Farmers Market

I have been wanting a lemon tree for so long but obviously cannot have an outdoor tree because it would die in the Idaho weather. I have seen indoor trees and have been casually looking but not doing much about it. On our way home from Rexburg we dropped Rylee off at work and then Kefford needed to make a stop at Zamzows to get some fertilizer for the lawn. While there I saw they had dwarf lemon and lime trees and they were on clearance for $15 regularly $50, I was so excited and bought a lemon tree. The weather was still warm enough during the day to put it outside but as it has cooled off I have been keeping it inside. It needs a lot of light and so I bought an indoor plant light and have been keeping it on during the day. I also have a plant that Cyndi gave me that was looking a little sad so I put that under the light and have seen it perking up. I hope that I can take good care of the tree and that it will eventually produce lemons for me and not die. 

Once I got done with the spooky Halloween quilt I started my winter quilt and was able to finish it pretty quickly. I love how it turned out so much and am excited to get it back from the quilter to be able to use it this Winter.

Saturday morning Kefford wanted to go to the Farmers Market so we got Rylee up and drove into Boise to walk around the market. Rylee and I got strawberry and Nutella crepes which were yummy and we looked at the things for sale but were not tempted by any of them. The highlight of the market was the solar eclipse which was happening while we were there.We did not have special glasses to see it but someone close to us did and let us borrow them to have a peek. The sun was a crescent and it was fun to see it eclipsed.

On Tuesday I took a selfie, I don't know why.

I sent Halloween packages to Kenedy and Ty, Avynlea and Ryker and Kenedy sent a picture of Ty's reaction upon opening the box. It is fun to carry on the traditions that my Mom did for me when I was living at college and as a young married adult. 

Ryker sent a picture asking me if I liked the flannel he bought and if it looked good with the shirt he was wearing it with. I told him it looked great and love that he wanted my opinion.

 

General Conference Weekend

When we were in Rexburg Yardley asked me if she and Lauryn could stay at our house while they were in town for a Bridal Shower. Yardley and Lauryn are super easy and fun and I had no problem saying they could. It happened to be General Conference weekend and they invited Avynlea to come with them to Meridian which she was excited to accept. Kenedy found out about the girls coming and asked if she and Ty could come and then when Ryker found out he asked if he could come, So Yardley and Lauryn were the catalysts for getting all of my kids home for the weekend. Kenedy and Ty picked up Ryker and sent a picture as soon as they got him.

We had such a fun weekend, we stayed up late, played games, made pizzas, watched movies, talked, laughed and in between watched General Conference. Avynlea spent a lot of time with her friends which didn't surprise me, Kenedy did the same thing when she would come home her first couple years of college and I know it will fade as the years and people move on and family becomes more important. I had fun and am so glad my kids all wanted to come home and that they like being here and together.

Kefford took Ty and Ryker with him to Emmett on Saturday to have Kelsey look at Ty's teeth and they wanted to go shooting. Unfortunately it was raining and they were not able to go shooting but they did stop at Kelsey and Brits where Kefford played with their kinetic sand.

On Sunday I made a family dinner and we all ate together before everyone had to take off. Avynlea was the las to leave with Yardley and Lauryn and was crying to me the night before about not wanting to go back. SH loves her roommates and has a lot of fun with them but she just gets homesick. I let her go hang out with Sadie and Madison and that seemed to help her a bit. She was supposed to have her bishop and Stake president interviews for her missionary application but was only able to meet with the Bishop so we made an appointment with the Stake President for the next weekend which means she had to come home again which helped her be ok about leaving. 

I loved having my kids home and was sad to see them leave, I hope that they will continue want to come home and be all together, I love my family!

 

Heart Surgery Center Tour with YW

Piper's Dad is a PA working with a Heart Surgeon and she said that we could have him take us on a tour of  the operating room. We thought that sounding like a cool idea and set it up to go for a Mutual Activity with our class. When we got there we had to change into scrubs and wear masks, hair coverings and feet coverings, we all definitely felt pretty cool and official. Beau showed us around the operating room and told us some of what they did in there and what everything was for. Three of the girls were able to scrub up and were taught how to put on the stuff they wear during the operations. Some of the girls were very interested in becoming Dr's or working in the medical field so this was cool opportunity for them to see a little of what it is like.

l-r: Erica, Kaden, Emily, Alivia, Alexa, Layne, Makayla, Kate, Natalie, Elizabeth, Piper and Leah

Beau showed us how to use the ultrasound machine and we all got to try it out on Piper's leg. Part of what they do is use the ultrasound machine to find a viable vein which they will extract and use to repair part of the heart. It was pretty cool to learn more about what they do and how they can help heal, amazing how people have come up with these ways to heal our bodies.

The girls who scrubbed in, Piper, Leah and Natalie,  got to pretend to operate on Kate and once they were done we took off our scrubs and got a group picture. It was a good activity and so fun for the girls.

top picture, standing l-r: Erica Lish, Elizabeth, Leah Farris, Alivia McKinley, Makayla pace, Kate Williams, Alexa Lish, and Layne Johnson

kneeling l-r: Natalie Pace and Piper Walker

Mikell and Kids come to Town!

Mikell and her kids were on town for the week and since Rylee did not have school on Wednesday we decided to go to Nyssa to visit with some of our favorite people. It was so much fun to visit and play with Mikell's kids. We have really missed having them live so close, they moved to Montana about a year ago and it has been not fun. Rylee had a lot of fun taking pictures with my phone and I am glad she did so I could have them as well.

I was playing Apples to Apples with some of the Mikell's and Whitneys kids and someone took some pictures of me unaware.

Rylee was bale to hold and cuddle with baby Emily who is just the sweetest most squishy baby, we all just love her.

On Thursday Mikell brought her kids to my house so I could watch them while she went to the Temple. The kids wanted to play at the park so after Mikell left that is where we headed. Shortly after getting there Jason told me he had to go to the bathroom, I told him to go in the bushes thinking we would find a private place but you can see in the pictures that was not the case, hahaha.

I also got to hold baby Emily and loved it so much, she is so good natured and so fun to love on.

Luke has come out of his shell so much and it was fun to be able to talk and interact with him and to see more of his personality.

 

Elder Uchtdorf and Powder Puff

Yardley posted online about getting material to make a quilt for her Mom and I responded saying I didn't know she quilted and that I was in the middle of finishing a couple of quilts. We had a good conversation about quilting and she sent me some pictures of ones she had done. I had Kenedy and Ty send me a picture of the quilt I made them for their wedding so I could send it to Yardley. I didn't take one before I gave it to them and so I am glad I now have a picture of it, it was a lot of hard work and took me a long time to make, I am pretty proud of it.

I got a Halloween one finished and I took a picture of the quilt top before I took it in to be quilted. I like it and I was pleasantly surprised to figure out halfway through working on it that some of the fabric was glow in the dark...pretty fun!

On Saturday Kefford was heading out to Emmett when he passed his Dad who was driving home.  Kefford called him to find out what he was doing and Bob said he had a couple of Sealings that he did that morning. He also mentioned that word in the Temple was that Elder Uchtdorf was supposed to be popping in for a quick visit at about 3:00. He called to tell me and we decided to make appointments for Inititories at that time and try to "accidentally" run into him. I also made an appointment for Rylee to do baptisms she was working but would be done in time to meet us at 3:00. I decided not to do inititories and just be with Rylee in the Baptistry while Kefford still did his inititories. Kefford got done before Rylee and met us down in the baptistry. I had heard a couple people who just arrived saying they met Elder Uchtdorf upstairs while I was waiting for Rylee to get changed and I figured we missed seeing him, it was a bummer but not a big deal. After we were done we headed out and Rylee got in her car and drove off, Kefford and I saw a car suspiciously parked outside the Temple and so we decided Elder Uchtdorf must still be inside and opted to wait for a bit. Kefford went to talk to the driver who confirmed that he was indeed waiting for a VIP and a couple of minutes after Kefford talked with him and sat down by me I saw Elder Uchtdorf walking out the Temple doors. I snapped some secret photos and then we walked over to him to say hi and shake his hand. it was very brief and I was too shy to ask for a photo with him but it was cool to talk to him and meet him in person. I wish we would have thought to have had Rylee stick around but its ok she wasn't bugged about missing out. 

On Tuesday Rylee had her Powder puff game. The juniors played the Seniors and did a good job holding their own but unfortunately the Seniors beat them, not by a lot though. It was fun to watch Rylee play and I thought she did a good job defending and being a part of the nation when she was playing. She got a Batman symbol on her bicep which she was pretty proud of.

Avynlea starts College at BYUI

On Friday Kefford, Rylee, Avynlea and I drove to Rexburg to get her moved into her apartment. She was the last one of all the roommates to arrive so she had her bed and room already picked but she got what was left in the kitchen for cupboards and it wasn't the greatest. Her room roommate Savanna was there getting her stuff situated and we were able to meet her, her Mom and her Grandma and they were super nice and Savanna and Avynlea got friendly pretty quick. We were grateful that she was nice and that Avynlea had a good roommate to bond with. After getting her stuff unloaded we went to Walmart to get her groceries and then we stopped at McDonalds to get some dinner. We didn't want to eat in her apartment with all of her roommates around so we parked in the parking lot and Avy, Rylee and I ate in the car while Kefford found a spot outside of the car to eat. I was in the front seat and at one point I looked behind me to find Avynlea and Rylee both in tears. Avy was not feeling excited about being left in Rexburg and Rylee was sad about her best friend not living at home anymore.  Rylee was making a list earlier about things Avynlea needed at the store and at the bottom of it was a car so Avynlea can pack up her stuff and drive back home and live there forever, that was added by Avy.  

Kenedy and Ty were coming into town and they drove a little out of their way to pick up Ryker so they all came that night which was fun. 

Bailey and Makayla had their baby the day before so Saturday morning Kefford, Ryker and I went to the hospital to see her. I wasn't feeling great so I opted out of holding her but Kefford and Ryker were able to. Her name is Oakley and she is super cute, I am excited for the new parents and excited for Jeremy and Gwen in becoming grandparents.

After visiting the new parents we met up with everyone else at Avynela's apartment and then went to the student store and walked around campus with Kenedy and Ty helping Avynlea find her classes. We didn't have a lot of time and were in a time crunch, Kefford and I needed to leave with Rylee by 12 because she had to work later that evening so after a short tour we got a family picture outside the stadium and then gathered by our car to say goodbye. 

Rylee was the only one in tears and struggled with saying goodbye at this point, Avynlea was fine because she still had Kenedy, Ty and Ryker with her for a few more hours otherwise she would have been in tears as well. It was hard leaving Avynlea at school and I teared up a little but I know she will have fun and is where she is supposed to be.

Avynlea had her first day of classes on Monday and she sent me her back to school picture. She looks super cute and ready for a great day!

 

A new job

Rylee has been working at the Daycare over the summer and has really grown tired of it. I thought it was a great job because she worked every day after school and never had to work late or on the weekends. But she got burnt out being around the kids so much and was looking for something different. Sodalicious where Avynlea works was hiring so Rylee applied and got hired. She was able to work a shift with Avynlea before Avy left for college which I thought was pretty fun. When they were working I went over to get a drink so I could see them hard at work.

Brit was bringing her older girls to Boise/Meridian to look for Homecoming dresses for Brielle and their exchange student Yara. Avynlea, Rylee and I joined them for a little bit of the shopping trip and while we were waiting for the girls to try on dresses Qiana and Rylee found some fun and crazy outfits to try on, I think the crazier the better in their opinion. I liked seeing them in the funny outfits but am really glad they were only doing it for fun and not because the clothes were serious contenders, they were not my taste at all. Avynlea was able to find clothes that she liked and talked me into buying them by saying they would be good for a mission. She has decided to follow Ryker's example and put in her mission papers, she can do it 5 months before her 19th birthday so look for news in October:)

I finally reached th end of the roll for my Saran Wrap and it was such a momentous occasion I had to take a picture. I have had that box of Saran Wrap for so many years, at least more than 10 but I could not tell an exact count. I got it at Costco and it was well worth the purchase because it has lasted so long. I don't know that I will buy another huge one from Costco because it was a massive box to try to find a space for but ti was awesome while it lasted.