Halloween

We had a fabulously fun Halloween this year. A few days before Halloween we carved some of the pumpkins from the garden. The kids enjoyed creating faces for the pumpkins but I think the favorite activity was scoping out all of the slimy insides.

The evening before Halloween our ward had a trunk or treat where my kids received more candy than any household should consume in an entire year. Then they all went out trick or treating on Halloween to double their haul. They all had a great time and even little Jane was a excited to be a part of all of the action this year.

Warren the Jedi, Lucy the Witch, Blaine R2D2, Jane the Daisy and Tyrone (Coralee's brother) the construction worker

Coralee's big 3-0!

Coralee is now a decade older and had a fabulous time celebrating her big birthday. On Coralee's actual birthday she had a nice party with the family and receive a special treat from her friend Jill (who is currently in France) when she sent a huge bouquet of sugar cookies. A week later Tyler went all out and threw Coralee a big party. We had 10 couples from our ward over to the house for an all out Tea Party. It was so fun to dress up, eat a formal "Tea" and visit with friends. A big kuddos to Tyler as he did all of the cooking, decorating and research into how to throw a Tea Party. Who would have know Tyler would every voluntarily do ANYTHING formal, let alone throw a formal party. THANKS TYLER! Of course like so many of the fun things we do I completely forgot to get any pictures of the party. Oh, well!

Pumpkin Patch

This year as a part of Blaine's preschool we went and visited the pumpkin patch. The little preschoolers had such a fun time picking out their very own pumpkins. We were also able to go on a hayride and see some horses. Blaine's favorite part of the trip was popcorn snack.

A few weeks later we were able to go back to the pumpkin patch as a family and do the corn maze. The kids were all really good sports about going through the maze. They loved bouncing in the bounce houses and the old swing. We really enjoy going to the pumpkin patch each year. It is one of my favorite traditions of the fall.

Happy Birthday JANE!!!

Our baby girl is now one! She is so cute and the highlight of my days right now. For Jane's first birthday we had a little celebrate at home with our family and the extended family on the Quist side. Jane LOVED her cake and opening the gifts. Opening them was definately much more fun than the gifts themselves. I am so greatful to have my sweet little Jane. She is such a joy and so independent. She has been walking since 10 months and loves to be a part of the action. She loves to do whatever her old siblings are doing. We love you Jane!

SOCCER!

We had a fun soccer season this fall. Warren, Lucy and Blaine all played this year. We joined a new league this year, Kick'n Kids, and I am so glad we did. It is a really low key league that only holds practice once a week and that practice is right before the game on Saturday. All of the games are played at the same time, on the same day and at the same location. Perfect for a family like ours who would like to have multiple children play soccer without the sport taking over our lives for two solid months. The kids all enjoyed playing. Warren really made a lot of progress in his understanding of playing positions, passing and being aggressive this year. He really gets the sport now and that makes the games fun and exciting for him. This was Lucy's first time playing. She did good with getting out on the field but didn't want to be in anyones way so she usually stayed clear of the crowd surrounding the ball. Although during the last game she got the ball twice and just ran with it. I was thrilled, it was so cute. The funny part was the coach had to stop her both times when she ran, off the field with it. She was so intent on taking the ball and running with it she wouldn't look up. She just ran in a straight line and didn't notice where she was going. Blaine said he enjoyed soccer this year but it would be hard to tell by his lack of desire to be on the field. If it was time for someone to take a turn to sit on the sidelines his was always the first to volunteer. It was when he discovered the position of goalie that Blaine finally decided it was ok to be on field. He was definitely happy to stand in the goal and cheer for his teammates. Just don't kick the ball his way. They all had a great time and that is the reason we do it. So I consider this soccer season a great success.

A New Year of School

I have been so pleased this year with how well school going. The kids have great teachers and they are enjoying learning and being at school. Warren has Mrs. Logsdon this year for 3rd grade. I couldn't ask for a better fit teacher for Warren. She is a warm person but very consistent with the students. Warren is having success with his work and learning to be responsible for his time and work. Lucy has Mrs. VanQuill for 1st grade. Mrs. VanQuill is very even tempered with all of the bouncy 1st graders and is VERY organized. Mrs. VanQuill's classroom environment is really helping Lucy to bloom in her learning. Blaine is going to a co-op preschool I am doing with 3 other mom's. It is a great group of kids. They are a mild group which makes teaching easier. Blaine is the kid in the group that is all about rushing through the work so he can move on to playtime. We are working on it. The nice thing is he is the first of my kids (I have done a co-op with the older two when they were little) who does not act out (aka. be naughty) when I am the teacher. This is a pleasant change and both Blaine and I are really enjoying being able to be a part of this preschool. These are a few pictures for the first day of school.

Fall Harvest

This year was the most fruitful year of gardening Tyler and I have ever had. There is such a satifsfaction in harvesting and preserving a garden you have cared for all spring and summer. This summer we were able to grow 4 watermelon plants, 3 pumpkin plants, 4 tomatoe bushes, 2 pepper plants (they barely survived), a lot of carrots and corn and a few onions. I have enjoyed watching our garden matured and then canning or freezing the fruits of labors. I am looking forward to another garden next year but also will enjoy a little break from the work gardens bring for the next few months.

Jane taking a taste of as many tomatoes as she can get her hands on before anyone realizes just what she is up to.

Red Fish

We are building a tradition of going camping each summer with some really great families we have known since we first moved to Boise. This year, unfortunately, I was not able to go because I was really sick. Even though I was sick Tyler and the 3 oldest kids were not about to be held back. They camped at Red Fish Lake with our friends and had a fabulous time. The weather was a little more chilly than anyone had wished so instead of skiing and boating they visited around the campfire, rode motorcycles, and paintballed while the kids ran around, rode bikes and just overall had a lot of fun. I am so greatful for good friends and while I am sad I had to miss this year's adventure I am looking forward to next year.

Tyler, Warren, Lucy and Blaine enjoyed the weekend with the Simmons, Carrolls, Tolmans, Giles, Walters, Millers, and Fuhrimans.

Aaron, Tyler, Jared and Mike getting ready to neglect there wives and kids (aka. go riding)

Hanging out on the dock. Notice how everything is wet from the rain and everyone is in long sleeved shirts. It was not the warmest weekend in August.

Oregon Coast - 4th of July

Over the 4th of July weekend we took our family on our first real family vacation. It was a bit spur of the moment but I am so glad we did it. It was definately the high light of the whole summer. We took the 4 day weekend and camped along the Oregon Coast. Wednesday evening, July 1, 2009, we hit the road for a few hours and camped at a great place named Rufus on the Columbia River. The river was so beautiful and we spend quite a while just throwing rocks in the water and collecting seashells (come to find out there were a lot more shells on the river bank than there was at any beach we went to along the ocean.)


Thursday, July 2nd, we drove to a series of waterfalls including Multnomah Falls. They were so beautiful. The hiking trail at Multnomah Falls was great it went from the bottom of the falls to the top. We lugged all of the kids all the way up and it was such a pretty hike. The kids were great troopers and everyone made it (although there was a little while I was sure I wouldn't make it.) The only advice I would give to anyone planning on doing that hike is to bring water. That would have helped us a lot. After the falls we packed up the family and finally made it to the coast. We played for a long time at a beautiful Cannon Beach. The water was warm enough to wade in and Warren and Lucy got wet enough we finally just gave them their swimsuits. This was by far the most pleasant (meaning warm) beach experience we had the whole trip. If I would have know how cold the rest of the trip was going to be I think I would have planted our roots there for the rest of the trip. Anyway, after our afternoon on the beach we drove down the coast a little more until we got to Tillamook, OR and visited the Tillamook Cheese factory. I had really hoped we could watch them making the cheese but we were too late in that day. We did get to watch them packaging the cheese which was interesting and of course we bought some sqeeky cheese which was delicious. After the cheese factory we drove to our campsite, just a few miles up the road, which was literally right on the beach. They had built up a burm where the sand ended and we camped just on the otherside of the burm. The beach was once again very beautiful but the sky was overcast and the rain drizzled so we didn't play in the water on that beach.

The morning of Friday, July 3rd, it was still overcast and wet so we went to the beach and collected seashells and built sandcastles. Once again we loaded the family up and headed down the coast. We stopped to look at some sealions at a lookout point but they were far away and with the kids that didn't last long. We keep moving down the coast until we got to Newport Aquarium. It is an amazing aqurium with a lot of very neat exibits. The kids favorites were the Nemo and Dori fish and the shark tank (the kind that go over and under your walkway). I really enjoyed all of the unique small fish so many of them look like something out of a science fiction show. After the aquirium we were off next to Yaquina Bay Lighthouse. They have a nice vistors center there with kids activities that my kids really enjoyed. Then Warren and Tyler went up to the top of the lighthouse. (The other kids were to short so I stayed down with them.) They both said it was really neat to learn about how lighthouses work and how they are taken care of now and in the past. When we were done at the lighthouse we went to our next campsite on Newport Beach. This campsite was not nearly as close to the water as our previous campsite, although still within easy walking distance. This campsite did however have lots of trees which was nice. The kids really enjoyed running around through the trees and decompressing as little bodies need to do after moving from one structured activity back to the car then to the next structured activity and so on.


July 4th, Saturday, we started the day down at the beach collecting shells and building sandcastles. That morning the wind was too strong and cold for Jane so we didn't last too. The other had a fabulous time even though they all came back cold. After we got our car loaded again we drove down the coast looking for tide pools. We weren't having much luck when we came upon a cute little town that was having a BIG 4th of July celebration. We stopped and walked around the town, watched their entertainment and then watched as they dropped 1200 rubber duckies in the river for a rubber ducky race which ended right before the river entered the ocean. It was such a fun and festive little town. When we were done there and got back in the car we decided to stop heading south looking for tide pools and just head back to Newport. When we got to Newport we realized the tide was low and found some incredible tide pool right there. It was amazing to see starfish, sea anemia, sea urchins, moluscus and crabs in their home enviornment. That stop was by far Tyler favorite of the whole trip. Originally, our plan was to stay in Newport for 4th of July evening celebration and watch the fireworks being shot out over the ocean but when we realized how cold and crowded it was going to be we decided to start heading home and stop for fireworks along the way. We drove until we got to Sisters and it was started to become dusk. We asked the locals where the fireworks were and they said they didn't do them there we had to go another hour to Bend. We were sure we wouldn't make it but we drove as quickly as we could. We got to a parking lot at the bottom of the hill less than 15 mins before they started the show. It was a great fireworks show and the funniest part was Jane was totally not interest in the fireworks. She spent the entire 45 mins of the show crawling circles, she was a good trooper about all the driving we had done and I think this was her way of letting out all of her pent up energy. The fireworks ended a little before 11pm so instead of finding another campsite we decided to stay at a local hotel. The kids were excited to stay in a hotel but were so tired the excitement wore off quickly. The next day we finished our drive home and ended our adventure.

I am including a few picture from our trip. I forgot our camera so we bought a little disposable camera and I have to say of the pictures that did turn out they turned out pretty well.
Yaquina Bay Lighthouse

Jane and Coralee LOVING the sand at Cannon Beach

Blaine (not fond of the water) at Cannon Beach

Warren and Lucy at Cannon Beach

Multnomah Falls

One of Jane's favorite activities of the whole trip was to stand in the drivers seat and bounce. She spent a lot of time being strapped to her carseat or in the baby backpack she was THRILLED anytime we let her move around.

Warren in the Lighthouse

Yaquina Bay Lighthouse

Blaine chill'n (literally) at the campsite

On the hike up Multnomah Falls

Surprise Jill

On the June 30th my friend Carrie and I went down to Utah to surprise our friend Jill at her 30th birthday party. It was a quick trip down one afternoon and back the next evening but we had so much fun and it was great to give Jill a little suprise for her birthday. The evening we arrived was Jill's big birthday bash. Thankfully the pool was open because it was a really warm night. The next day Carrie and I took Jill to Lagoon. I haven't been to Lagoon since Warren was a little tiny baby and I LOVE amuzement parks. It was fun to go and do all of the rides as a girls trip. We all had a blast.

We went on Rattlesnake Rapids twice that day. It was a truly comicial sight to see. None of us wanted to get very wet so we spent the entire ride hopping around the tube and on too each others laps. The big waterfall did end up getting us everytime inspite of our extreme efforts to stay dry.

This was the first ride of the day, "The Spider", it had been so long since I had been on a ride like this I screamed the whole time. Lucky for me I wasn't the only on screaming.

We decided to go for old fashioned photo. It was nice to be somewhere air conditioned for a little while on that hot, hot day.

Saying good bye. It was a great day.

Kids say the darnedest things

I have been trying to chronologically document our family's going-on's in my blog but I am so far behind and this is an in the moment kind of thing I am going to share it "out of order."

Last Saturday the 3 oldest kids were scrambling to get ready for soccer. Blaine couldn't find his soccer socks and came to ask his dad for help. Tyler said "Maybe the little elves under the stairs stole them." Blaine thought about that for a few minutes and then said "Not the little L's but the little S's. Socks starts with S." I just about died laughing while complimenting him on figuring out the socks didn't start with L but started with S. Since he was very proud of himself for correcting daddy neither one of us wanted to tell him what an elf was.

Memorial Day Weekend

This is moving backward in time a little but I would hate not to include this trip in my blog. Memorial Day weekend we went camping with some really great friends. The Amadors, Romneys and Warrens joined up at Grayback Gulch for some good time camping. Tyler went up Thursday night with Blaine to reserve our spot. Then when the kids got out the school on Friday the rest of us went up and joined them. The kids had a fabulous time running around and playing with their friends while the adults enjoyed some fun conversation. The next morning we all headed into Idaho City to do a little walking tour of the ghost town and then enjoyed some ice cream. It was a great trip and I am thankful to Amanda Warren for sharing her pictures with me as I naturally, once again, was with out a camara.

Warren, Simon Warren, Andrew Romey and Brahm Warren had a great time with many exploding sound effects.
Ava Warren, Lucy just doing cute girl stuff.

Blaine and Ava Warren taking a little break from all of the fun.

Swimming Lessons

Warren (little fishy)

Blaine (notice the scowl, he was a little more finicky about swim lessons
some days he loved it, others not so much)

Lucy (splash queen)

The kids did a great job at swimming lessons this year. We swam with the Hymas' again this year and the kids loved it. Kara and Stacey are great teachers and really help my kids learn and enjoy the water. After having unseasonably warm weather in May, our June weather made up for it. I have always enjoyed spring weather but when it is June and the kids are trying to do swim lessons it is a bit of pain. The kids didn't seem to mind the wind and the rain too much. I guess once they are in the pool it isn't too bad. Good work at swim lessons kiddos.

Jane (no swimming just a good sport)

Warren's Baptism

We have been looking forward to Warren's baptism for quite some time now. Warren has been talking more about his baptism a lot more than about his birthday these past few months and I am so pleased to see how hard he has wanted to be ready for this special step in his life. The last week before his baptism he became a little concerned about whether he was really ready to be accountable but we talked and I told him that if he is concerned that is probably a good sign that he is ready. He will work hard to please the Lord. Warren had a lot of support for his special day. His Grandma and Grandpa Johnson, Uncle Zack and Aunt Kendall, Uncle Ben and Aunt Melissa, Ethan and Caleb, and Molly all came from his Tyler's side of the family. His Grandma and Grandpa Quist, Aunt Noel and Uncle Matt, Uncle Tyrone, and Uncle Nate all came from Coralee's side of the family. Of course his mom and dad and brother and sisters were there too. He also receive a lot of support from the ward. Congratulations. I am so proud of you!

Camping on Memorial Day Weekend

We had a FUN Memorial Day weekend camping trip with the Romney, Warren and Amador families. We headed up to Garyback Gulch for just one night. It was short but a great time. We let the kids play in dirt, throw rocks in river and eat too much junk food. The next day we headed into Idaho City to explore the town. The town has some neat history but not much to do so after wandering the streets for a while we enjoyed some yummy ice cream.
We did bring Jane too. I just don't have a picture of her. Acutally, I am lucky to have these ones seeing as I didn't use my camera the whole time I was there. Thanks for the pics Amanda.