These two kids are awesome!

Addy and Jack were born on 9/9/09 at 9:00, and they turned 9 this month. It was a special day.

Just like last year, we tried bribing them into having their party at a no-stress location like a skating rink or swimming pool or climbing gym or something- the kind of place where the venue pretty much does everything for you and the parents just show up. And just like last year, they didn't want anything to do with that. Instead, they chose an obscure theme that they wanted for their party at home.

Spies.

I have no idea where they came up with that.

Rach was a champion mom though, and pulled off a great party with all the fixings. Very fun.

Invitations

Rach made the cake. The footprints are made with edible paper. I did not know that was a thing.

This was the headquarters where each kid received their "mission" and their supplies.

There were lots of games and not enough pictures to show them

The "stolen treasure" (just a bunch of M&Ms) were found inside the cake.

The party really was a hit.

Also, the kids have started up extracurricular activities again. Evelyn is in STEM, Challenge, and Safety patrol. Jackson does STEM and cross country. Addy does Challenge and cross country, and will soon be back in gymnastics. Maren does cross country and jazz dancing at a "real" dance studio and is absolutely loving it. Miss Lindsey is just starting gymnastics and has fun trying to keep up with her older siblings. Our family definately stays busy.

Here's Ev and Jack building robots in STEM

With October just around the corner the fall season is getting well underway. It is by far my favorite time of year, and I am excited to feel a slight chill in the air in the morning times. However, the coming of Fall also means the end of boating season. We went out for one last ride the other day- an evening run down the river as the sun cast golden rays on the water. 

It was beautiful. 

After taking out we drove straight to the marina to get the boat winterized. It'll be ready for us in the Spring.

We're excited to see some of you next weekend down in Utah! Until then...Have a good week!

Rachel went shopping with her sisters. I think she's considering a new look...
...or not.

It's been nice to get back into the swing of things with school and everything. Life has calmed down for us...

A little bit.

Right now, Rachel is in Utah for a bike ride/race she is doing with her mom and sisters. From all accounts, they had a good time and had quite an "epic" time. I guess they got lost on the course or something. All's well that ends well though, and I think that this is only the first of many rides they will do together.

Meanwhile, the kids and I are just relaxing at home. We went swimming and rock climbing, and had our traditional "mom-isn't-here-so-we-can-eat-seafood" meal. It's been fun.

In other news, Rachel and I hosted a BBQ get-together at our house that had between 40 and 50 people showing up. Good times.

Also, Evelyn and I went to Silverwood for a day to ourselves. Ev overcame her fear of big rides and did "spin-cycle" (she had talked herself out of it last time she went). She had so much fun that she went back and did it four more times. It was a fun day.

Well...that's about it for this post. Have a good week!

Today is the first day of school for our kids. It has been an amazing summer vacation, but I think everyone is ready to take a few deep breaths and get back into a routine. I think that Rachel and I are ready to be able to go to work without constantly arranging for sitters. I think that our house and yard are ready to recover from being used and abused day-in and day-out beyond their capacities. I think our bank account is ready to have a little more growing room.

Don't get me wrong. Summer is fun, and we have made the best of it. 

But it takes a toll.

So let's all take a big collective sigh of relief and then enjoy the next couple of months of relative calm. I know I will.

Evelyn is going into 5th grade- masters of the school! At her back-to-school night she had fun catching up with friends and meeting her teacher. It is so fun to watch her thrive.

Judging from the back-to-school night, Ms. Addy is the most popular kid in her school. She is the only one who did not experience any nervousness or sadness about summer vacation ending. School can't start soon enough for this social butterfly.

Nice shirt, Jack! This guy has been working hard over the summer and is ready to excel this year in third grade (same as Addy). He still has the biggest emotions out of all our kids...put together.

For the first time ever Adalie and Jackson are in the same class. We'll see how this goes.

My goodness, I have a hard time believing that my Maren is a first grader already! She is ready for this. In the past few weeks she as been asking us more and more if she can read to us or do math pages to prepare. She was a little bit nervous, but I know she will do awesome.

The crew from Mullan Trail. What good kids they all are.

Lindsey is in her second year of preschool. Already she can count to 100, read simple words, and do basic arithmetic.  Academically, she could easily go into kindergarten right now, but she is too young. So here she is, queen of the preschool. 

*****

So how did we use the last week of vacation? Well, for starters, Addy and Rachel went to Silverwood.

Addy got to help with the magic show.

*****

The biggest event of the week though, was the visit by my parents. The arrived on Friday night. The next morning we left bright and early- just the adults- for Leavenworth. We had a fun time exploring the Bavarian setting, peeking in bakeries and gift shops, eating good food, and hiking in the surrounding mountains. That night we went to the outdoor Summer Theater's production of "The Sound of Music" before driving to a cute guest house where we were staying. The whole trip was pretty quick, but was a very satisfying getaway with my mom and dad. 

*****

When we got home from Leavenworth we didn't sit around for long. A quick lunch saw us out again, this time with cars full of bikes and kids. See, Maren had a breakthrough recently and she has been riding around a lot on her two-wheeler. It was time for us to test her newfound skills on the trail. She did great.

Here she is, proud as can be. The band-aid on her knee is the official stamp of a kid who learned how to ride a bike.

After the bike ride we came home and had a backyard BBQ. It was a good day.

*****

But the vacation was not over yet. The next morning we woke up and went to a wonderful little breakfast place in Post Falls called the Old European. It fits with the Leavenworth theme in that it serves a great German-style breakfast that is just enough outside of the norm that it feels special.

Once we were all fueled up with food we drove straight to the lake and spent the next several hours on the lake. Unfortunately the water was really choppy that day so we didn't do any skiing or tubing, but we still had fun.

I really like this picture

And this one too. These were the only sane people out of the group who didn't get wet on this beautiful windy day. 

*****

Last but not least we parked the boat at a dockside snack shop and got ice cream. It was a good visit from my parents and we are already looking forward to the next time they can come up.

Have a good week!