, as you eat it hot. Chayce didn't make it. She fell asleep waiting on the couch, reading. We woke her when it was done, and she fell asleep again at the table, so we carted her off to bed. Payge fells asleep right after digging in. She must have been VERY tired, as she stayed asleep as I washed her face. I know! I was amazed, too! Here's my proof:

Payge, with pie on her face, hands, etc...

Payge, high chair still dirty, but face and hands have been throroughly rubbed down, she didn't even stir.

He Grew...

I was looking at my Zac this morning and I noticed something--his face changed. He was taller. He smiled for the camera when I asked him to instead of pulling a goofy face. He got out of bed this morning, and instead of coming into my room & needing something, he told me he loved me and asked how I slept. He's aging, changing...and he's mine. I've always seen him as this little kid (I know he's really not THAT old yet), but when he walked into the kitchen and poured himself a glass of juice, and sat at the table with it...my jaw dropped. When he quickly ran and got himself dressed for church, without my prodding, it dropped further. Especially considering he picked out a nice outfit that I'd have never thrown together. I'm a little worried he has better taste in clothes than I do--maybe he'll help me out.

On the bunk bed with Dad.

Ready for church.

Oops! Now he's ready...needed his glasses.

We Live on EARTH!

We're headed back to our home in Indiana today, Chayce!

But Mommy, we live on EARTH!

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If animals that eat just meat are carnivores, and those that eat just plants are herbivores, what are we, that eat both? People!

Oh, Chayce, how we love you.

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Zac's prayer over the food (while Chayce yells, "But it was MY turn to bless the food..."
"Dear Heavenly Father, please bless this food, and help some of us learn to NOT INTERRUPT when others are praying...Chayce, for instance. Amen."

Memories

There have been a few events that transpired on this trip that I don't want to forget. I'll be posting photos once I am finally back into my routine at home, but my memories about these events that don't have photos to accompany them need to be recorded before I forget the details.

Tooth Fairy Expectations
While visiting the Tueller family in Idaho, Zac lost his other bottom tooth. Fun! He was very excited for the tooth fairy to come again. I didn't have the resources to do anything very fun, like the little fairy card, but I did have a quarter on hand, that I left all by itself on his pillow. I woke to a very humorous scene--picture it with me if you will:
Imagine, a small bed made of egg-carton foam next to my bed, piled high with quilts to keep a 5 year old boy warm when we sleep at elevations of 7,420 feet above sea level. Now imagine said 5-year-old straddling this whole bed (being careful not to step on it) holding a desk lamp (that was once sitting on my night stand) high above his head, turned on, sweeping the light beam back and forth across the bed. I woke to this scene (as his sweeping kept hitting my eye level), and asked him what he was doing.
"Just trying to make sure the tooth fairy didn't leave something else." I let him know I was pretty sure that he could rest knowing he only got a quarter, but he was undettered. Sigh.

The Milky Way
My new brother-in-law and I had decided that since the family home needed more milk in the fridge, we would go get it. Neither of us had ever accomplished this feat, but had followed a family member out to the barn before to watch. We decided, that as implants to the family, we'd go out to the barn together and get the milk--trying to be really helpful.
Well, we got to the barn and looked at the enormous cooling tank that the milk was housed in. I stated that I'd hold the pitcher, if he'd control the milk flow. It looked simple enough.
As he turned the knob all the way on, the high pressure of the milk sprayed into the pitcher and back out again, all over us, the floor, the tank...etc. We kept trying to adjust the pressure, but were just making a bigger mess (and wasting a bunch of milk--Sorry Lon!!). Keep in mind that if the spout is turned all the way on, it's pumping into a large milk truck, not into a little pitcher. By the time we had the pitcher full, we had milk all over our clothes as well as the barn. We washed it down with the VERY hot water hose, and then ran into the house to hide the evidence (washing ourselves!) I wish we had the whole event on camera, but the description will have to suffice.

Learning Spanish
Chayce loves Dora the Explorer. I don't, but that's OK. She (Chayce, not Dora--although she might claim to be...) recieved a lollipop from her grandparents, turned to me and said:
"Lovely-pop is how you say lollipop in Spanish, Mom."