July 2020

Honeyman Beach

Tara went with the kids out to Honeyman, along with the Yorgesens. 

Zade dug a giant hole and then the kids buried him in it up to his waist. 

Braces and Retainers

Aria just got braces.  Her teeth were fairly straight to begin with, so she is supposed to have them for only around 15 months to help correct her overbite.  She's got a good attitude about it and hasn't complained at all, which has been nice.   

Zade also got a retainer to help him with his overbite.  He still has to lose a bunch more teeth before he too can get braces.  

Fall Creek Reservoir

We joined the Yorgesens, Yaedes and Stanleys at Fall Creek.  It was beautiful and the water was nice and warm.

Bishop Stanley brought his boat and took us out for a ride, which the kids really enjoyed.

Wetlands

Tara and I tried a new hiking path out into the wetlands by our house.  It was very pretty. 

Demolition
We've been waiting years for this, but finally the Johnstons were able to buy the property next to us, and they tore down the old rotting house on it, so that they can start building a new home there.  We all came and watched as the house was torn down in less than an hour.  It was so cool to watch.  We're stoked to get some great neighbors.

Crawdad hunters

Tara took the kids out crawdad hunting with the Yorgesens and the Pechts.  While they were there they saw a snake catch and eat a fish.  They got a pretty sweet picture of it. 

They also managed to catch a lot of crawdads, which they gave to some other people who were cooking them there. 

Nova's Dance

Aria volunteered at a dance camp that Nova attended at All That this week. They both had a great time. 

Flowerbeds

Tara's worked hard on improving the flower beds in front of our house.  It's fun to see how much nicer they're looking. 

Spencer's Butte

Tara suggested we go on a hike to Spencer's Butte.  I think she's tired of being pregnant and just wants to induce labor. :)  The hike was beautiful, although it didn't lead to the baby coming.  I guess she'll have to keep waiting a little longer.  This little guy pushes really hard on her stomach and see more active than any of our prior children.  It's fun to watch the show he puts on. 

Tara took the girls out for ice cream. 

Nova playing with her friend Ava.

Missionary Meal

We had the missionaries over for dinner and Aria and her friend Trista tried to teach them some  dance moves.  The missionaries made some pretty valiant efforts to emulate them, but weren't quite as successful. 

Family Photo Shoot

Michele Yaede did a maternity photo shoot for our family up at Spencer's Butte.  Here are a few of the nice photos she took.

June - July 2020

Ryzen's 7
We celebrated Ryzen's 7th trip around the sun with Kari's family and my parents at our house. 

For my bday, we kept things simple and enjoyed some cupcakes. :) 

Later that week we celebrated it at Kari's house. 

Defy

The kids enjoyed a nice outing at Defy. 

Nova recently acquired Aria's LOL dolls and now plays with all of them on a daily basis on the carpet near the kitchen.  It's her favorite place to play. 

Tara met up with some friends at the coast and the kids had fun playing in the sand. 

Camp Wilani

Tara scheduled a family camp for us our near Veneta. The kids had a lot of fun doing the various activities they had there.  

Ryzen even braved the cold swimming pool, and did cannon ball after cannon ball.

Dancerpalooza

Due to COVID-19, Aria's dance studio built an outdoor stage for all the dancers to perform the dances they'd worked on during the year.  Night after night we went out and watched her perform. 

Creek Hunters
We went out to Fern Ridge and the kids had fun doing catch and release.  They caught bull frogs and crayfish. 

Great Wolf Lodge

Due to Tara's pregnancy, we've decided to do short day trips instead of vacation.  We headed up to Great Wolf Lodge in Washington, and had Audrey join us, as having a friend makes all the difference in keeping Aria happy. The kids had a great time. 

They even had some mini golf. 

Nova's 5

We had a few of Nova's friends over to celebrate her bday. 

4th of July
Kari's family and my parents came over to celebrate Independence Day with us.

Since we didn't have a board to light the fireworks on, I pulled out an old glass door that we were planning to take out for bulk trash. 

 The temperature changes led the glass to shatter.  Then it began popping like popcorn.  It was just about as much fun to watch as the little fireworks. :)