Caught up?
While we were away on vacation, there was a huge hailstorm at home. We’re thankful for our friends that were looking out for us and made sure all of our broken skylights and windows were covered with tarps and kept us posted on what was going on here.
Aside from the hailstorm, we’ve had quite a bit of rain this summer. One evening we were treated to a double rainbow right out our front door.
We no longer have baby chicks, as when we returned they looked much more like full grown chickens. Our rooster, Angel, had started crowing at 5:30am though, so he is no longer with us. While we had planned on eating him for dinner, he was still kinda scrawny, so he now resides with other chickens out at the stables, where he won’t bother anyone with his early morning calls.
Before we left on vacation, Caemlyn and Zephram did a splash n dash (200yd swim/3K run) with me. Caemlyn did them last year, but this was Zephram’s first time. Caemlyn went off on her own, but I waited for Zeph after I got out of the pool and pulled him along on the run. He’s not fast, but he did it! After vacation, the 3 of us did 2 more splash n dashes. The last one, Zeph had to do all on his own so I could do the longer course (400yd swim/5K run) in preparation for the upcoming triathlon. He has a hard time pushing himself, so after I was done and tired of waiting, I ran back a ways and pulled him in to the finish. We didn’t take pics at any of these, but the sponsors of the event got at least one pic of Caemlyn.
Caemlyn runs
Our annual camping trip to Camp May was successful. One of these years we’ll remember how cold it still gets at night that high up in the mountains and bring wool socks and extra blankets for the kids. True to tradition, I also ran home. 2000 foot drop in elevation over about 4 miles is brutal.
Our local rodeo was this past weekend. Caemlyn, staying true to her adventurous spirit, won a t-shirt for chasing down a calf and pulling a ribbon off the tail. Zeph and Kez also tried (along with lots of other kids), but weren’t successful.
Now I think I’ve got us pretty much caught up. Just in time too since school starts back up on Monday.
Kauai
While the kids had their extended stay at Grandma & Grandpa’s, Justin and I took a wonderful vacation to Hawaii. We stayed on the island of Kauai, and it was beautiful, amazing and so much fun. There was so much to see and do. I took a ton of pics, but just chose a “few” of my favorites to share.
The view from our hotel room
Waimea Canyon and falls
Amazing view of the azure ocean
We went ocean kayaking – 17 miles along the Na Pali Coast
Zipline adventure
Boogie boarding
So many waterfalls and amazing scenery
4th of July
The kids got to take an extended vacation at Grandma & Grandpa Stubz this year. While we were there, we got to celebrate Independence Day together.
The day started off with a childrens’ parade downtown…
with lots of cousins..
There was lots of swimming and jumping on the trampoline, and the day ended with a great fireworks show in the street. (Thanks Grandpa and Uncle Jared!)
There were even sparklers at the end! We don’t get to do fireworks like this here in the desert, so it’s fun for the kids.
Happy Birthday 9.0
Zephram is now 9 years old. He had his birthday way back in June, but life has been crazy. Zeph is my smartie pants, but I’m grateful that he doesn’t just do well in academics, but has an amazing grasp of the scriptures and gospel as well. And, he still believes his mom can do anything. 
