One Week Till Blast Off

Our Spokane trip was really quite lovely.  The visiting with the extended family and the time together as a family.  We were all glad we went.

I love this picture of the three "Jolley Foxes".  So much love in this picture.  I think the best part of the trip for me was to see Abe's mom feeling so much better.  We got to talk with her and enjoy her smiles and laughter much more than in other recent visits.
We took off for home on Tuesday morning.  We would be home for one week before the next BIG THING---

--- and that BIG THING was this beautiful girl packing up her childhood room and heading off to college.  OH MY HEAVENS!--- It is happy and horrible and exciting and heart-wrenching and I highly recommend it and wish it could be avoided at all costs.  Saying good-bye and sending young- adult children out into the world has been the biggest bag of mixed feelings I've ever dealt with. So much more painful for my mamma heart than any other parenting stage I have encountered.  I'll write more about that in just a bit. 

In her final couple of weeks at home we hit up the eye doctor, the dentist and her last visit to her lifelong pediatrician.  Both she and little Greta got shots and Greta was highly offended.

I came home from running errands one day to find the kids working together on a wine-glass and water talent show number.  So proud.

Abe snapped this picture of her after her last day in our family ward that she has grown up in.
In case you haven't picked up on it, we've been pretty highly emotional at the prospect of Bethany leaving home.  And logically, I know I've blown it out of proportion, but haven't been able to or haven't wanted to check myself.

Thankfully we still have lots of littles at home to keep up busy and going.  This may be one of my all time favorite pictures.  Greta and Peter started a little dance class together on Wednesdays.  It's for 3-5 year-olds, so they both can do it.  From the look on Peter's face, you'd think we are torturing him by making him do this class.  BUT YOU'D BE WRONG!   He is so happy and excited to follow in his brothers' footsteps and take a dance class.  He's just passing through the sometimes lengthy phase of awkward smiling for pictures.
And seriously-- GRETA!! Can she even be real?  The two of them are so much fun and considering how non-gracefully I am handling my older kids leaving the nest, I'd say it is very good thing I have several more at home.

Of course, that also means I have to cut apron strings six more times.  At this moment that sounds very unpleasant.  I wish I could take comfort in the fact that there are many years until these last two take flight.  It's just that now I know how quickly the years pass and as it turns out-- that's not much comfort this week.

Labor Day 2019

The morning got off to a most lovely start-- with a Facebook Messenger video chat with Clark.  He was in great spirits and I don't want to freak anyone out-- but 100 days, baby!  He comes home in 100 days.

We spent most of the day at Hauser Lake enjoying perfect weather and perfect company.

I personally do not like to swim in lakes-- grosses me out.  I understand many people find public, chemically treat swimming pools to be disgusting.  That's fine.  They can swim in lakes and I will enjoy better living through chemicals.  So while I didn't want to get in the water-- I quite enjoyed watching everyone else swim in such a picturesque setting.

Faith and Cannon were ready to chicken fight.

George jumping in.

The sand diggers and seaweed collectors.

Cannon and Jessica jumping in

Ford and Bethany before heading out kayaking-- we are all in agreement--FORD IS AWESOME!  I have charged him to keep an eye on Bethany at college.  She is in good hands.

Peter enjoying a hot stone massage:)

John and Faith.  The water must have been cold-- I wouldn't know.

They spent a long time trying to catch a fish with that green net.  In the end, they were unsuccessful, they seem to have thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

Tough guys!  They seem so young but this much we now know-- they will be grown up and off on missions and college before we know it.  

If Labor Day is the unofficial last day of summer, then we ended summer on a very good note.

We went to Roger's in Post Falls for burgers and shakes.  Yummy.

Greta was plum tuckered about and slept on Abe through the whole meal.

Tomorrow we head home, and while we aren't quite tuckered out, we are looking forward to getting back home.  This trip has been everything we hoped it would be and we're feeling pretty fortunate to have such a place to go with such loving family to go to.

As I write this, the big cousins are jamming and singing together.  The little kids are enthusiastically hunting little critters around the house.  It's a good night and it's been a very good Labor Day.

Sunday in Spokane

Team Middle Kids and their menagerie of wildlife captured on the hill.  As of this post I believe the count stands at 3 snakes, 1 toad, 3 little frogs (which they call tree frogs, but do not, in fact, reside in the rain forest).  So yeah, guess who is probably coming home with us tomorrow?  Peter keeps asking me to commit to bringing the animals home-- which I haven't done.  Today he pleaded, "Mom, please don't care if they stink!"
And in other Peter-isms--- yesterday he went rather unwillingly to Jesse and Amy's ward's primary.  When the chorister announced they were going to sing "Jesus Wants Me For a Sunbeam" he loudly whispered-- "THAT IS SO EASY!  My other Primary is advanced with me in it!  That's so easy".
So, you know, a big shout out to our advanced Primary choristers back home:)

George was pretty excited to get a snake bite.  Clark would be so proud. 

Sunday morning before church we went to visit Grandpa's grave.  It was special to get to go there with Grandma and hear her stories.  Grandpa would be pretty proud of all his children and grandchildren.

I suppose in a big family, you treasure the one-on-one moments all the more.  Cannon Jolley with Kathleen Jolley.

Bethany had stayed the night at her cousin Talitha's house so she wasn't at the cemetery with us. 

Luckily, she and Talitha made a visit on their own.  We all love and miss Grandpa.  It's hard to believe it has already been three years since he passed away.  Grandma likes telling the grand kids all about her "Sweetheart".

A smattering of the family gathered for a delicious rib dinner on Sunday.

We celebrated Joe and Ruth's birthdays.  For as musically talented as so much of the family is, you've never heard worse renditions of "Happy Birthday".  Just when you think it couldn't get worse-- it does.

One of the best things about this trip has been Bethany getting to spend time with cousins who will also be at BYU- Idaho this fall.  They've really encouraged her and helped her feel more comfortable knowing she will have great friend/cousins so close.

Aunt Amy invited a couple young adults from her side of the family up to the hill to hangout with our young adults.  One of the joys of getting older is the great fun of a little matchmaking here and there:)

Elinor and Annie are 16 and Abby is 15.  They seem to have a had a great weekend together.  I couldn't say for sure, because they are usually off chatting by themselves.  I did dare to interrupt their time for a few pictures. 

They are beauties.

Ooh--Blue Steel

Happiness on the Hill

We arrived Thursday evening and it was happiness all around.  That moment when you walk into the cabin and take in the first smell of the logs.  Ahhh..... so, so good.

We've come here to Spokane at least once a year since Abe and I were married-- and this house has been around for 20 of those years.  It is a magical place of fun and love and safety and family and the gospel and my children love it more than anywhere else on earth. 

The best part of being here is seeing Abe's mom-- Grandma Fox.  She seems to be doing better than she has for several years and it's been so nice to spend time with her and talk with her.  Even though our kids aren't able to be around her a lot, they love her and they KNOW she loves them.  She's pretty amazing that way.

Abe made a bacon and eggs breakfast on Friday.

Elinor and I hiked down and up the hill. It takes about an hour.  Going down is pretty quick-- getting back up is another:)  Elinor is beast and I was huffing and puffing to try to keep up with her.

Always in ninja training mode-- Elinor rolled under the gate at the bottom of the hill...

... and she rolled under the Fox gate-- that was a tighter squeeze.

She did an upper body arm workout with rocks while she walked a bunch of the way.  Show off!:)

It's so beautiful you almost can't believe it's real.

Driving the golf cart around the house is the joy of their existence. 

Air hockey is a popular activity upstairs.

Greta discovered the playroom-- and she like what she found!

So many times Grandpa Fox would sit down with one of the grandchildren and play a game of checkers with them.  So when Abe sat down with Faith it made my heart happy.

Then, when Bethany's beloved cousin Talitha arrived at the Hill, there was a whole lotta happy in the room.  Talitha is a GEM of a gal and they've been inseparable this weekend.

They are so much fun.

George, Asher, and Jessica

Faith and John

Friday night was a cousins temple trip to the Spokane temple.  From left to right-- Abby, Moses, Elinor, Faith, Talitha, and Bethany.

The whole group from left to right:  Abe, Elinor, Abby, Hyrum, me, Ford, Faith, Moses, Talitha, Ruth, Bethany, Michael, and Samatha.  Our time at the temple was simply heavenly.

This was just our carload before we went in.

We went back to the Calls for cobbler and ice cream and visiting afterwards. 

Uncle Michael was so sweet doing puzzles and getting acquainted with Greta.  When we come up to Spokane in the summer for the big family reunion it is really fun-- almost too much fun with so much family and mayhem.  This is really special to be up here and spending quality one-on-one time with the families who live up here. 

Saturday morning Abe and I hiked the hill.  It was awesome, but man! After two hill hikes in as many days, my calves are so sore!  I feel crippled.

Abe and the kids are enjoying so much playtime together.  

Grandma keeps left over plastic food containers for grandchildren to capture little critters.  

Abe caught a little baby bull snake on our hill hike.  Clark will be so proud!

Cannon had fun on this ancient toy that has been around for about 50 years and still is one of the most versatile, most played with toys at the hill.  

Leave it to the ballet boy to get in a little yoga workout while on vacation.

Uncle Jesse with Peter Jesse.

One of the highlights of a trip to Spokane is a double date with Jesse and Amy.  This one was to Le Peep in Coeur d'Alene, ID.  It was so good to talk with them about the new stage of life we are going into with adult children.  We had our babies at the same time and now we're all having adult children at the same time.  They had great perspective and ideas that I really appreciated.

Beautiful cousin friends.