70's Kind of Summer

Previous summers have been full of fun but seriously over-scheduled. This year I wanted to draw things back to the 70's where my memories of summer include hours and hours of reading, playing outside and at the park, and weeding the garden. With the exception of our family Texas trip and a couple of weeks in Utah with cousins we had a refreshing, play filled, reading and weeding summer and we loved it!

The neighborhood kids would gather up at either the triangle at the subdivision entrance or at someones backyard and play until dusk . . . yep, 10 pm was curfew. I showed them one night what the sky would look like (no sun shining but not quite dark) when they were to head home and they did quite well telling time by skylight. If I wanted them home earlier I would stand on the front porch and ring the cow bell for them to come home.  A little throw back to the 1870's perhaps but it worked and other kids in the neighborhood thought it was "cool". My favorite evenings were spent on the porch watching them play across the way with the sunset, the sprinklers and squeals from tag and capture the flag.

We had a nice system set up among the moms too.  When the kids switched houses, the mom who ended up with them would group text all the others.  It made it easy to keep track of where everyone was.  Hosting the games also meant we were on bandaid duty and prepared to have a constant string of kids either getting drinks or going to the bathroom. I really enjoyed interacting with the kids in another setting besides primary each week and grew to love them even more.

Even with a 10 pm curfew the boys wanted to read to fall asleep. After showers they wouldn't be getting to bed until 10:30 but I couldn't refuse them the luxury of reading as long as they want by late-night lamp light. Hyrum only lasted maybe 10 minutes but Nathan would easily read until 11 or 12. That late of a night also meant sleeping in and I didn't mind that either.


Summer isn't complete without popsicles.

Hyrum remembered that his 1979 Better Homes and Gardens thrift-store-find Cookbook had a popsicle recipe. Every other day he used either fresh raspberries from our garden or frozen strawberries from the freezer to make a luscious semi-healthy popsicle set. They were so good that going back to the off-brand Otter Pops seemed far to sugary for our liking (though they ate them anyway).

Erika showed up one day with a fishing pole, a fishing license and bubbling excitement and a new hobby was born.

The catch usually consisted of minnows or crawdads but once in a while a fish would willingly grab the hook.  Most of them were thrown back for more growing time but those of greater size became a lesson in food preparation . . . and dinner.

Erika and Nathan had a gut-wrenching bonding moment when he followed her detailed instructions and reached in to clean his first fish.

One of their favorite fishing spots was on a friend's property. He also has a field surrounded by an extremely tall fence with his three pet elk.

Gary has raised two of his elk from the time they were born so they are very tame and friendly. The kids could pet and feed them without worry of much beyond an aggressive nibble as long as they kept a wary eye on the wild elk also sharing the field with them.

Bike rides and walking the dog were part of our daily routine.

Sometimes we combined the two!

Tag on the trampoline. . .

Picnics  . . .

The boys loved making their own creative lunches and inviting friends over for picnics. They did it about once a week, inviting different friends each time.


When Kara and her boys came for a visit we extended our 70's summer to them.
What a relaxing way to spend time (instead of money) together!

Rigby Memorial

Caboose at the Rigby fair grounds.

One of the last merry-go-rounds in the area.

Playing at the park.

We also took them to our favorite fishing spot where Max and Zane touched their first fish!

And, we shared the elk with them as well.


In other news:

Hyrum has discovered that he loves almonds, fajitas and ribs.

Nathan learned how to make scrambled eggs.  Only once did he melt his plate after setting it on the hot burner.  He is now an expert and makes them all by himself; sometimes a couple of times a day.

Justin was in charge of Sunday dinner one week.  He spent the entire afternoon making Bavarian Cream Crepes, Raspberry Cheesecake and Caramel Popcorn.  I believe he experienced the joy that comes when hours of kitchen labor are rewarded with lip smacking sounds from everyone.

After reading with Nathan and Hyrum about Enos in the Book of Mormon and discussing that we can pray anytime, anywhere, and about anything, I asked for examples.  Nathan: "sometimes when I'm on the toilet I pray that my poop will come out faster."

Some of Hyrum's friends were over to play and one of them got hurt. I heard him tell her, "don't worry. My mom has magic stuff and bandaids. She'll make it all better."

One very hot evening I could not come up with a dinner that sounded even remotely appetizing. The heat gets to all of us and we seem to lose our desire for food. I asked the boys what they would prefer for dinner: peaches, bread and milk (a family favorite!) or cereal? Nathan immediately piped up, "you had me at cereal."

Levi was explaining something to the rest of us and Nathan, in an oddly mature and matter-of-fact voice, stated, "you're so complicated."

Color Run USA

Hyrum was so excited to do the Color Run! No pre-race jitters for this cool dude!

1st year of Color Run in Slovakia! 

(Vivien and Noemi's names are on the list behind them.)

We were thinking about ditching and selling our tickets cause it was so freaking hot but we went :D We didn't want our color run t-shirts to be ruined so we got simple white ones.

It was only after the first couple of blocks that the shock seemed to settle in that there was actually 3 miles involved in the event. After gentle persuasion and encouragement they resigned themselves to the full distance and off we went. Hyrum ran nearly the full 3 miles with Justin keeping up with him. He had to have covered at least twice the distance as his little legs ran double steps to each of ours. Nathan and I did sprinting spurts and finished just minutes behind them.T

The boys loved the color stations where color was thrown all over us but the light breeze blew off and dulled most of our color. 

As the boys stripped down in the laundry room and headed for the showers they discovered how deep their colors went.  There was double shampooing and "muck water" as they scrubbed their sweaty bodies down and they were pretty proud of that.

Vivien and Noemi were walking rainbows!

It was good, fun, colorful :D They closed off a road in Bratislava where we started then we went in a racecourse which had more grass than it should've and some holes in the ground so we pretty much just walked the rest of the race :D but it was fun, not that hot  so we made it :D

4th of July

The Parade
LeRoy and Derek rode in the BMW for the parade
Bret represented a dashing Uncle Sam on the Dollar Tree float.
Erika, Nathan and Hyrum walked with the Citizens For Decency crowd to represent Bret
(his internship is with CFD but as assistant manager he was required to be with DT)
Justin walked, cheered, and flipped with the Madison Cheer Squad

Erika is a very supportive wife! She pulled together some of Bret's interns to make t-shirts for the parade. When she called me on the 2nd to see if I had vinyl and paint they could use (no budget with CFD because it is non-profit), I really didn't think it would come together.  Sometimes I forget and underestimate the tenacity of this girl. The evening of July 3rd found my kitchen filled with interns, t-shirts, contact paper, paint, brushes and one handy-dandy Cricut Cutter. By 7am on the 4th the shirts were dry and parade ready. Though Bret is the managing intern over all the interns for Citizens For Decency, Erika's crafty qualifications filled in beautifully!

Levi, Daymia and I caught the beginning of the parade before Levi ran off to be the lone man holding down the Radio Shack fort. Daymia and I waited in the hot sun for each of our family members to parade by. Somehow the cheer team snuck up on us (probably because we were so caught up in the Ray's Chevron male dancers . . . hahaha, that sounds funny!) so we only saw the end of Justin's flip routine. Determined to see the full set of flips, we ran down main street and around the corner watching two different dance routines from the cheerleaders before we could record his next set.



Justin did "9 and a full" several times in the parade, which means 9 back hand springs and a full flip.  That many flips on the hot paved road left behind burns, pebble pocks and road rash but the cheering crowd "almost made it worth it".

After the parade, LeRoy ran home to grill the fish that Nathan and Hyrum had caught.

I started making the salad and cutting up cantaloupe and watermelon when LeRoy burst into the kitchen freaked out that I was using one of his demolition watermelons for lunch. I calmly explained that I had bought my own watermelon for lunch and his four watermelons were still under custody in the garage waiting their explosive demise.

Corn on the cob leaves us looking a little Shrekish in the teeth but it sure is a summer favorite!

I spent the rest of the day in silent, fervent prayer. This dynamite activity has blown it's boundaries! In previous years they have used dynamite that was only 1/4 sticks (only?!?!) and this year LeRoy decided to go with 1/2 sticks so now they are shattering solid logs instead of squishy watermelons. Unlike watermelon, the log didn't spray little bits or even small chunks in a reasonable area, it blew three huge chunks in three far reaching directions - one of which happened to be shooting directly at Nathan's head. In some divine twist, the log chunk dropped right at his side without hitting him. Only a mother's prayers are protecting these kids now because all sensibility has been lost.

Derek didn't help my fears any when he came running in with pain written all over his face.  He had tried to set off a firework inside a plastic container and it went off before he put it down.  It fired off in his hand and, thankfully, only took a chunk out of his finger instead of the whole finger or hand. Part of the plastic embed itself into his flesh and once we got that out he had a major burn to deal with. Professional help was considered but after a short time he thought it would be okay. After several days of severe pain and peeling off burned skin, a new pink layer started to grow in.

As a double dose of bad luck, Derek also lost his wallet containing his driver's license, debit card, insurance card and SS card. That's like handing someone your entire identity! It wasn't until two months and a paper trail of inconvenience later that his wallet was found under the seat of the BMW.

The only upside I've found to blowing up watermelons and pumpkins was growing along the ditch bank.

The fruits of last year's explosive Thanksgiving labors are in full bloom! While killing weeds along the ditch bank we found 7 pumpkin plants, one of which has enough blossoms to provide us with Halloween jack-o-lanterns for this year, which we will most likely blow up to perpetuate the pumpkin cycle. Redneck farming at it's best.

I like it when the dark finally comes because we pull out the less-dangerous fireworks; the pretty ones. I can finally take a breathe that we will (hopefully) only have a few slight burns rather than possible death. Charlie, however, did not like it at all. He wasn't scared of the booming sounds or colorful display but our social fur ball really, really wanted to be right in the middle of all the craziness. He nearly lost his doggy voice from barking so much. But, his stolen hamburger feast and tipping over of every drink and running off with all sorts of garbage was proof that his self control in public situations is severely lacking.

Shortly after midnight the older seven kids followed their three year tradition and left for Denny's in Idaho Falls. LeRoy, Nathan, Hyrum and I headed to bed! So glad another 4th of July is done.

Texas Pool Party

We have passed this same sign many times over the last 18 years but this time LeRoy wanted to stop. The last time we had a picture taken here was when Levi, Erika and Derek were all in car seats.

Lenora (LeRoy's sister) provided a perfect place for us to have the Edwards' family reunion.  She had beds arranged for all of us, food for days, a swimming pool, a pool table, horse shoes, sunscreen, towels and most importantly, air conditioning.  Our time together was wonderful!

Our initial excitement over the pool was quickly hampered by the fact that a tarantula had been hanging out in the yard and pool that day.  The Texas peeps seemed to think flipping him over the fence was enough but us Idaho folk were a little creeped out.  Still, the heat won and we were soon in the pool. . . for the next three days.

Some of us that preferred to be pool side swatting flies, applying (and re-applying) sunscreen and making sure everyone had enough water.

When we were water logged (or dying from the heat & humidity) there was pool inside.

The physical maneuvers these Edwards men pull off for a shot is quite entertaining.

Nathan and Hyrum had been talking themselves up all spring telling Papa they were going to beat him.

Beat him they did! Of course, his decades of pool experience was set aside as his decades of grand-parenting let the boys have their moment of glory.

Mixed in with the pool and the pool there was also plenty of regular old chit-chat and happiness.

One of my favorite moments was watching Ben and Papa compare and discuss their hearing aides.

The Rexburg kids had the privilege of sleeping on the party bus.  It was the perfect setup with 6 beds, plenty of luggage space and its own air conditioning.

Hyrum ended up sleeping with Daymia the first night because of bad dreams (probably from too much travel, sun and excitement) and Derek scared them with his sleep walking/talking. Nathan was initially worried about the size of beds, if it would be too cold/hot, spiders, the dark, and the dogs but the others wouldn't let him out of the party. By the end of our stay we were ready to start the bus up and take it home.


The kids

Ester, Louis, Dad, LeRoy, Cynthia-Darlene, Lenora, Frankie, Robin


The grand kids

Back: Levi, JC, Christian, Derek, Justin, Colby, Cory
Middle: Crystal, Papa, Nanny holding Kaia, Heaven holding baby cousin, Lilli, Haley
Front: Jace, Bert, Nathan, Hyrum, Derek, Trace


The people brave enough to marry into the Edwards' clan

This was such an odd picture to all of us in-laws but part of the reason our relationships work is because we know when to stand firm and when to do what we are told.

Everyone!!

Saturday night we headed to Cool, Texas to stay with Nanny and Papa. However, because of all the rain and flooding that Texas had received, their septic tank was very temperamental so we stayed at a hotel in Mineral Wells. The following morning (Father's Day) we went to church with the Mineral Wells LDS Branch where LeRoy and I both spoke on fathers (his topic was earthly fathers and my topic was Heavenly Father).  It was an honor to be with his dad on this special day! I have so much respect and love for this man!

After church we quickly changed and packed at the hotel in order to check out on time and then had a wonderful lunch that Nanny had prepared.  She was so kind to not only feed us but pack up enough food for our two day trip home.

We couldn't seem to pull ourselves away! We loved having our own time with them and so enjoyed the spoiling from Nanny and the teasing from Papa. The longer we were there the more and more we were laughing. Our favorite was when Papa showed us his muscles.

It wasn't until I was putting this collage together that I realized that LeRoy goes through the exact same flexing routine that his dad did, even down to the belly pat!

As I watched Nanny and Papa throughout the week I saw so much patience and love from them. True, unconditional love. Every one of us thinks we are the favorite, just as it should be.

This last picture is a good representation of how we all felt about our Texas trip.

Genuine fun, love, and laughter!

June

Summer is my favorite food season!

My counter has never looked so beautiful.

********************

Myth: turtles are slow.    
Fact: turtles are great entertainment.

This handsome fella was rescued from the road, lovingly protected in our yard for about an hour and released into his natural habitat before dark.

Our other pets were curious and cautious about the newcomer.

********************

In a "small world" moment, LeRoy helped my high school bus driver plant a tree at Krupp Scout hollow for his wife, also a dedicated scouter, who had passed away.

LeRoy ~ Alan Wilson ~ Alan's daughter

*********************

Hibbard 5th Ward Father and Sons Camp Out

LeRoy made his annual Dutch oven berry cobbler and the boys drank an insane amount of soda. It seemed so fitting to see Brock in a picture with all of them. Not a day goes by that we don't see his cute face.

*********************

Derek had his 19th birthday!!
Away from home.
Without me.

What a strange new experience to only talk with him for a minute as he bustled around in his celebrations 3 hours away. I'm grateful he had others to pamper him with a homemade raspberry cheesecake on his special day.

*********************

After a morning of cheer workouts and running, Justin sat at the kitchen table eating his second breakfast and tried to test his heart rate which showed up as 155 on his pedometer but seemed unlikely since he was "resting".  He put his hand over his heart, looked up in shock and stated, "I can't feel my heartbeat at all . . . {pause} . . . my pecks are too big".

While Hyrum and Nathan were playing imagination I overheard "I can't do it, I'm going to tap out"! Hyrum's encouragement to Nathan was very touching. "You just need to believe in yourself. You're strong. Come on, be brave."  A few minutes later I learned what all the encouragement was needed for when I walked into the family room Ninja Warrior course and they yelled out, "Stop! You almost stepped into the spikes of death"!

Hyrum has a tendency to start his stories with, "So, I was being dumb . . . " and they often end with bodily evidence of a cut, scratch, burn, torn toenail, or bruise followed or accompanied by a giggle, tear or big exaggerated eyes to which I respond with the appropriate laugh or band aid and always a hug.

Sewing Through the Summer

My first project goal for the summer was to finish a denim quilt.

195 Circles from used jeans
195 Squares from scrap fabrics
2 spools of thread

It turned out brighter and better than I expected! Now, I'm not so sure that I want it to be for football games and camping. I'm considering it for display only.

I love the swirly look on the back and the diamonds, flower petals and circles that can be found on the front. I love reminiscing as each scrap fabric swatch brings back memories of projects past.

Charlie also loves it. He would not get off of it as I was clipping each of the rag-time petals and each time I walked away from it he would bunch it all together and curl up in it.

My next denim quilt was similar to the first but consisted of octagons instead of circles.  I found a curtain at a garage sale in Utah and used that as my colored fabric, carefully numbering each square to maintain the pattern once sewn in.

165 Octagons
165 Squares
2 spools of blue thread
2 spools of white thread

Using octagons created a star look rather than the flower petal look.  Also, instead of using a straight stitch and clipping each petal to make a rag quilt, I used a zig zag stitch to complete each side of the stars.

I started this quilt with gusto but quickly lost interest because I was spending so much time hiding in my basement sewing when I should have been outside enjoying the summer sun.  So, I put it away until the first week of August when I would be spending a week at Kellie's house watching her girls. The project filled the quiet evenings after kids were in bed and I was so close to finishing when all of the sudden, I ran out of thread.

My 4th spool of thread!! I knew it was crazy and I needed to get kids to bed but I loaded up five little ones and braved Saturday Utah traffic to the nearest Walmart (20 minutes away) to get thread so that I could finish.

I entered both of my quilts in the Madison County Fair and received blue ribbons for each. I had not entered anything in the fair since I was a pre-teen in Jr. High so I felt a little silly but it was rewarding to look up at them on display for others to enjoy their unique beauty.

As I gathered my quilts to take to the fair I also decided last minute to enter a couple of my holiday runners.  They also received blue ribbons.

The pre-teen in me was very satisfied with the work I had put into each project and the ribbons for my scrapbook. I imagine Great Grandma Laws smiling in approval.

Gymnastics and Cheer

Gynmastics teams 2015

Nathan has progressed very well in tumbling and his skill level reminds me so much of Justin at age nine.  He does have the advantage of living with one of his coaches so gets extra training on the trampoline and encouragement outside of class.

We really enjoyed their recital and love their new t-shirts.  The "caution:" is real! Besides continuing to take advanced tumbling from ValaRae, Justin also co-coaches many of the other classes.

Just a little showing off before coaching the next class. . .



He has worked hard to get that!


Justin began each weekday morning at cheer practice as a new Madison cheerleader.
Following cheer practice he would head over to Airbound to coach gymnastics.

When he initially told me what his summer schedule would be I was concerned that I might be dragging him out of bed at 5:30 each morning.  However, I did not need to get him up even once.  He wasn't just up; he was cheerful!
I appreciate so much his positive and helpful attitude.

Some mornings he was finished by 10:00 and others he coached until 11-12:30. His favorite mornings consisted of a brief break to run home for Second Breakfast. He did great getting to bed at a decent time each night and was full of energy starting each new day but by the time he was home he was ready to crash on the couch or bed for a short nap and then he'd be ready for the rest of his day.

One morning he thought he could skip the nap but as he was talking to me while I was folding laundry his voice gradually got softer and he drifted off to sleep. I stood there and stared at him for a minute remembering his four years old nap routine. He would chatter and chatter at me while the older kids were in school and gradually talk himself to sleep.  I feel so blessed that he still loves to share his thoughts, dreams, frustrations and everyday details of his life with me.


Some of my favorite texts are random videos keeping me caught up on the latest tumbling tricks. Justin has to work really hard to do parkour flips and stunts because it is more style and creative than the structured and sharp tumbling that he has been trained in. He'd like to have a good balance of both in his portfolio.




During July the cheer team went to Layton, Utah for a three day cheer camp.

Of the four boys on the team, he was the only one able to do the full extension.  All those late night pull-ups in his doorway have now paid off.

Practicing this particular stunt left him with a huge shoe hickey on his collar bone and his hands were blistered from catching her in her shoes but those wounds were very minor compared to the rips and tears he used to get from the rings and parallel bars when he was training in competition gymnastics.  He likes this balance of minor wounds with major fun vs the major wounds for the minor fun.