We prepped for back to school. I took Adalyn on a little mommy-daughter date and let her pick out a new outfit to wear on the first day of school, picked up her the supplies on her class list, and got a treat at the end. I think this will be a new tradition for us and I am excited to take Jensen on his first back-to-school date next summer.
On August 21 we watched the solar eclipse 2017. It was epic (yes I just used that word, and it truly was incredible). Idaho Falls was lucky enough to be able to be in the path of totality. Idaho Falls geared up to host a crowd and they encouraged those of us who live here to try and stay home for a few days to help keep the traffic down on the roads. So we did. We all stocked up on groceries and then hunkered down for the weekend. In the end the crowds were a bit smaller then they expected and town was eerily quiet the Saturday before. The only crowds that we noticed were extra visitors at church on Sunday who were visiting with family in our ward. So luckily our power didn't go out, we still had running water, and our oh so important wifi was functioning at normal speed (all things that they had warned us might stop working). Monday, August 21st McKay took the day off work. We had a yummy breakfast and then headed out to the backyard. About 10:15 am we put on our special eclipse glasses from the library and we could see the moon beginning to cover the sun. About 30 minutes into it you could tell the light was getting dimmer. Especially if you went inside the house for a few minutes and then came back out. It was getting dimmer in a unique way. It definitely didn't feel like a normal sunset. The whole neighborhood was out in their yards and you could just feel the excitement and the kids running around screaming and chatting about it. Honestly up until a few minutes before totality it was cool, but not amazing. It was colder and dim, but not amazing. Then totality came. It was surreal almost spiritual like experience. It felt and looked like nothing I had ever seen before. I loved seeing the kids excitement as well. They were fascinated by it and were all smiles and lots of ohs and ahs! We all took off the glasses for that minute and a half of totality. The street lights came on and you could see a horizon line 360 degrees all around. My favorite part of the whole thing was the diamond ring effect which only lasted for a few seconds but it was gorgeous. It looked like the biggest most beautiful diamond ring you had ever seen before. This world is beautiful and I am so thankful that it was created for us to enjoy.
After being a part of the Idaho Falls temple open house this spring and the eclipse this summer I am definitely feeling all the good feels about Idaho. We have loved living here and I am impressed daily by the kind and humble people that live here. Plus we love the beauty that surrounds us in this part of the country. Grateful to get to experience it and share these experiences with my family.
Next up was our ward campout. We went up to warm river campground and stayed there from Friday afternoon until Saturday afternoon. It was the one and only time we attempted camping this summer and it did not go well. Probably our worst camping experience so far in our married life, but lets not dwell on that fact. ;) Magnolia is just at a rough stage to take camping, and her nervous/easily frightened personality didn't help. All the kids did fantastic at falling asleep. No one cried and the older 3 were thrilled to be sleeping in the tent. Magnolia fell asleep great since she was exhausted from staying up way past her bedtime. But then at 1:00 am she woke up and was totally freaked out about where she was. McKay and I could both tell by her cries that there was no way she was going to calm down anytime soon. She wouldn't cuddle in our bed and even standing and bouncing her was not going to work for very long since she was still so scared about where in the world she was. There were other people camping in tents all around us so we had to act fast. I told McKay to just drive her home, and at 1:00 am I was serious. Haha! Totally not thinking clearly. McKay ended up taking her to the car and she slept on and off in her carseat where she felt a little more secure then in the tent. She wouldn't even let McKay hold her to sleep she had to be in a familiar spot, so the carseat it was. In all of the commotion Declin woke up and of course started whining for some milk (he still wakes up a lot in the middle of the night at home). So I put my brave face on and headed out to the car by myself in the middle of the night (yes that scared me because hello, there are wild animals like scunks out there) to get him a cup of milk from the cooler. Then I came back and he snuggled in bed with me for the rest of the night since it was pretty chilly. I proceeded to wake up every 30 minutes the rest of the night out of worry for Magnolia/McKay and because Declin was kicking me. Such a fun night! We were grateful for morning to come.
The next morning after breakfast the kids made little boats to race down the river and then we decided to go visit Mesa Falls which was just up the road from where we were camping. We had never been before and it was fun to check it off our "things to see in Idaho bucket list" (not a real list just some mental notes that I have in my head). The falls were beautiful and we loved the rainbow that shows up when the sun is out. We did a little nature walk after and I wish we had packed a lunch so that we could have stayed longer. But everyone was getting hungry and tired so we didn't stay for too long.
Whenever we take a little family trip out in nature, it always gets McKay really excited about hiking/camping and makes him want to go back soon. So the weekend after the camp out we went to Harriman state park. We didn't stay the night it was just a day trip. We had free state park passes from the library and wanted to use them before the summer ended. This was our first time there and it was a fun day, but maybe not my favorite place we have been, but still enjoyable. We walked around on a trail and made it about 2-3 miles. The views were pretty, and it felt peaceful and quiet there. We ended up singing some fun primary songs to help keep Declin and Magnolia happy which brought such a sweet feeling as we walked along.
We had a few family nights at the park. One time we grabbed some dinner and had a little picnic and then played at the park. I remember we used to go to the park several times a week, but these days with the small park we have in our backyard we haven't made it to the neighborhood parks as much. The kids always enjoy it when we do go. Especially when McKay comes with us.
Another Saturday McKay planned a little canoeing adventure for us. McKay's uncle was kind and let us borrow their canoe and we headed out on the Snake River. The first time we went out in the canoe all six of us went together, but that was a tight fit and the kids were getting wiggly so we headed back to shore. The kids played in the sand while McKay took smaller groups out for rides. McKay loves canoes/boats and loved getting to get out on the water again.
Finishing up our garden for the year. We had a small garden this year, but it was a really enjoyable activity to do with the kids. They were excited about the plants and watching them grow. They loved picking the raspberries and tomatoes. They are watching the pumpkins and talking about Halloween. They even helped pick the weeds a few times with the neighbor kids which was one of the reasons that we want a garden is to have the kids help work in it. I am happy with how things turned out this year and I hope we can add even more plants to it next year.
Back to school up next!
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