Bye Bye Boise...

Even with just a few days left in Boise, we still managed to pack in a lot.

The girls felt quite grown up cashing in on their free ice cream cone together.

They said their goodbye to friends.  Alicia is a sweet friend we really miss!  She and Amberlee are enjoying being pen-pals though.

(I LOVE Autumn's clover bouquet in this one. :)

And we can't forget the blessed lunch truck that seriously saved my grocery bill!  They basically pulled right to our door-- apparently there is such a thing as a free lunch. ;)

Did a little babysitting and had an excellent helper.

And silly me, in addition to packing the house, I felt this major drive to complete an unfinished quilt project.  I made matching quilts for the boys room.

Precious Autumn... she broke the thumb-sucking habit, but still has some sensory issues apparently.  I kept finding little chewed up tacks and staples everywhere.  This was the little treasure trove under her pillow... ouch!

Who wouldn't love waking up to these cute boys?

They are such buddies....

They couldn't even bare to be separated in the dentist chair. :)

Once again parents save the day!  Sweet Helen and Scott drove up to take the kids back with them and my parents for a couple weeks.  What a blessing all around!  The kids needed the stability, and we need the time to pack, clean, clean again, and then unpack.  Big thank you to both parents who helped so much!

(Enjoying some frozen yogurt.)

I have the funnest friends!  Two of my favorite people (Rachel Lisonbee and Kelli Hill) literally kidnapped me, threw me in the back of their van and took me out for dessert at the Cheesecake Factory.  It was so fun to visit with them. I miss them and feel so grateful our paths crossed.

And here is our little family saying goodbye to Boise and good old Crane Creek, and hello to new adventures in a new city.  So grateful for this stepping-stone chapter of our lives.  Particularly because I was blessed to make some of the dearest friends and Doug and I were able to over come some obstacles and work more as a team.

Stars and Strips Forever!

So I'm home form church with a sick little boy today, and I was trying to think of some good ways to spend my time.  Considering the red, white, and blue skirt I just happen to be wearing today, it seems very appropriate to finally blog the 4th of July... even in January... most especially in January, because it's nice thinking about warmer days gone by.

It was a day of Independence for all my munchkins and their descendant.

(Aren't my kiddos precious all spiffed up for church?)

Three cheers for the red, white, and blue!

Even Seth understands the importance of the day, as he strikes what looks very much like an engagement pose. :)

 On the actual 4th, the kids and I held our own little flag ceremony at the apartment complex, starting the day off with the pledge of allegiance.

Later we enjoyed play-time at the local splash pad.

We enjoyed a potluck dinner with our good friends the Lisonbee's.

And afterwords we hit the local firework display by the river and lit a few sparklers of our own. 

(Which we late found out was quite illegal, but it was fun while it lasted-- poor apartment dwellers never have a good place to light fireworks. :)

God bless the USA!

Rest, Relaxation, and Relations...

One of our summer highlights was a fun visit from my big brother, Abraham, and his cute family.  Although he came to us somewhat exhausted, complete with his own ready-to-use massage table...

...he, Chels, and their kiddos were good sports about packing in the fun!

We had creative cousin time...

MANY dips in the pool... (this was our life-saver!)

(The picture above is my favorite picture of the summer. :)

We burned some energy hiking mountains... (Camel's Back has a great view and is even fun for kids.)

Afterwords we had lunch Abe-style at a fun fast-food authentic Mexican Restaurant.  It was quite tasty.

We tried to unwind watching a moving and eating ice cream.

The boys also fit in a trip to a movie and Chels and I went shopping at Charming Charlie's. 

And we wrapped it all up with the grand finale'!  We spent an entire day at Roaring Springs Water Park.  We soaked in lots of sun and had a blast.  Chels was a good sport hauling Pearl and Ruby around, but we ended on a high with Isaac, Autumn, Chels, and I going down the scary tubes and getting some serious wedgies. :)

But no trip is complete with out a girl party.  These girls got along really well.  Autumn really loves cute Ruby.

And I really love these two.  They are such great examples to me!  I am just so impressed by their faith and so proud of them just going wherever the Lord wants them to.  They are good people!  I'm so grateful they fit us into their summer plans!  We LOVE seeing them!