6 months later...

 Not an update since March?! Oh my.... this blog/journal has taken the back burner, but I'll attempt to summarize the last six months and see if I can't get back on track.

I can't think of anything too memorable between March - May. The kids finished 1st and 2nd grade and that's about all I can say about that.

At the end of June we went to Yellowstone with Jon and Laura. I loved that we rented a 12 passenger van so we could tour the park together, not to mention Eleanor is a 4th grader so we got in free both days! We went to the Playmill where they showed "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" and the kids went home with some adorable stuffed animals (Colby and Beckham a rattlesnake each, Emmett a bison, and Logan a fluffy moose he lovingly calls Squishy and falls asleep with each night to this day).

We also conceived our 5th (and most likely last) baby!! We had a fun 4th of July camping at Rigby Lake and enjoying Rexburg Rapids and the Rexburg parade, but then the pregnancy symptoms set in. I had a rough go this pregnancy, a close second (behind Beckham's pregnancy) to the hardest 1st trimester of all. A nap would help with my fatigue, but nothing would help my nausea that often lasted all day with no reprieve. I remember wishing I could just throw up already so I could feel better. I only threw up once or twice, and the rest of the time was quite miserable. I'd actually have a good morning (usually) and be able to get one or two chores done...then the nausea would settle in and progress as the day went on. Woof....it was rough and it lasted clear THROUGH 14 weeks! I remember turning 14 weeks with Beckham and it was like a light switch went off: I could suddenly eat chicken again and felt completely normal. Not so with this baby - I hit 12 weeks hoping I would feel better, continued to suffer for two more weeks, and even then the nausea continued! But as week 14 went on I could sense it was loosening its hold on me, and by my 15 week mark I could say the nausea was gone with only a normal amount of pregnancy fatigue. 

I managed to take the kids camping by myself to Redfish when I was 13 weeks pregnant. I did okay! But was pretty tired and grouchy. We enjoyed two more Redfish trips: one with James and Bonnie and another with the Van Ettens. The kids made a makeshift fishing pole with their cousins and caught a bunch of fish in the river by our campground! When we went the next week with friends they brought actual fishing poles and were completely unstoppable. Emmett caught (and released) 33 fish! 

We started our homeschool back up: I've never been more confident in my decision to have my kids home with me, and the kids are proving me right every day by absolutely crushing their school work. They get writing, handwriting, spelling, math, and reading all done before lunch every day. I have science curriculum on the way and we'll start adding in social studies and science in the afternoons (along with our daily afternoon math practice). The kids are in running club right now. Logan got his first medal at the first race in Arco (he got 2nd place!) and has medaled at every meet since. Emmett is racing as a 3rd grader in the 3rd and 4th grade tier, so he's managed to medal some meets and experienced his first meet where he didn't medal (and Logan did). It was a tough lesson in being happy for his brother while working through his own disappointment. 

That's a wrap! We'll find out the gender of this baby in a few weeks! Justin booked our first family trip to Disneyland in November. 

February's Update: Mexico!

 The remainder of January: lots of cold, slow days. I love romanticizing these kids' homeschool experience.

check up time with the pediatrician

didn't get to him in time for a proper nap - he made due with the floor

I absolutely love these candid moments.

February was mostly prepping for Mexico, Mexico, and recovering from Mexico. But before we left we did have a few things going on: for co-op we had a tour of the post office and a Valentine's Day party. We had some really lovely homeschool moments - lots of progress with reading for both boys. We had a proper snow storm that allowed for building a humongous snowman with Justin. It was good I snagged a picture when I did because it soon toppled over after.

The time finally came to take our dream vacation! We went with the two older boys and Jon's family. What a gift Justin's work provides for us to be able to take these dream trips. I already look forward to when Colby and Beckham are big enough to come along with us. Justin's parents flew down to stay here at home with them so they were in the best hands possible while we were away.

Mercado buffet at Mexico Hotel - we met Jon and Laura for dinner.

The boys were troopers getting through customs. It was an absolute packed room with people fighting for position to even get in line. It made me so grateful we didn't have the two littles!

Day 1 was adventure day at Xcaret! We did all the things: lazy river, dolphin swim, snorkeling, pretty much we walked the majority of the park and experienced all the things. Our dinner reservation that night was the hibachi experience at one of the hotel restaurants. I had been looking forward to this dinner the most and it was everything I wanted and more: absolutely the best salmon I've EVER had!

Views from our hotel room

exploring the hotel

lazy river

matchy matchy

snorkel time

these kids enjoyed their cousins so much

dophin swim time!

butterfly exhibit

fancy dress for dinner time

this dress needed a solo shot

the kids were delightful in their reactions to trying all the new foods

Day 2 was Xplor! When Justin and I did this nearly 3 years ago, we couldn't do ANYTHING because I was pregnant with Colby! So this was redemption and it was my favorite of all the parks. Right away we did all the ziplines - what a thrill! The kids didn't have any hesitation at all as the park employees casually hooked them into position. I thought a parent would be going with them but nope - they said this one was two kids together or solo. They did great and we ziplined for the next two hours! It was so so fun. Logan was too short for the huge water slide but other than that we hit every other ride available. That night we had a later dinner so there was time for the kids to swim at the hotel pool when we were finished at the park. The pool was the perfect depth that allowed the kids to stand if they needed. They got tons of swim practice! At dinner the kids ordered multiple steaks and Jon and I shared a piglet. The amount of food we managed to consume this trip was truly amazing. No regrets.

I think I had about 10 pina coladas a day...these are so dreamy

 Day 3: our final adventure day! We hit the park Xsenses which I wasn't as excited about but Justin was, so, compromise. The first experience was a strange sensory deal that I immediately exited. Everyone else did it with no problems which is shocking to me. But anyway, we did a few water/mud activities before heading back to the hotel for lunch. We his the playa restaurant and enjoyed time at the beach before transferring over to the pool once more. I enjoyed a slower afternoon where the kids could just enjoy. Dinner was at the caves las cuevas with alllll the meats! Jon was in heaven - it was very fun to snag a piece of any meat that would come around. The kids were in heaven - they really thrived with all the buffet style food. We said goodbye to Jon and Laura since we were headed home the next day and they were headed to Xel-ha and the ruins early the next morning.

Emmett made a friend right away with a boy his age - Ethan from Kentucky - who helped him find cereal at the breakfast buffet. They reunited the next day and got to swim for hours together! So fun.

Thursday was the last day. We had time in the morning so we used it up by letting the kids swim. The rest of the day was an exhausting travel day of missed connections, reroutes, rental cars, and finally home. But the whole day if I started to feel discouraged I just reveled in the joy of all the experiences we had just had. Truly what a gift this time was, a gift homeschool is to give us this freedom and flexibility, a gift to spend time together. Typing it out now my heart is so full. Grateful grateful grateful.

Here were the professional photos from all the parks!

The rest of February we acclimated back to reality. We managed to watch the girls and boys districts - one before our trip and one after. We are officially MELTING over here. Spring is just about here and we are so happy to have more time outside - though the mess does make me a crazy lady for about a month. The kids wrapped their rec basketball season. Emmett managed to score in all his games - his league is the biggest and most competitive and he is on the younger side so that was fun for him! Logan dominated scoring multiple hoops each game, him being on the bigger side and a smaller league. We are proud and happy for them! The big kids have been more interested in exercising with us lately so a few times a week we take one or both of them to workout with us. There was a day after our trip where I had appointments in Idaho Falls and Rexburg for the kids, so we killed some time at the Aquarium and had the whole place to ourselves! 

For March we are doing private swim lessons at the Browning's pool. It's a three hour drive round trip - a HUGE effort! - but they are making it worth it. They will be confident swimmers soon!