Lately traveling for free isn't working out as smooth as it used to.
Remember when the whole airplane was empty because of covid?
Good old covid salad days.
Anyway, so we had to change plans last minute and fly Southwest to Vegas then to Reno. Which means getting three seats in a row was cha-ching.
Right off the bat we head out to see cows across the street.
We did all the usual great Fallon things:
swim, play games, gather round the table, swim some more, go to walmart, go to maverick.
This time we added the extra fun activity of floating down the river.
Planning the logistics and buying the rafts is half the fun, people!
Dad helped us blow up tubes with his compressor. You wouldn't even know he got one of his major organs extracted a few weeks ago. It makes me so happy.
This is about the time when Lyle says "this is the most fun I've had in years".
haha I love that kind of enthusiasm for activities.
This first day was jam packed, wall to wall activites:
morning outdoor pool,
marathon Walmart trip to get tubes, sunscreen, nighties,
afternoon float the river,
evening roller skating,
night ice cream.
and lots of cubing in between. Avery just learned, and then she started teaching cousins.
Cheers!
Finally time to put the nighties to use. We were bushed by the end of this day.
The next day:
tennis, basketball, get "surprised" by Emily making a trick Fallon appearance with Ashley,
tour our old high school and play around in the new gym, Sonic,
End the day playing chair soccer at the church while waiting for the Petersons to get into town.
Man, chair soccer is extremely competitive with us all. So so fun. Wyatt wins the first couple of rounds, then gets booed off the stage when he starts teaming up with Toby. BOOO
Oh by the way, there were NINE loaves of mom's homemade bread consumed.
She had to make more on the last day we were there.
The next day we floated the river again - this time with Emily and Petersons.
We pull out at Tristin's house and party/otter pop/basketball there for a while.
That night we rented the indoor pool.
I am sad to think about how the days of every last one of us being together is probably coming to an end.
With missions and marriages happening - our family is going to start spreading out and evolving (as it should).
But we just have so much fun together. Every child loves every child. They don't segregate.
The best part about the indoor pool is the big room of communal showers. We told everyone to plan to shower after swimming, knocking out 20ish shower uses.
My favorite was when me Emily Nettie and Jamie were all in the big shower washing our hair together.
I said "I didn't know 'shower with my sisters' was on my Fallon to do list." haha
They didn't believe there is a road named "Sorensen Road".
Andrew "taught" Nettie how to solve a rubiks cube. He did a pretty good job, but did't quite get her across the finish line.
That night: more ice cream.
Oh! and a rip into TJ Maxx. This TJ Maxx slaps!
lol we ran into Brit's sisters and they are so funny.
lol we ran into Brit's sisters and they are so funny.
We got these terrible matching nighties for some reason. Channeling our inner Bernice.
Sunday!
I love when we fill the rows.
I love when dad puts his glasses on the top of his head to read small print.
They were 50% of the class.
We did a LOT of cube teaching.
Damon, Annie, Nettie, and Morgan all learned how.
Ok, oh boy.
Then we played LCR. Why does this game make me sweat?
You won't believe me, but Avery won AGAIN.
Damon came in as her runner up AGAIN.
I could not believe she won again. I felt bad.
Like I wanted to crawl in a hole and get buried.
haha. They hate us.
We ate awesome dinner and the kids played lawn games ALL NIGHT.
We went on walks down rows of corn fields and the irrigation water came down the corkill lane ditch.
Hattie sat on top of the truck and watch the cousins.
It's all just the best.
More pooling, and we watched Inside Out 2 in the theater, and ate delicious burgers at Rob's and circled up for more lawn games.
This is all the stuff that makes my children SO MAD that we have to go home.
They start talking me in to staying more days, and then asking if we can move to Fallon? and why do we even have to live in boring Washington? This is seriously all the things they cry to me.
It's so weird how time stands still when we are in Fallon. Their entire lives melt away and for a while they don't remember anything else except being with cousins and family.
See? more bread. This sound of grinding wheat is a childhood memory.
Well, anyway.
We did end up going on the later flight the next day - so the kids were happy with a few extra bonus hours with cousins.
And then we flew home to yucky boring stupid Washington. lol
No, the minute we touched down they remembered that they do love their lives here
and all their friends and dog and dad.
