Mariah spent the week at EFY! She loved her experience so much last year that she begged to go again. We were happy that we could comply! She went without a friend, just like last year, with the faith that she would make new friends while she was there. It worked! She met a great gal from Texas who was her roommate and she had a great time with all the people in her company. She expressed her gratitude for us many times during the week, had super-great spiritual experiences, and learned to CHOOSE JOY! We love that joyful girl of ours!

Savannah had another full work week. She is still working on her class, training others, and special projects. When she is home, she likes to get all her siblings excited about her new TV show craze, Miraculous or post in her writing groups. She has also been entertaining us with the dreams she has been having about breaking into the MTC to see Megan! We are all pretty commando when we need to be apparently!

Cali and Chey plowed on alone in all their sport practices without Mariah! They missed her (as did all the people who asked about her!) and we missed Mariah giving them rides! Ha ha! Still, they continued with basketball, cross country, and tennis. They went to the rec center at least once to swim and had friends over and went to friends' houses a couple of times and still managed to get bored once or twice too! Cheyenne did say that at least when school resumes, she'll get more sleep! LOL!

Beth and Ben had a karate belt exam on Saturday this week. They are officially in solid-color belts and went straight to the gold belt. That makes them 8 belts away from a black belt. I watched the end of the exam when they were fighting. I flinched a lot! Still, they are getting better. After fighting, they broke boards. Ben asked to do a double board, so it took him a few more tries but he got it! Oh, and with their new belts, they also received their own bow staffs. (Savannah got really excited about that! She wants one, too!)

 

 

Kevin has had a very bad week healthwise, but a very good week in the stock market. He is really getting into stocks and options and is having a lot of fun with it. Despite his bad health, he still managed to play tennis with the twins and then take the twins and Mariah to the rec center to play basketball on Saturday. He is dedicated to his family!

I went on another hike this week this time in Maple Canyon and then to Dripping Rock in Spanish Fork. Robin and I brought Beth and Ben again. It was beautiful!

We had a fun Sunday with Amy and the cousins. They talked and braided each other's hair and took pictures. Church was great. The YW came into Relief Society at the end and Amy's and my daughters (oh! and Maggie's) made up over half of them! That night we roasted marshmellows over our grill and made S'mores. They had to leave the next morning but it was sure great to have them. We're so glad they came!

So then we started what will probably be a pretty regular schedule for awhile. Mariah, Cali, and Chey have open gym for basketball on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 6am. Then everyday of the week they have cross country practices at 7am. Right after that for Cali and Chey, on Thursdays and Fridays from 9-11 is tennis. They also have matches on Tuesdays and random open court times throughout the week. Are they worn out? Oh yes. But what do they do with their downtime? Head to the rec center for more basketball or swimming. Mariah especially has been there a LOT. For instance, she left our house for the rec at 12:30 on Wednesday and I saw her again at 6:00. Hello? Yep. The rec center is a dream come true for Mariah! We're glad they're all so busy.

Mariah also had a basketball tournament this weekend. They played six games over two days in Roy. Kevin watched the three on Saturday and said that Mariah hit three 3-pointers in a row in the second half and then they won by 1 point. Way to go kid!

When Cali and Chey aren't running, shooting, or playing tennis they do different things. Cali finished her summer reading assignment this week: read two classics and a book of choice. She really enjoys reading.

Chey is working on quilts for the bunkbeds in her room. She has pieced the tops for two twin quilts and we are trying to figure out how to "quilt" everything together. I'm afraid I'm not much help as sewing clothes is really more my thing! My quilting experience is in tying and in watching others. Ha ha!

Since Mariah and Cali and Chey are so busy, I took Beth and Ben with me when I went hiking with Robin this week. We hiked to Stewart Falls which is about four miles round trip and the water fall is stunning! Robin and I started a blog about our hiking trips. So, you can read about it here:

hikingwithkatylady.blogspot.com

At the very end of the hike, I twisted my ankle. I spent about a day with my foot up, but after that I felt a lot better. So, not as serious as some of my ankle sprains! Yay!

Beth and Ben also had karate twice this week and Beth went to piano and Ben to guitar. They are playing with friends and earning tickets for limited screen time. Ben even washed the van for me this week--by himself!--for two tickets. Ben also had two baseball games this week. He's starting to really enjoy it!

Beth and I have been planning her birthday party! She is very excited about it even though she has a couple of weeks to wait.

We dropped Megan off at the MTC this week! She was very brave but so nervous that she didn't eat much lunch at the restaurant of her choice: Pizza Pie Cafe. Mariah, Cheyenne, and Cali were at camp, so Kevin, Savannah, Beth, Ben, and I were left to help her pack and meet Grandma and Grandpa Gazdik at the MTC at to say goodbye and drop her off. She looked cheery in her bright, yellow dress and it was hard to not think as she walked away that the sunshine in our life was walking away, too! We love that girl! We are proud that she is sharing her light with as many people as will listen. We will make it to December of 2019. It's just next year!

Mariah didn't leave for camp until 3:00 on Monday, so we took the chance to have one more family hurrah! Megan suggested we go up Hobble Creek Canyon and have a picnic and family softball game. It was perfect! We even did some river walking. Mariah had a hard time saying goodbye to her sister. They will really miss each other. I would post the picture but it would make us cry all over again so you'll just have to imagine.

The next day Cali and Chey left for camp. We had hugs and pictures! They will miss Megan, too!

When Meg left the next day, Beth, Ben, Savannah, Kevin, and I felt like we had a very empty, quiet house. :(

Happily, Friday, we got some of our kids back! Mariah, Cali, and Chey had a great time at camp. They were very brave to go to a new stake camp. They were each put in a different group while there. They made new friends and happy memories and I'm so proud of them for supporting their leaders and trusting the system. We all saw their faith rewarded.

Just hours later, my sister, Amy came and filled my house up with her four girls as well as Maggie's two youngest. Yay! Bring us some noise and distract us from thinking of how much we miss Megan! For the rest of Friday we went to the carnival and the kids went on all the rides and cooled off at the splash pad. We came home and had waffles for dinner (since the carnival made us crave scones and funnel cakes) and then went back for some night carnival rides.

Saturday morning we went to the parade and then went home to hang out for a bit. By special request, Savannah took Mariah, Liz, and Mandy to tour BYU campus. When they got back, we all went to the reservoir to do some swimming, floating, and paddle boarding. We had hamburgers for dinner and then drove down to Brookside to end the day with fireworks!

This week started with Memorial Day! Sarah had no school so she stayed until Monday night. To use our time well, we decided to go to one of our favorite spots as a family--Payson Lakes. We brought a picnic lunch and the canoe and the fishing rods. Beth was the only one to catch a fish (go Bethany!), but not everyone got a chance before the thunder-clouds rolled in. We still had a great time and enjoyed being together in a beautiful place. Sarah and Megan got their last hugs in before Meg leaves on her mission and then we had to say goodbye (for a little while) to Sarah. She got back safely to Rexburg that night.

Tuesday was our first real day of summer vacation. Cali and Chey had a tennis camp Tuesday through Thursday from 8 to 1 each day and I needed to drive them both ways on Tuesday because Chey had a dentist appointment at 1. Beth and Ben had karate and Cali and Chey went to the pool after the camp. Meg and Mariah went hiking and I also went to the store (in a separate trip) to get them some things for that. They were also working on the road that goes up the hill to our house that day. I figure I passed them at least 12 times. It was a crazy day for me and my van! Everyone had a fun day, though. Meg and Mariah went almost 12 miles on their hike and summited a mountain (though they're not sure which one!)

The rest of the week wasn't quite so crazy! Cali and Chey had a good time at their camp and feel like they learned a lot and improved significantly. Yay! Five hours of tennis a day can really wipe a kid out, though, let me tell you! They also managed to go back to the pool at the new Springville Rec center (we have our summer passes!) a couple more times and meet their friends for tennis a couple of times, too!

Beth and Ben played with friends and had karate. They've also gone to the new pool a few times! Such fun! They need to earn tickets for screen time this summer and have a workbook to do every morning and are expected to practice their instruments and write in their journals. They've been doing really well on it.

Mariah continues to have basketball open gyms twice a week. She also had a basketball tournament this weekend at UVU. She played two games Friday and three on Saturday. They won all but two of them. I brought all the kids to watch her last game on Saturday and we had great fun cheering her on!

Savannah had work throughout the week, but also went to a couple YSA activities and to the movies with her friends to watch Solo which wasn't as bad as she had feared it would be!

We had an open house for Megan on Wednesday night! She wanted to roast marshmallows and have s'mores. So we did! A bunch of people from our old ward came up and her close friends, too. It was a fun night. She remains in high spirits and is super-fun to be around. Cali finished Pride and Prejudice for her summer reading (it took her a long time she said--three days--and she meant it). So, Cali and Meg and I had to re-watch the BBC Pride and Prejudice this weekend!

Saturday morning was the annual Art City Days Nestle 5K run! We initially thought everyone would be here for it, but since Ben got baptized last weekend, Sarah couldn't come down again. Also, Kevin had to be in Texas to teach for IITAP. He was very sad to miss it (Sarah maybe not so much! Ha ha!). Still, we all had a good time. Mariah came in first for all of us and placed second in her age category. Go Mariah! Then came Cheyenne, Calianne, Megan, Savannah, Bethany, Benjamin, and Mom! Spread out by several minutes, of course. It was a beautiful day: sunny and cool. We sat through the raffle drawings afterward and got two frisbies, a Bass Shop gift certificate, a jacket, and a toddler water table. Fun times!

Mariah and her friends take 1st, 2nd, and 3rd!