Catching Up

I keep trying to find time to get on here and do an update, but it hasn't been the biggest priority lately with everything else we have going on. To make matters worse, SO MUCH has happened. Things that I would have liked to do a whole blog post on to give them the attention they deserved. Things that were accompanied by thoughts and feelings that have, unfortunately, been erased by time. What you and I are left with, I am afraid, is a mere outline- a sketch, so to speak, of our activities over the past several weeks. It is inadequate, to be sure. But it is better than nothing. So...


Winnie The Pooh

Evelyn, Adalie, and Jackson have been working hard this year on a play they were in. They all had some pretty significant parts: Evelyn was the narrator, Adalie was Piglet, and Jackson was a heffalump (the villain of the story). They finally put on their performance a few weeks ago, and they did great!

When it was all over, we went and got frozen yogurt to celebrate. It was a great night.

Evelyn is front and center. Adalie is on the left side of the picture, exchanging mutual congratulations with Pooh. Jackson is on the far right, doing something strange with his arm. I think he is gesturing to the non-existent pit and lighting crew the way he has seen professional actors do after a show. 

Everyone likes frozen yogurt. Ms. Lou, the kids children's pastor, also came and watched them during the performance.

Snake

A few months ago, we decided to get a pet. We sat down with the kids, and after a conversation with everyone, a snake, of all animals, emerged the favorite choice for a new addition to the family. Since then, the kids have been in charge of learning all about snakes, as well as earning enough money to provide a proper home for it. Finally, a couple of weeks ago, we went down for family night and picked out "Ember," an orange and yellow corn snake with a calm and patient temperament. He sleeps during most of the day, but becomes active in the evening and is fun to watch and hold.

He stays in this little nook most of the day

Solo Climb

According to SummitPost (a climbing website), Steven's peak is the tallest mountain in the Bitterroot range and sits on the Idaho/Montana border. It is a popular destination for the Spokane Mountaineers- a local climbing club- and a great place for people to learn the basics of roped travel, crampon use, and ice-axe self arrest. It is also, I must say, a beautiful outing for a speed-solo on a Saturday morning. Breakfast at home, a nice drive through the mountains, a great workout, and then lunch back at the house. I've said it before, and I'm sure I'll say it again- I love where we live.

I did the North ridge, which is along the right side of the picture.

Rexburg

My 8-year-old nephew was baptized into the Mormon church a couple of weeks ago. To make it so that more family could be present, the ceremony was held in Rexburg. We drove down to be with everyone, and it was so much fun. All my siblings were there, which is a rare enough event, and it happened to be over Easter weekend so all the kids got to do egg hunts and stuff together. I have to admit, as much as I love living up here, the hardest thing about it is the geographic distance between us and other family. We want to be connected. We want our kids to know their cousins, and their aunts and uncles. Gatherings like this make that possible, and we will always go out of our way to be a part of them.


Bike Ride

Spring has taken a while to get here this year, but I think it has finally arrived. Last weekend we spent a lot of time outside, including our first family bike ride of the year. We went up to the Trail of the Coeur d'Alene's and rode along the river. It was beautiful. We did the same ride last year around this time, and I have to say that the kids have definitely improved since then. We made good time, and I'm pretty sure that everyone had fun. At the half-way point we ate a picnic lunch and threw rocks in the river. I am pretty sure that this is only the first of many such outings this year.

Exploring during our picnic lunch

House Changes

You'll have to stay tuned a little bit for this one, but Rachel and I have been doing a lot of spring cleaning and decorating lately. The kids got a new play-set in the back yard (one of those wooden ones), and we are re-doing the downstairs furniture. Also, for the first time in our marriage, we finally broke down and bought a TV. I have to admit, it's a nice diversion on rainy afternoons with five kids in a house that seems to be getting smaller as they grow older. This weekend my parents are coming to help us paint, and then we'll move the rest of the stuff in. I think it'll look great.