lemonade and a wii

 This Noah of mine has been working hard for the last 6 months. Doing extra jobs at home and putting away his 20 cents at a time. He's been saving for something big. 

At the store he would beg me to buy him something from the check out aisle that looked irresistible. "You can buy it with your own money if you want, Noah."

"Never mind, I'm saving for a Wii." And that was the last I would hear of it.

Gage decided he wanted in on it too. So they dumped their money jars together and kept working. After birthday money from generous grandparents they were almost there.

Noah thought a Lemonade Stand might do the trick. I made the lemonade, Grandma laid the tablecloth and sweet Grandpa spread the word to the neighbors. Noah made signs, would yell and wave to each car that passed by and did a great job pouring the lemonade.

And guess what? 

They did it.

boat races and art shows

The Boat Races are a big deal in my hometown. Hydro planes race on the river all weekend. We went to check it out on practice day. 

The boys' eyes were glued to the water while the boats were flying. Especially around the turns. 

 There was also an air show. Gage said this helicopter looked just like his rescue copter back in his toy closet. And it does. Complete with rescue diver action hero.

Another day we headed to the Art Show in the park.  Local handmade jewelry, pottery, woodturning, paintings, quilts. Gorgeous. I remember one year when I was a little girl I saved my money to buy this teeny glass swan. I thought it was the prettiest thing I had ever seen. That guy's tent was still there - selling his hand blown glass.

And of course we've been eating a lot of snowcones. 

a day on the river

 

This river and me. We go way back. I love a sunny hot day on the river. The water is always cold. Which is perfect.

 

We spent a day jet skiing and tubing with my whole family. 

 

Some of us got a little crazy. 

Some of us were more relaxed. 

 

 

This little beauty stayed in the shade and charmed us all with her big blue eyes and her bouncy hair. 

  

The boys kept busy throwing rocks, picking up sticks, petting puppies as they strolled by and eating Grandma's snacks. And of course they loved the jet skiis. They wanted to steer it themselves and go faster and faster.

Washington

There was one week when all my sisters were in the same place at the same time. It all went by so fast I didn't take enough pictures of these awesome people.

We stayed busy. There were Kennewick type outings, pedicures on my birthday, golf for the boys, BBQs, shopping, family dinners - we all couldn't wait for my Mom's lasagna. Lots of game nights. 

The grandkids are 6, 4, and 2 with one on the way.  Getting to know Little Miss Ashlyn and her wild heart was so fun. Indiana is just too far away from Singapore. Someday we will all live a little closer. Someday. 

 

the dmv

Don't ever let your driver's license expire.  

If you do, some states make you take the tests all over again. Driving and written. Seriously.

Hand signals, parallel parking, parking on a hill. How many feet can you park away from a fire hydrant? a stop sign? someone's drive way? a fire station? How far away from a bike can you drive?

They all have different answers. Ask Dave. He's a pro now.

Luckily, the dmv in my hometown is right next to Tony's Taco Truck. Its the best and Tony's big smile is the same as it was 10 years ago. Chicken tacos with corn tortillas, fresh lime, cilantro and pico. For a $1. That's what I order. Every time.

Wagner Family Reunion

One morning Gage and cousin Rachel went near the pond to feed the horses. Tall pieces of grass, bits of carrot or apples. The horses would nuzzle their heads in between the fence and smile at us with their big teeth.

We spent 3 days up Spanish Fork Canyon, past the enormous windmills, for the Wagner family reunion.

The kids stayed busy the entire time. Having 23 cousins makes that easy. Foosball, water ballon launching, kickball, trampoline, feeding fish at the pond, canoeing on the mud bog, banana grams, Spot It, checkers, skits, late night soccer. Dave and I went around pinching cheeks, testing the teenage boys' new muscles and commenting on how much everyone has grown. These kids are doing amazing things. Like my niece Ali, she has her gorgeous voice on her own album on itunes.

I love this picture. And these girls.

We had such a great time with everyone! Miss you already!

Salt Lake City

I love driving into the neighborhood where David grew up. The neighbors wave to you every time you look up. Look, there's so and so's house. And that's where so and so crashed right into that tree. When we attend church, sweet old ladies will come to me take my hand and tell me how pleased they are with how David turned out (apparently he was a very energetic 11 year old). 

Spending time at Grandma and Grandpa's house is even better. There are family dinners in the backyard, chocolate chip cookies, apricot fruit leather and homemade granola. The boys play vintage board games and the original Nintendo. We listen to stories of growing up on the ranch in Juarez, Mexico and to lessons they learned on their missions to Chile. We give tech support about Facebook, blogging and Kindles, but get back more than we could ever give.

 

 

Our calendar always stays busy. But in between there is time to swim at the club with cousins. And for outings with Grandma.

We also got together with some old BYU friends who I will love forever.

I wish I would have taken a picture with everyone we saw. Now I know better.