The Treehouse...

I mentioned in an earlier post how Brig is always coming up with ideas. Well, his big idea of the summer was to build a treehouse. He even started a little one in a small tree by trying to wedge a board between some branches and using a pulley to hoist up buckets filled with all sorts of boyish wonders. Cory promised that as soon as our giant farm project was over that he would build a real treehouse. And he certainly delivered! He built the coolest treehouse any kid has ever had. In fact, it is so neat that as soon as it was built Cory worried that it was too nice and too much of a tree house. It is amazing!

8 is Great and Brig is Great...

Somehow, eight years has passed since we were blessed with an amazing baby boy on a hot summer evening. We are so happy that Brig started our parenting adventure on that wonderful day and we are still so happy to have him as part of our family. Bright and early on his birthday, Brig and Cory woke up and floated the river. When we went to pick them up at the bridge they floated to we dropped a balloon and a candy bar down for him to being his special day. This is the second year that he and Cory have floated the river on his birthday and they are hoping to make it a tradition.

This hungry boy gobbled up his pancakes and was ready for more fun. We spent the day swimming at Cathy Adam's pool and setting up and playing on the zipline we gave him and then having some friends and family over for cake that evening. I knew that Brig was getting older but that little fact hit me right in the face when he told me he didn't want any sort of fun cake this year...just a regular crazy cake!

Here are 8 things we love about Brig:

1. He wakes up early. He is almost always the first one awake in our home and quietly reads until everyone else is up.

2. He is full of ideas and projects. He is constantly thinking up a new venture of some sort and then processing how to go about it all.

3. He is a very responsible big brother. He has taken that role very seriously and is quite helpful and kind to his siblings.

4. He loves to read. He has turned into a little bookworm and I love it!

5. He is always hungry. That boy can eat and eat and usually out-eats Cory and I.

6. He loves to be outside. He spends many hours riding his scooter, riding his bike, playing in the little pond, chopping a fallen branch or building something.

7. He is responsible. Many mornings I will wake up and he will tell me how he has already done most of his chores and he is irrigating the field 99% on his own.

8. He is obedient. He wants to do the right thing and tries very hard to follow our family rules, the gospel and the laws of the land.

We love you Brig! Happy 8th Birthday.

Another Farm Project and the Definition of Tenacious...

Early this summer we had a bit of an undertaking...actually that is a ridiculous understatement- we took on a huge project that had to be done at our farm property. We had to install a well, pump, pumphouse and watering system. When you say it out loud or list it out it is hard to believe that it could be so overwhelming. There are just a few things, right? Not so much. It was far more than we were expecting and took night after night and hours upon hours. Cory was completely exhausted by the end of it (which we just finished "for real" today...so it has dragged on for quite some time!) and we really didn't think it would ever end. Our kids spent hours in the hot sun and sitting patiently in the car or even babysitting themselves at home (one evening they were alone for 3 hours while we worked- they had my phone and Ty was asleep). They really had to push through too.

I hate to sound so gloomy and negative- but sometimes life is hard. There are hard things that have to get done and most of the time they just aren't fun- no matter how you look at it! This was certainly one of those times. But you know what, you can always learn something from these experiences and you can always become a little stronger and a little more capable.

Cory was amazing. He pushed and pushed and just kept going. The definition of tenacious is persisting in existence; not easily dispelled; determined. Cory certainly exemplified this tenacity throughout this project. I hope that our children learn from his example how important it is to keep pushing even when something is uncomfortable, unpleasant or just plain hard.

Great Grandpa Walker's Tour...

Cory's Grandpa wanted to take some of his family up to Dry Buck to show us all a little bit of where he grew up. We had a little campfire on our lot up there and Grandpa surprised us all with some activities from his youth- sawing logs (which was cool because he says that our property happens to be the exact place that his family would get firewood when he was little), rolling a metal ring with a stick, pounding fence with an 18 pound hammer, and showing us how he rolled the logs into their wagon. We then caravanned across Dry Buck as he showed us where his home and their ranch was.

Grandpa Walker is a pretty special person. He and Cory have always had a strong connection and I have been blessed by that too! He helped us everyday when we remodeled our first house and so when Cory would be at work it would just be Grandpa and I working away...day after day! I have some funny stories to tell but mostly I am grateful that I got to know him so well right off the bat!

Grandpa also grew up very poor- he was 14 years old before he got his first present ever- and it was a little whistle- but he is a very kind, content and hard working person. He is 86 years old and can work harder than most  20 year olds.

It certainly was a treat for our family to get to spend an evening glancing into the history that makes him who he is!

4th of July...

We had lots of fun on the 4th of July.

We kicked things off by heading to a parade in Middleton- it was hot- but it made it way fun that we were sitting in the "soak zone" and we able to get cooled off by all the firehoses.

On our way home from the parade we walked past a sign that said Cornell and had to take a picture for Grandma Walker.

We then came home and had a BBQ with my family and then took it easy until the fireworks that evening. Ty discovered the water in the grass and just played and played in it- and Cory and I just sat watching him for the longest time. It is amazing how even though Ty is the fourth child- we still marvel and adore the little things he does!

Last year we were walking into The Island right as the fireworks started so this year we made sure to get there a little earlier which made for some fun preshow activities...like playing with toys, taking a little snooze, eating some chips, playing Frisbee as other people lit fireworks around us and playing with our own sparklers.

Emmett does such a nice little firework show that is perfect for our children at this point in our lives. We are so grateful to live in a country that allows us our freedom! God bless the USA!

Brig's Photography of the Little Birdies...

Brig found a nest in our pear tree this year and found some sweet little eggs and since I am terrified a little nervous around birds, I asked him to take a picture for me. His pictures were beautiful and he would periodically go check on the nest and take some more pictures. One time when he checked on the birds the kids actually saw a bird jump out of the nest. It was a really neat experience.

A Spontaneous Camping Trip...

One afternoon, Cory called me on his way home from work- which is pretty normal- we actually call each other several times a day! He asked what we wanted to do that evening and casually threw out the idea of taking our camping trailer and going camping. We hemmed and hawed and eventually decided to give it a go. So I started to throw things together to camp. We rolled into Willow Creek and as forecasted...the clouds started to roll in too. We considered going home but only for a moment. We were going to stick it out.

We did and the kids had a great time. I say kids because once again we realized that camping is most certainly not a relaxing break for the parents but the memories and quality time is definitely a treasure.  

We did decide that it was worth selling our camping trailer. This was only the second time that we had used it since we purchased it and since we only could be away for one night at a time it didn't really seem worth the effort required to set up and clean up afterwards. Life is full of seasons and for us and the season that we are in just doesn't lend itself to extended adventures...but you better believe that we have mastered the day tripping adventures! We certainly squeeze plenty of fun into our summers.