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"Happy Mother's Day, Daddy!"

That's what B said to Ryan today for Father's Day. Too funny and too cute!

Again, we spent the day relaxing in the mountains, which would probably be the best way for Ryan to enjoy Father's Day. The mountain air, the escape from the hustle and bustle of life, no people... Those are all rejuvenating for him and good for his soul. Truly, a happy place for him.

Since I was sick much of last week, I didn't get his present all put together. :( Bummer. Being the gracious person that he is, it didn't bother him at all. Thank goodness.

After spending most of the day up there, it was time to pack up and head home. I just hope that it was a great Father's Day weekend for Ryan and just what he needed.

Happy Father's Day, Ryan! You are an amazing daddy to B! We love you!

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More camping fun today! 

Josh showed up just before noon, then Ryan's parents showed up a little later to join in the fun.

First, though, B did actually spend the entire night last night in Jeremy and Crystal's camper sharing a bed with Jenna. Apparently, she did well falling asleep quickly and only waking up once, but going back to sleep quickly. Yeah! I'm so proud of her and yet a little sad that she is growing up so fast...

Ryan got up earlier than the rest of us and had the privilege of cooking breakfast for all of us. :)

The rest of the day was spent playing around camp, walking to the river with all the dogs, kids (and dads) putting their feet in the chilly river water, and just relaxing.

No cell service. No internet. No TV. Just spending time with loved ones. Disconnecting from the world was so, so nice.

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Let Father's Day weekend begin! Up the mountain we go! Woohoo!

The morning was spent buying food and packing the camper, then up the mountain we went to Ryan's happy place. Finding an excellent spot near (but not too close to) the river with space for the 2-4 other campers that will be joining us later, we spent the afternoon setting up camp.

In an unprecedented manner, a couple drove down to our spot to see if they could camp there, too. Um, no. Ok, so we didn't quite say it like that, but with the others joining us there wouldn't be enough space and secondly, you just don't ask that. Keep looking for spots up the canyon or make your way up to the campground to pay your $5 and camp. Ha ha ha. Really, it's just weird to ask that. In an effort to make a point that they would stay there if they had to, they left one vehicle there and hauled their camper out to see what else was available. Thankfully, they found a free spot that they wouldn't have to share and came and got their other truck.

After camp was set up, we took a drive up the canyon. Oh, but first we spotted a moose right near camp, which we took a closer look at from inside the truck. Don't wanna mess with those moose. Having never seen one that close up, it was pretty cool to watch him as he was eating. We probably spent a good 20 minutes watching him and trying to get a good photo. :)

Then further down the road, we saw the teeny tiniest deer that either Ryan or I have ever seen. This cute little baby was probably a couple weeks old at the oldest and was just so darn cute. Wish we would have been able to get closer, but baby and momma didn't stick around and ran the opposite way of where we were. (The deer in the pics below is not the baby deer we saw. That one was too far away to get a pic.)

 

 

Once we got back to camp, Jeremy, Crystal and the girls had arrived and were setting up. The evening was spent hanging out with them outside and in their camper. Before we left their camper to head to bed, B kept saying that she wanted to stay in their camper to sleep. Not really sure how it would go, I wasn't sure what to tell her. Auntie and uncle said it was ok, so Ryan and I left figuring they could bring her over if it didn't go well... Guess we'll see. 

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Today in bullet points:

• Ahylyvia came over to play with B for a little bit in the morning.
• B and I played outside a bunch today.
• Once Ryan got home, the three of us went out to dinner at Pelican Café.
• Some other cousins were supposed to come over to play, but ended up not.
• So, we spent the evening watching "Frozen" (for the 5 millionth time. Ha!), while Ryan went to worship practice.
• Snuck in a little planting for a few minutes while B was watching "Frozen."

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Ay ay ay... still feeling under the weather. Ryan took pity on me and stayed home to work from home. Wow, I'm so thankful that he has that option when necessary. Once I figured out he was staying home, I went back to bed and slept until almost 10:00. Wahoo! That definitely helped me to start feeling a bit better.

Hanging out for most of the day at home, we decided to venture out the nursery to buy some veggies to plant in our garden. Yum! Can't wait to eat fresh, homegrown garden tomatoes!

In the evening, right as we sat down to dinner, a couple of visitors showed up at our door with an invitation to the "neighborhood" golf tournament next week. In actuality, it's the local Ward golf tournament, but it was nice of them to invite us. :)

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The worst part of not feeling well was that I had to cancel my massage for today. :( Ok, so maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but I was bummed. I didn't really think I should go spread my germs and since I couldn't really control the snot drainage, lying on a massage table might not have been a great idea. ;)

Crystal still watched B for me, but rather than getting a massage and getting a few things done that I wanted, I just chilled out on the couch with my pillow and blanket. Thankfully, though, I got some rest since B was off playing at her aunties.

I happened upon Ryan and B sitting out on the deck this evening and captured this sweet picture. :)

 

So, I decided to join them and enjoy the sunset.

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Argh, still wasn't feeling the greatest. :( The good news is that B was tired and we both slept until 10:30! That never happens!

I still tried to make a go of the day and do some yard work. Well, I think I overdid it and by late afternoon, I felt worse. Bummer!

Well, pizza for dinner it is. Ha ha ha! (It's been quite a while since we've ordered pizza and I have to say, it tasted SO yummy!)

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Church and a family BBQ at Jeremy and Crystal's today. Actually, Jeremy is out of town, so Ryan grilled on Jeremy's grill. Shhhh, don't tell him. :)

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Woke up not feeling the greatest, but hopefully it won't last too long, which means that I did a little yard work and then rested most of the day.

In the evening, the three of us walked to Ryan's parents' house and hung out for quite a while. Actually, we stayed much later than we should have, walking home just before 11:00. Getting out and walking was quite nice.

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B sporting daddy's sunglasses and hat at the Relay for Life in Vernal this evening.

 

Ryan and I got a mini date at the Relay while Auntie April watched B and we grabbed a bite to eat. It really is the little things. :)

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Fever is gone, but the sickness is here. Ugh! That means more "Frozen." I pretty much have that movie memorized. Ha ha.

On another note, we had our first official worship practice tonight, which was good. Great things are going to come out of this. I'm just sure of it. :)

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Well, B still has a low fever, so we basically spent our morning watching "Frozen." Twice. I'm still not sure what's going on with her since she isn't sick in any way other than the fever and acting pretty low key.

The good news for the day is that Ryan flew home today. B fell asleep within about 3 minutes after leaving my parents' house for the airport. Poor, tired girl.

On the way out of town after we picked up Ryan, she woke up briefly noticing Ryan was driving. Once she noticed it was him, she got a big ol' grin on her face then closed her eyes and fell back asleep. So sweet!

About the time we hit Heber, she woke up for good, which worked out really well since it was lunchtime. That means we were able to get out of the truck and enjoy a meal at Granny's rather than hitting a drive thru.

What else was great about stopping to eat in Heber is that is right near where my mom and dad were and they just happened to finish with their golf tournament at the same time we hit Heber. So, they were able to join us for lunch.

The last stop before home was Wal-mart in Heber and then home sweet home.

As always, it's great to be back together as a family.

Oh, we did play outside in the backyard a little before picking up Ryan. She decided to climb in the sand/water table. :)

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B still had a fever today, but seems to be feeling fine. Who knows. I thought that we were going to have to cancel our plans for today as well, but Dana decided that she and Jason would meet us at the park, so we could still play. Yippee! We met up with them late morning at Murray Park, let the kids play on the playground, and walked through the park while the kids ran. Such a fun couple of hours!

Then on our way home, B fell asleep in the truck, I stopped at Arctic Circle for lunch, and then we just hung out at my parents for the rest of the day.

This is how she was watching "Frozen" this morning. :)

My bro and I forgot to put the umbrella down last night...it got windy overnight and it ended up in the neighbors backyard. Oops.

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B didn't sleep so well last night. :( And she felt warm this morning like she had a fever, but I didn't bring our thermometer with us, so I'm not sure. 

Thankfully, Grandma and Grandpa were still willing to watch her, so I could have a little shopping and Starbucks time. :) Sprouts is my new favorite grocery store and Target is always a winner. Ha ha ha! Even if I spent a bit too much money at both...

My mom and dad then left to head up to Midway for their golf tournament for the next couple of days, leaving B and I to ourselves. Since B feels warm we cancelled our plans to see Missy and play with Zeke and baby Addy. So sad! But, I don't want to get baby girl sick since she is still only a few months old.

Although we were sad to miss out playing with them, my brother and Jensen came over to play with us, which was a lot of fun! Jensen and B played in the backyard and my brother and I had a good chance to hang out. It's been too long since just the two of us have had that chance.

Oh, and John brought over their thermometer and sure enough B has a low grade fever. Maybe just teething? Guess we'll see.

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B and I took Ryan to the airport this morning and much to B's delight there were a ton of planes landing both while driving in to and out of the airport. As one flew almost directly over us just above the freeway, she exclaimed, "It's going to bonk my truck!" Ha ha, yep, it was really close!

After dropping him off, we went with my parents to church, which was great. I really enjoyed the service as always and B enjoyed going to class with a bunch of kids her own age. Really thankful for the message and the music, I just wish Ryan had been there, too.

And, I am beyond thankful that we are all safe and for my dadda's quick reaction avoiding what could have been a pretty bad accident on our way to church.

John, Stacey, and Jensen came over in the late afternoon to hang out in the beautiful weather, let the kids play, and eat pizza. Have I ever mentioned how much I love being with my family?!

Playing on the caterpillar with Jensen

Enjoying strawberries after swimming

Mmmmm.....

Planting flowers with Grandma

Chillin' in the Elmo couch watching one of Grandpa's shows

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A planned trip out to visit my family for the day has actually turned into a few days in Salt Lake for  B and I while Ryan heads to the Bakken for a few days. A last minute trip is sending him up there and since we were already going to be in Salt Lake, he decided that he would just fly from there. Boo that Ryan has to go! Wahoo for time with family and friends in the city, though!

Today is kind of our getting together with my mom for Mother's Day and my dad for Father's Day, so we just hung around and enjoyed wonderful time with my family.

All of us did head to dinner at Hires, which is where Ryan chose for his birthday dinner from my mom and dad...finally. His birthday was in September. Ha ha! Hires is a family favorite and both Ryan and B got to taste it for the first time. :)

My brother brought me a wonderful, thoughtful gift (said sarcastically) of a pair of donated glasses left by someone who no longer needs them. Aren't they just beautiful... Apparently, they are very expensive, custom glasses. :)

Took this pic to send to Ryan after he left, just to make sure he'd return. Ha ha ha ha!

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Well, sleep was elusive last night. After getting B to bed so late and with a million thoughts racing in my head, I couldn't fall asleep until after 1:00. Then B woke up around 2:00 and didn't get back to sleep for about an hour. :( Oh sleep, I missed you last night. Ha ha.

Aryka and Ahlyvia were still here for a few hours this morning until April came and got them just after 10:00, which means that B had some more cousin entertainment for the morning. After not much sleep, that was very appreciated by me, as well as fun for her.

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With summer break starting for the kids, it's time for some extra fun cousin time. Ahlyvia came over to watch and play with B for a couple of hours. I'm thankful for cousins who like to come over and play with my sweet girl, because they are so much more fun to play with than momma. :)

This evening was our first scheduled worship practice. Ryan has taken the role of "worship leader" for lack of a better word, which means we will be practicing weekly and learning new songs. How exciting! Up until this point, no one really has had this particular role. I can't say how excited I am for this new approach and that there will be lots of new, more modern songs!

After that was over, Ryan picked B up from April's along with Aryka and Ahylvia to have a sleepover at our house. Somehow, I thought it would be a lot of fun, which it was til it was bedtime... Oh my!

B did NOT want to go to sleep even though it was past her bedtime. I think she was overly tired. Our thinking was that she would fall asleep in her bed if she thought her cousins were going to sleep in her room with her, so they came in to lay on her floor until she fell asleep. Nope. That didn't work.

Then we thought that she would fall asleep if she got to sleep in the bed with the girls and then we'd move her later. Nope again.

Shortly before 11:00, Ryan decided he would take her for a quick ride to get her to fall asleep. The quick ride turned into a long ride only to end with her waking and crying once he put her in her bed. Argh.

Thankfully, once I went in there and held her hand for a couple of minutes she was out. That is the latest she's ever gone to bed, finally falling asleep at 11:38. Yikes!

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B and I spent the whole day at home doing a whole lot of not much. :) Some days I enjoy not having to really get ready and just wear sweats and not wear any make-up.

Jumping on the trampoline and swinging on the swings were the highlights of our day. For good measure, I hopped up on the ladder again and did a bit more painting. Oh, and the kitchen is clean! Wahoo!

Ryan made it home from Colorado about 8:00 with a little dinner for all of us. I made sure to point out the clean kitchen, so he noticed before it was no longer clean. Ha ha ha!

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Another massage day. I'm definitely enjoying my Mother's Day present! And will be a few more times. :)

B went over to auntie Crystal's while I got my massage and then stayed over there to play for an hour or so afterwards. Then Crystal brought her back along with her two girls, so I could watch them while she went to a doctor's appointment.

Since Ryan left for Colorado this morning, I decided I'd rather not hang out alone and it would be more fun to have Crystal and the girls come back over for dinner, so that's what we did. :)

Oh, and I finally actually got up the guts to climb up the tall ladder with a bucket of paint to work on finishing priming the entryway. Once I got up there, it wasn't so bad. Ha ha ha.

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We spent Memorial Day in the mountains with some of Ryan's family, just hanging out, bbqing, and hiking around a bit. Such a beautiful day with a lot of sunshine, yet not too hot.

It's hard to see, but the white thing is a mountain goat! Pretty cool! At one point, he was joined by a momma and a baby goat, which was so cute!