Family Fun Over Memorial Weekend 2020

We have a sweet little girl that is SO excited for her upcoming birthday! She has even made a paper chain for herself to count down the days until it's here. (One week has never felt so long to a little girl! :)

We also have a sweet little girl who LOVES "making!" She always says, "Mom, can we make?" When really I think she means to say "bake." ;) She loves dumping and mixing and doing it ALL by herself. She actually gets feisty if you try to help her! (We are working on that though. ;)

Also, for part of our Memorial Day celebrations we did some fun things with our family, like going to the cabin! We also changed a flat tire on Carew's car on the way home, and took turns going for rides on the side by side.

Kambriella was the lucky one that got the ride to the gas station AND a treat on her ride! :)

Carew was lucky to get to bring his girlfriend Kara with us, and they packed a picnic to take with them on their ride. :)

Riding the side by side is a lot of fun, but you ALWAYS end up getting super dirty! 

Those dusty country roads are definitely full of dirt!

We spent a little time shooting the guns for target practice, and also the bows and arrows.

We didn't do too hot this time though. So, I guess we just need to keep practicing!

And here is my "beautiful" dirt covered profile after my turn on the side by side! It was definitely an adventure ride getting stung by a hornet and also something else that I never could figure out. But that's the risk you take being in the great outdoors! :)

Our sabbath day though we spent at home, and kept it sacred. 

We had home church together with my mom before she had to leave to go back to Mesquite. My boys were able to bless and pass the sacrament to my mom who hasn't been able to have it in a while with no priesthood holder there with her. It made her really happy. :)

We also had a family zoom call, played games together, and Kesslyn made her specialty "sunshine drink!"

(That's what she calls it. :)

Ice water with 2 straws and 3 apple slices (because I didn't have any lemons. ;)

I am grateful for all the good in my life, all the people that I love, all the experiences that we are having together, and that God knows me so well to give me exactly what I need to learn and to grow closer to Him everyday.

Remembering Our Loved Ones Passed On...

 We celebrated Memorial Day this year by taking beautiful flowers to some very special people...

 Me, my mom, my sister Tiffany, and my little brother Shane and his wife Joette visited my brother Kelly's grave first in North Ogden.

 I love these people so much and was so happy to be with them. :)

 It's hard to believe that my brother has been gone for 9 years...we miss him all the time.

 My sweet dad has been gone for 6 years now, and I was so happy to drive up to Grace Idaho with Tiffany and my mom to visit his grave as well.

I always wonder what he is busy doing on the other side of the veil...

 We also visited my nephew Jacob's grave, 

 and my Grandma and Grandpa Panter's grave. 

 My mom was with me for 5 sweet days for the first time since the pandemic, and being together with her was soooo sweet. Visiting my dad's grave with her was extra special this time, and I was so grateful to be there with her.

 It was cold and windy at the cemetery, and since my sister Meloney lives in Grace, she went with us to the cemetery and gave us some welding hooks to put in the flower pots so they wouldn't blow away.

It was so so good to see her too.

 We also drove past my Grandpa Mickelson's old dairy farm...

 ...and we visited the Lago cemetery too.

 This is a beautiful cemetery where lots of my mom's family is buried.

There are beautiful trees surrounding the entire area and a stream running alongside it.

It's so peaceful and beautiful there.

 It's where my  Grandma and Grandpa Mickelson are buried, and so my mom took flowers there to her parent's grave too.

 I love being with my mom out in those beautiful hills and always hearing her tell the stories of her when she was a little girl. Working on the farm everyday, never really getting a vacation ever, and her highlight of going to the fair once. What a simple life out there in the country.

 Everything was so beautiful and green, but it did finally start raining as we began heading home.

We ate lunch in the car on the way, and even stopped at Gossner's in Logan on the way home for cheese curds and cookies and cream chocolate milk by the case to take home to the kids.

It was a fun, memorable, enjoyable, even nostalgic day for me, and I couldn't think of a better way to spend part of our Memorial Day weekend.

Goodbye Little Farmers ~ Preschool Graduation 2020

 This past week was officially the end of Kesslyn's Little Farmer's Preschool! (Although she hasn't gone for the last 2 months because of the COVID-19 pandemic.)

 Her sister Kambriella and her cousin Maddy helped make these posters for her to "decorate" our car for her drive-through preschool graduation. :)

 We saw her teacher Miss Whitney (mask/no mask) who gave her a certificate for Farm Camp Friday graduation...

  ...and her teacher Miss Shayla who was with her throughout the rest of the week.

 Miss Shayla told Kesslyn that she was her very favorite student and that she missed her so much! (And then she remembered that her own son was in the class and said that HE was her favorite, and then her. But only because he has to be. ;)

 Lucky for Kesslyn, Grandma Panter was here visiting us and got to go with us and see where Kesslyn had her preschool! Kesslyn was so happy to have her there. :)

 Being on the farm for preschool was such a treat for Kesslyn! Out of all of the places she ever got to go, and all of the preschools that my children went to, I was so happy that her and Kambriella got to experience a little bit of life and learning on the farm!

 I had so much fun as a kid visiting my grandpa's farm when I was little, and I really think it adds a depth and level of fun and learning to childhood that can only be gained through those experiences. So I'm SO happy that she had that opportunity!

 Thank you Little Farmers for all of the farm adventures! We love you an will miss you forever!!!

Cousin Time

 What do you do when your cousin comes to stay for a week??

You build forts in your bedroom and play all day and into the night, that's what you do!

 And then your brothers do the same thing...

 ...while the baby sister tries to take over the fort bringing roaring dinosaur toys to try and scare you out. :) That's just one thing you do when your cousin comes to stay for a week. :)

Lollipuff Cotton Candy Family Night

 Last night for family night we took our family to a Lollipuff Cotton Candy porch party! It was a company that makes flavored animal shapes out of their cotton candy and it was such a fun treat. Not only were the kids excited about their treat, but they were excited to see their friends too!

Kesslyn and Greta hugged for almost a minute straight before they ever moved. ;) It was the first time they have seen each other since the pandemic. It was so fun to see. :)

Kesslyn had an owl shaped cotton candy, Kambriella had a bunny, and Madyson had a narwhal. They were cute AND tasty! 

 Carew invited Kara to join our family and of course she did. ;)

We had fun introducing her to some of our neighborhood friends and seeing people we hadn't seen in a very long time! Including some newly returned missionary friends.

 Aren't these cotton candy so fun and cute?? :)

Dallin and Gavin both had an octopus, Carew had a penguin, and Kara had a pineapple. It was a fun (and yummy) family night!

 Thanks Lollipuff! :)

An Adams Canyon Adventure

 This weekend we went on an adventure to Adams Canyon in Farmington. 

It was about a 4 mile round trip hike that was kind of "unplanned", which meant we were a little unprepared, but nonetheless we had a blast!

 We hiked through sand and water and we had even picked up our cousin Maddy (who was wearing her school boots)...(and we had no water)...but we knew at any minute we could turn around and go home and we would be just fine. But the drive to make it to the end (where we had heard of a beautiful waterfall) kept us moving up the mountain.

 I personally feel right at home in the mountains and so I wanted to stay there all day. I even carried Kesslyn lots of the time when her feet were feeling tired.

 We always have so much fun exploring in the woods, and it is so beautiful. Everywhere you look it's like a new view, and a scene from a painting or a movie...

 I always love watching the kids brave the river, walking on the logs and rocks trying not to get wet...

 I also love how exploring in the wilderness helps build confidence in those more timid, and helps to overcome some fears...

 The views and waterfalls were breathtaking, and when we finally made it to the top, Dallin earned himself $20 for going into the freezing cold waterfall. :)

  

 We even found a spot in the creek where the water was coming straight out of a natural filter in the mountain and we all took a drink from the fresh water stream. It was very cold and satisfying and made our little adventure that much more adventurous!

 At the end of our hike as we were leaving the coverage of the canyon walls, we stopped for a picture of the beautiful view and Kesslyn said, "Mom, can I take the picture of you and dad?

I laughed and said "Sure!" ~ Thus, the above photo credit to Kesslyn. :)

 Then I took one of her and her daddy and then we headed to the car, out for drinks and ice cream, and then back home.

I LOVE the beautiful world that has been created for us to use and enjoy, and each time we spend time out there I feel that much more love and gratitude for everything good in my life. Those sweet gifts from Heavenly Father.

Thank you for a wonderful Saturday adventure with my awesome family.

We are so blessed!