Funny Miss Paige

One of the reasons I recommitted to blogging is so I have a space to write down the funny things my kids say.  Things we swear we will never forget they said our now lost in the recesses of our minds.  The small utterances that had us laughing till our sides hurt, can't be recalled now and it's a travesty.  So hear are a few classics from Paige.

P:  Mom, when I find Jesus' room, I'm going to tell him I want to fly. 
M:  Oh, you think you will have to look for him in heaven?
P:  No, I mean when I'm at church.
M:  You are going to look for his room at church?
P:  (Exasperated tone) Mom, it is HIS house.

P:  Mom, how many more days do I have to sleep until I'm a grown-up?
M:  A lot.
P:  No, I mean how many?  7?
M:  A few more than 7.
P:  (Disappointed) Oh.

 (Looking at a group of people crossing the street by the hospital, dressed in white lab coats)
P:  Looks like those people just got baptized.

(While off by herself during family weeding time)
P:  Mom, do you know what I was doing over there?
M:  Weeding?
P:  No, I was praying to Heavenly Father to tell him I wanted to marry Woody (a boy in her preschool).
M:  Oh, good. 
P:  Do you know why I want to marry Woody?  Because I LOVE him.
M:  Oh boy.

My Recommittment to Blogging Post

I've started anew with my commitment to documenting our life here on the blog.  I've realized catching up on an entire year is not possible in one post, so I'm starting with the events of the summer thus far and will squeeze in posts about last year when I can.  I don't want these moments lost to our faulty memories! Plus I need some back-up for the times my kids whine that we "never do anything fun."

Summer started for me with a trip to Ragged Mountain with the 4th years of girls camp.  I was one of three leaders who took 24 girls on a two day, 20 mile, backpacking trip.  We had a great time living out of our backpacks and getting grubby.  The scenery was gorgeous and I loved connecting with the girls. I had a marathon to run the same week as the hike, so I was super paranoid about blisters and sore feet, but my shoes treated me well and I ended up coming home with a cold instead of a blister.

Despite the cold, I headed to Provo to run the Utah Valley Marathon.  I trained with my friend, Kim, and drove out with 2 other girls from GJ who were also running.  The race was a bear.  On top of being sick, there was a really strong headwind going up the canyon we were running down.  The wind dehydrated me more than I realized and both my calves cramped up the last 6 miles.  I finished in 3:43 and was content with that considering all the factors I was contending with.  It was my 8th marathon and afterwards I swore it was my last, but I'm already contemplating #9.  Marathons are a strange addiction!

Heidi and I, so happy to be done!

The next weekend we headed to Hatch, UT for a Barnhurst family reunion.  I know these pictures are tiny, but it is all I have of everyone.  These are all the families that came.  We are on the top row, second from left.  Eric really enjoyed seeing his uncles and aunts and cousins that he doesn't see often.  He especially loved hearing stories about his dad and his dad's family when they were young.

 The kids loved seeing the horses...

 and taking a tour of the fish hatchery.

They even got to feed the thousands of fish that were swimming in the tanks. They could have done it all day long!

The next week we flew to Cabo for a week of fun with my family.  We rented this awesome house in a tiny town called La Ribera on the Sea of Cortez.  It was a heavenly week on the beach with no responsibilities beyond applying sunscreen and staying hydrated in the heat. From the house we  watched dolphins jumping and playing, manta rays jumping completely out of the water, flying fish, and rooster fish chasing their prey.  I think I could live here permanently!

 The men (Eric, Chris, Kirk, and Steve) chartered a fishing boat and caught a marlin.  Eric has wanted to catch a marlin for a long time, and this 160 lb. fish didn't disappoint. 

 They were hoping to catch more than one, but for some reason luck was not on their side.

 Kirk managed to catch a nice dorado (which made for a delicious meal), but that was the only other fish they caught. 

 Paige and Andrew are 6 mo apart and are best friends.  We loved listening to their conversations and watching them play.  They were always busy, busy, busy!

Aren't they cute?

My dad created "contests" for the kids each day.  These contests were the highlight of the day for the kids. Each day had one objective (find the best shell, piece of driftwood, etc.) and one winner.  The winner received 50 pesos that they were able to spend later in the week in Cabo.  Mason bought a necklace, Logan bought a guitar, and Paige bought a bracelet.

We broke into a hotel that was closed for renovation to snorkel on the rocks in front of their property.  We decided we needed to bust out some moves while we were trespassing.  My pose is one I learned from some sexy latinas.

We went on a hike to a a natural hot spring and Paige and Andrew tired out after about 10 steps.  We have an exact replica of this picture taken 6 years ago with Mason and Morgan on their dad's shoulders in Cancun.  Too bad I can't find the digital version of that picture to compare!

This is the natural hot spring pool.  It was amazing!

The pool spilled down into a stream that was cooler and the kids loved going from the stream to the pool and back.

From the hot spring we continued hiking to get to a natural waterslide and pool. 

The kids had so much fun jumping off the rocks and sliding down the rock.

One morning, Eric and I took my dad and boys out for another fishing adventure.  It was much more successful than the men's first venture. 

Eric has been trying to catch one of these fish (a rooster fish) for about 8 years.  Every year he goes to baja (which has been nearly every year for the last 8 years), he spends hours on the kayak trying to catch one of these amazing creatures. But I guess the roosters like the way Mason and Logan fish better because they each caught one!

Roosters are awesome fighters and gave these boys a run for their money!

They really are a super cool fish.

The boys also caught these huge Green Pargo, which fed us well! We also caught Pompano, Pufferfish, and a couple other kinds that I'm forgetting the names of.

I got in on the action too and felt how strong these fish could fight. 

And once the boys were too tired to reel in any more fish, Papa took his turn with the reel.

The paddleboard was the only exercise I got all week. I like the kind of exercise you can do in bare feet, a bikini, and 80 degree water to jump into!

We drove the 1 1/2 hours into Cabo one day to shop and hang out.  We rented a hotel room, even though we weren't spending the night, so we could swim in the hotel after shopping.  The kids loved a break from the ocean and created a reverse limbo game in the pool.

We walked from the hotel to the beach to see the Lands End Point and although Cabo is beautiful, I much prefer the quiet, deserted beaches of La Ribera to the craziness of Cabo.

We took the kids snorkeling at a place called Cabo Pulmo, which is the only protected coral reef in Baja.  They loved seeing all the huge fish, especially the Parrot fish.

Plus it was a gorgeous beach to spend the day on!

The kids were allowed to stay up and outside for as long as the sun was up.  We loved playing outside as the sun was setting, it was always so beautiful!  And even after the kids were in bed, the adults stayed outside watching distant lightning storms on the ocean or just admiring the stars and listening to the ocean.  It really was the perfect week and was so hard to leave.  I think I'm still homesick for La Ribera!

We came home a few days before Logan's 7th birthday.  We had to scramble to do a party and he chose to go see Madagascar 3 with 3 of his friends (Liam, Nicholas, and Steven).  Eric was gone working in New Mexico on his actual birthday so Eric took him miniature golfing as a special treat before he left.  Logan thought he was so cool going out for a night with his dad.

He chose an ice cream cake from Dairy Queen for dessert and wanted to make sure that when he woke up on his birthday that there would be balloons and a happy birthday sign.  He's a pretty easy kid to please!

He asked to go to Texas Roadhouse for dinner because he wanted to go "where you could throw peanut shells on the floor."  He got his request and even had a birthday serenade.  He was pleased/embarrassed the whole song and tried his hardest to be cool during the song (thus the serious face) while he was the center of attention.

Last weekend we went to Boulder, UT for a mini-family reunion with my dad's side of the family.  My uncle Chuck has a home and property in Boulder that we've gone to since I was a kid and there are many traditions/memories tied up in Boulder.  One such tradition is going on a hike to sand creek where we dam up the stream and create a swimming hole.  The water is freezing, but it's a must that everyone get in and go under. Paige was the only one exempt because she had the important job of throwing rocks for Chief to fetch in the water to keep him from tearing the dam apart.

This year, my uncle Chuck did rounds of guessing the "magic number" to determine who had to go in first.  Once all the kids had taken a swim, adults were lured in by the chants of all the kids.  I even took a turn, even though I was fully clothed!  It was a cold hike back but I couldn't look like a wuss in front of my kids!

Cold, wet, but happy kids!

After the swim, we built a fire and roasted marshmallows to warm up.  It was unseasonably cold and rainy this weekend, so the fire was especially necessary.

After swimming, the kids took turns being led around on the horse.  It was one of the highlights of Paige's weekend, but the boys weren't interested in taking a turn since they couldn't have control of the reigns.  My boys are apparently seasoned cowboys.  Who knew?

The second highlight was swinging in the tire swing "up to space." She literally spent hours in this swing.  I thought my shoulders were going to separate from reaching up to her so many times.

And the third and probably biggest highlight was catching her first fish.  Eric told her she had to kiss her first fish and she did it!  Too bad we don't have that on camera!  She was so proud!  Guess we will have to take her on the boat next time we are in Baja!

When we haven't been on the go, the boys have been busy with basketball camp, tennis lessons, piano lessons, playing with friends, and swimming.  We try to squeeze some chores in there too so they aren't totally spoiled, but I think they have a pretty good life.  After all this fun I think they are going to have a rough time adjusting to school NEXT WEEK!  That's right, school starts for us on 7/23.  Good thing it's been a good summer, because it's over!  Time to start Pre-K, 2nd, and 3rd Grade!