Hey. I feel like it's been a while.

As for me, there hasn't been anything too exciting going on. Everyone else has been pretty busy though. All five kids enjoyed a week of summer camp at Lutherhaven. Rachel went to Nashville for a week on a work vacation. Evelyn's band gets to play their first full set at an upcoming fair. As I write this, Rachel and the kids are in the middle of Wyoming somewhere on their way to Denver for a family reunion. I'll fly out to meet them later this week.

These are all exciting things. But since we don't have many photos of them, I'm going to do something different this week. It's a confession of sorts, although I don't think it will take anyone by surprise. So, here goes: As it turns out, not every event or every photo that we ever take makes it onto this blog. There are usually good reasons for this. But sometimes it's just because in busy seasons, smaller things simply don't make the cut. They aren't "important" enough. Or sometimes we take a bunch of photos and then choose the best one to post with the story. But there are still hundreds or thousands of photos out there that will simply be lost down the memory hole.

As the self-appointed family historian, I cannot let that happen. Some of them are simply too good not to keep. Some of them are funny. Some show little quirks about people. Some are just weird. And some have been posted before, but deserve a little more spotlight than they received at the tim. Anyway- I'm going to post a bunch of them here because....well, because I can.

Enjoy!

*****

Our kids are weird, and I don't always understand why they do the things they do. It's fun though.

I think they are reenacting a baby photo. That's the only explanation that makes sense.

I often walk in on the strangest things. This happens most often with Jackson.

I have my own quirks though. Here I am breaking in a pair of climbing shoes while doing the dishes.

Jackson doing Jackson things

This was at a ski cabin we stayed in and Jamie made some great margaritas. I'm pretty sure I didn't post this at the time because, even though we took like 5 pictures, I couldn't pull off a normal face in any of them. That was a good weekend though.

Rachel has her own share of weird faces.

It's not unusual to catch her making faces at me behind my back. She actually didn't even know I was taking a picture here. She was just being silly.

Ev likes trying out new styles. Some of them stick around. Some, not so much.

Jackson is constantly making things out of boxes. This is a tank he made for nerf battles. You can actually see out of the periscope thing while you walk.

This edit doesn't exactly send the sort of vibe that we normally go for on the blog. 

Rach and I have standing breakfast dates on Mondays, and we often try new restaurants. This particular one had ENORMOUS portion sizes. The "biscuit" in the foreground is actually the size of an entire loaf of bread!

These are supposed to be GIFs and I hope you can see them this way. Addy ordered a 3-D box thing to play games with on her phone. Sometimes I think that watching her play is probably more interesting that whatever it is she is seeing.

Just because I don't play on the trampoline a whole lot doesn't mean I can't keep up with whatever challenge the kids want to throw down. Let's just say they were a little surprised :)

Evelyn in New York City. I guess things got a little more exciting than she let on.

And this is how Lindsey plays with her Barbies. Maybe we should be worried?

Alright, that's all. Next week I'll write about Denver. Until then, HAVE A GOOD WEEK!

 First, a quick thing, and then on to the main event for the week.

The Broadway tour of Hadestown has been in Spokane this last week. Rachel and I were already going to see it, but we told the kids that any of them could go with us if they covered half of the cost for their tickets. The three oldest jumped at the chance, and we had a wonderful night together. I really love live theater, and I am glad that we are able to share this with our kids.

*****

Now for the main event. For the very few people who actually read this blog, you will remember that last weekend we helped with some trail maintenance and cleanup at Tum Tum. Well, this week that hard work all paid off at the climbing festival that was held there. 

I have to say, I really, really like what Craig has done with this place. It feels like a climbing resort, with excellent camping amenities, easy access, and well-established routes. Every climb has a tag stating the grade, as well as snaplink anchors at the top. The trails are well-maintained, and have signs to direct you to various different rock faces. There are even a few bolted cracks, which to some is a heresy, but which makes it very easy to safely teach gear placement and trad climbing systems. 

I mean, I like a good adventure as well as the next person, and there are plenty of places to get that. But having good, safe adventures is dependent on good, safe training, and there are too few places, in my opinion, that offer this at the level that Craig does. 

We had a goal as a family to do a combined 60 different routes over the two days we were there. We ended up doing 75! Each of the kids worked hard, had personal breakthroughs, and in the end, accomplished the goal. Maren ended with her first-ever lead, and it was not an easy one. Also, out of the 75 routes, I only led one, and Rachel only led five. All the rest were done by kids. That is huge. 

Of the kids, Jackson did the hardest route of the weekend

Just hanging out during lunch time

Evelyn probably climbed more this weekend than she has in the past 2 years combined. Of course she will use the trees whenever she can!

Addy now holds the record for most difficult on-sight lead among our kids.

Evelyn and her trees

After a long day, it is nice to just hang out with other climbers and compare experiences.

Around 30 people showed up, and it was fun hanging out around the fire at night, telling stories, catching up with some old friends, and watching climbing movies. Very chill.

The car rack actually works pretty well as a temporary top anchor for teaching purposes. Here we are going over some multi-pitch techniques.

Lindsey (pink left) is becoming a really good climber. I think she styled this route better than anyone else in the family- including me! You can also see Jackson practicing some self-belay techniques on the right.

Rachel and Addy doing a little multi-pitch training together

Maren did her first lead on this trip. The difficulty was harder than anyone else's first lead in our family, and the route she chose was a friction slab with a spicy 20 foot runout. Pretty bold!

We went out for some really good pizza afterwards. Anyone who has put in long days on granite will understand Addy's posture here (the ice feels really good on torn-up fingertips).

I've said it before and I'll say it again- I love us! 

Weekends like this are my favorite thing.

Have a good week!

Lindsey! She is eight!

A part of me thinks: Holy cow, she is already eight?!

Another part of my thinks: Holy cow, she is only eight?!

My Linzo is definitely a strong personality in our family, and it is hard to imagine what things would be like without her. She is probably the most active, imaginative, and social kid we have ever had. When everyone else is sitting in front of the tv, she will be out on her bike, hanging out with friends, or jumping on the trampoline. Always. She also loves taking long baths (with all the toys), putting on performances for whoever will watch, even if it's just her stuffed animals, and joining me to do her workout any time I am in my gym.

This girl is special.

We did a family party while camping

She also had a party at home with some of her friends. It was loosely based around a "Frozen" theme, and Rachel made this cake with melted candy "ice" on top. 

*****

About a year ago, Rachel and I went for the first time to a little crag called "Craiglandia" out by Tumtum. It is privately owned, and the routes are developed almost exclusively by the owner. Since then, we have become friends with Craig, and our family loves to go out to camp, hike, and climb on his property.

Next week he is hosting a climbing festival at his place, with food, movies, and a little competition where each of his nearly 120 routes is awarded points based on difficulty, style, and approach times. Some of our kids may participate, and I will be there to offer belays or set top-ropes wherever needed. This last weekend, we camped out at his place and helped with some clean-up and maintenance in preparation for the event. Everyone worked hard, and I think had a good time. 

Addy, leading a climb near our camp. This place is kind of special.

*****

The 4th of July is kind of a funny holiday to me. I really like where I live, and I appreciate that I can pursue my own interest on my own terms. I understand that isn't true for everyone, and I certainly don't think that me having this freedom makes my country very exceptional, but I do think it is worth recognizing as a good thing. I also have really mixed feelings about what "patriotism" is or ought to be. Like I said- it's funny.

One thing I really like about the holiday though, is the community aspect. I like the parties at the lake, the backyard barbecues, and the neighborhood firework displays. I like the parades, and the kids running around, and the pie and the ice-cream. It feels almost like the official start of summer. I like that, regardless of what it is that we each feel we are celebrating, we are at least doing it together. It's fun.

It got really loud outside, so the poor bunnies got to spend the night indoors. Maren set up a bed for herself on the floor and slept next to them. She is such a good bunny mom!

*****

As it turns out, this was a week when I really was able to appreciate, in a lot of ways, this beautiful corner of the world that we call home.

Party in the gardens at Arbor Crest. As always, the mix of good food, live music, and dancing with my sweetheart against the stunning backdrop of a perfect sunset made for a euphoric evening.

Lake day! It is finally that time of year when the cool water is very inviting. Happy summer!

Deck nights. Sometimes with the kids. Sometimes with Rachel. Sometimes just with myself. I don't think I will ever get tired of this view. It's not the best view in the area, but it's not bad, and it gets to be all mine every night. That makes it special.

I feel so close on this one...and yet so far... 

*****

Have a good week!

I still get a child-like urge sometimes to make faces at myself in the bathroom mirror, or the selfie cam. Also, my hair is getting longer. It's kinda fun.