I Want To Go Back

Last weekend we went back to The Ranch-- Stratford Ranch.  It's feeling like our home away from home.  It's the perfect getaway.  It feels so removed from the cares of the world and it's relaxing and rejuvenating.

We were late in arriving Friday evening because we were waiting for Clark to get off work--  but it was worth the wait to have Clark and Alexa come with us.

Andrea led us in early morning yoga.  FELT SO GOOD.  Why do I not do yoga everyday?  I'm going to consider adding more yoga into my life.

Kiddos went fishing.

Sunshine.  Fresh air.  No masks.

A morning walk after yoga

Lucky for Greta, Daddy came along to give her a lift when her little legs got tired.

The love birds

A morning visit to the horses.

The Schramm Fam came up on Saturday morning and we enjoyed a wonderful lunch together.

Everyone in this picture has a birthday in June, July, or August-- mostly July.  Andrea was so awesome to make a fruit cake for us-- not a nasty Christmas fruitcake, but a literal cake made out of fruit!  I'm not eating sugar or flour these days, so this was perfect!

Abe was a master cake carver!

We loaded into the van and headed a few minutes away to Porcupine Reservoir in Cache Valley.

Not the nicest, cleanest water, but hey!-- it was fun to be there anyway.

The more adventurous, stronger swimmers swam over to a little island.

I love that the little kids have older siblings and I love that the big kids have little siblings.  They are so good for each other.

Bethany wasn't with us on this trip--she had work at home.  Elinor had extra "big-sister" duties.

My Elinor.  So hard to believe she is going to be a senior this year.  *sniff, sniff*

Schramms opted for a 4-wheeling rather than swimming.

Courtney, Andrea, and James

Whereas I thought the mud was pretty gross-- the kids had a grand time playing in the mud.  Aren't kids great?

They're great and dirty!

She played hard.

One of the most fun things to do at the ranch is go for a ride in "The General".  This was an all girls ride up to the top of the property.

So beautiful!  I am so very grateful for good friends.  And good daughters:)

The boys did some adventuring as well.

James was a super trooper this weekend.  The kids and even some adults were clamoring for rides and he spent hours shuttling everyone all over the property and down the road.  Peter rode shotgun for this ride.

Good buddies.

Hot dog roast and corn on the cob for dinner.

We had a good chuckle naming ourselves "The Dream Crusher" (Camille), "The Dream Interpreter" (me), and "The Dream Maker" (Andrea).  We're the Dream Team!
And after we saw this picture, we named Faith the Dream Bomber.  Ha ha ha!

Storytelling around the fire.

Peter has a little crush on Kate-- the Schramm's youngest daughter.  She is a couple years older than him, but short, so he is not deterred.  We called this seat "the therapy chair" and we would give him advice on how to win Kate's heart.-- offer her a beverage... push her on the swing... give her a marshmallow.  You know, all the classic five year-old moves. He sort of acted like he was embarrassed, but then he'd come back and ask if he should sit in the chair again and what else should he do.  At one point Kate came over to the group and he asked her to please leave so we could talk about her.  Smooth move, Pete.

Schramms headed home Saturday night after a seriously FUN day!  It was perfect.

Sunday morning the Young family and Nathan and Korryn came up to the ranch.  We breakfasted and has church and visited and played games.

Jennilyn and I both have a young adult child getting married in August, so it was fun to compare notes.

I love people just enjoying each other's company.

We were looking forward to getting home to Bethany-- we had missed her.  But I can't express how much I enjoyed this weekend.  It was perfect and quite likely the highlight of the summer.  Many thanks to Andrea and James for making your home away from home, feel like our home away from home.

Clark's 21st Birthday

Let me begin by stating the obvious-- I can't believe Abe and I have a 21 year old!  It's exciting to have him home from his mission and in school and moving on the next stage of his life.

And he is DEFINITELY moving on to the next stage:) This is Alexa-- our soon to be daughter-in-law!!! The official engagement announcement is waiting on the arrival of the ring (it's in the works and hopefully sooner rather than later:)  But the plans are made and this is happening August 18th at the Bountiful Temple.  We adore Alexa and love them together.  They've been friends since they were 14 and went on some dates in high school.  He went to Dallas on a mission and she went to Ft. Worth.
On Clark's birthday Clark, Abe, Bethany, and I went to Alexa's mission report/talk at her singles ward in Bountiful.  She gave a beautiful talk and even more so we understood why Clark has been so taken with Alexa for so long.  She is lovely and gracious and poised and we love her already!

We got to meet her wonderful grandparents who are as happy about this match as we are.

They went boating with Clark's grandparents this same weekend.  The girls and I want hair tips from Alexa!

Love-- COVID style

We celebrated his birthday with a long awaited Hamilton viewing party!!!! Family, popcicles, and Hamilton.  It was such a fun day!

Elinor and Faith performed another of their... interesting... art/life productions all about Clark's life.  These are bizzare and hysterical.

Here's the video-- they have too much fun together

Mandatory family walk on Sunday afternoon.  The cute gal on the far right is Alexa's sister Celeste.  She's darling and we hope we get to hang out with her lots more. 

When Greta called us all to huddle up-- she had something to say:) 

In Which Abe and I Take A Lot of Selfies

Abe and I belatedly celebrated out 23rd anniversary with a trip to West Yellowstone.  Our dear Raven was starring in three plays at the Playmill theater there, so of course we had to go see her.

Let's start with a picture that was near the end of the trip, but I love it, so it goes first.  We had a lovely time going to the plays and dining together.  Good friends are a treasure. 

One of the fun things we got to help with was assembling 35 grab-and-go lunches for the cast and crew at the play house.  They have a very brief time to eat before getting ready for the next show and parents sign up to provide those lunches on Saturdays.   Mission accomplished!

You know Abe is a picture taker.  And in his absence I do an okay job of remembering to take pictures as well.  And in the absence of our children, we didn't have many subjects to take pictures of (without being creepy).  The result is an awful lot of selfies of the two of us around Yellowstone.  I agree that  1 or 2 selfies of us would more than suffice to prove we were there and to effectively conjure of pleasant memories in a time henceforth--- and yet, I will share THEM ALL!!!!!  Because I CAN!  And I figure if I can't be obnoxious on my own blog, where can I be?

Corona Style

Grand Prismatic Spring

Old Faithful.  One time our family went to see Old Faithful and we had just barely missed it and we waiting for well over an hour for it to go off.  Then we cheered over-the-top loudly (think Buddy the Elf)  and offended a lot of foreigners who did not appreciate our theatrics on their cell phone videos of this iconic American landmark.  Were we ashamed of ourselves?  Yes, a little. 
This time we pulled into the parking lot, saw by the numbers of people that it was almost time, parked illegally, walked over, waited less than a minute, saw it go, hustled back to the car and were in and out of the whole area in about six minutes.  Awwww, yeah! 

This isn't even all the selfies, but this will have to do.  So while we were playing and having a marvelous time, our big kiddos were home taking care of our little kiddos.  And from all reports, things went very well and they had a marvelous time.

All That is Simple and Good

I know I'm not the only one who is feeling discouraged these days.  Covid19, social unrest, social distancing, politics, mask-shaming, traditions cancelled.  Blah.  Sometimes A lot of times I feel anxious and frustrated.  I haven't been as regular about keeping up on my blog, which really doesn't negatively affect anyone but me, because I really enjoy keeping this family record.  So this afternoon, it's just me and the blog looking back at the last few weeks and all the good times.  Are there some not-so-good times as well?  Sure.  But I think I've dwelt on the negative quite enough.  This time is to count the blessings.  

Outdoor summer play dates with your best friends.  Lots of time this summer for small gatherings.

Deacons Quorum Nerf gun battle.

Date night dinner and games in the park.

Sisters double date

Friends enjoying a cookout in the backyard.

Our cat that WE SERIOUSLY LOVE!!!  It seems to genuinely enjoy us as well.  

It cuddles with us all the time.  I did not know there were cats like this in the world.  We can't get over how different Mushu (pictured above) is from "The Cat" (RIP)

Is this enough pictures of our cat?  It's just so nice.  And so tolerant.  

There is a special bond between Greta and George.  

Park Explorers: Skate Park Edition

While Greta goes to her gymnastics classes, the boys and I go check out the skate parks in the nearby cities.  So far, Riverton is still our favorite.

Faith has gotten to do a couple swim meets and she is dropping time in her butterfly and freestyle-- which she is thrilled about.

Faith put in a lot of work to fill in and flatten out "The Hole" in the backyard.  She also cleaned out the corner of the yard where the chicken coop used to be.  She and Abe planted some flowers and it's all quite an improvement.  Faith is one hardworking, determined little thing!

Shaved ice for the hard workers.

That little cutie in back on the right got baptized a few weeks back and we got to join in the celebration!  

It wasn't a huge gathering, but it was lovely to get to be together.

 It's a blurry picture, but it's got my favorite people in the world and we're eating the best summer meal-- hamburgers, watermelon, and corn-on-the-cob.  Yes, please!

Family hiking-- just can't get enough!

A birthday dinner for me with Daniel and Lori-- our longest and still most fun double dating partners.

Not a terribly inspiring, but between a sprinkler, a trampoline, a play structure, a kiddie wading pool, a couple squirt guns, and good friends, we're handling summer in the backyard just fine.