September 2022

Benson turns 6! He requested a chocolate and strawberry cake where candy spills out of it. :) We went swimming at the rec center, Gwen made him an awesome sign, and we invited Bonnie and Trudy over to share dinner with us. We sure love our Benson Boy!! 

 We started a new homeschool co-op! With our friends the Fogles out in West Virginia now, we needed a new homeschool group of some sort. We have never done a typical co-op; it's always been a few families we've grouped together and made something work, so this was a new experience for all of us. I was nervous, but it turned out to be such a great experience for all of us. I got to teach art history to Gwen's class. 

Grandma and Grandpa Garner came up to bring us produce and help us put up a bunch of it. 

For one of our one-on-one dates with the kids, I got tickets for Miles and I to go see Brian Regan in Boise. We love Brian Regan and Miles especially loves comedians. It was so fun to be with just him and laugh so hard together! He's such a good kid. 

Miles had his first season of Middle School Football. He had a great experience and learned a lot, even if his playing time was limited. He made lots of good friends and gained experience. He had a really lively cheering squad.

For Gwen's date, I took her to a BSU volleyball game. I'm not sure how entertaining it was to her, but it sure was fun for me to watch and extra fun to share something I love so much with her!

Mom, Jenn, Adrienne and I were able to go on an awesome trip to Canada, (another post) and while I was gone, Grandma and Grandpa Garner came up to help Dad. The highlights were going to the Farmstead and painting the girl's room!

Homeschool Mentionables: An actual PE class at co-op, park playdates, kiwi crates, science projects, and a field trip to the Birds of Prey Center in Boise. 

Homesteading Menionables: Naked boys in mud, More preserving, yummy bread, Peaches and cream=heaven, new rabbits, beautiful sunsets, and "visioning" or walking around the property with Dad and dreaming of what we want to do with it.

August 2022

 I got a new calling to be an Activity Days leader for the girls in our ward. One of the activities I planned was flower arranging. An old ward member has a flower farm, so the kids and I went and harvested a bunch of flowers, then that night we taught the girls how to arrange them. Super fun!

The James family stopped by! The highlight of the visit was that it was watering turn, so there were plenty of chances to get wet and messy. The horse trough was the swimming pool of choice.

We had my favorite book party to date- We finally finished my Grandma and Grandpa Hinckley's monumental personal histories. Yes, it took a while to get through them, but we loved every second! I'm so grateful they took the time to write them! What a blessing it is that my kids get to know their great grandparents, who they never met.  We ate some of the foods Grandma talked about, cuddled up in her blankets she made and watched 7 brides for 7 brothers (the only movie we watched when we went to visit), and then when the kids went to bed, I had them listen to a tape recording I have of Grandma telling stories. The recording was subpar, but it was so tender to hear her voice again. 

The first official day of school! We start mid-august so that we can ease back into things and take our time.  I love to try and decorate for the first day to make it feel extra special to the kids.  This year Miles is in 8th, Gwen is in 6th, Lindy is in 3rd, Benson is in K, and Davy hangs out. :)

In August I bought a small business from my friend Jenn Jacobs.  She started "A Tisket a Tasket Baskets" back in 2018 and had built up a solid clientele. The main idea is that we find local makers and crafters and compose all of their goodies into gift baskets, then market them to realtors for them to use as closing gifts.  So I now run things and keep the shelves stocked at a few realty offices in the area. How fun, right? Such a blessing for our family, for me to be able to do something creative, in my own time without being away from the kids on a regular basis, that makes our family a little extra money. 

Richie's once a year bike tune up. :) It's not his favorite chore, so it's a big deal when it happens. 

Homeschool Pics

Homesteading pics- Including picking elderberries at Trudy's house, butchering a ton of chickens in one day for people who hired us, me figuring out how to make dish soap out of lard, disbudding 2 baby goats, harvests, canning, etc