It's the most wonderful time of the year...

I have two favorite months of the year...July and December.  Hands-down.  This July did not disappoint and December will have to be pretty amazing if it wants to stay in the running.  And just in case you were wondering, there are just about 4 months til Christmas...I can't believe it!  We have really enjoyed our summer and are sad to see that we only have ONE week until it is over and we have to deal with the dreaded first day of school.  My blogging record hasn't been too great this past year, so I will try and remember some of our July/August highlights.  At this point, I feel like my blog has become just an event archive, something we can eventually look back on and remember some of the fun things we were able to do.  I remember the days when I would blog once or twice a week.  Those days are long gone.  I used to think that once my kids were older, I'd have more time to get these kinds of things done.  Well...that has been far from true.  Their messes just get bigger, their demands require more time, there is no more nap time, bed time is later, the weekly sports and activities multiply, and the play dates are much more often and time consuming. I have been babysitting my friend's kids a couple times a week, and I will start substitute teaching in a few weeks, so I have a feeling my updates will continue to be few and far between.

I'm thinking of adopting a 'Month in Review' type plan that would go over the highlights of each month.  That might help me to keep on track a little better.  We shall see! 

 Dinner is just about an hour or so away from being done, let's see how much I can cram in!  When I think back at our July and August, the moments that stick out the most to me are all water related!  You could usually find us by the river, in some sort of pool, at the lake, or at Roaring Springs (a local water park we had season passes to this year).  I have water bugs for children.  We are all happiest when we are in the sunshine and water!

July always starts off with a Bang, thanks to my birthday!  I am thirty-two!  Yowsers!  Happy to be one year older and hopefully wiser!  I am really enjoying my thirties so far!  Ask me again when I am 39!  

We combined my birthday dinner and party with the fourth of july festivities!  It was a really great day! I was spoiled rotten and thoroughly enjoyed my day!

And...speaking of birthdays...my Nana Raine turned 71 and as per the norm, we went water skiing! Can you believe she still slalom skis?  Man...I hope I still have those skills when I grow up! 

We had sweet Evelyn's baby blessing.  It was such a special day for such a special little girl.  She sure has captured all of our hearts and we just love her to pieces!  

Here is one of our MANY trips to the river.  This is in the top 5 favorite places for my kids to waste away a summer day.  This is our dog, Doug's, number 1.  :) 

The public pool is another favorite.  It is small and there is nothing fancy about it, but my kids just love the high dive.  There is pure joy on their faces every time they jump!  I am glad I don't have wimps for kids.  They aren't scared of much and are just about up for trying anything.  

*Except for bees, Jack just can't handle bees.  We are working on that one!* 

We (sadly) only took the kayaks out once this year.  I am itching to get it in some white water soon!  It's been two summers since we've taken them to Riggins for our annual kayaking and camping adventures.  Somehow our summer filled up so quickly.  Plus Jesse, my brother, will be back next summer, and he will make it happen for sure.  :)  I love this picture of my boys.  Brothers. 

 Dan's dental office had a float in the Eagle Fun Days Parade.  It was a fun day!  The kids loved being hosed down by the firefighters.  Olivia rode along with Dan, helped pass out toothbrushes, and had a great time!  She has perfected her princess wave.  

Another day at the lake...we ALL got the chance to ski this day.  Jack and Olivia were total rock stars for their first time up on skis.  They were so proud of themselves.  One day, I'd like a boat of my own. But for now, we will take advantage of all our family's boats.  

Eleven....Eleven...straight from heaven.  This perfectly describes my sweet KJ.  He can no longer hold up how many fingers he is.  That simple fact is just so strangely sad to me!  We didn't have an 'official' party for him this year, he chose to go up to CDA instead of a party.  We did take him to the rodeo and had family over for his birthday dinner and presents.  He got lots of fun stuff, and some money for the dirt bike he is saving for. Thanks everyone! He still has some kid left in him and I hope that he always will.  He would kill me for saying this, but he still sleeps with the Curious George he got as a newborn.  And...every now and then, I still get to read him his favorite bedtime story. He may pretend that he's all 'grown up', but I love that he still needs me every now and then.  :)
This kid made me the happiest and luckiest lady on earth when he was born 11 years ago.  I couldn't get enough of him as a newborn and would find myself just staring at him ALL day and even during the night.  I would carefully pick him up when he would be sound asleep, just so I could smell him. I was so in love.  A new and deep love that I hadn't ever felt before.  I finally felt like my life was complete.  It sounds weird, but I have a feeling most moms can totally relate.  Then as a toddler, he was very independent, very young.  I couldn't help feed him.  I couldn't get him dressed.  He would even attempt to change his own diapers.  There are so many times I'd find that he had crawled out of his crib (did I mention he was a little monkey?), got a new diaper and wipes and although he thought he was helping me, it usually caused a mess ten fold.  But he was always sure to put the dirty diaper away in the diaper genie. Ha! I couldn't buckle his car seat for him.  These were all things he wanted to master on his own, even though it took 12 times as long as it would have taken me.  Which was always frustrating when we were running late anywhere!  He taught himself to read when he was 3.  He would get out his alphabet blocks and make words all on his own.  He has always been a good sleeper!  He would still sleep 12-14 hours if I let him.  He used to make me laugh because his eyebrows were connected to his hairline and I wondered what he would grow up to look like!  He had the softest peach fuzz and the squishiest cheeks!  He just gets more and more handsome the older he gets.  He will most likely be getting contacts and braces this year.  He is getting big, but he'll always be my baby.  He and I have a special bond, I hope that we can continue that forever.  He is quick to know when I need an "I love you, mom".  He is very aware of the needs of those around him.  He loves to swim, bike, skateboard, and run and play Minecraft. He is passionate about his interests.  He will read and study and learn everything about what he is interested in at the moment.  He is ONE SMART COOKIE!  I swear he is smarter than I am. Not kidding. He knows more about random things than I ever will.  He is a book lover and a computer lover.  I find him reading much past his bedtime, and I wake up to hear the keyboard very early some mornings.  He wants to be a computer/software developer when he grows up.  I know he will be a success at whatever he decides to do! He is not the 'perfect' child, but he's pretty dang close.  I am glad he was born to me first...he made me want more kids ASAP!

This kid has completely captured my heart and I hope he always knows how much I adore him.  

*stats from his 11 year old doctor's visit*

Weight... 79 pounds ... 49%

Height... 57 1/2" ... 65%

BMI... 16.9 ... 45%

Shoe size... mens 7-8.  Last year he was a woman's 7 1/2 .  

This kid is growing like a weed.

 Ahhh...Coeur d'Alene...my favorite part about our July.  

Of course, the annual trip to Silverwood!  My kids all rode the roller coasters this year! They are all finally tall enough to ride on the big, exciting stuff!!  It was fun to get to ride with them on everything.  Usually I am waiting at the exit with Jack or Olivia because they aren't quite tall enough.  These are the very few moments when I enjoy them getting bigger.  We had a great day.  We stayed til closing. Completely worn out!

And, of course, you cannot visit CDA and not make a trip to Hudsons for a famous hamburger. It doesn't get much better.  Yummm-O!

My old friend from High School was married in Seattle so I made a day trip over there with Shawna and we got to witness Kelli's beautiful wedding and reception!  Beautiful day, beautiful venue, most beautiful bride!  I love that I have a handful of girlfriends I have been able to keep close to after all these years.  CONGRATS KELLI O! 

Brianna is leaving on her mission to Brazil next month, so we had a sad goodbye.  She's one of my favorite people on earth.  Love her to death...Brazil is lucky to have her! GOOD LUCK BRAWNA!

Liv was able to have one of her dreams come true!  She went horseback riding!!!  She's been begging me all year to be able to do this!  CDA is the perfect place to go because my Aunt Sherene has a few horses and some breathtaking land to ride them on.  She was in heaven and loved every second of it!  I think she will be a cowgirl one day.  

Visiting my Nana and Pops is always a treat and we will be back again next summer for sure!!  Thanks for making it so special.  We always get the VIP treatment when we visit.

 One of my friends has a connection to a sweet pool that we crashed!
Fun for the kids, fun for the moms! Did I mention that I've made fabulous friends here!?!

We did the dirty dash!!!  Remember all those times you wanted to swim thru mud puddles as a kid.  Well, we got our chance!!  We did the 5 miles with the grown ups and then I did a one mile Piglet Plunge with the kids.  Great, dirty, squishy fun time!  I would do it again in a heart beat! There was mud in places mud doesn't belong.  A hot shower never felt so good!

My super awesome kids also did a kids triathlon this summer.  They have the racing bug and want to sign up for another one real soon.  KJ came in first for the whole thing.  He was pretty proud of himself.  He was in the older/longer distance race.  Jack and Liv were in the shorter distance race.  They were total studs and I was so proud of them!  We will sign up for another one in September or October.  Maybe this is their 'thing'.  I love that they love to be active.

And....the timer is done for dinner!!!  Phew...I was able to cram in more than I thought I would.  Thanks for putting up with my marathon posts and avalanche of pictures!

Time to go enjoy our last week of summer!