It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Autumn...

I love old barns!!



Off the bridge!!



Worth it, huh?



Yep. Off the bridge was awesome!!



Rivers...


Beautiful trees just off the road...Okay we went for a little backroad adventure!!



Even the road signs match the terrain!!



Ahhh... Nature!!

Just look at these great pictures we got on our drive Saturday as we TRIED to listen to conference. Cameron and I thought we would try to get the kids to nap some of the drive so we could hear conference and enjoy the scenery, and then we could all get a square ice cream cone at the Swan Valley Commesary. Well, the road to good intentions...something about Hell...yeah, we were there. The kids didn't cooperate as well as we had hoped. I ended up feeding Drew as I turned around to the back seat and fed him upside down as he faced the back of the truck. Avery slept a little, screamed a little, threw a fit a little and then settled for gummy frogs at the commisary. Kendal, bless him, did his best not to be bored, but he was itching to get out in the mud...oh, yeah, did I mention it rained the whole day? Mud was all over the place. But he settled for some gummy tarantulas at the commisary and pretty much played his Leapster the whole ride.

Okay, maybe I exaggerate a little. It was fun watching for cows and horses. The potato farms had just dug the potatoes and little red potatoes that had been missed dotted the muddy fields. The colors of the trees were awesome!! I even made Cameron turn around so I could take this shot off the bridge. People thought I was crazy running acrossed the bridge with a camera on a rainy day. I got a good honk of disapproval, too. Either that or the guy thought I looked really attractive in my black velor track suit that is completely out of style but happens to be the most comfy thing I own. Maybe he was just trying to get my number, who knows? OR maybe it was our Aunt Bonnie and Uncle Doug!! (Thanks for the visit, and for sharing your beautiful view of Palisades Reservoir with us.)

But the scenery was beautiful and Cameron and the kids were great company. I would like to think we could start a family tradition. I would love to make that drive every fall. It was just beautiful!! I hope I absorbed enough General Conference to get me at least until the November Ensign comes out. What I heard of it was very uplifting. Nature and scripture seem to really go well together.

All-in-all, a "picture perfect" day.

Drew Is Clapping!!

Whenever a child learns a new trick and you are fortunate enough to get it on video, it calls for a blog entry. Last post I said that Drew's age is full of new things to learn almost daily. He started the clapping thing last week, and he was just cooperative enough to give us three seconds of him clapping. I still haven't gotten any footage of his mode of transportation (rolling and scooting) but it still surprises me how far he can get in just a short amount of time. Stay tuned. You never know what will happen around here.

Kendal Counts To 80 In 26 Seconds?

I guess I am just a little video happy tonight. Here is one of Kendal. He wanted to watch himself count. He is just plain silly. It must be a boy thing to just go wild sometimes. Anyway, he made me laugh. Maybe he'll make you laugh, too.

Drew Wants a Cracker...

Hope this is fun for you, too. Sometimes as a mom I think stuff like this is extraordinary and everyone else thinks it's nothing special. I am always a little nervous the first time I hand my kids a cracker. I am afraid the will choke or make a mess (USUALLY in that order...I have to admit honestly, sometimes the mess comes to mind first...I know, I am a little mess obsessed). Anyway, I think it is so cute when they figure out how cool they are for doing things for themselves. I like this stage. You can see the self esteem rise for them. They truly begin to see their abilities!! Drew gets so excited for himself when he does something new, and at this stage it is almost daily!! He is so cute!! Did you see him changing hands and holding up his foot?? Anyway, his realization of himself is worth all the crumbs. Enjoy the footage...I have already vacuumed off the child...and cleaned up the mess!!

Popsicles, Ice Cream, Apple Juice, and Perspective

This is Avery with tonsils.


This is what we look like at 5AM.


This is how Daddy looks at work. He checked on us all day!! What a great Daddy!!


This is her student nurse Randi. She just kept bringing her toys and pajamas and more popsicles than I thought she could ever eat.


I was wrong. She ate every one they brought and kept asking for more. She also made a great dent in the yogurt, the chocolate ice cream, and vanilla pudding they brought, along with an apple tree worth of juice. The gauze is to keep her from pulling on her IV.


Avery underwent a tonsillectomy and adnoidectomy this morning. It is hard to describe that feeling you get when you watch your child go with the nurses toward the surgery suite. It is so difficult knowing you can't follow them. You just go to that empty room and wait. I tried to read, watch TV, sleep...but I couldn't do any of those things. I just ended up sitting and fretting. I think that is just the way I am wired. I knew she would be just fine. I knew because I had peace from the Spirit, but I still had to be human and fret for our girl. She just seems so small to have to worry and endure what the next few days has in store for her. I know. I know. LOTS of us have endured the same thing and even worse than that. But she hasn't yet, and that is what makes it so dreadful for me to watch her bear. I never like to see my kids hurt, even if it is for their welfare. I think it comes with the territory of parenthood. It is a beautiful blessing and an ugly curse.

In two weeks this will physically be over for all of us, but that feeling of watching her suffer will always be part of me. It makes me want to show her how to live her life so that she will minimize the hurt that can come from poor life choices and sin. We all have to learn, and that involves some pain and discomfort, but some heartache is definitely avoidable. It seems a little trite, but the most important thing to me is their happiness...not the kind they get with a new toy or a mountain of candy, but true happiness and real peace.

Yep. Tonsillectomies make me deep. That and sleep deprivation. Tomorrow I will probably be surprised at my deep and personal entry, but for now, I will go get my daughter a popsicle, some medicine, and do whatever else I can do to ease her pain. Tonight and always, that is the most important thing I can do for her.

Bye Bye Canning Apple Pie....Filling!...And Everything Else 'Til Next Summer!!!

Apple Pie Filling Is A Sticky Project!



...But Sooo Worth It!!




I Think 30 Jars Ought To Be Enough!!



Canning Can Really Fill Up Those Food Storage Shelves!!Each Row Is 4 Jars Deep!!

It has been a great canning season...and I am all canned out-on my can-with a can of whoopdeedoo!! We have canned every fruit in Idaho Falls, or at least it seems like it. We finished the apple pie filling last night(THANKS,MOM) and all the jars are on the shelves ready for whoever may partake.

It has been tougher this year with THREE small children who need SOMETHING almost every 10 minutes (which divides out to be something for each child every 3.33 minutes, not accounting for incidentals, fits, and stopping to eat). I have had doubts that I would do ANY canning at all this year, but I am always glad to have the re-knowledge of how to do it and the reassurance of extra in the pantry. The sticky messes this year were worth it.

I have learned how to enjoy the work...make sure you have friends (Thanks Kristen and Sheri), family(It would've never happened without you, MOM and Cameron), the proper equipment (I love the CAMP CHEF. It also helps to have numerous and abundant snacks and a tall stack of child's movies), and the WILL TO PERSEVERE!!

Oh, we'll be canning again next year, for sure...but for now, bye bye!!

"...And A Kerr Jar In A Pear Tree"

I must be really getting into the spirit of canning this year. I am modifying old favorite carols into fruity (pun intended) renditions of canning carols!! All I have to say is that it is good to have all that canning on the shelves when winter comes. I am looking forward to breaking the seals of these beautiful jars long about December and January and be thankful my mother, my friends, my husband and I took the time and effort to create jars of fruity yumminess to see us through the year.

Some may ask, "Why don't you just BUY the canned fruit and skip the hot, sticky, all-day project?" I would simply have to reply that home canned fruit is just better...period. No factory can make fruit taste this good. Once you have had it, it is hard to go back. It is almost impossible. And I guess if you have to ask that question in the first place, you have just plain been missing out. I suggest getting some jars, some sugar, and some friends and family over to help you see the light. Good Luck with that!! I am busheled (pun intended) and I am going to bed!! I'm hopin' for some SUGAR PEARS to dance in my head!! G'Night!!

P.S. If you haven't seen Avery in her dance leotard and tiny dance shoes, scroll down-you are in for a treat!!