Tyce's 8 Year Stats

Tyce had his eight year check up this week and he is a BIG TALL HEALTHY BOY!  

Tyce:

63 lbs (75%)

4'7" (98%)

August!

August has been slightly less crazy than July was which has been nice.  

Tyce in all his favorite gear, swim cap, speedo, ugly camo socks, and roller blades...

Our city hosted a Fun in the Foam night for the kids and my boys LOVED it!

Poor Josh swallowed some so his throat was burning for a bit, I walked over to my office with  him and got him an otter pop which helped some and he was able to go back to playing...

They also got to hang out on this helicopter...

Parker's firm's softball season came to a disappointing end when they lost the CHAMPIONSHIP game by 2 runs.  We have loved watching him play this season though, he averaged about two home runs a game and has a "cannon" for an arm (at least that's what opposing teams and other spectators say).  Next year they will take back the crown!

Poor Brody's leg wasn't looking right so we took him in to the vet thinking it was broken...

But it was actually an animal bite that got infected!  He had a super high fever from it which breaks my heart!  They kept him overnight to drain and disinfect and now he is home. We have to do hot compresses six times a day which he is such a good boy for.  Hoping it heals soon because, in the meantime, he can't go outside which he is NOT happy about!

Tyce had his baptism interview with the bishop and came out SO excited, running to Parker and hugging and kissing him.  This kid is unique in so many ways and I just love him!  He is getting baptized in September.

Jack's lip is healing fairly well, I am still worried about the scarring but only time will tell...

Speaking of Jackson, this kid is a SAVER and has saved $688!  He is so excited to open a savings account, he wants to reach $1000.

The boys were able to go out to Grandma and Grandpa Morrill's house for five days and they had SO much fun!  Unfortunately it rained quite a bit so some of what Michelle had planned didn't happen but they made the most of it and still managed to have a great time!  Here's the pics she sent me...

They went camping up in Whiterocks Canyon...

When it's raining outside, you play games inside...

Sliding down this dirt hill on their bums was the highlight of their week!

It hailed!

They built this awesome "hut"...

After camping she took them to the county fair...

When I picked the boys up I asked them if they were ready to come home.  Usually they say, ya kinda.  This time they all said..."well we just wanted like five more days."  Hahaha, they love their grandparents and all the fun they get to have out there!!!  Michelle called me when they left camping and she asked Tyce if he wanted to talk to me.  Tyce's response, "well I think I should shower before I talk to her."  Hahahaha!  

Jackson and Josh's 11 Year Stats

Jackson and Josh had their 11 year check ups this week and all went well!  As weird as this sounds, these annual check ups are one of my most favorite things to do with the twins for two reasons.  Number one, they were born so early and so tiny and the doctors prepared us for the worst.  If they were to survive they would likely be blind, deaf, have physical disabilities, struggle academically, be small, be sick a lot, etc.  Every annual check up leaves me feeling beyond grateful for my twins' health.  They are healthy, strong, smart, PERFECT boys and how lucky I am that that is the case. 

Number two, it's a time when I see the closeness of Jackson and Josh.  They were giggling about how you could see their butts in the gowns, twirling around so their gowns spun out like a dress, and talking about how nervous they were for shots and Jackson says, "this is one time I am SO glad to be a twin because I like having Josh here with me for this."  It melted my heart because they very rarely even talk about being twins let alone express gratitude for each other.  I know they love each other but they're kinda in a stage where they won't hug or put their arms around each other or say I love you to each other which makes me sad but I do think it's pretty normal for 11 year old brothers.  But I see moments like this and I realize they really do have a special bond and love which is what this mama wants for her sons!!!!

Here are their stats for this year!  As expected, Jack is a giant and Josh is average!  But they are both 100% PERFECT in my eyes!  

Josh:  77 lbs (41%)

4'9" (55%)

Jackson: 87 lbs (65%)

5'1" (94%)

McCall 2017-Part 2!

Wednesday we decided to take a break from the lake and head to the local skate park.  The kids had fun despite the punk kid that kept teasing Mason and Katie for having mountain bikes at a skate park and getting mad at Emma for having a wiggle car at a skate park.  Kids like that bug me SO much!  

Dinner at My Father's Place, our favorite place to eat in McCall!  Jack and Grandma, the Oregon Duck twinners...

We took over the grass area to eat and play and it was the PERFECT night...

This girl was BEYOND excited about her ice cream cone and sprinkles!

 The cousins played till dark out on the grass...

I absolutely LOVE how kids ages 3 to 16 can all play together so well and have so much fun, my boys are so lucky to have such awesome cousins...

Playing games...

Parker skiing...

Tubing with my sisters...

Josh and Olivia knee boarded a lot together...

Lunchtime with daddy...

Tim brought this really cool inflatable paddle board that everyone seemed to enjoy...

Parker and I took Jackson to ice cream alley for a special treat as his reward for biking the entire lake with us.  He, of course, gets PLAIN vanilla!!!

When we were getting ready to leave we saw mom, dad, grandma, and Ruby there also!

Blondies snuggling on the couch...

The traditional annual fireplace picture!

Josh, of course, wanted ice cream alley also so we went BACK on Saturday!

Burying Mason in the sand...

All the kiddos eating dinner outside...

All the other kids were outside making smores and Jackson goes, "mommy I just don't know what to do I want to keep holding her because she's so sweet but I really want a smore too!  It's such a hard decision!"

Hahaha, Grandpa doing "diving board" which he used to do with me, Dana, and Linds when we were little jumping off the floating dock at Foster Lake!

We rotated sleeping arrangements each night between the four queen beds in the big room.  Dana woke up one night to this cuteness...

Oregon duck cousins...

And now for the HIGHLIGHT of the week...GRANDMA AND RUBY GOING TUBING!  

They had told us they would go on ONE tube ride, on Saturday, so they could get their hair done Monday morning.  Grandma asked me to go with them which, of course, I was thrilled about.  

They were absolutely hilarious and had a great time.  Grandma kept saying that there are much more fun things to be doing than this, like reading a good book!  Ruby was actually quite the dare devil so we ended up having Grandma get out and Dana went with Ruby and I.  Ruby wanted to keep going but the boat was pretty much out of gas so we had to be done.  They were such good sports and I am SO proud of them for doing it at their age!  It was a ride I'll never forget!  

Here's the "after" pic...

Sunday morning we packed up to GO HOME which is always such a sad day!  We always get a pic on the deck the morning before we leave...

This trip was beyond fabulous.  The kids were all so good and everything went so smoothly which is pretty impressive considering we had 20+ people up there!  Parker and I were able to spend more time together than in the past because our kids are getting older and much easier.  Sweet Jackson was SUCH a good sport!  He couldn't do much because of his lip but he made the most of the week anyway.  He was able to get splashed just not submerged so he went on easy tube rides, played in the water without getting his head wet, and played inside also.  I am so proud of him and his positive attitude.  I think he only complained twice all week about it.  One time he was on the tube about to go on an easy ride and I just saw one tear roll down his cheek "mommy I just really wish I could do a crazy tube ride."  Sweet boy, he will get extra turns next year!  The weather was PERFECT, we don't know if we saw a single cloud all week!  We ate (a LOT), played games, laughed, relaxed, played in the water and sand, did stuff behind the boat, chatted, did I mention we ate a lot?!  I feel so blessed to be part of such a wonderful family that makes an effort to get together and that has so much fun when we do get together.  Huge thanks to my parents for paying for the house and jet skis and to Linds and Jason for bringing their boat.  I am already looking forward to next year!