Home Again, Home Again...

MONDAY

The kids and I left Rock Springs at about 10AM. We drove to Logan in time to meet my friend and her kids for lunch and a little play time. Then I headed for my OB doctor visit. (I haven't found a new doctor yet). Everything looked great and the heartbeat was strong. We find out what we are having on August 4th! Then we swung by Clarkston for dinner with Andy's parents and then on to Burley. We got to Burley about 8pm and I let the kids stay up late and play with their cousins Abby and Colton. Sara and I also stayed up late playing the Wii she got for her birthday.

TUESDAY

Sara and I met my high school friend Alisha at the Burley Kiddie pool for a little swimming and a picnic lunch. It was so fun to see you and your super cute kids Alisha!!! The kids had a blast playing and the little boys had some nice naps afterwards. Maddie thoroughly enjoyed all her playing time with Abby.

When we got back from swimming my mom had a cake all ready for Abby (her birthday is next week). And the funny part is that Abby has been substituting the word 'eyeball' in for everything just to be funny so my mom made her an eyeball cake complete with squishy pudding in the middle. That evening we all went with my mom to a mother/daughter dinner for her ward. It was fun to have this time together and the little girls had fun making necklaces and other crafts.

WEDNESDAY

This day was the reason I made the trip to Burley. We went to the Twin Falls temple for a VIP tour given by my dad. Both my sisters and both my brothers plus many of their kids were their. My grandparents even came, and it was my Grandma's 90th birthday!!! What a special day.

The temple was extremely beautiful. And it was so special to be able to bring my kids in there and let them see the beauty and feel the strong spirit. My sister Mandy did not have her kids with her so she was nice enough to carry Maddie through and tell her all about it while I tried my best to keep Garen somewhat reverent. Maddie really enjoyed her time in there with Mandy.

Maddie said her favorite part was the big bright room that Grandpa Paul told everyone not to talk in. And I think Garen liked the baptismal font because of the oxen-he 'mooed' the whole time we were in there. My dad even took us into the bridal room and let my two 12-year-old neices sit in the brides chairs and promise they would be married thier someday. It was very touching. We got to stop in the sealing room for a short time while my parents said a few things on the importance of eternal families and of course no one had dry eyes. The whole experience was well worth the long drive with the kids!

The rest of the afternoon the kids played with the sprinkler under the trampoline and then after dinner we headed back to Clarkston. Maddie was so delighted that she got to have a sleepover with Grandma Sue and then a sleepover with Grandma Jann the following night.

THURSDAY

This morning the kids got to spend a little time with Grandma Jann and Grandpa Boyd then it was off to the pediatrician. Both kids needed their yearly check up and shots and since I have not found a new doctor and we were going to be in town we squeezed it in. The kids were pretty good considering. I don't usually plan to take my kids to the doctor at the same time, by myself when they both need shots, but you do what you got to do. Garen barely cried and Maddie was super brave but her 4th shot was the one that did her in-it really hurt her and I felt bad. After we were done we stopped by the gift shop and I let her pick something out for being so good and brave.

Here's how they measure up for anyone who cares:

Maddie's height: 40 inches

Maddie's weight: 34 pounds

she is in the 8th percentile in both height and weight, so pretty much she's little, but she passed her eye test and everything else with flying colors.

Garen's height: 34 inches

Garen's weight: 28 pounds

Garen falls between the 40th and 50th percentile, so I think he will be outgrowing his sister very soon!

After the doctor,we had lunch with Brenda again and then we headed back home to Rock Springs. Considering all the driving the kids did really well and the drives were pretty uneventful. While we were gone Andy kept busy with work most the time, but he did get away for a little bit to try out some fishing on the lake. He pulled in the driveway just a few minutes before us. The kids were so excited to see him and it's nice to be back home even though I've got my work cut out for me here. :)

And a quick Happy Birthday to my brother Dan today!!!