Before my trip to Idaho, we buried the rat, Chasey. Chasey died back in June, but has been in the freezer since then. This was one of the many holes John has been digging around here.
As John mentioned, I made a quick trip to Idaho to see my family. I flew to Salt Lake last Thursday and my sister, Marcy, picked me up and drove me to Idaho, 3 hours in the car. We got to my mom & dad’s house and I got to see all of my nieces. I have the most adorable nieces in the world. This first (blurry, sorry) picture is my niece, Ellie. Ellie was carrying those little pumpkins around calling them apples. So cute! The next picture is Ellie’s big sister Abby, holding their newest cousin, Oakley. Abby loved to pinch Oakley’s cheeks and say “your chubby cheeks, chubby cheeks.”
Kaci & McKay are Oakley’s big sisters. This is Kaci, and she loved those sunglasses she found at Grandma’s house. For some reason she put them on upside down every time. I guess they were more comfortable that way. Then Kaci’s twin sister, McKay, who has the cutest picture face. Whenever I told her to smile for the camera she would scrunch up her face and squint her eyes. Kaci and McKay showed me their Halloween costumes before they left. I’ve seen these costumes on many other blogs, but come on, they’re darn cute. (Notice Kaci’s sunglasses and McKay’s picture face.)
On Friday I went out to the beet field to see the harvest. I didn’t really help with the harvest, but it was fun to go out there and see my dad in the field. I rode in the truck with my brother. He drove right alongside the beet digger that my dad drove and the beets load right into the truck. It has been a long time since I have been out for the beet harvest. There is something exciting about it. The smell of the fresh dirt is one neat thing that reminded me of home. Although the harvest is stressful, I can tell that my dad really loves what he does. He is really able to see the fruits of his labors. I think he really likes that his brothers and sisters, sons and daughters, and other family come out and work with him too.
On Saturday I went with my mom to Pocatello, another 3 hours in the car. My little brother is in charge of a wrestling club at ISU and they put on a kid’s wrestling clinic. This picture is me with my sister and sister-in-law at the registration desk. Two of the people in the picture are pregnant, can you guess who? (not me) Only one kid showed up for the first clinic, so Jeff did a little one-on-one. It was so cute! They had 11 for the second session, so that was better. Later that day the guys in the club had a wrestling match. Jeff pinned his opponent and we had a great time watching him. My mom was excited to be able to use her screaming wrestling voice again.
I visited McKenzie, so of course I had to get my haircut again! McKenzie’s hair is red and black and I think it’s really cute on her. I also dropped off my baby present to Lindsay & Brian. We gave them a tunnel from Ikea, when John saw it there he got really excited and wanted to get it. Maybe I should get him one! We also gave them this cute onesie that says “Daddy’s future hunting buddy”. Brian is a great hunter, he even showed me the elk rack he got recently. Lindsay will have to comment to tell us how big it was, but it was really big. If they hang it on their wall it will take up half their living room. Anyway, it was so fun to see all the cute baby things Lindsay has to get ready for her new arrival. She does not know the gender, and I’m pretty excited because now when she calls to tell me she had the baby she will have something to tell me about it, not just, “hey, the baby was born.” When we ever have kids I think it would be fun to keep it a surprise. I need to convince John that. Maybe after we’ve had one of each we could try it. I also watched an ultrasound video, which was really fun. They had a 3-D of the baby’s face, hands, and foot, very cool!
We drove back from Pocatello to my sister-in-law’s Halloween party. My talented sister-in-law, Holly, made these cool Flintstone’s costumes. Holly even had the rock necklace and Abby had a bone in her ponytail. I have to apologize because I ripped Abby’s costume (only a little bit) pulling her out from under this mattress. She kept asking to be chased, and of course I had to oblige.
On Sunday I drove with my mom and dad, Marcy and McKenzie to Oregon to be there for Oakley’s blessing. We spent about 10 hours in the car that day. It was worth it to see Josh bless Oakley and see so many people from Kari’s family. I also got to see Colton, he did some great tricks on the trampoline. His dad hasn’t taught him a backflip yet, but he’s pretty good at the front flip. We got back from Oregon at 1:00 am and my flight back to California was at 8:00. So, mom and I slept for a couple hours then got back in the car. We drove another 3 hours to get me there on time. Even though I spent so much time in the car and I was really tired, I had a great time with my family. I can’t wait to see them again!
