The Great Flood and Soccer!

Last week Rexburg had a massive amount of rain and hail--2 inches in 2 1/2 hours--and being a deseret climate, we had a flash flood. Because of our righteousness we survived and received no damage. :-)

No, it was a crazy freak storm and amazing to watch. I couldn't believe the flooding on the BYU-I campus though, and it will take them weeks to fix the damage. Here are a few pictures of how we dealt with the Flood of 2014:

We also started soccer last week. Unfortunately, the games were cancelled due to the storm and then the standing water on the fields, so we started this week. Cooper is aggressive as ever, and has also proven to be a great keeper. Not one ball got through while he was tending the goal! Amazingly enough, after the game he STILL has energy to run around.

Cooper before his game. 

Cooper at the goal. He saw me looking his way and posed as I clicked the shutter.

 Amelia has improved vastly from last year. She is much more aggressive and goes after the ball with purpose. It could have something to do with the fact I told her to chase the ball like it was wrapped in $20 dollar bills.......just sayin'. Either way, she's really enjoying it too!

Amelia after her game. Poor girl was so hot!

Here's Amelia starting off the game. I like her pink socks, it helps me keep track of her on the field!

That's it for now! We are pluggin' away through the summer and enjoying each day. The students are gone for 7 fabulous weeks, and Andy will be home soon! So much to be excited about! Happy almost-August!

Swimming Marathon

Our swimming lesson marathon is over! Last night, around the time we usually left for lessons, we all just looked at each other and didn't really know what to do. That'll change tomorrow because SOCCER begins. Luckily that will end the week before Katie and David arrive, and then Andy!

I posted this video that mashed together all the videos I took. It's about 5 minutes long, so don't feel like you need to watch it all. I did, but I like watching my kids. :-)

                           


Here are a few pictures I took:

Cooper with their teacher, Brady. Amelia is poised to do her kneeling deck dive.

Cooper just after his deck dive.

Amelia retrieving the ring from the bottom of the pool after diving in.

I love this picture. Not only because of Amelia's expression, but because six weeks ago she wouldn't put her face in the water at all.

Final report: Amelia is good to go, just needs to practice, practice, practice. Cooper could do with a few more weeks of lessons, but I'm waiting until next summer because he was a little burned out. I think I'll still do private lessons with him, because he focused much better. Overall, I'm SO proud of both of them! They worked really hard and loved every minute of it!

Onto soccer!!

Spy Games

This week for school we learned about spies and spy games. I showed them pictures of the CIA and explained there are real spies, and gave them some basic training on how to be a good spy. To go along with it, I made up spy I.D.'s and "missions" for Amelia and Cooper so they could test out the things they've learned and report their missions to the agent in charge.(That's me. I tried to get them to call me Agent Bon Jovi, but they refused.)

Amelia's (Agent Jane) began with retrieving a secure cell phone from the drop-off point and receiving a text explaining her mission. She was then required to collect clues and fulfill her mission without being seen by the enemy or civilians. Her super spy strength was eavesdropping (those of you who know her well understand the truthfulness of that).  Here's a few pictures taken from our secure surveillance footage:

Can you see her?

Observing foot traffic and patterns.

The coast is clear--retrieving the diamond!

Success for Agent Jane!

Agent Jane MISSION REPORT

Status: SUCCESSFUL

I wasn’t seen by enemies or citizens during my mission. Decoding the message was the easiest part of the mission and helped me to recover the diamond. I used my eavesdropping skills to avoid capture and gather information concerning the mission.

Agent Jane

Cooper's super spy strength was ninja speed. Cooper's mission began with a video message from the agent in charge. After following several clues, dispatching guards, and evading enemy capture, he successfully recovered the stolen money. Again, here are the secure surveillance footage of his mission:

Preparing to leave the safehouse.

His stealth and speed is astounding.

Dispatching the guard, Billy Bob Joe (our garden gnome). 

Success!

Agent Flynn MISSION REPORT

Status:  SUCCESSFUL

I was not seen by enemy spies or civilians. I found a way to get past the guard watching over the money, Billy Bob Joe. I used my training and special spy skill of ninja speed to knock Billy Bob out and retrieve the money. That is my report. 

Agent Flynn

It was a fun activity and Amelia and Cooper really enjoyed it. After their missions were complete, they continued to use their newly acquired spy skills to retrieve the mail, steal my phone without my knowledge, and "blend in" as normal children with our neighbors while gathering intel on the shifty stranger walking past. (A college student walking to class).

My Super Spies!

                                   I'm not sure what we'll so next.........I'm tired! :-)

4th of July Weekend 2014

Our Fourth of July was a very long, hot, fun day. It began at 5:45am for me, running over to the park to save seats for Cooper and I to watch the parade. After the kids woke up, we got ready and quickly drove to the beginning of the parade to drop Amelia off. She was dancing with her dance class in the parade. Wait---did I just write I "quickly" dropped her off? Oh dear. Has anyone ever dropped someone off at the beginning of a parade? Well, the 2 mile trip took us 25 minutes. Yeeeeeaaaaaaaah.

So, because of the slight delay Cooper and I got back to our seats and only waited about fifteen minutes for the parade to reach us. Cooper had a good time without Amelia there, and caught candy and even a t-shirt. After Amelia's float came by, we packed up (it was already 91 degrees) and went to meet Amelia. we headed home to our lovely air-conditioned abode and ate lunch. After lunch, I made the kids take naps by threat of not watching fireworks that night, and I got ready to head to Blackfoot. Here are some pictures of our morning:

Cooper ready to fight for his candy. And fight he did.

Amelia posing in her dance outfit for the parade. Cooper photo-bombed her picture.

Amelia after the parade. She was tired, hot, but happy with her parade debut.

After arriving in Blackfoot, we hung out with cousins and had a BBQ with family. Then it was FINALLY time to set off some fireworks.

After we exhausted our supply, we watched the firework show put on by the city with friends in the park. It was a great end to a very long, exciting and patriotic day!

We stayed over for Sunday because this guy was getting blessed:

And here's (as Amelia would say) an ADORABLE video of her and Coltman just chatting. I have to agree with her on this one--he is adorable.

After Coltman's blessing, we hung out with family (everyone except the non-Idaho dwellers) before heading home. It was a fun, crazy weekend I'd be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to some downtime.....oh wait. Soccer starts this week. Onward!

Weekly Report

This week has been a little busy because of the 4th of July tomorrow. We still managed to fit in a couple fun things, along with the swimming lessons Amelia and Cooper are still taking. This week and next are private lessons and Cooper is improving leaps and bounds. Amelia was already swimming well after her group lessons, so now she is perfecting dives, strokes, and breathing. Luckily, no more cases of swimmer's ear have occurred so we are all happy!

Yesterday we did a Sharpie-handkerchief-alcohol art project. They had a great time and ended up with some cute handkerchiefs:

We also hung out at the park before the temperatures skyrocketed:

And checked out some elk along the side of the road:

   Tomorrow is the full-day celebration of the 4th, complete with a parade, BBQ, and fireworks!

Just a Week...

It's amazing what we can pack into a week! First off, here's a few pictures of Amelia at the temple. She took them for Activity Days and then painted a frame to put one in. Isn't she photogenic?

Our neighbors had a yard sale today, and it's pretty hard to resist deals that are six feet from our front door. We ended up with a remote-controlled truck for Cooper (he's almost run the batteries down already),a jewelry box for Amelia, and four books per child. I was thrilled when they made a bee line for the piles of books and complained about my 4-limit rule.

We also built a fort yesterday and Amelia and Cooper slept in it last night. I didn't think they'd make it through the night, but they did----even sleeping in a little. Of course, the giggling went far past their bedtime, which could have contributed a bit to the sleeping in! I didn't mind; it was fun to listen to.

To end our school week, we visited the flood museum because we'd been studying floods and how they occur. I thought the kids would blow through the small museum in under an hour, but they were very interested in the flood section as well as the Idaho history section, and we spend a little over an hour and a half there.  In the children's room, they made teepees and headbands, while playing on the little "apartment".

Cooper comes in peace.

Amelia's not tired, she's doing her war cry. I told her she needs to look a little more fierce.

The balcony (apartment) in the children's room.

       Next up: more swimming lessons, soccer, visits to a waterfall, and Fourth of July celebrations!

Take Me Out to the Ball Game....

In keeping with my goal to give my children different life experiences, we went to an Idaho Falls Chukar game last night. It was......well.....definitely an experience. No, it was a lot of fun, it just had a few bumps as most new experiences do. We rushed home from Cooper's swimming lesson (Amelia's been benched all week with swimmer's ear), ate dinner, and drove to Idaho Falls. We grabbed our tickets and received our free ball caps for being the first 500 people. We discussed seating, including where the most likely place was for a foul ball to come flying at us at over 85 miles an hour. After a brief discussion, Amelia and Cooper wanted to be by the first base line.

 
I pointed out the sun would likely be in our eyes for an hour or two, but that didn't deter them. Until we sat down.

 They are happy in this picture, but fifteen minutes later Amelia had her hat on, and Cooper was complaining about "the sun burning a hole in his head". However, the game soon began and they were distracted by the sound effects, video screen and over priced cotton candy their saintly mother bought them:

 Thankfully, the sun dropped below the trees eventually and after moving to sit between Amelia and Cooper, we spent four happy innings cheering, groaning, and screaming when instructed. We even had a quiet chat about people around us, and how they sometimes say words we shouldn't, especially when a batter struck out. Cooper wanted to write them down so he wouldn't forget, but I suggested he just ask me if he ever came across a questionable word.

By the end of the fifth inning, Cooper was DYING of thirst (Amelia was intent on the game) so he and I made a trip to the concession stand for refreshment. It only being the fifth inning, I splurged on a large diet Pepsi in hopes it would fortify me for the innings to come.

The sixth and seventh innings were full of trying to catch foul balls, waving and laughing at the Chukar mascot (a huge chicken). However, the top of the eighth brought Cooper to the end of his patience and enjoyment of the game. Amelia tried to distract him by telling him to watch for stars, the moon, etc. Cooper looked at her, eyebrows raised and said, "Amelia. I am a player and a sleeper, not a watcher. I like to play and I like to sleep, I don't like to watch."

With that declaration, a quick peek showed it was ten o'clock, so we waited for the inning to end and headed home with Amelia exclaiming every few steps, "I can't believe 34 struck out!" and "That one guy was totally safe!" I had my hands full trying to commiserate with her while keeping a firm hand on Cooper because he wanted to go "tackle that chicken for not throwing me a t-shirt."

During the walk to our car, the late night tiredness manifested itself in my sweet children as Cooper began to suddenly laugh hysterically, so hard he couldn't make a sound and his face turned bright red. I asked what was so funny, and he replied, "I'm leaving a trail of stink!" Amelia giggled and  immediately began to leave her own trail, and I was grateful no one was walking behind us.

The insanity continued as we reached the car, buckled in, and headed home. Cooper's trail of stink changed to an "atomic bomb" of stink, which he was considerate enough to give us a countdown--three times. With the windows down, we continued on our way.

Amelia added to the insanity by making silly comments, followed by loud, maniacal laughter and exclaiming over and over, "I am so hi-LAR-ious!!" Their conversation deteriorated even more, singing songs with words like "toilet", "poo-poo", and "underwear" inserted. After listening for ten miles, I finally reprimanded for the potty talk, but was secretly impressed and proud of their creativity and prose.

The night was a success, and was a memory I doubt we'll ever forget......and might even repeat sometime!