Driggs again

 

I’m a bit behind in blogging right now, so I’m going to try and get caught up quickly. So first, is the rest of our trip to Driggs over the summer. One of the things we used to do as kids when we visited Driggs, was walk down town and go to the Corner Drug store for candy, shakes, ice cream, etc., all the things you can find in the drug store of a small town. One of the treats they sold there was called a lime freeze. Apparently, over the years they have become quite well known for their lime freezes. So I was so excited to be going to Driggs to stuff myself with them. :)

 

Here we all are walking down town.

This is the sign over the door.

It’s much fancier now than what I remember as a kid. :)

A couple pictures of the shop.

 

Spencer and Emma eating blue “play dough” ice cream.

Linus really liked the lime freezes.            Maddie, Fenna, and Linus.

Grandma, Emma and Maddie on the way back home. I just love this picture!

 

Driggs, Idaho

 

At the end of July we went to Driggs in eastern Idaho (where my dad is from). We were able to meet up with my parents and also Chris and Fenna and their kids. It’s been 4 years since Adam and I were there, so it was really fun to be there, and especially to see family! When I was growing up we spent about 2 weeks there every summer. I have such great memories of those times! And wow, Driggs has changed so much since then! I might have cried a little seeing how different it is (I am such a pregnant girl).

So I have a bunch of pictures of some of the things we did while we were there, but honestly I don’t really remember what order we did them in, so I’ll just do a couple posts in random order.

One of the days we all went on a hike in the Tetons. Well, I’m not sure I can really call it a hike – with 6 kids 8 yrs. and under, a pregnant girl, and two sprained ankles (poor Adam and Fenna). First we climbed this huge rock. And yes, I’ll admit to being freaked out that one of the kids were going to fall off. But of course it was just fine and I didn’t need to worry at all.

        

Then we walked back down the mountain past a beautiful river/water fall. This is one of the pictures Chris took. I think he did an open shutter. Anyway, it turned out amazing! I really like this picture.

The kids also tried to catch butterflies, but without any luck.

 

 

 

 

Once we were back down the mountain, we went and played in the creek. And oh my, that water was SO cold! But I think it was good for the sprained ankles.

Summer Time

 

These are just some of the random things that have been going on this summer around our house.

A couple of my day lilies. The first is called Ruby Spider, and I don’t remember what the pink one is. I bought it last fall at the nursery at an end-of-the-season discount sale. I had no idea what it would look like – and I have been pleasantly surprised!

 

 

Here are some typical Spencer pictures. In the first he is cooling himself off on the a/c. This is a favorite spot on summer days. The next picture is “bucket head”. That Spencer is always making me laugh!

  

Here are the kids helping me make fruit leather. I tried this for the first time last summer, and it is so easy! I also love that it’s a way to preserve my fruit, and the kids love eating it! We found that cherry was our favorite.

I had the kids help me by pulling the stems off the cherries, and then I removed the seeds with my cherry pitter (that’s a messy job!). Then I puréed the fruit. I added one Tbsp of honey per cup of puree, but after eating it this time, I think I was only supposed to add 1 Tbsp/2 cups of puree. Anyway, I’m not really sure what the honey does, but I’m assuming it is just for a sweetener. 

Then I lined my pans with saran wrap, poured in my fruit, and smoothed it out. I put my fruit in the sun for a full day. Most of the time I find that I need part of the next day also to “bake” it (but I do often forget to move it around so that the sun is actually shining on it the whole time it’s outside). Once it’s dried out enough I just cut it into strips (short way) and roll them up. I’ve stored them in Mason jars before, but this time it got eaten too quick for that.

 

And lastly, some pregnant pictures! I have very few pregnant pictures, I just forget to have Adam take any. So at least I’ve remembered this once. I think these were taken about a month ago, and it was the day I was doing the fruit leather (that’s what the apron is about). I’m 28 weeks today, and feeling much bigger than what I was in these pictures. Last trimester here I come!

4th of July

 

We went to Soda Springs for the 4th this year. Adam’s brother Chey (who lives in Southern California) was going to be there, so of course we wanted to be able to see him! It’s also fun to spend the 4th of July in a small town.

Just about all my pictures from that weekend were taken at the parade. We lined up on the side of the road and waited for it to start. Several of Adam’s cousins and their kids were also.

                      Ben and Daniel                        Me and Emma

                    Emma and Emma                 Spencer and Grandma

It’s Uncle Chey! He’s a good candy getter. :)

                    Daniel and Rachel                 Adam and Spencer

 

After the parade there is a carnival at the park. It’s generally hot and crowded. But the boys went on the barrel ride while Emma got her face painted. We all had a good time, and it was great to see and be with so much family!