Such a Week

To start off, two of our nephew's wives had sweet little babies last week, two days apart I think.  We were happy about the save arrival of  Nora and Jet, grandchildren of my two older sisters.  What fun to welcome such sweet little babies to our family.
We Barneys were busy ourselves...we had a baby shower for our own little granddaughter, Kimber, who will be here any day now, my mom and I sang in church and we had Red Neck Monday yesterday.  I was a bit lame-o and took my camera to the baby shower but did not have anyone take any photos so that was sad.  It was as fun party though, Meredith was here with Sadie, Saria, and Easton, (although there were no boys at the shower, so Easton, Russell, Jim and Royce has a boy afternoon,) and my mom and sisters, Rae Jean and Julie were at the shower.  Lots of Jim's family, his mom, Kristen, both his grandmother's, Melba and Peggy, his aunts and cousins and sister Ashleigh, were at the party so it was a fun time.  We had some family friends there as well, and collectively Colby and Kimber received lots of nice gifts and feel a little better prepared to bring Kimber home from the hospital.
Mom and I sang in my sacrament meeting Sunday afternoon.  We sang Did You Think to Pray.  My sweet visiting teacher Anna, played the piano for us.  It was kind of fun because Colby and Jim, Brittany, and Royce, AubRee, Grace and Kruz came to my church to hear us sing.  I guess we did okay, several sisters in the ward said they were a  bit teary eyed during the song, (hopefully because of the message of the song, not the bad singing!)

When Jim and Colby moved to Utah, to go to school at BYU we started a little tradition called Red Neck Saturday where we spend some time at Smith and Edwards,( a crazy store north of Salt Lake, that has everything in the world you could ever want to buy), followed by dinner at Famous Dave's BBQ.  (Famous Dave's is one of my favorite places to eat, just saying.) Anyway, since Monday was a holiday and I wasn't working and Russell wasn't working and Patrick wasn't working and Brittany wasn't working and Jim didn't have school we decided it was going to be Red Neck Monday and had fun spending the day together.  We started out with breakfast at IHOP.   

First meal of the day...

 Followed by a quick trip to RC Willey to get Colby a rocking chair for when the baby comes, a daddy tradition, that Russell has done for most of the mommies in our family.

the chosen recliner, rocker for Colby and Kimber

all together

 Then headed to ...

an awesome store

two handsome hunks

ice fishing tent

ice fishing with friends

our sweet Kimber

 We found some fun little Wrangler jeans and a sweet little cowgirl shirt for Kimber then we headed to

the yummiest place to eat, great baked beans, coleslaw and cornmeal muffins

the gang

humm wonder what they are thinking about

started Red Neck Monday eating and ended it eating........

 where we ate the trash can lid lunch which was really yummy.

This video is really funny of Patrick trying out the recliners at RC Willey made for the old folks.  It actually lifts you upright so you are almost standing when it is done moving.

It was a fun day together, thanks kids for sharing it with us. 

 Love you all, Eric, Chandra, Ali, Myah, Royce, AubRee, Grace, Kruz, Blake, Lindsey, Caleb, Spencer, Ethan, Meredith, Wes, Saria, Easton, Sadie, Brittany, Patrick, Colby, Jim and baby Kimber.  Especially love you Russell!!!!

My Great Idea.....

I had the great idea for Christmas this year to make all my gifts and so started way back in the summer knitting, crocheting and embroidering, making Family Home Evening lessons for kids, and food storage notebooks and meals for each family, sadly, that was not soon enough and I found myself most mornings in December at 5 am out in the living room knitting away and then again while watching TV at night and sometimes in the middle of the night when I couldn't sleep.  What a surprise I gave myself when it was time to wrap the gifts for my sweet sister in laws only to find that I hadn't quite finished embroidering one of the dish clothes I had planned to give away, so another late night was a head of me. Well, I ended up in Bear Lake still at it, knitting at all hours of the day and night.  I was sick though so it gave me an excuse to stay in bed and knit.  Here are some photos of the headbands I knit and crocheted for each of my daughters, daughter in laws and granddaughters, (except Meredith who never wants her photo taken ,you little stinker, and somehow I missed taking a picture of Lindsey, sorry)

Sadie-pants

Saria and Grace

Colby and Brittany

Myah, Chandra and Ali

Grace and AubRee



One thing that is cool about these headbands is that the buttons are from a stash my mom had at her house left over from their Munson's Grocery Store in Escalante, UT, sort of sweet little remembrance of Grandpa and Grandma Munson.  I am posting these pictures to remind myself not to be part of this insanity again, it was a nice idea that grew way out of proportion.....and took over my life. HA!

The Barneys, Smyths, Monsons and Allans go to Bear Lake for Christmas

 We just returned from a great week in Bear Lake with all our kids and grand kids.  It was really a fun time and so so good to be all together.  Thanks so much to each one of our kids who arranged schedules so they could be there with us.

Christmas Eve, after opening the 12th day of Christmas gift which was PJs for everyone.  

Here is Blake, Lindsey, Caleb, Spencer and Ethan, all the way from Washington.

Jim and Colby,  with little baby Kimber who should be here in a month.

This is Wes, Meredith, Saria, Easton and tiny little Sadie.

H

Here is Eric, Chandra, Ali and Myah, 

Our newlyweds, Brittany and Patrick.

And Royce, AubRee, Grace and Kruz.

We had lots of stockings for Santa to fill,

and many gifts to share.  Santa brought lots of fun stuff for all.

We ate some really large pizzas,

and had lots of fun doing it.

Sledding was part of the fun and sadly, the very first day little Grace got quite an ouchie on her cheek and chin.

Patrick and Jim decided to try sledding without a tube or saucer.  They went down the hill with just these garbage bags on, on their bellys, face first.  They are crazy!!!


Hope you all had a great holiday season!

Four Really Great Folks!

I just love this happy picture and just wanted to share it with you.....hope you love it too! ( love the people in this picture!)  So glad we have such great kids with such neat spouses. PS:be sure to keep reading so you don't miss the blog about Brittany's wedding shower....

Brittany's Really Fun Wedding Shower

We had a really fun bridal shower for Brittany this past week.  Thanks so much to Melissa Ballard and family for the party and for employing her the past 9 months.

There was so many people at the shower, friends from Victor, college roommates, sisters, sisters-in-law, mom,  mom-in-law, friends from Utah,  grandma, and LOTS of little girls.  She got really nice gifts from everyone.  It was good to meet Patrick's family and Melissa at the shower.  Its hard to believe two weeks from now she is going to be married......a little bit sad to me, but very exciting.  Here are some photos of the fun event.

 Family and friends.

Cute little dressed up brides, Eliza, Saria, and Mary Katherine.

My sweet sisters, Rae Jean and Julie.

Opening gifts.......

My present for Brittany, crocheted hot pad holders, knit dish clothes and embroidered hand towels.  Lovingly made each time one of my daughters or sons is married.  Guess this is the last time since Brittany is our last to be married.  WOW!

Brittany has planned a fun party for after the wedding and their honeymoon, hope we get to see lots of you there!

Road Trip!!!!!

Many years ago we lived in Northern Idaho in a little town called Hayden Lake.  It was an awesome place for little kids to grow up, especially if you liked to play in the woods and climb really tall pine trees.  Well....last week Russell and I took a little stroll up nostalgia lane and returned to that place and those memories.  We had such good friends there and had a chance to visit some of the best of them. 

This is the house we lived in then.  It was right in the middle of the woods.  Russell cleared the land so it could be built.  Now... there are houses all around it.  Eric, Royce, Blake and Meredith climbed those tall pine trees, often times to the tops. I had a little preschool here called Alphabet Soup Preschool. It was a fun little place to come to.

These are the Frantz boys.  They had a home out around Hayden Lake and we had lots of good times there.  Between our boys and these boys much mayhem and mischief was made, all in good fun of course.  We were able to spend an afternoon with them while we were up north and we loved seeing them all.  Between their family and ours I think there were 17 of us so it was a gang!  Their dad, Marty, (left in the picture), gave Colby the name of Little Thunder Diaper when she was first born and it has been one of her nicknames ever since. It is crazy to see these guys all grown up with little kids of their own. 

Our next stop was Seattle to visit Blake and Lindsey in their new home.  Blake is at the University of Washington doing a dental  residency.  He is studying to be a prostadontist, (not really sure how that is spelled).  They live on campus in a nice little 2 story apartment.  When we lived in Hayden Lake, Seattle was one of the places we visited often because we were in that temple district, so going back there was really fun for us. We got to go back to all our favorite places we haven't seen in many years. 

One place we love is Pike Street Market Place.  We got on the bus and rode there twice while we were visiting.  Here are the boys having fun on one of our visits.  We also ate on the wharf one night and this is the delicious dinner Lindsey and I shared:

It was a treat!!!!!

Caleb

Spencer

Ethan

Bus riding photos.....

We also rode a ferry to Bainbridge Island one day for a little adventure. The boys were so excited to ride on the big boat and see the cars ride on and off with us. 

While we were there this little fellow joined the Royce and AubRee Barney family.  

Meet Kruz Kent Barney:

We are pretty excited because he is moving here next week!!!!!!

After our Seattle visit we drove down the coast to visit some of our other favorite places, Seaside and Tillamook, Oregon. Seaside has a yummy restaurant called Pig and Pancakes where we went for breakfast  and then we took a stroll on the beach.  We were able to stop and visit my mom on the way home and it was good to spend some time there. It was so nice to have a week with Russell and just do whatever we wanted to do.  It was a much appreciated week of rest, fun, and relaxation.  Now it is back to work and the real world, darn it!

Grandkids come to play, and play and play......

Every summer for the past 6 summers our four oldest grandkids have come to visit for a week.  We try to do every fun thing possible while they are with us. (mostly because we live in a tiny apartment and the addition of four extremely fun, active kids is to much for the little place), there are lots of cool things to explore in our area.   Well this summer has to be ultimate in fun things to do.  Our city has a neat pass you can buy that lets you get into 13 attractions for a reduced price and...I found a Groupon that had this pass on sale so it was even cheaper so I bought us each one and we had a great time.  Now, just so you know, that week is over and Russell and I are on a vacation from that vacation.  It was such a busy week that we needed a rest.  HA!

Monday morning, this was the first official event we attended, breakfast at our church 24th of July celebration, followed by the Days of 47 parade in downtown Salt Lake City.  Then we got in our swimsuits and swam all afternoon.  Something that you just have to do every day with these four little fish/parade watchers.Tuesday we went bowling and I am happy to say I actually broke 100 in both of our games.  We also helped Brittany and Patrick move into their new apartment.  We got some of Brits stuff out of our storage unit to take there and Patrick was moving from one place to another so we helped them move that stuff.  One great find there was tons of snails, they were excellent entertainment for the kids!!!!!  This picture is of a snail race up the stairs at their apartment.

Wednesday, the first Groupon place we went was to the Lion House Pantry where we got a free lunch.  It is located in downtown Salt Lake and is near temple square.  This is walking distance from our apartment so we go there every chance we can. Temple square is a beautiful spot with lots of  memories for Russell and I.  It is were we were married 32 1/2 years ago. These girls especially like going there because there are usually brides and grooms coming out of the temple after getting sealed to each other as well as getting wedding photos, so they like to see all the beautiful brides in their lovely wedding dresses.

Our next stop that day was the Discovery Center at the Gateway Mall.  This is the second visit we have had there and the kids love it.  They spent lots of time in the little grocery store,  Saria was a checker, Myah was a shopper and checker, Easton was a shopper and Ali  stocked the shelves which meant that after each child bought their groceries, she had to put the stuff back on the shelves.  Also, lots of little boys just like to dump all the groceries on the floor so she spent a good amount of time picking up after them.  Another fun thing at the Discovery Center is a mini new-casting center.  You can sit in front of movie camera and read the news, or stand in front of a green screen and do the weather.  The girls love that!!!!   After the Discovery Center we stopped in at the Family History Center at the Joseph Smith Memorial Center and looked up some genealogy for the kids.  It was cool to look at the census records , and other records for their great great great great great great, ( just kidding) grandparents. 

Thursday  found us at the Clarke Planetarium, also at the Gateway Mall.  We were able to explore all the neat things that place has, read about  space, walk on the moon and Mars, and do science experiments.  We watched a 3D IMAX movie about baby elephants and baby orangutans that was very informative and super cute.  Then we watched a  presentation in the dome about space and the planets.  (I think, because I pretty much slept through that!)

After lunch we went to the This Is The Place Heritage Center , up Emigration Canyon and spent the afternoon.  It is a place that teaches about the beginnings of Salt Lake City and life in a earlier time.  There were  lots of hands on stuff to do here in different old houses and cabins and the kids loved it here.  We rode this train around  to see it all then went to all the different places to check them out.  The favorite thing this afternoon was the gold panning, although Easton was quite put out that the gold wasn't real, just iron pyrite or fools gold.  They each did get some though so that was fun.

Friday morning we went to Hoagle Zoo and did a lot of walking around.  It was a fun place to go.  We saw lots of animals but the favorites were tigers, elephants, giraffes and the animated dinosaurs that were on display there for the summer. This big metal elephant the kids are sitting on would squirt water out it's trunk so that was good for getting cooled off at! (Also there was a couple of the dinosaurs that would squirt you!)

Friday afternoon found us at Thanksgiving Point at the Museum of Ancient History.  It is truly an amazing place.  It is full of dinosaur bones, tiny and HUGE.  Some of the displays were out of this world.  Those dinosaurs were gigantic.  The kids are sitting in front of a huge shark that was alive in the dinosaur age.  It was very large, very real looking and very scary!!! It looked like it could just eat you up.  The kids liked this  place a lot.!

       The Fabulous Four
We sure had a great time with the kids.  It was even better because Russell had the whole week off so he could spend it with us. Thanks Ali, Saria, Myah and Easton for spending part of your summer with us.  
        WE LOVED IT  !!!!!!!!    See ya next year.