Random October

This cute little pumpkin jar is another project Camille made in her art class.

I snapped this picture before school started. Bryce and Rachel just sat with the kitties before it was time to go to school.  Later that day, Kenya was hit by a car, so this picture is extra special.

Cousin Jeremy earned his Eagle Scout award.

Parker was so happy to be able to sit in the Eagle's nest! It was sort of funny at one point because the whole Eagle nest is supposed to repeat a portion of the Eagle pledge (or something) but the man leading them divided it into really long sentences and they couldn't remember what they were supposed to say. It was so funny and everyone was laughing.

Rachel's bday

If I threw a birthday party every year for each of my kids, I'd throw 90 parties. That's unsustainable. And expensive.

So early on, I decided I would through them a party when they turned

5

8

12

16 

and something special on 18.

That's 20 parties and 5 'something special's. Much more doable.

The problem is, the kids want parties and lots of them.

So this year, Camille decided to throw Rachel a party for her 11th birthday. She plans it all and gives me a shopping list.

Even though I'm still spending the money, its worth it to see Camille serve and help and care for Rachel. Worth every penny.

And the party was a huge success. Lots of friends. They played games and decorated brownie cupcakes.

They even had special ice cubes in their cups.

Rachel had a wonderful time and was so grateful to Camille, one of her best friends!

The day didn't end there though. Right after her party, we had our ward chili cook-off activity. Then Rachel left the party to go to another friend's bday party. 

Her favorite activity is loving her kitty, Mali.

After the Festival

After Apricot Festival, Camille went with Emily up to stay with Brook and her family in Cascade for a few days. They drove with Gpa Brown and Helen. They peppered him with questions and he showered them with stories, the whole way.

They had a lot of fun playing in the river, going to young women's together and staying up late talking.

While Camille was gone, Rachel was a little bored. She busied herself with baking a two-layer cake all by herself.

Color-Bots

Our awesome neighbor, Brian Schuster, invited us over to make robots. 

We had a small motor and batteries-

We attached the batteries to the motor with conductor cables and then the motor to a Pringles can. 

Then we attached markers.

The end result:

Performing Arts Camp 2018

I've always told my kids that I would do the Performing Arts Camp for as long as my kids want to do it. We had a nice big group this year and Camille was my co-director.

Our rehearsal got really exciting when the kids found two snakes up by the bunnies right in the middle of the practice. Sydney had to come and take care of them. 

One of the kids' favorite parts of the camp is when we paint the sets.

The younger cast did the play "Little Quack." Bryce was the narrator.

The younger cast performed "The Rainbow Fish." Rachel was the Blue Fish.

Both casts and the program. 

We pulled this program together in one week. It was a little crazy to choreograph and learn all the lines, prepare sets and costumes and still have fun and learn performance-based techniques. But the kids are hard workers and we had a lot of fun pulling it all together.

Last Day of School

The end of school is always marked by the Harvest Elementary dance festival. Camille was my partner. I dread the day when I go alone. 

Bryce danced with the 2nd grade. I thought I was recording but all I did was take a picture. Grrr.

Dance Fest Video

We gave our teachers these farewell gifts. 

Have a "KOOL" summer!

Clever idea, if I do say so myself.

Then we went to Hogle Zoo. It was a lot of fun!

We watched other people pay to feed the giraffe lettuce leaves.

A lot of animals were very active. I could have watched the orangutan for a long time!

And we DID watch the polar bear for a very long time.

Traditional Hogle Zoo picture!

End of school projects

We had lots of end of year projects for school.

Rachel did her county report on Beaver county. She made a diorama and a postcard.

Bryce had his egg drop. Together used some sponges to cushion the egg. Then we built a soft landing platform with straws. A grocery bag parachute topped it off. And his egg survived! It worked like a charm!

Egg Drop Video

To bid our teachers good-bye for the summer, we gave them a container of kool-aid with a nice little message. 

"Have a 'KOOL' summer!"

At the middle school, the last week is kind of a wash. They watch lots of movies and sign yearbooks. Camille didn't get a yearbook this year so...I took her hiking with me. We met a nice man who said he likes to give a gift to people who inspire him. He told us that seeing a mother and daughter hiking together was inspiring and he gave us matching bracelets that he and his wife made themselves.