The theme was "Bats" for our homeschool nature study one week, so we decided to hike Timpanogos caves. Obviously. It ended up being only Makenna and I with our kids, the other moms having very young kids and wanting to avoid a painful experience. They were wise. :) In the end I was very glad we toughed it out and decided to go. But the process was long and hard. I borrowed a stroller from a friend since I heard the path up was paved. Once I checked in, they told me strollers weren't allowed. Luckily I brought the baby hiking backpack just in case. But that meant that Benson would now have to walk the whole way. 5 hours worth of switchbacks. Yikes. Makenna had Brendan on her back most of the time, and then she and I took turns carrying Benson in our arms for stretches of the hike. But for the most part, Benson was a real trooper. Davy did great in the backpack. His tricky part came when we were almost to the caves, and they said no more hiking backpacks. So I had to carry him in my arms through the cave, in between tight spaces, with one hand on Benson to try and keep him from touching everything he shouldn't. Then Davy lost his cool and starting crying, in a cave, on our group tour. I felt so bad for everyone, but there was no where to nurse him. So I just flipped my shirt up and nursed him as we walked through the cave. HA!!! What a day. By the end, I felt extremely empowered. Moms are so.dang.tough!! I'm so proud to be one. And then I was so tired after the hike, I gave in and bought my kids McDonalds. :)
We had another great conference weekend. The Friday before, we got together to make Apple Juice. It has become one of my favorite traditions. A relatively painless process, fun for everyone, and such a yummy outcome. Then Saturday we got together with everyone for Applesauce-mania. We are getting this mass applesauce production down to a science I tell ya! We listened to conference while working. We worked hard ALL day. The kids helped a lot-Miles especially stuck it out. Then eventually they found the zipline down in the gully and covered themselves in mud. :) I love it when my kids can just roam free. I had to leave the party early though because I was taking Gwen on a date to participate in her very first Women's Session of Conference at the actual conference center! I had kept it a secret, and thought she'd get a bigger kick out of it, but I think she was a tad disappointed. We went and got Crumbl cookies afterward to make it a little more fun. :) Loved getting to have that time with just my Gwen. The session was amazing. I cried through most of it. The next morning we went down to Provo to spend the first session with Ben and Becca, and Russ and Nat! We ran around at a park in between to burn off some energy. I love having them close by! The last session I tried to keep them entertained with edible peanut butter play-doh, which was a huge hit!
Jeffrey and McKenna really outdid themselves this year when they gave Richie his birthday present. They got us tickets to see "Phantom of the Opera" at the Hale theater and provided babysitting for us. Talk about spoiled! We got some pizzas for them for dinner while we went out eat at a trendy, fresh, local, organic type place that I loved, and Richie...tolerated. :) Then we still had time to kill before the play, so we went people watching at the mall, and ended up buying me a new outfit! Yay!! The play was not at all what we were expecting. I had no idea there was another version of Phantom than the Andrew Lloyd Webber one, so I was blindsided. The costumes, scenery, set...everything was incredible. The storyline however had us almost in tears (from laughter). We really had to reign it in because a girl behind was ugly crying from so much emotion almost the entire second half. Which made Richie and I want to laugh even more...It was an awesome night. :) And the kids got pizza, got taken out for frozen yogurt, and got to watch 2 movies and stay up late. Basically their best night ever! :)
We hit up the Butterfly Biosphere for one of our homeschool group days. It was magical!! You walk into this "greenhouse" and butterfly are just flitting here and there, all over the place. Landing on you, letting you handle them. It's amazing. There were lots of other cool exhibits and an amazing play structure. Such a fun way to spend a morning.
I finished the 2019 canning season!! Wahooooo!!!
We've set up some systems in the last year or so to help the kids be more in charge of their own money. The older 2 have taken a liking to ordering things off Amazon and getting packages in the mail. Lindy was feeling a little left out. She kept insisting that she wanted a cozy, pink, robe. Every time she'd ask me to look for one online, I'd brush her off for something more pressing. Finally one day, one of Gwen's packages arrived, and Lindy's jealousy hit a high, and she about collapsed in a heap on my lap. "I JUST WANT TO BUY A ROBE!" :) So I stopped everything and we found a robe online in about 5 minutes, ordered it, and when it came a few days later, she was SO happy. She is really loving it and feels so proud her purchase.
I pulled my lemon tree inside before the frost hit. And this little stinker pulled off 2 out of the four lemons growing on the tree. Let's just say I was peeved.
We harvested all our pumpkins, and all the pumpkins at Grandma and Grandpas and have started selling them. We've got most of them sold now, and the kids will have some money for their Christmas Shoeboxes. :)
3 cuties in the early morning light who commandeered my bed.
Painting pumpkins! Painting pumpkins is so much easier than carving them!
Miles had his Fall Uke Concert. I did get a video of his performance (he really rocked it), but I didn't get a picture of him on stage. Just of his cheering section waiting for him to go on. So this picture of him after getting a much needed haircut (from an actual hair dresser none the less) will have to suffice. Doesn't he look so handsome??
