Bear Lake 2013

In July we traveled to Bear Lake for the annual Swanson Family Reunion.  This year Dan and Jen were in charge of planning and they found an awesome cabin that was big enough to fit all 19 of us. What a great time we had, and I always look forward to getting away and spending quality time with the family.

 

The first afternoon/evening we enjoyed good food, a pinata, and the kids rode bikes---until most of them crashed.  Our poor "city" kids aren't used to gravel/dirt roads and hills. Games were played and more food was consumed.

 

The second day was filled with crafts, games, shooting off the home-made rockets, and more food.  Devin left to go metal detecting which ended up being ALL day!!! AND I found out a few weeks later that he actually drove and got himself a shake and fries: that's awesome!  Thanks for bailing-leaving me with all of the kids-and stuffing your face. 

 

The third day we woke up, put on our crafty shirts, took photos, than hurried to the beach.  This was so much fun!!!! We had a wonderful location, rented  a jet ski, perfect weather, and the kids couldn't get enough of it.  My brother talked mom into taking a jet ski ride and they ended up tipping it over.  I've tipped over before and it is nearly impossible to get back up.  They began to push it back in.  I decided that I was super swimmer/wonder women and swam out to "help". Once I got out there I realized that I'm not a lot of help and that jet ski is HUGE when you're in the water attempting to get it back to shore.  Everyone finally made it back---and I'm thinking that my family should just avoid water.  My dad almost drowned in the ocean, I've almost drowned and cracked my back, now my mom gets dumped in the middle of Bear Lake.  Hmmmmmm----  I was also amazed that not 1 person, boat, or jet ski came over to see if help was needed.  We packed up right  before a rain storm hit and decided to get some yummy shakes.  How wonderful!!!  More food was eaten and more games were played.

 

The trip always ends too quickly.  We had so much fun and can't wait for the next one.

 

 

Pinata time 

 Josh took his metal detector too.  He actually found some pennies BUT 3 of them were pennies I threw down while he wasn't looking.  teeheehee

 

Rocket time.  I had a great idea on how to paint our family rocket but Kyra had other painting plans.

 

 

T-shirt decorating time.  YEAH!!!!!!  Cortlynn loves the craft and Tristan gets bored with it after 5 minutes.  They turned out cute.

Aunt Nicole is the "cool" aunt because she took the kids down to the volleyball pit and played volleyball.

I think the caterpillar was the most exciting part.

 

 Grandpa found and purchased a pellet gun that shot water based pellets.  Since it's not fun to shoot at rocks-he also found scary zombie targets.  "the Dead" as Kyra called them: yes, she would be referring to "The Walking Dead"



 

 

I took Tristan out on the jet ski and he cried the entire time.  I think I scared him.  ;-(

Here is mom and Dan  leaving with smiles on their faces.  Here is mom and Daniel tipping over.

All 3 of us girls were a little concerned. 

 Mom is safely in her "favorite" child's arms.

 

Devin took Cortlynn out and I was stressed the ENTIRE time.  I still don't know where they went.  They disappeared; probably went and had a shake and fries.  (yes, I am a little bitter)

 

Not sure who had more fun-the kids or uncle Dan on the jet ski

 

Kyra hated the water.  She didn't want to get in it, touch it, touch the sand.....wanted nothing to do with it.  BUT-after a while, she actually began to play in it and have fun.  She didn't want to leave.

 

Yep-metal detector.  Can we go anywhere without it?   Nope

I really have no words except that she is not allowed out of the house.

Daniel's Family

Nicole

 

Heather's Family

My mom had a larger print of the family photo done and Nicole's shirt is so close to Heather's family shirt color that she actually looks like she could be a sister wife.  ;-)  I also LOVE how Kyra is hugging her brother.  Too cute.

The entire Swanson Clan

Grandma and Grandpa with all of the grandkids.

 

Nicole with the kiddoes

 

This one would be us

 

Still smiling after 39 yrs

Chronicles of the McIntire swimming pool

This summer Tristan took swimming lessons and needed to practice a little bit more.  Devin and I discussed it and decided to purchase a larger pool for the family.  I found a REALLY good deal at Fred Meyer and picked up a large family pool.  (my brother has had the exact same pool for almost 3 years and loves it)  Anyway-we looked around the yard and found a level-or so we thought-section to lay out the pool.  This process took me 2 days.  It is quite large and I couldn't do it by myself; had to wait for Devin to have a day off.  Once it was set up I began the fill up process.  Holy Moly!!!!!  This took an entire day: over 12 hours.  FOREVER!!!!  All of the kids wanted to swim that day-but once it was full it was after 10:30pm.   The following day we realized that the ground isn't very level and unfortunately the pool lays funny. The directions state that you should empty the pool, make the ground level, and fill again.....ummmmm NO!!!   We enjoyed swimming in it for a few days, swam in it after Brynlee's blessing and just had a great time.  I began to notice that the pool would lose water fast and it continued to happen almost every other day.  I was so tired of feeling up the pool and dreaded the water bill.  Early one morning Devin discovered that the lower side would lose water and fold in, therefore ALL the water would stream out. By the time we went out in the afternoon the ground would already be dry. THAT was why I had to keep filling it up.  I put more air into the rim and had a few days of no water loss. 

 

I decided that I should hook up the filter----note to self--this should be done prior to the pool being full.  The water kept shooting out the hoses until I had Tristan hold them above his head.  Finally had everything hooked up.  Later that day I heard a weird noise and went outside--well-the hose fastener wasn't as tight as I thought and the hose came off-water was EVERYWHERE!  Thankfully not in our basement.  I was able to fix it and the kids enjoyed the pool once again.

 

They enjoyed it until a few weeks ago when Kyra and Cortlynn went out to swim.  I went out to pull off the cover and get any leaves out of the pool.  I noticed that there were floaters in the pool.  They weren't floaters; they were something else.  Some sort of bug, worm, parasite, something that shouldn't be in a swimming pool.  I used the skimmer for well over an hour and was getting no where.  This was disgusting!!!!!  I called my brother, sent him a photo, and we couldn't really figure out what they could be.  I googled parasites in pools, worms in pools, and happened to come across photos of  mosquito larvae in pools:  BINGO! That is what we have.  GROSS! NASTY! Now what do I do?   Devin and I both continued to skim the larvae out of the pool and couldn't get over how terribly disgusting it was.   The next day I went to PETCO and purchased 35+ goldfish. Yes-goldfish. Thanks to GOOGLE, I discovered that the fish will eat the larvae.  YEAH.  I let the fish feed on the nastiness for a few days and decided to treat the pool.  I couldn't see any fish and wondered where they could have gone but decided to treat it anyway.  I get a bowl of water and pour in the Shock treatment: all of a sudden it started to foam and let off horrible fumes.  I ran outside-dropping white foam all over the deck and yard-while trying not to breathe in the fumes because it was burning my throat.  I poured it in, came in the house, and noticed the huge warning on the bag stating DONOT premix and inhaling fumes can be harmful.  NICE---I'm an idiot once again.

 

I looked out an hour later and all the poor little fishies surfaced and were floating at the top.  Now I had to skim dead fish out of the pool.  Kyra was fascinated by the dead fish.  She still goes outside to try to find them.  Once the larvae and fish was gone--now came the algae.  AWESOME!!! 

 

I'm happy to say that today, over 2 weeks later, the kids can once again enjoy swimming in the pool.  That is until I pack it up for the winter which will be happening in just a few weeks.  I am hopeful that I've learned the tricks and all the "kinks" have been worked out so next year-we can enjoy it without all of the issues.



 

 



Notice how lopsided the pool is.

The following 2 photos are of the larvae.  I took them on the second day-I wish I had taken photos the first night with my camera--literally HUNDREDS if not THOUSANDS of  them.

 

 

Not good photos-but these are a few of the fish

 

more fishies

It's been ONE YEAR, and still isn't any easier.

Tomorrow is the 1 yr anniversary of my grandpa's death and then 6 days later is the 1yr anniversary of grandma's death.  I can't believe it has been a year already.  It seems like it was just yesterday.  I remember exactly what I was doing, what I was wearing, how I felt, I even remember the smells in the air, at the very moment  the dreaded phone call came. 

The last few days have been so difficult.  Granted- the lack of sleep makes my emotions that much worse and I've suffered with depression for years; but WOW!!!! (really wish I could take my happy pills)   So not expecting the emotions I've been experiencing.  I feel bad for my family having to deal with my grumpiness, the crying, the lack of patience.....Unfortunately I can't just run away and hide.  Nope-I have to keep it together.

I wasn't thinking and scheduled an appointment for a health checkup tomorrow.  Based on the results-the insurance coverage/company reimbursement is decided for the upcoming year.  Great! Not looking forward to the day to begin with and now I'm going to be told my BMI is too high, my waist circumference is too high, I'm overweight, and I could be skinnier (doesn't matter that I had a baby 16wks ago).  Keep a happy face---Keep a happy face.

I don't know what I was expecting: maybe that the loss wouldn't still hurt so much.  I still smell grandma in my house at random times and places--causes tears to run down my face.  Tonight I saw a hummingbird and than there was some beautiful lightning--these made me think of grandpa; again tears flowed freely.

I'm so thankful for the many years I had with both of them and the memories I get to hold onto.  I'm also so thankful for the beautiful tribute video my aunt put together:  when I'm having a really hard time-I watch it: have a good cry and end up smiling.

I sure do miss you grandpa and grandma!!!

So Long Level 1.

This summer Tristan really wanted to play baseball.  Well-the city changed the program and I found out 3 months late.  There were absolutely no baseball teams he could be on for the summer--who would have thought sign up would take place in March.  He was bummed, I felt bad, and we didn't know what to do.  I thought maybe swimming lessons would be a good idea.  Cortlynn took them for close to 5//6 years with her daycare and he has had 0.  I began to research and again came up empty.  Seriously--why can't I sign my kids up for summer activities when it is summer???  So-I checked out the Blackfoot pool and lesson schedule.  YEAH! I found a class for him.  Granted I had to drive him to Blackfoot Mon-Thurs for two weeks, but he was excited. 

 

He was quite nervous during each class because it was pretty much the first time he had been in a pool.  He learned different skills but didn't have the confidence.  The final day-came and this was the day they tested the skills.  Well-he didn't quite pass and was so upset.  I told him how proud I was of him and that he learned a lot.  I also told him that he just needed to practice and I would sign him up for another 2 week session.  We decided to purchase a pool (that story to come in a few days) and signed him up for a session 3 weeks later.

 

The second session was like Night and Day.  WOW!  His confidence level was out if this world.  He did all the skills within the first couple of days.  Swimming under water, back float, front float, etc--nothing was out of Tristan's reach.  The final day came and he had already passed off everything prior so he just watched.  When I gave him his certificate at the end-he was so happy!

 

Tristan-we are so proud of you!  CONGRATS!



 



Tristan was "rescuing" another child

Here I come LEVEL 2!

Brynlee's special day

On Sunday  July 14, 2013 we were able to bless our beautiful little girl.  Since our church starts at 8:30am-we decided to have a small, intimate blessing at our house.  Brynlee was blessed in our back yard in front of family and a few friends from church.  It was a wonderful blessing.  It was quite hot, but I hope everyone enjoyed themselves.  After the blessing, we enjoyed ham sandwiches on homemade rolls and everyone that came brought food to enjoy.  I couldn't have asked for a better "blessing" day.  The kids even had the chance to swim in our pool and had a great time.  Thanks to everyone that traveled and was able to celebrate Brynlee's special day with us!

 

 

Devin's "crazy" sisters!

I cannot get enough of her HUGE smiles.

 

Daddy and Brynlee

 

Grandpa Swanson was able to give Brynlee a beautiful blessing

 

Happy grandparents

Josh, Daniel, Grandpa Swanson and Grandpa McIntire were able to stand in the circle

Everyone chillin with Bishop Stratford

Grandpa McIntire and Brynlee.  He actually put her to sleep.

My beautiful family.

waiting for the food



Enjoying the pool

 

The WHY'S of Motherhood

At night when I should be sleeping, I find myself sitting in bed, waiting for Brynlee to fall asleep and thinking of multiple "WHY" questions.  Seriously-I swear my brain goes on overdrive once the clock reads midnight.  I'm not looking for a pity-party (ok, maybe a little bit teeheehee) but I am going to post a few of my WHY questions.

WHY do other peoples children enjoy the car seat? My children will scream, cry, become so out of control that I will:
   -Stay home and not go anywhere
   -Pull the car over, squeeze my fat butt between both car seats, and than plop a boob in her mouth
   -Continue to drive until she screams so loud she poops EVERYWHERE (that is one way for her to get out of the seat isn't it?)  This occurs at least once a week.
    -Continue to drive with the radio turned up to muffle her cries as well as mine.

WHY do my children go all day ignoring me until I am on the phone or decide to actually take a shower or use the bathroom?

WHY am I the only one that can walk into the room and smell a dirty diaper?  I'm talking about diapers that could kill flowers 60 miles away.  (Wait-I know the answer; if you admit to smelling it than you would have to change it)

WHY do people still door my vehicle even when I park far away AND there is ample space closer? But no-let's park by the McIntire car and swing our doors open as fast and hard as we can.

WHY---while going to a movie I've wanted to see for months the most annoying people decide to sit by us?  If I take little children to a movie, I make sure to sit by an aisle so I can leave quietly, without disturbing others if needed.  These people took small children to World War Z---came to our row (mind you, there was a TON of seats everywhere) and demanded to walk thru.  The problem with this-Brynlee was in her car seat, asleep on the floor at my feet.  I actually had to yell at the women and hit her legs so she wouldn't step on her.  This wasn't all of it---throughout the movie---this women kept going out with her kids-thus making it so we had to keep lifting the seat out of the way.  Needless to say this woke Brynlee up and royally pissed me off.  WHY sit in the middle?  WHY come out our side when you know we have a small one and have to move everything?  WHY don't you go out the other side of the row? 

WHY do I feel guilty if I buy myself a package of gummy peaches and hide them in my room so I don't have to share with anyone?

WHY---if and when I actually try to lay down and take a much needed nap-that is the time Cortlynn's friends will call (and if no one answers they keep calling, and calling, and calling) or the neighbor kids bang on the door?  Bang, BAng, BANg, BANG!!!

WHY is it that I swear every time I go thru a drive thru because I have little kids in the car sleeping or I just don't want to take all the kids inside-I still have to park and go inside because they have messed up the order or forgot something?

WHY is it that my 6yr old won't eat anything at our house other than fruit, hot dogs, corn, and yogurt but will try other food while he's at the neighbors?

WHY do the kids not keep their rooms clean and actually had the nerve to tell me I should tell them that they shouldn't "Trash their rooms" because that's what the neighbors mom and dad say?

WHY is Paula Deen being put thru such a ringer? (I don't like the word she used and can completely understand how people are angry)  BUT--poor lady.  Quentin Tarintino's movie that was nominated for an Oscar said the word over 125 times.  He also said the word a lot while promoting the movie.  I watched an episode of Little House on the Prairie the other day and one of the characters said it 4 times in less than 5 minutes.  I don't like it and I would never say it or allow my children to say it--but some of the other things so-called celebrities say and do are 100 times worse.

WHY do people that I only know because they work at the store with Devin think it is appropriate to ask me if I'm nursing and then tell me that I will soon have my body back to normal?

WHY do I still feel like I'm doing something wrong while nursing in public?  I'm always covered up and nothing is ever shown-but I still feel the stares of the people around me.  One of these days I'm going to lose my cool and ask them why are you staring at me; this is what God intended these to be used for.  When there is a man  with his nasty man boobs hanging out, who is picking his nose, clipping his nails, and licking his fingers while eating BBQ ribs: not one person stares at him in disgust.

WHY is the 6week follow up appointment with the doctor after having a baby so important to a man?  Believe me-what is on my mind is NOT what is on your mind. 

WHY does JAck in the Box think it's okay to make their commercials the way they do?  I shouldn't have to explain to my kids the hidden meaning of the adds when they ask.  I don't think it's appropriate for the commercials to promote phone sex or sexting.  Even the radio commercials are crappy.  (I'm not a "prude", I just don't find them funny)

WHY didn't I cherish my long showers that I would take before I had children?  Now I'm lucky to get a 5 minute shower and there are times I can honestly say I don't remember the last time I had one.  (don't worry, I'm not walking around with a cloud of yuck around me. I just wish I could take a shower every day or even every other day)

I better end my WHY ranting because I really think I could probably go on forever.  Maybe I won't be troubled by these at night since I got them off my chest.

SIDE NOTE:  Here is a photo of my haircut.  Don't look at the dark circles under my eyes-just take a look at how short I cut it.