Fun Fun FUN!

Thanks to the Merrill clan - we enjoyed one of the best weekends of our Summer - and the ONLY weekend away. Here are A LOT of the highlights ...

Immediately after arriving at the cabin, Chris and Melisa took us on a Rhino Ride through the mountains. SO FUN!! It took some getting used to for the kiddos. Here they are blocking their faces from the dust. Aaron still managed a few "wahoos" here and there, though.


First Rest Stop. Beautiful ... the view ... and the fam.


Our kids are good matches. We are so happy to count the Merrills as best friends.


The kiddos got used to the Rhino ride fairly quickly. Here they are "no hands"! It got surprisingly cold, so we were very grateful for the blankets Melisa stuck under the seats.


My gorgeous Kryssie M ... and then ... well, it doesn't get more gorgeous than us, huh? hahahaha. Chris - you're a stud ... and a half.


The kids had SO much fun at the "Carving Tree" stop. We forgot a carver - and I didn't take pictures of the tree - but, the kids hiked all over the place while we hung out here. I absolutely love this picture of them running down the trails ...


... and getting very dirty.


Annie B spotted this moose mom and baby - and we all turned off the engines and enjoyed the peaceful scenery. It was a perfect end to a perfect ride. We all especially loved the beginnings of fall colors.


And - back at the cabin. We enjoyed A.MAZE.ING. food - which I was too busy eating to get any pictures of, and had lots of fun just hangin' out. The girls had a giggle fest with Tyler first thing in the morning ... Tyler out-giggled both of 'em. Tina - you know what I'm talkin' about, yeah? haha.


The boys enjoyed the dirt and multiple sticks. Nothin' like a boy and his stick. ;) (that was Tyler's input) ... as if any of you didn't already know that.


The kids' "concoction" table. They went to town. And Sophie REALLY went to town with this awesome concoction - that Melisa caught her taking out of the oven. We laughed so hard ... and then Sophie even ate it - and loved it. I love her proud face.

Buds ...

... forever.

This is Marissa and Aaron's first time watching a coke explode (with mentos). It was quite exciting.

Thank you SO much for the greatest weekend you guys. We love ya!!

Only Request ...

Krystal brings a lunch with her to pre-school (her class time is 10:30 - 1:00). And -- all the kids LOVE lunch time. It's quite cute. Anyway - I've been trying to keep stocked on fun lunch items - you know ... mini oreos, capri suns, bags of chips, mini ranch dippers for veggies, cup 'o peaches ... FUN, right? Her ONLY request for lunch tomorrow was a butter sandwich ... not peanut butter OR jelly OR ham OR tuna fish .... BUTTER people!! She didn't care what else I put in. *pout*

On the Street Where We Live ...

Well - our lil' empty street is becoming less and less empty. 5 more houses have gone up this summer - and 2 more are in progress. They seem to be starting on the ends of the street and moving toward the center (we are dead center). It is very loud most of the day - and, occasionally quite tremulous. :)


My days with Krystal to myself have been pleasant. Tuesdays and Thursdays we have very little scheduled - so, we play most of the day. She has a continual stream of talking coming out of her mouth - which, I have to admit - I just say "unh-huh" to quite often. Is that horrible? I just can't keep up with it :\! Here she is making me muddy goods - and talking the whole entire time. ;)


Marissa and Aaron loooooooove school - and our afternoons and evenings fly by way too fast. We're in for a very muddy fall and winter ... and probably lots more construction ... and bugs. Seriously - I squish like 10 different bugs daily. Very buggy!! Wish us luck!

Picture tag ...

So - this was kind of a fun tag. You find a picture for each of the following categories ...
How did I do?
My Age: 34 - how in the world did I get this old?


My First Name: Michelle


My Middle Name: Beth


My Last Name: Jenson


My Favorite Color: Yellow



My Favorite Animal: Giraffe


Favorite Past Time: Biking - I used to go on bike rides ALL the time. I really need to pick up that hobby again. I always had so much fun.



What I am Doing Right Now: Avoiding the football game.


Favorite Food: Tacos. Yum-O!



Place I Would Like To Visit: New York City ... This would also enable me to travel through a church history tour ... which I hope to do sometime soon.




My Favorite Vacation: Oceanside, California - the beach. Relaxing, beautiful, not crowded, THE BEST!!


I tag: M, Plonnie, Tina, Marissa

Me and Krystal Start School

I am a lucky Mom this year, because I have been hired to work at Krystal's preschool for 3 hours/week. So, the two of us get to go to school together for an hour every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I love it! AND - it covers her pre-school cost, so that is a huge blessing.

Krystal is just loving her first week at school. She is so friendly and a quick learner. She's also very stubborn and set in her own ways. She is truly our daughter ... and, of course, inherits our best traits. ;) I am quite pleased with how cute her hair turned out after a night in rollers ...


And she finishes off the cute look with pink moonboots. I was speechless. I can't believe this is my BABY!!!

Lists

I don't know about you, but when school hits - my "list mania" habit usually sky rockets. There's just something about starting school (just after a minimally scheduled summer) that brings out the organization obsession in me. :) I find the end of August very similar to the New Year as I feel motivated to be better and get going. Most years when school starts - I revamp the chore chart lists along with the new schedule lists/menu lists/supplies lists/food storage lists/to do lists/exercise and eat right lists etc. etc. - but, I've found a chore schedule that has worked well for nearly 2 years now ... so, I've felt lacking in the "lists" area. haha.

ANYWAY ... another list ... to the beginning of new schedules:

1. Grated Zuchinni: my kids love zuchinni - and I know that is pretty lucky. However, even THEY get sick of it after eating it 4 nights in a row. So, I've learned to be a little more creative with zuchinni uses - and use it (grated) to bulk up a lot of pasta sauces, meatballs, and cakes. One of my friends told me that she stores her grated zuchinni in the freezer to use throughout the winter. Wow! Why didn't I think of that? So - we now do not eat zuchinni daily, but rather store our excess in the freezer. So - middle of February ... ZUCHINNI CAKE!!! yum.

2. GoodReads: This has become one of my favorite places to be ... so if there are any of you reading this right now that haven't linked up with me in good reads - then get in there!!! I'm also super excited to read Shannon Hale's new book "Rapunzel's Revenge". Melynda told me about it - I think it has already come out. Has it? I need to get my hands on it ASAP.

3. School Schedules: I have to admit, I was really anxious about starting our new school schedule this year. I'm usually really looking forward to it - but, for some reason - this year I just wanted to stay lazy. haha. But- seeing as I cannot stop school from starting ... our Summer (non)schedule had to come to an end. So - I made my lists. School doesn't start until 9:00 out here - so the kids, I am happy to say, have practiced the piano every morning so far. I've got my fingers crossed that that continues. After school is extremely difficult - any suggestions on how to make that run more smoothly?

4. Tyler completes his 2 years of work after graduation at the end of this month which means he will be an official LCSW!! Congrats babe!! This is particularly good news for me, because it comes with a pay raise. Woot! Woot!

5. And finally ... how about them gas prices below $4.00!?! Granted, they're at $3.99 ... but, still. Let's keep praying that they keep movin' downward.

Here's to LISTS ... anyone?

Back To School

Well, school has come again. Krystal even starts pre-school this year. This is a picture of her after her open house. She has got THE best teacher ever - one that I am lucky to count as one of my closest friends. Krystal came home from the open house with a "goodie bag" full of school supplies - which she put to use IMMEDIATELY. And, I couldn't resist posting this fun hairdo she held still long enough for me to do for her preschool premier!

And - how in the WORLD am I ever going to survive with these two gone all day?! They are so grown up. They both totally loved school today.

My Marissa

Marissa hasn't been real big on posting on her own blog lately, so I'M going to document some of her on goings.

Marissa has wanted to put together a "lemonade stand" forEVER - and I've just never let her. But, with Sierra's help - they managed to pull one together for the end of summer. They sold cookies and popcorn - peanut butter cookies with marshmallow cream - their own, unique combination. :) Cute girls. They did so well - and sold everything that day - so wanted to try again. They spent all the next day making sugar cookies. When they set up their booth, they sold 2 cookies - and then a big gust of wind hit and blew the cookie containers right over. We didn't mind, though - 'cuz we got to eat the rest of them. Yummy!


Marissa spends a lot of time hanging out with her friends. They play games, paint, hang out, and never forget to include Aaron and Krystal.

I depend on Marissa SO much for SO many things! I have no idea how I'm going to survive with her in school again - and me home alone with Krystal. AGH! Here she is reading books to the kids (we were lucky to have Alexis and her kiddos over the other night - more pictures later)! She reads to Aaron and Krystal whenever they want ... I'm such a lucky Mom. She also just accepted a permanent babysitting job for some neighbors - most days after school for about an hour. She started last week and loves it ... AND is making some money. I can't believe how fast that makes her seem to grow up!

Marissa participated in a few 4H activities this last month of Summer too. In her sewing class, she made this cute "babysitting" bag and a pillowcase. She also painted a flower-shaped piggy bank for Krystal which won 2nd prize in the county fair. I'm so proud of her and the talents she is developing.

Finishing Up

FINALLY. I know it has probably only been a couple of weeks, but - I feel like my kitchen has been on the fritz all Summer. Today, a bunch of workers came and finished putting my kitchen together. I'm so happy to have it all done. They scratched up my counters and floor a little bit, so I'm not at all happy about that. Hopefully, Fieldstone can help that all look better. And - talk about making messes - my house has been SO dusty from drywall and sawdust. I 'm so happy to have that behind us too.

This rag got THIS dirty just from wiping out the INSIDES of the cabinets they put up. Everything is SO dirty!! Now that I've got everything wiped down and clean - I need to put all of my stuff back in the cabinets. Yay!