Finally Five!!

J Man turned five in July. He had his first friend birthday party. It was car themed. We played some games and had a lot of fun with his friends. Happy Birthday big guy!!

Uncle Clayton's Visit

Richard's brother Clayton came for a visit in July. We had the time of our lives with him. We spent a day at the river, one day going to the temple (Uncle Clayton treated everyone to ice cream afterwards), one day was the deck project , another day the kids went with Clayton to the college amphitheater and performed parts from Romeo and Juliet. We went to a car show and picked berries to make pie and jam.

After all this fun, the best part of the trip was the days we spent camping on the coast. We got to see the Haceta Head light house, tide pools, and camped in a great campground. The kids took a hike with Dad and Clayton which ended up being more like the trail of tears. They also made some sweet sand castles and tunnels. We took about 500 pictures. It was a vacation to be remembered.

Fourth of July with the Betteridges

For the fourth of July my sister Annette and her family came down in "Old Busted Hotness" (their motor home) for a visit. It was so much fun. We had a day on the river, a day at a friend's pool swimming and of course fireworks on the fourth which we watched from a hill up above our house. Annette and I revived the old fourth of July medley that our family has sung for years. Also, I got some great training tips from Russ for the triathlon that I am training for. It was a great time for everyone.

Berries

Today we went with our friends to pick raspberries. I made some great little berry picking buckets out of milk cartons and all of the kids filled their containers at least once. It was sooo much fun. The weather was great and all the kids really enjoyed themselves. And just look at the setting. Have you ever seen a more beautiful place? After picking, my friend Marci taught me to make raspberry freezer jam. It was quick and so easy. A perfect summer day!!!!

Great Changes

This haircut looks great, but it is what you can't see in this picture that I am most excited about. Baby R is POTTY TRAINED....FINALLY!!! Wahoo, I think this calls for a celebration. No more diapers at our home. Dad said he is so excited not to ever have to change a diaper again. He is hoping someone at church will ask to borrow a diaper just so that he can say, "WE DON'T HAVE DIAPERS ANYMORE!!"

Frugal Father's Day

We had a super father's day. It was a little tricky because Dad didn't want us to spend any money. So the kids made cards, we washed his car and made it look great, made him a super yummy dinner and did our best to let him relax all day. It was a great day.The card was made by Little L.
This man was made by Mr. M. It makes me laugh looking at the eyes and long limbs. Great job Mr. M.

Hurried Hike

We invited some fun friends to go on a hike with us yesterday. It was a short 1 mile hike down by the river. From the start I didn't see the kids at all. They took off. My friend and I kept wanting to stop and look around but we thought we ought to catch up with the kids. We were done before we knew it. I kind of wished it was a longer hike and that it could have been a little slower but it's all about what is fun for the kids right! We had to call them back on the trail to get some of these pictures. We all had a great time.

Baby R. our tough little hiker.

J Man and one of his favorite buddies (who says he was pretending to be watching TV while I took the picture.)

Mr. M and one of his good friends.

The mommas.