This summer started off with a bang when Hakon and I went to Moroni's Quest. I will share my post about that when I get pictures from the event. We were happy to get back to our boys after 4 days away. Hakon and Spencer set up our tent in the family room downstairs and we watched Bambi. Spencer slept in the tent for about a week before we took it down.
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| Hakon reading at bedtime to the boys. |
We went for my ultrasound and were happy to hear that everything is well with the baby. We are having a surprise but really think we are having another boy. I think it would be fun to have 3 little boys together. After the ultrasound we ate out at Moxie's with a gift certificate and then stopped by Costco. We had a great time together.
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| Hakon and I had a date to Lethbridge! |
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| 22 Weeks along. The belly is here! |
Hakon's grandma (mormor) is visiting from Norway. It is so great to be around her. She has a special strength and kindness about her. I love seeing Hakon's mom with her mom. My boys are so lucky to have the chance to be around her. She understands my troubles with varicose veins as she has them too-so I guess that gives us a special bond! Our conversations are a little labored as there needs to be a translater but it is great to have the chance to get to know her.
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| Eating dinner and cake at Hakon's parents place. They are undergoing kitchen renovations but still graciously have us over whenever we want to come for a visit. |
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| We love our little Rylan. He always wants to share breakfast with Hakon when he has yogurt, oats, and raisins. |
We had Darren and Christal's kids for 5 days in July while they were away. It was a new experience to have 6 kids but it was empowering and a good challenge. It was great to get to know the kids better and have more time with them. I was so glad they didn't get homesick and we had a lot of fun activities to pass the week. I didn't get a lot of pictures that week but did get some.
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| Lauren always wanted to help with meal preparation and the boys got along great. |
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| I was brave and took them all to Waterton one afternoon. I only wished we had more time there! |
The older kids were a great help and Karsen is such an easy going little boy. I have a lot to learn before I have older kids but we made it through the week and I think they all still love us as much as we love them!
Mark and Kalinda Hunsperger with their cute little Macey came down for the Pioneer Day celebration in Glenwood so we met up on Friday and Saturday to see them. I'm so grateful Hakon had Mark as a great friend while growing up in Glenwood.
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| A Sunday afternoon stroll to the temple with Hakon's grandma (Ina Aabo) and mom (Kari Skoien). |
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Spencer and his neighbor friend Ethan. They play so well together.
We love living a couple doors down from the Edwards family. |
We have been so lucky to have so much family visiting this summer. Melissa's family as well as Janalee's family have been here the last week and a half so we've done some fun things. We all get together at the Magrath Stake Camp and made great use of the waterslide. Hakon made it the furthest of anyone and I was pretty proud of him! Rylan and Spencer weren't big fans so they just did it a couple times then played with the other little cousins.
We had a good time there but had to take cover during a lightning storm. Thankfully we didn't get the hail there that Cardston got that night (July 26). It was a really scary storm damaging many if not all roofs in Cardston and any cars that weren't under cover. It is so crazy to see all the vehicles in Cardston with broken windshields and dents all over! We should have an adjuster to our house soon to decide what needs done on our roof and eavestroughs. This storm made me want to be more prepared for an emergency and we've been thinking about that a lot. We bought a used deep freeze so I can have more frozen food storage and we are going to start building up our supplies.
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| Sometimes smoothies can make my little boys really happy. |
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| We watched the Hansen kids the morning of July 28th while there parents were at the temple. We always love seeing the Hansen's! Too bad they were staying in Cardston during the storm. Some people just had bad luck. |
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| We met up with lots of the family at Ridge Reservior. Even though the boat wouldn't start we thoroughly enjoyed playing on the beach and visiting. |
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| Spencer and his cousin Andrew loved the spray park! Rylan just wanted to wander toward the road most of the time. |
We also did a day in Waterton. I'm not sure what was up with Rylan but he had a pretty hard time. I think all the people and going here and there just had him feeling unsettled. I had carpooled in with Christal but since my kids were just not doing the greatest I was so glad to catch a ride back with Melissa and Kristyn (dividing my kids up so we could all fit). Sometimes I just don't anticipate how the kids will do. I was still glad we went and just had to remind myself not to think about how I am going to handle 3 kids next summer!
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| Spencer and his cousin Mark |
This summer has felt much more like a real summer than our last few years! It is great to get out to the lake and Waterton and the ice cream parlor in Glenwood. It is also great to go home after each family gathering and put the kids in their own beds. I really love living in Cardston! We still have a lot more family coming this summer. I'm grateful to not have family conflicts or problems and just be able to enjoy everyone who comes to visit.
