No Longer A 1st Grader

Well, Sarah Kate is officially no longer a 1st grader. I can't believe it. It seems that school just started and now she's out for the summer. She had a great last week of school. The weather was beautiful which allowed for many fun activities outside and allowed for the feel of summer to be in the air. The first grade had a spelling bee on Wednesday starting with each individual class. I was a bad mom who kept putting off studying for the spelling bee until the last minute,so we started studying late Monday night and finished late Tuesday night. I felt bad sending her to school not completely ready, but I resolved to do better next year. To my surprise she made the top 6 in her class which meant she got to compete against all the other top first graders. The spelling bee went long and they had to continue it the next day. We studied a little more Wednesday night and sent her off to school making sure she knew that even if she didn't win it would be OK and we were so proud of her for all she'd already accomplished. She ended up switching the i and the e in the word friend and that made her come in 6th in the entire 1st grade. We were so proud of her and we were so proud at how composed she was with losing. She's such a smart girl and we're very lucky to have her as our daughter.

Friday was the official last day of school. It was really only a half day and really only a play day, but in my opinion that's how the last day of school should be anyway. Sarah got off the bus around 11:30 carrying a little bag containing a goldfish. I was a little unsure what to do with the goldfish she had won at the carnival they had that morning, so I put it in a bowl and promised her we would pick up a fish tank later that day. We ended up going to Walmart, getting a small fish tank and 3 more fish, that way everyone gets a fish. She also came home with a Redvine licorice rope and proclaimed that it meant she had passed 1st grade. I guess all the kids in 1st grade got one as a symbol of their passing first grade. She was so excited and she even shared it with her brother and sisters.

So first grade is over and passed for Sarah Kate and she is really looking forward to 2nd. She's very sad to be leaving Mrs. Ramos' class, but the thought of 2nd grade if very intriguing. Ben is also very excited for summer. Not only does he get Sarah Kate home all day now, but he's one step closer to kindergarten. My kids are growing up so fast. Soon I be talking about them graduating from elementary school, or worse, high school and these years will all be a fond memory. Hopefully that won't happen too quickly. :)

On a side note, Monday morning Sarah Kate came in my room while I was still in bed. Ben and Hannah were watching TV and instead of watching with them, she came and stood in front of me, staring at me. I was a little perplexed and asked her what she needed. She said, " I thought you'd have balloons, cake, and streamers for my first day out of school." She was so genuinely disappointed that it made me laugh to myself. I had to break the horrible news that I hadn't arranged a party for her, but that maybe we could do something fun that day. Kids are so funny.

Summer Time Fun

The first day playing in the pool with friends Cy and Carina.

I never did get a picture of just BenBen. He was too busy playing and having fun to look up at the camera.

So, over Memorial Day weekend we got a little swimming pool from Grandma and Grandpa. Since we don't know if we'll be staying here, and because Kenny really wants to turn the garden area into a kids play area anyway, we decided to put the pool in the garden area. Kenny put a tarp down and then set up the pool. The entire week has been beautiful weather and the pool water, thanks to it's cover, has warmed up nicely in the afternoons. It has been a blast for the kids and I think it'll prove to be a great blessing during the hot summer months.

The water was a little cold, can you tell by the face?

Hannah getting a little cold, but still having fun.

The first used it on Wednesday after Sarah Kate got home from school. The water wasn't the warmest yet, but the still had a lot of fun. We found some car cleaning sponges that we've never used and brought out some bath tub toys for them to used. They splashed, dove under the water, and just played and had a lot of fun. After getting in our neighbor friends Carina and Cy came over to play. They were very excited to get in the pool and ran home to get in their swimming suits. They just added to the fun and the kids played until they were blue in the lips and couldn't stand to stay in any longer. The one exception was Gracie who was not to thrilled with the idea of going in the pool. I don't know if it was the water temperature or just being afraid to get in, but she was just fine sitting on the side or playing in the water on the tarp that had been splashed out.

Gracie sitting on the edge of the pool.

Luckily a few days later she warmed up to the pool and discovered how fun it is to be in the water.

For the rest of the week the kids have enjoyed playing in the pool every day. Carina and Cy's mom had her baby this week (lucky duck) so their grandma has let them come over almost everyday to swim with our kids. They have all had a blast and Kenny and I are pleased at how well they have been doing in the water. Sarah has started practicing her swimming. She can float on her back now and swim the short distance of the pool. Ben is doing great dunking and holding his breathe under water. We even got Gracie to go in the pool and she has discovered how much she loves it. Hannah is getting accustom to getting her ears wet (something she's HATED since getting tubes put in them in January) and we are very proud of her. All in all I think it's been a wonderful toy. Thanks so much and I'm sure there will be more pictures as the summer goes on.

Craters of the Moon

We were suppose to go to Kingston's in Mendon to help put in their yard for Memorial Day weekend, but they called and canceled on Thursday night. We didn't have any other plans, but we also didn't want to do just nothing so we decided to find the closes and cheapest place to go. The decision was Craters of the Moon National Monument. It's about an 1 1/2 from here, but we've never been there. It's an area full of lava rocks, caves, and tunnels all formed thousands of years ago by volcanoes. It looks like somewhere not on earth because of the lava rock and desolate land. In a strange way it's very pretty.

Craters of the Moon

We arrived around 11:30 and had a quick picnic for lunch, checked out the visitors center, and then headed to view the park. We started out on a short half mile walk to see some of the lava rocks. The kids had a lot of fun running down the path and asking any questions they could come up with.

Ben being silly on the lava walk.

Gracie and Hannah on the short Lava walk.

Our next stop was the Inferno Cone. This cone is a 1/2 mile hike to the top of a mountain looking cone where you can look out across the valley of volcanic rocks. I must say how pleased I was with myself for making it all the way to the top. I was a little slow, but I did make the hike and it was well worth it. The view was beautiful and it was fun to watch the kids play on the rocks and stuff at the top. Luckily the weather was perfect for a day at the park. It was not to hot and not to cold, there was a little wind, but it was the perfect amount to keep things cool. I don't know how successful all the hiking would have been for me had the weather been hotter or the wind not been there.

The bottom of the Inferno Cone.

This picture is deceptive because that's only about half the hike.

Sarah showing off her shiny rock on the climb up the cone.

Gracie hiking up the cone and asking us to 'come here.'

The kids on top of the Inferno Cone.

The top of the cone had some fun rocks for the kids to play on and a cool tree. We played around, took pictures, got dirty and just enjoyed the view of nothingness. It was really cool, but we decided that if we wanted to see anything else we should probably head down. The walk down was a lot faster and easier than the walk up which was nice. When we got down we had a quick drink and headed to the next stop.

While we were enjoying the shade of the tree on top of the cone I noticed Gracie was enjoying the lava rock. Who knew it would be so dirty.

Hannah at the top of the Inferno Cone.

The kids headed back down the cone.

I love the snow covered mountains in the background, they add such contrast.

We stopped quickly at the Snow cones, ones we didn't have to hike to, and took the short strolls to see the two cones. The kids really liked looking at the snow inside the cones. I guess there name was fitting. We thought of making the hike to another cone, but when we found out it wasn't paved and we couldn't take the wagon, we changed our mind. Instead we got back in the car and headed to the tunnel and caves.

Ben and Sarah at the Snow Cones.

Kenny went to the van to look for my pregnancy belt to help me on the hikes. While he was gone the kids and I went on to the other cone. Ben insisted on pulling the wagon for me and when it got to steep he recruited help from Sarah. I have such great, wonderful kids.

Kenny and I were excited to check out the caves, but when we got there we discovered that they were not the most kid friendly or pregnant Mommy friendly. We decided to just head over to the tunnel. The Indian Tunnel was a much better match for our little kids and pregnant Mommy because it was more open, easier to climb around in, not as dark, and less intimidating for the kids. At first the kids were scared when it got a little dark, but we gave them their flashlights and they were much better. They loved walking around in the semi-dark with their very own flashlight.

The kids in the darkest part of the tunnel.

Getting ready to climb out of the darkness of the tunnel.

We came out of the tunnel just in time to catch the rain. When you emerge from the tunnel you have to walk along the lava rock, following sticks put in the rocks, to guide you back to the entrance to the tunnel. We went as fast as we could back to the entrance and climbed back into the tunnel to get out of the rain. We sat down in the tunnel, cold and wet, for a few minutes waiting for the rain to stop. After a few minutes Kenny went back up to check the status of the rain. He determined that it was likely to only going get worse so we decided to head back up and make a run for the car. Kenny took the kids, carrying Gracie and pulling Ben and Hannah in the wagon while Sarah ran ahead, and I followed as quickly as I could. When I got to the car the kids were already inside and Kenny was putting the wagon away. I'm so glad he's such a good dad willing to help out so much.

The family running back to the entrance of the tunnel to get out of the rain.

We were so impressed with Hannah. She was such a great hiker and was often ahead by herself. She was the most enjoyable to watch and I think she enjoyed the day the most.

After the tunnel, due to the rainy weather and later hour, we decided to head home. It was a perfect day with the family. It was so nice to be close enough to go for a few hours and still make it home in time to get the kids in bed almost on time. We decided we need to be doing more stuff like this. We need to be getting the kids out more, seeing more of nature, and just spending time with our kids. I love that they enjoy being outside and are so curious about everything. It's such a joy to watch your kids grow and learn. We want our kids to be raised to appreciate nature, to understand nature, and to enjoy nature. I think this was a great start.

Mother's Day

Mother's Day was a very busy, full day. We woke up and got everyone dressed and ready to head to Logan for my mom's annual Mother's Day dinner. We were originally going to stopping in Smithfield and taking pictures of the kids first, but when it came down to it we were late again and barely made it to Mom and Dad's on time. There's something about loading everyone up for the long drive to Logan that we just can't do on time. (I did a bad job on taking pictures but I did get a few good ones.)

Grandma and Grandpa jumping on the tramp with the kids. Those kids must be real special to get Grandma to jump with them.

My mom hosts a big dinner for Mother's Day every year. I remember it well growing up. It was always such a fun holiday because I got to see all my cousins, aunts, and uncles. This year was no exception. There was a lot of mom's family in attendance and it was nice to sit and visit with them. My kids were able to play with their cousins (well, technically 2nd and 3rd cousins) and everyone had a good time. Grandpa even set up the trampoline for the kids to jump on. It was a wonderful afternoon filled with good food and good company.

My cousin Kristin and her 9 month old little boy Will.

Gracie petting my Aunt Cindy's dog.

We stayed at mom and dad's for awhile after everyone left. It was nice to sit and talk with them and just enjoy their company. On our way home we stopped at Kingston's (Kenny's sister's house) to return some clothes they had left at our house the night before. Cory cracked my back (he's a chiropractor) which was very helpful and then we stayed a little while to have cake and ice cream with them for Karen's birthday. We couldn't stay long because we had a long drive ahead of us and Sarah had school in the morning. All in all it was a nice Mother's Day. It was definitely not relaxing, but I don't see how a day with 4 almost 5 kids can ever be relaxing. Beside it was nice to see family and that's all that really matters.

Congrappy Mothulation Day

Warning! There are no pictures, I need to get them from my Mother-in-law, but hopefully they'll be coming soon so check back.

Mother's Day weekend was a very busy weekend for us. My brother-in-law Michael graduated from ISU on Saturday and they were getting together with my in-laws for dinner that night. We were planning on going to Pocatello to join them for dinner, but got the brilliant idea to have them come to our house for a dinner. Michael and his family are moving in a week so their house is not in the best condition to host a number of people and we figured the kids would enjoy themselves more at someones house rather than at a resturaunt. So the night before his graduation Kenny called Sarah (Michael's wife) and asked if they wanted to come to our house instead. She called back late that night and said it sounded great if we didn't mind. So instead of cleaning my house the rest of Friday night, I watched some TV and went to bed. I'm such a procrastinator.

Because of my procrastinating ways we were VERY busy on Saturday. Luckily the weather was nice so Kenny went to the church to borrow some tables and chairs to put out on the lawn and I cleaned the house. We found out halfway through the day that Kenny's sister Karen, her husband, and their 5 girls were going to be able to make it after all. We were so excited to be having family over we didn't mind the added work it made for us. After getting the tables and chairs Kenny went to the store to get some food while I continued cleaning and started cooking.

The next few hours were all a blur. We cooked too much food and tried to make the kids keep the house clean while we waited for everyone to arrive. Sarah came with her 2 boys around 4:00 and then Michael and my in-laws made it about 15 minutes later. About 20 minutes after their arrival Karen and her family arrived. Kenny and I finished cooking and he set up the tables while everyone visited and pitched in a little when they could. The kids really enjoyed playing together outside which made the evening so much more enjoyable for them than a restaurant would have been. We finished cooking around 6:00 (only a half an hour later than we wanted) and sat down to a delicious (if I do say so myself) and large meal.

The rest of the evening was full of kids playing and adults visiting. It was so nice to have family over and to watch the kids play. We've really wanted people to come to our house for a gathering and this was just what we were looking for. Being that the next day was Mother's Day we decided to combine Michael's graduation party with a early Mother's Day celebration. Kenny bought a rose and some Pepperidge Farm cookies for each of the Mom's and bought the only cake he could find (an army cake complete with hummers and a helicopter) and had them write on it a combined graduation/Mother's Day message, 'Congrappy Mothulation Day.' That way everyone was covered. Don't I have the most creative husband? Everyone got a kick out of the cake and the labeling.

When it got to cold to play outside the kids came in and played downstairs with all the toys. They put on a show with all the creative outfits they could come up with out of our dress-up bin and just simply enjoyed playing together. Around 9:00 everyone headed out and even though we still had some cleaning up to do it was nice to know we didn't have to drive home. We had a wonderful day and hope Michael enjoyed his graduation party.

A 'Wicked' Weekend

I'm way behind on my blogging again so I'm going to try and do a little catch up over the next few days. The first weekend in May my mom got tickets to 'Wicked.' She had called me a few months ago and asked if I wanted to go and, only hearing good things about the play, I told her sure. It was a Sunday matinee, I didn't really want to miss church, but didn't want to skip out on the play either. So Sunday morning came and I got the kids up and dressed for church then I dropped Kenny and the kids off about 15 minutes early for 9:00 church (we only have one vehicle) and headed to Salt Lake. It was a long drive and I hit a few wet, rainy spots, but when I made to to Salt Lake the skies were clearing and it was turning into a beautiful day. I met my mom, her cousins Vicki, Michelle, Alison, and Aunt Linda at a Village Inn parking lot in Ogden. Everyone loaded in my van and we headed the rest of the way to Salt Lake. We arrived early and sat outside the theater for awhile enjoying the beautiful sunshine. We finally headed in and sat down just before the play started.

The play was amazing. I was really impressed and it's something I would definitely go see again. I haven't seen many plays, but it reminded me of 'Phantom of the Opera' and 'Les Miserables' just simply because of it's quality. The songs were great and the story was great. True to what everyone has said, it does make you think differently about the wicked witch of the west. I give it 2 thumbs up and would recommend it to anyone.

While I was gone Kenny suffered through 3 hours of church with the kids by himself. He said they did well and he even got to leave Gracie in nursery by herself for awhile and attend some of Priesthood session. With help from some neighbors he got the kids home, but was greeted by a completely locked up house (I didn't unlock the front door before leaving and I closed the garage when I left. With no keys, he was locked out.) Luckily our neighbors are also our landlords and they had an extra key. That evening he went to a friends house for dessert. It was nice of so many people to help take care of my family while I was gone.

After the play we headed to lunch/dinner at the Red Rock in Salt Lake. It's been a long while since I've been to a restaurant that's not fast food or IHOP and I really enjoyed it. Sometimes it's just nice to be an adult. Though I was the youngest (by at least 10 years) the company was nice as well. I enjoyed seeing and visiting with my family most of which I hadn't seen since the family reunion almost a year ago. Without the kids we were able to talk and relax, not a bad day.

I needed to head out right after eating so I drove everyone back to their cars and started the long drive back to Idaho Falls. I hit some nasty weather with thunder, lightening, wind, and a lot of rain, near Tremonton, but I made it through safely (I hate driving our van in wet, windy weather. It doesn't handle very well.) The rest of the drive was pretty uneventful. I made it home just after 9:00, just before the sun went completely down. It was a long, but wonderful 12 hours.

Enjoy the Little Things, . . .

As many of you may know, life has not gone the smoothest for us lately. This is a very hard post for me to write, but being that this is a history of our family I feel it's important to focus on what's happening in our life. We're now in our 8th month of unemployment with no real signs of anything getting better and things are really starting to get hard. I'll be honest, it's starting to take it's toll on me, and Kenny for that matter, and most days its hard to find the drive to get things done or even smile. I'm sure for me the fact that I'm 32 weeks pregnant doesn't help my emotional state, due to all the hormones running mad in my body, but up until now I've managed to keep that hope alive and focus on the feelings that everything will be OK. Notice I said 'up till now.' The past week or so it's been really hard and no matter how much I pray or try to be upbeat, I just can't erase the numbing fear. Not that I'm afraid we won't be OK, it's just been so long of wondering how and when that I'm running out of the ability to focus on that hope. However, in the midst of all the darkness, Heavenly Father has continually shown me the blessings I do have and the importance of living my life, even in this hard time.

Last weekend was the kite festival here in Idaho Falls. We've become big fans of kites since moving here and wanted to go see all the different kites and what the festival is all about. We weren't able to go due to our unexpected trip to Grace that weekend, but the Wednesday before the festival we took a drive to the kite store to get more information on the festival. While there I noticed a picture of kites on the wall with a beautiful saying underneath it. I had never heard the saying before, but it really touched me. It said, 'Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.' Such a simple quote, but so true at the same time. Things were just starting to look really bad at that point and that quote has really stuck with me. Since then I've tried to focus on the little things of life that make days complete; for those truly are the things that will probably matter most to me when I'm older and those haven't gone away.

Some of the little things:

Flying kites that night with the kids and our neighbor boy followed by a trip to the playground.

Ben flying the trick kite with Daddy.

Sarah's turn to fly kites with Daddy.

Ben, our neighbor Porter, Hannah, and Gracie looking through the fence at the ball they'd throw over.

Watching my kids enjoy the simple things.

Hannah watching her gerbils in the new shelf Daddy made her.

Getting to witness daily the love my kids have for each other.

Hannah and Gracie playing together with toys in their room.

Sarah and Ben discovering that the jets in Mom and Dad's bathtub make a bubble bath that much more bubbly.

Our newest game, sliding down the stairs on a camping pad.

Notice Gracie saying blastoff right before the last slide. This is her new word and she says it all the time.

There have been other signs that I am truly blessed in this time of major stress. This morning I awoke to the news of the passing of a friend in Virginia. She was our primary president when we lived there, and an exceptional person. I'm not sure the details of her passing, but I do know it was very unexpected. She was 35 years old and leaves behind a loving husband and 3 wonderful boys. The news shook me to my core and I've been left feeling very sad, but very grateful for my family and the blessing it is to have them all here with me. I can't imagine what her family is going through and though my life is so stressful right now I would rather be penniless with my family than be without them.

I don't know when life will get better or how it will get better, but I am eternally grateful for the blessing that I do have. I'm so grateful for a loving husband who, in the midst of all this, keeps trying to find work and who cares so deeply about his current inability to provide financially for us. It kills me to watch him struggle with it, but I'm grateful he cares enough about his family to struggle. I'm grateful for my kids. They've put up with a lot from me lately and though my moodiness is starting to rub off on them, they have helped give me the strength I need to get up and go throughout the day. They are the most amazing blessings in my life and I can't imagine my life without them. I'm even grateful for this little guy in my stomach. Though I'm consistently uncomfortable and tired and getting rather large, I'm grateful to feel my little guy moving inside me and knowing that he's growing like he needs to be. I'm grateful for all those who have given us support. For Sarah and all her long talks with me. I don't like to talk about my problems, I don't like to burden other people, but I really appreciate those who have shown their love and support in big and small ways. I really do have a lot to be thankful for and Heavenly Father has given me many blessings. For now I'm trying to focus on those things and the little things that make my days special and hopefully soon life will work out for us in the job department.

My Handy (and Crafty) Husband

Kenny has been quite the handy man lately. Despite his lack of tools he's managed to build some nice furniture and other things for our home. When we lived in Virginia we wanted to make shelves for the kids that would hold bins for their toys and also house a fish tank. We never got around to it, but after moving here we revised Kenny's original plan and designed a shelf to hold toys and their gerbil tank. Over the past few months Kenny's been building a shelving unit for the little girls room and the big kids room. They are just about done (as done as they're going to get on our limited/no existent budget) and will later get some edging and a nice stain. I for one, am way impressed with his handy work and the kids love them too. I'm glad we waited and made them here so we could change them a little to work better for the kids. It's nice being married to someone who can build nice things so we don't have to spend so much to buy cheap things.

The shelves in the little girls room. The top lifts up so we can access their gerbils.

The shelves in the big kids room. It still needs a back, but I think Kenny did a great job.

Kenny has also taken to building decorations for the notch in the living room. A couple weeks ago we went to a local craft store to see what kind of decorations we wanted to do for spring. We decided to skip spring this year and just jump right into summer. We didn't really have the money and we knew we could make a nice summer theme for not too much money. We found a cute little bridge that was around $80, but Kenny thought he could make one for cheaper. So we went to Lowe's and for around $10 we got all the material for him to build a little bridge. The bridge took a few hours to build and was the perfect size for our space and the perfect addition to our forest display.

After the bridge was built Kenny decided we needed to add a tent to our forest display. I haven't been feeling very crafty lately so, sadly, I put all the creativeness and craftiness on Kenny for this project. He took his idea and spent the day building and sewing an amazing little tent out of the left over fabric from Ben's Halloween costume. Throughout the day he kept asking me if it was manly to be sewing and we decided that making a bridge and a tent were very manly. He did a fabulous job, despite some issues with the sewing machine, and now our display is almost complete. We're thinking it needs something else, but we haven't figured out what yet. Maybe a geyser like Yellowstone or a little animal walking in the forest. We'll think of something, but for now I think it's great.

A view of the room with our forest display.

A closer look at the display.

We couldn't think of how to show water flowing under the bridge so we used the blue lights from our Christmas/winter display to give the illusion of water. Not bad I think.

A close up of Kenny's bridge and tent.

I'm very impressed with Kenny's handy/craftiness lately. After he got the tent built and put up he started to feel bad because it's suppose to be my job to decorate the house. He doesn't want to be one of the men who take over the decorating. I'm just glad it's done. I think he did very well and it looks exceptional to me. Thanks Kenny for being crafty. Maybe someday I'll feel crafty again.

Weekend With Family

Last weekend we found out Kenny's Grandparents, his Aunt Janet, and cousin Shannon were coming down from Boise. They came to Pocatello for Kenny's Aunt Loni's birthday and then they were going to Grace on Friday night. We saw them briefly at his cousin's wedding in January, but we haven't had a chance to really see them since the family cruise almost a year ago. So we decided (almost last minute, that's how we generally decide things) to go to Grace for the weekend. Kenny's Grandparents were having a gathering with all of his Grandma's siblings at my mother-in-laws house on Friday night so we weren't in a huge hurry to get there.

We arrived after 8:00, said hi to everyone, and quickly put the kids in bed. My sister-in-law, April, and her family were there along with my other niece Savannah, but they had just put the kids to bed so it made for nice timing for our kids. After the kids fell asleep and the visitors left we had a very enjoyable time staying up late and playing games with the family. The game of choice was Pit, which I haven't played in years, and forgot just how fun it is. It was nice to visit, play games, and just catch up with family.

The Grandparents

Aunt Janet and her daughter Shannon

Saturday was a busy day. Kenny and I made breakfast for everyone and then we all enjoyed a little visiting time. It was nice to catch up with Kenny's Grandparents and to watch Grandpa Holderness play with Hannah and Grace. Hannah seemed to really take to Grandpa Holderness and she enjoyed following him around and sitting on his lap. He, of course, ate it up and we enjoyed watching their sweet exchanges. The other kids were fascinated with the story of Grandma Holderness' leg and she was very good at telling it to them many times, and showing them her fake leg. Grandpa Newbry convinced those from Boise to stay a while longer and have his homemade Huckleberry ice cream before they left. It was so nice to catch up with everyone, but around 11:30 it was time for those from Boise to leave.

Grandma Holderness showing Ben and cousin Savannah her fake leg


Hannah and Savannah eating Huckleberry ice cream

After the extended family left we put the kids in the hot tub. They had a lot of fun splashing around while the Daddy's watched and the Mommy's had some quiet time to talk. After hot tubing it was time for naps and then some kite flying with Daddy/Uncle Kenny. The weather was a little chilly, but it didn't stop the kids from going outside to watch the 'rocket' (as my 2 year old nephew Zach called it) fly in the sky.

The Newbry grandkids in Grace over the weekend

While outside Kenny's dad convinced him to stay one more night and he came in and convinced me to stay one more night. We had a wonderful scone dinner prepared by April, let the kids play, and then played Disney Bingo (something we always have to do when we go to Grace.) We put the kids in bed and then the adults went for a soak in the hot tub. It was a great way to wind down the weekend.

The next morning we were up bright and early and on the road. We had to make it home for 9:00 church and I was teaching primary at 10:00. When we left Grace it was dry with no signs of rain and we thought we had plenty of time to make it back for at least primary. Surprisingly, when we made it just north of Pocatello we ran into snow. Not just a little snow, but real snow piling up on the roads. We had to slow down due to the slick roads and just made it in time for church. It was really unexpected, but I guess that's spring in Idaho. :)